The Alpha's Pretend-Boyfriend

The Werewolves

There were only a few stereotypes that Louie had heard about werewolves. The first was how they are a hot-headed folk, easily angered even by the littlest of issues. Now, Louie knew this to be untrue, given how the werewolves he knew—Dane and Callie—were gentle and, if anything, too forgiving for their own good.

The second was how they mate for life. This one, Louie had yet to confirm, but from what he knew of the werewolves' mating, Alphas are best suited for Omegas—mostly because it is in their nature to stabilize each other's heat periods. With the ever-changing world, however, there had been more and more relationships with Betas to Omegas, Alphas to Alphas, and the like. It had also become common for werewolves to partner up with other creatures such as demons, goblins, humans, etc.

Lastly, Louie had heard of how warm they are—not figuratively speaking, but their bodies are literally warm to touch. Their temperatures rise even more during their heat periods to the point that they seem almost feverish. This, as Louie had previously learnt when he first met Dane, was true. This time again, he confirmed it as he woke up the next morning in his own bed, with Dane's arms and legs wrapped around him as if he was a body pillow.

The night before when he was tasked to bring the werewolf to his place, he had half-carried him to his car and even put his seat belt for him. Louie had tried to wake him up countless of times to learn his home address, but Dane had slept like a baby. On the rare occasions he did regain consciousness, he would only say meaningless things and mumble incoherent words then fall asleep once again. It had been a hopeless case that Louie had no choice but to bring him back to his own shabby apartment downtown, painstakingly carry him up the stairs, clean him up, and dress him yet again. It had felt like a repeat of last week’s fateful night, only this time, Dane was no longer a suspicious stranger and there was no kissing—not that he expected there to be any.

The only difference this time was that after he had settled Dane in his bed, the man held onto his arm and pulled hard that Louie’s body landed half on him and half on the bed.

“Uh, Dane?” Louie whispered. “Do you, um, need water?”

Dane only shook his head as he yawned with his eyes still closed. Louie tapped on his hand, which was still holding onto his arm, but instead of letting him go, Dane swung his leg over and nestled his head on the crook of Louie's neck.

Louie froze in place for a second, unsure of what to do. He tried tapping at Dane's shoulder to wake him up, then his leg. When he wouldn’t, he resorted to trying to lift the man's leg up. All to no avail. And when he tried to inch away, Dane swung his arm over and enveloped him into a hug. Louie’s eyes widened in surprise, then he carefully turned his head towards him. Dane continued to sleep, his face only inches away, looking so peaceful and comfortable that it made Louie stay very still just not to disturb him. His skin was also warm—a good thing too, because Louie always needed a thick blanket to sleep. So that night—Louie told himself, just for that night—he let himself stay in Dane's arms and closed his eyes to sleep.

He liked warm things anyway.

This brings us to the events of the next morning when Louie found himself still in a cuddle. He had slept well that night, but whether it was because of blue drink Fig made or Dane's warmth, he wasn’t sure. When he turned to look at Dane, he saw that the man was also beginning to slowly regain consciousness.

The first thing that Dane saw when he opened his eyes was Louie's face up close—his slightly startled dark brown eyes and his messy bed hair. This made Dane smile even though his head ached, and in his dreamy state mutter, “Ah, you really are cute even up close.” And since Louie's face was literally just a few inches away, Dane, without thinking, slightly leaned closer and gave him a small peck on the lips.

It had felt real. Too real, in fact, that it made Dane’s reason snap back into him and fully wake him up. His eyes widened as the realization that he wasn’t in a dream set in. With great panic, he screamed and scrambled away until he accidentally fell off the bed, butt-first.

“Oh my god, are you okay?” Louie sat up. His cheeks had become red and so did his ears.

Dane, who couldn’t believe he did what he just did, quickly picked himself up and kneeled on the floor and bowed down. “I’m so sorry, Louie!” he exclaimed with much regret. “I am so, so, so sorry for the hundredth time. I don’t expect you to forgive me after you’ve given me a chance to redeem myself after last week, but—”

“N-no, it’s alright, I–you can get up,” Louie said, unsure how to stop him from kneeling and begging for forgiveness.

“No, please, I don’t deserve your kindness anymore,” Dane looked up with his sad golden brown eyes almost in tears. “I’ve taken advantage of it far too many times. Ah, I can’t believe I did that! Your lips! For the second time!”

“Dane,” Louie couldn’t help but chuckle, “it’s fine. I accept your apology, alright?”

“J-just like that?” Dane frowned. “But I have to do something—I’ll do anything! Just tell me what you need!”

“Well,” Louie wasn’t the type to hold a grudge, nor did he think that Dane meant any harm. But he was also sure that it would haunt Dane if he didn’t say anything. “How about you cook me breakfast? After that we'll call it even.”

