A/N: As I was uploading this, my boyfriend looked over my shoulder and said, "honey, why can't you figure out how to format things consistently?"
-endless sighing-
Hope y'all enjoy. Reviews are appreciated.
+ T W O
Blood Rush in the Hazy Glow
Hanji had won the fight so, for the next few days, Levi found himself slumped in a lumpy armchair sitting across from a pretty Omega named Petra whose infinite patience both confounded and impressed Levi. So far, he had rejected every Alpha Petra had found him for a myriad of different reasons. It was by god's grace that Petra hadn't wrung Levi's neck yet.
"Alright, Mr. Ackerman," Petra sighed, shuffling through her files. "you've all but exhausted your options. We'll never be able to find your true mate at this point if you don't give some of these Alphas a chance."
Levi snorted uglily, which turned into an equally ugly guffaw, "True mate. The fuck is up with that?! There's no such thing, and even if there was I wouldn't find it through a fucking Endangered Omegas database."
Petra stiffened and, for the first time since Levi had met her, she looked angry, "Mr. Ackerman, I'll have you know that we have the highest rate of matching in the country and that I, myself, met my true Alpha through this database."
Levi blinked and squinted at Petra. He had known she was mated from the moment they met but this was new bullshit, "And how do you know they're your true Alpha?" Also what had Petra done to end up in the Omega Endangerment program?
Petra flushed angrily, "You just...you know, okay? The moment you're in their presence, you'll know. It's instinct, it can't be explained! Now, please, have a look at these files- they are your last options." Petra roughly placed the folders in front of Levi and leaned back in her chair with a vicious huff.
Levi rolled his eyes but grabbed the folder off the top just to pacify Petra. It took him all of three seconds to toss the first one aside, then the second, then the third. He opened the fourth one with a deep sigh and peered at the profile with pursed lips.
Erwin Smith. The name sent a tumultuous shiver straight down Levi's spine. Mr. Smith was older than Levi- a dignified thirty-four to his twenty-eight- and he'd been a part of the Endangered Omegas database for a total of eight years (since after his retirement from the army) with a two year pause worked in. Levi was astounded by the amount of information- Smith was an attorney by trade, architect by hobby who had been mated once before to an Omega he had taken as his mate and wife- hence the two year pause. But it appeared that that match had been unfruitful and resulted in a divorce, since then Smith had mated with numerous Omegas in the program. However, those matches hadn't yielded a true mate for him, so he remained an Alpha candidate in the database. The image in the file made Levi violently bite his lip- it wasn't a neat, passport headshot like the others...it was instead a grainy, shadowed image of the man's engorged cock.
Levi had never been the type to salivate over someone's genitals, but he found himself swallowing at the sight of Smith's dick. He had never seen a dick quite like this one. The thing wasn't just big in length, but also in girth- it was so thick and angled that just looking at it was making Levi squirm. He looked up at Petra, who was looking back at him with an extremely satisfied expression on her face.
"Like what you see?" Petra asked innocently. Levi mentally penciled her in as a force to be reckoned with.
"Where's his real picture?" Levi asked, his voice slightly strangled.
Petra shrugged, "Irrelevant. The point is, Mr. Smith is quite a talented bedmate and you needed a push so I just slipped that picture right in to convince you."
"Where did you even get this?"
Petra sighed, "He was my first partner when I joined the program, that picture is the only sext I ever convinced him to send me- it's more valuable than gold, I'd wager; there are Omegas that would kill to have it. He's a very gentle and controlled Alpha, he's sensitive to an Omega's needs, and he's easy to talk to. He was only a 65% genome match for me and I still felt extremely connected to him by the end of our time together- you two are an 80% match so I'd say you have a damn good shot with him. Even if he doesn't end up being your true mate, he'll make sure your Heat is unforgettable."
Levi looked down at the picture of Smith's cock again, his own twitching slightly in response. Gritting his teeth, Levi shoved the folder at Petra furiously and spat a curt "set it up" to her before storming out of the office. As he made a beeline for the men's restroom to frankly rub one out, he swore he could hear Petra's victory cheers.
His Heat returned with a vengeance that night, slick dripping thicker than ever. Levi wasted no time in unceremoniously stabbing the benzo-pen into his thigh. Before the world faded to black, Levi caught himself thinking eagerly about Erwin Smith's monster cock.
"Alright, have you got everything? Enough clothes? Underwear? Teddy?" Hanji flitted around Levi anxiously, peering into his worn out duffel like a mother sending their child off to college.
