It was dark in the small alley behind the club. Not entirely dirty, but it was not a safe place to be cornered. Hudson tried to move, yet it proved hopeless. Now he got a glimpse of why the Lees did not trust alphas. In this scary hour, his heart searched for his brother.
Michael always protected him from the nasty side of life and urged him not to be afraid. The recollection of this consoles him briefly that not every alpha was a monster. People choose to be good or bad, regardless of their position. But then again, Hudson remembered how aggressive Michael could get each time he disobeyed instructions.
'It's just a bad dream, only a bad dream," Hudson chanted in his head. His brother loved him; they only had each other. If only Michael could save him now that he needed him the most.
The assailant had unzipped Hudson's pants and fondled him. The latter trembled at the touch, his body being seduced by the deceptive alpha. An apparent wolf in sheepskin.
Hudson's hot tears ran down his cheeks. Looking to one side, a busy street was at the end of the alley, but his cries were not audible enough to draw anyone's attention.
As a male omega, his body would react like the females. Wet with slick but visibly erect in the front. A moan escaped him again when the person bites lightly on his nips, clearly poking at his shirt.
"I don't want this...Stop...Please stop." he strived to push the creep off. But the alpha went on to the point where his pants were pulled down. The assailant flips Hudson around and pushes his face against the wall, readying his erection at the entrance of the omega's ass. He was about to have his way when someone grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and shoved him aside.
"He said no. Clearly, you're deaf and dumb," the person said calmly with a chilling aura.
Jin appeared behind the rescuer, enraged to see Hudson in such an awful state.
Heaven must have been on his side to get here on time. After searching all the bathrooms and making two trips to the bar, he sensed something was off. To make it worse, Hudson was not answering his phone. Luckily, Lee Ann forced them to put trackers on one another, and this stranger came in handy. Jin sat his friend up and put his jacket around him while their helper dealt with the offender.
"Let's hand him over to the police," Jin said.
"No, they'll just call it a natural phenomenon and let him go. Got to teach him a lesson he'll never forget." The alpha continued, slamming the other person's face into the wall. Jin did not complain after those words. It was true. Forcing an omega into heat or mating with them without consent was against the law, but enforcing that law was but a black wall painted white.
A loud snap was heard, the assailant shrieking in agony on the hard floor.
"Next time you want to force yourself on anyone, think of your other leg." A cunning smile appeared on the alpha's face before he turned to Jin.
"Are you not affected by the pheromones?" Jin asked when their helper offered to take Hudson.
"Don't worry about me; I have my way," the stranger said. He gave the affected omega a piggyback ride to the car. "Where to?" He asked Jin, noting the hint of alcohol in the omega's breath. It was what drew him to Jin in the first place.
"The hospital, of course," Jin said between breaths.
"No...No hospitals, my brother would kill me," Hudson said through clenched teeth, still suffering from the forced heat.
"Okay, let's take him to my place. Wait... My brother is still at the club," Jin tapped his forehead just as he sat beside Hudson at the back.
"Go get him. We'll wait for you."
"Mn." Jin looked at Hudson and his saviour's face. The alpha nods to him to hurry, so he risks it trusting the stranger.
After a few minutes, the Lee brothers ran to the car and drove off. Bolin was sceptical about the alpha driving, but Jin assured him it was alright.
Lee Ann quickly called a friend over when they arrived with Hudson. He was worsening by the minute, and they could not take him to the hospital against his wishes. When Wren Snow, a medical student at the university, arrived with her brother Sage, the boys were straight-out cold to them because they were both alphas.
But having another alpha Jin regarded as a hero made him feel safer. It took some time, but they managed to put Hudson to sleep and take care of any bruises.
They left him in the guestroom afterwards. Ann served some tea and biscuits, but the alpha who rescued Hudson asked to be on his way.
"Thanks for your help. I would not have found him sooner if I hadn't bumped into you. Pardon my manners; I never told you my name. I'm Lee Jin, but you can call me Jin."
"I'm sure everyone knows the three tigers of the Lee clan. Heil Dodger, call me Heil."
"Heil, thank you for everything." Jin bowed, bending his body forward correctly.
