The bell rang to signal the end of the last class period. After packing up her schoolbag, Mei made her way to the Student Council Office simply from force of habit even though wasn't anything there that needed her attention.

At the filing desk, she fussed over the steering committee paperwork for the Cultural Festival, shuffling and reshuffling them absentmindedly. Miyabi, one of the first-year council members, gave a her a curious look. Probably because she had seen Mei finish the paperwork earlier that day. The beta didn't say anything, which made Mei self-conscious.

She was stalling.

Irritation prickled between Mei's eyebrows, forehead creasing into a frown. Why was she even hesitating with following through with her invitation to that new girl?

That new student, the omega – what was her name? Tachibana Sara.

It was clear that Sara was eager to meet up with her and spend time with her. Hell, the girl confessed to her. There was no question as to whether this girl wanted her company or not.

So why was she over here in the office, hiding from an omega who practically threw herself at her?

It's not like I'm saving myself for someone. Why shouldn't I hang out with a girl who likes me? Yuzu was pretty clear about the both of us being free to date other people.

Not that I'm going to date this Sara person.

The memory of seeing Yuzu last night on a date with Isuke Inukai rose in her mind like dark, poisonous sludge from the bottom of a swamp. And then Yuzu revealing to her the whole sordid tale about dating both Isuke and Haruki, behind her back, for weeks. This whole time, playing her for some kind of fool –

Mei caught herself close to snarling, her lips peeled back over her teeth and a low growl churning in her throat. Miyabi's eyes were rounded in alarm, looking at her like she might snap at any moment, but frozen in fear. Poor Miyabi. I should get out of here and leave her in peace.

Her negative, chaotic thoughts followed her out into the hallway.

Mizusawa Matsuri's accusation rang in her ears, and as much as she hated to admit it, it fucking stung. She had tried really, really hard not to be that stereotypical alpha who let their biology rule their behavior – but Mizusawa jumped down her throat and flat out told her she was trying to use her off-balance hormones as an excuse for her shitty behavior.

Matsuri, that little runt of an alpha, told her to grow up.

God, that was a sick burn. She still wasn't over it.

A large group of students were approaching from the other end of the hallway, and they instinctively parted for her, as if she was a boulder in the middle of a stream. Each one all naturally deferred to her. Some of them sneaked looks at her, and a brave few gave her small smiles.

Everyone in this school had an image of her. She was the student council president, the chairman's granddaughter, highest-ranked student, the undisputed top alpha of her peers.

Heavy is the head that wears the crown.

Wow, that sounds really pretentious.

Mizusawa Matsuri thought she was a joke, and the alpha pack thought she was weak. Yuzu didn't trust her. Himeko thought she had anger issues.

Mei closed her eyes briefly but didn't allow any other outward sign of her distress to show. She was a pro at this. She had been doing this all her life.

Pack that uncomfortable emotion in a box. Now seal it up. Place the box in the closet. Next to all the other boxes.

What a mess she's made of things. She wished she could start over.

But she could do that with this Sara girl, couldn't she? Here was someone who didn't know her, didn't have any preconceived notion of her.

Heck, Sara even said she needed her.

Mei walked a little faster towards the literature club room.

Yuzu was gossiping with Harumi in the classroom when she saw Sara and Nina walk by, talking excitedly. Poking her head out of the open window, she called out, "Where are you guys headed?"

Both girls turned towards her.

"Hi Yuzu!" Sara beamed. "I'm headed to the literature club room."

"Oh?" Yuzu stepped out into the hallway to join the twins. "Are you planning to join the literature club?"

Sara smiled and shook her head, eyes glittering. "Nope."

"Okay?" Yuzu lilted, confused.

"Onee-chan is going on a date with her dream girl!" Nina cheered.

Sara hushed her sister with a warning look. "Shhh! It's not a date."

"Whoa. That girl you were telling me about? Destiny girl? You actually talked to her?" Yuzu asked.

Sara nodded in the affirmative, a giddy smile breaking across her face like a brilliant sunrise.

