#beta!michael

Melody showed up between the two men, lavender dress popping out against her tanned skin and dark hair. Michael had his arm over her shoulder as he led her to the kitchen, grabbing three beers from the fridge and handing them out after using the bottle opener stuck on the fridge door. The trio stood around chatting with other people in the kitchen, the boys breaking off once they figured Melody was comfortable. She got a couple more drinks in her before making her way to the living room, the furniture having clearly been moved to make a dance floor. She pushed her way through the bodies, joining in the sweaty, dancing throng in the center. After three or four days of isolation the feeling of people pressed against her was amazing, even with her heat fading.

Suddenly a pair of hands gripped her hips, another set of hips roughly grinding against her ass. She could smell that it was an alpha behind her, but it wasn’t a strong scent and definitely didn’t cry out to her, but she continued dancing on him, that is, until she felt teeth sinking into her neck. She gasped, knees buckling as he continued to bite down on her, but she managed to strike him, hand slapping against his face. That wasn’t what caused him to disconnect his mouth from her neck though, a much stronger alpha scent washed over Melody, familiar enough. The new alpha had the other man by the scruff of his neck, treating him like an omega, and was glaring at him, hazel eyes full of contempt.

“How many times do I have to tell you, Harris, that you can’t go marking any little omega that smells extra sweet, she’s not yours,” he growled.

“Is she yours then, Irwin?” Harris sneered, only to be tossed aside to another pair of men standing behind the stronger alpha.

“No, doesn’t matter if scum like you is around. You’re not welcome here anymore.” Irwin said, staring down at him haughtily, nodding to the two others who hauled Harris away.

Once the other man was out of sight, he turned his attention to Melody, hand on her arm and guiding her away from the rest of the party. He pulled her into an upstairs bedroom, flipping the light on and motioning to the bed as he let go of her arm. She obediently sat down as he stalked over to his bathroom, muttering to himself. He came back out with a warm washcloth and some alcohol wipes. He cleaned off her neck with the wipes before pressing the cloth to her, alleviating some of the pain she hadn’t noticed until they’d come in. She hummed, leaning into his hand, eyes fluttering closed.

“You got a pack, sweetheart?” he whispered, voice full of concern.

“No,” she hummed, not noticing the frown that crossed his face.

“Who’d you come here with then?”

“Luke and Mikey, they’re in a pack with my best friend, m’just not in their pack, their alpha lives here.”

“No shit,” he giggled, “you’re Cal’s girl then? Mel?”

“Mhmmm” she managed, before it dawned on her, “oh shit, Ashton, god I knew you smelled familiar.”

Ashton laughed loudly at her connecting the dots. “It’s ok darling…just out of curiosity, when’s your next heat, you smell really irresistible. Might have to talk to Luke, he should’ve known better than to let you come.”

“Today was the last day, I was going crazy in my dorm and the fog was gone…thought it’d be ok to get out.” Melody’s face turned red, but she couldn’t fully look away from Ashton, since he was putting pressure on her neck.

Ashton shook his head a little as he let out a giggle. He slowly pulled the washcloth from her neck, fingers running over the bite Harris had left behind, face growing serious again. “Far as I’m concerned, you’re in my pack, Mel. It might help if you’re hanging around me, get some alphas like Harris to back off of you. Harris is mostly harmless, there’re alphas much worse than him out there, I’ve gotta set a precedent that anyone like that isn’t welcome on my turf.”

Melody nodded and Ashton rose, walking back into the bathroom. He left the damp washcloth on the counter before digging through some clothes on the floor in the closet and rifling through cabinets again. He walked back out, a dark button down hanging around his neck and two packages in his hands.

“Put this on that bite and it’ll keep it from scarring,” he said softly, handing her a jar. “I also brought some heat blockers, I keep ‘em here for Luke, he hates going through his heat alone, but also forgets to get his refilled. Figured you might want a pack to have around after tonight.”

Melody nodded slowly, she knew that tonight could’ve gone a lot worse, and she’d heard some friends talking about using blockers before. “Thank you, Ashton.” she whispered, light brown eyes meeting his hazel.

He just nodded, slowly pulling the extra shirt from around his neck, letting it drag over his skin as much as possible before offering it to her. “Gonna have Michael take you back on campus, head over to Calum’s dorm,” he stated, helping her as she shrugged the shirt on. “You’re one of us now, ok sweetheart?”