"I don't care for such things. I'll be on my way now, be careful out there," Heil said.
Jin: "Mn..."
The Lee siblings and the Snows watched the latter leave with nothing but a hand wave.
"I've never met an alpha like him," Jin muttered with a smile that refused to deflate.
Ann and Bolin turned to their brother with shock on their faces. Indeed, they owed the alpha many thanks, but they had not seen their brother liven up to another in that manner.
"Save your breath; Heil is everything but nice." Wren put a stake through their perfectly carved image of a man.
"Why say that? Do you know him?" Jin suddenly became interested in her presence.
"Every student on campus knows Heil, and he never does favours."
"He's a student; what department is he in?" Jin only paid attention to that information, and his siblings could tell.
Wren packs her tools. " I wonder why he helped you in the first place."
"Really?" Ann followed closely as Wren walked around the table, Sage pacing behind her.
Bolin: "Tch! And here we thought he was a saint."
Jin: "Bo, don't be ungrateful. Something worse would have happened to Hudson if he had not helped. He beat the person to a pulp. If you ask me, I'd say he's what every alpha should be."
"And what's that?" Wren halted and veered.
"A person who is not ruled by pheromones and greed. If he's a student, then I hope to see him again," Jin spoke, tilting his head and showing a sharp look. It was almost as if Wren's idea of painting Heil black offended him. But he smiles in the end and goes upstairs to check on Hudson.
With him gone, Wren seriously faces Ann, " I think you should get your brother away from Heil. He's dangerous."
"Thanks for the advice; I'll speak to him. Get home safe." Ann smiled without dragging the issue further. If Jin felt otherwise about Heil, then there must be something extraordinary about him.
For the next few days, Jin searched for Heil at school. Hudson missed some classes to rest, and the only excuse Jin could give was that he had travelled. Had Jin said Hudson was sick or had been attacked, his family would have found out for sure.
Back at his place, Hudson was still dealing with the aftermath of what happened to him. He didn't want to talk to anyone and preferred staying in bed all day. He would text his brother to keep him at bay but never spoke on the phone. The Lees gave him space but also made sure he had everything he needed while they figured out what to do next.
Days passed, and Hudson came around bit by bit. Jin went out of his way to ensure his friend did not have to worry about lectures, bringing up one excuse after another. One day after cultivation class, Jin was stopped by someone he wasn't counting on.
"Where is Master Jaeger?" Zhen asked indifferently. Jin went past the class president without answering, but the alpha's following words made him halt. "You've been giving excuses for the past few weeks. I know you did all his assignments. I know your handwriting. Hiding and fooling around like this could get you into trouble, Jin... Where is he?"
"Class President, how would I know if Jaeger is playing games? I sit right by you, and he sits way in the back. If you have issues with him, send him a text...Or better still, one of your clan's special flying messages. And, studying my handwriting? Hmph! I guess that uncle of yours put you up to it." Jin was not in the mood for chit-chats with the most challenging student in their class.
Zhen: " I'm not done, Jin!"
"But I am...and it's Master Lee Jin to you." Jin snubbed Zhen, bumping his shoulder as he walked by defiantly.
As Zhen watched the omega leave, he could only think of the omega's last statement. Lee Jin allowed his classmates to call him 'Jin'. How come he was not allowed to?
Zhen said to himself that he did not care, but the more he remembered that detail, the angrier he got. His eyes slowly fell on the seat beside him when he picked up his books. His hands lingered over the temporary table, but he withdrew his hand, snapped himself back to his senses and left...
Hudson came out of the shadows with the help of his friends. That incident tied six souls together, sparking the beginning of the most fantastic friendships they will ever have. It brought the gang together, and they did everything possible to ensure Hudson was in full spirits. Things did not return to normal, and Jin now had another heart he wanted to protect with his life. Hudson had found a sworn brother. One whom he could share everything with.
One thing that never died was the tension between Jin and his cultivation class lecturer, Quinton Knox. The older man kept looking for reasons to mark the omega down, but Jin was too brilliant for him. The semester ended, and most students returned home for the holidays.