Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Patroclus was 9 when he had to leave his home.

He had hurt someone, it had been an accident; partially. Now other people wanted to hurt him too. That was why his parents had sent him to another house. Or at least they told him that.

Patroclus felt like they just wanted to get rid of him.

He sighed, the car stopped in front of the house; it was big. His father had told him there were other kids like him there. Kids that needed a place to stay.

The driver got out, opened the door and Patroclus too stepped out. The trunk was opened, and out of it came Patroclus' luggage. The man left it on the floor at his side, and then he was gone. Patroclus wondered how in hell he was going to carry all his things by himself while wearing a dress. As an omega, he was accustomed to doing that kind of thing.

Patroclus felt like the loneliest person in the world.

He wanted to cry, but crying wouldn't change a thing. Instead, he took his heavy luggage and dragged it to the looming house.

He touched the door and found it open. Patroclus debated for some moments whether it was a good idea or not to enter just like that, but his father had mentioned something about them waiting for him.

After he entered, he found himself in a long and dark hallway. At the end, he could see the silhouette of a kid lying down in a couch, lazily strumming the strings of a guitar in his lap.

"Hello? I'm Patroclus Actorides, I was told I was going to stay here for some time."

The kid stopped playing. He put the guitar on the couch and then walked to Patroclus. "Oh, yes, you're the son of Menoetius, the omega, aren't you?"

Patroclus nodded quickly. The kid got closer to him, and Patroclus could see that he was really, really , pretty.

"My father isn't here right now to welcome you, but I know where the empty rooms are and I can help you take your luggage there if you want."

"Ok." Patroclus looked at the floor. "Thank you."

The kid grabbed the suitcase. "Don't worry about it! We omegas have to help each other." The kid huffed, and then stopped briefly to smile at Patroclus. "I'm Alexander, by the way, but I prefer to called Paris."

"Nice to meet you, Paris." His olive skin and black curly hair, his dark eyes were a lovely shade of brown; and even though he was an omega, he was wearing pants. Menoetius would dislike that a lot. "Maybe between the two we can carry it? So, you don't have to struggle with it."

Paris was about to say something when a loud, cheerful voice interrupted. "Paris? What are you doing? Who is that kid with you?"

A man who towered over them appeared out of nowhere. His skin was paler than Paris, and his eyes an electric shade of blue, that plus his square jaw and sharp features made him very handsome. The most beautiful man Patroclus had ever seen.

"This is Patroclus, Hector. I think dad forgot he was arriving today." Paris put a hand on his shoulder.

Hector looked at Patroclus for a moment, then he slapped his forehead. "Fuck, Patroclus..." He sighed, and his hand fell at his side. "Dad didn’t forget, he told me to receive him. I forgot."

Paris rolled his eyes with annoyance.

Patroclus took that opportunity to present himself. "Nice to meet you, I'm Patroclus Actorides."

Hector smiled at him. "Hi Patroclus, I'm Hector." He noticed the abandoned luggage. "Let me help you with that." He lifted the suitcase with one hand.

He was strong, Patroclus felt his face getting warm.

Paris sighed with annoyance. "Show off, mister strong alpha." 

Hector shrugged and walked away, both Paris and Patroclus followed him up a staircase.

They entered a hallway full of doors that had names in them and stopped in front of a blank one. Paris opened it. Inside, there was a small white room with a desk, a closet, and a simple bed. Hector left the suitcase on top of the bed. 

"Here it is, your room." Hector said cheerfully. "Please don't doubt about asking for anything you need to anyone here."

Paris smiled. "That includes me."

"Thank you." Patroclus mumbled, looking at the floor. He felt out of place there.

Hector put a hand under his chin and lifted Patroclus' face softly. "Hey, don't be sad. From now on, you are part of the family."

Patroclus wanted to cry again, it was the first time on the day someone had said something truly comforting to him. “Thanks…”

Hector nodded and walked out, with Paris following close behind.

Before he closed the door, Hector smiled and winked at him.

Something flutter inside Patroclus’ stomach.

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Patroclus was 10 when he stopped wearing dresses.

He sat under the shadow of a tree reading a book. Everyone else in the house was playing and Patroclus had escaped the commotion before anyone noticed. He needed a little time for himself. Besides, he had a feeling not everyone wanted him there.

He heard steps and lifted his gaze to see who was approaching.

“Hey, what are you doing here all alone?” Hector asked happily.

He looked so mature and adult.

“Oh, I… I was just reading a book.” Patroclus closed it and put it on his lap.

Hector then sat at his side. “About what?”

Patroclus cleared his throat, he touched the cover of the book. “Is about a love story… I know it's kind of silly…”

“Why would it be silly?” Hector leaned closer to him.

Patroclus could smell the sandalwood of his scent; it made his heart skip a beat. “Um… I know the others say it’s stupid to like love stories... That only dumb omegas do it.”

Hector chuckled briefly. “You act so mature for your age, you know? Worrying about what other people have to say already…”

Patroclus felt his cheeks get warmer at that. “Thank you?”

“You should stop though. Liking what you like is ok, no matter what the others say.” Hector reached out and tapped the cover of Patroclus’ book. “Can you tell me more about it?”

Patroclus looked down at the book. “It’s about two lovers, an alpha and an omega. The alpha tries to save the omega from her evil brother, but at the end; the alpha can’t save her, and they end up separated… It’s a sad story.”

“You know the end? You’ve already read it, then?” Hector tilted his head to the side.

Patroclus nodded quickly. “I don’t like the ending… but I like how they fell in love.” Patroclus looked away. “It must be nice, to love someone so much you give up everything for them.”

Hector laughed. “Don’t worry, I’m sure one day you’ll fall in love too.” He stood up and smiled. “And please, I know some kids here might not be the most welcoming. But if you need someone to keep you company. You can always tell me, and I’ll be right here, ok?”

Patroclus nodded slowly. Hector was so kind; it made his heart hurt.

Hector smiled more and walked away.

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Patroclus was 12 when he was sure everyone had forgotten his birthday.

He hid in one of the storage rooms in the house and cried. He missed his family, he missed how his mama and his sister would make a cake especially for him, even if it was always bad, and then they had to go buy one. Patroclus missed how they would sing him happy birthday. He even missed his father, his birthday was the only day he gave him kisses and hugs.

Now he was alone; completely, and utterly alone. His family had discarded him because he was a problem, and nobody else cared.

He kept crying as he covered his head with his arms. He just wanted somebody who would care about him, somebody who would love him. With a broken heart, he closed his eyes and wished to disappear.

Patroclus didn’t notice he felt asleep until someone was shaking him to wake up. He opened his eyes and saw Hector’s beautiful gaze illuminated by a candle on top of a cupcake. “Hey, are alright?”

Patroclus saw the cupcake and felt a painful pang of hope. “Did you remember?”

Hector smiled. “Of course I did! Well… Paris reminded me. But of course I’d remember the birthday of my favorite bookworm!”

Patroclus laughed at that, it was a small, weak laughter. There was someone on the world who still wanted him. He rubbed his eyes and pointed at the muffin on Hector’s hands. “Is for me?”

Hector nodded. “Yes, but I don’t have your gift right now. I didn’t have time to go buy it this week. Tomorrow, I promise I’ll go.” He pushed the muffin close to Patroclus. “C’mon, make a wish.”

Patroclus smiled at that, and softly blew out the candle.

“Now take a bite!” Hector said enthusiastically.

Patroclus giggled and leaned forward. He was going to give a small bite when Hector pushed the cupcake on his face.

“Hey! That’s mean!” Patroclus said with amusement, as he began cleaning the frosting off his face.

Hector laughed softly. “You forgot a place, here.” He reached out and wiped the frosting off Patroclus’ bottom lip with his thumb.

Patroclus froze with that simple touch. In his mind, a rush of ideas began. Was Hector going to kiss him? Did Hector…? His heartbeat went crazy.

But then Hector got up, breaking the spell Patroclus had been captured into. “C’mon. Let’s go with Paris, he’s also searching for you like crazy. He got you a book for your birthday!” He offered his hand to Patroclus.

Patroclus took it, and the only thing he could think about was how warm and soft it was, how beautiful Hector was.

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Patroclus was 13 when he found a puppy abandoned in a box in the middle of a storm.

He didn’t have any money of his own to take care of it, he’d have to beg Priam and Hecuba to let the puppy stay, at least for a while. Nonetheless, he just couldn’t let that puppy all alone in the rain. After all, Patroclus knew very well what it felt like to be abandoned by your family.

He ran inside Priam’ mansion with the puppy underneath his shirt. But then he found Deiphobus and Helenus talking.

They weren’t bad persons, nor mean. Yet that didn’t mean that they liked him. Generally, most of Priam’s children just tolerated him being there, like they did with the rest of the foster kids. The only ones with whom he got along with were Hector and Paris.

“What’s that under your shirt?” Deiphobus asked with a hint of aggression.

Patroclus got the puppy out, he began yapping happily.

“That’s got to be the ugliest dog I’ve ever seen.” Helenus complained.

“Hey! He’s not ugly!”

Deiphobus laughed. “Nope! He’s ugly as fuck! I mean, look at it! You can’t even say what breed he’s supposed to be.”

“And who cares!?” Patroclus put his arms around the dog protectively.

Helenus sighed with annoyance. “You better get rid of that dog before father or mother sees it.”

“No.” Patroclus hugged the dog closer. “It’s raining outside.”

Helenus scowled. “Patroclus, you’re going to get in trouble if my parents see it.”

Deiphobus laughed even more. “Yeah dude! They’re going to kick you out with the dog!”

Patroclus bit his lips; the little dog was wagging his tail happily, even though it was trembling.

He couldn’t do it, he couldn’t.

Helenus stepped forward. “Give me the dog, I’ll get rid of it myself, so you don’t have to do it.”

Patroclus kept biting his lips as he held the dog. He didn’t want to cry.

“C’mon Patroclus.” Helenus walked closer to him.

Patroclus was about to run. He turned away from Helenus. Then he saw Hector walking towards them. Patroclus rushed at his side.

Hector smiled when he saw him. “Hey Pat, what—“

He was interrupted when Patroclus buried his face in Hector’s chest.

“Hey, what happened?” Hector petted Patroclus’ head. “You’re soaking wet.”

Patroclus then backed away a little to show him the puppy. “Please, let him stay… At least for tonight, he was all alone outside there.” He felt tears swelling in his eyes.

Hector’ face got serious at that. “I see.” He took the puppy away from Patroclus’ arms. “Don’t worry, he can stay. Until we find him a home, that is.”

“Hector.” Helenus interjected. “Mother and Father won’t—“

“Don’t worry about mom and dad.” Hector replied firmly. “I’ll deal with them later. In the meantime.” He smiled kindly to Patroclus. “Why don’t we go and give this little guy a warm bath?”

Patroclus nodded with relief.

--------------------------------

  Patroclus was sitting on the edge of the tub watching Hector kneeling on the floor and doing all the job of washing the puppy with warm water.

Hector had pushed his sleeves up, showing the muscles and veins of his forearms. Patroclus felt himself blush at that sight. He cleared his throat. “Thank you for letting him stay. Deiphobus and Helenus wanted to kick him out...”

“They didn’t mean any harm. They just wanted you to stay out of trouble.”

Patroclus looked away.

“But I’m proud of you.” Hector said with a kind smile.

Patroclus’ head snapped back to him. “Why are you saying that?”

“You stood up for what you felt was right. Even when someone was pressuring you into doing the opposite. That’s not easy, you know? And yet; you did it. You should feel proud of yourself.” Hector finally rinsed the soap off the dog. “Pass me that towel, please.”

Patroclus immediately did as he was told. “Umm… Thank you. I mean, I didn’t think about it a lot… It was kind of an automatic response, you know? But thank—” He sneezed.

Hector smiled as he petted the puppy with the towel. “You should take off your clothes.”

Patroclus felt how all his blood rushed to his face. “Sorry?”

Hector chuckled. “Take off your clothes and take a warm bath. You’re going to get sick if you stay like this.”

“Ah! You mean like in my room!” Patroclus said with a high-pitched voice.

Hector raised an eyebrow with a very charming smile. “What did you think I mean?”

“Nothing! Nothing!” Patroclus walked to the door of Hector’s bathroom. “I’ll go and do that! See you later!” He ran away as soon as he was out of Hector’s sight.

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Patroclus was 14 when two alphas; one a girl and the other a boy, made fun of him at school.

He had started having heats and periods at 12, puberty had begun a bit early for him. He was too young to take hormone blockers, therefore he was stuck being locked down a week every 3 months because of his heats and bleeding in between them.

His school consisted of betas and alphas, just a handful of omegas, and between them, he was the only one who identified as a boy. That made him an easy target for bullying, plus, not like the teachers cared at all.

Patroclus had stayed after one class ended, he’d been busy catching up with all the homework and lessons he missed during the week his heat lasted, so he was working during lunch. Then the two alphas who tortured him approached.

First, they began laughing at him for being an omega who happened to be a boy, something he didn’t choose. Then they made fun of the fact that he had heats; he didn’t like it either. It wasn’t enjoyable to spent from 3 to 6 days in a delirious state alone, with a body so weak that most of the time he couldn’t even lift a glass of water and being so horny it hurt.

At the end, they made fun of the fact that he bled because he wasn’t pregnant and couldn’t take hormone blockers yet.

The alphas just had art class and their backpacks were full of paints. So they proceeded to pour a tube of acrylic red paint over his head when they noticed that Patroclus was ignoring them. However, that wasn’t the worst part.

The worst part was when Patroclus’ next teacher didn’t let him go home earlier to wash his hair. The acrylic paint hardened on top of his curls. Thankfully, when the principal of the school came to check on his classroom, he saw him; took pity on him, and let him go an hour early.

As he walked back to the house, he just sighed. What did he ever do to be cursed with his body?

When Patroclus arrived at the house again, he saw something that brought some relief.

“Patroclus? What happened to your hair?” Hector asked as he approached Patroclus.

Patroclus’ face brightened. “Uh… Some jerks at school were annoying me. But what are you doing here so early? Shouldn’t you be at your job?”

Hector shook his head. “Someone at my office set the microwave on fire, so they had to evacuate all the building for safety measures, and then it became a mess. Nobody knew what was happening, the firefighters were very pissed off, so they let us out early today.”

Patroclus giggled. “Ok, well, then I think I have to go and try to get this stuff out of my hair.” He began walking to his room.

“Don't you want me to help you?” Hector asked with a hand on his hip.

Patroclus stopped; his heart was getting crazy with the idea of Hector washing his hair. “I… Sure! I mean… If you want to.”

Hector chuckled. “Let’s go to my room.”

--------------------------------

Hector felt the warm water of his bathtub with his hand as he sat on the edge. After it had reached the ideal temperature, he smiled at Patroclus. “Come and bend over here.”

Patroclus nodded stiffly, he knelt, and was about to bend when Hector stopped him.

“Wait, you should take off your shirt. You don’t want to get it wet, do you?”

Patroclus felt all his face get uncomfortably warm, but Hector was smiling at him so sweetly. He couldn’t say no. Slowly he took it off, and with a naked torso, he bent over the edge of the tube until most of his hair was in the water.

It was warm.

He felt a gaze over him, but it wasn’t the same gaze he was used to, it was invasive like a vivisection.

Hector began massaging his head, taking care of not pulling anything, only moving the curls until the paint came loose. Patroclus shivered every time Hector scratched his scalp.

Hector hummed. “I see that puberty hit you very early, You’ve got a beautiful body, very mature too. Don’t you know?”

“I’m sorry?” Patroclus couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“I said that you’ve got a beautiful body. I know grown omegas that’d kill for a chance to having a body like yours.” Hector said gently, like a compliment.

“Ah, Thank you!” Patroclus’ voice came out high and trembling.

“With your broad chest and shoulders, plus your tiny waist and thick thighs. I bet soon all the alphas will be chasing after you if they haven’t started already.”

Patroclus felt his face get even warmer. “I…! No, they haven’t…” Patroclus closed his eyes and breathed. “And I wouldn’t like it anyway!”

“No?” Hector kept massaging his hair slowly.

“No… They are all a bunch of immature kids… I don’t like alphas my age.” Patroclus shivered a little.

Hector grabbed his own shampoo and squeezed some on Patroclus’ hair. Everything around him smelled like Hector's soft scent of sandalwood plus his aloe vera shampoo. “So you like older alphas?”

“I… I guess I do.” Patroclus hadn’t thought about it.

“Then I’m sure you’ll find a lot of older alphas that’d be very glad to have you.” Hector said cheerfully. “Especially with this beautiful body.”

Patroclus only nodded.

The rest of the deed was done in silence. Hector rinsed off the shampoo and then put some leave in conditioner on Patroclus’ hair. He proceeded to grab the softest towel he had and patted his hair delicately.

“All done.” Hector announced as he got up.

Patroclus grabbed the towel and kept it on top of his head. He was about to take his shirt, when Hector grabbed it. “Don’t put this again, it’s all covered in paint, you should change.”

Patroclus frowned for a moment, but then nodded once more. He got up as well and followed Hector out of his bathroom. He thought Hector was going to go out, but he just stopped in the middle and turned to Patroclus with a friendly smile.

“Don’t let this get to you, ok?”

“Yes, don’t worry…” He mumbled.

“Do you want to know what I do when bad things happen?” Hector asked with a tender gaze.

“What?” Patroclus asked shyly.

“I dance.” Hector then walked to his cellphone after a few taps. Music began inundating the room, it was a slow waltz. “Do you want to dance with me?” He extended a hand to Patroclus.

“But I'm not—” He tried to cover his chest with his arms, but Hector took his hands and pulled them down.

“Relax, I won't bite.”

Patroclus felt how his chest hurt. He took his hand.

Hector put his hand around his naked waist. Patroclus felt how that touch burned in a way that he hadn't felt before. 

Hector moved him softly. First, he spun him around, and tried elaborated steps that had him almost falling. Patroclus couldn’t stop giggling with those. Then he held him closer to his body and just swayed leisurely with him.

Patroclus focused on how his warm hands on the bare skin made him feel weak at the knees.

He observed Hector with a soft smile. Hector was so beautiful, it was surreal. His blue ethereal eyes, his hair, shining like a piece of obsidian, and his fair skin like snow. He was so beautiful, Patroclus wanted to cry.

I love him. I love him with all my soul.

Hector smiled, he leaned down, and for a delirious moment Patroclus thought he was going to kiss him.

“Hey Hector, mom said you were home—“ Paris swung the door open. He frowned when he saw them. He observed Patroclus, with his bare chest and his face hardened. “What the hell are you doing?” He had a worried voice.

Hector let Patroclus go. “I was cheering Patroclus up. Some assholes threw paint at him.”

“I know, I was going to ask you if you had seen him…” His eyes kept jumping from Hector to Patroclus.

“I’m fine, don’t worry.” Patroclus wore a sheepish smile as he looked at the floor. His heart was still beating wildly.

Paris didn’t answer at that. He walked towards Patroclus and grabbed his hand. “Come, I need your help with something important.”

“Wait, with what?” Patroclus willingly followed Paris.

“Something… Important!” Paris kept rushing out of Hector’s room.

“See you later, Patroclus!” Hector said as they were stepping out of the room.

That made Patroclus’ heart jump with joy.

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Patroclus had a dream not so long after that.

He dreamed that it was his 18 th birthday. Hector had gifted him a surprise date. He took him to an expensive but pretty restaurant, then to a walk to a beautiful park, and finally to a fancy hotel. 

There, Hector had kissed him and touched him slowly, making him feel so good. Patroclus didn’t know much about sex; school had only taught him about abstinence, and he was a little afraid of masturbation. Most people told him how it was very addictive, something good omegas didn’t do. So he hadn't tried anything of that.

However, he could imagine how Hector would touch him; like those couples in the movies. He’d feel loved and wanted like he never felt before. Hector would never send him away; he would never leave him alone. They’d stay together forever.

Patroclus woke up aching for Hector’s lips. He prayed for Hector to love him back. To love him as much as Patroclus already loved him.

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Patroclus was 15 when he looked at himself in the mirror.

He didn’t look so bad, did he? He couldn't tell anymore after spending so much time in front of his reflection; he fumbled with his hair more.

The sound of a door opening distracted him. Paris was standing at the frame of the door. "What is taking you so long?"

Patroclus turned back to the full body mirror and began rearranging his clothes again. He looked at the see through black button-down shirt, his chest visible. It was a bit risqué for him. "Nothing, I'm just trying to look good."

Paris walked to him and hugged him from behind. "You know, Hector won't fuck you, even if you were the hottest person in the world."

Patroclus flinched at that. "Paris! Don't say things like that!" Patroclus pushed him away. "Besides, you don't know what Hector thinks about me..."

Hector, beautiful Hector that made Patroclus' heart go faster. Hector, who seemed to turn everything bad in the world into something bright and perfect. 

His prince.

Paris huffed. "Hector won't fuck you because you're only 15. Any 24-year-old Alpha worth their salt wouldn't fuck a 15-year-old omega with acne."

Patroclus covered his left cheek with one hand. "What do you know about that? You're only 17 and an omega... You don’t know what an alpha like him thinks."

Paris sighed. "C'mon, Pat, I'm trying to protect the stupid heart of my favorite little brother." 

Patroclus ignored him and fixed his clothes one last time. "Troilus isn’t here."

Paris chuckled, he hugged Patroclus again and gave him a kiss on the cheek. They were now the same height, and Patroclus probably would be taller in a few months. 

"Aaw, you know you are my favorite." Paris ruffled his curls to Patroclus’ annoyance. Before he could go back to fix them in front of the mirror, Paris grabbed his hand and pulled him out of his room. "C'mon! Deiphobus is going to get mad if we keep him waiting!"

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It was Deiphobus’ birthday, and of course his parents threw a massive party for him. Their house transformed with colorful lights, music, and drinks everywhere.

Patroclus and Paris went downstairs to the garden. It was full of people; some Patroclus recognized, but most of them he didn't know. In the center of everything was Deiphobus, parading around like a supermodel. At his side, Hector, radiant and lovely as Patroclus remembered him. 

His black loose hair waves were slicked back, and his short beard was well groomed. He had a white shirt; several buttons opened revealing his muscled chest, his light blue jeans were tight, and Patroclus had to look away.

He felt a slap on the back of his head.

“Hey!” Patroclus screamed at Paris. “Why was that for!?”

“Stop drooling over Hector.” Paris huffed. “It’s weird, you are my brothers and this whole experience has an incest-y vibe I don't like.”

“I wasn’t—“

Paris began walking. “Whatever! Let’s see if we can convince Aeneas to let you drink some beer!”

“I… Paris!” Patroclus turned to see Hector; Paris was pulling him in the opposite direction.

“What?” Paris kept walking.

Patroclus shook his head. Paris was right, it was a stupid idea to think that Hector could ever think of him that way. “Nothing…”

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He had spent all night at Paris’ side. Sometimes stealing glances Hector’s way.

Hector for his part stayed with Deiphobus and Sarpedon. The 3 of them were drinking and constantly laughing about something that Patroclus couldn’t hear.

“Stop moping already, Patroclus.” Paris hit him in the ribs.

Patroclus tried to cover his chest. “Can you stop hitting me? What happened with Omega solidarity.?”

Paris laughed. “It was a lie; all omegas hate each other.” His face suddenly turned serious. “But really, you should stop with this childish crush of yours. For your own sake.”

“Is there something bad about feeling like this?” Patroclus mumbled, he put his elbows on top of the table they were sitting at.

Paris shook his head. “There’s nothing wrong about how you feel. It’s innocent. The bad part is that it’s innocent. Innocence can be dangerous.”

Patroclus frowned at that. “What are you talking about?”

Paris sighed. “I’m worried. Everyone thinks Hector it’s so good, but he’s not perfect. My parents told him the same bullshit everyone says to young alphas, that every omega is theirs…”

“Hector isn’t going to hurt me.” Patroclus felt tears in his eyes. “He doesn’t even like me in that way…”

Paris’ expression softened. He was about to say something about that, when a familiar beta girl appeared out of nowhere.

“Paris! Helen is here!” Oenone said with enthusiasm.

Paris blushed at the mention of that name. “And why are you telling me?”

Oenone raised an eyebrow. “C’mon! I know you like her!”

Patroclus hummed. “Isn’t she like five years older than you?”

Paris shoved Patroclus shoulder. “Shut up! She’s just my friend!”

“You should go and said hi to her then!” Oenone wiggled her eyebrows at Paris.

Paris blushed even more at that. “Shut up!”

Patroclus laughed at that. “C’mon, it might be fun!”

Paris dropped his shoulders. “Fine.” He looked at Oenone. “But you, better take care of him,” he pointed at Patroclus, “while I’m not here.”

Oenone nodded.

“I can take care of myself just fine…” Patroclus mumbled.

“Make sure he doesn’t get in trouble.” Paris said as he stood up from the table and tumbled away.

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As the night progressed, Paris wasn’t back yet, and Patroclus was bored out of his mind. Oenone had stayed with him, but she was too busy talking to other people he didn’t know.

After another set of drinks, Oenone began telling bad jokes to a group of strangers. Patroclus decided to stand up and slid away silently. 

He was tired already.

He walked around the garden still full of people and thought about going back to his room and try to sleep; something that didn’t seem very likely thanks to all the loud music. But what else was he going to do? Walk around alone while everyone else was having fun?

His eyes wandered and found Hector at a corner of the party. Talking quietly with Sarpedon as he sipped something from a plastic cup. Patroclus felt warmth on his cheeks, he was about to turn around when Hector lifted his gaze and found him.

Hector made a movement of his hand, calling Patroclus closer. Patroclus doubted for a moment, thinking about what Paris had said. Still, he walked over to Hector and Sarpedon.

The two alphas towered over Patroclus, even when Patroclus was very tall for his age. He hid his chest with his arms and looked at his feet.

Sarpedon laughed when he saw him. “And who’s this pretty thing?” He put his arm on Patroclus’ lower back.

Patroclus moved away from him, yet he stumbled on his feet and almost fell. Thankfully Hector caught his arm and helped him stabilize. “He’s Patroclus, one of the kids my father helps.”

Patroclus’ heart went faster with the touch of Hector. Even more so when his hand remained at Patroclus’ shoulder.

“Well, he’s too pretty for being a beta.”

Patroclus opened his mouth to correct him, but Hector beat him to it. “He’s an omega, actually.”

“I see.” Sarpedon looked at him from top to bottom in a way that made Patroclus wish he was wearing something else. Thankfully, Hector pulled him closer to his body.

“He’ll have nice kids one day; he has the hips for it.” Sarpedon continued.

Patroclus closed his eyes and thought about Hector’s comforting scent. Sandalwood and the earth.

“Yeah, right.” Hector said quickly. “Anyway, I think I’m tired, do you mind if we retire for the night?” Patroclus noticed how he was slurring his words a bit.

Sarpedon gave a bombastic laugh at that. “Yeah, sure, go.” He turned to Patroclus. “And you take good care of him. He’s a lightweight when it comes to alcohol and has been drinking a lot, ok?

Hector snorted at that. “I’m not drunk, I haven't drunk almost anything at all!”

“Yeah, whatever you say, man.” Sarpedon walked away, leaving Hector and Patroclus alone.

Patroclus still looked at the floor. He didn’t know what to do with Hector’s closeness.

Hector sighed. “Sorry about him, he’s just a little conservative, but he’s still a good guy…”

“It’s not a problem.” Patroclus whispered.

“Hey.” Hector looked at him, the hand on his shoulder traveled down to his back. “I’m actually kind of bored with this party, do you want to go somewhere else?”

Patroclus heartbeat went faster. “I… Sure.”

--------------------------------

Patroclus and Hector ended up walking to Hector's room. He had suggested another place where they could go to have some privacy, like the kitchen; but Hector had insisted on his room being the best option. Patroclus had accepted without a fight.

Something about being alone with Hector in his room made Patroclus' heart go even faster, and his brain got dizzy.

Hector was talking about one thing or another, Patroclus kept nodding along without listening. When they finally reached Hector's room.

The room was big and pretty, not to forget very well organized. Patroclus thought about how his own room looked like a closet in comparison.

"Come in!" Hector said cheerfully.

He entered but kept his arms at his sides. 

Hector sat on his bed and laughed. "I don't bite, you know!" He shook his head. "Why don't you come and sit?" He patted the bed at his side.

Patroclus stiffly walked to the bed and sat as far away as he could from Hector. 

Hector then stood up and walked to Patroclus' side, he sat there. "Do you hate me?" He asked with a husky voice.

Patroclus almost choked with his own saliva. "What! No! Of course I don't!"

Hector hummed. "Then why are you always avoiding me and look away when I talk to you?"

"No, it's not like that! I...!" Patroclus sighed. "You... make me a little nervous..."

Hector hummed more as he looked at Patroclus. Patroclus for his part couldn't bear Hector's eyes on him and turned away.

"Hey, what kind of alphas do you like? Or would you prefer a beta as a companion?" Hector asked softly.

"I... I've never thought about that." Patroclus mumbled.

"You seem like the kind of Omega that would prefer an Alpha, a dominant alpha." Hector got closer to him. 

"Is that so?" Patroclus breathed deeply Hector's scent.

"Yeah, but I can't tell if you'd prefer a woman or a man."

Patroclus shook his head. "I wouldn't care, as long as they have a good heart..."

Hector smiled at him. "That's a nice sentiment to have."

"It's just—"

"You're gorgeous." Hector's face got even closer to Patroclus'.

From that distance, Patroclus could clearly smell the strong scent of alcohol. "I... Thank you..." His voice cracked at the end.

"You know, I've heard that you like me."

Patroclus' heart jumped. "What!? I mean, of course I like you, everybody likes you…"

Hector shook his head. "I meant like romantically."

Patroclus panicked. "No…!? It's not that. I don't—"

Hector kissed him.

Patroclus stayed still, he didn’t know what he was supposed to do or how to react to that. Hector tasted like alcohol and cigarettes, and his beard prickled Patroclus.

Hector stopped the kiss. "Am I that bad of a kisser?"

Patroclus snapped out of his trance at that. "What? No, no. But... Paris told me you would never—"

Hector put his hand on Patroclus' cheek. "He's just jealous that he isn't as pretty as you." His hand slid to his neck and then back to his chest. "Do you take hormone blockers?" Hector asked playfully.

Patroclus trembled at the contact. "No... I, I can't take them until I'm 18, because I'm still growing..." He felt ashamed of that. He didn't want to remind Hector that he was only 15, he wanted to be mature for him.

Hector laughed softly. "You know, some say that an omega who doesn't take hormone blockers smells sweeter than the ones that do." Hector leaned forward and put his face between Patroclus' neck and shoulder. He breathed deeply. "You smell very nice."

Hector then kissed Patroclus on the neck, making him gasp. 

"Like roses."

Patroclus didn't know what to answer.

Hector kissed him again. "Do you like my scent?"

Patroclus nodded weakly; he wondered if Hector could feel how fast his heart was beating.

Hector then put some space between them. "Hey, do you love me?"

Patroclus wanted to cry for some reason. He simply nodded again, not trusting his voice.

Hector grinned, he took Patroclus' chin and lifted it to kiss him briefly again. Patroclus didn't like how he tasted like alcohol. 

"If you love me, then... Do you want to love me the way adults love each other?"

"How is that?" He whispered.

"I can show you, if you want to." Hector began unbuttoning Patroclus' shirt. "Do you want to?"

Patroclus grabbed Hector’s hand to stop him. He didn’t think that Hector would— he didn't think that Hector wanted to—

He imagined it'd be different.

However, he said it was love. Maybe that was Hector's way of showing he reciprocated Patroclus' feelings? Of showing how he loved him. 

Patroclus let go of Hector' hand and nodded slowly. Unsure of what that meant.

Hector smirked. He kept undoing Patroclus’ buttons until his shirt was completely opened. Then he began kissing his chest.

