The wheels of the taxi rolled over familiar streets, headlights spilling across the pavement as the night thickened around them. Lior's hand had never left Kaein's since they'd left the flight residence, the grip firm, as though separation—even for a second—was unbearable. The two of them sat close, shoulders touching, thighs brushing, silence layered between them not from absence but from fullness. Their pheromones blended faintly in the car's air, making the driver shift uncomfortably though he said nothing.
Kaein turned his head, observing Lior. The Alpha's profile, sharpened by the passing city lights, looked unusually restless. His thumb kept moving against Kaein's palm in circles, his jaw tightening then relaxing. He had always been steady, patient—yet tonight he looked like someone holding back a tide.
"You're quiet," Kaein murmured, his voice carrying the subtle lilt of concern.
Lior blinked and smiled, soft but thin. "I'm thinking."
"Of?"
Lior leaned closer, letting his lips graze Kaein's ear in a whisper only he could hear. "Of how to keep you with me when Lunar Day comes. I'm… worried I won't control myself."
The words, husky and honest, carried weight. Kaein's heart stirred, but he only squeezed Lior's hand, a silent promise of trust.
When they finally reached their apartment, the moment the door closed behind them, Lior's composure cracked. He pulled Kaein into his arms so abruptly the Omega stumbled, caught only by the solidity of Lior's chest. Their lips met without hesitation, teeth clashing before melting into a slow, desperate kiss.
Kaein tasted the longing immediately—salt, heat, and restrained hunger. He answered it with the gentleness that was his signature, fingers sliding into Lior's hair, pulling him deeper. The kiss stretched, lips parting and closing again, tongues brushing, until both of them were breathless.
"Welcome home," Kaein whispered against his mouth.
"Home's only here," Lior answered, pressing their foreheads together. "Wherever you are."
They moved through the house together, not letting go, like shadows tethered. The living room lights glowed dimly, catching their lingering touches—the way Kaein's hand slid across Lior's back, the way Lior's fingers traced the outline of Kaein's waist even as they passed by shelves stacked with books and frames of captured smiles. Every corner carried a memory, every step weighted with their bond.
When they reached the bedroom, Lior stopped. He turned, eyes locking onto Kaein with a heat that sent shivers crawling down his spine. "I can already feel it," Lior admitted, voice thick. "The pull… it's starting."
Kaein studied him in silence, reading every line of his expression, every tremor of restraint. "And?"
"I want to mark you." The confession was raw. Lior's chest rose and fell as though every breath was a battle. "Not just once. Not just tonight. Permanently. Forever."
Kaein's lips curved into a small smile, even as his heart drummed wildly. He stepped forward until the faint press of pheromones wrapped him in heat. "Then wait until the right time comes. We'll do it together, not because instinct demanded it… but because we chose it."
That steadiness—Kaein's calm against his storm—broke something loose inside Lior. He kissed him again, slower this time, their mouths molding with deliberate care, like memorizing each other all over again.
The hours of the night began to slip away in waves of intimacy. Clothes loosened, then disappeared. Lior's touch was reverent, fingertips mapping the pale stretch of Kaein's skin as though it was holy. Kaein responded with quiet sighs and gasps, his body arching, offering itself without fear. The sheets tangled around them, their breathing growing heavier, the air thick with the musk of Alpha and Omega blending, testing, anticipating what lay ahead.
Every kiss carried more weight. Every brush of skin against skin was like fire fed by gasoline. And though they stopped short of the bond itself, the preview of what was coming settled heavily between them, undeniable and electrifying.
"Lior," Kaein whispered, his voice breaking into the dark. "Don't rush. You don't need to."
"I can't help it." Lior's mouth pressed against his collarbone, words muffled by skin. "Your scent is everywhere. Stronger… sweeter. I've never wanted anything more than this."
Kaein pulled him up, making their eyes meet. "Then want it patiently. For me."
It was both a command and a plea, and Lior obeyed—not because he was forced, but because surrendering to Kaein was the most natural thing in the world.
They made love like that until exhaustion blurred the edges of time. The room filled with the sounds of whispered names, the rhythm of bodies entwined, the smell of pheromones so thick it clung to the air like incense. Yet when dawn arrived, it wasn't the heat of rut or the permanence of a bond that lingered—it was tenderness. Lior held Kaein against his chest, lips brushing his temple, while Kaein's fingers traced idle patterns along his arm.
The morning light slipped through the curtains, painting them in gold. Kaein stirred first, opening his eyes to find Lior watching him with the unguarded vulnerability of a man completely consumed.
"You're staring," Kaein murmured, half-amused.
"I'm memorizing," Lior said softly. "Every detail, every freckle, every scar. If I mark you… I want to know you inside out, soul and body."
Kaein leaned up to kiss him, slow and lingering. "You already do."
Breakfast was simple—scrambled eggs, toast, coffee brewed too strong—but it was threaded with laughter, with stolen kisses across the counter, with Lior's constant hand brushing against Kaein's whenever possible. They functioned like two people newly wed, tethered by an invisible string.
But as the day unfolded, reality reentered. Lior had to prepare for his return to the flight campus, this time a longer stay. He tried to sound casual about it, but his clinging nature betrayed him. Every time Kaein left his sight—even to fetch a book or fold laundry—Lior would appear behind him, arms wrapping around his waist, chin on his shoulder.
"Stay with me this week," Lior murmured more than once, voice low against Kaein's skin. "Even if it's just to sleep in the same bed. I don't care if you're busy. Just… stay."
Kaein, amused yet touched, finally relented. "Then pack lightly. I'll go with you."
The week ahead promised adjustments—campus life, a new environment, duties pulling them in different directions. But for now, as they moved back into their familiar rhythm, the undercurrent of Lunar Day approaching made every glance sharper, every touch heavier. It was no longer a distant possibility. It was near.
And both of them felt it in their bones.