"That's great! I knew you could do it!"

"It's not like we're instantly mated or anything," Sara said sheepishly. "We're just going to hang out, I think. But it's a start. Speaking of which, I need to find the literature club room. Momokino-san showed me during our tour, but I forgot where it is."

Yuzu grinned. "I'll take you." She stuck her head in the classroom and said to Harumi, "Hey, I'll be right back. I'm gonna take Sara to the club rooms on the 2nd floor."

Harumi looked up from her phone and gave a little wave in acknowledgement.

As Yuzu led them towards one of the stairwells, Nina reached out and touched her elbow. "So…I was actually going to leave, because I want onee-chan to be alone with the girl," the younger twin said pointedly.

Yuzu chuckled, amused at Nina's concern. She had noticed that the taller girl was really protective of her sister. "I'm not planning to crash their tête-à-tête, I'm just taking her to the rendezvous. The girl won't even see me. Don't worry, I have a of lot stealth," she reassured the taller girl.

Nina simply stared at her for a tense moment, as if appraising her trustworthiness.

Yuzu felt her omega bristle. What the hell? I'm not gonna try to steal Sara's girl, Jesus. What do you take me for?

Nina tilted her head and said, "Okay." She gave Yuzu a quick wink that was equal parts conspiratorial and threatening.

She turned to Sara and gripped her shoulders. Looking at her older sister in the eyes, she said in serious voice, "Today is the day you meet your fated person. Good luck."

Then Nina walked away from the two omegas with a wave over her shoulder. "I'll see you at home, onee-san."

Deciding not to comment on Nina's misplaced suspicion, Yuzu led Sara up the stairwell. "So tell me all about how you asked out your dream girl. What did you say?"

"I just went right up to her and told her I liked her."

"Wow. I'm proud of you, Sara. I don't think I'd be brave enough to just confess to a complete stranger like that."

"I mean I was nervous as hell, but I just decided to shoot my shot," Sara replied with a shrug as they walked out of the stairwell and into the 2nd floor. "I didn't have anything to lose, and the love of my life to gain!"

Yuzu couldn't help but grin at her new friend. She was really happy for Sara and couldn't wait to see her love story unfold. It was like the plot of a shoujo manga, and she was going to be able to witness it up close!

"Oh, so what's her name?" Yuzu asked as they rounded the corner of the hallway where the club rooms were.

"Her name's Mei."

Yuzu stopped in her tracks. "Wait. What?"

"Mei," Sara enunciated. Realizing they were getting close to the meeting spot; she dropped her voice to a whisper. "That's her name. It's pretty, like her."

"Uhhhh," Yuzu said dumbly. Her forehead crinkled. It can't be, that's ridiculous. Like a rolodex, her brain flipped through each girl in Aihara Academy. Who else is named Mei? "What year is she in?" Her voice came out rushed, bordering on frantic.

"I'm not sure, but I'm going to guess in the third year."

"What makes you say that?" Yuzu asked as her stomach filled with cold dread. She was on a roller coaster going up the lift hill before the huge drop, trepidation thrumming in her veins.

"Because she's the Student Council president," Sara replied.

A pit formed in the bottom of Yuzu's stomach, and her heart dropped into it. No. Oh no.

Standing there against the wall right across the literature club room was her sister, Mei. Her sister the alpha. The alpha who Sara was apparently in love with.

Mei stood there in the hallway, in her dark green blazer, with the student council badge on her arm, not a hair out of place, the picture of perfection. She looked like she was carved from marble, all finely chiseled cheekbones and elegant neck, her face impenetrable and unreachable.

The alpha hadn't caught sight of them yet. She was reading a small notebook which Yuzu knew was her day planner. Yuzu felt oddly smug at the idea that her stepsister considered Sara something to be checked off her task list for the day.

Surely, this is all a mistake, right? This isn't actually a date or anything. Mei isn't really interested in Sara. Yuzu instantly felt ashamed at her deprecating thoughts. Sara was her friend!