Patroclus gasped, he tried to put his arms around Hector. But he shoved them away before he completely took off Patroclus' shirt.

He took off Patroclus' shoes and socks. Once those were on the floor, Hector kissed him again. It wasn't the small kisses Patroclus was accustomed to, but something hungry. Patroclus did his best to follow his lead.

Hector stopped suddenly and sighed. "Hey, before we continue, I want you to promise me something."

"What?"

Hector gave him a small kiss on the lips. "I want you… To promise me that you'll never fall in love again."

That took Patroclus aback. If Hector wanted him to promise something like that, then he must be really serious about their relationship. "Ok..."

Hector grabbed his face very roughly. "Say it."

He was hurting him. "I promise it!"

"Say it."

"I promise I'll never fall in love again!"

Finally, Hector let go. He pushed Patroclus so he'd laid on the bed. "Very well."  His hands went to Patroclus' jeans, he opened them and then pulled them down along with Patroclus' boxers.

Hector sat straight, observing him like a wolf. He began undressing too.

Everything was going so quickly.

Patroclus then trembled uncontrollably for some reason. He tried to cover himself with his hands as he hated the feeling of being so exposed. Suddenly, he wanted to go away.

He had imagined it'd be different.

When Hector was naked, he laughed. "Are you nervous?" He went and turned off the lights. "It's your first time, isn't it?"

Patroclus breathed shakily. "Yes."

He heard some steps, and then he felt Hector getting on top of him. "Don't worry, I'll make it good for you." He put his arms around Patroclus' body and kissed him again. Before moving on to kissing his neck.

Patroclus focused on his surroundings, the darkness around him, the muffled music of the party still going on outside, Hector breathing. 

He felt Hector against him and closed his eyes, he breathed deeply.

--------------------------------

Patroclus woke up groggy. He didn't know what time it was, but judging by the light entering from the windows, it must be late already. He sighed; Hector was snoring peacefully at his side. Both were still on his bed and naked.

At some point during the night, the blankets had ended up on the floor. Now Patroclus was cold and felt exposed again. It was fine, because Hector was with him, and Hector loved him.

Patroclus observed his back and hugged him, he hid his face in Hector’s back. 

It hadn’t been how Patroclus had imagined it, it had hurt a lot, and still he felt sore. But Hector loved him, that was all it mattered. He kissed him softly on his shoulder. 

He felt loved.

If Patroclus from the future could see his younger self at that moment, he'd call himself an idiot; an innocent one, but an idiot nonetheless.

Patroclus heard the door opening. He lifted his head and saw Paris standing at the frame. 

The situation Hector and Patroclus were in was pretty obvious. There wasn't another way to put it. Patroclus stared at Paris dumbfounded and Paris stared back with horror, then he ran away.

"Wait! Paris!" Patroclus screamed, which woke up Hector.

"What happened?" Hector said softly, with his voice full of sleep. He turned to him, and watched him with a frown, as if he was the weirdest bug he had ever seen. It seemed he remembered what happened last night then because he groaned and covered his face with his hands.

Patroclus hugged himself, very self-conscious of his current state. "Paris saw us."

"Crap."   Hector jumped out of the bed and began collecting his clothes. "I need to talk to him."

Patroclus got out the bed to get dressed as well when Hector stopped moving.

Hector pointed to him. "You get dressed and go back to your room."

"But!" Patroclus protested, "I want to explain—"

"No, you're just going to make it worse!" Hector screamed at him as he quickly dressed.

Patroclus flinched, he nodded and fought back some tears that threatened to spill.

Hector saw his reaction and sighed. "Listen Patroclus... Go to your room, ok? Wait there for a couple of minutes." He finished dressing and got out of the room, leaving Patroclus completely alone.

Patroclus laid back again on the bed, he put his nose on Hector’s pillow and breathed his scent. He hoped Hector wasn't in trouble for his fault.

--------------------------------

Patroclus spent all day inside his room. He didn’t have anything to do, but what if he went out and somehow that got Hector in trouble? He'd rather not risk it. He tried to read some books, but it was useless, he couldn't focus on anything, having to read the same thing again and again.

Patroclus bit his thumb, maybe he should’ve said no. But he loved Hector so much it hurt. He wanted to be closer to him, and the last night had been the time he had felt the closest to Hector. 

He had stopped treating him like a child for once and saw him as the man he was.

It wasn’t what he expected. It wasn’t like in the movies; it didn’t feel good, actually it had hurt quite a bit. But he had liked to feel Hector’s skin against his. It was the closer he ever felt to someone, and if that wasn’t love, then what was it?

What was love like? Patroclus didn’t think he knew for real, but it had to be something like what he felt for Hector, it had to be. Ruminating through that thought, Patroclus didn’t realize when he fell asleep.

He woke up to someone knocking on his door. He hurriedly leaped off the bed and went running to answer, expecting to see Hector. Instead, Paris was there, holding a plate of food.

“Ah…” Patroclus couldn’t help but be disappointed.

Paris ignored his reaction. “You haven’t changed your clothes.”

He had been so worried about Hector; The thought didn’t cross his mind. “I guess I didn’t.”

“Have you taken a shower.” Paris said with a worried look on his face.

“No… I haven’t.” Paris must think of him as a freak for not taking a shower after what happened, he surely still smelled like Hector.

Paris sighed, then he smiled tiredly. “I brought you some food, you didn’t go down for dinner.”

“Hector told me to stay here… Is he ok? He isn’t in trouble, is he?” Patroclus couldn’t avoid the panic that escaped in his voice.

Paris shook his head; he pushed him and entered his room. “Don’t worry about Hector, ok? You’re safe now.”

“What do you mean I’m safe now?” Patroclus felt like Paris knew something that he didn’t. “He didn’t force me, I wanted it.”

Paris put the plate of food on Patroclus’ nightstand. “You don’t know what you are talking about.”

“I know! I wanted him because I love him!” Patroclus shook his head as tears pooled on his eyes. “Please tell me that he isn’t in trouble! It was all my fault.”

“Don’t ever say that.” Paris said with a serious tone. “What happened wasn’t your fault, ok? it’d never be your fault.”

“Paris!” Now Patroclus felt frustrated. “He didn’t hurt me! I love him! He…”

He loved Patroclus back?

“He…” Patroclus bit his lips.

Paris then put his hands over Patroclus’ shoulders. “I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have left you alone… It was my fault… I knew, ever since you began puberty, the way he looked at you and yet…” Paris shook his head and some tears rolled out his eyes. “I didn’t want to believe he’d be capable of doing it, I was an idiot… Please forgive me.”

“Why!?” Patroclus cried. “I don’t understand!”

Paris cleaned his tears with the back of his hand and smiled at Patroclus. “Don’t worry, you’ll be safe now.” He touched Patroclus’ cheek. “Don’t forget that you’re my favorite little brother.”

Paris walked away, leaving Patroclus confused and alone.

--------------------------------

The next day, Priam told him that he wanted to talk about something in private.

Patroclus guessed what it was about. He really hoped that Hector would be ok.

As he walked to Priam’s studio, the rest of the kids watched him.

Counting Priam’s biological children and the ones he adopted, plus the ones that were living in the house temporarily, there were more than 50 boys and 50 girls. Priam had a huge fortune, so he didn’t worry about money. Thus, he accepted every stray that came knocking to his door.

That many eyes were on him, Patroclus couldn’t help but feel dirty. Like he hadn’t showered already, and the crimes of what he did to Hector were plainly seen. He felt like he did when he was naked on Hector’s bed; exposed with his seed leaking down his thigh.

Maybe he had done a bad thing, maybe he had been the one who took advantage of the fact that Hector had been drinking. Perhaps that was why everyone looked at him like he was a demon.

He walked faster to Priam’s studio.

When he entered, he saw the old man, writing on some papers. He looked at Patroclus over his glasses. “Close the door, would you, Patroclus?”

Patroclus obeyed silently.

Priam sighed and took off his glasses. “I’ve already talked with Hector about what happened the other night.”

“Is he in trouble?”

“Do you want him to be?” Priam lifted an eyebrow.

Patroclus shook his head energetically. “No! I… I wanted it. It was consensual, at least on my part…”

Priam hummed. “Well, then, I need to mention the importance of keeping this between us. There’s no need to say a word of what happened to your parents, unless you want Hector to be in trouble.”

“I promise I won’t say a thing.”

“Did he use protection?”

“What?”

“Condoms, did he use condoms?” Priam huffed.

Patroclus looked to the floor,“No, I don’t think he did… Sorry.”

Priam sighed wearily, “When was your last heat?”

He flushed, “Like two weeks ago.”

“Then I don’t think it’s likely we’ll have a problem; still, you should know that if something comes out of this. You’ll have to abort.”

Patroclus frowned, “I’m sorry?”

“Look at it this way boy. It’d be very hard for you to find a partner in the future if you already have a kid. So, it’s more for your benefit than anything else.”

Patroclus didn’t know what to think. He never even considered the chance that he could be pregnant with Hector’s baby. He wasn’t sure if he’d like to abort if he was. But if it was for Hector’ sake…

“Ok…”

“I’ll give you my number. If you notice that your period is late, or you start feeling bad, like itchiness, a bad smell or a burning sensation down there. Call me first, not your parents. I’ll have a discreet doctor check you.”

Patroclus nodded stiffly.

Priam cleared his throat. “And I talked to your mother today earlier.”

“What for?” Patroclus asked carefully.

“So you can go back.” Priam put back on his glasses and began writing again. “I convinced her that there wasn’t a need to hide you anymore. She’ll send a car for you.”

Words fled Patroclus’ mouth for a second.

“You’ll have today and tomorrow to pack all your things.” Priam said without any kind of emotion in his voice.

“No! I don’t want to go!” Patroclus wanted to stay with Hector. After he finally knew that Hector felt the same way about him, they were forcing him to go away.

Priam sighed. “It’s not about what you want or not. It’s about what’s best for you,” He spoke like a king.

“But…!” He couldn’t argue back, he just couldn’t. Patroclus remembered what Paris said yesterday, about being sorry. “It was Paris’ idea, wasn’t it? To send me away.”

Priam stopped writing again to lift his face and looked at him directly at his eyes. Patroclus looked away from that piercing blue gaze, “Does it matter?”

--------------------------------

Patroclus had put all the things he needed in a small backpack. There was still a day before they took him away from him. He needed to be quick.

At 3 am, after he made sure there wasn’t anyone awake, he slipped to Hector’s room quietly. Once there, he softly knocked on the door. After a moment, his love opened the door.

“Patroclus? What are—“

Patroclus pushed him inside and closed the door behind him.

“What’s going on?” Hector said, clearly confused.

Patroclus leaped forward and hugged him, “They want to take me away from you.” He breathed deeply the sweet fragrance of sandalwood coming off him. “We need to go before they do it.”

“What?” Hector had his arms up; he was avoiding touching Patroclus, “What are you talking about?”

“We need to run away!” Patroclus whispered with urgency as he buried his face deeper in his prince's chest, “We need to run away…”

Hector sighed exasperated, “That’s a very dumb idea, Patroclus.”

Patroclus hadn’t expected that reaction. He lifted his face to look at him. “But if we don’t… They’ll tear us apart! Paris convinced Priam to call my mother and make me go back.”

Hector shook his head. “It wasn’t Paris, it was me.”

Patroclus felt as if someone had stabbed him in the chest. “… What? Why?”

Hector pushed him, “Paris actually wanted you to stay, you’re his favorite, you know? But I insisted it was better if you go away.”

Patroclus felt tears rolling down on his cheeks, “Why?”

Hector went to his bed and sat. He looked down, “I’m sorry, ok? You’re pretty, your body is gorgeous, and I’m sure one day you'll find a good alpha. But I shouldn't have done what I did. I was more drunk than I thought…” He shook his head. “You weren’t putting up any resistance, and I had a moment of weakness…” Hector lifted his face and his gaze fell on Patroclus’ eyes, “I hope one day you can forgive me.”

Patroclus sank to his knees. Didn’t Hector love him too? “But…! But I love you…!” A sob escaped his chest, “The promise I made…”

I promise I'll never fall in love again…

Hector looked confused, as if he didn’t know what Patroclus was talking about. Nonetheless, he sighed and stood up, “Ok, let’s make another promise.” He walked to Patroclus, and then kneeled in front of him.

Hector took Patroclus’ chin and softly lifted his face. “Keep the promise you made, and someday in the future, I’ll find you again. Then we’ll be together. Ok?”

Patroclus hiccuped, “You promise?”

Hector nodded, “Of course I do.” Hector kissed him softly on his cheek. “Now go back to your room and keep packing your things, ok?”

--------------------------------

The day of his departure, nobody went out to say goodbye. Not even Hector.

Maybe it was better that way. Everyone looked at him as if he was dirty. Perhaps he was, he took advantage of Hector while he was drunk, Patroclus deserved to be treated like trash.

He slowly got into the car while A man put all his luggage into the trunk of the car. An eerie reversed déjà vu.

The engine of the car came to life, the machine moved forward slowly. He was ready to admit his defeat when he heard someone running from the big looming mansion.

Patroclus put his window down to look better at who it was.

It was Paris running towards the car.

The car moved faster.

Paris would never catch up to him, and the moment he seemed to realize that fact too, he screamed.

“Patroclus! I won’t leave you!”

With the distance, the screams sounded softer and softer, Patroclus could barely hear the last one.

“See you later!”

It wasn’t a proper goodbye.

Patroclus closed the window again. He sat with his arms close to his body and trembled, he began crying for the hundredth time that week.

Hector…

--------------------------------

Years later.

Achilles watched the CD on the wall, he didn’t know they still made those things. He grabbed one and analyzed it, it was Tchaikovsky.

The Nereid stopped at his side and looked at him.

“Hey, look, it’s Tchaikovsky, you know Tchaikovsky? It’s a very good composer, well, was. He’s dead.”

The Nereid didn’t answer.

“I really like him. Him and Dmitri Shostakovitch. I guess there’s something about Russian composers, no?” He kept watching the CD in his hand.

The Nereid just stared at him, waiting.

“You know, don’t tell my mother, but I always wanted to be a musician. To have one of these,” he lifted the CD for the Nereid to see, “made for me, with my own album cover and all of that… It was a cute dream, wasn’t it?”

The Nereid now crossed her arms in front of her chest, clearly annoyed. Achilles sighed.

He put the CD back. “My mother wants me to kill them, no?”

The Nereid just raised an eyebrow. Achilles nodded, he took out his gun and walked towards the family, two parents with two children on the floor, all crying and tied up. He pondered who to kill first. Ah, he guessed it didn’t matter, they all would be dead by the end anyway. 

He put his gun to the head of the smallest child. To the dismay of the parents.

“Don’t worry, darling, you won’t even feel it.”

--------------------------------

He was sitting on the bed, looking at the infinite space stretching between him and the wall. He sighed and felt arms around him, touching him, skin against skin. Pas de deux softly sounded in the background.

"Where are you going?" Deidamia asked with a satisfied tone. 

"I need to take a shower." Achilles mumbled.

Deidamia hummed. "But it's too soon for you to go! Stay a little more, let's cuddle."

"Deidamia." He tried to make his voice soft. "I have things to do tomorrow, I can't stay the night."

Deidamia kissed him in the back. "I'm not saying that you should stay the night, I'm just saying that we should cuddle for a bit."

"Deidamia..." Achilles said, with some exasperation leaking into his voice.

"C'mon Achilles, tell me the story of the two princes again."

Achilles chuckled. "I've been telling you that story almost daily for months now."

Deidamia laid back again. "But it's my favorite story."

Achilles knew it was only a way to make him stay longer; nonetheless. "Alright." Achilles laid back, and Deidamia hugged him.

--------------------------------

Once upon a time, in a kingdom by sea, there lived a very small prince called the little pea prince. The little pea prince lived a peaceful and perfect life, because both his parents; the queen and the king, were with him.

However, one day the queen disappeared, leaving the king and the little prince alone. Without the protection of the queen, a curse fell on the little pea prince, making his heart black.

The little pea prince tried to ask his father for help, but the king couldn't hear him. Then he tried to ask everyone else in the castle, but they, too, couldn't hear him.

Desperate for relief, he hid himself in the highest room of the highest tower of the castle, waiting for his black heart to rot and kill him softly. 

Yet, one day he heard footsteps coming up the staircase, when he lifted his gaze, he saw the most beautiful person ever. It was the prince of the roses.

When the prince of the roses saw what had happened to the little pea prince, he went to him and put his arms around his body. He heard everything the little pea prince had to say, all the troubles and things that were hurting him deep inside. Then the prince said that he knew how to cure the black heart.

He took the little pea prince's face between his gentle hands and kissed him. Immediately, the curse was broken.

The little pea prince was so happy and relieved. He asked the prince to marry him. But the prince of the roses said that he couldn't stay.

"But one day, I'll return to you, and we'll be together forever."

With that, the prince disappeared, and the little pea prince remained in the tower, waiting for his true love to return.

--------------------------------

"I hate that it ends up like that." Deidamia said while she rested on top of Achilles' chest.

"I think it’s romantic." Achilles mumbled, looking at the ceiling.

Deidamia snuggled closer to him. "Do you think the two princes will find each other again?"

Achilles hummed, he closed his eyes and thought of roses. "I hope they do."

Chapter Text

Patroclus was munching on his cereal. It was very sweet, some might even say overly so, but that was how Patroclus liked it. He was still in his pajamas, his hair was a complete mess, but he didn't care at the moment. He decided to sit with his knees to his chest and his feet over the seat, so his knees would start hurting in a moment.

"No."

Menoetius, the old blond omega, sighed, "But you are 25 already!"

"I'm only 25…" Patroclus grumbled as he shoved another spoonful of cereal in his mouth.

Menoetius sighed, "Myrto, make him listen to reason!"

His older sister; an alpha, looked at their father with a pained expression. 

Menoetius shook his head, "I don't care what you say, I'm going to do it anyway!"

Patroclus swallowed. "Then I'll act rude with them, so they won't want me!"

Myrto sighed. "Patroclus..."

Patroclus put his cereal on the table, "No! I already said no a hundred times, and I'll say no a hundred more!" He got up and his knees protested.

Menoetius got up from the table too. "I don't care! I'm going to do it because you're 25 and the clock won't stop ticking!"

Patroclus huffed. "I don't need you, nor Myrto to play matchmaker for me! I already told you I don't want to marry anyone!"

Menoetius shook his head. "Think about your mother, she wouldn't like to see you alone, she'd like for you to have a family."

"Good thing she isn't alive anymore to see it, isn't it?" Patroclus walked away. From the distance, he could hear his father screaming his name and Myrto just saying to leave him alone.

--------------------------------

The walk to the clinic wasn't a long one. The thoughts of what his father had said still ricocheted against the walls of his brain, constantly making him uncomfortable. It didn’t help that as he walked on the street, a lot of people watched him. Some with hate, others with lust; there wasn’t much difference in Patroclus’ opinion.

By that time of his life, a lot of people of his age were already married and with kids, especially omegas like him. He didn't want to. The thought of selling himself to an alpha for the rest of his life, was something he totally hated. Though in reality he already was tied to one.

Since omegas couldn't consent to anything during a heat, the government decided that they needed constant supervision for everything. 

It wasn’t a matter of having sex. An omega in heat could be easily manipulated to sign away everything or enter a compromise they wouldn't otherwise. In a misguided attempt to protect them, the state required that every omega had an alpha or beta tutor. That tutor was usually the partner or closest family of the omega.

In the end, that had ended up being an overly complicated and self-righteous way to own omegas.

Even with the invention of hormone blockers that allowed omegas to not have heats. It was still required to have the permission of the tutor for any import decision.

Ironically enough, it was also required to have a tutor to buy hormone blockers or allow a hysterectomy, or any kind of medical procedure that could help an omega to be more independent. If the tutor didn't consent to the omega getting the medical care. The omega simply didn’t get the medical care.

What Menoetius had offered to do for Patroclus, wasn't obtaining a family for him. It was literally selling him to the highest bidder.

Back in the old times, omegas used to be very rare. Most of them didn't make it to adulthood. Therefore, it became a symbol of status to own one.

At first, there were organized duels, where the stronger competitor would take the omega. With time, it had transformed into an auction. The person with the most money would be the one to get the omega.

With modernity and the new laws protecting omegas' rights, the selling and buying of omegas was outlawed. What wasn't outlawed though was the fact that a suitor could still give a lot of money to the omega's family as a “gift”. Then the family could "convince" the omega to marry said suitor. So basically, the only thing that changed in the end was the words people used.

That wasn't completely true. Now it was typically accepted that the omega should be the one to choose his partner regardless of how much money he gave to the family. However, the family could and would favor one tutor. 

Convincing the omega to decide for someone in specific took many forms, from social pressure to a more physical punishment. Everyone would look the other way when that happened.

His father wanted to do that to him. Put him on display, like a tasty piece of meat. Ready for any alpha (because it'd be an exclusive auction for alphas, no betas allowed, Patroclus was sure of that) to buy.

Money might not be able to buy you love, but it sure as hell could buy you a good omega.

Patroclus had been lucky most of his life, since he was a male omega who identified as a man and took hormone blockers. He was able to pass as a beta or sometimes even an alpha most of the time, plus his tutor since his mother died was his older sister. She signed away any papers that Patroclus needed and gave him her ID without asking any questions.

But if he were to marry, he'd lose that. No amount of money could make him happy if he was trapped.

It wasn’t like he was completely opposed to the idea of marriage; he actually wanted to have a family someday. But the only alpha he would marry, he hadn't seen since he was 15. At least he had managed to keep his promise for what was worth. It probably wasn’t worth a lot anymore.

He wondered what happened to Hector. If he sometimes thought about Patroclus in the same way Patroclus thought about him.

On his way to the vet clinic, he saw a beggar sitting on the side of the street with a paper cup in his hand. Patroclus stopped and gave the man some money. He guessed he was an alpha because of his strong, awful smell. When the man smiled at him from the floor, Patroclus walked away a bit faster.

--------------------------------

He arrived at 9 in the morning. That day was full of appointments, which was completely fine by Patroclus. The more work, the less he had to think.

The next one in line was a great Pyrenees, it wasn’t a very common breed in the city thanks to his size. Patroclus was excited to see the puppy. Hopefully it wouldn’t be one of those cases where the puppy was awfully sick or neglected and Patroclus had to watch, powerless to do anything to help the dog.

When the time came and the door opened. A very large white dog entered, he seemed very calm and friendly. Patroclus almost sighed with relief when he saw the dog was mostly ok, maybe a bit chubby.

What Patroclus didn’t expect was the owner. A large, imposing red-headed man with a beard entered behind the dog. “Hi,” The man said without looking at Patroclus, “I was—“ He stopped as soon as he lifted his gaze to Patroclus’ face.

“Patroclus?” The man said.

Patroclus couldn’t fight the smile on his face, “Menelaus!” Patroclus dodged the big dog and went to hug his owner.

“I haven’t seen you since college!” Menelaus said as he hugged Patroclus. He always gave the best hugs.

He had met Menelaus shortly after he began college. There hadn’t been a lot of omegas there, and even less omega men. He had been so excited when he met Menelaus waiting in line for a scholarship for omegas. He was a big handsome man, a few years older than him. They quickly became very close friends, though they lost contact after Menelaus graduated.

“I know! I missed you!” Patroclus enjoyed the feeling of his friend. Menelaus was slightly taller with 190 cm, beating the 185 cm that Patroclus had. Still, Menelaus made him look tiny in comparison with his dad body with huge shoulders and a belly. “How have you been? Has everything been okay?”

“Yes, yes, how about you? Everything fine?” Menelaus chuckled with a sound more suited to a little girl than a man like him.

“Yeah, what about you? Are you working as a therapist?” Patroclus said as he put his hands inside the pockets of his coat.

“Well—“ At that moment, the giant dog at their feet began scratching behind their ear with a paw.

“I’m sorry, I kind of forgot that I’m supposed to be working.”

“No, don’t worry about it!” Menelaus smiled at him. “When do you finish here?”

Patroclus hummed. “At 7 pm today.”

“Then, how about I come back at 7, this time without snowflake, and we catch up, how does that sound?” Menelaus smiled at him.

Patroclus laughed, “Did you name your great Pyrenees snowflake?”

"Hey, you don't know her!" Menelaus looked sheepish, "she's a very sweet gal."

"I'm sure she is." Patroclus smiled more, "then, let's talk at 7."

--------------------------------

When Patroclus had finished seeing his last patient, he had gotten out of the building and saw Menelaus was waiting for him, this time without snowflake. They decided to go to a nearby café to catch up.

When they got there, Menelaus ordered a simple latte and Patroclus a mocha with whipped cream. Then they sat on a table while they waited for their coffee.

"So," Patroclus started. "Has anything interesting happened in your life since the last time I saw you?"

Menelaus hummed, "I guess you could say so."

"What was it?"

"For starters, I got married." Menelaus said casually.

Patroclus stood dumbstruck for a moment. Then he reacted. "Really? I'm so happy for you!" He wasn’t very happy to be reminded of that topic.

Menelaus nodded. "With an alpha, a woman." He blushed a little. "I love her a lot."

Patroclus smiled; great, another omega that sold his soul to an alpha. He reached out and grabbed his hand over the table, "It's good to hear that, really."

"And I also had a daughter." Menelaus added. 

Patroclus nodded, "That's also great!"

A waiter arrived with their coffees; Patroclus let go of Menelaus' hand to take a sip of his overly sweet mocha.

"And I'm going to marry again." Menelaus said as he put his hands around the cup of coffee.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow at that. "I thought you said you loved your wife?"

"I do." Menelaus nodded. "We're going to marry another omega."

Patroclus almost spat out his coffee.

It wasn’t illegal for an alpha to marry more than one omega, but as time passed the practice stopped being popular and nowadays, it was considered in bad taste.

Patroclus cleared his throat, "And are you ok with that?"

Menelaus chuckled, "I am, we both love him. He's a wonderful person." He said with a dreamy voice. 

Patroclus observed him for a moment, before nodding, it seemed like it was something he wanted rather than something he was being forced into. Though Patroclus didn’t understand how someone might want something like that. "I'm happy for you." Patroclus took another sip of his coffee.

"What about you?" Menelaus leaned forward. "Do you have any partners?"

Patroclus swallowed the coffee, feeling the warm liquid slid down his throat. "Well... I've been dating here and there, but nothing serious yet."

Menelaus hummed. "Don't worry, I'm sure the right person for you it's out there."

Patroclus bit his lips; he didn’t want to talk about soulmates or bullshit like that. "Yeah, I don't really—"

"Oh!" Menelaus interrupted and grabbed his hand. "You know what? You should come to a party my brother it's organizing! My wife and fiancé will be there so you can meet them, and who knows? Maybe you could find someone there!"

Patroclus wanted to say that he didn't care about that, nor was he searching for a spouse. But he didn’t want to be mean to Menelaus, he didn’t have a lot of friends.

He didn’t have any friends.

“Sure, I’d love to go.”

--------------------------------

When he returned to home, he walked past his father and his sister without saying anything. Then immediately went to his room and plummeted into his bed face first. He stayed like that a few seconds. Inevitably, he heard knocking on his door.

“What?” Patroclus said loud enough that it could be heard through the door.

The door opened. “Is everything ok?” Myrto asked softly.

Patroclus sighed. “Yeah, I just got invited to a party that I don’t want to go this weekend.”

“Then don’t go.” Myrto said it like it was the simplest solution in the world.

“But I promised a friend I’ll go!” Patroclus whined.

“Then go and have fun.” Myrto said, getting exasperated.

“But I don’t want to go because my friend wants me to get a partner!” Patroclus buried his face deeper in his mattress. “Probably one of those perverted alphas.”

“Then tell him you don’t want to!”  Myrto scream.

“No because I don’t want to be rude!” Patroclus screamed back.

“Then fuck you!” Myrto exited the room and closed the door.

“Fuck you too!” Patroclus groaned.

--------------------------------

Patroclus adjusted his black jacket on the mirror. On the reflection, he saw Menoetius staring at him.

Patroclus sighed, “What happened, dad?”

“Why aren’t you wearing a dress? You said you were going to a party,” Menoetius crossed his arms on top of his chest.

“Because I’m a man! I don’t want to wear a dress!” Patroclus huffed.

“We’re omegas, Patroclus. We need to wear dresses in formal situations.” Menoetius said firmly.

Patroclus sighed; he didn’t want to fight with his dad before the party. “Ok, dad, I’ll remember it next time.”

Menoetius got closer to Patroclus and began moving around his hair.

“Dad!” Patroclus screamed, but let his father do as he wanted.

“You need to look good; you might find a husband at the party,” Menoetius put down his hands, apparently satisfied with his work.

Patroclus rolled his eyes; he looked back at the mirror and had to admit that his hair looked better after his father fixed it.

“Ok, I think I’m ready.” Patroclus said and went out his room, he looked around for Myrto.

Myrto was sitting at the table, drinking a coffee, she lifted her face and looked at his brother. “Are you finally ready to go?”

Patroclus nodded he didn’t know how to drive because omegas always needed to be accompanied by an alpha or a beta to drive. So, he had to rely on his sister to go and come to certain places.

“Ok, let’s go.” His sister got up and walked to the door, and Patroclus followed.

“Remember what I told you about the husband!” Menoetius screamed at him.

Patroclus rolled his eyes again. “Ok dad.”

--------------------------------

The car stopped, and Patroclus sighed. "This is going to be hell."

"So..." Myrto looked at him. "I come to pick you up at midnight?"

Patroclus sighed. "Couldn’t you be more supportive of my suffering?"

Myrto snorted. "Get over yourself, it's just going to be some minutes of awkward social interaction, it's not the end of the world."

Patroclus slumped on the car seat.

Myrto stopped the engine. "Now, shoo shoo."

Patroclus slowly got out of the car. The party was held in a very big mansion, with the main gates open, so anyone could enter.

Inside, there were mostly people drinking and talking. A few of them were dancing along the music in the background. Patroclus didn't know any of them, as a result he focused on searching for Menelaus. After dodging some drunks and some dancers. Patroclus finally found his friend on the second floor, calmly talking with his older brother Agamemnon.

Patroclus never really liked Agamemnon. The man had some sort of complex about being a beta and not an alpha and he had decided to make that everyone's problem. However, Patroclus knew when to pick his battles, thus he had to put effort to be in his good graces. He approached them.

"Hi!" Patroclus gave his best friendly smile.

Agamemnon seemed surprise to see him. He raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't expecting to see you after all these years. You look good."

Agamemnon; with the same height as Patroclus, had short brown curls, and a short well-groomed beard, along with his brown doe eyes, pink lips, and olive tanned skin; he was very handsome. Patroclus thought that he'd be even more handsome if he was kinder. At least he wasn’t an alpha. 

"It's been a while since we saw each other, hasn't it?"

Menelaus stepped forward. "I invited him."

Agamemnon huffed. "Can't believe he came, but Achilles didn’t. That bastard..."

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "Achilles?"

Menelaus nodded. "The son of Thetis. His family has a fortune made in real estate and other businesses. If you ever stepped on an expensive hotel or a restaurant, it probably was their property."

"Not to mentions all the connections he has with certain persons." Agamemnon added, grabbing a flute of champagne from a nearby table. 

Patroclus frowned. "He has the same name as Achilles of that YouTube channel that makes covers."

"It's the same person." Agamemnon shrugged. “The clown can't be away from the circus it seems.”

"Really!?" Patroclus couldn’t hide his surprise. 

Agamemnon chuckled at his reaction.

Patroclus felt warmth on his cheeks. "Well, I like his covers, he has a nice voice…"

Agamemnon huffed. "His musical talent is meh at best and mediocre at worst. I guess his voice is ok though." He turned to Menelaus. "And I still can't believe he'd disrespect me like that by refusing my invitation, he isn't winning himself any favors."

The Atrides were a very rich and powerful family. Patroclus guessed the same was true for Achilles' family. For his part, Patroclus' family too was allegedly very important from his father' side, but that didn’t show on their bank account.