"Yeah, I'm good." Levi snapped, snatching his bag away before Hanji could snoop more thoroughly. Levi had considered buying some lingerie or condoms or...something. Anything to take the edge of nervousness off and award him some false bravado...but in the end, his frugal nature won over. He hadn't been able to sleep all night, using the time to instead clean every inch of his apartment, then shower for two hours. By the time he had emerged from the bathroom, his fingers were pruned and his skin flushed tomato red. He took solace in cleanliness, found comfort in the citrusy scent of soap on his skin. The past few days had felt like a dream- Levi had been floating through the hours in a haze, but cleaning (bathing in particular) grounded him, reminded him that the earth was firm and unyielding beneath his heels; however, it hadn't been enough to unwind the tightly coiled nerves from the pit of his stomach.
He dug his fingers firmly into his bag, "Where am I meeting him again?"
"The Argentum Hotel downtown, I'm driving you." Hanji replied. "Erwin doesn't like hotels though, so you're only having brunch there before the two of you head to a more remote location."
Levi squinted at Hanji, "He's not a crazy axe murderer, is he?"
Hanji burst into peals of laughter before shaking her head, "No, of course not! I told you: Erwin is a great guy, I've met him! You'll have a nice time. Did they already give you the shot of birth control?" Levi nodded. "Excellent. I have your benzo-pen, you can have it back when you return." Levi nodded again, not trusting himself to speak when bile was rising steadily in his throat.
Levi felt like a sacrificial lamb headed to slaughter the entire 35 minutes it took to get to the Argentum. Not even Hanji's off-key singing and rampant road rage could distract Levi from the crushing weight of his thoughts. Fear colored his vision violet and Levi found himself unconsciously wringing his hands. This was the sort of anxiety that was difficult to pinpoint; the sheer volume of Levi's thoughts made even his nerves scattered. He tried to distract himself by imagining what Erwin Smith looked like...his face, rather than his dick.
At first Levi imagined a man who would put George Clooney to shame- salt and pepper hair, refined wrinkles, a slender throat. But his fantasy fell short on account of Smith not being that old and the fact that someone with a dick that pretty likely had none left for the rest of him. So Levi took to imagining Smith as a balding, stout man with watery eyes. The image seemed to suit the name Erwin Smith well.
Hanji pulled up in front of the hotel whilst singing announcement of their arrival and shocking Levi out of his thoughts. A valet rushed to the car and opened the passenger side door. Levi looked at the hotel, then at Hanji, then at the valet. When no sight offered him any comfort, Levi stumbled out of the car and walked as though he were in a daze into the building- all but ignoring Hanji shouting something that sounded embarrassingly like "catch you on the flippity flip, my nizzle frizzle".
He gripped his duffel tightly, his knuckles white around its thick strap. The hotel restaurant was directly adjacent to the front door, to Levi's relief. He walked towards it with purpose, suddenly finding his navy t-shirt, black skinny jeans, and peacoat combo ill-fitting among the grandeur of the hotel. He felt even more out of place the moment he stepped into the restaurant. Everyone was formally dressed, looking lavishing in suits and tight dresses despite the clock reminding them that it was only 10:30am.
Levi stood awkwardly at the entrance, his knees practically knocking together in alarm. He scanned the room for a stout balding man, but all the faces were blurring together in his head. He was on the verge of a meltdown when a waitress with a gentle smile approached him.
"Levi Ackerman?" She asked. Levi nodded. She smiled wider and gestured for Levi to follow. "Mr. Smith has been waiting. Oh, would you like to check your bag or your coat into the front desk?" Levi shook his head. "Very well." She led him to the back of the restaurant, to a table strangely secluded despite its not unnatural distance from its neighbors. Levi kept his eyes trained to the toes of his converse, refusing to look up even as he dropped into the seat the waitress directed him to and placed his duffel on his lap.
"Thank you, Ellen." The smooth baritone voice shocked Levi, but he still did not raise his eyes.
"Happy to help, Mr. Smith." The waitress said, beaming. She turned to Levi with the same smile, "Can I bring you something to drink, sir?"
"Mimosa. Sans the orange juice." Levi said, surprised that his voice was steely when it sounded.
"So...a glass of champagne?" The waitress inquired. Levi shrugged. The waitress smiled knowingly before addressing Smith, "Coffee- one cream, no sugar?"
"You know me so well."
With a tittering laugh, the waitress departed and Levi was left at the mercy of Mr. Smith.
