Ezra hops down the stairs gladly. It's the last day of the theory exam. He can now focus on the upcoming practical exam, although it may not take place for another week.
Everything has been great for Omega ever since the marking. No more anxious thoughts. No Gio to disturb him. Ever since Fa's scents blend with him, he is almost invisible in the class. Fa's pheromone is so strong, it strays away Alphas, even Betas too!
What a great way to live in peace!
He is on his bike, heading to the Sarin Mansion, when a phone call comes in.
"Where are you?" Fa asks.
"On my way back home. Why?"
"I might be late. Got some tasks to finish up. Just want to inform you that I already noted the wedding planner about the hall."
Ah, yes! These two have decided to get married next week; right after Ezra's practical exam.
"Send me the information through email. I'll check it out later," the Omega replies.
"Hmm... please do so. We need to finalize everything within a week. Don't let him wait that long," the Golden Alpha reminds his Omega again.
After some fun but exhausting ride, Ezra finally reaches home. He takes a glance at a group of Beta workers who are diligently working upstairs. They are doing some renovation in his bedroom; hacking some walls and so on.
Ezra and Fa agreed to conjoin their bedroom instead of having personal space like the rest of the couple. Fa was inspired by both of his cousins who decided to live on their own in one space. Since he can't leave the mansion yet, he decided to renovate the bedroom instead.
"You're home!" Mei greets Ezra from the kitchen. He smiles as that Omega ushers him to the bar island. She pours some tea and hands the cup to Ezra.
"I think you need something to borrow for your wedding. So..." Mei takes out a blue box from her pocket. "This belonged to Fa's mom. When I got married to Alpha Kawei, she lent me this brooch. Now, it is your something borrowed."
Ezra carefully opens that small box. A smile forms on his face when he sees a small brooch in the shape of a feather, made from silver.
"I'll treasure this with my heart, Omega Mei..."
That older Omega nods as she softly pats Ezra's shoulder. They enjoy the rest of the evening with tea and some muffins, when suddenly Mei sniffs the air.
"Did you feel that?"
Ezra puts his cup down and frowns. A strong smell of red roses fills the space. Both Omegas look at each other before they leave the kitchen in a hurry.
"Pein, where are you going?" Mei asks her cub. She tries to reach out to the Alpha when she releases her pheromone that chokes Mei instantly. Ezra feels the effect as well, but he manages to block the scent by wearing a mask.
"Pein! Wait!"
The female Alpha runs out of the mansion after she manages to steal Ezra's motorbike key. She runs out in her pajamas, starts the engine, and storms away, leaving Ezra gushing in panic.
"Tsk! This is bad!" Ezra quickly fishes his phone from his pocket and dials Fa's number. As he waits, he sees an object on the ground.
It's Peinaire's phone. Maybe she drops it while in a hurry.
"Yes, baby?" Fa calmly answers the call.
"Fa, we have a situation. Pein is stealing my bike and running away from home. She's on heat, and her pheromone is leaking."
***
"This is the reason why she ran away," Ezra hands Peinaire's phone to Kawei and Mei. "This is the last thing that she checked on."
It's an Instagram page of Caspian. It's a picture of a wedding hall; decorated with white and blue flowers. Aesthetic and beautiful. The caption is simple—welcome to a new life—; yet that's enough to cause a ruckus.
"We hired Caspi as our wedding planner. He must wander around, looking for some places, and preparing for the wedding..." Fa sighs.
"Pein must've thought that Caspi is getting remarried. And, she thought he would send a divorce letter soon. That's why she is chasing him," Kawei shakes his head, flabbergasted by his cub's action.
"For an egoist like Pein, this is more than just chasing Caspi. It hurts her pride as well. Knowing that her husband is getting married before her after the divorce, it's more than just a feeling of losing Caspi," Cirrus taps the phone.
"I'm not sure about the ego part. I think, Pein never really move on from Caspi," says Ezra. "She loves Caspi so much."
"So, what should we do now?" Fa asks.
"My team is on the move. I ask them to track down Caspian's last location. It's not that far from here. Maybe they've found him by now," says Kawei.
Even before the Sarin step up their game, a phone call comes in. Kawei calmly picks it up.
"Yes. What?" the Alpha springs up from the sofa in shock. His eyes linger at his family before he cuts the call.
"What's wrong?" Mei asks, her voice laces in concern.
"It's the police. They have found Peinaire."
***
In the cold winter, a female Alpha is spotted leaning against the rail of a famous bridge of a small town in A Nation. Cars stop along the bridge. An ocean of people swarming around the area, including a group of policeman and local authorities. Even reporters make their way in, too!
"Miss Sarin! Step away from the railing, please..."
"Step away like what?" Peinaire asks. "Like this?" she hangs her one of her leg in the air, causing the crowd to get panic.
"No! No! I mean—"
"You're such a lousy policeman, officer. You can't even make up your mind. Your words are too hard to understand. That's why you never understand my demand!"
"We got it! But, with your condition, should you at least calm down and climb back in?"
"Not until they let me meet my husband!"
Everyone shrieks in panic when Peinaire harshly releases her pheromone as a counterattack.
"We... we're trying to help you here, Miss Sarin. You can meet your husband, but first, you need to calm down! You're on rut, and your pheromone is leaking violently! It's a threat to the society!"
"Fuck the society! I don't care! I want my husband! I want Caspian!"
The crowd is getting wrecked again. Omegas and Betas are greatly affected by Peinaire's pheromone. Not only that, she even releases her power as well. Some of the people in the crowd are living in hell—not only they got attacked by her pheromone, they start to feel her anger and wander around in delusion.
Policemen have a hard time to calm the crowd. Their hands are full by now. The chaos adding more work to them. Peinaire watches the circus while scoffing hard.
Soon, two cars stop at the scene. Kawei and Mei run towards their cub in hurry, following them are Fa, Ezra and Cirrus.
"Pein, baby... calm down..." Kawei begs to his cub. The Alpha stares at him in annoyance.
"You asked your minions to keep Caspi away from me, don't you? You heartless bastard!"
"It's not like that, baby! Dad just want to keep both of you safe—"
"I'm talking to my dad, not you, bitch!"
Kawei holds Mei's hand tight. He knows, his wife can't fight this crazy Alpha. She's stronger when she got mad. She'll never hesitate to attack Mei.
"Pein!"
The female Alpha turns around. Her face turns calm, yet there's sadness in her eyes.
"Caspi..."
"Pein... please... calm down..."
Peinaire starts crying. In front of her, Caspian stands up straight with a smile on his face. He's a bit thinner than the last time they met.
"Caspi... you skip your meal again, don't you?"
"There's no one who take care of me..."
"I want to take care of you..." Peinaire's voice rattles in overwhelming feeling.
"If you want to take care of me, climb in and let's go home..."
Peinaire smiles and nods. She is about to climb in, but suddenly she stops midway. Then, her face turns sour.
"Your liar!" The Alpha screams at Caspian.
"What do you mean?" that Omega starts to get panic.
"You son of a bitch, Fa! You think, you're the only one who can use magic?"
Shit! She knows!
Peinaire is gazing at her family in anger. "Since you all allied to keep Caspi away from me, and betray me, I guess there's no reason to be alive..."
She slowly let her hands off the railing. Her body falling down from the bridge as Kawei and Mei scream out loud.
And everything goes silent.