The Invitation

Hikaru let out a subtle cough, taken back by the question. They finally turned their head in my direction and offered a soft smile. “That depends on who you ask,” they said in a quiet tone. “According to the pack, we’re bound as mates for life. But to the outside world, not so much. I don’t want you to think that you have any… marital obligations. This whole thing is my fault, and I was careless to have gotten you involved.”

With the light of civilization assisting my sight, I noticed that the cut on his lip was gone. It wasn't swollen nearly as badly. Their clothes were still ripped and bloodied, but they didn’t appear to be in as much pain as before. “Wait, what happened to your cuts?” I asked, reaching toward their face.

They put a hand up in a defensive motion, and I immediately regretted my actions. It must have been one hell of a beating to cause such a personality change. They quietly said “We heal quickly. It’s the blessing of the wolf. I’ll be fine.” After a tiny pause, they added as a correction, “But that doesn’t apply to kin. I don’t want you thinking you’re invincible.”

“And what about your mental state, does it heal quickly too?” I asked, maybe a bit more aggressively than intended. “These people beat the hell out of you, chained you up, threatened your life, and now you’re completely different than when I met you. How can you say you’ll be fine after they did those things to you?”

Hikaru let out a long, exhausted sigh. It took them a bit to answer, and when they did their tone was somber. “I got what I deserved. Sebastian has been on me for years about mingling with humans, but I didn’t listen. I was cocky. I’ve haven't lost control like that since I was younger, and I thought I had things handled. Before I met you.” They shook their head with a frustrated look about them. “I can’t believe I messed up so badly.”

I could tell they felt terrible, but hearing them blame themself was hard to take in after seeing the abuse they endured. “You said you were mingling with humans for years, though. What was so different about tonight? Is it because of my mother? Are we cousins or something?”

“What? No!” they insisted. “I mean, is everyone with red hair related? Of course not. It has something to do with genes and lineage, but I’m not the one to ask when it comes to the details. Some members of the pack lean more heavily on science and others gravitate toward magic as a way of understanding the blessing.”

“And you?” I asked gently.

“I don’t really care about either. It doesn’t matter if I understand the blessing or not. It’s a part of me and that will never change. Calling it science or magic, genes or mythos, those are just the packaging. As an omega, those things don’t really concern me.” Their posture started to look uncomfortable, and I felt bad about asking so many questions.

“I'm sorry. I know I can be a bit much. I get curious is all.” I motioned in a direction, leading him toward my apartment.

“I owe you answers, don’t feel bad about asking me things,” they replied sternly. “What happened to you tonight was entirely my fault. I wouldn’t blame you at all if you hated me. If you want me to leave you alone, I can definitely do that. But for your safety, the pack needs to think that we’re committed to each other.”

“I don’t hate you,” I said plainly. “I barely know you. I don’t know what this bond entails, but I don’t want to see anything bad happen to you. Especially because of me.”

They let out a quiet chuckle. “We really are something, eh? I hope we don’t spend the rest of our lives apologizing to each other. That sounds really boring.” Hearing them mention the rest of our lives together made my cheeks flush. I was so taken aback that I let him drive past my street.

“Oh, uh, that one. Up there. The… where the sign is… we can take the block.” I motioned with my hands after my words betrayed me.

Hikaru calmly drove, following my clumsy direction. He offered me a sideways smile. “You’re cute when you get all flustered like that.”

Their compliment caused my cheeks to go from a rosy pink to a deep crimson. I could feel my ears burning. I rubbed my face with both hands vigorously in an attempt to compose myself. “It’s the building on the corner there.” My voice sounded muffled when I spoke through my fingers. “With the bricks.”

They pulled the truck into a spot in front of my building and cut the engine. With the newfound quiet, the tension was heavier than ever. “So-” we both started to speak, then abruptly stopped and laughed.

I fidgeted with the sleeve of my hoodie, nervous to look at him. “I… I mean, if you want…” I took a deep breath and started over. “Do you want to come upstairs? With me, I mean. To my apartment?”

Hikaru looked over with a delicate smile. “I don’t want you to do anything you’re not comfortable with. Do you want me to come upstairs with you?” Their eyes were illuminated by the streetlight and seemed to pierce right through me. Their features were sharp, but soft at the same time. Even covered in ratted, bloody clothes they were still the most beautiful person I’d ever seen.

I quickly shot my gaze forward, worried that I might give them the wrong impression. “I just still have a lot of questions. And I won’t be able to get any studying done tonight, because I’ll be too focused on processing. And my roommate isn’t going to be around anyway, because she has plans. And I just got this new tea that I’m really excited about and thought maybe you could use some tea after a night like this.”

After listening to me ramble on for a bit, Hikaru raised a hand in an attempt to calm me. “Tea sounds fantastic, I would love that.”