Sara slowed down and turned slightly to look at her. A small smile turned up the corners of her friend's lips, a secret between them. Now that she had delivered Sara to the rendezvous with her one true love, Yuzu's work here was done. Sara expected her to leave.

There was a split-second pause where she had to make decision.

Yuzu stood on a precipice. She knew that she should turn around now and go back to Harumi who was waiting for her. They were going to Kona Coffee to try the cucumber cake, and maybe do some homework. She absolutely had no business here.

Adopting a cavalier attitude, Yuzu kept right on walking, ignoring Sara's small noise of alarm.

"Yuzu, what are you doing?" Sara whispered urgently.

"I just want to say hello to Mei," Yuzu tossed over her shoulder.

And why shouldn't she say hello to Mei? She had every reason to. Mei was her sister. Mei was her friend.

Mei used to be her mate. She felt an overwhelming urge to let Sara know that once upon a time, she wore Mei's claim on her neck.

"Oh. Okay. It figures that you know her. She's obviously the most popular girl in the school!"

Mei raised her head and looked at them approaching. Her eyes widened in surprise, but then just as quickly schooled her expression into something neutral.

A few meters behind Mei, the arts and crafts club was painting scenery for the plays in the upcoming Culture Festival. A girl wearing an artist's smock turned on an electric fan to help dry the paint on the sets.

The breeze from the fan carried Mei's alpha scent down the hallway towards the two omegas.

Yuzu's chin lifted slightly when she caught the first whiff of Mei's scent. She was very familiar with Mei's personal scent, that comes with sharing a room and a bed. Oh, and being mated before. She knew every nuance and layer in Aihara Mei's olfactory signature.

Which is how she noticed that something was different.

The change was miniscule. Mei still smelled like winter. But there was something else, something new. Something darker lurking underneath the ice. Earthier.

Behind the sharp bite of snow was the hint of smoke. The scent of a wood fire caught on the wind, the potential of warmth amidst a frozen landscape. So light and fleeting that you wonder if you're just imagining the flames.

This shift in Mei's scent intrigued Yuzu, and if she didn't have a reason to approach the alpha that Sara was lusting after, well she had one now. She simply had to investigate this odd change in her stepsister's scent, that's all.

Sara moved quickly to step in front of Yuzu. "Hi Mei. Thank you for waiting." She gestured to Yuzu, almost apologetically. "I didn't quite remember how to get here, but luckily my friend agreed to show me."

The alpha flicked her gaze to Yuzu and the two locked eyes.

Mei's face revealed nothing, regarding her with cool detachment. She had on her poker face, which meant that there was an unspoken game being played.

Yuzu's mouth twisted as irritation bubbled up to the surface.

"That's nice of you to make friends and help our new student, Yuzu."

"It was my pleasure," she replied, saccharine sweet. "I want all omegas to feel welcome in our school."

Glancing back to Sara, Mei said, "That's definitely important. I'm glad you found another omega to show you the ropes."

"And you, Mei? Will you be giving Sara a warm welcome as well? Give her some special attention?" Yuzu asked archly.

A tiny crack appeared in Mei's face armor, a miniscule eye twitch, and Yuzu felt immensely satisfied that she was able to throw off the alpha.

"Actually, yes."

Yuzu's smug smirk wavered. She forced the smile tight over her lips when it felt like slipping off her face.

Sara giggled demurely. "Please take good care of me, Mei."

It was an innocuous phrase that Japanese people said when meeting new people, but it certainly sounded like double entendre. It made Yuzu's teeth ache.

"I will." The alpha murmured.

"That's so nice of you, Mei. You're so busy these days that you don't even have time to eat dinner some nights, but you'll make time in your schedule for the new girl."

Sara's gaze bounced between the both of them. "Um, how do you know each other?"

There was an awkward pause where Mei and Yuzu both just stared at Sara, trying to figure out whether the other person would speak up.

Finally, Yuzu said with a tight smile, "Mei and I are sisters."

