Chapter 33

Nate raised his brow at her. "Huh?"

Allie twirled her hair awkwardly, looking around and trying to find appropriate words to say. "Uh..."

The omega couldn't help but recall that afternoon conversation she had with her brother. They cut it short as Sams phone won't stop ringing. He promised to meet her soon so that they could discuss more in detail their situation. She was hesitant to tell Nate, fearing that it will ruin everything.

"What?" He asked, intrigued.

She shook her head. "It's... nothing. Never mind."

The Alpha nodded slowly, confused. "Right, well, I have to go back and have dinner. Have you eaten anything?"

"No, not yet."

At his worried expression, she chuckled. "Relax, it's okay. I'm going straight back and eating."

"We have leftovers downstairs. None of the boys would mind if you ate some."

"Thanks, but I'll be fine. I have to cook with my roommate anyway," She said reassuringly. He's still frowning, looking like he wanted to protest. Allie was confident this was another side-effect of alphas when they'd impregnated an omega- having the overwhelming urge to take care of them. Her omega preened at the attention, but she knew she couldn't encourage it.

"See you... soon," The omega said uneasily.

Nate nodded, pursing his lips and still looking pained. She ignored it, standing up and walking to the door instead. Maybe she should leave anyway. Emily must be waiting for her, having missed her during the lunch as well.

Just as she reached out for the doorknob when Nate called out, halting her in place. "Wait!"

Even though he used his normal voice, she stilled automatically, letting her limbs lock in place. A shiver ran down her spine. With a significant amount of effort, she carefully turned around.

The Alpha took a step closer towards her, his eyes wandering down to her cable knit sweater, "Um... are you showing yet?"

A red flush sat on her cheeks, not expecting that question. Tugging at her sleeves, she croaked out. "A little bit."

A slight expression of wonder passed over his face, and then he's blinking rapidly. "Can I... I mean- is it okay if I-"

"You want to see?" She guessed, feeling a layer of tension settle around them.

He nodded, eyes dark and intense.

She bit her lip, considering. Goosebumps ran down her skin, and her heart pounding in her chest. His eyes didn't leave her—specifically; they didn't leave the bump of her stomach.

Deciding to do it, she yanked up the hem of her sweater, exposing her small bump to the cool air of the room. He sucked in a breath, eyes widening. She lowered her vision to the barely-there curve as well, not wanting to watch his reaction.

Nate exhaled heavily. "Wow."

The omega nodded. Wow, indeed. Allie suddenly felt a desperate tug inside her to grab his dangling hand and press it to the skin of her tummy. Stupid pregnancy urges, she thought. They remained in that awkward position for a little longer, Nate staring at her stomach and tiny bump intensely while she switched between glancing at him and her bump.

"Right, well... I should go now," Allie said after another minute. He didn't lift his gaze even when she tugged her sweater down again, choosing to nod slowly in acknowledgement. The omega cleared her throat, and his head snapped up, looking embarrassed.

"Sorry," Nate muttered. "Uh, remember to call me? If you need anything at all, anything."

Allie nodded again, a desperation to get out rising inside her for her sanity. The more she lingered around, impacted by his scent, the more it'll be difficult for her to maintain distance. "I'll do that, thanks."

The Alpha looked like he wanted to say something else, but she just backed away hastily. "Bye, Nate. Good luck with your next game."

"Thanks, you too," His eyes brightened as if Nate wasn't expecting her to remember. Of course, she did. He shook his head, endearingly. "I mean-"

"I got it," She said with an unintentional grin. The Alpha smiled back at her, and then Allie stepped out of the room and closed the door.

The omega stood there for a minute, hands clutching at her pile of clothes and heart racing. Her omega was whining at the loss of his familiar scent, and she felt her previous exhaustion and fatigue return to her in waves. Even though she's read about the alpha's impact during pregnancies, nothing could have prepared her for this.

The safety and comfort she had felt. The way she couldn't help but relax being surrounded by the Alphas scent no matter how little she's been exposed to it in the past. And the way that all of it disappeared immediately upon him shutting that door, and now she's back to the usual pregnant misery.

Brilliant.

***

Allie brushed off Emily's questions during dinner, focusing on eating her white sauce pasta and claiming to be hungry. When her roommate asked about the weekend, she informed vaguely that Nates agreed to being involved and that she's sure the alpha will live up to those promises.

Once back to the solace of the room, she had hidden the clothes so no one didn't see and it was honestly torture knowing they were on her bed, easy for her to cuddle and smell and leech comfort from whenever she wanted. So after dinner, she refused Emily's invitation to watch a movie, claiming exhaustion which wasn't too far from the truth. Then Allie rushed into her bedroom, locking the door.

The one aspect of pregnancies Allie has been very familiar with was nesting. The process of building a nest for your future pups to keep them safe and comfortable with the use of clothes, blankets, pillows, and most importantly: infused with the most consoling scents- the scents of a mom and dad.

She's already begun the process of building her nest- thick blankets around the perimeter with pillows and more blankets piled methodologically on top of them. The omega already made use of her most comfortable sweaters and sweatshirts- wearing them to immerse them in her scent and then tucking them into the gaps in her nest.

But it's been missing something.

Something meaning the bundle of clothes she left on the foot of the bed, already suffocating the room with the smell of strong, pure alpha.

Allie took a deep breath, inhaling the strong scent, and getting to work.

To say that the omega didn't bury her face in Nates jersey for a few minutes to soothe, her inner omega would be a gigantic lie. But Allie wouldn't even feel ashamed to scream it from the rooftops at this point- her brain has gone all fuzzy and hazy, and her omega was at ease surrounded by the smell of her Alpha.

No.

Not her alpha, Allie corrected firmly.

An alpha. Just an alpha - it could be any alpha, and Allie would still feel the same.

***

"You're getting bigger by the day."

Allie glanced down at her stomach, concealed by a sweatshirt, but she knew underneath was a larger bump than it was the morning before, and that's crazy. "I'm just over six weeks, so it's normal for me to be growing faster."

"Mmh" Emily beamed. "Wow! I'm so excited to meet the baby."

"Yeah, me too," Allie whispered excitedly.

The following day Emily was in her room, even before she woke up, demanding answers about those strange men. Allie managed to pin it on her brother, saying that he sent them to look for her. Its a lie. But Emily didn't need to know that. Those answers managed to cease the tension between them.

"You'll only be getting bigger."

"Yeah. I can't believe it," Allie said softly. She pressed a gentle hand over her bump and smiled wider.

"Okay, enough fonding. We have to make a list of clothes to buy you," Her roommate sat up on the bed determinedly.

"You know, my feet hurt..."

Emily shot her a look and trailed off in a huff. "I'll drag you along if I have to."

"Right, okay then."

Despite her grumpiness, the shopping trip was a success... about as successful as it can be when Allie was still against the idea of having to wear maternity clothes. Her friend found it hilarious and kept her teasing about it for a while.

"It's not like I'm not happy," She defended when they finally left the mall, loaded with bags of maternity sweatpants, jeans, and some baggier sweaters and shirts. Allie placed her hand back where it belonged on her stomach. "I'm excited. It's just that some of the extra stuff sucks."

"Everything worth doing sucks sometimes," Her friend made a sympathetic sound at the back of her throat.

Allie narrowed her eyes. "If you say-"

"Even sex," Emily continued with a grin. The omega rolled her eyes at that. Typical. "Speaking of sex... how's your Alpha?"

Allie choked on her breath. Now that she's not expecting from Emily. At all.

***