Patroclus smiled, "Right." He turned to Menelaus, "where's your wife and fiancé?"

"My wife should be with her sister, Agamemnon's wife. And my fiancé enjoys being fashionably late." Menelaus waved his hand around.

"The brothers married a pair of sisters?" Patroclus said as he fidgeted with his fingers.

Menelaus nodded. "Twin sisters actually, Agamemnon's wife introduced me."

"Twins?" Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "I thought that you said that your wife was an alpha."

Menelaus nodded. "She is."

"Then Agamemnon's...?" Patroclus mumbled.

Agamemnon scolded. "My wife is an alpha as well."

Patroclus felt a bloom of panic on his chest. "I didn't mean to imply anything by that, I just—"

Agamemnon raised his hand and Patroclus stopped. Then Agamemnon walked away.

"Crap." Patroclus sighed, he turned to Menelaus. "I didn't mean to offend your brother."

Menelaus laughed. "Don't worry, he'll get over it, he does love her. But the fact that she's an alpha, and he had to be bonded to have kids, it's still a sore spot for him."

"I truly never expected him to marry an alpha. He seems quite insecure about being a beta." Patroclus bit his lips.

"He is." Menelaus gaze fell in someone. "Oh! There they are! My wife and her sister!" With a movement of the hand, he signaled to where they were.

Patroclus lifted his gaze to see two women. One was extremely beautiful, curvy, and tall, with olive skin, curly black hair, and big brown eyes. The other one, while still very pretty, paled in comparison with her sister. She had very fair skin, with piercing green eyes and blond straight hair, she was a bit shorter and thinner than her sister.

“So…” Patroclus blinked a few times. “Twins, you say.”

Menelaus shrugged. “Yeah, I don’t understand it either. Genes are weird.”

The tallest one of the two walked to Menelaus. “Honey!” She kissed her husband briefly on the lips.

“Hi cupcake.” Menelaus returned the kiss back eagerly. “Let me introduce you, this is my friend Patroclus, and Patroclus, this is my wife, Helen.”

Helen? That name sounded familiar.

"Hi!" Patroclus said in a friendly tone. "I'm sorry, but have we met before?"

Helen smiled; she was so beautiful. A shame that she was an alpha. "That was what I was thinking as well. I don't think I could forget a name like yours, but I don't remember ever seeing you."

"Yeah." Patroclus nodded. "Me neither. I don't think I could forget a face like yours."

"She's very beautiful, isn't she?" Menelaus said while looking adoringly as his wife.

Patroclus nodded. "Very."

Helen waved a hand around. "You know that flattery will get you nowhere." She looked around. "And miss king of drama hasn't arrived, has he?"

"You know how he is." Menelaus answered with amusement.

Patroclus was about to comment something when he heard a strangely familiar voice.

"Hey, what are you two saying about—" The man stopped when he saw Patroclus, an expression of shock on his face. "Me…?"

Patroclus immediately recognized those facial features, that dark olive skin and black waves of hair.

"Paris?"

Paris covered his mouth with a hand, he shook his head, then ran to Patroclus and hugged him.

Patroclus didn't know how to react to that. Paris began talking to his chest, he couldn't be taller than 1.70 meters.

"I'm sorry." Paris began whispering. "I'm so sorry..."

Patroclus sighed. Both Menelaus and Helen watched them. He shook his head and began petting Paris’ hair. "It's ok, you know you are my favorite brother too."

--------------------------------

They had moved to a more private place. Apparently, the gigantic house’ was Agamemnon’s, so they were in what used to be Menelaus’ room before he moved out with Helen. Both Patroclus and Paris were sitting on the empty bed, while Helen and Menelaus stood in front of them.

“You know each other?” Menelaus said right after closing the door behind him.

Paris nodded. “He was one of the foster kids that my dad took in… But something made things complicated.”

“How so?” Menelaus crossed his arms in front of his chest.

Paris looked at Patroclus with a question in his eyes, Patroclus shook his head slightly. 

“It’s personal.” Paris muttered.

“Is he the boy that had to go away that you talked about?” Helen asked, moving his hands on the air for emphasis.

Patroclus looked at Paris on the eyes. “Did you tell her about…?”

Paris said no with his head. “I just mentioned that you went away, not why.”

“Something bad happened between you two?” Menelaus asked carefully.

Patroclus bit his lips. “Can I talk with Paris alone?”

Menelaus opened his mouth, before Helen interrupted. “Of course.” She took Menelaus’ arm. “If you need us, we’ll be outside.” They walked out of the room and softly closed the door.

Paris took Patroclus’ hands. “I’m sorry, I left you alone after what happened and then I… I couldn’t find you… I let that happen to you, and then I left you alone afterward…” Paris blinked some tears away. “I’m sorry…”

Patroclus squeezed Paris’ hands softly. “It’s ok… I don’t blame you for what happened.”

Paris nodded, he let go one of Patroclus’ hands to quickly clean the tears off his face. “I’ve missed you…”

“I’ve missed you too…” Patroclus mumbled, in his mind he had one hundred questions and the image of a person. “What happened after I went away?”

Paris sighed. He grabbed both of Patroclus’ hands again. “After what happened to you… everyone acted as if nothing was different. But I like to think that Hector’s perfect image was tainted after that. A lot of the foster kids were more careful with him, especially the omegas…” Paris looked away. “Hector stopped drinking too, so I guess he regretted it…”

There was a wild feeling inside Patroclus’ heart, he didn’t know if it was fear, or perhaps…

“And where is he now?” Patroclus was breathless.

“Patroclus, tormenting you with that isn’t—“

“Please, I need to know where’s him…” Patroclus almost begged.

He had kept his promise.

Paris looked like he was about to burst into tears, he kept talking. “Two years after what happened to you, he married a lovely beta named Andromache and had a son. He moved to another city.”

Patroclus felt a pang of pain in his heart. Hector… But he promised… “Oh…” There were tears prickling at his eyes. “Is he… Is he… Happy?”

Paris looked away. “He…” It seemed like he was debating whether to say something.

“Please, tell me.” Patroclus got closer to Paris.

Paris sighed dejectedly. “He just divorced; they had some problems… Now he’s back on town…”

Patroclus felt like an awful person when relief spilled in his chest. Then he felt like a fool when hope bloomed in his heart. His prince… “Do you know where he lives? Or how can I see him?”

Paris looked at Patroclus as if he was talking to a crazy man. “Patroclus! He raped you!”

“Don’t be patronizing with me, Paris! I’m the one who gets to decide if I was a victim or not! And I’m the one who gets to decide if I want to see him again!”

Paris deflated. “I… Guess you’re right on the last part…”

Patroclus squeezed Paris’ hands one more. “Then tell me.”

Paris shook his head. “Let me talk to him first, alright? Please, I’m not saying no, just give me more time.”

Patroclus sighed, if he said no, then Paris probably would refuse completely. “Ok but do it as soon as possible.”

Paris nodded, he looked sad.

Patroclus smiled softly at him, he closed the distance between them and hugged him. “You know, you look better now, more handsome.” He whispered.

Paris chuckled; he buried his head on Patroclus’ chest. “You too. You’ve grown to be a very beautiful man.”

“I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too.”

--------------------------------

After that, Patroclus talked with Paris. They mostly caught up with each other.

After Patroclus had gone away, Paris lost contact with Helen. Then, some years ago, he randomly met Menelaus in a bar. It had been love at first sight, apparently. When it turned out that he was married to Helen, Paris had taken it as a divine signal that the three of them were supposed to be lovers.

Patroclus had to chuckle at that. His father who was a devoted Christian would’ve had a heart attack if he heard Paris.

They had spent all the party like that, just talking with each other. When Myrto called Patroclus to tell him she was outside the house. That was when Patroclus realized they had basically spent hours chatting.

He said goodbye to Helen and Menelaus, they told him he absolutely was invited to the wedding. Paris mentioned he was going to call him as soon as he had talked with Hector, he just needed to be patient.

With that knowledge, Patroclus entered the car.

The car speed down streets, passing by houses and buildings. Everything was dark outside, and thanks to the light coming from inside the vehicle, he saw his own reflection instead of his surroundings.

He had changed a lot since he was 15. The one thing he noticed the most was the change of his eyes. Before, there had been a happiness, a light that had since extinguished with age. Innocence that had flown away.

Would Hector still be attracted to him?

Patroclus didn’t want to marry, but that wasn’t the truth. He wanted to marry one specific person, one person he had been waiting for all his life. Patroclus wanted to marry his prince and have a family with him. He had been waiting for him inside a cursed tower since he was a kid. However, if the prince didn’t come to him, he’d go to his prince.

--------------------------------

When Myrto and him arrived back home, they saw Menoetius sitting in the living room, calmly drinking a Guinness. Patroclus never understood why he drank alcohol after what happened to Patroclus’ grandfather.

Patroclus had a very specific childhood memory of asking Menoetius about why he could drink alcohol while Patroclus couldn’t. His father simply had said that it was because Patroclus was like Actor. Weak.

When Menoetius saw them, he raised an eyebrow. “Well? Did you find a husband?” He sounded tired.

Myrto sighed. “I’m not dealing with this, I’m going to sleep, goodnight.” She immediately left them alone.

Patroclus hugged himself. “Hey dad… If you were to help me, find a partner. Would you do all that thing where you take my photo and send it to different alphas?”

Menoetius nodded slowly. His blond hair looked almost white under the artificial light. “Yes… Why?”

Patroclus sighed, he was going to be auctioned, like a thing, but— “I want to do it, I want you to… Find someone for me…”

Menoetius raised an eyebrow. “Why the change of mind?”

Patroclus ignored him. “I have a condition, though.”

Menoetius observed his son for an instant, he had the kind of eyes that went through your soul like a golden spear. Patroclus had the same eyes. “… What?”

“I want you to send my photo to Hector Priamides.”

--------------------------------

Patroclus looked at himself in the mirror. He wasn't accustomed to using that kind of clothes anymore. He tugged at the neck, not knowing what else to do with his hands.

"Stop tugging at it!" Menoetius said as he slapped Patroclus' hand softly.

Patroclus sighed. "Why do I have to take the photo wearing a dress? I'm a man."

Menoetius nodded, "A man who is an omega. It's traditional for omegas to wear dresses."

"Why does the fact that I happen to have a uterus affect how I dress? It isn’t fair," Patroclus hugged himself. "I don't like how I look; I don't look like me."

"Don't start with all that annoying political stuff. No alpha would want to marry someone who's annoying like you." Menoetius fixed Patroclus' dress, "And you look pretty, way prettier than you do normally."

Patroclus sighed once more. His dress was a cream color, the cut emphasized his waist and the long puffy sleeves made him look thinner. It was a very conservative dress since it lacked any kind of cleavage and the length almost touched the floor. He had thought that his father would push on him one of those sexy dresses, since the purpose of the photo was to attract alphas. When he said that to his father, Menoetius just looked at him with an annoyed expression and told him that he was searching for a husband, not a sugar daddy.

His father took Patroclus' arm and pulled him away from the mirror. "Let's go to take the photo."

They were in a studio with a professional photographer waiting for them. Patroclus had thought it was overkill, a selfie would've done the job, but Menoetius insisted.

His father guided him to a chair in front of a dark blue background, where he seated him. Then proceeded to move his arms around as if he was a doll to get him in the best pose. Patroclus had to remind himself that he had; in fact, asked for it.

When Menoetius seemed satisfied with his work, he let him go. "You look beautiful, you're going to get a husband in no time."

He stepped aside, and the photographer stood in front of him, a few meters back. "Ok, now I need you to smile."

Patroclus closed his eyes and breathed deeply; he thought about Hector. When he opened his eyes again, he smiled, and the flash of the camera blinded him.

--------------------------------

Patroclus sat on his bed, he took out his phone and began scrolling down on different social media. 

He was wearing a silk scarf; his father had insisted earlier in the morning that he had a rash on the back of his neck and wearing a silk scarf would help with that. Patroclus wasn’t sure of it; he wasn't even sure he had a rash. But it was an easy solution that would keep his dad happy, he hadn't questioned it.

The door of his room opened. "Hey, I got something to show you."  Menoetius held a bunch of papers in his hand.

"Can't you knock?" Patroclus said as he put down his phone.

"You came out of me." Menoetius huffed. "I've already known you way more than I ever wanted to." He entered the room and sat at his side.

"That's no—" Patroclus sighed and rolled his eyes. "Forget about it. What are those?"

Menoetius handed him the papers.

Patroclus took them, his photos. 

"You look very good; I already have a list of Alphas who could be interested in you."

Patroclus observed the rectangles of paper in his hands. In the photos he appeared very feminine with a tiny waist and big eyes. He didn't recognize himself. The same feminine and submissive omega every alpha wanted. 

Of course he hated that.

He wondered if Hector would recognize him. If Hector would like him. 

Patroclus bit his lips. "Hector—"

"Yes, yes." Menoetius waved his hands dismissively. "That Hector of yours will also get your photo." His father smiled at him. "You know, I have a friend I met in college. He married a very rich alpha; that bastard. But he also has an alpha son who is very handsome. I'm going to give him your photo, and hopefully he'd be interested." 

Patroclus gave back the photos, "Ok." He didn’t care about other alphas, he just wanted Hector.

Menoetius leaned closer to Patroclus, with one hand, he took off the silk scarf.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, "I thought you said—"

"Yes, I know." Menoetius huffed and stood up from the bed. "But it also needs to breathe."  Menoetius then unceremoniously exited the room, leaving Patroclus alone.

Patroclus returned to scrolling down on his phone. Then he felt a vibration, someone was calling him. 

The screen said one name that Patroclus had entered recently. "Paris." It had been a few days since they talked.

Patroclus' heart began fluttering. He answered. "Hello?"

Paris was on the other side of the line. "Hi! How are you doing?" 

Patroclus bit his lips softly. "Great."

"I'm happy to hear that." Paris sighed tiredly. "Listen, I talked to Hector..."

Patroclus' mouth dried. "And?"

"And..." There was a moment of silence on the line. "He wants to see you this Friday night."

--------------------------------

It was already night when Achilles returned to his house. He lived with his father and his stepfather. It wasn’t like he didn't have the means to live on his own, but he liked to keep an eye on his father. 

His father was an omega, they were more vulnerable than most. Thankfully, his father didn’t enter in heat anymore thanks to a hysterectomy he had. It wasn't like he didn't trust his stepfather, who in fact had raised him along with his dad ever since his mother went away.

However, it was extremely hard for an omega of any age to escape an abusive relationship. In part, thanks to the laws about tutors. It didn't hurt to make sure he was ok, and it wasn't like his fathers didn't want him to live with them.

He entered his house, walked towards the studio, and saw Peleus reading a book alone.

"Phoenix?" Asked Achilles. 

"Went out to buy some groceries." Peleus answered without lifting his eyes from the book.

Phoenix, his stepfather, was an alpha. He had never had any kids with Peleus, in part because the omega was already bonded with Thetis. That complicated getting pregnant with any person that wasn’t her, and Phoenix didn’t want to risk getting Peleus sick to try to remove the bond.

Plus, Peleus didn’t want more kids, so he had gotten the hysterectomy with Phoenix’ permission.

"Alright." Achilles nodded. "I'll go to my room then."

Peleus put his book down. "Wait."  He stood up and walked to the desk. "I've got something for you." He grabbed a piece of paper and what looked like a silk scarf.

"What is it?" Achilles didn't move from where he was.

"An old friend of mine came to visit today earlier. He has a son; an omega, who is currently searching for an alpha—"

Achilles shook his head. "I already have a girlfriend." He turned around.

"Wait!" Peleus said while walking towards him. "He made me promise that I'd give you his photo." 

"I'm not interested in marrying anyone right now," Achilles huffed.

"Well, at least see his photo. He's very pretty, and you don't lose anything by looking at him." Peleus offered him the piece of paper.

Achilles ignored him. "Dad..."

"Achilles. You don't know Menoetius, he's very obstinate. He'll call me in a few days and ask me if I gave you the photo or not, and when he knows that I didn't; because he'll know I don't know how, but he'll know. It's going to be a whole thing." He lifted his other hand, "look, he even gave me a scarf with the scent of his son for you, who does that nowadays?"

Achilles sighed. He knew Peleus didn't like Deidamia, and his father was just going to be as stubborn as he said his friend was to get him to break up with her. He grabbed the photo.

“Ok, but I’ll just look at him and nothing more.”

When his eyes landed on the person in the photo, he felt a painful pang on his chest. Those eyes, that hair, that warm dark skin. He looked different, but Achilles would recognize him everywhere no matter what.

"Achilles?" 

Achilles blinked. "I'm sorry what?"

Peleus huffed. "I asked what do you think of him? He's pretty, isn't he?" 

Achilles felt an urgency, a hunger, and yearning for something he hadn't had since he was a child. "Did— did you say you have a scarf with his scent?"

Peleus nodded. "It was a very common practice when I was young to—"

"Give it to me," Achilles didn't mean to sound so desperate.

Peleus looked at him weirdly, but he gave him the scarf nonetheless.

He took the scarf to his nose and carefully breathed in. The sweet smell of roses and a touch of vanilla invaded his senses, it wasn’t the same smell he remembered, this one was stronger, more complex, more seductive; but it was the same person.

Achilles closed his eyes; he remembered it as if it happened yesterday. The soft touch of lips against his own, the sound of bright laughter. The promise of being together one day.

Achilles breathed deeply, that scent that made his heart crazy with longing. He opened his eyes and saw the photo again, that smile he had missed so much.

His prince.

"I want to marry him."

--------------------------------

Patroclus had put a limit to the time he could spend in front of the mirror, because if he didn't, he would’ve spent all day there and then have a panic attack instead of going to meet with Hector. He had chosen a tight blue shirt that showed his muscles, and a pair of black jeans that made his ass look good. He felt like a fool for putting so much effort on being attractive to Hector. On the other hand, there was a manic energy on his chest, a kind of happiness and eagerness he hadn't felt since he was 15.

He put some perfume to hide his omega scent. It was a very common and neutral fragrance of mint. Strong enough to override and hide his natural smell. He walked out of his room and he was going to call an Uber to meet Hector and Paris on the agreed spot, when Myrto called his attention by moving his hands.

"Hey, Patroclus." She walked to him. "Are you a virgin?"

That shocked Patroclus. "What?"

Myrto shook his head. "A woman; one of the alphas we sent your photo to, asked me if you were a virgin."

Patroclus felt anger at that. "Why does she even care?"

"She could become your future wife." Myrto crossed her arms in front of her chest.

"And!? Virginity it's such a stupid concept, what if I've had sex? That doesn't make me tainted, nor does not having sex makes me 'pure' because I'm a person, not an object that can’t be new or used—"

"I'm going to tell her that yes, you are a virgin, so you better act like one." Myrto rolled her eyes and walked away.

Patroclus shook his head. "Tell her to fuck off too." Fucking alphas that thought they could use him like a sex toy.

Great, now he was feeling angry. He breathed, it didn’t matter; soon enough, he'll be back with Hector.

--------------------------------

Patroclus arrived some minutes later at the address Paris had sent him. It was a restaurant with a beautiful garden. He entered the place and looked around. Paris had said Hector was going to be there, but didn’t mention anything else. His gaze found Paris and Helen sitting at a table.

He walked over them.

"Hi." He mumbled.

"Hi sweetheart!" Helen answered happily. "You look amazing! Please sit." She motioned to one of the two unused chairs.

Paris observed him with an unreadable expression.

Patroclus began fidgeting with his fingers, "Umm, Hector is...?"

"He's late." Paris said offhandedly.

"Oh," Patroclus watched the drinks in front of them. "I didn't know that you guys would be here as well."

Helen nodded, "Paris insisted I come with him."

Patroclus smiled. Paris still didn't trust Hector at all, it seemed.

"We’ll just be here nearby; in case you need us. But you can go and talk with Hector on your own; when he arrives, that is." Paris said firmly.

Patroclus sighed. He tapped the table with his fingers. The fact that he would have to spent some time waiting for Hector wasn’t on the plans. The Hector he remembered was always on time.

Few minutes passed where Paris talked with Helen about one thing or another. Patroclus kept fidgeting with his fingers.

Maybe it had been a mistake, maybe Hector wasn't interested in him anymore, maybe they both had changed way more than Patroclus expected.

A deep soft voice resonated behind Patroclus. "Paris, Helen." 

Patroclus' heart went fast in his chest. It had been 10 years.

There he was Hector, looking as handsome and perfect as Patroclus remembered him. No, it wasn’t true, he looked even better. He was wearing a white T-shirt, with blue jeans. The garden light made him look ethereal.

Hector observed him, and smiled, he always had a kind smile. "Patroclus, it's been a while."

Patroclus nodded, feeling a rush of warmth on his cheeks.

"So, did you want to talk with me?" Hector slightly tilted his head. "Or that was what Paris told me, at least."

Patroclus felt like a blushing mess, not so different from when he was 15. "Um... Yes."

"Well, we can go to another table for more privacy." Hector offered, he then turned to Paris. "If that's alright, I mean."

Paris nodded. "You know we'll be near, Patroclus."

Patroclus nodded, he stood up and Hector offered his hand to him. Patroclus felt dizzy at the prospect of touching him again. He pressed his palm against Hector’s, his skin soft and warm, like how he remembered it. Like that night.

Hector guided him towards the other side of the restaurant. Patroclus noticed they were almost the same height now. If anything, Hector was some centimeters taller than him. He could look him directly in his eyes without much trouble.

Patroclus was walking on clouds.

Finally, they arrived at an empty table and sat down.

Hector breathed deeply. "You look very good. Adulthood suits you."

Patroclus couldn’t help but smile sincerely. "You too look very good! Back then, I thought you couldn’t get more handsome, but apparently you can." Patroclus cringed internally at that. He sounded too desperate.

"Thank you," Hector muttered. "Do you want to order something? I'll pay." 

Patroclus took the menu and pretended to read. But his mind was completely elsewhere.

Hector observed him carefully, Patroclus felt as if it was his first time again. Naked, on a bed that wasn't his own, afraid. He cleared his throat. "So, what are you going to—"

"I'm sorry."

Patroclus frowned. "What?"

"What happened, back then, I'm sorry." Hector clarified, looking at anything but Patroclus.

Patroclus just didn't know what to say. "Why are you saying this?"

Hector sighed. "Listen; what happened was..." He rubbed his eyes with his hands. "I'm not trying to justify myself here, but I was young, an idiot, and drunk... I didn't think about what I was doing, or the consequences, or how that'd make you feel..."  Hector looked at him with pleading eyes. "I'm so sorry, I hurt you in that way..."

No, not that again, not from him too. "You didn't hurt me Hector, I wanted it, it was consensual." 

Hector shook his head. "Patroclus, you were 15. I was 24, there was no way that could've been consensual, I—"

"It was consensual because I say it was."

Hector looked at him, devastated, "Patroclus, I rape—"

"NO!" Patroclus smashed his hands on the table. Everyone in the restaurant stared at him. "How come it's YOU, who gets to decide what happened to me? How come you're the one who says when I'm hurting and when I'm not!? You're not going to make me into a victim for your own narrative!"

Paris and Helen were walking towards them. Fuck, everything had gone terribly wrong. He just wanted to be with the man he loved the most, with his prince. Still; his past came to hunt him once again.

He got up and ran away.

--------------------------------

The night that followed, he ignored Menelaus and Paris' calls. He didn't want to hear them saying the same thing again and again. Instead, he spent all the night sulking in his room, ignoring Myrto's pleas to eat something.

It was Saturday. Patroclus got up slowly. It was what it was. If Hector didn't want him... Well; now he had a commitment he needed to see through. He couldn't back down from whatever his father and Myrto were doing in his name.

He dragged his body out of his room and into the kitchen. Menoetius and Myrto were eating breakfast. He took a bowl and poured himself some milk and cereal.

Menoetius smiled at him. "I got good news. Peleus' son, it's very interested in you. He wants to arrange a date to meet you as soon as possible." 

Patroclus hummed. He wished he hadn't reacted like he did with Hector, maybe if he had been calmer....

"He's very rich, and if you marry him, you won't have to work a day in your life again." Menoetius concluded.

Maybe he should call Paris and apologize.

Myrto nodded. "He does seem very interested if you go by the quantity of money he offered."

He should ask if Hector is mad.

Menoetius cleared his throat. "I'm going to tell him that tomorrow is ok for that date; I'll get you a pretty dress for it today."

Patroclus only nodded absent mindlessly. His mind was still preoccupied with Hector. Even after everything, he missed his prince, he missed feeling safe with him at his side, he missed feeling loved.

Both his father and sister went away shortly after, leaving him alone with his thoughts and cereal. He put his feet on the seat and his knees against his chest, then sighed. 

At that moment, his phone began ringing, it was an unknown number. Patroclus answered and put the phone against his ear. "Hello? Who is this?"

"Hi, Patroclus, I'm Hector. Helen gave me your number." Hector's sweet, soft voice traveled down his spine.

"I... Hector?" Patroclus didn't know what to answer.

Hector chuckled. "Yes. Listen, I'm sorry for what happened yesterday. I didn't mean to offend you. You're right, I shouldn't force a label on you if you don't want to claim it."

Patroclus felt relief in his heart. "Thank you for understanding. Paris seems adamant on knowing better than me."

Hector hummed, and Patroclus felt chills on his spine. "But I still want to talk with you. It's been quite some time since we last saw each other; maybe you can give me another chance to reconnect over dinner?"

"I..." His knees felt weak. "Of course!"

"Ok." Patroclus could hear the smile on Hector’s voice. "Then send me your address and I'll pick you up at 7, is that ok?"

Patroclus nodded eagerly. "Sure!"

"Ok, see you later." With a soft click the call was over. And Patroclus' heart was left dancing.

--------------------------------

Achilles sighed, he closed his eyes and rubbed them with his hands. He didn’t want to do what he was about to do, but he didn't see another way of making sure. The Nereids were experts on that, not the Myrmidons.

It had been a while since he talked to his mother, the mother that abandoned him and his father so long ago.

He sighed again, he knew it was because his father was already pregnant with his half sister after he married Thetis, and that was a wound she couldn't forget. But still, she left him alone.

Achilles took out of his pocket the photo of his precious prince along with the silk scarf. He had a kind smile on his face, his soft dark skin, his black curls and beautiful eyes were so divine. He put the small scarf to his nose and breathed that wonderful smell of his. 

Pa-tro-clus 

Achilles was doing it for him. He put the things back in his pocket and got out of the car. He walked towards the gigantic, looming monster in front of him.

When he entered the mansion, a servant tried to guide him to his mother. Achilles simply ignored her. He knew the way to his mother by heart. 

Through the labyrinthine halls and corridors, he walked closer and closer to his mother. Until he stood in front of the door of his mother' office. He sighed again and knocked.

A harsh but feminine voice answered through the other side. "Come in."

Achilles slowly opened the door. "Mother."

Thetis was sitting at his desk, nursing a glass of dark, expensive red wine. "What do you want now, Achilles."  She was wearing a two-piece black suit; her jacket was open revealing the fact that she had nothing underneath it. Her blond straight hair was falling freely past her waist. She didn't look a day older than 30, despite being 31 when Achilles was born.

"What, can't I just visit my mother from time to time?" Achilles gave her his best fake smile.

Thetis cackled, throwing her head back. "You're like your father, such a bad liar..." She sipped her wine. "Too much of your father, not enough of me..." 

Achilles' smile faltered for a second.

"What do you want?" She moved her glass around. "Money?"

Achilles huffed. "I want to marry someone."

Thetis raised her eyebrow. "And you want me to convince that omega for you?"

"No, I can do that myself without your help." Achilles said with confidence.

"Then what do you want?" Thetis drank more wine.

"I don't want competition. I trust that he'll want me, but the thought of someone else trying to get closer to him... I want to be the only one, and the Nereids are experts in that." Achilles said in a serious tone.

Thetis hummed. She lifted her hand with the palm up.  Achilles reluctantly took Patroclus' photo out of his pocket. He stepped closer to his mother and put the photo on her palm.

Thetis looked at Patroclus and raised an eyebrow. "You could do better."

Achilles fought the anger that comment provoked in him. "I don't want better, I want him."

Thetis hummed. "What about Deidamia? I like her." 

"I don't."

Thetis watched Patroclus' photo again. "I'll admit he's cute, and he's wearing a dress. Nowadays, omegas don’t wear dresses anymore."

Achilles looked at her eyes. They were the same color as his own.

Thetis sighed. "Fine, you want him, I'll help you."

Achilles smiled. "Thanks mommy dearest."

--------------------------------

Patroclus didn't want to let his expectations up. He didn't know what Hector wanted to do, and Patroclus recognized it wasn’t a good idea to give his heart hope. Maybe Hector was planning to get back with his wife. He had put on the simple outfit of a gray T-shirt, a dark blue denim jacket and blue jeans. They probably weren't going to a fancy place anyway. 

At 5:50 pm, a black car pulled in front of his house and Hector sent him a message saying that he was in the car outside his house.

Patroclus sighed, he willed his heart to calm down and stepped outside to walk towards the car.

He could see Hector on the driver seat. He looked amazing with a tight black shirt, and his hair all slicked back. Patroclus stepped to the other seat and knocked on the window. Hector opened it, and Patroclus swiftly entered.

"You look very good." Hector pointed out.

Patroclus once again felt like a young boy with an innocent crush and not a 24 that was going to marry. "Ah... it's just some cheap clothes from Walmart."

"Well, you wear them very well." Hector started the car again.

Patroclus nodded. Anxiety made itself known in his chest, he looked through the window, not saying anything.

They traveled fast through the city. Patroclus observed the tall buildings and lights being turned on as the twilight draped itself on the world around. Finally, they stopped in front of a building and Hector turned off the engine of the car.

"We'll have to walk a little, I can't park in front of the restaurant."

Patroclus nodded tightly.

Hector stepped out of the car and rushed to the other side to open Patroclus' door. He offered his hand to help him out.

Patroclus smiled weakly and took it. His heart began beating fast and his knees went weak when Hector didn’t let go of his hand and guided him through the street.

They stopped in front of a small and rustic looking restaurant.

"This used to be one of my favorite places before I moved away, I'm glad it's still open, the coffee it's very good."

Patroclus nodded again.

They entered. Inside there were golden lights and dark wood tables and chairs, along with a lot of potted plants. It gave everything a fairy tale look. Almost like they were entering the house of a fairy. Hector took him towards a table at one corner of the restaurant, away from the center and all the people looking at him.

"What do you want to drink? It's on me." Hector said softly.

Patroclus nodded again, without a word.

Hector sighed. "I'm making you uncomfortable, aren't I?"

"What? No, it's just that..."

"What?"

Patroclus pursed his lips. "What is this, Hector? What do you want? You want catharsis? Forgiveness? Because I don't have that for you. I don't want to be the victim of your redemption story."

Hector looked at him directly in the eyes. He tapped the table with his fingers. "Honestly... After you left the house, I missed you. There was something about you. Your laughter, your kindness; that was lacking in the house. I won't lie when I say that even after I regretted what I did. I still thought about you. Now I see you, and you look so beautiful, so mature, like a completely different person, but in a good way." 

Hector sighed. "So, I thought that I could get to meet you again, and perhaps we could have… A relationship of some sorts."

Patroclus’ chest was aching, his heart yearning. "What kind of relationship?"

Hector kept tapping on the table. "Your sister sent me your photo."

Patroclus felt all his face burning. "Oh... So, you—"

Hector cleared his throat. "Listen, I'm not implying anything, but like I said, maybe we could talk, and see where things take us."

Patroclus observed him. "Did you like it?"

"What?"

"My photo, did you like it?" Patroclus tilted his head to the side coyly.

Hector smiled at him, "You look very good in that dress; it suits your body."

Patroclus suddenly felt very hot in his jacket, he took it off, "And what did you do with it? Where did you put it?"