Dane blinked up at him. “Breakfast?” he asked. At least that stopped his desperate wailing.

“Oh, and also, drive me to work,” Louie smiled. “That should be fine, right?”

Dane still seemed hesitant. “Are you sure that’s all—”

“Well, if you don’t want to do those things…” Louie trailed off.

Dane quickly stood up. “No, no, I’ll do them! You wait here, I’ll bring you breakfast!” he excitedly said before he ran out of the room in a hurry.

Louie sighed but he couldn’t help as a smile formed on his lips. He wasn’t sure if it had anything to do with Dane being a werewolf, but really, he was something else. He wondered how Fig had fared with Callie.

***

As it turned out, Louie should’ve been more concerned for Callie than Fig, for much like the other werewolf, she seemed to fare just as bad—more appropriately, as embarrassing. The night before, Fig had scooped Callie into his arms and stood outside on the sidewalk after watching Louie drive Dane away. Usually, the demon would’ve just dematerialized and telephoned home, but he wouldn’t have been able to bring her with him. So, he settled on hailing a cab.

It was when they were in the back of a car when Callie finally regained consciousness. She woke up with her head resting on someone's shoulder, and when she looked to see whose it was, she felt as if she was in a dream. She had harbored a crush on Fig for two years, ever since she started working at Hestia's. It began on her very first day when she stood outside of the restaurant, too shy to come inside. It was Fig who saw her from inside and peeked out of the door. He was wearing the uniform then and his gray hair was a bit longer but neat nonetheless. It was early in the morning and Callie was tired from pulling an all-nighter for three days to pass her exams, but when Fig showed up, smiled at her ever so charmingly and said, “Beautiful long black hair, kind brown eyes…you must be Callie! Dane's expecting you,” she knew that she was done for. Her crush only grew as Fig befriended her in his own way—teasing her, including her in conversations with the rest of the staff, checking in on her every now and then. She had come to know that he was like that with everyone—flirty and affectionate—and she also saw how he went through lovers on a regular basis, but she didn’t mind. She had placed him on a pedestal and convinced herself she was alright even if Fig thought of her as family, as long as she had him by her side. Even if they only ever hung out in the restaurant and he went home to whomever he was dating that month.

So when her hazed up brain saw that it was him who stayed with her, even though they were outside of the workplace, she couldn’t help but feel that her heart was full.

“Ah, look who's finally awake,” Fig teased as he noticed her eyes open. “Best to sleep it off until the effects wear out tomorrow.”

“Where are we?” Callie groggily asked, sitting up straight to fix her ponytail then giving up as her arms felt heavy.

“In a cab,” Fig said, taking her hair tie from her hand and tying her hair for her. “I’m sending you home.” When he finished, he inserted his arm between the back of her neck and the seat, and used his hand to gently push her head back to rest on his shoulder.

“You don’t have a date?” Callie yawned. “You always have a date.”

“I couldn’t let you sleep in the restaurant now, could I?” Fig chuckled. “Get some rest,” he said, lightly patting on the top of her head.

Callie closed her eyes and smiled. “Have I ever told you you’re the greatest?” she sleepily asked.

“No, but do continue,” he replied with amusement in his voice. “You’re more talkative when you’re not sober.”

“I am sober,” she argued, although anyone who could see her would find that hard to believe. “You’re so kind, good-looking, charming, confident…” she trailed off.

“The last three, I’m sure. But kind?” Fig chuckled. “I don’t know about that.”

“You are!” Callie suddenly exclaimed, sitting up too fast that it made her dizzy. She placed her hands on the sides of Fig's face so he would look directly at her. “You’re the best, and your kind,” she said, her eyelids opening and closing ever so slowly as they felt heavy. “I don’t know why you keep settling for those lovers you date. They don’t deserve a guy like you.”

Fig raised an eyebrow. “Really?” he asked, dearly entertained at this side of Callie he hadn’t seen before.

Callie nodded in all seriousness. “Really,” she said. “You know I like you, right? I like you so, so much. Like a lot that I even got jealous of Louie for a second because you two had gotten close, but I know it’s nobody's fault,” she blabbered on without inhibition.

Fig’s expression straightened for a split second as he stared at her, then he smiled and gently took her hands off his face. “You know I like you too,” he said, placing his arm around her shoulders once again to make her lean onto him. “You’re a good friend. Now get some sleep, kid, you’re drunk.”

Callie let her eyes close shut, feling contented at that very moment, as if something heavy was just lifted off her chest. When she opened her eyes back up, it was already morning and she was in her own apartment alone. She had a goofy smile on her face as the residual feelings from what felt like a dream last night poured into her morning, but it faltered after only a few seconds as she remembered everything she had said and done.

