It was starting. He could feel it from the tingling of his skin. He could only hope that he wasn't so obvious. The smell shouldn't make itself known until it was full blown but some of his classmates could have keen noses. He still had club activities but Akihito was seriously considering skipping. Having his heat break out right in front of Mitsuki was the last thing he wanted.

But if he skipped she would ask why and she would see right through any lie. Or worse, Mirai would ask and he was just as horrible when it came to lying in her face, if not worse. Akihito decided to power through it. The feeling wasn't so strong right now. He could probably hold out until he got home and then he could lock himself up in his room in peace.

He could feel the headache coming on with figuring out getting the doctor's note and all the class time he would miss, but it couldn't be helped. Akihito had been preparing for the day for a long time. Being an omega came with an extra set of rules and going through your heat was just one of the hurdles of life. But he never really felt that he was an omega until now.

It was after school and he was sitting in the club room by himself. The others had yet to arrive. Mitsuki, despite her bold attitude, was a beta, as was Mirai. Hiroomi was an alpha but that sort of potential seemed wasted on a guy who was a siscon. Even though biologically, Akihito was supposed to be lower on the ladder, he never felt beneath them, excluding the occasional insult from Mitsuki.

Society progresses, he supposed. There wasn't much of a difference between alpha/beta/omega besides the biological stuff. But you still had a few that clung to the old ideas.

"Will you stop that? I've just walked in and it's already annoying." Mitsuki frowned down at him from where he sat.

Akihito didn't even notice how hard he had been tapping the table. He was getting anxious. For good reason too. His body was feeling a little warm. Was it happening faster than he anticipated? Mirai came in a minute after Mitsuki and suddenly the room felt crowded even though it was only three of them. The two girls were talking about something but Akihito's ears didn't really hear anything.

Suddenly, he got up to his feet and muttered something about not feeling well before leaving the club room. He'd face them both later but right now he just couldn't handle being in there. He wasn't even sure if he could make the trip home without collapsing but somehow he did. After closing the door and stepping out of his shoes he removed his clothes on the way to his room, leaving a trail.

He got down to his boxers and laid face down on the floor, groaning. His head was light and his body was warm and he felt like he might lose consciousness if he didn't focus on something. Akihito thought about cooking something but he might burn the house down. His muscles didn't feel like moving anyway so he settled for just laying there.

Maybe if he took a nap, he'd feel better. Sex ed didn't delve too deeply into the aspects of heat and it was even more confusing with a half youmu like him. But it should only be a few days, so he'd power through it. Akihito heard a knock and then a familiar voice.

"Akkey? Your door was open so I'm coming in." Hiroomi entered and locked the door behind him. "Mitsuki told me you were acting weirder than usual and that you ran off to be weird in the privacy of your own home."

"Says the pervert that just entered a high school boy's place of residence without an invitation", he teased weakly, trying to pick himself up.

Having Hiroomi see him like this was almost as embarrassing as having the girls witness it. He brought himself to a sitting position and even that was a struggle, but he was able to do it before Hiroomi made it to his room and grinned at him. The other had been prepared to meet him with his own smirk but was distracted by a powerful smell.

He looked down at Akihito who was sitting in his underwear and began to connect the dots. "Akkey...are you...?"

"Yeah", he saw no reason to deny it at this point. There was too much evidence. "It's gonna start soon so you might wanna leave." He might not have minded his friend knowing that his heat was happening but he definitely mind him watching.

"You think I'm going to leave you alone. Have you forgotten my promise?"

"Promise?" Akihito scratched his head, drawing nothing but blanks.

Hiroomi tapped his foot, getting impatient. "When you told us all you were an omega, I made a promise to you. I can't believe you forgot about it."

"What are you talking about?" Akihito was still trying to remember just what he was talking about when it finally came to him. It had been just a few days after meeting for the first time.

Their introduction had been eventful itself so the following days didn't stand out as much, but Akihito could remember some sort of conversation pertaining to his heat.

"So you're an omega?"

"Yeah."

"Which means you'll go into heat one day?"

"...Yeah."

"That sounds rough. Sorry."

"I don't need you to comfort me." Akihito had lived this way his entire life, though it wasn't long. He'd made peace with being an omega. To be perfectly honest, being half youmu was a bigger concern of his.

"Who are you going do to it with?"

"What?"

"Omegas usually go through it with a partner, right? Who are you going to choose?" Despite his conversational tone, Hiroomi looked really interested in his answer.

"I-I haven't thought about that! It's not gonna happen anytime soon. Why are you even asking? You gonna fill out an application to be my partner?"

The corner of Hiroomi's lip quirked up as if he were about to grin. "Unfortunately, I'm saving myself for someone who is precious to me. But if you find yourself lonely when it begins, I will be happy to honor you with my service."

"Gross."

"Who is?"

"You."

"What? I couldn't quite hear your praise for my generosity."

The rest of the conversation was just their usual quips and comebacks. Akihito looked up at Hiroomi. He was getting a little irritated at this angle of he didn't feel like standing up.

"You're serious? You're going to...you want to...with me?"

"What are friends for?", Hiroomi shrugged, making light of the situation.

"Friends don't offer sex at the drop of the hat. What? Was that whole thing with your sister an act to cover up how you feel about me?"

"I love my darling sister whole heartedly. But leaving you alone would be torture and I'm not that mean spirited. Besides, just as I predicted, you have no one."

"You don't know that", Akihito protested petulantly.

Hiroomi went down in a squat and sat in front of him. "I don't? Then there is someone?"

This angle might have actually been worse because the space between them had decreased and Akihito wasn't sure how to feel about that. He couldn't lie and say he was in a relationship. Hiroomi knew him well enough to see past that. And he couldn't use anyone they knew because he could confirm it in no time.

"No", his voice was uncharacteristically soft. "There's no one. But that doesn't mean I'd choose you."

Hiroomi's eyes narrowed. "What's wrong with choosing me?"

If Akihito didn't know better, he could have sworn that Hiroomi was projecting his scent. But that would be ridiculous. His heat must have just made it seem that way. Everything as more sensitive so why not his sense of smell?

"What's wrong is that we're friends. And friends don't do this. Wouldn't it make things...awkward?"

"It would only be that way if it made you uncomfortable. Am I making you uncomfortable?"

The scent Akihito had smelled before became lighter, almost like Hiroomi was closing up. So he was projecting earlier, but why? Did he want to be Akihito's partner that badly? Hiroomi's good looks weren't wasted on him, he could see them clearly. In addition he was an alpha from a good family. Even the citizens oblivious to the spirit activity knew the Nase family was worth something. Hiroomi's insistence wasn't making that much sense to Akihito. There had to be another reason as to why he was doing this.

"How long have we known each other? If I've been fine then, I'm fine now." Akihito crossed his arms haughtily. "I had been prepared to go through this alone. But, having someone might be better...As long as you don't start calling me 'Mitsuki' or 'little sister' it won't be awkward."

Hiroomi smirked. "What if I call you 'younger sis-"

"Your first task is to make me something to eat because I'm pretty sure I'm about to die from hunger."