Hector raised his eyebrow, "It was an e-mail."

Patroclus couldn’t help but laugh at that. "Oh gods, my dad actually printed them. I can't believe he didn't send you a physical copy."

Hector chuckled, "Maybe he doesn't like me."

"Good thing I'm the one who gets to decide in the end." Patroclus leaned forwards. Then he remembered something. "I mean; if you want to become a suitor." Patroclus leaned back again and hugged himself. "Paris told me about your ex-wife and son."

Hector nodded. "Andromache and Scamandrius."

"What happened? Do you still love her?" Patroclus cringed at that. "If it's ok to ask..."

Hector nodded and looked down at his hands in his lap. "We found out that we work better as friends rather than a couple... She said I've never listened or allowed her to help me with my problems, and she isn't wrong... We divorced, now she's dating Helenus."

"He has the same name as—"

"She's dating my brother." Hector concluded with a serious tone.

"Oh." Patroclus didn't know what to say to that.

Hector had a grimace on his face for a moment, then he smiled. "It's fine, she's happier with him, and he's happy with her too."

Patroclus blinked, "And you're happy now?"

Hector shrugged, "In the end, it was my fault that she went away... It doesn't matter how I feel about it, it doesn't matter if I still love her."

Patroclus bit his lips and looked away.

"But, I have to admit that I missed the company of someone at night. Who knows, maybe I'll look into some omegas to marry." Hector finally looked at Patroclus again.

Patroclus smiled. "Oh my, oh my. I wonder where you could find an omega ready to marry these days?" He said with a playful tone.

"Yeah, especially because the good omegas have fathers that'll send you an email instead of a physical copy of their photo." Hector had a mischievous smirk.

Patroclus couldn’t help but laugh more. "I'll give you a physical copy."

"What for?" Hector leaned forward and grabbed one of Patroclus' hands. "When I got the real one right here."

Patroclus let his heart burn with joy and love. "I... We should order something before they kick us out."

"Good idea."

--------------------------------

Patroclus laughed as they walked to the car, Hector was telling a funny story about Scamandrius.

"And then there were Legos everywhere! I swear that after that I kept finding Legos like in the shower." Hector smiled as went and opened the door for Patroclus.

Patroclus giggled more. "That boy sounds like a lot of fun!" He entered the car.

Hector closed his door and walked around to enter the driver's seat. "He is, what’s not so fun is the cleaning afterwards." Hector sighed and put his hand on the steering wheel. "So, where do I take you?"

Patroclus hummed with a smile, "Any suggestions?"

Hector tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. "Do you want to see my new apartment?"

Patroclus felt dizzy at that. "I mean—"

"Nothing has to happen." Hector rushed to correct. "I was just saying because—"

"Sure." Patroclus smiled. "I'd love to see your apartment."

Hector smiled back.

--------------------------------

"It's not much, but I figured, well it's only me and I don't need too much space anyway." Hector said as he entered the apartment.

Patroclus looked around, truly it was a very small room with some furniture here and there with a little kitchenette, and two other brown doors that could lead to a room and/or a bathroom. Nonetheless, it had a cozy feeling to it.

"So, what do you think?" Hector asked while moving his arms around.

"I think it's, homey." Patroclus said with a smile.

Hector snorted. "Is that a code for 'is a mess, but I don't want to be rude.' ?"

"No. Is a code for 'I think is homey,' " Patroclus smiled at him.

Hector shrugged. "Do you want something to drink?"

Patroclus bit his lips and put his hands in his pockets, there was an anxious energy that didn't let his heart relax. "No, I'm fine."

"Well, then," Hector sat in the small couch and patted the place at his side. "Come and sit."

Patroclus walked stiffly over there and sat, keeping his arms at his side. 

Hector turned towards him. He smiled and put a hand on top of Patroclus' leg. "Are you nervous?"

Patroclus was nervous indeed. He didn't expect for Hector to want him, even less for Hector to take him to his apartment. What was going to happen? He wasn't sure if he wanted anything to happen yet. After 10 years of no talking at all, sex wasn't the first thing on Patroclus' mind. "No, of course not, you'd never hurt me or anything like that. Why would I be nervous."

Hector began stroking Patroclus' leg slowly. "I have to ask though, why do you want to marry so suddenly? You never seemed the type."

Patroclus cleared his throat; he thanked the gods that his skin didn't show his blush. "No... I guess I'm not. But I don't know, maybe I'm just waiting for the right person?"

"What person?" Hector's hand was traveling dangerously high.

"Maybe, a person who made a promise when I was 15," Patroclus grabbed Hector’s hand and stopped it. "Maybe that person is here now."

Hector smiled at him, he intertwined his fingers with Patroclus' "You're such a romantic, holding onto a promise made 10 years ago."

Patroclus tilted his head. "I like to think I'm an optimist. Always hoping that you'd come back."

"Then why didn't you ask me directly? Why made this whole circus, inviting all those other alphas too?" Hector leaned towards him.

Patroclus turned away. "It was what my father wanted to do, and I wasn't sure if you still wanted me in that way." Patroclus sighed, "Either way, if you were to propose, I was just going to choose you, and a little incentive doesn’t hurt either."

"And now, will you?" Hector mumbled close to him.

"What?" 

"Choose me." Hector squeezed Patroclus' hand slightly.

Patroclus had kept his promise, he'd keep it forever. There was only once prince for him. He nodded.

Hector hummed, "Then I'll need a bigger apartment for my omega."

Patroclus grinned at that, he turned to Hector. "But I like this one, it's homey."

Hector let go of his hand, he put one arm around his neck, and the other hand began touching Patroclus' face. "Hey, don't I get a sample? I think I deserve it after all those years."

Patroclus giggled. "A sample?" 

Hector nodded as he watched Patroclus' lips. 

Patroclus leaned forward and gave Hector a quick peck on the lips. He then turned away and tried to stand up, "I think that should—"

Hector grabbed Patroclus' hand and pulled him down. He landed on Hector’s lap. Hector then grabbed his face and began kissing him, it was aggressive, and Patroclus couldn't push him away. After some time, Hector stopped to breathe. 

There was a slight tremor of fear in his heart, Patroclus didn’t want to do that.

Patroclus put a hand on Hector's chest. "I don't know if this is a good idea, maybe we shouldn't—"

Hector began kissing Patroclus' neck, nipping here and there without breaking the skin. His smell of sandalwood was everything Patroclus could think of.

He remembered that night, the feeling of being exposed, vulnerable and afraid. Patroclus began trembling with anxiety and fear. He didn’t want to.

Hector stopped, with his lips still on Patroclus' neck, "I thought you wanted me."

"I do! I just... I don't feel comfortable right now..."

Hector kissed his jaw. "Don't worry, I'll make it good for you." Hector breathed his scent. "Gods, you're so beautiful now."

Patroclus put his arms around Hector. He was still trembling. He loved Hector, and it was fine because Hector loved him back, and he was going to marry him. Hector wasn’t going to hurt him.

He breathed and ignored all his feelings of apprehension.

Hector seemed to take that as a yes because he put his hands under Patroclus and stood up from the couch, lifting Patroclus with him. Patroclus put his arms around Hector's neck, and his legs around the other’s waist. He held on as if he was going to die if he let go.

Hector walked to one of the brown doors and opened it with a kick. Inside there was a small individual bed with a nightstand and a small closet. He threw Patroclus on the bed. 

Patroclus had almost no time to recover from that when Hector was on top of him, taking off Patroclus' shirt, and then kissing and biting his chest aggressively.

Patroclus found himself shivering more, it wasn’t because of pleasure but because he felt afraid, small, vulnerable. He wished Hector would stop. Yet he wasn't 15 anymore, and there had been others who had shared the night with him since his first time. 

There had been worse ones than Hector.

It was fine because he loved him.

He closed his eyes and let Hector embrace him as his mind went out of his body.

Chapter Text

His phone began ringing like crazy, and Patroclus groaned. He took it out from under his pillow to stop the alarm, only to see it was actually his dad calling him. 

It took another moment for Patroclus to recognize that: 

1) he wasn't in his bed. 

2) he was very naked, and. 

3) Hector was snoring at his side.

Shit, dad is going to kill me.

He answered the phone.

"Hello?" Patroclus said timidly.

"WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU!?" Patroclus turned down the volume in his cell phone a little.

"I... Umm, I'm at a friend's house...?"

He heard Menoetius sighing on the other side of the line, it was his characteristically disappointed sigh. "You have the date with Peleus' son today, did you forget?"

Shit.

"No, no, I completely didn't forget at all!" Patroclus gave his best fake smile, though his dad couldn't see him.

Another disappointed sigh. "You better get your sorry ass over here right at this moment!"

"Ok, ok, I'm going, calm down!" Patroclus said as he sat on the small bed. 

"And you better have used a condom young man, because you might be on the pill, but I swear to the Gods if you caught an STD right before meeting Peleus' son, I'm—"

"Bye dad." Patroclus hung up. "I love you too." He sighed and threw his cellphone on the bed.

He heard fabric rustling. "What happened?" Hector’s voice was full of sleep.

Patroclus smiled at that; he loved that feeling of domesticity. "Nothing, I just need to go." He ran his hands through his curls. "Can I use your shower?"

"Sure, there are towels in the closet." Hector turned around and went back to sleeping.

Patroclus got up and picked up his clothes from the floor. He went for some towels and then walked out the door, he went to the second brown door. It was, indeed, the bathroom. After some tries, he managed to understand how the shower worked and got in.

With the water running on his skin, Patroclus finally relaxed. The last night, it had been nice; it hadn't been the best, but it had been something. Hector against him, holding him, it had been better than the first one as he at least knew what to expect.

He wanted him, he had never been so sure of something in his life before. He wanted Hector, his prince.

Patroclus thought about the date that his father had organized. He felt bad about that guy, and all the other alphas who thought that they had a chance with him. But it had been honestly the best choice for him. If Patroclus hadn't been willing to play his father's game, he'd never accept his and Hector's relationship. Besides, if Hector had rejected him, then he had the excuse that it was only his father's idea. 

He still felt bad about what he was doing, he hoped that alpha didn't catch feelings for him, and if he did, he hoped he'd forget him soon. But he wouldn't let Hector go.

--------------------------------

When he stepped out of the bathroom, already fully clothed, Patroclus saw Hector on his boxers with a cup of coffee in his hands.

"Do you want coffee?" Hector moved his hand with the cup.

Patroclus shook his head. "I need to go now; my father is waiting for me."

"If you want, wait a minute, I can get dressed and give you a ride."

"Don't worry, I'll call an Uber." Patroclus shrugged.

Hector walked to him and took his hand. "Will I see you again?"

Patroclus smiled. "Of course, but you'll need to schedule a date, like the rest of suitors."

Hector leaned closer to his face. "And I don't get any kind of preferential treatment?"

Patroclus gave him a quick kiss on the lips, then he got away before Hector could try anything else. "You already do."

Patroclus walked to the door, before going out, he turned back to Hector. "I'll be waiting for you."

--------------------------------

All the way back, Patroclus just smiled like an idiot. Finally, after all those years, he was goings to be with his prince. All he needed to do was suffer through awkward dates and unwanted suitors, but it was fine. If he could deal with years of solitude and yearning, he could deal with slightly uncomfortable situations.

He arrived full of happiness at his house. “Dad, Myrto, I’m home!” He screamed into the empty house.

A few seconds later, his dad appeared with a disappointed look. It was the same look he wore every time Patroclus did something that didn’t match his very high expectations of him.

Patroclus’ smile dropped. “What? I told you I was with a friend…”

Menoetius shook his head and sighed deeply. Patroclus hated that. His father then walked towards him and took his wrist. “You’re going to wash yourself, and it better be very thoroughly if you know what’s good for you.”

Patroclus let his dad pull him, there wasn’t a point in resisting him. “I’ve already taken a shower!”

Menoetius turned around and put his face as close as possible to his. Patroclus flinched by habit. “Listen, if what Peleus says is true and his son is anything like his mother. Then you better pray that he doesn’t catch even a whiff of another alpha in you because if he does…” Menoetius shook his head. “Well, that’s why you’re going to wash yourself again.” Menoetius let go of Patroclus’ hand and put some space between them.

Patroclus didn’t know what he had gotten into. “What?”

“Don’t worry about it. Just do what I say.” Menoetius at that moment seemed to remember something. “And shave your legs and chest for the dress.”

Patroclus relaxed at the lighter tone of his father. “Why? I don’t want to; I like my body hair.”

Menoetius huffed. “Because you’ll wear a dress. A short one this time.”

Patroclus had forgotten about the dress. “But, I’m a man, and—“

“No buts, or I’ll bring out the bee wax. I’m warning you.” 

Patroclus sighed; his father wasn’t lying. “Fine.” Patroclus crossed his arms in top of his chest to at least show his displeasure. “Another thing you want me to do?”

Menoetius turned around and walked away. “Put some nice panties, not your cheap ugly boxers. In case Peleus’ son wants to take a peek.”

Patroclus felt his face heating up. “DAD! Nothing like that is going to happen!”

From the distance, he heard his father scream. “You’d be lucky if it did! He’s disgustingly rich!”

--------------------------------

Patroclus got out of the shower. Any remains of Hector’s scent were long gone, however, he still sprayed himself with mint perfume to cover any scent that could cling to his skin, including his own.

He walked to his room with a towel wrapped around his waist. When he entered, he saw something golden on his bed. He picked it up, it was a bunch of skimpy fabric that Patroclus was 90% sure it wouldn’t fit him. He put a pair of black boxers; because he did have panties but fuck that nothing was going to happen, and walked out of the room with the offending thing between his hands.

“Dad! What’s this thing supposed to be!?” Patroclus screamed.

Menoetius appeared down the hallway and walked towards him. “It’s the dress for your date.” He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Are you serious!? In that case, I should just go naked! I’m sure that’ll catch his attention more than this thing.” Patroclus huffed.

“Well—“

“Don’t start dad.” Patroclus put his hand up. “And besides, I don’t even know how to put it on!”

His father rolled his eyes, he took the dress from Patroclus’ hands and the grabbed his arm, pulling him back into his room.

Inside, Menoetius began moving Patroclus around like a doll, and the next thing he knew, he had the dress on. He walked to his full body mirror and observed the image in front of him. It was a golden dress that finished above his knees, with a slit on the side, a plunging neckline, spaghetti straps, and backless to top it all off. It hugged his waist and showed off his backside, thighs, and shoulders, making them look muscular and gave him an hourglass figure. The color complemented his skin nicely. All in all, Patroclus had to admit he looked good.

He hated it.

“Couldn’t you find a more revealing dress?” Patroclus hugged himself.

Menoetius rolled his eyes. “You look fine!”

“It doesn’t feel like me...” Patroclus turned away from his reflection.

“A dress like this is the reason you were conceived.”

Patroclus caught that a few seconds later. “Dad!”

“And now this dress is going to get you a rich husband.” Menoetius moved his hands towards Patroclus’ face. “I’d ask you to put on make-up, but that’d be pushing it, wouldn’t it?”

Patroclus nodded.

Menoetius sighed. “You have two hours before he comes to pick you up, so you better use them wisely.” He went out Patroclus’ room.

--------------------------------

Patroclus was anxiously waiting for his date to arrive; however, this anxious energy was different from the one he had with Hector. With Hector, his anxiety was tinted by excitement and yearning. At the moment though, Patroclus was full of apprehension and fear. What if the alpha was rude? What if he believed that he had a right to Patroclus' body? Patroclus bit his lips.

"Stop biting your lips already!" Menoetius said at his side while he fixed Patroclus' dress.

Myrto finally came out of her room, she looked at Patroclus. "Wow, you actually don't look that ugly."

Patroclus crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Thank you, I guess." 

Then, a knock on the door.

"That must be him." Menoetius said and rushed towards the front door. 

Myrto chuckled at their father eagerness, he took Patroclus' hand. "All ready for your date?"

Patroclus could hear the door opening and his father greeting the suitor. "As ready as I’ll ever be."

Myrto pulled him forward and when Patroclus was closed enough that he could see who was waiting for him, he pulled his sister backwards.

"Wait, wait. Is he my date!?" He whispered to Myrto.

"Yeah? Why?" 

"You never told me my date was Achilles!" Patroclus tried to pull Myrto back again.

"You know him?" Myrto began pulling him forward. "And besides, you never asked for his name!"

"Yes, I know him! He's the one with the YouTube channel I told you I like!" Patroclus refused to move further.

"The one where the dogs get haircuts?" Myrto also didn't move.

"What? No! The one with the music covers!"

Myrto huffed, "Who cares!?"

"I do!" Patroclus looked away.

"Kids," Menoetius said from the door. "What are you two doing? Stop playing and come here." He then turned to look back at Achilles apologetically.

Achilles lifted his gaze to him and smiled.

Achilles; in all the videos Patroclus had watched of him, he had always been disgustingly beautiful to a point where it got uncanny. If it weren't because the technology hadn't advanced that much yet, he'd believe he was watching an AI 3D render of a human designed to be beautiful. The rational part of him said that it probably was a lot of editing, good lighting and filters that made Achilles look that good. Now as he smiled to him in real life, Patroclus saw that, no, he was just abnormally beautiful.

Myrto took advantage of his distraction and pushed him forward towards Achilles, Menoetius stepped back.

"Hi." Patroclus said with an awkward tone.

"Hi," Achilles said, he watched him with expectation. ”I'm sorry if this sounds weird, but, do you know me?”

"Yes! From your YouTube channel, I like your covers a lot, you have a nice voice." Patroclus smiled, wishing his voice didn't come out so high-pitched.

Achilles frowned. "Is that the only place you know me from?"

Crap, Patroclus didn't know if Achilles did another thing. With how handsome he was, he probably was in a movie or something like that. Now, Achilles would think that he's rude. "I mean... I think I've seen you elsewhere, but right now I can't remember?"

Achilles looked disappointed for a moment, before smiling again. "I'm sure you'll remember later."

Patroclus nodded. "But I like your covers a lot! I always listen to them when I woke up before going to work, you know? I really love your cover of a total eclipse of the heart—"

Achilles put a hand over his arm, he grabbed the spaghetti strap of the dress that Patroclus hadn't noticed it slipped down and pulled it back in place. His hand lingered on Patroclus' skin for a moment, before pulling away and looking at Patroclus with a feeling he couldn't describe.

That's when Patroclus remembered. Achilles wasn't there because he was going to meet a fan, he was there because he was an alpha who wanted to own Patroclus. He shut his mouth and looked at the floor.

Achilles observed him and turned to Myrto. "Then I guess I'll bring him back later."

Myrto nodded. "Have a nice evening!"

--------------------------------

They were inside Achilles' car. He was sitting at his side with his arm around Patroclus' shoulders. Patroclus was looking outside the window, trying to distract himself from the touch of the other. He didn’t want to seem rude and push him away, but he hated how it felt.

"So." Achilles said. "My father said your family was old money, but your family doesn't seem to have a lot of money right now." He then thought about it. "I mean, no offense."

Patroclus could distract himself with that. "My family used to have a lot of money, but we lost it. My father says that the important thing is we still have the honor of our name. "

"Can I ask what happened with all that fortune?" Achilles looked at him, he was wearing a dark blue two-piece suit with a mint green shirt.

Patroclus breathed. "My grandfather had both a gambling and alcohol addiction. He threw away the family fortune in those two things. When he died, my father, who was very young at the time, inherited the debt. He struggled a lot for a lot of years with it. It's not like an omega has it easy with getting jobs.

Then he married my mother, she had a very good paying job. But she died when I was 19 because of stomach cancer. Her money paid all the debts but left us with little else. Since then, both my sister and I work, but they don't pay me a lot. So the burden falls more on my sister to support both my father and me... It's not a lot, but it's enough to have an ok life."

"Well, I'm sorry about that," Achilles cleared his throat, but still didn’t give Patroclus any personal space. Perhaps he thought that he already owned Patroclus. "About your mother, I mean."

"It's been years," Patroclus looked through the window. "It doesn't matter anymore." He pulled his dress down.

Achilles looked at him like he was a weird bug, “Right,” he cleared his throat again. “Do you want to know where we are going?”

Did it matter? “No.” He kept looking out of the window.

Finally, Achilles dropped his arm and stopped touching Patroclus.

The rest of the ride was silent. Mostly consisting of Patroclus ignoring Achilles’ scorching gaze. When they arrived at the restaurant, Achilles got out of the car and rushed to open Patroclus’ door. Patroclus got out while holding his dress down, then Achilles put a hand on his back and Patroclus flinched at the contact. Fortunately, Achilles seemed to notice that because he dropped his it immediately after.

He walked in front of Patroclus to the restaurant. It looked to be very big and ridiculously expensive. When they entered, Patroclus waited at Achilles’ side, who was talking with the receptionist at the door, then guided them inside.

It was extremely spacious. There were few tables, but all of them were occupied. The decoration was very minimalist and abstract with black and golden colors, the walls were all a sterile color of white, the roof was unnecessarily tall. Patroclus felt like he was walking to a futuristic jail.

They guided them to a table in the middle of the restaurant. There, the waiters pulled out the chair for them and left them alone. Patroclus noticed how everyone was looking at them, at him specifically, like he was the tastier thing on the place. He pulled his dress down again as he sat down and regretted not pushing his father more on that issue.

The employees of the restaurant appeared again with two gigantic bowls of water and two towels. They put the bowls in front of them both. When Patroclus didn’t know what to do with that, Achilles coughed to call his attention, he put his hands inside the water to clean them. Patroclus imitated him.

He could feel his cheeks getting hot with shame. The person with the towels helped him dried them, then took the bowl and disappeared again. After that, another waiter appeared and began reciting the different dishes and giving suggestions while looking at Achilles.

Achilles didn’t stop observing him.

“What do you want?” Achilles said as he put his elbow on the table and then leaned towards him.

“I…” Patroclus hadn’t been paying attention at all to what the waiter said, “can I see the menu?”

The waiter made a funny face, then turned to Achilles. Achilles finally stopped watching Patroclus to throw a killer look to the waiter.

“Of course, just give me a second… Sir.” He walked away.

Achilles then returned to watching him. “Do you like this place?”

Patroclus began slouching forward. He pulled his dress again, “It looks… expensive.”

“It is,” Achilles said with confidence. “And very popular, the waiting list is months long.”

Patroclus then returned Achilles’ gaze, “And how did you…?”

“My mother owns this place,” Achilles sat back. “And by extension, I own this place.”

“Right.” Patroclus remembered Agamemnon mentioned something like that.

The waiter came back and handed them both a metal sheet with engravings of the dishes. It didn’t even have the prices.

“Leave us alone.” Achilles said to the waiter, and he obeyed.

Patroclus began feeling dizzy with anxiety. He couldn’t even read the menu, at least he could use the metal sheet to cover his face, so Achilles would stop watching him like he was a piece of meat. He was sweating, and the goddamn dress didn’t stop rolling up his thighs. Patroclus closed his eyes and tried to imagine what Hector was doing at the moment. He—

“What’s wrong?” Achilles said loud and clear, “you look uncomfortable, what’s the problem?”

Patroclus flinched again. Shit. He noticed, “Nothing! Everything is—“

“No,” Achilles said with authority. “What’s wrong?”

Patroclus put down the metal sheet, he saw how Achilles had his arms on the table again and was leaning forward towards him. Like he wanted to give all his attention to Patroclus.

“I said this is fine! I—“

“Stop lying already,” Achilles spat out the words.

That fucking spoiled brat. He must be used to having his way. He wanted the truth? Patroclus would give him the truth. “What’s wrong is that I’m in this ridiculous, ugly, unnecessarily expensive place with a fucking annoying and uncomfortable dress that I hate with a stranger that thinks he’s entitled to my time and attention. And I’m forced to endure it all because of something I didn’t even got a say in when I was born. And the worst part is that if I say anything negative about this, then I’m the bad guy.” He whispered, just loud enough for Achilles to hear.

Achilles squinted his eyes for a moment, before shrugging, “Alright.” He stood up from the table and walked away.

Patroclus sighed. Now he’d need to call Myrto to come and pick him, and then explain to his father why he ruined—

“Hey, are you coming or not?”

Patroclus turned around and saw Achilles waiting for him, “What?”

“You don’t like this, so I’m going to fix it.” Achilles signaled to the door with his hand, “C’mon.”

Patroclus frowned, he stood up and slowly walked to Achilles. They exited the restaurant together.

--------------------------------

The car stopped; Patroclus hadn’t asked where they were going, so it surprised him when he saw a familiar sight through the window.

“Walmart?” He raised an eyebrow.

Achilles hummed. “So you can change your clothes.” He exited the car.

Patroclus opened his door and got out. “Why?”

Achilles tilted his head as if the answer was obvious. “If I took you to buy clothes to a better place, something tells me you wouldn’t like that, especially after the ‘unnecessarily expensive’ restaurant.” He smiled. “So, Walmart it is.”

“And you don’t like this dress?” Patroclus moved his hand towards his body.

Achilles frowned. “Do you?”

Even if Patroclus wanted to argue with that. He wanted to change clothes even more, he shrugged and closed the door.

They walked to Walmart silently. Once they entered, Achilles made a beeline for the men’s clothes section, Patroclus followed closely.

“Choose anything you need.” Achilles moved his hand around. “Shoes, sweaters, whatever, is yours. I’ll pay.”

Patroclus sighed. But if he insisted. He began looking for the most comfortable clothes he could find, not really caring if they were pretty. Once he had grabbed everything he needed, he turned to Achilles with the clothes on his hands.

Achilles nodded. “Do you want to try on the clothes to see if it fits?”

Patroclus shook his head. “I know it’ll fit; I’ve bought some here very recently.”

Achilles hummed. “Alright. Then let’s go and pay for it.”

They went to the cash registers; he ignored the price because he didn’t want to feel guilty about making Achilles buy him clothes, mostly because he probably had enough money to buy the whole store. Then he grabbed everything and almost ran to the bathroom.

The bathroom was a small, filthy thing, but he still managed to get out that dress and into more comfortable clothes without touching anything. When he was done, he saw himself on the bathroom mirror and smiled. He had chosen a plain white shirt with baggy blue jeans, a pair of white sneakers and a gray hoodie. Patroclus already felt more like himself.

He exited with the dress and his other shoes in one hand. Achilles was waiting for him outside, “You look better like that.”

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, “Really?”

Achilles nodded, “Yes, because you look happy.” He turned around and began walking towards the exit. “Where do you want to eat? Say anything you want; nothing is off the table.”

“Anything?” Patroclus followed him.

“Anything.” Achilles turned back to him and offered him his hand.

Patroclus just looked at it.

Achilles dropped it and sighed. “You’re still uncomfortable, what’s wrong?”

Patroclus thought about it for a second, he decided to be honest. “I don’t know you, and this whole thing. It’s just an elaborate scheme to buy my body so you can do anything you want with it.”

“That’s what you think this is?”

“What else if not?”

Achilles chuckled, “You’re not very trustful.” He shook his head, “I want to get to know you.”

“You can know me without all this business,” Patroclus moved his hand around.

Achilles looked at the floor and kicked an imaginary rock. “That’s true but listen. I don’t want to own you. I’m doing all this because I want to find someone who’s interested in sharing a life with me. A companion, not a toy or a quick fuck. This whole thing, I thought it meant that you were searching for the same.” He lifted his eyes to Patroclus.

Patroclus bit his lips. “No… I— I guess I’m searching for the same thing too.” The only difference was that Patroclus had already found it. “But still. All this, it feels like you want to throw money at my family until they give you access to me.”

Achilles shook his head. “In the end, the one who decides that will be you.”

“And what if I say no?” Patroclus raised an eyebrow.

“Listen, don’t think about this as an ‘Oh, I could marry this guy’ situation. Think about it as ‘Oh, I’m making a new friend’ , and that way, whatever happens afterward, even if you say no; we still both got a friend out of the whole ordeal.” Achilles offered his hand to him again. “How does that sound?”

Patroclus never saw it that way, making a new friend; he could do that. He still didn’t trust the alpha but— 

“Fine,” He grabbed Achilles’ hand. “Friend…”

Achilles smiled at him again, “Now, what do you want for dinner?”

--------------------------------

They were on the park, sitting on a bench.

Achilles had insisted that Patroclus choose whatever he wanted to eat, and Patroclus had chosen a Chinese vegan place he really liked. The only problem was that it was very small and didn't have anywhere to sit to eat. It was more of a 'pick up your food and go' situation, thus they decided to eat in a park nearby.

Achilles was picking at his food when he cleared his throat. "I guess if we're going to be friends, we should know each other."

"What do you want to know?" He said between bites of food. 

"Everything." Achilles put his food down. "I want to know everything about you."

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "You need to be more specific than that though." He hummed. "Let's try something else. What if, you ask me a question; and I answer, then I ask you a question you answer, then you ask me a question again, and so on. How does that sound?"

"Ok, I start." Achilles thought about it for a moment. "Why don’t you like dresses? I mean, you were wearing a dress in your photo, and you seemed happy."

Patroclus chuckled; he wouldn’t say how he was thinking about Hector. "It's not that I don't like wearing dresses. It's more about that I don't have a choice in it. Like, I know men can wear dresses too, but a lot of people just don't consider me a man because I'm an omega. When I wear a dress, they're like 'see! You aren't a man! Real men don't wear dresses!' And I know I shouldn't let anyone dictate what I wear. But sometimes I don't want to be the destructor of gender roles, I just want to be a man and be perceived as a man first and an omega second."

"If it helps, next time I'll wear a dress too." 

Patroclus laughed. "Thank you, but I'll rather wear this."  He motioned towards his new clothes while still holding his food. "I'm not a very flashy person." 

Achilles picked up his food again, he began moving it around. "Your turn now."

Patroclus thought about it for a second while he ate. A question finally formed on the tip of his tongue. "Why me? I mean, I'm pretty sure you have to dodge people throwing themselves at you. Why me out of everyone else?"

Achilles looked at him with a curious flash on his eyes, then he returned to his food. "Because... I think you look like a kind person. Besides, you’re really beautiful."

Patroclus felt his cheeks warm at that. "I... Thank you?"

Achilles moved around his food with a fork. "What are your hobbies."

"I'm a very boring person, actually. I mostly read books or walk dogs from the shelter when I have free time." Patroclus took another bite. "What's your favorite color?"

Achilles lifted an eyebrow and smiled. "Warm honey." He put his food down again. "What's your favorite food?"

Patroclus hummed. "I don't have a favorite food, but I really like homemade food, you know? Like, in a restaurant, they do the same thing again and again for days. Even if you love cooking, I supposed it gets hard to care for every single thing you cook. But if you make the food at home, for you or for someone you love, You're really going to care that it's good, and that's going to reflect on the taste."

"I guess you're right."

"Favorite book?"

Achilles shook his head. "I don't really read a lot, or at all."

"That's fine, but you must have a book you once read that you loved. I won't judge you if it isn't a 'serious' book. Whatever that means."

Achilles pursed his lips in thought. "When I was younger, my dad sometimes read me this book of fairytales before going to bed, and I really loved it, does that count?"

"Of course it does!" He smiled eagerly. "That's a very beautiful memory to have, you know? My mom used to sing me lullabies, so I could fall asleep, and I'll always remember that too."

"She sounds like a wonderful person."

Patroclus nodded, "She really was."

Achilles ran a hand through his hair. "Favorite movie?"

Patroclus shook his head. "I've already told you I'm a very boring person. I don't see a lot of movies, and the ones I do see are very bad." 

Achilles laughed at that. "I told you that my favorite book was a fairy tales book. Do you think I'm going to judge you if your favorite movie is bad?"

Patroclus felt some warmth on his cheeks. "The first movie of the Guardians of the Galaxy… I really liked the music and the colors... And I kind of cried at the end when he had to take the hand of his mom..." The last part was just oversharing.

Achilles sat closer to Patroclus. "That's a very good movie. If you need recommendations, my favorite movie is Synecdoche, New York; but I think you’d like another of my favorites better. Fantastic Mr. Fox, it's very funny."

