Zayden held the omega carefully in his arms. So carefully that Ren barely felt the alpha's warmth through the pain consuming his body.
"Z-Zayden," Ren whispered.
He didn't need the alpha to say a single word to understand what was happening inside his head.
Zayden was blaming himself.
For letting the omega remain in the dungeon for Gods knew how long. For the countless wounds on his body—the visible ones, and the ones that were not seen by the naked eye.
And for arriving too late, failing to protect his beloved.
"It's alright," Ren managed to say, although every word hurt.
The bruises covering his body throbbed relentlessly. Even the places where Zayden's skin brushed against his felt like they were on fire. The shirt wrapped around him offered little comfort, and more pain.
However, the omega didn't want to complain and make Zayden feel worse than he might already be feeling.
"H-How can you say that?" Zayden choked out.