"What? Really?" Sara's jaw went slack as she gaped at them.

"Yes," Mei confirmed.

"That's crazy! I never would have guessed," Sara tittered. "Yuzu, why didn't you tell me that…" She paused, realizing what she was going to say in front of Mei. In a small voice, she tried to play it off with, "Uh, never mind."

Oh, she wasn't going to let her off the hook that easily. "Believe me, I didn't know that the alpha you fell in love at first sight with was my sister." The words came out sweetly, but they felt like acid on her tongue. "Serendipity, I guess."

"Yuzu!" A fierce blush appeared on Sara's cheeks and she pressed her palms against them. "Oh my god, I'm so embarrassed." Her eyes dropped to the floor, but she had a giddy smile on her lips.

"She's just teasing you," Mei said as she gently cupped Sara's elbow for two seconds.

Yuzu's stomach twisted painfully at the alpha's fleeting touch. Mei never touched people.

"So, where are we going Mei? Do you want to go for a snack somewhere?" Her head tilted to the side, exposing her unmarked neck with the subtlety of a bull in a china shop. She peered up at the alpha through heavy lashes and bit her tongue.

Yuzu's face pinched in a cringe. Christ, Sara. Thirsty much?

"Aihara Academy students are actually supposed to go straight home after school. Especially when they're in uniform."

"Oh." Sara's bottom lip jutted out in a cute pout. "Well that's unfortunate."

Normally, Yuzu would say something argue with Mei to not be such a stick in the mud and a stickler for school rules, but this time, she held her tongue.

"But how about we go home together? We can walk to the station. Which train do you need to take?"

Yuzu stood there silently as the two discuss train schedules and routes.

She was torn. Harumi was waiting for her. She also insisted to Nina that she was going to leave Sara alone on her "date" or what the fuck ever.

But she couldn't tear her eyes away from the alpha and omega in front of her. Sara was looking at Mei like the alpha was the most magnificent creature she had ever seen. Heat was prickling over her skin, crawling up her limbs towards her chest. The shorter girl was standing much too close to Mei, invading the alpha's personal space.

This close, Yuzu noted the slight change in Mei's scent that she had noticed earlier. It was definitely there, like wisps of smoke. Like a touch of dark chocolate on the tip of the tongue. Mei always smelled good to her, but somehow, she smelled even better.

And Sara was close to enough to smell it too. In fact, the omega looked like she wanted nothing more than to climb Mei like a tree and bury her face in the crook of the alpha's neck.

Yuzu turned and stepped away from the pair. Keeping her back turned so that Mei wouldn't see her pull out her phone from her pocket, she hastily typed out a text to Harumi.

code orange. take my bag with u

She didn't wait for a reply. Harumi would know that Yuzu was ditching her for a very important reason, and to bring her school bag home because she wasn't coming back. Their BFF code came in real handy for times like these. The phone was slipped discreetly back in her pocket.

Yuzu walked back to Sara and Mei. "So Harumi bailed on me, probably to hang out with Matsuri. Can you believe it?" She rolled her eyes and huffed in exasperation. "Do you guys mind if walked home with you?"

Sara made a small noise of sympathy. "No, of course we don't mind! We'd love for you to walk home with us."

The response was obviously what Yuzu was hoping for, but her jaw clenched at the fact that Sara answered for the both of them. We don't mind. We'd love for you to walk home with us.

The three of them walked to the train station, Mei and Sara walking side by side and Yuzu behind them.

Yuzu gave the two of them plenty of space and didn't try to join or listen to their conversation. Because she didn't care. She didn't care about what they were talking about or how much they were learning about each other. She wasn't interested in whatever hilarious thing Mei was telling Sara. With the way Sara kept giggling, you'd think Mei was goddamn stand-up comedian.

She didn't care how close they were to each other, that if Sara leaned any closer to Mei, their arms would touch. She didn't care at all.