She just nodded, bowing her head to him as she grasped the jar and pills he’d given her. He hummed appreciatively, gently kissing the top of her head before pulling her up. He led her downstairs again, easily pulling Michael out of the crowd. He relayed his directions and Michael quickly took Melody, leading her out of the house and back down the streets they’d walked earlier. He was on alert, even though you had Ashton’s shirt on, he didn’t like the thought of what had happened.

He didn’t calm down until the door to his and Calum’s dorm was closed and locked behind him. Calum’s head snapped up from his textbook when he heard the door shut, not having expected Michael back so soon. His brows furrowed together when he saw Melody was with him too, before his eyes landed on the objects in her hand. He was on his feet in seconds, taking them from her, leaving Ashton’s shirt alone as he pulled her closer, giving her a quick lookover, making sure she was ok. When his eyes landed on the bite, he let out a growl, reminding Mel of why people thought he would’ve been an alpha.

“Harris?” he asked, glancing at Michael. Michael just nodded once and Calum’s nose scrunched, “Told Luke that it might be a bad idea to take her out tonight.” he sighed, placing his hands back on Melody’s shoulders. “You need to nest, don’t you sweetheart?” he whispered, smiling at her gently, to which she nodded. “I’ve got my extra sweatpants and hoodie, you go get ready and I’ll pull out some more blankets, then you can help me study, yeah?”

Melody agreed, grabbing the extra clothes and changing while Calum took the pills and cream to his desk. He piled the blankets on his bed and Michael sat down at his own desk, opening his laptop and putting his headphones on, disappearing into a game to let out his frustration. When Melody came back into the room, ready for bed, Calum motioned her over, putting a bit of cream on his finger to rub over the bite. She put Ashton’s rose printed black button down over the back of Calum’s chair once he was done, before she settled into the blankets, head on his shoulder as he returned to his notes and book.

~~~~~

Melody ended up not taking the heat blockers, letting Calum keep them around in case someone else wanted them. She spent more time with his pack, allowing herself to become part of it, and she was happy there. Even though her heats were regular, she still got a few days warning, Ashton’s jaw beginning to jump when she came over within a couple of days of her heat. Whenever that happened she would spend the next couple of days with just the other three boys, before just going to be on her own. She had never been around Ashton when he went into rut, but the smell of it on Calum brought her to her knees once, and she knew why he didn’t have her around for them.

It was a year later when she did meet a worse alpha than Harris. She’d been playing things safer since that party, not going out too close to either end of her heat. Tonight she was out with another friend’s pack, ending up separated on the dance floor. It went down hill from there, and she ran to Ashton’s, where they were having a boys’ night. She burst through the door, immediately grabbing the attention of her four pack mates, but she only wanted Calum.

He wrapped around her, while Ashton went upstairs, grabbing things for her and Luke and Michael disappeared to get her water and then just give her space. Ashton returned with cozy clothes and offered her heat blockers again, which she accepted this time, taking one right then and there. Ashton gently helped Calum change her out of her torn clothes and into a hoodie and basketball shorts before he backed off to join Luke and Michael, rubbing her shoulder gently.

A few minutes later he returned, “Got this sorry excuse for an alpha’s scent. He’s rutting and we’re gonna go teach him a lesson before he hurts anyone else. Cal, take her up to my room, we’ll be back.” Calum gave him one hard nod before scooping Melody up as Ashton ran out the front door, slamming it behind him.

Calum slowly moved upstairs, tucking all of Ashton’s blankets around Melody, wrapping her in Ashton’s scent, before crawling in next to her, arms tightening around her body as a sob finally broke loose. He held her, cooing and cuddling as she let it all out, knowing that as much as he wanted to beat the snot out of the dick that did this to her, she needed her best friend.

Her breathing slowly evened out, and Calum looked down at her, finding her asleep. He didn’t dare move from his spot, even to get something to wipe her face with. He just held her tighter and laid still. Ashton came back and Calum quickly looked up to him, he was buzzing. He just gave Calum a quick nod before disappearing into the bathroom, cutting on the shower. Calum snuggled closer to Melody, pressing a kiss to her forehead, not sure if Ashton would kick him out of bed when he came out.

Twenty minutes later, Ashton walked back out, dressed in just his sweatpants. Calum looked up at him, “Fucking bastard knew exactly what he was doing.” Was all Ashton said to him as he crawled in on the other side of the bed.

He was shaking still, the anger rolling off of him seeming to warm the sheets. “He had a beta with him, and she was so fucking scared, Cal. I got his attention and Luke pulled her away. This guy wasn’t even gone,” he seethed, “he knew every move he was making, and god, the smell of fear coming off of that beta was so strong and I just imagined how scared Melody must’ve been, and this guy was just smirking and I fucking snapped, Calum. I just saw red and lunged at him. Mike stopped me eventually, pulled me off after I don’t know how long. He and Lu took the other girl back to her friends, and I just came here, I couldn’t do it, I fucking hate alphas like him so much.”

Ashton was ranting and his eyes were full of tears, looking away from Calum, somewhere between Mel and his pillow. He rubbed his raw fists against his eyes, letting out a sniffle before wrapping his arms around Melody. Calum slowly unwrapped from her, beginning to pull away, expecting that Ashton would want him to go. “Stay.” He said sharply, “She’ll want you in the morning.”

Calum simply nodded, mumbling “M’gonna get something to clean all the tears off of her face, be right back.” Ashton hummed, pushing her hair away from her face before nodding to Calum, letting him get out of bed. He came back with a damp cloth, running it over her cheeks, putting it back before crawling back under the covers. He cut off the lamp and both men fell asleep, wrapped around Melody.

