There are three things ruining Penny's life at this very moment:

1. Her parents, because that's obviously their job
2. Her sister, because only Judy could ruin the joy of having a perfectly reasonable crush
3. The aforementioned crush, who apparently didn't appreciate being blackmailed into silence.

Oh, and maybe the whole 'lost in space' thing, but that's really not all that pressing.

Who said colonizing a new planet was an easy thing anyway? (Her mother. Repeatedly.)

-.-.-

tldr: Omega Penny dealing with life and love while their colony group is lost in space. With less robot fighting and more Dhar family backstory.

Additional Tags: A/B/O Dynamics, Non-Traditional A/B/O Dynamics, Underage Characters, Canon Divergent AU, Accidental Telepathic Bonding.

An Anomalous Alpha

There are over 100 kids on the Resolute when they board. 20 of them are in the designated 'high school' class. Supposedly they'd all be prepared to start at Alpha Centauri's new university by the time they landed.

Penny didn't particularly care about that for two reasons.

1. ACU only really had STEM degrees and Penny had very little interest in those.
2. Of the 20 people in her age and grade band, 12 of them were alphas. Yeah. 12. Out of 20. So much for being only 15% of the population!

There were 7 betas, which wasn't horrible. Given they usually made up 60% of the population, Penny was a little concerned about bias in the selection criteria, but whatever.

"I'm the only omega, Judy!" Penny had tried to explain this to her sister three times. Whether she didn't understand because she was also an alpha or because she was being willfully ignorant was completely up in the air.

"So you have your pick of alphas, why is that bad?" Judy rolled her eyes at Penny, not even bothering to look at her as Penny gestured emphatically through her explanation this time.

Willfully ignorant was looking more and more likely every second.

"Yeah," Penny shook her head, face scrunching up, "It also means that most of those alphas are paying significantly more attention to me than I am accustomed to Judy." She grabbed Judy's arm to force her gaze, eyes widening slightly, "Significantly. And purposefully."

Judy's head tilted to the side, eyes narrowing, "Purposefully?"

"Oh for the love of oreos!" Penny threw up her hands. She paced Judy's room. The small length not particularly conducive to helping her calm down. "This is one of those times I really wish you understood sexual attraction."

"I understand sexual attraction, Penny." Judy rolled her eyes. Again.

Penny stopped pacing to level a look on her sister.

"You don't have to feel something to understand it," Judy argued, smirking, "I understand death and cardiac arrhythmia without feeling them too. It's not that different."

"Do you understand why going to school is now the most awkward and uncomfortable thing in the universe?"

Judy pursed her lips. Her eyes flicked to the floor for a moment. She looked back at Penny and raised her hand to tilt it back and forth in a seesaw gesture.

"I hate you a little bit right now," Penny wrinkled her nose and started pacing again. Judy chuckled, shaking her head as she went back to her medical book.

12 alphas. Every day. 8 hours.

Penny officially hated space.

-.-.-

"Hey."

Penny didn't look up from her phone. She kept typing in her notepad as probably the most obnoxious alpha on the ship tried to talk to her.

"Hey!"

Apparently densest alpha was also applicable.

She tensed when his hand moved to her table. It sat directly next to her half eaten lunch as he leaned over. Loomed, really.

"Leave her be, she's obviously busy."

She doesn't recognize the voice of whoever called out. Her eyes flickered towards the boy across the room as her would-be suitor turned to face him.

Still doesn't recognize him. But he's cute. Thick hair. Neat. Full lips. Light brown skin with a yellow undertone that looks almost golden in this light.

The golden part might be a little bit fanciful or rose-colored on her part. He did just transfer all of the obnoxious alpha's annoyance from her onto himself. Possibly on purpose.

He's an alpha. She knew that just from scent. Or, well, more process of elimination. He had a scent for her, so he wasn't a beta. But he wasn't pumping out his scent like some of the younger (or more arrogant) alphas so it wasn't super obvious.

There's a lot of shoulder shoving from the obnoxious alpha, but her knight with pretty hair doesn't rise to the bait.

Also anomalous.

Young alphas are basically synonymous with hotheaded. She'd seen four lunch time 'brawls' in the week they'd been on the Resolute.

He walked away. Even as the other alphas heckled him.

*Mine.*

Penny thought it before she could help herself and she immediately shoved the absolutely traitorous thought as far down as she could.

She also made a note to check the manifest so she could learn his name. And the rest of her classmates too, of course.

Maybe she should have paid a little more attention to the introductions the first day of class.

-.-.-

"Pretty hair? That's all you have to go by?"

Judy was staring at her like she was an idiot and Penny fully resented that. Especially the foot tapping! She had brought this request to Judy a full hour before her sister had to report to the med bay.

"I am fairly positive he's Indian?" Penny offered with a shrug.

"India is the most populated region on Earth, half the ship is Indian."

That was a good point. Penny gave her that one. She did not accept the hands on the hips as necessary though.

"North American accent!" Penny snapped her fingers, nodding triumphantly.

Judy pinched the bridge of her nose, "Why don't you just ask him his name?"

"And let him think I'm interested?" Penny shook her head, "No go."

"But you are interested!" Judy huffed out, hand gesturing outward as she frowned at Penny.

"I am curious," Penny corrected, finger in the air. She waged it back and forth, "Not the same."

Arms dropping to her side and head falling back, Judy relented. "Fine. I'll check the manifest before my shift."

"Yes!" Penny cheered.

Really, this all could've been avoided if all colonists could access the manifest, but no-oo. Only the colony rep and medical personnel had access. So rude.

That was, unfortunately, the moment when the alarms started blaring.

*Evacuation Required. All colonists Report to your assigned Jupiter now.*

Well, at least they were already in their Jupiter. Which, really, was the only bit of luck they had for the rest of the day.

Reviews Always Appreciated!