The delicate scent of lilies trailing behind Sara didn't bother Yuzu. Having to smell another omega's pheromones with an alpha close by wasn't an uncomfortable experience. Especially when that alpha was an ex-mate.

Nope, she was an evolved bitch. She wasn't going to engage in petty jealousy. Just to be clear: She didn't care if Mei was paying attention to a pretty omega. Sara was her friend. Mei was her sister. Seriously, they could start dating and she would be happy for them.

I just want to make sure they get off at the right foot!

I don't want to Sara to rush into anything with Mei. She's such a sweet, innocent girl who would fall for a good-looking alpha she knows nothing about.

Mei better not take advantage of poor naïve Sara.

Or I will cut her dick off.

They finally arrived at the station. Standing in front of the turnstiles that would take Sara to her platform, the three of them said their goodbyes.

"Thanks for walking with me today. This is only my second day, and I'm not familiar with the route yet."

"No problem. I can walk with you until you get the hang of it," Mei offered.

Yuzu piped up with, "Oh Sara has a twin sister, Nina. She just had to leave early today. I'm sure they want to walk home together."

The next five seconds unfolded in slow motion in Yuzu's head.

Sara took Mei's hand, sliding her fingertips down the inside of the alpha's forearm, their wrists brushing against each other's, then dragging her palm into place, interlacing their fingers.

Yuzu's jaw almost fell off her face.

Sara wasn't naïve or innocent at all. She just scent marked Mei.

This omega just scent marked Aihara Mei, top alpha of Aihara Academy, in the middle of a Tokyo train station, on the first day of meeting her.

Tachibana Sara had game.

"I would love that," Sara said in a voice that was low and throaty. "I'll meet you after school again tomorrow."

Mei's eyes blinked a few times as she stared down at Sara. Her mouth dropped open as if she was going to say something, but nothing came out. A jerky nod followed.

Sara let go of Mei's hand and gave them a wave over her shoulder before walking through the turnstile and towards her train platform.

They made their way towards their own train, weaving through the sea of bodies hurrying through the station, trying not to lose sight of each other in the crowd.

In the corner of her eye, Yuzu caught Mei lifting her wrist to her nose to curiously sniff Sara's scent.

A low growl churned in her throat before she sped up her pace, leaving her younger sister far behind her.

After a hurried dinner, Mei was washing her hands in the kitchen sink when she remembered Tachibana Sara none too subtly scenting her. Chuckling at the omega's boldness, she thoroughly rubbed the inside of her wrist with soap, effectively erasing any trace of the scent. It definitely caught her off-guard. Aside from Yuzu, no one has ever dared scent her.

It was kind of impressive how the tiny omega got the drop on her.

Wiping her hands with a dish towel, Mei decided she didn't mind at all. Sara seemed like a cool girl. The omega definitely didn't hesitate to go after what she wanted, and Mei could respect that.

As she started for the bedroom to get started on her homework, Yuzu shot her a dirty look from behind the kitchen counter. Her blond hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and she was wearing a bright pink apron. Yuzu looked fucking cute and adorable as ever, even while scowling at her. The omega probably didn't even realize that she had been giving hate looks all night.

Mei gave her sister a sweet smile, and when she passed her, a slow wink. She had a good idea why Yuzu was so irritable ever since the train ride home earlier, and she couldn't help but tease the omega a little.

Yuzu simply huffed and went back to clearing the table.

After sitting down at her desk in the bedroom, Mei pulled out the contents of her school bag. The paper with her lab results was on top of the pile.

She looked at her hormone levels and sighed heavily. No matter how she sliced it, these numbers were concerning. Her androstenone level was too high, and her testosterone was downright scary.

These kinds of numbers could lead to a rut.

Mei dragged a hand down her face and groaned. The very idea was sickening. Panic-inducing.

An alpha going into a rut evokes different reactions depending on who you ask, but for Mei, experiencing an overwhelming drive to mate sounded pretty fucking horrible. Especially since she didn't have a mate to mate with, it would just be an intensely uncomfortable few days locked in an unsatisfied rut.