~~~~~~~~

A few months later it was summer break, the five of them all lazing around Ashton’s house, enjoying the warm breezes blowing through the open windows. The boys all had work shifts coming up and Melody was laying against Ashton while she flipped through a sticky note laden book she’d picked up at the library, one of her professors expecting a completed essay on the first day of class. The air in the house was calm, the only sound Calum cooking in the next room and the occasional groan from Michael as he played a game.

There was a subtle shift in the air, and Ashton leaned forward, arm tightening around Melody’s waist. “Ever tell you how good you smell?” He whispered, “like vanilla coffee and….roses.” Mel just hummed softly, turning a page. Ashton combed his fingers through her hair, still quietly thinking out loud, “Whoever your mate is is going to be so lucky. Such a sweet little omega, aren’t you pup? Hope they’re a little alpha, keep you round here with me, maybe they’d be down to share you. You’d be such a good little pup, wouldn’t you darling? Wish you were all mine, you wouldn’t have to sit out a heat all alone ever again, pup. I’d get you all of the blankets in the world to nest in after. Such a sweet pup.”

He hummed quietly, nestling his head in the crook of her neck, taking a deep breath. It was then that Melody caught it, the scent that had caused her to collapse in Calum’s arms several times. She became acutely aware of Luke whimpering at the other end of the couch, and Michael watching them over the top of his glasses. She slowly relaxed into Ashton more and he smiled.

“Would treat you so good, Mel. Be my queen, have a houseful of pups running around, our pups, yeah?” His lips fluttered against her neck, ghosting over the one little mark that refused to go away from her run in with Harris months ago. His hair stood on end as he felt the small divot in her neck, “Keep you safe, even better than I do now.”

He rutted his hips up into hers, and even still clothed Melody could feel he was already hard. She let out a soft whine, setting her book down on the coffee table before turning to face Ashton. “Ash isn’t all here right now, Mel.” Michael warned, setting his controller down.

She hummed, leaning in, Ashton’s pupils were wide, almost covering any sign of his eyes’ usual hazel color. His pull was magnetic as she connected her lips to his, and his kiss was hungry. He tangled his hands in her hair, hips thrusting up in search of any friction she could give him.

It was then that she snapped out of the haze Ashton’s scent had caused, pulling back, pushing Ashton’s chest as she did. He let out a low growl, glaring over at Michael before harshly gripping the back of her neck. Melody went limp in his hold and he smiled, “There’s my pup.”

Melody let out a soft whine as Ashton pressed into her again, and the next thing she heard were strong footsteps, coming from the kitchen, then a loud, harsh, slap. Ashton quickly released her neck, and Luke pulled her over to Michael, the three of them staring as Ashton leapt up, him and Calum staring each other down, sizing the other up. Finally, Calum rolled his eyes, punching Ashton straight in the face, shocking them all as Ashton tumbled to the floor.

Calum looked down at him, jaw jumping, before turning his attention to the three others on the opposite couch. “Michael, take Ash upstairs, get him in his bed and make sure he doesn’t leave here until he’s back. Lu, let’s take Melody home. I’ll leave the food here for Ashton, he’ll be hungry later.”

