The compliment about the scent that lingered around Haruki was not the last he would hear. The Omega made every effort, and whenever he wasn't casting admiring glances at Haruki, he showered him with sweet words.
And Haruki? He floated between a rose-colored cloud of infatuation and the worry of how he should take care of Sota. In the following days, he had tried earnestly to find out something about Sota. But nothing came to light. No one knew him. No one was missing who even remotely resembled him. No registry carried his name. On the contrary, people reacted with amusement when he inquired about a missing person named Ebisu. So he simply accepted the circumstances of how he had met Sota – and that Sota had no family.
But it didn't change the fact that he was poor and worried about how he would feed both Sota and himself. Sota hummed cheerfully as he flipped through a book. Meanwhile, Haruki opened a small casket where he had stored his savings. The money was supposed to be used only for emergencies. He glanced at Sota and sighed with a smile.
"If this isn't an emergency, then what is…" he murmured softly before standing up and walking over to Sota. Sota instantly sat up and beamed at him happily.
"Can I do something nice for you, my dear?" Sota's words made Haruki blush so deeply that, for a moment, he forgot what he had wanted to say. How can someone be this unbearably sweet?! he thought and nodded.
"I still have a little money left, so I thought we could go buy you some clothes. You can't wear my things forever." He could already see Sota was about to protest. "Besides, my clothes are way too big for you." He smiled and rested a hand on the Omega's head. "Afterwards, we can cook together and think about what we want to do later. How about that?"
Sota nodded. The very idea that an Alpha – his Alpha – wanted to cook with him filled him with a joy he had never known. He had never heard of Alphas doing such things. All the more precious it was to him that, in this new life, he had been given such a special one.
The trip to the shopping center, which was quite a distance away, turned out to be uncomfortable. The eyes of the passersby were fixed on Sota. And although his demeanor shone like sunlight in Haruki's eyes, it clearly embarrassed him.
"They're jealous of you… because you look so… cute…" Haruki tried not to sound too nervous as he whispered these words to him again and again. At last, he simply wrapped an arm around Sota's waist.
"You really won't leave me, will you?" Haruki arched a brow, which only unsettled Sota further, causing him to lower his head. So Haruki stopped, turned him around and began softly, "Listen…" He couldn't bring himself to say that he was the lucky one. Instead, he slid a hand beneath Sota's chin, lifted his face, and pressed a brief kiss to his lips. A soft blush bloomed across Sota's cheeks as he leaned into the kiss, savoring it.
Not far away, they found a discount shop that offered inexpensive clothes. They were simple but practical. If Sota really wanted to stay with Haruki, he would have to get used to such things anyway. At least, that was the young Alpha's opinion – though part of him still expected to wake up from this dream. For so long he had wished not to be alone anymore, and now that wish seemed to be fulfilled.
Loaded with shopping bags, Haruki sighed in relief when they finally returned home.
"Are you hungry?" he asked, but Sota shook his head.
"You really eat too little…" Haruki remarked, while Sota only shrugged with a crooked smile. He wasn't hungry. Not ever. It simply didn't feel right to tell Haruki that.
But those weren't the only oddities. Wild animals appeared more and more often outside the apartment windows. At times, Haruki even felt that the plants around the building were thriving unusually well. They bloomed though it wasn't their season. As strange as the situation was – it had to be just a trick of the mind.
Like a little pup, Sota followed Haruki everywhere until the Alpha finally decided they should go on a small trip. Haruki hoped he would soon find a job again so money would come back into the house. For even if he believed this whole thing with Sota was far too beautiful to be real, it felt real enough to make him fear losing it.
Haruki stroked Sota's back while the Omega gazed at him with lovestruck eyes. If he had a tail, it surely would have been wagging. Yet Haruki couldn't see what made him so special to such a perfect Omega.
"Hey, Ebisu," he said one evening, lowering the TV volume with the remote. "How about going on a little trip?"
Sota blinked in surprise, then shook his head. His reaction didn't surprise Haruki, though he sighed.
"We can't just stay cooped up in this apartment forever. Some fresh air would be good for us."
But Sota looked at him as though forced to bite into a lemon. For him, all of this felt like a dream already. Suddenly in a different time, knowing no one, having lost everything – and now, out of nowhere, finding someone who not only liked him, but loved him. Why would he risk leaving that fragile safety behind?
"Why should we? We have everything we need here…!" Sota pouted.
"Do we really?" Haruki chuckled, kissing the top of his head before gently pushing him away. "The world is too beautiful to just stay indoors. And there are some amazing temples I want to see! You know by now how much I'm into all that mythology stuff. It's fascinating what people used to believe in – and still do, even now."
Sota only shook his head. "There's nothing… cool about that. Life was cruel back then. Most people were starving…" Haruki pulled Sota into his arms so he stood and could not finish the word hunger. They had had this conversation before, after all – Haruki was always trying to learn more about him.
"Maybe so. But imagine if gods really existed! With their own magical world to live in!" Haruki's voice was full of wonder.
Sota shook his head. "Terrifying thought. That would mean they live in paradise while humans suffer…"
Haruki stared at him, speechless. He had an answer for everything, always negative yet always so logical. But Haruki refused to give up. So he changed his tactic.
"What about a romantic walk? We could even talk about… family planning, maybe." The words still felt strange on his tongue. He had little experience with relationships, let alone family planning. But it worked.
Sota hesitated, studied the Alpha skeptically, then smiled and nodded. "Okay. But just a short walk, alright?"
That was enough for Haruki. After all, they could always "accidentally" go a little farther. Sota surely wouldn't notice. Yet when they stepped outside, Sota still wavered. Haruki immediately took his hand, and he stayed close to him until they reached a rather unkempt park.
"Woah…" Sota gasped at the sight of the many colorful flowers.
"See? I knew you'd like it." Haruki smiled in relief; until the very end, he had feared Sota would bolt and run home. But instead, the Omega sniffed at blossoms, pointed excitedly at weathered statues scattered around the park, and eagerly shared his joy with Haruki. Until they walked a little deeper in.
Sota had just been laughing when suddenly he screamed. "Aaaaaah!!!"
His eyes wide with panic, he ran to Haruki and hid behind him. "Make it go away! Make it go away!!" he cried, while Haruki, bewildered, tried to understand what was happening. But there was nothing there.
"Ebisu… it's okay…" Haruki breathed, turning to embrace him. Sota buried his face in Haruki's chest, refusing to look anywhere else.
"M…monsters… there were monsters!" he stammered. But as Haruki soothed him and nothing actually happened, Sota dared to peek past him – only to find nothing. Just the cicadas' chirping, which suddenly sounded menacingly loud. Still, he was certain he had seen them. Onis. Horned, one-eyed demons staring right at him.
In his panic, Sota hadn't noticed that those beings had vanished the moment they saw the god.
"I want to go home… I want to…" Haruki pulled him close again and nodded.
"Alright. You were brave enough for one day." The Alpha forced a smile, though worry gnawed at him. And he had thought Sota's story had no room for escalation.
All throughout the park, Sota kept glancing over his shoulder, and Haruki noticed. But he only spoke at the end of their walk. He slid an arm around his partner's slender waist and leaned against him for closeness.
"Even if there were monsters… don't worry. I'll protect you. After all, I'm strong!" He grinned, pointing proudly to himself.
Sota was moved by Haruki's words, yet still, relief washed over him when they returned to the apartment.
"Please… let's not do that again anytime soon…"