Patroclus watched Achilles; he had aquamarine eyes that Patroclus didn't know humans could have. "I haven't seen that movie, the one of the fox."

"You'd love it." Achilles then whistled in a weird way.

Patroclus laughed, "What was that?"

"What, this?" He whistled again.

"Yes! What is that?" Patroclus tried to imitate him with no success.

"I guess you'll have to watch the movie and find out."

Patroclus rolled his eyes with amusement. "Alright, keep your secrets then."

Achilles smiled. "Your turn." 

Patroclus left his now empty box of food down. He bit his lip. "Favorite animal, and there's only one good answer to that.''

"Is this a test?" Achilles raised an eyebrow while containing his laughter.

"It might be," Patroclus said with mocked seriousness. 

Achilles half closed his eyes and observed him for three seconds. Finally, he spoke. "Dogs."

Patroclus cackled, "Oh, you got it right on your first attempt!"

Achilles puffed his chest in a pantomime of pride. "That's because I'm very smart, I'll have you know."

Patroclus tried to fight his smile and nodded. "The most intelligent person I've ever known, that's why your hair is so pretty, is full of intelligence."

Both Patroclus and Achilles looked at each other with a serious expression. After a second, they both burst with laughter.

Patroclus grabbed Achilles' arm and began hitting it softly while he laughed, Achilles just let him do whatever he wanted. They calmed down moments later.

Patroclus breathed as he let go of Achilles' arm and began cleaning his laughter tears. He chuckled one last time before breathing again and calming down. "I guess it is your turn again."

Achilles nodded and breathed, he was still smiling, and his eyes were bright. "Favorite type of music?"

Patroclus tilted his head to the side, thinking about it for a second. "Disco, pop, and ballad, I mostly listen to old songs to be honest."

"Favorite singer?"

Patroclus smiled sheepishly. "I guess that would be you..." Patroclus turned away from Achilles. "I really do love your covers, like I said. I listen almost daily to the one of a total eclipse of the heart; that video has like two million views, half of that it's just me, really."

Achilles got a dusty pink on his cheeks that made him look adorable. "I'm honored that you like my covers." He said with a soft voice.

Patroclus nodded. "And I guess my second favorite would be ABBA."

"What's your favorite song of them?" Achilles tilted his head a little.

"Lay all your love on me." Patroclus couldn’t fight the smile forming on his face.

Achilles nodded, he began humming a familiar melody, then: "Don't go wasting your emotion, lay all your love on me." He sang softly into Patroclus' ear.

Patroclus felt shivers down his spine, if Achilles singing into a mic was beautiful, he wasn't prepared for Achilles singing in real life for him. "I... that's... wow."

Achilles giggled as he held Patroclus' hand.

--------------------------------

It was a little past midnight when Achilles drove him back to his house. They had been so enraptured in conversation, neither of them had noticed the hours pass them by.

Patroclus laughed with Achilles, they got out of the car. "And then my coworker jumped on the back of the dog, and the dog took off running with them on top anyway!" Patroclus cackled. "So, we had to run to catch the dog and save my coworker!"

Achilles laughed too; he held his stomach. "Oh my god."

Patroclus nodded, "It was so fun!" They walked to the door of Patroclus' house, and he had to breathe deeply to stop laughing. "Well, this is it, I guess."

"Did you enjoy yourself tonight?"

"It was so much fun! I’m glad I got to meet you."

"Would you like to go out again?" Achilles said with a funny expression on his face.

Patroclus really wanted to be his friend, "I'd love to!"

"Alright." Achilles breathed deeply. "Can I give you a hug, please?"

Patroclus lifted his arms and hugged Achilles. "Good night, Achilles."

Achilles returned the hug eagerly. "Good night, Patroclus."

Patroclus let go of the hug and turned to open his door. He waved goodbye to Achilles one last time before closing the door.

Once inside, Patroclus sighed contentedly.

That was fun.

He walked to the living room, where his father and sister were playing cards.

"Hi! Who's winning." He smiled.

"Who do you think it's winning?" His father huffed as Myrto giggled.

"How was your date?" Myrto asked without looking up.

"It was a lot of fun! At first, I thought he was a douchebag, but then it turns out he's really funny and nice." Patroclus smiled more. "I think I just made a new friend."

Menoetius then turned towards him and frowned. "Where's your dress?"

Patroclus looked at his empty hand, then around him. "Shit, I think I left it on his car."

--------------------------------

Achilles felt like he was walking on clouds when he entered his house again. He was holding the golden dress in one hand. He had very discretely kicked it to a corner of the car while Patroclus wasn’t looking in hopes that he'd forget it, and he did.

Now, as he walked to his room, he couldn't help the immense feeling on his heart, making it burst at its seams.

"Oh you're back." Peleus appeared out of the kitchen with his Pajamas. "How was your date?"

Achilles felt blood rush to his cheeks. Pa-tro-clus, his laughter, his smile, those eyes that stole his soul. "I love him."

Peleus laughed. "What a thing! To be young and in love!"

Achilles kept walking to his room. He then threw himself on the bed and sighed. 

Patroclus...

He took the dress to his nose and inhaled deeply. There was this annoying scent of mint, omegas used to cover their scent. Yet under that, the wonderful thick scent of Patroclus, roses and vanilla. Achilles breathed more. He looked so beautiful in that dress. Achilles had wanted so much to push him against a wall, lift the dress over his breathtaking hips, pull down his underwear and take him in front of his father and sister. Achilles could imagine already the pretty noises Patroclus would make. 

He breathed more of that intoxicating smell. He wanted to make him wear that dress again, he would push him over the nearest surface, and have his way with him, again, and again until he was dripping full of his seed.

But that was on the future. For the time being, Achilles unbuttoned his pants, pulled down the zipper and touched himself with one hand as the other held Patroclus' dress against his nose. He stroked himself to the climax and the only thing on his mind was his Patroclus. His prince.

--------------------------------

Patroclus was on the vet clinic, waiting for the next appointment. The owner he had an appointment for right now had to cancel, and that left Patroclus with 30 minutes free. He normally hated free time, he felt sick every time his mind had the possibility to wander; it was better for him to be busy.

After some moments, he decided to scrolled through his messages and calls, hoping to see one name, but nothing.

It was Thursday, and Hector hadn't called Patroclus at all, nor sent him a message, or talked with his sister to set up something.

He sighed and wondered if Hector felt intimidated by the prospect of marrying again, but he had seemed very eager that night. Patroclus didn't believe he was using him for a quick fuck, Hector wouldn't do that. However, why wasn't he calling? Hector should call him, even if it was just for sex, Patroclus would've said yes anyway. Then at least he could call off this ridiculous thing. 

He didn’t want to call Paris and ask; he didn’t want Hector to believe he was pressuring him or anything.

The best thing would probably be to wait. Patroclus could wait, he could spend the next millennia waiting in his tower for his prince to appear again.

Hector...

A notification popped up on the top of his screen. Achilles had uploaded a new video. Patroclus smiled, he remembered that night he had spent with Achilles, he had been nice. He tapped the notification and his cellphone opened YouTube. 

A melody began filling the air, and Patroclus chuckled as he listened to the song.

"I wasn't jealous before we met,

Now every woman I see is a potential threat. 

And I'm possessive it isn't nice,”

Patroclus closed his eyes and enjoyed the music.

--------------------------------

When Patroclus entered his house, Menoetius hugged him.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "What happened?"

Menoetius let him go and smiled, "Very good news!"

"We won the lottery?" Patroclus tilted his head.

"Almost," Menoetius nodded.

Myrto appeared from the kitchen, "Achilles wants to see you again. We agreed on tomorrow night."

"And only Achilles wants to see me? Not anyone else?"

Myrto shook his head. "No, he's the only one right now, but don't worry, there's still time to get more suitors." Myrto smiled softly at him.

Patroclus sighed, so, Hector hadn't called his sister yet.

Menoetius huffed. "Achilles is the only alpha that matters. You don't have to worry about any other brute."

"And he told me to give you his number, he wants you to call him today," She offered him a piece of paper where he supposed Achilles' number was written.

Patroclus nodded, took the paper and put it in his pocket, "I'll be in my room then." 

He walked slowly. It was a little weird that Achilles was the only one who wanted him. Even if Patroclus didn't consider himself the prettiest omega, there should still be at least two alphas considering him. His last name was an important one, he was the descendant of a very rich and important family.

Once he entered his room, he climbed on the bed. Patroclus took out his phone and stared at his contact list. At the top, there was him. Patroclus had saved his number as "my prince". It was sort of a joke at the moment, but then… He tapped on the contact and put his phone to his ear, after seconds of just ringing a voice: 

"We're sorry, the number you've dialed — "

Patroclus hung up, dropped his phone on the bed and sighed. He wanted to talk with someone, with someone who would make him feel better, a friend. But Patroclus didn’t have a lot of friends he could call at the moment, except—

He searched on his pocket and took out the paper, he stared at it before entering the number one by one on his cellphone, when he was finished, he tapped the green button to call.

A single ring and then, "Hi! Who is this?"

Patroclus smiled. "Hi Achilles, I'm Patroclus, do you remember me?"

Achilles chuckled on the other end of the line. "Of course! How could forget the greatest dogcatcher of our time."

Patroclus smiled, remembering the silly anecdote he had told Achilles the other day. "Glad that someone recognizes my talents."

"Have you seen my new video?"

"I haven't seen it, I've consumed its essence. I've watched it like 100 times already."

"I'm really glad you like it," The smile on his voice was evident.

"And thank you, for making it for me," Patroclus said softly.

"Hey," Achilles said with amusement, "you don't know if I did it for you! Perhaps I only liked the song."

Patroclus rolled his eyes, "Really? After I told you that it was my favorite song by ABBA?"

"Ok, it was for you, but that's a secret!" 

Patroclus laughed, "I liked it, I liked it a lot. I think this one was better than the total eclipse of the heart."

"Now you can keep hearing my beautiful voice daily."

Patroclus rolled his eyes with fondness, "Myrto told me you wanted me to call you, why?"

"I asked for another date tomorrow, if that's fine by you."

"Yeah, sure, after work?" Patroclus played with his hair. 

"When do you get out of work? I could pick you up if you want to."

“I don’t know, I don’t want to bother you like that,” Patroclus bit his lips.

“It’s not a bother, I want to see you.”

“Alright, I finish my shift tomorrow at 7.”

“Ok, I’ll show you something you’ll love…” Achilles cleared his throat, “so, what are you doing right now?”

Patroclus looked at the ceiling of his room, “Nothing, I was thinking about watching some memes or something before going to sleep; what are you doing?”

“I’m watching a movie.”

“What movie?”

“Take a guess, I’ll give you a hint.” Achilles then made the weird whistling again.

Patroclus laughed, “Hey! I still haven’t watched that movie!”

--------------------------------

The next day, Patroclus found himself in a good mood, he was excited to meet with Achilles again. 

As soon as his last appointment got out, a beta woman came barging in with a small white poodle in her arms. "I'm sorry I'm late, there was a lot of traffic!" She smiled.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry? I don't have any more appointments for today."

"Yes, sorry." The woman smiled. "I made an appointment at 3, but I wasn't able to come."

"Excuse me." Patroclus said trying to stay calm. "But it's 6:50, that was almost 4 hours ago."

"Oh, but is just a checkup! Nothing serious." Her smile didn't reach her eyes.

"It's nothing serious, you say?" Patroclus half closed his eyes.

"No! Not at all!" She nodded eagerly.

Patroclus walked to the door. "Then make an appointment for another day." He stepped out.

--------------------------------

The woman wasn't going to let things go so easily. She demanded to speak with his boss, then almost became violent. The owner of the clinic; an old Alpha woman, had to intervene.

The woman, a beta with pale skin and short brown hair, began screaming. "This is an absolute lack of professionalism! I made an appointment; I have the right to the services!"

"Your appointment was three hours ago." Patroclus said calmly.

“You,” The woman pointed at him, “you don’t have the right to treat me this way!”

Patroclus wanted to roll his eyes, instead he ignored her.

"Ok, ok, let's calm down." The old Alpha said. "We can find a solution that will make us all happy." He turned to Patroclus. "Why don't you tend to this lady's dog, and I'll pay you the extra time on your next check?"

Of course she'd side with her. "I'm sorry, I've got plans already, and I can't stay."

"See! He's completely unprofessional! I don’t know how you can hire someone like this!" The woman screeched.

The alpha hummed. "Can't your plans wait a little?"

Patroclus thought that they could. But now it was a matter of principle, he wasn't going to let that woman had everything she wanted. "No, it's a very important thing."

"What do you have to do?" The Alpha asked.

"It's something personal."

"He's lying! He just doesn't want to do his job! He’s just lazy! I bet he doesn’t even have a real degree!" The woman screamed.

"I'm not lying." Patroclus muttered. He was getting extremely annoyed, but if he reacted badly, suddenly everything would be his fault.

"If what you are doing is really so important, I'm sure you can tell us, and we'll understand." The old alpha said in a very patronizing tone.

Patroclus bit his lips, he didn’t want to announce what he was doing, mostly because he knew everyone would talk about it later. Yet, he really didn't have any other option if he wanted to go. He sighed. "My father and my sister are searching for a partner for me. I have a date with one of the suitors at 7..."

It seemed like the woman was about to say something when the alpha interrupted. "I see. Well, you better get going, or you're going to be late." He turned to the woman. "Don't worry, ok? I'm sure one of our other vets will tend to your little friend here."

Patroclus nodded and left as quickly as possible before his boss had a change of mind.

--------------------------------

He walked out of the clinic, and across the street there was Achilles waiting for him. He was wearing a simple T-shirt and sweatpants with a backpack to carry his things, when Patroclus got closer to him, he saw Achilles holding something in his hand. 

"Oh! Who are these cuties!?"  Patroclus kneeled in front of two German shepherds. 

Achilles smiled, "These are my dogs, and hi to you too by the way."

Patroclus stopped petting the dogs and stood up. "Sorry! Hi! Is nice to see you again."  He gave Achilles a small hug. "I didn't mean to be rude or anything."

Achilles chuckled and shook his head. "It's fine, nice to see you again too."

Patroclus then began petting the two dogs more. "And what are the names of these babies?"

"This girl." Achilles pointed to the one with more black on her fur, "is called Penthos. And this girl." Achilles pointed to the dog with lighter fur, "is Menis."

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "You named your dogs Penthos and Menis?"

"Hey! I didn't name them, they came with the name, I just didn't change it." Achilles said with a slight blush on his face.

"Were they rescued?" Menis began licking his hand.

Achilles nodded. "Since you said you liked to walk dogs from shelters. I thought, maybe you'd like to help me with my dogs."

"That's not what I meant, but how can I refuse these two pretty girls." 

"Which one do you want to walk?" Achilles held up both leashes, "don't worry, they don't pull." 

Patroclus kneeled again and gave Menis a kiss on the head. "I think I want to walk, this cutie." He turned to Penthos and gave her a kiss too. "But don't worry, you too are beautiful."

Penthos seemed extremely happy at his attention, Menis was a lot calmer.

He stood up and grabbed Menis' leash.

As they walked, both dogs were extremely well-behaved. Both walked by their side and didn't pull, not even when they saw other dogs.

"Did you train them?" Patroclus asked Achilles. 

"I paid someone else to do it."

"Whoever trained them did an excellent job." Patroclus smiled. "I wish the dogs I see would be at least half as well-behaved as they are."

"Do you like dogs a lot, don't you?" Achilles asked softly.

"I won't say a lot. I'd just say I'd die for them any day." Patroclus chuckled.

"Why?" Achilles looked at Penthos. "I mean, I like them, but I don't understand how someone can love dogs so much."

Patroclus looked at Menis. "I'm not sure... Dogs are always nice and happy. Maybe they don't understand a lot, but they're kind, loyal, and loving in their own way. They won't think less of you, no matter if you're the worst, and they won't abandon you." Patroclus looked at Achilles. "So, I guess, I really like that… I only wished I could help them more, in my job, you see a lot of bad things daily."

Achilles smiled at Patroclus. "When you put it like that, it is easy to understand why anyone might like dogs."

"My mom used to love dogs too, but because my dad never liked them, we never got one."

"It sounds like you were very close with your mom."

"Yes... We were…”

Patroclus sighed and looked at the horizon, “But the last days... I couldn't see her, she didn't want me to. She said she didn't want me to remember her as a sick, dying woman. I didn't visit her in the hospital..." He stopped and breathed deeply. That was a lot to share with a person he still didn’t trust or know very well, but it was easy to get lost on Achilles. "What about you? Do you have a good relationship with your mother?"

Achilles chuckled. "My mother abandoned me when I was 5."

Patroclus frowned. "What? Why?" 

Achilles hummed without dropping his perfect smile.

"I'm sorry if it's something personal, I didn't mean to pry."

Achilles looked at Penthos walking slowly with her tongue out. "No, it's fine," He cleared his throat. "My father, much like you, is an omega with a very important last name. And as such, he ended up engaged with my mother, a very influential alpha from a very rich family, but they didn't feel anything for each other. At that time, my father was seeing another person, an alpha too. Few months after his marriage, he was pregnant with my sister.”

“She wasn’t your mother's child?"

"No," Achilles pursed his lips, "and my mother was angry; furious with him. But she couldn't leave my dad without having an heir of hers... She sent my sister away, and then... My dad had 6 babies before me. All of them died." 

Patroclus didn't know what to say to that, "I'm... sorry."

Achilles shook his head, "My father didn't tell me what happened to the other babies. Nor what my mother had to do with it. But he told me he basically saved me of something she was about to do with me... I guess my mother never really got over what happened and that was her way of making my father suffer... Then, when I was 5, she packed her things and went away without even saying goodbye." 

Patroclus bit his lips. 

Achilles grimaced with the memories. "I was basically raised by a friend of my dad, and later by his partner, Phoenix. My mom called from time to time, but it didn't matter how much I cried and begged for her to come back, she never did... I always wondered... why?" Achilles' eyes looked tired, like he had spent entire nights thinking about it. "Well, at least she has always given me money, and she'll even give me her business and her fortune after her death, so there is that!" He chuckled. 

"I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable, it wasn't supposed to be like this..." Achilles gave Patroclus a sad smile.

Patroclus stopped walking; Menis halted at his side.

Achilles stopped too, "What happened?"

Patroclus looked at him with a worried gaze.

Achilles sighed; he stepped closer to him, "Patroclus, don't feel ba—"

Patroclus hugged him. He noticed then that Achilles was a few centimeters smaller than him, “I’m sorry you had to deal with all that at such a young age.” 

Achilles stayed with his hands at his side, "Hey, it's alright, it doesn’t matter anymore, don't worry, ok?"

Patroclus shook his head. He kept hugging Achilles.

Slowly, Achilles returned the hug, he hid his face between Patroclus' neck and shoulder.

Patroclus didn't find any words of comfort in him, so he didn’t say anything. They stayed like that for a few minutes. Patroclus could smell the soft scent of Achilles; it wasn’t overwhelmingly strong like other alphas’ scent, yet it was still very nice. He smelled like crushed leaves, freshly cut grass, and fresh air after raining. It wasn’t like Hector’s, but still was very comforting. It smelled like a friend.

Patroclus didn’t know what was happening to him, or how an alpha had managed to sneak past his defenses so quickly.

Then Achilles snuggled closer to him, “Hey, we are making the dogs wait.” His voice was small and delicate.

Patroclus chuckled with his arms around him, “If you want to stop the hug, you should be the first one to let go.”

The only response Patroclus got was Achilles squeezing him more. He clearly didn’t want to let go. Patroclus inhaled more of that sweet scent.

After another few minutes, Achilles finally let go. He sighed. “People are looking at us weird.”

“Who cares?” Patroclus giggled, “I’m just happy to be here with you.”

Achilles’ expression then got a little something that told Patroclus he might cry, which was ok by him. But then Achilles simply closed his eyes and breathed for 10 seconds. When he opened them again and it was gone. “Let’s go to the park, ok?”

Patroclus nodded, he softly tugged at Menis leash, and began walking again. Achilles followed him shortly after. He had a pretty little smile on his face.

The rest of the walk to the park was just filled with casual conversation about everything and anything. Patroclus was telling Achilles about a book he wanted to read, when he noticed how soon they’ve arrived.

“I thought the park was a little further away,” He tilted his head.

“Hey,” Achilles stopped while looking at a nearby store. “I’m very thirsty, can we go for something to drink?”

Patroclus nodded, he stopped and petted Menis. “Do you have anything for the dogs to drink?”

Achilles nodded as he took off his backpack, then he took out two small bowls with bones decorating them.

“Alright.” Patroclus took the bowls. “Do you think they’ll let dogs inside the store?”

Achilles ran a hand through his perfect strawberry blond hair, “Maybe, maybe not.”

“Why don’t you go to the store and I stay here with the dogs, just in case.” Patroclus kept petting Menis.

“Do you want anything?”

Patroclus shook his head, “No, I’m fine.”

Achilles handed Patroclus Penthos’ leash, and then went running into the store.

“Hey baby girl,” Patroclus petted Penthos. “You’re a very pretty baby for such a name, aren’t you?” He made that high voice people always do for dogs and babies. “Yes you are! But don’t worry baby, your name is made prettier just by the fact that’s yours!” He petted Penthos more. “Yes that’s right!” He then let the bowls on the floor and began petting Menis with his other hand. “And you too are such a pretty baby as well! Two beautiful babies!”

Menis and Penthos looked very happy with that big goody smiles only dogs could do. Patroclus wished he could pet them harder, not literally put more physical force, just to pet them with all his soul.

At that moment, Achilles came back with two water bottles. One for him, and the other for the dogs. Patroclus noted how the bottles Achilles had bought were those you could squeeze to drink the water; he didn’t think anything of it.

Achilles gave him the other bottle and Patroclus opened it and pour it in the bowls for the dogs.

Menis only licked the water and then sat. Penthos on the other hand was swallowing the water as if she hadn't drunk anything for days, she even drank some of Menis’. After they finished, Patroclus threw away the rest of Menis’ water on the grass and gave the bowls back to Achilles.

Patroclus crouched down with the dogs to pet them more. He still held the leashes with one hand, “You know, I thought Menis would be more thirsty, she was—“ When he turned to Achilles, he felt a splash of water on his face.

Achilles giggled at him. “Sorry! I couldn’t resist!” He stopped laughing when Patroclus gave him a killer glance, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.”

Patroclus extended his free hand towards Achilles, “Give me that.”

Achilles immediately handed over the bottle.

Patroclus stood up and began squeezing the bottle towards Achilles’ face.

Achilles covered his face with his arms. He giggled, “Stop!”

“I thought you were thirsty!” Patroclus laughed too. It was night already, and it was very cold, but it seemed like Achilles didn’t care, so neither did Patroclus.

“No!” Achilles began running as he cackled. Patroclus ran behind him with the bottle in his hand and the dogs at his side.

Soon, Patroclus discovered that there wasn’t a way in hell he could catch up with Achilles. Fortunately, Achilles stopped to laugh more while he held his stomach. Then Patroclus let go of the dogs, who seemed to understand the game, they jumped on Achilles and knocked him over. Once on the ground, they began licking him.

When Patroclus caught with them, he doubled over with laughter.

“Stop! Stop!” Achilles said after a while, and his dogs obeyed at the instant. He sat up and breathed with a smile on his face.

Patroclus straightened his back and contained his laughter to a few chuckles, “Now you’re soup.”

Achilles jumped back on his feet and grabbed the dogs’ leashes, “The tastiest soup.”

Because he was dripping wet, and then rolled around on the ground, Achilles was covered in water, mud, and dog’s saliva.

Patroclus giggled more, “Tastier than the tastiest! All that dirt and dog’s drool? Is just extra flavor.”

“Come here!” Achilles said, and ran to Patroclus with open arms.

“No!” Patroclus tried to resist at first, but at the end; he hugged Achilles with all his strength, even going as far as to smush their cheeks together while they laughed.

--------------------------------

They were screaming in the back of the car along with the music. Patroclus had been worried about leaving dirt on the back seat, but Achilles didn't seem to mind. Menis and Penthos were calmly sitting at their feet while they kept screaming, or more like Patroclus screamed and Achilles sang.

"Unsatisfied, I skip my pride, I beg you dear!" Patroclus screamed, Achilles laughed happily at his side.

Achilles calmed just in time for the chorus. "Don't go wasting your emotions!" He leaned into Patroclus' face. "Lay all your love on me!"

They both broke in laughter after that.

Patroclus breathed, "Wait! Wait! The car isn't moving anymore." He looked out the window. "I think we're at my house already." He said, a bit disappointed.

Achilles let his weight fall on Patroclus’ side, "I think we've been in front of your house for some time now."

Patroclus giggled, he didn’t know why he was laughing anymore, but he felt content. "Achilles! Why didn't you tell me!? It's like midnight already! My neighbors are going to be mad if we keep screaming!"

"Well, fuck them!" Achilles began cackling, and Patroclus shook his head with amusement.

"Shut up!" Patroclus opened the door and exited the car, he stumbled a little and almost fell, but he managed to gain his balance back at the last second. 

Achilles jumped out of the car along with Menis and Penthos, he was giggling at Patroclus' side.

"I think it's time to say goodbye for now." Patroclus turned to Achilles and gave him a strong hug, "Good night, Achilles."

Achilles stayed still for a second, before returning the hug, "Hey, aren't you going to give me a good night kiss?"

Patroclus hummed, he put enough distance between them to look at Achilles' face without letting go of the embrace. He saw how Achilles' expression turned from one of joy into a darker one, full of desire, when he looked at Patroclus’ lips. 

Patroclus wasn't a fan of that.

He patted Achilles' cheeks with one hand, "Good night, Achilles." He let go and petted both dogs. "Good night girls, take care of your papa."

He walked to his door. He could hear Achilles screaming. "I'll call you later, ok!?"

Patroclus lifted one of his hands and moved it around in acknowledgement without turning around. He opened the door to his house; entered and closed it behind him. He sighed. 

"I'm glad I meet a new friend."

--------------------------------

Achilles sighed as he watched the closed door in front of him, his heart was still dancing wildly in his chest and his cheeks felt extremely warm. 

Gods, what an omega.

It wasn’t any omega, it was his prince, only his prince could make him feel like that. Achilles sighed again, thinking of all the times his Patroclus embraced him that day. He thought he was in love before, and somehow still fell even more in love with him that day.

He turned his eyes down and saw Menis and Penthos looking at him with those bright eyes of them. 

Achilles huffed. "What? You liked him too, didn't you?"

Penthos looked away, her tongue slipped out of her mouth. Menis sneezed.

Achilles pulled the leashes. "You better like him because he's the only reason you're here." He walked back to the car with the dogs following.

He spent most of the ride back home busy looking at his phone. Mostly at Patroclus' accounts on different social media. He didn’t post a lot of photos of him, which was what Achilles was looking for. Yet in his Twitter he published a lot of his political opinions, which was good because that way he knew what to say and what not to say, so Patroclus would like him more.

When he finally arrived home. He gave Menis and Penthos to a servant, who took them away. Then on the way to his room he found Phoenix. 

Phoenix sighed when he saw him, "I still don't know if buying those two dogs just for an omega was a good idea."

Achilles shrugged, "He loved them, so I guess it was."

Phoenix shook his head, "What if he rejects you? Then what happens with the dogs?"

"He won't."

"Son, you need to—"

"I said he won't." Achilles said more firmly. "I made sure of that."

Phoenix looked at him with caution. "Be careful, Achilles, you're starting to sound more and more like your mother."

Achilles huffed. "I'll never do to Patroclus what she did to my father."

Phoenix kept looking at him, "Be careful, ok? Don’t let your emotions get the best of you."

After that, Achilles went to his room.

Chapter Text

Patroclus sighed. 

He was listening to one of Achilles' covers, he supposed it was kind of weird now that they were friends. However, he really loved his voice and couldn't stop listening to him.

He took off his earphones and fished out his cellphone to look at his messages. There were two of Achilles, but none of Hector, nor calls or anything. He tapped the contact of his prince, put the cellphone on his ear. After a few rings:

"We're sorry, the number — "

Patroclus hung up and sighed. Hector... What happened? Did Patroclus do something wrong? Where was his prince?

He contained his tears and breathed. He tapped on Achilles' messages to distract himself. It was a picture of Penthos with her belly up and Menis looking at her weirdly. Then messages of "the sisters are having fun." Patroclus chuckled, a few tears ran away, he cleaned them and then felt better.

It was Wednesday, some days after his "date" with Achilles. The good part was that he was the only suitor Patroclus had, so he didn’t need to deal with annoying alphas. He still didn’t completely trust him, but he couldn’t deny his natural charm. The bad part, however, was that Hector wasn't anywhere to be found.

At least Achilles was fun to be with, they had agreed to see each other again on Friday. Patroclus smiled, thinking about Achilles. He hoped that after all the charade was done, Achilles would be able to find a good partner.

He was thinking about that when someone knocked at his door. Patroclus quickly blocked his cellphone and put it on his pocket. He smiled. "Come in!"

Then the old Alpha; the owner of the clinic, opened the door. "Hey, Patroclus dear, would you be so kind to come to my office to talk after you're done with your appointments?" 

That was weird. "Uh, sure!" Patroclus smiled.

The old Alpha nodded and went out again.

--------------------------------

Patroclus knocked on the door. A muffled "Come in" sounded from the other side.

Patroclus opened the door and smiled. "Hello, did you want to talk with me?"

The alpha nodded. "Yes, please take a seat."

Patroclus took a seat and stiffly put his arms at his sides. 

The alpha pushed a bowl full of candles towards Patroclus. "Want some?"

Patroclus shook his head.

The old Alpha smiled, she had mostly white hair, with some streaks of black. Her fair skin was full of wrinkles, "How is the search for a partner going?"

"Good, good." 

The alpha nodded, "I didn't expect less, you're very pretty, especially with your skin tone, is gorgeous and gives you a very seductive air."

Patroclus smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes.

"So." The alpha cleared her throat. "I'm going to be honest, Patroclus. We haven’t given you your contract yet, and that’s for good reason. Here in the clinic, we're searching for vets who want to build a career and put their time and effort into that."

"Yes, I understand that."

The alpha nodded, "And you're a beautiful young omega, you'll soon get married, I’m sure."

Patroclus half closed his eyes, "And?"

The alpha moved her hands around, "And listen. You're going to marry, you'll have to put your alpha first, and then your job second. Then you'll get pregnant, have babies, and there won't be any time for your career with a family."

Patroclus tilted his head, "What... Do you mean by all of this?"

"What I mean is, it'll be better for you if I let you go now, so you can focus on your family more." The alpha smiled as if she was doing Patroclus a favor.

"You're firing me," Patroclus said with a dry expression on his face.

The alpha had a grimace on her face, "See this as a new opportunity, a chance to grow. Now, regarding your last paycheck, you could work the rest of the week and—"

Patroclus stood up and walked out the door without saying anything else.

--------------------------------

Patroclus lied down on his bed; he hadn’t gotten up since he arrived at his house.

Myrto, who was sitting at his side, sighed. “I don’t know why you get upset, it’s not like you need to work. I pay all the bills anyway.”

“Shut up Myrto.”

Menoetius, who was sitting on the bed with him as well, touched his shoulder softly. “Don’t worry, son, after you’ll marry Achilles, you won’t even need to think about work again.”

“Dad, please leave me alone.”

Both Myrto and Menoetius stood up and walked away.

Patroclus was left alone on his room.

--------------------------------

Patroclus had one day to be depressed about losing his job before the date with Achilles. But he still wasn’t quite peppy when the time came. He had begun regretting even agreeing to the marriage thing; Hector wasn’t answering his calls nor his messages, not even calling his sister to ask to meet him or offering money. Now he had lost his job on top of that. 