With that, everyone grouped off, Michael carrying Ashton away as Calum, Melody, and Luke left. As soon as the three of them entered Calum and Luke’s apartment, Luke let out a nervous giggle. “At least Mel has been taking heat blockers. We would’ve lost both of them, ‘specially since they’d just about synced up before.”

Calum froze, coming to a complete stop in the center of the living room.

“Fucking idiot was tracking his ruts based on her heats!” He yelled, tugging harshly at his hair.

Luke and Melody both stared at him as he began pacing the floor, muttering to himself about how he should’ve noticed this was coming and how Ashton’s last two ruts didn’t seem to manifest themselves. He finally let out an irritated groan before stomping off into his room and they soon heard the shower cutting on. Melody sighed, leaning into Luke as he put his arm around her shoulder. “S’not your fault that he wasn’t tracking based off of himself, you know that right, Mel?” he whispered, thumb running gentle circles on her arm, “If you feel safer taking the blockers, then it’s ok. Plus it sucks a whole lot less not having heats, right?” He giggled at the end, leading to Melody to let out a laugh and lean her head back against his chest, enjoying the company of the other omega.

She was glad to finally have a pack of her own that wasn’t just Calum. She’d bonded with the other three boys, and she liked the girl Michael had been seeing recently who came over sometimes. “Yeah, it is nice to not have to go through all that.” She said, smiling at the blonde man, “y’know, this is something I’d never tell anyone else,” Melody started, glancing towards Calum’s door, “but like, whenever I had a really bad heat or was really lonely, I’d try imagining this perfect alpha taking care of me, even thought about Ashton a few times, but it always ended up being Cal that I wanted to have there with me.”

Luke stared at her for a second, crystal eyes wide as he took in what she’d said. Melody’s face turned pink as she quickly started talking again, “I know it would never happen and all. But like, for the last six years our families and friends have always been on about us being meant to be, and it got so much worse after I presented as omega, and yeah it got annoying, I can’t even imagine how it must’ve been for Calum, everyone expecting him to be an alpha after that, but I still couldn’t help but wonder what if.”

Luke hummed, threading his fingers through her hair, “I wouldn’t say it would never happen,” he mused, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head.

She sighed and a moment later, Calum walked out, wrapped in a towel, and strolled over to the  laundry closet. He dug through the pile on top of the dryer before making his way back into his room, door clicking shut behind him. His movements had seemed calmer than before he’d showered and Luke and Melody both sighed. Calum came back out a few minutes later and he and Luke left to go to work, both insisting that she stay in the apartment as long as she wanted and that she get herself something to eat. As the apartment door closed behind them and the mechanical lock whirred, she couldn’t help but dwell on Luke’s last words.

~~~~~~~

Three days later, Melody was sitting in her apartment and there was knocking at her door. None of the boys had texted her, and her roommate was out with her girlfriend and their pack. She frowned, hopping off the counter and answering the door. She was surprised to see Ashton standing there, and he looked slightly upset. She let him in and he immediately threw his arms around her waist, holding her to his chest.

“M’so sorry about the other day, Mel.” he whispered, nuzzling his face into her hair. “I asked Luke and Michael why Calum was so mad at me and they told me everything that happened. I can’t believe I don’t remember any of it. I’m sorry if anything I did made you uncomfortable or freaked you out.”

He let out a shaky breath as he stopped talking, arms still tightly wrapped around her. She just stood there, gently rubbing his shoulder as he continued to just stand there holding her. Ashton had never been this vulnerable as long as she’d known him and she just wanted to comfort him. He let out a small sniffle and pulled back a little and Melody looked up at him. He chewed his lip and she leaned up and kissed his cheek.

“I was fine Ash. You almost had me until Michael reminded me that you weren’t really there, and I didn’t want you to wake up and feel like you do now. Calum was the one who was really upset by the whole situation.”

Ashton stared down at her, gently brushing her dark hair back over her shoulder, slowly nodding as what Melody had said sunk in. Her brown eyes met his hazel and she leaned in, kissing him softly. He was surprised, but kissed her back, one hand resting on her waist as her arms wrapped around the back of his neck. His hand slowly made its way into her hair and he deepened the kiss, letting his tongue trace over her lips, gaining a small hum from Melody as she pulled him closer.

After a minute, Ashton pulled away, resting his forehead on hers, looking down at her a she slowly opened her eyes, whining quietly. “Are you sure about this sweetheart?” He asked, gently grasping her chin between his fingers.

“Yeah Ash, m’so sure, I want you.” She whispered, leaning up to try to capture his lips again. He laughed softly, leaning down and kissing her gently, hands moving to her hips, hands tapping at her to allow him to pick her up. She hopped up, easily wrapping her legs around his waist and he gripped her thighs, barely pulling away from her as he walked into her bedroom, kicking the door shut behind them before they fell into bed.

