The abrupt echoing of such vulgar words was enough for Sehun to sober up. With a lack of long term commitment to human relations, he had little experience in the field of lustful pleasure. However, his last name was enough to expose him to the debauchery way of life of the high end of society. Such a plainly spoken request was at the very least quite comprehensible.

Taken back, Sehun’s foggy mind wanted nothing more than to put an end to a Christmas Party night that was almost turning into a nightmarish strike against his so far, placid life.

“I’m sorry but I am not interested in your services. My name is not Alpha, I believe you have the wrong person. Could you please just tell me where Clevery Street is?”

“H-help….”

The strange words that kept coming out of the crying boy’s mouth seemed like an endless cycle. The puzzle pieces of an almost incomprehensible language despite it being constituted of the same dictionary did nothing to lead Sehun in the right pathway. His questions were only answered by more riddles intertwined with salty streams of tears.

Above Sehun, the blue tinted moon shone down upon the pathway, dying the land in a shade of pale despair and coldness. The chilly wind scraped against his throat as he breathed, freezing him from the inside out. The boy’s cries only amplified the deep-seated trepidation that was slowly creeping in from the foreignness of this land. And thus, for the first time in a long long long time, Sehun almost found himself seeking the company of another living organism; be it inhabitant of this alien place or not.

“N-no. L-leave. I c-c-can’t. M-morning. A-a-a-alphas. I-I-I… my pills.”

The boy kept choking out indecipherable phrases, leaving Sehun with the impression that the other might be mentally impaired. Yet, the surprising warmth emanating from the boy’s body served as a strange sense of comfort for him, as the air around suddenly seemed to be less harsh on his poor airways.

Picking up the boy, Sehun began to wander around hoping to find a hotel to stay the night. His solitude house on Clevery St wouldn’t be seeing its owner tonight.

* * *

Irene was almost falling asleep on her night shift at the reception desk when a strong smell suddenly hit her nose. It was a blend of heightened pheromones with hints of a unique floral mix. Sakura blossoms mixed with hints of citrus and a warm drop of honey.

She knew this smell too well. An omega was in heat. The fact that she could smell the extra laces of its unique omegan scent meant that it likely an unmarked omega going through their first cycle.

Such poor creatures forced into a serving role since birth by no fault other than their genetic combination. Their physical bodies were small and weak. Yet, perhaps it was just like how the old saying goes: if god closes a door, then he shall open a window for you. Omegan pheromones were both their greatest weakness, and their most lethal weapon. Able to intoxicate even the purebred leaders of their society, their biological makeup was like a golden ticket to every ‘backdoor’ way up the societal ladder.

Too bad the audible sobs accompanied by the darkness of the night meant that this particular omega was more likely a victim rather than predator.

“Two single bedrooms please.”

Irene almost didn’t register the voice until the stranger was right in front of her with the omega in his arms.

“Sorry sir, how many rooms?”

“Two, thank you.”

“T-two, did you say, sir?”

“Yes,” came the reply, this time laced with slight irritation.

Confusion quickly flooded Irene’s mind. If she wasn’t wrong, the man before him must be either a Beta or an Alpha. His physique although not particularly masculine, was still quite tall. It was genetically impossible for an omega to boast such a height. His facial features were defined, and his eyes sharp and focused. Above all, his straight back and confident posture dressed in a fine suit was enough to define him as one of the dominants in society. The most baffling element of this situation was how the man seemed to be perfectly calm despite holding the unmarked omega in heat. Even some purebloods had trouble controlling their raw animalistic urges when in such close proximity and skinship to one of their kind.

The waves of sickening sweet stench hit her senses again and Irene had never felt so grateful to have secured a job to pay for her suppressants.

Not wanting to offend the man in front of her, Irene quickly regained her composure and checked the room availabilities.

Her fingers gracefully tapped away at the keyboard. With each passing second, her palms started to sweat as her heart began to sink. This hotel was situated on Street 20. Most of their customers were from the middle class. After all, everyone knew alphas rarely ever left the Golden Prism. As such, they only had ten rooms that were furnished to a standard respectable to accommodate the leaders of their hierarchy. Out of the ten, only three were single rooms and unfortunately had already been booked ahead of time.

The available ones…. were well…. personal suites for blatantly obvious reasons.

The alpha before her didn’t seem particularly cruel. After all, he even requested for two single rooms. But Irene knew that a happy ending for the whimpering boy was impossible. As a fellow member of his rank, she desperately yearned to at least increase his chances of survival by 0.1%.

She only had three options. Either offer the alpha two single rooms of standard that were already reserved. Give him two beta standard single rooms. Or… follow the rules and hand him a personal suite for the night.

Just as she was about to consider her second option, Irene heard a familiar clicking noise echoing from her pocket.

Pills.

Suppressants.

Those bloody packets of drugs, filled with high doses of hormone blockers.

Made by those filthy pharmaceutical companies that cared for nothing but revenue.

If pills were a legal omegan currency, they would no doubt be more priceless than gold.

Irene had been blessed with a job. Her boss was a beta who had witnessed enough broken furniture, ripped pieces of clothing and pools of blood on bedsheets to imagine what the dark alleys had in store for the weak links of society.

‘I can’t betray his trust in me’

Pills.

Irene looked up at the customer before her. She couldn’t afford to insult an alpha on her boss’s grounds.

Pills.

In a professional voice, she replied, “Sorry sir, but we’re almost fully booked. I can only offer you a personal suite.”

“Okay.”

Pills.

After giving the man his room key, Irene could only hope for a miracle that nothing happened to that poor omega. First heats were usually the worse as the body had not previously been exposed to such a heightened amount of pheromones. Luckily, first heats only lasted for one night as the body’s survival instincts to lower pheromone levels quickly kicked in. If the omega could somehow survive and not be marked by the other man then…

‘Oh god. What are you thinking Irene? Obviously the alpha is going to take him!’

Irene’s stomach churned as her fingers trembled. Deep down she knew exactly why she didn’t help the omega.

Simple. Pills.

She knew all too well that without this job, the next omega being carried into a hotel room could be her.

But who could blame her.

The winners write history.

And in this world, the alphas determine the rules.