This is why she was on rut suppressants. So that she wouldn't have to go through the harrowing experience of having her mind hijacked by her alpha biology. Being so horny that she would lose her goddamn mind? Yeah, no thanks.

Wouldn't it be just my luck, that after diligently taking suppressants every day for two years, I suddenly go into a rut. Of all the times for my rut suppressants to fail, it would be right now.

It was honestly the worst possible time. The Culture Festival was just around the corner, and the Student Council has never been so busy. She was literally putting in 5 hours of work after school each day.

There simply wasn't time to go to the doctor and get this straightened out. The nurses at the school clinic couldn't increase the dosage of her suppressants or get her on different ones, as the law required only licensed physicians to prescribe medications related to alpha and omega biochemistry.

Her doctor was all the way in Ginza. The travel time, the consultation, and going to the get her bloodwork done would take about 4 hours. She would have to miss a half day of school.

No way. Unacceptable.

Mei sighed and tucked the lab results into her planner. This would just have to wait until after the Culture Festival.

It's not like I'm suddenly going to break out into a rut in the next week. I'm sure it'll be fine.

"Why did you turn the AC up?" Yuzu groused, yanking more of the blanket to her side of the bed and turning on her side, away from Mei. "It's so cold in here."

"Well I'm hot," Mei punctuated the statement by ripping the sheets off her body. "Here, take all the blankets."

"How can you be hot? Seriously, my toes are freezing, it's so cold."

"I don't know, okay? I just feel warm."

Yuzu didn't want to care, but she twisted her head to look at Mei. "Are you getting sick or something?" she snapped.

There was a pause. "No, I'm just." Mei sighed loudly. "Tired. There's a lot going on and I haven't been sleeping or eating well."

Yuzu felt herself soften at Mei's weary tone. All she wanted to do was roll over and scoop the alpha up in her arms and stroke her hair and comfort her….but no. No.

No, no, no.

I'm not your nursemaid or a binky for you to suck on just because I happen to here.

She opted for a compromise between her instinct to soothe and her general irritation towards the alpha. "I'll make katsu don tomorrow for lunch, you better eat it okay? And make sure you take your vitamins."

"Okay," Mei replied in a small voice. "Thank you. I know making katsu don in the morning takes time from your routine."

"It's fine," she grumbled. "Go to sleep, Mei. Good night."

"Goodnight."

After Mei fell asleep, Yuzu carefully rolled over. Propped up on one elbow, she watched her stepsister sleep.

The faint wash of moonlight through the sheer curtains illuminated just enough of Mei's features to see that the girl was having a fitful sleep. There was a crease between her eyebrows and a light sheen of sweat covered her forehead. Her chest rose and fell steadily, but there was mild stutter in her breathing every so often.

Affection swelled in Yuzu's chest as she gently stroked Mei's arm, careful not to wake her.

Then she tucked her face into Mei's neck and inhaled, finally doing what she had wanted to since this afternoon when she caught the alpha's scent in the wind.

Yes. Up close, she could confirm that something different about Mei's scent. The addition was something dense and earthy. Smoky.

It was very subtle, but at the same time, it was like something had changed down to the atomic level.

Even without pheromones, Mei's normal everyday scent always smelled so good to her. Right now, the alpha smelled downright delicious. It made her want to crawl on top of her stepsister so she could press their bodies together as she inhaled her scent.

Geez. Down, girl.

Yuzu carefully shuffled back to her side of the bed. Before falling asleep, she decided she would make soup curry for dinner. For some odd reason, she had this urge to feed the alpha.

Author Notes:

walks in late to class holding a Starbucks and dark sunglasses

Oh hey guys, so it's been 84 years…but I think I'm ready to jump back into this story again. You might have thought this story was abandoned…never! I will go down this ship! As usual, let me know what your thoughts =)

(Also, just kidding, I haven't had Starbucks in 6 weeks because of the quarantine. Stay safe out there everyone. I'm gonna try to entertain y'all and myself with this crazy story in the meantime)