~~~~~

Ashton and Melody fell into a friends with benefits relationship, showing up at the other’s home whenever they got a text. Occasionally Melody would stay over at Ashton’s, but Ashton rarely stayed at her apartment. Melody was still taking heat blockers and Ashton wouldn’t let her come over when he went into a rut unless he was sure that he would be all there. Calum took the longest to accept their new relationship with each other, but Melody won him over after a couple months. They had both agreed that it would end as soon as either of them found their mate, perfectly fine with keeping their relationship as just sex.

Four months in, there came a week where Melody was so busy with school that she forgot to take her heat blockers, and her heat hit her hard, having not had one for six months. She pulled on one of Ashton’s jackets that he’d left for her, pulling it tightly around her body and going over to Calum’s apartment.

She knocked on the door desperately and Calum answered quickly, pulling her inside and holding her to his chest. “What is it sweetheart?” He asked, worry taking over his tone as he tried to look her over.

“Need you, Cal.” She whimpered, gripping his arm tightly as her body shook.

He stared at her, “How do you need me baby? What happened?”

She let out a frustrated little whine and tugged at his shirt. She shrugged off Ashton’s jacket as she continued to pull at Calum’s clothes and his eyes went wide when he finally caught her scent. He grabbed her hand, removing it from his body and she whined again, staring up at him, her brown eyes wide. He picked the jacket up off of the ground and whispered, “You need Ash, Melody. I’ll take you over there.”

She shook her head, insisting, “I want you Calum. Need you.”

“Babygirl, you’re my girl, always have been, but I can’t take care of you how Ashton could, that’s who you need to be with you right now. This is different from how you two are usually together, but it’s supposed to be so much better that way.”

Melody sighed, shoulders dropping and Calum thought he’d convinced her, reaching for the key hook on the wall next to them. She grabbed his hand, voice small as she said, “I know it’s supposed to be better that way, but I want you, Cal. It’s always been you.” Calum stared at her, chewing his lip as she continued, “I realized over the past couple years that most betas don’t smell as good as you do, if I can even smell them at all. When I had bad heats like this one I always thought about you taking care of me. As soon as this one hit me I knew I didn’t want to just think about you.”

Calum stood there frozen. Finally he pulled her into him, slowly leaning down and kissing her deeply, pressing her body firmly against his as their lips moved together. He gripped Melody’s hair, tugging it gently to tilt her head to the side, sucking lightly at a spot below her ear. Melody let out a soft moan and he whispered against her skin, “You’re right Mel, so right. There’s only ever been two people I could smell, Ashton, just because of how he is, and you. And I can’t ever imagine being with anyone else.”

She sighed happily at his words, eyes slipping closed as he gently bit at her neck. He slowly led her to his bedroom, locking the door behind them. He let her take his shirt off and watched as her eyes slowly roamed the room. Her gaze settled on the desk and she walked over to it, slowly removing her pants before taking a seat on top of the desk, resting her feet on the chair. Calum laughed lowly, walking over, picking up her leg and sliding into the chair, setting her foot back on the chair next to him. “Now what, babygirl?” he whispered, fingers slowly trailing up her thighs. She chewed her lip as she watched his long fingers wandering over her skin. “Do ya think you’re gonna be in charge just because I’m not Ashton, is that it princess? Because you’d have to actually give me an idea of what I’m supposed to be doing here, can’t just sit there all pretty on my desk like that.”

She whimpered as his finger slid over her clothed core and he hummed, staring up at her. He slowly moved from his desk chair, shoving it away from the desk, crouching between her thighs, moving her legs to rest over his shoulders. Slowly he began brushing his lips over her thighs, whispering “Do you want me to make you cum on my tongue baby? I’d sure like that if you want it.”

Melody shivered at his words, nodding rapidly and Calum gently nipped her thigh, “Gotta hear you babygirl, talk to me Melody.”

His voice was raspy and Calum had to grip her hips to keep her from sliding off of the desk as she tried to push herself closer to him, whining as she whispered, “Please Calum, need you.”