Like Myrto said, it wasn’t like he needed it, but it was nice to have a bit of independence. Now that was lost, and it had been very hard for Patroclus to find that job to begin with. He couldn’t imagine how hard it’d be to find another. All because of the damned body he was born with.

When Achilles had arrived to pick him up, he was still with his depression outfit, an oversized black hoodie, baggy jeans, and old comfortable white sport shoes.

He sighed and entered Achilles’ car.

Achilles, for his part, was wearing a white shirt that was tucked into high-waisted black pants. The shirt was mostly unbuttoned, leaving his chest exposed. His friend smiled at him like he had finally seen the sunlight after years of darkness. 

“Hi!”

Patroclus nodded and watched outside the window.

Achilles seemed taken aback by Patroclus’ lack of reaction, but he still smiled softly. “So, I was thinking, maybe you can come to my house, and we’ll watch a movie… If that’s fine by you.”

Patroclus shrugged.

Achilles’ smile dropped. “What happened? Is something wrong?” He carefully placed his hand on top of Patroclus’ arm.

Patroclus shook his head. “Is nothing, really…”

“Is not nothing if you’re sad… Please tell me so I can help.” Achilles got closer to Patroclus.

Patroclus turned to tell Achilles to back off. However, the moment he saw those aquamarine eyes that looked so innocent… Something moved inside Patroclus’ chest. 

“Is… I was fired.”

Achilles frowned. “Why?”

Patroclus breathed. “Because I’m going to marry and apparently, I can’t have a job and be married at the same time.”

“That’s bullshit.” Achilles said quickly.

“I know it is! It’s bullshit! And I know it’s not why it happened! It happened because of who I am, and I’m so fucking tired of pretending that it doesn’t affect me!” Patroclus screamed; he couldn’t contain himself.

Achilles didn’t say anything, he just kept looking at him.

Patroclus felt tears on his eyes, he shook his head quickly as if to get rid of them. “And I hate it! Because It’s so hard to just get a job on the first place! I’m never the first option. I know it was just a stupid bad paying job and that there’s people who are worse than I. And I shouldn’t let that stop me, I should be fucking proud of who I am because I can’t change it! But fuck! When will I be allowed to just be a human!? People don’t see me; they see who they think I should be! A danger to society, something strange, a sex toy, a baby factory, or a poor little victim, but never a fucking normal person!”

He breathed and then continued. “And then I must put everything I am in a fucking paper sheet and expect people who don’t even know me to judge my value. If they don’t like my face, or the bullshit I wrote, then I’m not fucking worth it! I’m not even fucking worth enough to work myself to death in a horrible job just to have some money!”

Patroclus turned to the window again. He saw his reflection and sighed deeply. “It’s… It’s not that I’m not proud of who I am or anything… I don’t have much of a choice. But why did I have to be born in this situation? Why me? I hate that a lot of people have it so much easier without even trying, when even the best of me is not enough…”

He felt Achilles grab his hand. Patroclus sighed again as his lower lip trembled. He used his free hand to wipe away some tears and smiled at Achilles. “I’m sorry I lost my temper; I didn’t mean to upset you.”

Achilles frowned at that, he opened his mouth and then closed it again. Then his expression changed, a look of determination on his face. “I have a new idea for our date.”

“What idea?”

Achilles grinned with mischief. “We need spray paint.”

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. “Spray paint?”

--------------------------------

They went to a store and bought a colorful supply of spray paint, then they waited for the night to arrive. 

"Achilles, what are we doing?" Patroclus asked as he held a can of bright red spray paint.

Achilles had changed his clothes to something more subtle, a black Hoodie and black jeans. "So, did your old workplace had security cameras?"

Patroclus shook his head. "The cheap-ass of the owner just put some fake ones up for decoration." Patroclus tilted his head as he looked at Achilles. "But what are we doing?"

Achilles smiled at him, "I think you know."

Did he know? He went along with Achilles to buy paint, he even chose red, his favorite color. At the moment, he was waiting eagerly. He knew, but he could deny anything and say it was Achilles' fault. After all, wasn't he just an innocent omega? 

"No, I don't know."

"No, of course you don't know," He grabbed a face mask and put it on. "Put on your mask, would you? So, you don't catch a cold."

Patroclus did as he was told quickly, he pulled the hoodie over his head and nodded, they were about to arrive.

The car didn't stop right in front of the clinic, but a few streets away, so they had to walk a little. The zone where the clinic was in was nice enough that it wasn't considered dangerous for an omega to walk alone during the day. But it wasn’t too nice that there would be security cameras everywhere, and even if there were, so what? Achilles was very rich, surely he could throw money at the problem until it went away.

Patroclus breathed as he stood in front of the small veterinary clinic.

Achilles hummed, "I think it needs more color, no?" He ran to the building and began spraying purple paint on the walls.

Patroclus calmly walked to the crystal doors, like he did every morning for the past year. He stopped right in front of them. Would it help his situation? No. Was it a very childish thing to do? Yes. Did it feel wonderful when he began spraying the doors, knowing that the bitch who fired him without reason would need to waste money cleaning it? Absolutely.

She could use his last check to do it, or she could shove it inside her ass.

When he finished his centerpiece, he began adding little drawings on different parts of the building. Finally, he stepped back to observe his magnum opus. 

He quite liked it. 

He turned to see Achilles, who was running around while he sprayed the walls with nonsensical lines and some drawings here and there. 

Patroclus laughed. "What are you doing!?" 

Achilles’ drawings were very childish stick figures of humans, cats, and dogs. At least the dogs had pointy teeth.

"I'm decorating for them!" Achilles stopped at an empty spot, "Wait, let me do my portrait." He drew a circle, then added wavy lines that were supposed to represent hair. At the end, he added two dots for eyes and a curved line for a smile. "Voilà! What do you think?" He turned to him.

Patroclus laughed more, "It looks just like you!"

Achilles ran to him and saw his masterpiece. He began cackling. " 'Fuck you, scrotum face' ! What!?" He laughed more.

Patroclus smiled as his face felt warmer, "I'm not a poet!"

Achilles shook his head, "No, no! It's perfect! The dicks you put around really bring it all together!" Achilles giggled more.

Patroclus smiled fondly, not that Achilles could see it behind the mask, "Thank you, I'm glad you liked my painting."

Achilles nodded, "Did you finish already?"

Patroclus hummed, he still felt angry, all those days working for pocket change, and they kicked him out like he was nothing. There was a very pretty rock on the ground. 

"Wait," He picked the rock up, it was a medium size rock, not extremely big, but not a pebble either. Patroclus looked at it, looked at a window, stepped forward and threw it with all his force. 

His eye-hand coordination wasn't the best, but he still managed to hit the center of the window and make a very big hole in it.

Achilles was hysterical, laughing and cheering. Now Patroclus felt better.

Then they heard steps coming their way, "Hey! What are you doing!?" A masculine voice asked.

"Shit!" Patroclus intended to run, but before he could react, Achilles was with him, picking him up like a potato sack, throwing him over his shoulder and running away.

In a matter of seconds, they were back in the car, the chauffeur had the good intuition of not turning off the engine. Achilles just opened the door, shoved Patroclus inside, and then he jumped in after. The car took off.

When they were a good distance away, Patroclus processed what happened, what he did. He took off the hoodie and the face mask. "I can't believe I did that."

Achilles turned to him, still with everything on, and began cackling.

Patroclus didn't know what was so funny, yet he too began laughing uncontrollably.

After a few minutes of laughter, both finally managed to stop.

"Oh; that was amazing, Achilles!" Patroclus cleaned off some laughter tears, "thank you, I feel better now."

Achilles nodded with a beautiful smile on his face. "Don't worry about it, and listen. I'm not going to pretend that I know what you go through and how it affects you. But, I promise that I'm always going to be here to help you, in any way I can, no matter what. Even if you just need venting or something like that, you just ask. Ok?"

Patroclus smiled. He was thankful for Achilles' friendship. He threw his arms around Achilles’ neck and gave him a quick peck on the corner of the lips, "Thank you."

Achilles stayed still. His face turned as red as a tomato and his eyes were open wide. Patroclus giggled; he looked so cute like that. "You should see the face you're making!" He kept giggling for some seconds before stopping. He let go of him and moved to put his head on Achilles' lap. It was a little difficult because they were still in the backseat of the car, no matter how big it was. Yet he managed and closed his eyes.

"You looked so cute! I—" Patroclus opened his eyes to Achilles watching him. But it wasn’t the cute, surprised look from before. Achilles' eyes were dark with unconcealed lust. Like he was about to jump on Patroclus and rip his clothes away at any moment.

It felt like a bucket of cold water to Patroclus. He had become so used to thinking about Achilles as a friend that he had forgotten that Achilles was trying to own him legally. To buy his body.

Patroclus sat again; and tried to put some distance between them. "Hey I think—"

Achilles leaped to him. Patroclus froze, what was he supposed to do? He tried not to flinch when Achilles put his nose in that place where his jaw connected to his neck and breathed deeply before he moaned. Teeth grazed his skin.

What then? If Achilles wanted to do something, there was no one to stop him. 

A pitiful whine escaped Patroclus' throat, which caused Achilles to growl. He separated himself from Patroclus with a groan and a very obvious boner.

Patroclus tried to open the door of his side. It was locked.

Achilles sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He looked extremely annoyed. "I'm sorry I did that; it won't happen again."

"I think I'd like for you to drop me off now, please."

Achilles sighed. "Don't be ridiculous, Patroclus, we're nowhere near your house, and it's like 2 am."

"I know, but I just wanted to—"

"Stop the car." Achilles commanded his chauffeur, who immediately obeyed. Now he truly looked angry.

Patroclus swallowed some saliva.

"Open my door and the one at your side too." Achilles said as he looked at Patroclus.

A mechanical click, followed by Achilles getting out of the car and then re-entering at the seat on the side of the chauffeur.

The car moved again, and Patroclus finally breathed.

--------------------------------

The rest of the way back was silent. Patroclus sighed as he hugged himself. 

He had been an idiot. It was supposed to be playful flirting; nothing serious. He had forgotten who he was and with whom he was. Of course Achilles would look at him romantically no matter what. He was still an alpha, even after the whole spiel about being friends. What Patroclus was doing was putting his head inside the lion’s mouth and asking him to not bite. He really liked Achilles, but it wasn’t right to just pretend that Achilles wasn't attracted to him and that they could be friends without that extra baggage. 

He didn't want to hurt Achilles.

The car stopped slowly. Patroclus looked out the window, they had stopped in front of his house, "Are we here already?"

No answer. 

Patroclus sighed again; this wasn't what he wanted at all. He opened the door and got out. 

The car began moving away, and Patroclus stood in the middle of the street, watching as Achilles went away.

"Wait!" Patroclus screamed as he ran towards the car, "Wait, please!"

The car stopped, and Patroclus caught up. He ran towards Achilles' window and tapped it.

The window rolled down, and Patroclus saw Achilles. He looked so sad, like a little lost child. It hurt Patroclus' heart to know that he had caused that. He leaned towards Achilles, grabbed his chin and pulled him closer. He kissed those pretty pink lips softly, it was a small and chaste kiss.

Patroclus was an idiot, and he couldn’t deny anymore that he didn’t know what game he was playing.

He let Achilles go, and he had the same surprised, innocent look that he had moments ago. 

"Goodnight, Achilles." Patroclus straightened his back and walked away.

He didn't know if that had been the right choice.

--------------------------------

Achilles was on his bed naked. He had just finished pleasuring himself, thinking about him. His Patroclus, his prince. Achilles had acted too harsh, and of course he had frightened him, but he couldn't resist him.

He had ached to ripped apart those clothes to touch the warm skin underneath, he had wanted to just take Patroclus' pleasure without restriction, to drink the sighs from his lips. He thought he had really messed up and that would mean a lot of time and effort to repair that. 

However, his Patroclus had kissed him. His lips were so soft and perfect. He still felt the kiss, branded on his soul, like that first kiss all those years ago.

He didn't know if his Patroclus was merciful or merciless. Wasn't he aware that he had Achilles trembling on his knees with a single look of his eyes?

Achilles brought the silk scarf to his nose again, the scent was fading, but it was still there, he inhaled it, and it felt like home.

Achilles couldn’t stop thinking about him. He had imagined that soft dark skin. The places where Patroclus’ body was soft and where it was hard with muscle. The movement of his hips. He wondered how Patroclus would react if he touched him in that warm and tight part of his body. Would he gasp with surprise? Or would he throw his head back with pleasure?

Achilles turned to lie on his side, he bit his fingers with anxiety. He could wait for him, he could wait for one hundred years.

--------------------------------

It had been a week and a few days since his last date with Achilles. Now he was holding his phone with 0 new calls and 0 new messages. Achilles hadn’t even talked to Myrto to set another date or anything.

There wasn’t a set number of "dates" an omega had to spend with their suitors before choosing one. The omega could spend as much time as they wanted getting to know the candidates. Some omegas took less than a month before marrying, others could take years to decide. It was common knowledge that the polite time to pick should be anything under a year and more than a month, so the rejected suitors could move on with their life.

It wasn’t weird that Achilles had suddenly stopped wanting to see him. He probably was now patiently waiting for Patroclus to make his choice.

However.

Patroclus wanted to see him again. He wanted Achilles to tell him another nonsensical story and then laugh with him. He didn't want things to end like they had. Maybe he still felt bad about what happened; but it was fine. It had been an accident, and accidents were forgiven. Patroclus had forgiven him immediately after. So why? It didn't have to be another date. Achilles could call him or sent him a message, even a stupid meme was fine.

I miss you...

Damned that alpha. He was so charming it made Patroclus act like a fool.

Achilles wanted to give Patroclus space, and waited for him to make the first move. That felt like a line Patroclus wasn't ready to cross.

There hadn't been any news of Hector either. Patroclus wanted to give up; but he couldn't just let him go, he was his prince after all. He had spent all his life waiting for him.

He went down his contact list until he found what he wanted. Patroclus tapped the name and put the cellphone to his ear. After a few rings, a voice.

"Patroclus!" Paris greeted him cheerfully. "How have you been?"

"Fine." Patroclus bit his lips.

"That's good! I was going to call you."

"What for?" 

"You forgot? My wedding is in two weeks, and you're invited! But you haven't confirmed your assistance."

Patroclus hummed. "Oh… yeah... Don’t worry, I’ll go."

"You also can take a plus one. It can be someone from your family too if you want, it isn’t necessary to find a date for the party, so don't worry about that."

"Ok." Patroclus bit his lips again, "Actually, I wanted to ask you about something..."

"What is it?"

"Do you know anything about Hector? I met him a few weeks ago, and he told me he'd call me, but he hasn't yet." Patroclus breathed deeply, "I'm a little worried."

Paris sighed, "No, sorry, I haven't heard from him either after what happened at the restaurant the other day."

Patroclus sat slump. "I see..."

"But he'll probably come to my wedding! You might see him there if you need to talk with him."

At that, Patroclus perked up again. "You think so?"

"Of course, he’s my brother, can't miss my wedding! Now, I'm a bit busy, you need anything else?" 

“No, I actually have to go. So, talk to you later?”

"Sure! Bye!"

--------------------------------

Patroclus went out to Starbucks to buy a coffee; he still had some money left, so thankfully he didn't need to ask Myrto for some. 

He should find another job.

Patroclus sighed, he sat down on one of the tables, he needed to talk to Achilles.

In his mind, a plan had formed. He wanted to make Hector jealous at the wedding, a little revenge. And what other perfect choice for that but beautiful shining Achilles? 

That was why he needed to call him. To ask him if he wanted to be his date for Paris' wedding. Now the only thing he needed to do was actually do it.

It wasn’t as easy as it sounded.

He went out to buy coffee in hopes that it'd distract him and make calling Achilles easier. It wasn't working as well as he thought it would. He prayed to his mocha Frappuccino with caramel and extra whipped cream for valor.

He dialed Achilles' number and after one ring: "Hello? Patroclus?"

"Hi, Achilles..." Patroclus said with a forced smile.

"Uh, hi... How are you doing?"

"You haven't called me, or messaged me recently either, like, at all," Patroclus kept that fake smile; he didn't know where the resentment came from. “What the hell happened to you?”

"I'm sorry, I wanted to give you some space, that's all." Achilles breathed deeply, "but why? Did you miss me a lot?" His voice was soft and sweet.

Oh, fuck off.

Patroclus fake smile grew bigger, "Listen, I need a favor."

"Sure, anything you want." Achilles said with his friendliest voice.

"A friend of mine is going to marry, and I need someone to go with me. I was wondering if you could accompany me?" He took a sip of his frappé. 

"Like a date?" Achilles said with excitement.

"No, it’s nothing of this marriage business, this is another thing," Patroclus hurried to clarify.

He heard Achilles giggling, "Sure, I'd love to go with you. Do you have a suit for the wedding already?"

"No, not yet," He took another sip of his coffee.

"Then let me take care of that for you," Achilles said with a silky voice. “I'm sure you'd be so beautiful in a good suit.”

That went down Patroclus' spine in a way that hadn't happened before. "Eh... sure?"

"When is the wedding?"

"In two weeks."

"Alright, then how about I pick you up in two days so we can go shopping?" 

Patroclus nodded, "Yes, that'd be great." He said with a very high-pitched voice.

"Ok, see you later then."

"Ok bye."

Patroclus hung up. He breathed and put on his earphones to calm his manic heart. Achilles' voice began singing in his ear.

“Don't go wasting your emotions,

Lay all your love on me.”

Patroclus took out his earphones and sighed.

--------------------------------

He looked at his closet closely, what should he wear? It was the day he'd go shopping with Achilles for clothes for Paris’ wedding. Patroclus didn't know where they'd be going, so he wasn't sure what was appropriate. He thought about wearing something nice that showed his body a bit. But why? Achilles was just his friend, there was nothing more. Patroclus huffed and grabbed the first things he saw.

After dressing in very plain clothes, he looked in the mirror and began trying to get his curls to obeyed him and stay in one way. 

His father entered his room without knocking, "What are you doing?"

"There's a reason I had the door closed, dad."

"Are you going out with someone?" His father asked with his arms crossed on top of his chest.

"Yes, I'm going out with Achilles," Patroclus rolled his eyes.

"Oh," Menoetius nodded and went out the room.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. Now what was that supposed to mean?

--------------------------------

Patroclus was waiting outside his house watching his cellphone. He was scrolling down Twitter, not really paying attention to anything he saw. There was a bit of anxiety in him for some reason. Like when he first met Achilles, but different. He was a mess.

He closed his eyes and thought about Hector, his beautiful and kind face, his toned body; how perfect his kisses were; he wondered how Achilles would look beneath his clothes—

That made him frown. Where that thought came from? He shook his head quickly; Achilles was only a friend.

He opened his eyes when he heard a car coming closer. Sure enough, it was Achilles’ trusted black car. Patroclus didn’t even wait for the car to stop before walking to it. He opened the door and entered without any fanfare.

Achilles was sitting at his side, wearing a nice and breathable outfit. A mint green shirt with only one button done, revealing his muscular chest; baggy dark red pants, and dark brown shoes. To top it all off, his wavy hair was held back in a low ponytail and his face had—

“Freckles?” Patroclus mumbled.

“I’m sorry?” Achilles raised an eyebrow.

“Last time we saw you didn’t have freckles and there hasn’t been a lot of sun lately.”

“Do you like it?”

He looked kind of cute, “They are fine, but I didn’t know you had freckles.”

Achilles grinned at him, “I don’t, is make up.”

“You wear make up?”

Achilles chuckled, “I kind of must if I want to have eyebrows. Otherwise, I look like an alien. A downside of my hair being so light.”

Patroclus saw then that Achilles’ eyebrows were a light shade of brown instead of blond, “I didn’t notice… I don’t wear makeup, like at all.”

“Well, not everyone can be naturally beautiful like you.”

Patroclus snorted, “Have you looked in a mirror? You’re like what if an angel had a baby with a supermodel and that baby had another baby with, I don’t know, Brad Pitt.”

Achilles cackled at that, “Brad Pitt!? Do I look anything like Brad Pitt to you!?”

“I don’t know, that was the first standard handsome dude I could think of,” Patroclus smiled sheepishly.

“That dude is like 90 or something now.”

“Well, then you look like him when he was young and beautiful.” Patroclus nodded wisely.

Achilles rolled his eyes with fondness, “And you look like… A beautiful man.”

Patroclus put his hand on his chest. “I’m so honored to receive such deep words,” He said with a mocking tone.

Achilles laughed more. “Hey, there’s a reason I don’t write songs lyrics, you know?”

It was incredible to Patroclus how easy it was to get along with Achilles. Almost as if he had been with him all his life. “Good thing you’re pretty… And rich... And blond.”

Achilles nodded, “And alpha.”

“And alpha.” Patroclus nodded with him, “But don’t worry, everyone has their faults.”

Achilles giggled more, “I still think you’re very pretty.”

“Thank you, I got it from my parents.”

Achilles tilted his head, with a mischievous grin on his face, “Yeah, your dad is very hot.”

Patroclus frowned, before Achilles started cackling, “Oh! You should’ve seen your face right now!”

Patroclus snorted, “Idiot.” 

He shoved Achilles away as he kept laughing.

--------------------------------

When Patroclus saw through the window, he noticed how the buildings, the streets, and the people had changed. Now they were in a very nice place. He knew by instinct that he'd need to sell a kidney if he wanted to buy even a single water bottle there. 

Suddenly he felt uncomfortable in his very cheap and plain clothes when everyone else was dressed like a supermodel.

Achilles must’ve noticed his uneasiness because he tried to comfort him, "Listen, I know you don't like going to overly expensive places, but I swear this store will be worth it."

Patroclus saw a cute Maltese with a cowboy hat on the street. Ok, maybe it wasn't that bad. "No, no. I like being constantly reminded that late-stage capitalism will kill us all with its failure to address the rapidly growing socioeconomic problems in the working class caused by systemic inequality and climate change."

Achilles smiled at him. He didn't understand a word of what Patroclus just said.

"Being poor is bad and nobody does anything about it," Patroclus clarified.

"Oh! I see." Achilles chuckled. "You're very intelligent," He said genuinely.

Patroclus smiled back, "Thank you! I went to college for a degree that now is as useful as toilet paper when it comes to finding a job." He was still a little angry.

"Don't think about that now," Achilles gently nudged him. "We're shopping, and I'm paying, relax. We'll have fun," He grabbed Patroclus' hand.

Patroclus thought about how their hands were mostly the same length and width; but Achilles' fingers looked graceful and had callouses on the fingertips. Most likely because of playing instruments.

The car stopped slowly.

Achilles let go of Patroclus' hand and went out of the car, Patroclus breathed and did the same.

The building in front of them was massive, all sleek lines and curves covered in crystal that reflected the sky. Achilles entered with confidence, Patroclus followed.

The store inside was just as big as it was outside. With cold lights, white wall, and different expensive suits on the walls and mannequins. Patroclus didn’t like it. There was a sudden aggressiveness around him, like he wasn’t welcomed there, and the place knew it.

Upon entering, a woman wearing a black suit approached them while holding a tablet in her hands. She smiled at Achilles and ignored Patroclus' existence completely. "Welcome, is there anything I can help you with, sir?" She said with a cordial smile.

Achilles nodded, "Yes, we're looking for two matching suits for a wedding." 

The woman nodded, "The suits will be for two alphas?"

"One alpha," Achilles moved his hand toward Patroclus, "and one omega."

The woman then eyed Patroclus briefly before returning to Achilles. She looked at him as if he was dirty. "We have a new collection of suits for omegas—"

"Actually, I'd like a suit for alphas." Patroclus walked closer to Achilles. He had seen those "suits" for omegas, they were more a combination of a dress and a suit rather than a suit; Patroclus wasn't interested in that.

The woman ignored him, “We have a new collection of suits for omegas if that’s what you’re interested in, sir.”

Achilles raised an eyebrow, “Whatever he wants, I want. And if he doesn’t want to buy anything here, I won’t. Ok?”

The woman smiled more. She looked like Achilles had dropped a bucket of iced water on top of her. That definitely made Patroclus feel better. "Ok, follow me, please," She started walking.

Achilles walked at her side; he said some things Patroclus didn’t hear. Patroclus for his part walked behind them and decided that he didn’t like the store nor the employees a lot.

She guided them to a place surrounded by mirrors, there was a little platform and a lot of couches to sit in around it. 

"Would you like something to drink? Something to eat?" The woman asked Achilles.

“Why are you asking me? You should ask him. He’s the boss.”

The woman breathed deeply and turned to Patroclus, “Would you like something to eat or drink, sir?”

Patroclus simply shook his head. 

The woman nodded. "Then I'll bring the suits in a moment."

After the woman walked away, Achilles sat down. "And, what do you think so far? Do you like the store?"

"Not my thing, really."

"I'm sure your father and grandfather used to come to shops like this all the time before they lost their money," Achilles crossed his legs.

"It's weird to think about my family like that. All my life, we weren't poor, but we didn't have a lot of money either. Most of it went to paying my grandfather's debt and then my mom's treatment." 

"My family always had money, but I guess it wasn’t what I wanted growing up," Achilles mumbled.

Patroclus sat at his side, "That’s so sad, your life must’ve been so difficult having all that money."

Achilles giggled, "It was. Until I met you."

Patroclus was about to say something, when two persons arrived carrying lots of suits. Then the woman with the tablet arrived shortly after. With a cordial smile, she talked to Achilles. "These are all the suits with the specifications you asked for, sir. Shall we start trying them on?"

Achilles nodded, then he looked at Patroclus, "Get naked."

"What?" Patroclus frowned.

"The changing rooms are this way." The woman pointed towards a door. 

“We’re choosing yours first, then we’ll choose mine based on yours. So get naked and try them.”

Patroclus sighed as he looked at the pile of clothes; it was going to be a long day.

--------------------------------

Achilles and the other employees were constantly moving him and talking between them as he tried on the different suits. 

With some suits, Achilles needed more time to discuss; he made him pose one way or the other; he asked Patroclus how he felt, and if he needed a size bigger or smaller. After much debate with the other employees, the suit was either put on a pile of approved ones or vanished back to the confines of the store.

With others, Patroclus had barely put a foot outside the changing room before Achilles was shoving him back in.

He felt like a doll for Achilles to play with. After some point, he just numbly followed directions. “Stand this way, now Stand this other way, turn around, lift your arms, crossed them, sit here, move your legs, that one seems a bit tight, try a smaller size with this one, take that off”. Very similar to how it went when he bought clothes with his dad.

It was a good thing that he stopped having any kind of opinion about the suits after the tenth one.

"I think this is the one."

Patroclus snapped out of his trance, "Huh?"

Achilles smiled, "This one, it looks wonderful on you."

Patroclus' eyes focused on the mirror. It was a three-piece suit in a warm pastel yellow color with a floral pattern embroidered in dark purple thread on the side.

Patroclus turned around and then to the other side, he liked it. It wasn't something he'd normally choose, a bit too flashy. But it was nice, and he had to admit it, it went well with his skin tone. "I look fancy. Like I should have one of those pocket watches, don't you think?"

"Do you want one?" Achilles raised an eyebrow.

Patroclus felt a little surge of panic at the idea of Achilles spending even more money on him. "No, I was joking."

Achilles rolled his eyes with fondness and got closer to Patroclus "The suit looks good, but it still needs some corrections."

"Corrections?" Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? It fits just fine."

Achilles shook his head, with a movement of his hand he called forward the woman with the tablet. He began barking orders, and Patroclus sighed, he thought it was finally over, but no.

After Achilles was done, the woman now approached Patroclus. She looked at him from top to bottom before nodding and taking out a measuring tape. She moved around Patroclus, taking measures and then writing them down on her tablet.

When she was done and stepped away. Achilles patted him on the shoulder. "You can take it off now, I'll have to try mine. After that, we can go eat something." 

Patroclus felt instant relief that it was finally over.

--------------------------------

He was sitting, looking down at his phone when he heard steps. He lifted his face and saw that Achilles had already come out of the changing room. The suit he was wearing was the matching piece to Patroclus'. A three-piece dark purple suit with pale yellow floral embroidery, but his was a different flower. 

Achilles carried himself with a natural grace that elevated the suit and made it ten times more elegant. He turned his back to Patroclus as he saw himself in the mirror. 

The suit really fitted his body. It was the first time that Patroclus noticed how broad Achilles' shoulders really were, how tiny his waist was, so tiny Patroclus could easily imagine putting his arms around it. His eyes traveled down; even when the suit wasn't very form fitting, Achilles' bubble butt was evident.

A part of Patroclus wanted to squeeze it and see how Achilles would react.

Patroclus frowned at that train of thought. They were just friends; it wasn't going to be anything else. The one he loved was Hector. 

Yet, watching Achilles' angelic face smile at him through the mirror, well… It was normal to feel sexual attraction for your friends sometimes. It didn’t have to mean anything, he didn’t need to act on it. Sexual attraction wasn't the same thing as love.

The woman finished taking Achilles measurements and walked away. Achilles turned to him, he winked at Patroclus before slowly walking down the platform to change back. That stupid gesture made Patroclus feel… Weird.

It didn't have to mean anything.

--------------------------------

After they were done with the suits and the only remaining thing to do was to pay. Patroclus opted to go back to the car. He didn't want to spend another second in that store with those people.

In the car he began a nice chat with Achilles' chauffeur. His name was Eudoros, a beta who had been working for Achilles and Peleus all his life and his father had worked for Aeacus; Achilles' grandfather, before that.

"They're a good family." The old beta assured. "After my father died and me and my mother had nothing left, Peleus was the only one to come forward and help me. He paid for the funeral and then gave me a job as his chauffeur."

Patroclus smiled from the back of the car. "It seems like he's a good man."

Eudoros nodded. "He is, though he isn't a lot like his son."

"Really? I haven't had the chance to meet him yet." Patroclus tilted his head to the side.

"Once you meet him, you'll know what I mean, sir." Eudoros said gravely. "Achilles is a lot like his mother in temper, unfortunately."

"Unfortunately?" Patroclus raised an eyebrow.

Eudoros hummed, he looked around to make sure that Achilles wasn't nearby. "You didn't hear this from me sir. But Achilles' mother wasn't necessarily nice to Peleus when they were together. She was very possessive, even when she didn't feel anything remotely affectionate for him." 

Patroclus smiled. "Achilles mentioned something about his brothers dying?"

Eudoros nodded energetically. "Yes, I saw every baby myself before they died. 6 boys, all of them died within 2 or 3 months of being born. Apparently, it was sudden infant death syndrome, but there's a rumor going around that Thetis herself killed them."

"Oh." Patroclus frowned. "Achilles didn't say anything about outright killing."

Eudoros shook his head. "It's just a rumor, only Peleus and Thetis know what really happened to those babies for sure. Sir."

"I see."

"But be careful with Achilles, ok? Like I said, he inherited a lot of his temper from his mother. He used to be very possessive with his ex-girlfriend, to then get rid of her like an afterthought." Eudoros cleared his throat. "You don't want to provoke him."

Patroclus felt a certain defensiveness at that. "Well, for the time I've spent with Achilles, he doesn't seem to be like that. He might be impulsive, sure, but he's very kind and thoughtful." 

"Who knows, maybe you’ll manage to change him, sir."

"Perhaps." Patroclus looked out the window, he saw Achilles walking towards the car. 

Achilles opened the door and entered. "Hi, you got bored waiting for me?"

Patroclus shook his head.

Achilles nodded. "Let's go to eat then."

--------------------------------

The car stopped at a park, thankfully it was a normal park, not in the wealthy zone of the city. Patroclus could relax a bit.

"I thought we were going to eat."

Achilles nodded before getting out of the car.

"If we were going to the park, you should've brought Menis and Penthos." Patroclus said as he opened the door and got out. 

Achilles laughed, "To get you all soaked again?" He walked to the driver's seat, "the trunk please."

After some seconds the trunk opened and Patroclus leaned forward to see what was inside, there was a very big basket.

Achilles took out the basket and closed the trunk. He turned to Patroclus and smiled. "Picnic!"

