I nodded once. Because that’s what I was supposed to do. Even if every part of me wanted to disappear.
Chapter 2
Vincent
I hadn’t known what I’d find. But it wasn’t this.
Not the boy kneeling in the center of the room like something fragile pretending to be obedient.
Delicate frame. Back straight. Head bowed in silence that felt rehearsed.
Each breath barely moved him, yet he held himself with unnerving control, like stillness was the only thing keeping him from unraveling.
Brown hair slicked neatly off his face, revealing high cheekbones and a softness that didn’t belong in this room.
Beautiful.
And wrong.
I saw the way my presence hit. A flicker in his throat. A pause in his breath.
He didn’t look up as I stepped closer.
I could feel the tension in him, like a wire pulled tight.
I stepped close enough to feel the edge of his breath against my cloth-covered legs. His body heat easily seeped into mine, causing me to know that my being here wasn’t just fate.
“Did they tell you I’d be kind?” I had wanted the boy to know not to fear me. I wasn’t here for that. I didn’t get off on fear, nor did I want to evoke such feelings.
His shoulders twitched. Just once.
“I wonder what that means to you.” I tilted my head to the side, watching for every reaction, watching every emotion that may or may not run across his face.
Still no eye contact. But I saw the way his fingers curled slightly against his thighs, as though he had to force himself to stay in the moment.
“I don’t need you to speak,” I said, voice low. “Not yet.” I paused, letting the words settle. “But I do want you to listen.”
He nodded. Barely. And that was enough. For now.
I could touch him.The thought came uninvited.
One hand beneath his chin. A single lift. Just enough to see what lived behind those lowered eyes.
I held myself back. Barely. Because the moment was still forming, and I didn’t want to break it.
He was kneeling, yes. But not offering. Not surrendering.
He was surviving. And that made him interesting.
I watched the way his breath tried to stay even. He was trying to disappear without moving.
And now here he was wrapped in silence, dressed in restraint, waiting for something he couldn’t name.
This boy was everything and more, and I hadn’t even been in the same room as him for more than a handful of minutes.
Maybe my friends were right. Not about this place, because any housing that Omegas were sent to was cruel and inhumane. But they were right that this boy kneeling before me would be the perfect match.Even if I laughed off their ideas, I still ended up right here, despite all the grumbling I did for days.
All this because of a simple thought spoken aloud.