He nodded slowly, removing her panties and scooting closer to her, one hand gripping her thigh as the other slowly slid through her folds, slowly licking his lips as he watched his finger enter her. She let out a loud moan at the feeling of his finger slowly pushing into her core, and he let out a low groan, staring up at her, her eyes squeezed shut and hands gripping the edge of his desk.

He chewed his lip, looking at her for a moment longer before starting to kitten lick at her clit. She tried to press herself closer to his face, but his grip on her hip kept her firmly in place. Melody let out a little whine, hands making their way into the blonde curls at the top of his head, causing him to let out a groan as she pulled at them. His eyes fluttered closed and he wrapped his lips around her clit, teeth gently nibbling at the bud. He began harshly sucking at her clit as he picked up the pace that his finger was moving in and out of her, opening his eyes to look up at her again.

Her face was screwed up in pleasure and she was barely holding herself up on her elbows. Her brown eyes met his and he felt her whole body tense. He nearly pulled away until he felt her clenching around his finger. He hummed softly, slowly curling his finger inside her and she gasped, his name repeatedly falling from her lips as she came.

Calum didn’t let up his assault on her after she’d ridden out her high. She whimpered, pressing her hips closer to his face and he groaned, adding a second finger to her core, picking up the pace of his movements. Melody moaned his name loudly, yanking at his hair. Calum groaned lowly, pulling his face away to look up at her. She opened her eyes when she felt the loss of contact from his mouth, staring down at him as he slowly licked his lips. His eyes fluttered and he let out a low moan, shifting underneath her slightly. He maintained eye contact with her as he curled both his fingers inside her. She let out a high pitched noise at the motion and he grinned, until she tightened her legs around his shoulders, bending her knees to try to reconnect his mouth where she needed him.

“Really Melody, want my mouth that bad, princess?” he teased, biting the soft flesh of her thigh.

She whimpered, eyes falling shut as she leaned back on the desk, quietly whimpering his name. Calum smiled, completely removing his fingers from her. Melody whined loudly, only to be replaced with a shaky moan as Calum’s tongue sunk into her core. He gripped her hips tightly in one hand as he pressed his thumb to her clit, slowly rubbing it back and forth across the ball of nerves.

He brought her to her high again, her hips bucking off of the desk and he tried to hold her back down as he lapped at her, cleaning her up with his tongue.

He slowly rose to his feet when he was done, pulling Melody to his chest and crushing his lips to hers, forcing his tongue into her mouth. She moaned against his lips and he pulled her legs around his waist, hands going under her thighs as he lifted her off of his desk, carrying her over to his bed.

She was already tired from her last two orgasms, but she could feel his hard on through his pants, pressed against her as Calum held her tightly to him, and she let out a soft whimper, wanting more.

“Just a minute sweetheart,” Calum whispered, standing in front of her as he placed her on his bed. He quickly removed his sweatpants, stepping out of them before going to dig in his bedside drawer for a condom. Melody whined as she watched him, finally pulling off her t-shirt and bra and Calum’s breath hitched in his throat when he looked over to see his best friend fully naked in his bed. Calum had never been more glad that he had let himself be free under his sweatpants than in that moment, pumping himself a few times before he rolled on the condom. “Alright princess,” Calum said as he crawled into bed, hovering over Melody, “are you still sure you want this?”

“Fuck, Cal, need you so bad babe, please.” Melody begged, staring up at him, legs wrapping around his waist.

He nodded slowly, listening to her high pitched whine as he teased her, sliding his tip through her folds a few times before thrusting into her. He cussed quietly as he felt her around him, eyes slipping closed as she made a sound that was almost a purr. She felt perfect, a slightly snug fit, but better than anything Calum had ever imagined. He stayed still for a minute, propped up on his elbows, enjoying how he felt in that moment.

He then remembered that he needed to take care of Melody and opened his eyes, looking down at her. Her eyes were closed, a content smile on her face and Calum grinned, pressing a gentle kiss to her cheek. “Like this baby?” he mumbled, “Feel so good, Mel, gonna have to just sit like this again sometime. So perfect.”

Melody moaned at his words, and he smiled, slowly beginning to pull out of her. He set a slow pace, gently holding onto her hips, allowing them both to just get used to each other. After a bit, Melody moved on of her legs higher and they both moaned as Calum sunk deeper into her. He began picking up his pace, moving his hand back between her legs, thumb rubbing circles on her clit again. They both reached their highs, Calum working Melody through hers as his hips stilled, spilling into the condom. He slowly pulled out, pressing gentle kisses to Melody’s cheeks as he left her. She hummed happily, wrapping her arms around his neck to get him to kiss her lips. He smiled as he did so, slowly moving to hold her in his lap.

