"Oh," he says.
Alex gives him a look. Finn lifts both hands. "I'm not judging their dynamics. I'm just trying to map them so I know what I'm walking into when I wave from the fence."
"There's Jasper. Auditing. Watching." I gesture vaguely. "He's taking notes."
"You don't like him?" Malcolm asks.
"I don't dislike him. I just don't want to be a case file."
Alex nods, understanding flickering in his eyes.
Finn leans his elbows on the counter.
"Speaking of weird dynamics. You. Beta in an alpha pack?"
He brightens. "Ah, my favorite topic: me."
Alex groans quietly.
"Is it unusual? In practice, I mean. Registry's got forms for everything, but..."
"But most people assume 'pack' means alphas and omegas only. Yeah. We get looks sometimes."
"How did it happen? If that's not rude."
Finn glances at Alex, who gives a minute shrug.
"We've known each other since we were, like, nine. I moved to Alex's school mid-year. He was already halfway through becoming the terrifying little hall monitor we all know and love."
"I was a responsible child," Alex says.
"You were a tyrant. They made him safety captain and he tried to organize fire drills that weren't scheduled."
Alex sips his coffee like he's above this.
"Anyway, we glommed onto each other. Best friends. Shared everything. School projects, snacks, questionable haircuts. I started to realize I was a beta, he started to realize he was whatever the alpha version of a control freak is." He grins. "We fit anyway."
"His parents assumed he'd form a pack someday," Malcolm adds. "They started throwing alphas at him in high school. It was obvious he was going to be pack lead."
"And he started introducing me as 'part of the package.' Like, hi, if you like Alex, you're going to have to deal with his emotional support beta."
My heart squeezes.
"Seriously?"
"Seriously. When he started talking about forming a legal pack as adults, I assumed he meant an alpha group with me as the awkward roommate."
Alex gives him a flat look. "You assumed wrong."
"I did. He went to the registry and said, 'I want a dual-alpha pack with a beta co-head.' Lady behind the desk nearly choked."
"The forms are there. They just don't expect anyone to use them."
"Do you feel left out?" I ask Finn. "I mean. With bonds. Instinct stuff."
He shakes his head. "I can't scent-match the way omegas can, or anchor the way alphas do. But Alex never treats me like I'm less. He checks in. We talk. We set boundaries like boring adults. When Malcolm joined, he signed on knowing my role wasn't negotiable."
Malcolm nods. "Came with the Alex package. Worth it. Finn's the only one who understands half his insane spreadsheets."