"Really?" He raised an eyebrow like he couldn’t believe Achilles would do such a sappy thing. But in reality, Patroclus always wanted to have a picnic date when he was younger.

Achilles nodded and began walking towards the park. "We need to find a good spot to eat.

Patroclus followed him, the green park was busting with life; kids playing, adults jogging, dogs running and birds singing. Achilles stopped at a part that seemed relatively calm and private. He selected a spot under a tree and put the basket down.

"I think this place is good, no?"

"Sure." 

Achilles kneeled and took out a blanket from the basket to put it on the floor.

Patroclus laughed when he saw the fabric on the floor. "It's even the fabric with squares!"

Achilles raised an eyebrow, "Gingham?"

"Does it have a name?" Patroclus sat on the blanket.

"All fabrics have names," Achilles took the basket, put it in the middle of the blanket, and sat at Patroclus' side. 

"Good point," Patroclus conceded. He observed how Achilles began taking out sealed metal bowls with food and putting them in front of Patroclus. "So, why did you want to have a picnic?"

"You said that your favorite food was homemade food, so I cooked for you."

Patroclus raised his eyebrows, "You cooked all this?"

Achilles nodded. "Well, I had a little guidance. Papa Phoenix guided me through all the recipes, but I did all the work." He put another bowl down. "You have to try the stifado, it's his secret recipe that he revealed to me just for you."

Patroclus observed all the food in front of him, it was a feast. "You didn't have to work so hard for me."

Achilles gave him a plate and a glass of wine. "Don't worry about it, it was a lot of work, but it was fun." He took out a bottle of wine. "Do you want some sweet rosé?"

"I don't like alcohol." Patroclus bit the edge of his glass briefly.

Achilles nodded, he put down the wine bottle and began searching on the gigantic basket, he took out a plastic bottle. "Grape juice then?"

Patroclus laughed, he nodded and offered his glass to Achilles. "You came prepared!"

“You seem the type to have a sweet tooth.” Achilles grinned as he opened the bottle and served some to Patroclus. "And I wanted to see you smile." 

Patroclus felt his face warming. He cleared his throat and looked away as he took a sip. "It's a good juice..."

Achilles was about to say something when two big men dressed in leather with a lot of tattoos walked closer to them, they stopped in front of Achilles. Patroclus moved a tad closer to him and looked down.

"Hey." One of the two men said with a deep voice.

"Yes?" Achilles said with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you that Achilles from YouTube that does the covers?" 

Achilles seemed to think about it for a moment before shrugging and nodding.

The man began smiling. "We love your covers!"

His companion nodded. "The best is the one of total eclipse of the heart." 

"Right!?" Patroclus said cheerfully as he lifted his face.

The man then took out his cellphone. "Can we take a picture with you?"

Achilles smiled. "Sure." 

The man offered Patroclus the cellphone. "Do you mind?"

Patroclus shook his head, put down his glass, stood up and took the phone.

Achilles posed between the two men with a big smile. He seemed extremely happy to be recognized.

Patroclus didn't know Achilles' mom. But Achilles himself seemed to be a kind man who was happy to help and cared about other people around him. Who cared about Patroclus genuinely. For some reason, that thought made Patroclus' heartbeat faster.

"Ok, everyone smile!"

--------------------------------

"So, they're going to send the suit to my house?" Patroclus asked, sitting at Achilles' side in the car.

The food was good. He could tell that it was the first time Achilles made food, as some of them needed a little more salt or spices in general. His cooking was timid in a way that only practice could resolve. But it was mostly good. The chocolate cake was the best though.

Now they were going back to Patroclus' house.

Achilles nodded, "Unless they got the address wrong, but yeah, in a couple of days, it should be here with other things."

"Other things?"

"Don't worry about it," Achilles winked.

Patroclus sighed, "I feel like it's just throwing money away, you know? Like, I get it. It's supposed to be better quality, but after a certain point. I guess it stop being about quality, and it's just about doing it because you can and don't really need the money anyway."

"Something like that, but at least you'll look amazing in that suit."

Patroclus felt his cheeks get warm, "You'll look way better than me anyway. I’m not that pretty."

"I wish you could see yourself from my perspective."

Patroclus smiled softly, "Well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder."

The car stopped; they were already at Patroclus' house.

He sighed and looked out the window. He opened his door and walked out, hearing Achilles opening his door too, steps following closely.

Patroclus stood in front of his door and turned back to Achilles, "Well, thank you for the food, and the suit. It was really nice of you."

Achilles nodded; he had his hands hidden behind him.

"I think this is time we say goodbye."

Achilles then put one of his hands at Patroclus' neck and the other went to his jaw, it was a soft caress.

He got closer, and Patroclus couldn't do anything but stay still as he watched him looking at his lips. 

Then, the hand on his neck slid down his arm slowly until he grabbed Patroclus' hand. Achilles took it to his mouth, and gently placed a kiss on the back and one on the palm. 

Achilles smiled at him with such mischief and sweetness, "Good night, Patroclus." He let him go and walked back to the car. 

Patroclus stood breathless.

He blinked once, twice, and remembered that he was outside his house and needed to enter. With a shaky hand, he took his keys out of his pocket, and tried to put them into the keyhole, but he was trembling so much. It took several tries before he succeeded and opened the door. With weak knees, he walked directly to his room, ignoring his dad and sister. 

He closed the door behind him, and his mind was inundated with how soft Achilles' lips on his hands were.

Patroclus groaned and let his body fall into the bed and grabbed a pillow to hug it. He remembered how he had stopped breathing, and his heart raced when Achilles touched his face, when he leaned closer. If Achilles had tried to kiss him at that moment, Patroclus wouldn't have minded at all.

Achilles was so charming, so sweet, it almost seemed too good to be true. 

Patroclus groaned again and buried his face in the pillow. He had promised he'd never fall in love again, and he planned to keep his promise. All the marriage thing was only for Hector, his one true love.

In his mind, he tried to think about Hector. That kind smile, those soft eyes, his perfect body. However, his mind shifted to thinking about Achilles' laughter, about how he was learning to cook just for Patroclus, how he threw money around like it was nothing for him. His understanding eyes that looked at him as if Patroclus was the most wonderful person in the world.

Patroclus shook his head, it was just sexual attraction, it'd pass eventually.

--------------------------------

Patroclus walked slowly in the darkness of the mansion. He didn’t know where he was, but he understood that there was no other option than to keep walking, somehow. He managed to find a hidden room. With some effort, he opened the door and entered.

Inside it was dark and cold. A sense of dread spread on his chest at the apprehensive atmosphere.

Then someone turned the lights on.

There was a bed in the middle of the room, and on top of there, a beautiful woman with a stunning black dress like the one his father had bought for him. She was wearing a golden lion mask, lying on her back. 

The woman moaned softly, and the sound was familiar.

She, no, Achilles took off the mask. He looked beautiful, with a face full of makeup, dark smoky eyes and red lips.

Patroclus stood frozen; he didn’t understand what was happening. It was frightening and alluring at the same time.

One of the spaghetti straps of his dress fell, and Achilles put it back on its place as he licked his bright cherry red lips.

Patroclus tried to look away.

"Come with me."

Achilles had a prominent boner that made a tent with the fabric of the dress. One of his hands went down between those divine legs. He touched himself softly on top of the fabric, his thick thighs closed around his hand.

His other hand went to his mouth, Achilles bit the tip of his thumb and more moans escaped his pouty lips.

Patroclus stayed by the door with his mouth open.

Achilles moaned more. His hand moved faster, then his body tensed, toes curled and eyes rolled back. "Patroclus." He screamed with pleasure while his back arched off the bed.

Patroclus stepped closer to him. He wanted to devour him whole.

Achilles tensed his body and whimpered again. Those aquamarine eyes were dark with pleasure. His hair, before so well-kept, was now getting messier as strands fell over his face. The red lipstick was smeared around his lips and fingers. A fine layer of sweat covered his skin.

“Patroclus.”

Someone knocked on the door.

--------------------------------

"PATROCLUS! GET YOUR LAZY ASS UP ALREADY!"

Menoetius screamed as he knocked on the door.

Patroclus blinked awake. He looked down and realized he had been humping a pillow while he slept.

"PATROCLUS!" Menoetius kept screaming.

"I'VE HEARD YOU ALREADY DAD!" Patroclus screamed back before burying his face in the pillows.

That seemed to do the trick because Menoetius walked away.

He began humping that pillow again and tried to think about Hector, but his treacherous mind kept slipping to Achilles. Achilles. Achilles in that dress. Achilles, naked and lying on his back, hard and wanting. Achilles, kissing him softly. 

Achilles.

Patroclus bit his lips hard when his climax came to be, it had been years since the last time he felt that way.

He let go of the pillow and turned to be on his back. As always, a crushing sense of guilt and foulness appeared in his heart. He shouldn’t have done that, now he felt dirty.

Patroclus sighed, his hands covered his face. It had been going like that for some days. Dreams of Achilles moaning and touching himself like a whore invaded him almost nightly. He knew he was sexually attracted to him, but he didn't think it was going to get to that level.

Patroclus should put more space between the two.

The worst part was that he hadn’t seen him recently. It had been just texts and calls, yet he couldn’t get Achilles out of his mind.

Patroclus sighed again. He probably was overreacting; it was just a passing thing. He used to have fleeting crushes in the past, but nothing that lasted more than a few months. Unlike his love for Hector. 

It was only a stupid dream that didn't have to mean anything. In a few days, it'd be Paris’ wedding and Patroclus would be able to see his love again.

He got up, his underwear was sticky and he needed a shower.

Chapter Text

The night before the wedding, Patroclus felt like a mess. His mind was buzzing, and all his brain could conjure up was Hector and Achilles.

What was he going to do if he saw Hector while being with Achilles? What if Hector tried to kiss him in front of him? He didn’t know how Achilles would react.

He was thinking about that as he wrapped the gift he had bought for the wedding. It had been a set of three matching coffee cups with dogs in it. It had been hard to find a set with three matching cups, most of them only had two.

Patroclus stood back and saw the result of his hard work.

His eyes then wandered towards all the boxes in a corner of his little room. Patroclus huffed. Achilles had said that the store would deliver his suit to his address. What he hadn't said was that it wasn't the only thing they'd deliver. Patroclus had panicked a little when they began giving him lots and lots of different expensive looking boxes.

He had rushed to call Achilles to tell him that there had been a mistake, only for Achilles to laugh and said that no, there hadn't been a mistake. He had bought him all those clothes he tried on and liked at the store, too; and Patroclus would've known that if he hadn't gone to the car before him.

Patroclus had tried to tell him that he didn’t need nor wanted the clothes. Achilles had simply said. "Well, it's yours now, like it or not." Then hung up. After that, he had sent Patroclus a meme of a puppy sticking their tongue out.

Patroclus would’ve criticized the lack of maturity in that act. If it weren't because the next thing he did was taking a photo of himself with his tongue out and giving Achilles the middle finger to send it to him.

Achilles had responded with lots of heart emojis.

Now his room was full of boxes with new clothes that Patroclus didn’t even want to look at.

He went to the kitchen for a glass of water. There he found his sister looking very intensely at the microwave as some popcorn was slowly cooking inside.

"Hi." Patroclus said as he poured himself water.

"Hi." His older sister answered without looking away from the microwave.

"Hey... I wanted to ask something." Patroclus mumbled as he held the glass of water to his lips.

His sister finally looked at him.

"There's still not another suitor?" Patroclus took a little sip of water.

Myrto sighed. "No, sorry... But Achilles hasn't changed his mind; so, if there's at least one, that's good, no?" 

Patroclus briefly nodded before walking away with his water.

Still, no news from Hector.

--------------------------------

The day of the wedding Patroclus got up early. He took a shower and stylized his hair to the best of his abilities. When he stepped out of the bathroom, he thought about using that mint fragrance to hide his scent, but at the last minute he chose a floral perfume that'd fit with his own scent.

It was a tradition that when an omega reached 18, they were given a one of a kind personalized perfume that would complement their own scent. Patroclus had felt so ashamed when his father gave him that bottle full of a sweet girly floral perfume, he almost threw it away.

Some people said he had been lucky. He smelled like roses and vanilla; a calm, soft fragrance that almost everyone found appealing. Other people had very specific, strong smells that only a handful would like; he once met an alpha that smelled like rotten fruit. 

Patroclus didn't like how he smelled, when people described it as something so feminine and delicate. Like he was a woman, it made him want to hide his head on the dirt.

However, Hector liked his scent, didn't he? He had said so years back.

Patroclus put on his new suit as if it was armor. His heart crazy in his chest, yet he didn't know if he was anxious because of Achilles or Hector.

What would he do if he saw him at the wedding? What would he say to Achilles? "This is the man I've been thinking of while I play with your heart, I'm sorry." What would he do if Hector was there with someone? With his wife? 

Patroclus sighed as he looked at himself in the mirror. His black curls reached his chin already, he needed a trim. He ran his hand on top of it before it bounced back to how it was before. Would Hector like his hair? 

He took out a black eye pencil that he barely used, and drew a line around his eyes, then with his fingers he smudged it to create a subtle smokey eye that would highlight his eyes.

He grabbed his cellphone and his gift. Achilles would be there to pick him very soon. Patroclus stepped out into the living room. There, his father surprised him with a flash of light.

"What?" Patroclus said as he raised his hand to cover his eyes.

"I'm taking pictures! You look so pretty with that suit instead of the trash you put on daily." Menoetius said with his cellphone on hand as he took another photo. "Put your hand down, will you?"

"Dad! You didn't even take photos when I finished college!" Patroclus pouted as he let his hand down.

"No, because that was your responsibility, nothing to celebrate. Besides, you didn't look as good as you do today." Menoetius took another photo. "You should tell Achilles to buy you a suit like that for your wedding with him, just in white."

"Why are you saying that?" Patroclus felt his cheeks warming.

"Because I doubt you'll want to wear a dress." Menoetius huffed as he took more photos. "Try to smile a little."

Patroclus gave his father a fake smile. "No, I mean, why are you saying that I'm going to marry Achilles already?" 

"Because you will." Menoetius answered as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.

Patroclus rolled his eyes. "I thought it was supposed to be my choice."

"It's not about what you want, but what would be better for you, and Achilles is the best for you."

"I should be able to choose who I want." Patroclus said firmly.

Menoetius snorted. "Do you think my family asked me whether I wanted to marry or not?" 

Patroclus didn't know what to answer to that.

"Marrying for love is a cute fairy tale, but is only that, a fairy tale. Normal people marry because it’s convenient. You don't marry who you love, you marry who is safe and that you know will be there when you need them; those are the marriages that last the longest." Menoetius said as he took the last picture and then put the phone away. At that moment, someone knocked on the door.

Menoetius walked to Patroclus and gave him a small kiss on his forehead. "And that's something you'll understand eventually."  Menoetius then stepped to the door as the knocking continued. "That must be Achilles."

Patroclus bit his lips.

Menoetius greeted Achilles at the door. Patroclus could hear the melodic timbre of his voice.

He entered the house with Menoetius behind him. He was wearing the deep purple suit that accentuated his body beautifully. His blond long hair with an undertone of red was up in a braid that went down his back, leaving his doll face completely uncovered.

Achilles was the definition of beauty and elegance, yet, Patroclus couldn’t force himself to smile that time, he simply looked at the floor. What was better for him? He wasn’t sure. "You look good."

Achilles chuckled. "So do you," He stepped close enough that Patroclus could smell him, green leaves, freshly cut grass and rain plus a faint cologne that smelled like cedar wood.

Patroclus avoided him. "Let's go, or we'll be late." He walked towards the door.

--------------------------------

In the car, Patroclus held the box of his gift like a lifeline while ignoring his companion. Achilles had his arm around Patroclus' shoulders and talked about nothing and everything. Patroclus tried not to think about Hector.

It was awfully similar to the night they met.

"So, what did you buy?" Achilles pointed at the box.

Patroclus lifted slightly the box, "Just a set of matching cups, It's not a lot, but I hope they'll like it. I don't have a lot of money for fancy gifts."

"I'm sure they'll love it. And if you needed money, you should've said so, I'll be happy to give you some."

Patroclus shook his head, "No, thank you."

Achilles leaned closer to Patroclus, "It’s not a problem for me. I have more money than I know what to do with."

Patroclus looked at Achilles. He was about to say something, but he found himself centimeters away from his bright aqua eyes. 

Achilles grinned. "You look amazing with make up on." His eyes then fell to Patroclus' lips, "I bet you'd look marvelous with some lipstick too, even just lip-gloss would be more than enough." 

"You think so?" 

He nodded, “Wait, I think I have some clear lip-gloss, do you want to try it?”

Patroclus shrugged.

“Ok, then,” Achilles breathed deeply, he searched in one of his pockets and fished out a little transparent tube. Patroclus thought for a moment he'd offered the tube to him, instead Achilles opened the tube himself. With one hand he held the make-up wand, with the other, he took Patroclus’ chin softly.

“Open your mouth slightly and don't move, ok?”

Patroclus didn't react, but simply looked at how Achilles focused on his lips. He felt something cold on his bottom lip, then on his top lip.

Achilles rubbed his lips together more like an old habit than anything else, Patroclus did the same. For a moment, there was something in the air between them.

Patroclus turned to watch the window.

Achilles put back the lip gloss where it belonged. "Ok, is everything alright? You aren't acting like yourself."

"I'm just anxious because I haven't seen Menelaus and Paris in some days. That's all."

Achilles stayed silent, then he put his arm down, "Alright, I was going to give you this later, but gifts always cheer me up, it might cheer you up as well."

"A gift? For the wedding?"

Achilles shook his head as he took out a box from the pocket inside his jacket, "For you."

Patroclus frowned, "Why?"

"Because I like you silly."

Patroclus put his own gift aside. He grabbed the little box and opened it. 

"Achilles! I told you I didn't want a pocket watch!"

Achilles giggled, "Sorry, but I thought it'd look so good on you, I couldn't resist."

Patroclus observed the watch inside the box, it was golden, the outside had a beautiful floral pattern engraved. Roses and vanilla orchids, "I can't accept this."

"Of course you can!" Achilles smiled, "Is costumed made specifically for you. The outside is pure gold."

Patroclus closed the box. "No, I definitely can't accept this Achilles. It's too much," he tried to give it back.

Achilles pushed the box back to Patroclus, he pouted. "You haven't even seen what it has written inside! At least open it, and if you really don't want it, I'll take it back."

Patroclus sighed, he opened the box again and took the pocket watch out, careful to not drop it. He pushed a button on the top and it sprung open.

The clock hands moved with mechanical precision, behind them, Roman numbers indicated the hours and a circle in the middle of the watch let Patroclus see the tiny gears rotate. On the opposite side, an engraving. 

"For my prince, the one I've been looking for all my life."

My prince. Patroclus called Hector that. 

He thought of Hector that way since he met him years ago. It would've hurt him— no, it would've killed him if he had given a gift to Hector where he called him his prince and Hector rejected it.

The watch on his hand suddenly felt white-hot. Almost alive, beating and heavy. Patroclus wanted to throw it away.

He closed it softly, "Ok. I'll keep it." He was about to put it back in the box when Achilles stopped him.

"Don't put it back on the box! You should wear it!" He took the watch out of Patroclus' hands, then grabbed the end with a belt loop and put it through one of the buttonholes of Patroclus' vest. After that, Achilles softly deposited it into his pocket.

“It looks beautiful on you.”

Achilles smiled softly, it was so tender and adoringly, Patroclus wanted to cry and beg for forgiveness. He had been playing with Achilles' heart so cruelly, now it was too late to stop without breaking his heart. He knew from the beginning there wasn’t a way they could've been only friends. On his desperate chase for Hector, he hurt Achilles.

"Thank you," Patroclus mumbled as an apology.

--------------------------------

They arrived at the wedding reception just a few minutes late. Achilles had assured him that it was ok, they didn't miss anything important. Patroclus had smiled, trying to hide his feelings.

None in the throuple were religious. Therefore, they had skipped the church part all together and went straight to sign the papers. To that, only close family members were allowed, because it had been in a government building where other people were waiting as well. 

Then the newlyweds moved to the wedding venue to start the reception and celebrate properly with all the guests.

The venue was a beautiful open place with a gigantic garden. Guests could either be outside or under the roof.

They didn't even need to show his invitation. As soon as they saw him with Achilles holding his arm. The waiters ushered them in and guided them towards Menelaus and his brother.

When Menelaus saw them, he excused himself to the family he had been talking to and smiled, "Patroclus! It’s so good to see you here!" He went and opened his arms, waiting for a hug. He was dressed with a simple pastel pink suit.

Patroclus stopped holding Achilles and hugged his friend with one arm, "Congratulations! I'm so happy for you three." Patroclus let go of him and held his gift up to him, "Bought you this, I hope you like it."

Menelaus took it and nodded. "I'm sure we'll love it," He gave the box to one of the waiters and asked him to put it on the gift table. 

Patroclus smiled, "And Paris? And Helen?" 

Menelaus grinned with fondness at their names. "I'm sure they are either greeting the guests or drinking already," He chuckled, "Why?"

Patroclus shook his head. He looked around and didn't see any of Paris' siblings. "I just wanted to say hi," He turned to Agamemnon with the intention of greeting him, but Agamemnon promptly ignored him in favor of addressing Achilles.

"Achilles." Agamemnon spat his name, "I'm glad that the invitation didn't get lost in the mail this time."

Achilles' soft and relaxed demeanor changed completely. His expression turned icy. "I'm not here because you invited me, rest assured that I really don't care about you or your family. I'm only here because my Patroclus asked me to accompany him."

Agamemnon rolled his eyes and turned to Patroclus, "And who is he of you? Last time I saw you; you hadn't even seen him in person."

Patroclus was about to answer when Achilles rushed forward, "I'm his fiancé." 

"Really!? Patroclus, I thought you were single! Congratulations!" Menelaus hugged him briefly again.

Patroclus opened his mouth and then closed it, he forced himself to smile, "Thank you."

"You two make a lovely couple; matching clothes and everything," Agamemnon scoffed. 

It seemed like Achilles wanted to punch him.

Menelaus lifted his gaze. "Oh, look! There's Paris if you want to say hi," He pointed at a table with drinks where Paris was talking to some people. He was wearing a pink suit, just like Menelaus.

Patroclus nodded, he turned to Achilles, "Wait here while I talk to him, please?" Before Achilles could answer, Patroclus jogged to where Paris was.

As soon as Paris saw him, a big smile broke out in his face. He stopped everything he was doing to go to meet him halfway with opened arms.

They hugged tightly for a moment before pulling apart to see each other, "I'm so glad you could come, little brother. You look amazing!" Paris said smiling.

Patroclus returned the smile, "I wouldn't miss the wedding of my favorite brother for anything in the world!" They hugged again.

After they broke the hug, Paris looked around, "Did you bring your family with you? Or you came alone?"

Patroclus shook his head, "I brought Achilles with me. You know him?"

Paris' expression changed to one of concern, "Achilles? Like Thetis’ son?”

“The same!”

“What is your relationship with him?" 

Patroclus hummed; he remembered the lie Achilles had said moments ago, "He's one of my suitors."

"Suitors? You’re looking to marry someone!?" Paris raised an eyebrow. 

Patroclus bit his lips, "Well... is complicated."

Paris sighed. "Listen, I've done worse, so I can't judge you. But be careful with him, he has a reputation, you know?'

"What reputation?"

"It is a very well known secret that his family has a business in unsavory things. If you want to make someone disappear quietly, you call his mother’s side. If you want to smuggle something out of the country; anything, from drugs to people, you call his father’s side. That's how they've made half of their fortune." Paris looked at Achilles talking to Agamemnon, "Oh, and there's also the thing that happened to his ex-girlfriend."

Patroclus frowned, "What happened to her?"

Paris looked around him before leaning closer to Patroclus. "There are some rumors about how Achilles was going to marry Lycomedes' daughter. An omega named Deidamia.”

Paris cleared his throat. “It makes sense because Lycomedes' main business is selling a variety of substances, both legal and illegal. So it'd be a good alliance between the families. It was only a rumor, though, nothing confirmed. But very recently, Achilles all of a sudden broke off with Deidamia and kicked her out.”

He looked around before whispering. “Some even say that she was pregnant with his baby and Achilles forced her to have an abortion. Which, admittedly, is just a rumor too, but if it's real, then..." Paris shook his head, "Be careful with him."

Patroclus huffed, "I don't think the rumors are real. He's so kind and thoughtful, unlike a lot of alphas I've met."

"He might be putting up a front to get you to marry him. Doesn’t your family own a very important Danish brand or something like that?"

Patroclus felt his cheeks warming at that suggestion. "I..." He sighed. "On the side of my dad, yes. They own a couple of important brands from Denmark. But I don’t talk with them, and they don’t talk with me after what happened with my grandfather and his addiction. The only thing I own of them is a name."

"There are a lot of alphas who would kill for the chance to marry you just for your name. You're practically modern royalty. You'd brought a lot of prestige to a family for that alone, or in Achilles' case, even more prestige."

Patroclus scowled, "No, I don't think that's the case, besides, I almost got no suitors."

Paris frowned, "What? That's weird..."

"Either way, I don't care. But, changing topics." He bit his lips, "I... I wanted to ask about Hector."

Paris face turned into a grimace. "I'm sorry Patroclus, I know you wanted to see him, but he called a few hours ago saying that he wouldn't be able to come."

"What? Why?"

"He didn’t say, but apparently it was very important."

Patroclus tried to hide his disappointment, "And he is still staying in his apartment?"

Paris shook his head. "No, he went to stay with his ex and his son for some reason."

Patroclus felt his heart drop at that, "His ex and his son?"

"And he didn't say when he'll come back, sorry," Paris patted him on the arm.

There was a buzzing in Patroclus' ears. Of course he had gone back to his ex after having sex with Patroclus. Patroclus had been a fool that gave him what he wanted willingly; now he could come back to his rightful partner and let Patroclus adrift.

He had been waiting and hoping for someone who didn’t plan on going back.

"I... Ok... well," Patroclus smiled, "congratulations on the wedding." 

Paris nodded, "Thank you. Please, go ahead and help yourself with anything you want! Helen loved those little appetizers over there, now, forgive me, but I have to go and greet more guests." He gave Patroclus a small kiss on the cheek before walking away.

Hector lied to him. He didn't care, nor did he want to marry him. He just wanted a quick fuck, and Patroclus let him play with his feelings. Even after all those years, it was the same story again. A quick fuck, and then he ran away, taking Patroclus' heart with him.

He didn't even give him a chance to say goodbye this time.

And to think Patroclus was doing all of that shitshow for him. He was hurting Achilles for him. He was such an idiot.

Innocence can be dangerous.

"Hey, Patroclus." 

He felt a tap on his shoulder that made him come back to the present, "Uh, yes?"

He turned around and saw Achilles watching him with worried eyes, "Are you ok? You stayed here unmoving after Paris went away."

Patroclus blinked slowly. He felt so unreal, his mind was kilometers away controlling the body of a doll made of cotton. He wanted to cry and scream. "Don't worry, I'm ok," He smiled.

But Achilles still looked at him with worried eyes.

He took Patroclus' hand, "Let's go and find our seats, ok?" He began pulling him away slowly.

Achilles found their table at the middle of the hall, close to Paris' siblings. When they sat, he began trying to talk with Patroclus, but he only was pulling automatic simple responses that went from "yes" "no" and "really?" 

The food was soon served, but Patroclus couldn't even focus that long enough to tell exactly what it was. He absently poked at it.

Then it was time for the first dance of the throuple together. However, Patroclus was lost inside his mind, he didn’t see it nor when it ended. It wasn’t until Achilles pulled him out of his seat that he remembered his existence.

"What are you doing?" Patroclus asked softly.

"We're dancing!" Achilles said cheerfully, maybe way more cheerfully than the activity guaranteed.

Patroclus looked around, the three newlyweds were sitting on their table again, laughing and eating, letting other people use the dance floor.

"I don't know how to dance," Patroclus pushed out words, not with the energy to oppose.

"Well, then don't dance, just sway with me," Achilles said and smiled.

He put one hand at Patroclus' waist while the other held his hand. As an automatic response, Patroclus put his free hand on Achilles' shoulder.

The band began playing, and a woman sang:

"When marimba rhythm starts to play,

Dance with me, make me sway.

Like a lazy ocean hugs the shore 

Hold me close, sway me more."

Achilles moved his body and feet slowly, as if afraid that any sudden movement would scare Patroclus away. Patroclus for his part, swayed from one side to the other following Achilles' lead, not even attempting to dance.

If Patroclus had more presence of mind, he'd notice how people around him began mumbling.

"Who is he? Is he an omega?"

"Yes, I think he's the grandson of Actor."

"Actor? The one who threw away his fortune in whores, alcohol, and casinos?"

"The same one."

"Well, then let's hope the grandson didn't inherit his personality."

"Not like the son of Thetis couldn't keep him in check."

"The real question here is if he can keep Achilles in check."

Achilles' eyes never left Patroclus' face at all, "Do you like the song? Maybe I should make a cover of it."

Patroclus hummed, but otherwise, he didn’t answer.

Achilles sighed, "What happened, Patroclus? Did Paris tell you something bad? Something about me? You shouldn't listen to him at all.”

He leaned forward, “His family has some reputation, you know? I once heard that the older son abused an omega that was staying with them, a minor; and instead of doing something to punish his son, Priam kicked out the omega. Despicable stuff."

Patroclus shook his head and lowered his gaze.

Achilles stopped moving. He let go of Patroclus' hand and took his chin, "What's wrong, dear? It hurts me to see you like this. Please, talk to me."

Patroclus inhaled deeply, he felt tears filling his eyes. "It's just... What do you do when you care a lot about someone, but that person doesn't care about you? When that person abandons you? How do you deal with that sadness?"

The music continued flowing calmly around them.

"¿Quién será el que me quiera a mí? 

¿Quién será? ¿Quién será?

¿Quién será el que me dé su amor? 

¿Quién será? ¿Quién será?"

Achilles remained silent for a moment. Then he began caressing Patroclus' face. "One time, I said a similar thing to someone very dear and close to my heart, and he told me. ‘I’ll be the one to love you. So, you won’t be sad anymore'. I guess I'll have to love you a lot more, so you won’t be sad ever again."

Patroclus blinked away some tears, he wanted the pain to stop. Even if he didn't admit it, he had been hurting since he was 15. Trapped in an unrequited love, in the tallest tower, surrounded by thick bushes of thorns that won't let anyone in.

He was waiting for the one that wasn't there. He wanted someone who wouldn’t send him away. Maybe Achilles could save him…

Achilles cleaned Patroclus’ tears tenderly. "Hey, don't cry, you—"

Patroclus leaped forward and kissed Achilles.

At first Achilles was in shock, he didn’t move at all, but shortly after, he began reciprocating. The kiss was deep and full of desire. Patroclus put his hands on Achilles’ lower back, and brought him close to his body, then he bit Achilles' bottom lip, trying to provoke something in himself that wasn’t there, but it made Achilles gasp.

Patroclus found that he didn’t feel anything at all, just pain for Hector. He couldn't do it, he couldn't even tolerate Achilles being any close to him at that moment.

Hector...!

He put distance between Achilles and him. Just to found himself confronted with a dark gaze full of lust.

He made a mistake.

Achilles grabbed Patroclus' arm and pulled him away from the dance floor. He pushed people out of the way, until he finally found a supplies closet. Achilles opened the door and threw Patroclus in, then he himself entered and closed the door behind.

Patroclus quickly felt Achilles pressing his body against his own, as if trying to melt them together. Achilles kissed him desperately, like Patroclus was water and Achilles a traveler in the middle of the desert. 

He quickly undid the buttons on Patroclus' vest and untucked his shirt and undershirt. His hand then found his way to Patroclus' skin. He gasped with Achilles' cold hands. 