“M’gonna make you a bath, and get you all the blankets so you can nap. We’ll talk more about this after you wake up, ok love?” he said after he pulled away, fingers combing through her hair. Melody nodded and Calum got up, walking into his bathroom where he discarded the used condom and cleaned himself up before running a bath for Melody. When it was ready, he walked back into his room to get her and carried her into the bathroom, setting her in the water. She hummed in content and he kissed the top of her head before walking out.

Calum pulled his sweatpants back on and began gathering blankets for Melody. He left the room to fix some water and grab snacks while she continued her bath. He hung Ashton’s jacket over the back of a chair and just as he did, the man it belonged to walked in the door. “Hey Cal,” Ashton said with a smile, “you hear from Mel today? I’ve tried texting her but haven’t gotten an answer.”

Calum hummed, nodding, slowly looking around his apartment. Ashton hummed, eyebrows pulling together, his gaze dropping to the snacks in Calum’s hands. “Having a movie day? Know she’s been busy all week. She coming by soon?”

Calum chewed his lip, gaze dropping to the floor. He’d been hoping he could’ve at least talked to Melody, enjoying her company for the weekend before seeing Ashton, to have time to figure everything out before he had to talk to the alpha about it. Ashton tilted his head, opening his mouth when they heard movement coming from Calum’s room. His hazel eyes drifted towards the closed door, slowly connecting the dots between Calum’s body language and the movement he just heard. He finally noticed his jacket on the back of the dining chair and he smirked. “Fucking finally man.” he said, hand clapping Calum’s shoulder.

His head shot up from how he’d been trying to make himself smaller, eyes wide as he stared at Ashton. He picked up the snacks from the table and made his way to Calum’s room. Calum slowly followed after him, slightly dazed as he tried to understand Ashton’s reaction.

“Hey pup.” Ashton greeted, walking into the room, coming to sit next to where Melody had burrowed into the blankets Calum had left out for her. Calum froze in the doorway, looking between the two, remembering that Melody was in heat, and he wasn’t sure what would happen when Ashton got close enough to smell her.

Melody’s eyes went wide and she stared up at Ashton. He ran his hands through her hair, “S’okay baby, I was just coming by to say hi, see if Cal had heard from you. He obviously did, didn’t he love? He take good care of you? Knew this would happen eventually. Don’t know why you told your little secret to Luke, he’s awful at keeping them, ‘specially from me.”

Calum’s eyes went wide as he listened to Ashton, his gaze slowly crossing to where his eyes were falling, unable to see Melody from his door due to the blankets.

“It confirmed my suspicions though, from the way you two are around each other, and all the stories Cal and Mikey have told me about how people treat you two. You really are meant for each other.” Ashton smiled down at her, raising his hand to beckon Calum over.

Calum walked over, crawling into bed on her other side, pulling the blankets back and wrapping himself around Melody. Calum moving her blankets sent her scent moving through the room and Ashton tensed, jaw clenching as he realized she was in heat. He let out a slow breath through his nose, slowly nodding, everything coming together. Calum shared his snacks with Melody, gently rubbing her shoulder, eyes on Ashton.

As they all stayed still, Ashton calmed down. His eyes cleared and his body relaxed, “Busy week, huh pup? Forgot your meds.” he managed to laugh out now that he was calmed. Melody nodded slowly, eyes hooded with sleep. He sighed, “well, like we said when we started this, you’ve found your mate, I’ll back off, unless you two decide otherwise. But, since you’re in heat right now, Mel, I’m not taking any suggestions on that, plus you two need to figure your relationship out. I’ll leave, let you two nap and whatever else, count you out on game night.” He smirked as he rose, slowly leaning over the bed and giving Mel one last kiss before walking out of the room.

