[Jeremy]
[5.30pm, University St Lewis' campus]
"Brother, are you returning home or staying in the hostel this weekend?" a familiar voice asked. Jeremy turned when he felt a tap on his left shoulder. There was only one person who called him 'brother' and it was not even his biological elder sibling, Vale.
It was his best friend, Colby.
"I think I should return home for the weekend. I just want to make sure that everything is going well with my brother's work and all."
"Ah, what a caring brother~" Colby teased and smiled, giving a full view of the lip piercing he had on the side of his mouth.
Jeremy's mouth twitched slightly. It was still funny to hear Colby refer to him as 'brother' in terms of being close friends and also 'brother' to refer to Vale.
'Then again, it would be more confusing to an outsider if I were to call Colby 'brother' as well,' Jeremy thought to himself. It would be funny to watch the expressions of bystanders who listened to their conversation.
But instead of smiling at this thought, Jeremy just stared at his best friend. He knew that Colby would be encouraged to tease him further if he were to smile now. Despite being a kind and supportive friend, Colby was quite the teaser. Sometimes, he would even play pranks on people-- though it was never carried out too far.
In many ways, the alpha and him were of polar opposites, but there is this indescribable bond they share. Many who have seen the two together would never have imagined the friendship to last from throughout high school and then during university life. For a start, the circle of friends they often hung out with and the activities they were mostly involved in, are totally different. While Jeremy and his other friends are into literature and gaming, Colby's group of friends were hiking enthusiasts and loved everything about the outdoors.
"But brother, I was just thinking of calling everyone over for movie night!" Colby whined pathetically and gave his best tearful expression.
"Col, you know that that won't work on me. You're just trying to guilt trip me... Besides, you have the others to keep you company for the movie."
"Ah~ But it won't be the same! Why are you so cold?!" Colby complained and hugged Jeremy tightly and Jeremy finally broke out in laughter.
"Colby, people are watching! You're going to break so many hearts!" Jeremy said but did not move to actually push his friend away.
"Ah, everyone knows that we are besties~ Why are you so shy?"
A couple of girls from another class who were passing by saw them and giggled. 'Ah, there goes my chance of getting a girlfriend in university,' Jeremy sighed.
"Brother, let me walk with you half of the way-- at least to the bus stop."
"Oh? I don't mind but don't you need to prepare for movie night?"Jeremy asked.
"It's all good, brother. I was thinking of checking out the hair accessories shop that is near the bus stop."
Jeremy just stared at his friend. He was speechless. There was only one reason why Colby would want to visit the hair accessories shop.
"Col, you just dyed your hair blue last month! The colour is still bright and the roots are not even showing!"
"I know, but I feel like having it jet black. It's the new sexy~" Colby replied and tousled his hair. "I mean, look at me. No matter how I style this hair, I still look odd--and--not--sexy!"
Jeremy just raised a brow.
"Brother, I'm single. I need a partner when I'm still 'energetic'-- if you get what I mean~" Colby said and thrusted his hips ever so slightly.
"Colby…" Jeremy started but paused when he saw Colby's expression. The alpha may have said it in a teasing manner but his eyes spoke of a different story-- they were filled with sincerity and sadness. From the many years of their friendship, Jeremy knew that Colby was the kind of person who needed to be praised or given affection. Coming from a broken home and being an only child, the loneliness was unbearable for Colby.
At that, Jeremy sighed resignedly, "Okay, let's go. I'll even accompany you to the shop. We'll choose the best hair colour that would make you irresistible."
***
[About almost an hour later--]
"Thanks for accompanying me today. Without you, I'd have still been choosing which hair dye and other accessories I wanted," Colby said.
"It's alright. I knew you'd eventually be tempted to try out the other colours sold in the shop," Jeremy replied.
"Brother~ You know me well~"
"Hah… Yes…" Jeremy said as they headed towards the bus stop which was only a five minutes' walk away.
As it was already dinnertime, there was quite some traffic on the road. Moreover, there were already a number of other pedestrians waiting at the intersection. Jeremy proceeded to press the traffic light button-- which should in turn cause the traffic light switching time to lengthen by a few extra seconds for all the pedestrians to cross.
"Brother, my friends and I have been thinking of having game night next week. I forgot the name but they have been thinking of playing that role playing board game… Err… You know, that one about assassins and detectives? Would you and your friends like to join?" Colby asked.
"Ah, you mean Hired Gun? Yeah, sure. I'll text the others later, but they should be free then."
"Great! So, about what--" but Colby never got to finish his sentence as the large television screen that was mounted on a building on the other side of the road, had switched from an advertisement to the news channel. Moreover, the volume was turned up high; possibly with the intention of reaching the ears of many.
"Good evening. I am Roxanne from Channel 8, and I bring you exclusive news, live, from the very heart of the world renowned AO Company," said a thin, brunette news reporter as the cameraman turned away and to another person on the right side.
A man who looked to be in his late fifties, dressed in a white coat appeared on the screen. He adjusted his metal framed glasses and hesitated for a brief moment before speaking.
"Good evening, everyone. My name is Dr Fitzpatrick and I am the lead researcher of AO Company. I am here today to inform you in regards to a concerning matter," the researcher paused before continuing, "As you all know, the omega population has decreased tremendously over the past decades; whereas the alpha and beta population continue to increase."
"We already know that," a middle aged man said out loud.
"Shut up, man. We are listening to the news!" someone else yelled.
"Well, since an alpha would need an omega to produce an offspring, there has been a new development. There have been several cases where an alpha had turned a beta into an omega," Dr Fitzpatrick said with a grave expression on his face.
"WHAT?!"
"Oh my God!"
"That's insane!"
"Shit! Stop coming so near me! You are probably an alpha, huh?! Go away!" someone said and there was a 'thud' sound a few feet away, as if something or someone had fallen to the ground.
'Ah, this is a mess,' Jeremy thought to himself.
"Please listen to me. I can already imagine what many of you may be saying out there or thinking. Let me clarify a few facts… No, not all alphas are able to change a beta to an omega. The incidents were isolated and after further testing, the betas who were affected were indeed the soulbond mate to the particular alphas. Thus, one alpha will not be able to change the gender of numerous betas. Moreover, the chances of a soulbond is very low. So, not many will be affected by this incident-- if any…" the researcher trailed off. There was a long pause as if the researcher was either deep in thought or unsure of how to continue.
"Dr Fitzpatrick, is there a sign to know if a beta is a soulbond mate to an alpha?" Roxanne urged.
"Ah, yes… No, there isn't any conclusive proof but from the few cases investigated on, the betas involved tend to look prettier than the average beta-- be it female or male. We are still in the middle of testing, but it can be assumed that these affected betas may have been recessive omegas the whole time. A recessive omega would not have the sufficient number of genes to truly distinguish a person between the omega and beta genders. However, this is all we can presume based on the one recessive omega data we've gathered many years ago. Further testing and information will be needed before we can confirm its validity."
"I see. Then, how does an alpha change a beta to an omega?"
"There are a couple of ways. In one of the cases, the alpha was having his rut and had bitten the neck of his sex friend as they were doing it. As for the other cases, the betas started to change the moment they were exposed to the alphas' pheromones… Please allow me to reiterate, these are all isolated incidents. It will only happen if the alpha and beta are soulbond mates."