"Axel! Come on, we're running late. This is the last day for registration. If we miss it, you'll have to wait another year!" Axel's mother called from downstairs.
Axel exhaled and glanced at the mirror. Black trousers and a hoodie hung loosely on him. Black strands fell over his forehead. His lips were dry and pale, and he didn't care enough to fix them.
After dressing, he swallowed the pills he always took to mask his scent. He hated smelling like an Omega, but more than that, he hated being a male Omega.
Male Omegas were rare, just like female Alphas. Most Omegas were female, and most Alphas were male, and being a male Omega usually meant one thing: everyone assumed you were gay, destined to be mated to an Alpha or Beta like female Omegas, which was true.
Axel had never hated it much at first- until high school. The bullying was brutal, teasing him for being a male Omega, calling him girl's names. It made him hate himself.
Ready, he dragged himself downstairs. His father met him halfway, taking the briefcase from his hand.
"Can't we just postpone this? Let me go next year. Pleeease…" he pouted.
"Not happening. What if your mate comes and misses you there?" his mother insisted as they walked to the car. "Aren't you happy to finally meet the one the Moon Goddess chose for you?"
Axel scoffed.
In the car, his father sniffed the air. "Why can't I smell you? Did you take those pills again, Axel? I told yo..."
"I know, I know," Axel interrupted. "You've told me a thousand times. If I take them, my mate won't recognize me. But… they'll feel the pull between us, right? Does it have to be about scent?"
"Give me those pills," his father demanded.
"I won't take them again. I promise. I left them in my room."
His mother sat beside him. "There's nothing wrong with being a male Omega, honey. You'll meet plenty at the academy."
"Yeah, yeah. Can we just go already?" Axel muttered.
His parents exchanged a glance and sighed. His father started the car and Axel slipped on his headphones, letting music drown everything until sleep claimed him.
Alpha-Omega Academy.
Axel had heard of it all his life.
It wasn't a normal school, no Math, no Chemistry or any other ordinary subjects.
Every Alpha, Beta and Omega eighteen and above came here to learn pack etiquette, hierarchy, bonding rules… and above all, to meet their fated mates.
It was the simplest way pack officials believed would help newly mated find each other.
At eighteen, the pull was strongest. At eighteen, they were finally of age, and everyone from every qualifying pack was sent here.
The Academy ran only during long holidays, and when regular schools reopened, it emptied, waiting for the next cycle.
Axel had just turned eighteen a week ago. He should have been excited because he had always dreamed of becoming of age, finally meeting someone who would want him.
But not until when in high school, jealousy consumed him. Others had boyfriends, girlfriends, casual flings. He wanted that, too, but since all he got was bullying, he found another way to have that young casual love: he took pictures disguised as a girl and registered on a dating app, craving even the illusion of love.
And it worked better than he imagined, attention flooded him, but one person stood out:
Ivan Hale.
Casual chats became serious. Ivan called him beautiful, wished Axel were his true mate, at some point he even insisted that they were mates, that he felt a pull Axel had never felt. But Ivan didn't know the girl he fell for wasn't real.
A year had passed. Axel too had fallen for someone he'd never met. And he hated that he had to end it before leaving for the Academy.
Once, he had dreamed of this place, meeting his fated mate. Now he wished he could hide with his online boyfriend forever, even knowing it was a lie.
For a week, it consumed him ..trying to break up with Ivan, but Ivan refused.
~
Axel stirred when his parents woke him. Jolting upright, he looked around ..out the window, breath catching.
He was finally here.
To his left, a massive black iron gate towered over them. Polished gold letters spelled ALPHA-OMEGA ACADEMY. Glass-and-steel buildings rose evenly behind the gate, eyes catching perfectly paved walkways.
His phone buzzed again, overflowing with messages from Ivan. He hadn't opened a single one since Ivan began begging him not to end their relationship.
He knew reading them would break him, he couldn't bear to think of Ivan right now. So, without a second thought, he typed just two words:
~Bye Ivan.
...then he deleted the number and blocked it instantly.
He stepped out, forcing himself not to be impressed by the surrounding. He didn't want to be here anyway.
His parents hugged him quickly. "Parents aren't allowed inside, you'll be okay. Call us if you need anything. And… I hope you find the perfect mate." his mother said.
"Okay. Thanks. Bye," Axel replied flatly.
"We'll miss you, buddy." his father added.
Axel only scoffed and walked toward the gate.
"Your letter?" the guard asked.
Axel handed it over. The man nodded and led him inside the office that was just near the entrance. In the doorway... a powerful scent slammed into him. Knees nearly buckled. Heart raced, breath stolen.
"That was fast, haven't even gotten in," he murmured. This had to be his mate. His chest pounded as he looked around, desperate to see who it was.
But his eyes landed on an unexpected figure, suitcase in hand, staring at his phone, frustration and pain written across his face.
Axel's mind blanked. His heart had never beaten so violently.
Ivan?!
His mind screamed the name. He had only ever seen him in photos and videos, but there was no mistaking that face.
Panic crashed over him. Ivan only knew the girl he had pretended to be. Yet standing here, Axel felt utterly exposed, as though Ivan could already see straight through him.
"Omega or Beta?" the woman behind the desk asked.
Axel didn't even hear her; his mind was drowning.
"Omega, for sure," the man beside her said.
"No. Alpha," Axel blurted suddenly, panic pushing the word out. Something deep inside him insisted that if Ivan knew he was an Omega, recognition would follow immediately. He panicked; he didn't even know what he was doing.
"Alpha? No offense, but you don't look like…"
"I don't look like an Alpha, I know," Axel cut in quickly. "People confuse me for an Omega or Beta all the time, but it's only because I've been kind of sickly. My body looks weaker than it should. But tell me… do you smell an Omega scent on me?" His voice was bold, almost daring.
"Right…" the man conceded. "I should be able to smell it if you were one. I don't. Sorry. We just need to confirm so we can place you in the right dorm. There are Alpha and Beta dorms, female Omega dorms, and male Omega dorms too."
Axel's stomach twisted. Oh no. Because of his lie, were they really going to put him in an Alpha dorm?