Melody smiled, looking up at Calum, pressing a kiss to his jaw before cuddling to his chest, eyes falling shut and she fell asleep nearly immediately. He smiled, running his fingers through her hair before lightly tracing over a few light marks on her neck. They were bite marks Ashton had left within the last week or two. He had never bitten down hard enough to leave a scar, but they didn’t fade quickly either. He hummed quietly, looking them over, sucking on his lip. He settled into his pillows more, holding her tighter and letting himself fall asleep too.

~~~~~~

Calum woke up to Melody playing with his hair. He hummed quietly, slowly opening his eyes to look up at her. She was straddling his waist, the blankets only covering his legs. He smiled, hands reaching for her hips, holding her tightly as he rolled onto his side. “Hey sweetheart.” he rasped, pressing a kiss to her shoulder.

Melody sighed happily, shifting and cuddling into his chest, fingers trailing over his tattoos. “Can’t believe we’re actually together. Like this.” Calum hummed, taking her hand and kissing her fingers lightly. “Me either, beautiful. Nothing’s ever felt more right than now.”

She smiled, cuddling into him, shifting her hair to expose her neck, humming quietly, “All yours Cal.”

Calum slowly licked his lips, staring at the faint marks he’d been observing earlier. He leaned down, pressing kisses over the marks before sinking his teeth into the skin. She arched off of the bed and Calum pressed her back down, holding her still while he left her a mating mark. Her eyes slipped closed, gripping his arm tightly.

He pulled away after a bit, gently tracing over the mark, grabbing a bit of the blanket to clean it off. He settled onto his back, “All yours, Mel,” he said with a smile, turning his head to the side. Melody smiled back, giving him the exact same treatment he’d given her.

They both smiled at each other when they finished cleaning up their necks, wrapping together and cuddling. He sighed happily, wiggling his sweatpants down and kicking them to the end of the bed. He kissed her gently, rubbing her shoulders with one hand, other one running through her dark hair. Everything was soft and slow, Calum wrapping one arm around her waist as he kept gently pressing his lips to her skin, occasionally looking to where they connected, a smile spreading over his face.

~~~~~

They spent the next several days together at Calum’s apartment. Luke had gone home to visit with his family, so they barely dressed the whole time, spending time together wherever they wanted. When Luke came home, after unpacking all three of them went over to Ashton’s. All three of them were dressed in hoodies, Melody and Calum both having the hoods over their heads, leaning into each other as they sat on the sofa. Ashton smiled over at the two of them, his eyes crinkling as he took them in.

Michael and Luke stared between their three friends, trying to read the room. Calum pulled Melody’s hood away from her face, pulling her into her lap and nuzzling into her neck. Luke caught the change in Melody’s scent with the movement Calum caused and a grin broke over his face, “Fuckin finally!” he yelled, jumping onto the couch and crushing Calum and Melody in a hug.

Ashton laughed at his reaction, “That’s what I said when I showed up at Cal’s Saturday.”

Michael continued to look lost until Calum’s hood fell off of him as Luke pulled away, showing off the mating mark. His mouth fell open and Ashton whistled, walking over to look at the bite Melody had left. Calum flinched slightly as Ashton traced the skin, still bruised and sore from when she’d left it on him. Ashton turned to look at Melody’s neck as well, pulling her hair back and staring at it. He smiled, noticing the way it overlapped the nearly healed shallow bites he’d left. He gently traced around it, smiling as she leaned into his touch. Calum’s dark eyes watched him, his arms tightening around her waist as Ashton took them both in.

He slowly backed off, smiling at his pack mates as he went to sit down next to Michael. While the couple had been in the group the entire time, everyone was still sizing up the change in dynamic, but they were all happy for Calum and Melody. They all chatted, catching up and enjoying the company of their pack.

There came a lull in conversation, Michael staring out the window, thinking quietly. Finally he spoke up, “You two are lucky. Rare that an omega like Mel would end up with a beta. Hell, rare that they would’ve been best friends for six years without even thinking about it.”

Luke let out a giggle at his last sentence, glancing towards Melody with a smile. Her face turned pink and she leaned into Calum, hiding her face. Ashton rolled his eyes at Luke, “You’re the worst, Lu.” he muttered, and Michael just nodded, understanding flooding him.

He got up, gently shoving Luke aside and wrapping his arms around the two mates. “Whatever all happened to make you guys notice that you’re meant to be together, I’m happy it happened. You’ve both been glowing the whole time we’ve been talking.”

Calum beamed at him, moving his arm to hug Michael back, squeezing his shoulders tightly. “Everyone else knew way before we did. We just thought it was bullshit they were saying because of how close we were. Mums gonna flip her shit when we go home and tell her. Isn’t that right Mel?”

The five of them sat there laughing, Calum and Melody leaning into each other, holding tightly to the other, happy to have the other.