With great panic, she sat up with her eyes wide. She couldn’t believe what just happened. She couldn’t believe those words actually left her mouth—words that she had kept in for two years.

“You’re a good friend,” Fig had said after she confessed her feelings. Did he misunderstand her or was that his way of letting her down gently? Callie proceeded to bury her face into her bed and screamed. She would have to face him in less than 3 hours.

***

Monday morning had started out to be quite problematic for both Callie and Dane. Unbeknownst to the two of them, the day was bound for a more tumultuous road—and not just for the werewolves.

After Dane had prepared an apology breakfast—literally apologizing while Louie ate the meal he made—they both prepared to leave for work.

It was a Monday, so they weren’t in any rush since there wouldn’t be any customers. Dane had graciously helped Louie with his things—basically just his usual backpack—opened the car door for him, and even volunteered to put his seat belt on which Louie just had to decline.

“I can do it myself,” he shyly said, feeling a bit flustered from how Dane was being overly attentive and affectionate more than the usual. It wasn’t like Louie minded it, when in fact, he kind of enjoyed being pampered. It was just that Dane had a tendency not to mind others' personal space, so even if he was just innocently brushing a piece of lint from the collar of Louie's shirt, Louie—who wasn’t used to that kind of thing—always ended up blushing or stuttering or sweating. His heart would always pound loudly in his chest that by the time Dane finally sat on the driver’s seat, a good arm's length away, Louie finally felt relieved. A bit more of that and his heart probably would have exploded.

When they arrived at Hestia’s, Dane hurriedly rushed to open Louie's door again and carry his bag for him.

“I can carry my bag,” Louie informed him.

“I can do it for you. You probably weren’t able to sleep well last night, were you? I usually have a lot of large pillows at home because I like to hug them, so I’m so sorry I used your body as one—” Louie stopped him just before he opened the door to the restaurant.

“Dane,” he breathed out. “It’s really okay. I didn’t mind helping you out. It's not like you chose to fall asleep on purpose. You did nothing wrong,” he assured him. “Besides, I slept like a baby last night because you were,” he looked down at his feet and mumbled out, “nice and warm.” He cleared his throat, straightened up and smiled at Dane. “So, seriously, we're okay. Just act like you did before, alright? No harm, no foul.”

Dane nodded and smiled back. Even at his height and build, he really still looked like a kid. Before he could speak, the door in front of them opened, revealing Callie. She smiled at them but there was panic in her eyes. At least, that’s what Louie saw. Dane, on the other hand, didn’t seem to catch this and greeted her like the usual instead.

“Hey, Callie. Did you get home fine last night?” he asked.

“Um, Dane,” she said with a forced smile still plastered on her face. “You have guests,” she tried to discreetly warn him, but Dane looked delightfully surprised.

“Visitors?” he asked with a wide smile as he stepped into the restaurant to search for them. “Who are—”

Louie and Callie followed him in and saw the exact moment the excitement died in his eyes, as he saw who his visitors were. Fig watched by the wine rack as he mindlessly pretended to wipe glasses, while Germain peeked through the service hatch.

“Mom, dad,” Dane breathed out. He managed to put on a smile that looked quite strangled as he approached his parents.

Louie had heard from Germain how Dane's relationship with them had been difficult, so it was understandable how the man's posture stiffened in an obvious discomfort.

“The restaurant seems to be doing alright,” his father said as he looked around with a scrutinizing look.

“W-what are you doing here?” Dane asked, giving his mother a kiss on the cheek. “You should’ve told me—”

“Do we need a reason to drop by?” his father coldly asked, making his mother step in.

“We were headed to your sister's when we passed by. We just wanted to say hi,” she kindly said. It was notable how different the couple's personalities were. Dane's mother exuded a warmth that her husband seemed to contrast. Judging by the way she caringly fixed her son's tie, it was obvious that Dane was closer to her.

“Speaking of your sister,” his father said, raising an eyebrow at Dane. “When are you going to get yourself a good omega partner and give us grandchildren? You’re almost thirty.”

“I—Uh,” Dane's eyes widened, clearly caught off-guard and feeling cornered as he helplessly looked around. When his gaze landed on Louie, his face brightened up as a ridiculous idea popped into his head.

Before innocent, unsuspecting Louie knew what was happening, Dane suddenly walked towards him and tightly grabbed his hand. “Bear with me for a second,” Dane whispered, his voice shaking, just before he turned to his parents once again and smiled.

“I’ve been meaning to tell you,” Dane said out loud, much to Louie's confusion, “I have someone in my life now. This is my boyfriend, Louie. I just came from his place and he actually helped me out with my heat just a few days ago.”

There was a shocked silence in the room as Louie turned to Dane in disbelief, Fig accidentally choked on the water he was drinking, and Germain and Callie’s jaws hung wide open.