Patroclus felt like he had no choice but to stay frozen. He didn’t want Achilles to lash out in anger and hurt him.

Achilles stopped the kiss and began softly nibbling at Patroclus' neck while he touched his chest. Then his hands began traveling down. Patroclus began trembling with anxiety, he closed his eyes hard and tensed his body, biting down a sob.

Achilles stopped touching him, he panted and put his forehead on top of Patroclus' chest. 

"What's wrong?" 

Patroclus shook his head.

"Tell me what's wrong," Achilles insisted.

"I don't… I don’t want to... Please don’t hurt me." It was the only thing Patroclus managed to say.

Achilles laughed with disbelief, "You don't have even a remote idea of how you make me feel."

Patroclus flinched at those words and sobbed.

Achilles then put as much space between himself and Patroclus as he could while remaining in the small closet, he turned on the lights.

Patroclus saw his yellow suit, completely wrinkled, and messed up. Achilles tried to help him to fix it again, but Patroclus pushed his hands away. After he managed to get his suit semi presentable again and Achilles' boner was less obvious. They both got out of the closet. 

Outside, they found most guests were dancing in two big circles, hand in hand with each other, they cheered. Patroclus turned to Achilles. 

"I want to go home."

Achilles nodded.

--------------------------------

The ride back home was silent and awkward. Patroclus passed more of the time holding back tears, trying not to think about Hector, than anything else.

When they got to Patroclus' house. He was about to run away, but Achilles held him back with one hand. 

"Patroclus, please. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable or to hurt you. That's the last thing I'd want. I'm sorry if I misread the signals. I’m an idiot, ok? Please forgive me." Achilles said with a worried look.

Patroclus fucked up. He was such a fool.

He shook his head and snatched his hand back and ran to his house. 

There he saw Menoetius on the living room watching television. His father lifted his head to him, "What happened? You're early."

Patroclus shook his head again, "I feel like I'm going to vomit."

He ran to his room; there he took out the pocket watch and opened it.

"For my prince, the one I've been looking for all my life."

Patroclus let the tears stain his vision. He thought about what Hector did to him, giving him false hopes to just abandon him, the same thing he did to Achilles.

He didn’t want it; he didn’t want any of it at all.

He closed the watch again and hid it at the bottom of a box that he then put it on the bottom of his closet. Patroclus didn’t want to see it ever again or even acknowledge its existence. 

Sobs began on his chest. He laid on his bed and cried.

--------------------------------

He ignored all calls and messages during the next day, most likely it was Achilles. It seemed like he took the hint and stopped trying to contact him after a day.

Patroclus cried and cried. He didn’t want to do any of it anymore, he should call off the whole thing already.

After four days spent drowning in his misery, someone went and knocked on his door.

Myrto opened it and entered.

"Patroclus, you've got visitors."

Patroclus shook his head and buried his face between pillows.

Myrto sighed. "I'll leave you two alone then." He heard the door closing and steps getting closer.

Then. "That's not a very nice way to treat your favorite brother." 

Patroclus lifted his face and saw Paris at the side of his bed. He smelled like sweet strawberries.

Patroclus sat and hugged himself.

Paris smiled kindly at Patroclus, "What happened? You went away without saying goodbye the other day."

Patroclus looked away, "I got bad news."

Paris sat at his side, "What news?"

Patroclus sighed, "One of my suitors. The one I really liked and was thinking about marrying, canceled everything, and left..." Patroclus felt tears spilling.

Paris tilted his head, "Achilles?"

Patroclus shook his head. 

Paris nodded. He gave Patroclus a side hug. 

"What am I going to do without him? He was my everything! Without him, I feel so lost and alone. And I’ve been so fucking stupid, hurting Achilles and leading him on. I’m such an ugly and pathetic omega," Patroclus lamented.

"Don't say that!"

"But is true! I'm just an ugly omega," Patroclus cried more. "He didn't even say goodbye."

"Well, fuck him then," Paris hugged Patroclus tightly.

Patroclus shook his head, "I miss him..." He missed Achilles too.

Paris shook his head, "You shouldn't let him affect you like that."

"He’s the love of my life, and he abandoned me," Patroclus kept crying.

Paris got up, "Stop."

Patroclus sniffed, "But—"

"I said stop! He didn't care about you or how you felt, you shouldn't give him the honor to be in your mind." Paris said firmly.

"I love—"

"Nope!" Paris shook his head, "Stop saying you love him, because he doesn't deserve it."

"And what do I do with all the love I have for him?" 

"Turn it into anger! Prove to him that you don’t need him!" Paris said with conviction, "that's what I did after one of my past partners cheated on me. I was so betrayed and hurt. Then I fucked someone hotter than her and shoved it on her face. I felt better afterward." 

Patroclus frowned at that, "I don't think that's a very good idea." 

Paris shrugged, "Who cares!? It made me feel better, and it made me realize that I deserved better than her. Don't you want to feel better?" 

Patroclus hiccuped, "I want to stop hurting..."

Paris sat again on the bed. "Then, show him! Show him that you deserve better. Make him regretted it and crawl back to you! The when he gets back asking for forgiveness, kick his ass!"

"How?" 

"How? Get with someone better!" Paris said with enthusiasm.

Patroclus shook his head, "Nobody wants me..."

Paris took Patroclus' face with both hands. "That's not true! You're beautiful, kind, and intelligent, everyone would want you."

Patroclus shook his head; he shoved Paris' hands away. "I don't want to..." He laid down and put his head on Paris' lap. "I just want him to come back..."

Paris sighed; he began massaging Patroclus' scalp. 

“I wish life was kinder to you…”

--------------------------------

Patroclus spent the next few days on his bed. 

Seconds blended into minutes, minutes into hours, hours into days and days into nights. He couldn’t tell how long he laid down in the caustic love and sadness anymore. He got up occasionally to eat and go to the bathroom, but other than that, he became a non-entity.

--------------------------------

He tapped his foot on the floor as he looked ahead. The sterile smell was too much for his nose, and he was tired of it. But he kept sitting, constantly looking at the white door at the end of the hall. 

The beep of the heart monitor of the room at his side was constant, and Patroclus thought that his head hurt with it. 

He turned to look at the door again and saw roses of different colors bursting out through the cracks of the door.

Patroclus wondered if that was normal, looking around, nobody seemed to care. He stood up and slowly walked to the door with roses. His hand extended to touch one petal, but then he regretted it and went back to sit. 

He sighed.

The sound of the door opening distracted him from his thoughts. He looked up and—

"Hector?"

Patroclus stood up, and Hector walked towards him. His electric blue eyes never left his face.

As Hector got closer, he lifted his hands to him. Patroclus didn't stop him. Then he pressed his thumbs against Patroclus’ neck.

“What are you doing? What are—“

The floor beneath them dissolved, and they fell into water.

Patroclus tried to scream, but only bubbles came out of his mouth.

No one will save you.

Patroclus shook his head. He screamed again, yet only silence.

You’re pathetic. Waiting for someone who won’t come, loving someone who doesn't care for you.

Patroclus closed his eyes. It hurt, his love hurt so much. 

He only ever wanted to be with him. Why was that so bad? Why did he do to be punished in that way?

Yet…

He grabbed Hector's shoulders and pulled him closer. He bit his neck and red rose’s petals appeared everywhere. Hector screamed, but Patroclus didn’t stop biting.

The water became darker and darker as both sunk together.

--------------------------------

Patroclus woke up slowly. Drop by drop, his consciousness returned to his original shape. He hadn't showered in days and felt utterly disgusting.

He got up. It felt like a lot of time had happened in his dream. At least a millennium.

You've always been one to wait to be saved. That's your role in the story, not a hero, but a victim.

Patroclus breathed deeply and looked at the distance in front of him.

I’m tired of being in pain because of him.

He got up and walked to the dining room, where his father and sister were drinking coffee. 

Menoetius looked up. "Are you done being so lazy?" He took a sip out of his coffee.

"Why didn’t you let me see mom at the hospital?" Patroclus blurted out.

Menoetius shrugged, "It was what she wanted." 

"You let Myrto see her." 

His dad sighed, "Listen, you've always been a bleeding heart. She knew that if you saw her like that, you just would do what you always do, you'd want to help her. But you couldn’t help her that time. Then you'd get overwhelmed with that and shut down for days, like you just did. It was better for you."

"I'm starting to forget what her voice sounded like..." 

Myrto looked away, Menoetius simply massaged his head with exasperation. 

“At this point, does it matter anymore?”

"I... I wanted to tell you two, I’ve made up my mind, and I’m done moping around.” Patroclus paused for a moment, he felt determination harden in his heart.

“I want to marry Achilles." 

--------------------------------

Patroclus knew he was cruel; he was uncaring of what he was about to do. However, he was tired of just waiting for Hector to come and save him, he was tired of being the victim. Now he wanted to hurt his prince.

For once in his life, he wanted to put his own feelings first. He felt sorry for Achilles, but not that much.

After taking a warm shower, he had made some peach tea with honey for himself and was calmly drinking it at the table.

Myrto entered again with her cellphone in her hand. "Are you sure about this? Once I tell him, there's no coming back." 

Patroclus hummed.

"Of course he is sure," Menoetius assured at his side.

"Ok." Myrto put her phone down, "I'll tell him tomorrow; you still got a chance to change your mind."

He was tired of just waiting for someone who ran away. Patroclus took another sip of his tea, he watched the bottom of the cup. It had the drawings of a rose.

"Alright."

Myrto laughed, “You know, it doesn’t surprise me. He kind of looks like dad.” She stood up and walked to her room. 

Patroclus decided to ignore that comment.

--------------------------------

Patroclus thought it was a petty thing to do. But if the next time he saw Hector, and that idiot felt any amount of regret at leaving behind. Then it’d be worth it in Patroclus' mind.

He was eating breakfast; cereal, still in his pajamas. His dad was sitting at the table, then his sister entered the room, "Hey, I called Achilles to tell him..."

"And?" Patroclus asked.

"He hung up," Myrto said as she sat down.

Menoetius huffed, "I’m sure something happened with his phone. Let's wait for him to call back." 

They kept eating in silence.

Some minutes later at the distance they heard a very loud motor. Then a car sliding down the road followed by manic knocking on their front door.

Myrto frowned and got up to answer. Patroclus kept chewing his cereal.

The sound of the door opening.

"Hey, I was—"

The sound of something hitting the floor and Myrto complaining. Steps coming his way.

Achilles appeared, completely disheveled and wearing what looked like white Pajamas.

Menoetius stood up. "Achilles! What are you do—"

Achilles ignored his dad and went to fall to his knees at his side, "Is it true? You want to marry me?" He asked softly.

Patroclus swallowed the cereal he was eating and nodded. 

Achilles breathed deeply. "I thought… After what happened at that weeding... I thought..." He covered his face with his hands and breathed again. When his hands dropped. Patroclus saw some tears on his eyes as he smiled.

Patroclus felt a painful squeeze on his heart.

Achilles stood up and kissed him, it was a long kiss. But it was soft and sweet, full of adoration and care.

Patroclus threw his arms around his neck and smiled into the kiss. He knew his role well and how to play it.

He was a despicable man.

Achilles stopped the kiss and giggled. He put his arms around Patroclus’ waist and lifted him up.

"Achilles! Wait! Put me down!" Patroclus panicked at the sudden movement.

Achilles laughed more and began spinning them around.

"Achilles!" Patroclus screamed.

Achilles stopped. "Sorry! Sorry!" He put Patroclus down without letting him go. He kissed him again and tried to contain his laughter. Patroclus began laughing in the kiss as well. Achilles stopped the kiss and held him close as he laughed.

Patroclus was sorry for using him.

--------------------------------

They were on Patroclus' room, lying on the bed together, face to face. Apparently, Achilles had come as soon as Myrto had called him. He didn't even finish his breakfast.

"Then I jumped on my Bugatti and drove here, I think at one point a police car was following me, but I managed to lose him." Achilles' mumbled while caressing Patroclus' cheeks.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow. "You have a Bugatti? The car of your driver is a pretty normal one."

"Can I tell you a secret?"

Patroclus nodded.

"I knew you knew I have money. But I didn't want you to think I was an entitled asshole, so I didn't show you my cars. That is the fastest car I own, and I didn't want to wait another unnecessary second to see you." Achilles said with a smile on his face.

Patroclus giggled, "Really? After you took me to a super expensive restaurant on the first date?"

Pink bloomed on Achilles' cheeks after that. "Hey, I said I didn't want you to think that I'm an asshole, not that I didn't want to impress you. Besides, apparently that restaurant is fantastic."

"You impressed me by being so kind to me that day."

"Is just the bare minimum of what you deserve." 

"That's the bare minimum of what everyone should deserve."

Achilles hummed, he observed Patroclus' eyes, "I feel so lucky that you want to marry me."

Patroclus looked at Achilles with some guilt leaking into his heart.

"I mean, I'm sure there are hundreds of alphas who would kill for you."

Patroclus snorted, "Actually... You were my only suitor, no one else wanted me."

"That's their loss, then," Achilles tucked a curl behind Patroclus' ear. "But I'm kind of happy for that. I won't have to fight to the death with any unhappy rejected alphas."

"Is that so..." Patroclus looked away. His mind wandered to Hector.

"Hey, ask me what my favorite color is."

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, "Didn't you say honey?"

"Just ask me."

"Fine, what is your favorite color?"

"You."

"Me?"

Achilles nodded, "The color of your eyes, the color of your skin, the color of your hair." He slightly touched Patroclus' lips, "The color of your lips... Now ask me what my favorite type of music is."

"What's your favorite type of music?" 

Achilles closed his eyes, "Your voice, your laughter," He sighed dreamily. "Now ask me what's my favorite smell."

Patroclus rolled his eyes with fondness, "I'm guessing it's my scent."

Achilles opened his eyes and got closer to Patroclus' body, "Yes, and my favorite taste? The taste of your lips, my favorite thing to see? Your beautiful smile. My favorite sensation? Your warm skin. You're my everything and then more."

Patroclus turned away from Achilles and laid on his back, "Achilles... I want to marry you, and I'll marry you. But don't you think that's a lot? We've just met."

Achilles shook his head, "I've known you almost all my life, when—"

Patroclus giggled at that, "What? Did you meet me in a dream?"

Achilles smiled softly; he began humming a melody.

"Are you seriously going to sing that—"

Achilles hugged Patroclus, "I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream."

"If what you said before was a bit too much—"

"I know you, the gleam in your eyes is so familiar a gleam." Achilles' voice was high and melodic, almost feminine.

"Then this really is a lot of Achilles, a lot—"

"Yet I know it's true, that visions are seldom all they seem." Achilles sang with a big smile.

"You are such a romantic, you know that?"

"But if I know you, I know what you’ll do." Achilles sat on top of Patroclus' hips and put his hands on the other’s chest.

Patroclus stayed silent.

"You love me at once," Achilles leaned down and pressed their foreheads together, "the way you did once upon a dream."

He kissed Patroclus slowly, sweetly, it wasn't hard for Patroclus to reciprocate. Achilles' hands began wandering on his chest, until they finally found their way underneath his shirt. 

Patroclus let him do it, he did say he wanted to marry him, even if it wasn't for the reason Achilles thought. Achilles snapped his hips forward while still on top of Patroclus' crotch.

I promise I'll never fall in love—

"Stop. Please, stop," Patroclus begged as he pushed away Achilles.

"What's wrong?" Achilles looked at his face, trying to find a reason.

Patroclus sighed, "Is just that..." what could he say that didn't sound like complete bullshit? "I want to wait till marriage, if that’s alright with you."

Achilles made a face, like he had been kicked in the groin. He put his nose on the place where Patroclus' jaw connected to his neck and inhaled deeply before getting off Patroclus and laying at his side. 

"The things you do to me..." Achilles mumbled. 

He nodded stiffly, Hector was still on his mind.

Achilles hugged him from the side. Patroclus knew very well that he wasn’t a good man.

Chapter Text

Achilles went daily to Patroclus' house for the next two weeks. Sometimes he'd convince Patroclus to go out for some food, or a drink. But a lot of the time was spent cuddling and kissing. The kisses could get overly heated, but Achilles would always pull away before Patroclus had to stop him. 

From time to time, he'd just be there, lying at Patroclus' side, breathing with his eyes closed as if asleep. One memorable time, he had murmured something about Patroclus being an expert in giving Achilles blue balls, and Patroclus had laughed so hard he almost threw up. 

But other than that, and the occasional time Achilles stole Patroclus' used underwear when he thought he wasn’t looking. it was a very sweet and innocent experience. Achilles mostly wanted to hold him, fall asleep on his chest hearing his voice, and wake up to him again. 

Patroclus felt horrible.

He had convinced Achilles of having a small wedding as soon as possible. He didn’t care about the details, just that it was small and quick. Patroclus left all the planning to Achilles; only asking that it wasn’t a religious wedding. Menoetius was a very religious man, but Christianity always left a bad taste in his mouth.

Achilles had happily said that he'd take care of everything, he only had asked for Patroclus to meet his parents and friends before the wedding. That Patroclus could do.

First, Patroclus was going to meet Peleus and Phoenix.

The day they decided to go, Achilles had arrived earlier to his house, right when Patroclus was entering the shower.

When he finished his shower, Patroclus expected Achilles to be in the living room with his father. He went out of the bathroom with a towel around his hips directly to his room. There he found Achilles in his bed watching something on his cellphone. As soon as he saw Patroclus entering, he dropped his phone and sat on the bed.

"Hello handsome," Achilles purred.

"I thought you would be talking with my dad, like a good son-in-law."

Achilles hummed, "I like your dad, but I wanted to wait for you here."

Patroclus walked to him. "Well, now you'll have to go out because I'm going to change."

"And?" Achilles put his arms around Patroclus' waist and pulled him closer, "We're going to marry; I can see you naked." 

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, "I told you I wanted to wait."

Achilles grinned, "A little small peek won't hurt." He kissed Patroclus' chest. "You didn't dry yourself properly, there are still drops of water here," he kissed him again, "and here," Another kiss.

Patroclus put his hands on Achilles' hair, “I guess I need better towels."

Achilles mumbled with half closed eyes, "I'll buy you all the towels in the world." He licked Patroclus' skin.

Patroclus gasped with the surprise of it, he pushed Achilles away. "Stop."

Achilles let him go and Patroclus walked away.

"So... no peek?" Achilles said sheepishly while still sitting on the bed.

"Why must I be the only one naked? Why can't you be the one to give me the small peek?"

Achilles snorted; he unbuttoned the collar of his shirt slowly. "That's something I can fix really quickly," he said with a husky voice.

There wasn’t any universe in which that wouldn't end badly. Instead, Patroclus took some boxers from his drawer, put them on without taking the towel off, and then finally he dropped the towel, “No.”

Achilles huffed and lied down again.

Patroclus sighed, "What should I wear to meet your fathers? Something fancy?”

"No, just wear whatever you are comfortable in, they'll love you anyway."

Patroclus went through his clothes, turning his back to Achilles, “But I can’t meet your fathers in sweatpants and a T-shirt, I have to at least make an effort.” He took out a dark purple shirt and white jeans, it wasn’t overly informal, but also not elegant by any means. He lifted the garments in one hand, so Achilles could see them, “what do you think about this?” No answer. 

He turned his head to watch his fiancé over his shoulder, “Achilles?”

Achilles was very focused on watching something else.

“Achilles! Stop looking at my ass!” Patroclus turned and covered his body with the clothes on his hands.

That made Achilles snap out of his trance, “I’m sorry, is just… Your ass is very round and pretty, it jiggles when you move...”

“Achilles!” Patroclus covered his face with his hands.

“What? I’m allowed to be attracted to your body, I’m your husband.”

Patroclus huffed and put his hands down, swallowing his embarrassment, “Technically, you are my fiancé.”

Achilles stood up and walked to Patroclus. “But very soon, I’ll be your husband,” he put his hands on Patroclus’ waist, “and there’s a no return policy, not even with your receipt, I’m all yours handsome,” Achilles gave him a small kiss on the mouth.

Patroclus couldn’t help the smile that broke out in his face at that.

--------------------------------

The travel to Achilles' house was a relatively long one. Eudoros was driving at a normal speed, and Patroclus couldn’t understand the velocity at which Achilles had been driving the other day to arrive as soon as he did.

He looked out the window, expecting the change of architecture from small ugly houses and smaller shops to big modern skyscrapers, just as it happened the day they went out for their suits. But instead, the houses changed into slightly bigger houses that were very pretty.

Patroclus had noted the phenomenon where the houses of people with less money were prettier on the inside than the outside. While the houses of people with more money tended to be equally pretty on the outside as they were on the inside. So he knew that he was in a zone with a lot of economic power.

Achilles pinched his side.

"Hey!" Patroclus turned to him, "What's wrong with you? Why did you do that?" 

Achilles pouted, "I'm bored, I want attention." 

"What are you? A cat or something?" Patroclus turned back to the window, just to be pinched again by Achilles. "Stop." Patroclus slapped Achilles' hand away.

He stayed with his eyes on the window, though his focus was more on his peripheral vision, watching what Achilles was doing.

Achilles slowly moved his hand towards Patroclus. He made small movements with his fingers. Patroclus lifted his hand to slap Achilles' away; when Achilles simply stopped moving. Patroclus carefully put his hand down while making sure Achilles didn't start moving again.

Then Achilles pinched him on the side again. 

Patroclus turned to Achilles completely while his hand was raised, daring him to move. Achilles tested the waters by putting his hand out. Patroclus tried to slap it, but Achilles moved it before it happened.

Patroclus huffed and raised his hand one more time. Achilles put out his hand, and again Patroclus tried to slap it, just to fail when Achilles reacted quickly.

The same thing repeated itself ten times more, with increasingly less time between each attempt. Patroclus was growing more and more frustrated.

Achilles put out his hand again, Patroclus observed it and bit his lips. He shouldn't fall into provocations. 

Of course he tried to slap it again just for Achilles to move it out of the way.

Achilles chuckled, he put his hand out one more time, "C'mon, I'll let you do it this time, I promise."

Patroclus analyzed Achilles' mocking smile. He decided to do something he hadn't done since he was a small child. He jumped forward and bit Achilles' arm.

"No!" Achilles said, cackling, "Stop! You're drooling all over my clothes." Achilles was wearing a long sleeve shirt in a beige color that would surely look wet on the spot Patroclus was biting.

He didn't care and kept biting.

Try to move away now, bitch.

"Ok, but I want you to know that you forced me to do this." He finished the sentence with a serious tone, then moved his other arm to Patroclus’ body and began tickling him.

Patroclus cackled, and Achilles used that opportunity to move on top of Patroclus and tickle him more. 

"No! Stop! Achilles!" He kept laughing and tried to get Achilles off him.

Then someone opened the door of the car.

Patroclus stopped laughing and Achilles ceased his tickling when they saw the man in front of them. It was an old man with short salt and pepper hair and a very big but well-trimmed black beard with a lot of white in it. His skin was a dark olive tone, and his eyes were small, but had a kind dark brown color; his eyebrows were bushy, and he had a big Aquiline nose. 

All in all, he had an aura of tenderness around him.

Patroclus hummed at the man watching him as he was still under Achilles, "Hi?"

Achilles got off him and jumped out of the car, "Papa! This is Patroclus!"

Papa!?

Patroclus immediately sat and began straightening his clothes, even though the marriage thing was nothing more than a charade, a big part of him still wanted to be liked by Achilles' parents.

"And Patroclus, this is papa Phoenix! He's the one who helped me cook the other day."

Patroclus almost crawled out of the car, he managed to find his footing and thanked the gods that his dark skin didn't show his blush. "Um, it’s a pleasure to meet you, sir!" He offered his hand.

Phoenix looked at Patroclus' hand and raised an eyebrow.

Patroclus flinched internally. Maybe he was one of those conservative people who thought that an omega should never shake hands with an alpha, only look at the ground and nod. He let his hand down and turned to Achilles.

Achilles was giving him a very big smile; he didn't seem to notice the problem.

Then Phoenix laughed, "Oh, come here and give me a hug." He said with open arms.

Patroclus was taken aback by that, but before he could react, Phoenix hugged him. Patroclus noticed his smell, burnt wood and myrrh, a very alpha-like scent, unlike Achilles'.

"We're practically family now, so let's drop the formalities," Phoenix stopped the hug and patted Patroclus on the arm.

He was a little smaller than both Achilles and him, with what looked like 1.70 meters of height. Phoenix turned towards Achilles, and then frowned, "What is that wet spot on your shirt?"

Achilles laughed as Patroclus looked away. Finally, Phoenix sighed with a tone that indicated he didn't want to know, "Let's go with your dad, ok?"

Achilles nodded and took Patroclus' hand. He guided him as Phoenix walked by his side. They got into a house with a big yard, whereupon entering two dogs approached him, wagging their tails and whimpering for pets. 

"Menis! Pent hos!" Patroclus let go of Achilles and began petting the dogs. "How are you babies? Did you miss me?"

The dogs seemed overjoyed at seeing him again but controlled their excitement as to not jump on him. Patroclus thanked that, he was wearing white jeans.

Phoenix hummed, "You like dogs a lot, don't you?"

Patroclus nodded, he petted the dogs, "Yep, I'm a vet, well... Right now, I'm searching for a job, but I'm a veterinary surgeon."

"Then I guess a dog is a ticket to your heart."

Patroclus chuckled, "I wouldn't say so, but it certainly doesn't hurt to have one." He began scratching behind Menis' ear, "Isn't that right, baby? That's right baby!" He said with a high-pitched voice.

Phoenix sent a look towards Achilles. Achilles simply rolled his eyes with annoyance at that.

Patroclus straightened his back, and the dogs ran back to the house.

The house itself was big, but not overly so. By the amount of money Achilles' family allegedly had, it was a small house. Still extremely large in comparison with Patroclus’ house.

They entered, to be received by a warm inside with different shades of brown wood and golden lights. They walked through a hall, and then Achilles took him to a living room with big, soft-looking couches.

Patroclus sat on one and was pleasantly surprised by the way his weight slowly sank into it. Achilles went to his side and Phoenix disappeared into one corridor that led somewhere else. Menis and Penthos stood at their feet.

Achilles took his hand and kissed his palm softly.

"Hey, behave," Patroclus said.

"What do you mean behave? I'm behaving perfectly fine compared to others, mister bites." He took Patroclus fingers inside his mouth and began sucking on them.

Patroclus snatched away his hand from Achilles. He then looked at Patroclus with a pout that was so childish that Patroclus couldn't help but giggle at it.

Someone walked in. 

"Oh, Patroclus! It’s so nice to finally meet you in person." A man appeared out of the hallway, followed by Phoenix.

The first thing Patroclus noticed was his hair. He had the reddest hair Patroclus had ever seen. It was long, curly, and wild as fire, with some streaks of white going through it. 

Patroclus got off the couch and walked to him, this time he wasn't surprised when he was hugged by whom he assumed was Achilles’ father. Peleus' scent was lovely, sweet oranges and honey.

Patroclus didn't know what to think of Peleus. It wasn't like what he expected, and at the same time, he totally looked like what he had imagined.

He was short; 1.60 meters at most, and thin, with pale skin covered in freckles. He had green, kind eyes, and his beard was short and neatly cut. In a way, it kind of reminded him of Menoetius.

Patroclus couldn't help but focus not on what he had in common with Achilles, but the things they didn’t share. 

For starters, Achilles’ nose was straight while Peleus' nose had a curve upwards. Achilles’ lips weren't overly big, but they looked round and soft like a petal rose with a perfectly defined cupid bow; Peleus' lips were thin and looked like a red line. Then the eyes, Peleus' green eyes had a round shape and were big, Achilles' eyes were sharp and smaller with an angular shape. Finally, the shape of the face, while Peleus' was soft and round, made angular and longer by his beard, Achilles’ was naturally slender like a diamond.

He thought about what Eudoros said, about Achilles being like his mother. As he saw Peleus, he could make an image of what Achilles' mother might look like.

When Peleus finished the hug, he observed Patroclus up and down, "You look a lot like your mother, but you have that imposing demeanor of your father." 

Patroclus frowned, "You knew my mother?"

Peleus nodded and sat with Phoenix on the couch opposite Achilles. "Of course I did. But please, sit down, the tea is almost ready, I hope you like green tea."

Patroclus sat down, "Uhh, sure."

"It's imported, from Japan," Peleus smiled.

Patroclus recognized the same small sad smile from Achilles, "Can I ask how you knew my mother?"

Peleus chuckled, "Your dad and I are friends; we don’t talk a lot these days, sadly."

Patroclus tilted his head, "And how did you meet my father?"

"Do you know about your grandfather? Actor?"

Patroclus nodded, "I never met him. But I've been told some things about him, like, how he lost all his money and left my father with a lot of debt.

"That’s not everything there is to know about Actor. Before he died, he had taken up the habit of scamming old women to try to get as much money out of them as possible. One of those women was my grandmother."

Patroclus frowned, "Oh..."

"That's how I met Menoetius. I went to confront him about it, I thought he was in his father’s plans. But he didn’t even know what his father was doing. We talked, and then discovered we were attending the same college. Both in the first year, I was studying classic literature, and he was studying some kind of engineering, we became friends almost immediately."

Two women entered the room, both of them were carrying trails that then deposited on the small table and began pouring tea.

"Shortly after that, Actor died. He choked on his own vomit after a night of heavy drinking, or so I heard, and Menoetius was left alone. He had some very distant family that handled his papers. I tried to help him, but it was the blind leading the blind, as a friend was the only reason I wasn’t in the same boat as him. He was completely alone, and then he had to abandon college."

Peleus cleared his throat, "Those were some very rough years for him. Back then, it wasn't easy for omegas to get a job or even rent a house without being married to an alpha or beta. So, his family began sending his photo out to get him married as soon as possible; and a particular alpha with a promising career proposed. He talked to me about her, how she had a lot of money thanks to her job. I even got to talk to her before the wedding. She was shy but very kind."

The women gave them the cups of tea.

"Would you like some sugar or milk, Patroclus?" Phoenix asked.

Patroclus shook his head, "No, this is fine." He took the warm cup of tea in his hands.

Peleus took a sip, "And that's how I knew her, your mother... You have a lot of her in you."

Patroclus smiled; it didn't reach his eyes.

"But anyway, let's get to business," Peleus put his cup down. "You want to marry my son then?"

Patroclus nodded, and Achilles took his hand.

Peleus hummed. "You know, I can see clearly why Achilles would want to marry you. You are beautiful like few other omegas and seem very kind. You have a good family name, and it's not like I can stop my son from marrying you if he wants to, but..." He took another sip, "are marrying him just for money?"

"Dad..." Achilles said, as a warning.

"Achilles... I'm trying to protect you. There’s nothing wrong about marrying for money. That is the main reason people marry in the first place," Peleus answered. "I only want you to know for sure what your situation is."

Patroclus shook his head, "No, I'm not marrying him because of that."

Peleus raised an eyebrow, "Then, why?"

Patroclus squeezed Achilles' hand. It was because he wanted to shove it in Hector’s face. He wanted him to know that even without him, Patroclus was able to move on, to get someone better, and that he made a mistake by leaving. 

"Because when I talk to him, I feel like I can tell him everything in my mind, and maybe he wouldn't understand. But he'd listen, and he'd believe me, that's why I want to marry him."

Patroclus didn't know if that was a good excuse. 

"I see... Few people have that privilege, you know? To have someone that'd believe you when nobody else does," Peleus then sighed, he closed his eyes and shook his head, before opening them and smiling. "Well, and what would you like for a wedding gift?"

"Whatever you want to give, we will appreciate."

"Lingerie for Patroclus," Achilles said quickly.

Patroclus shoved his elbow at Achilles' ribs.

Fortunately, both Peleus and Phoenix laughed at it.

"I supposed that'd be a very direct way of asking for grandchildren," Phoenix took a sip of his cup.

"What are your measures, Patroclus?"  Peleus’ smile made wrinkles form around his green eyes.

Patroclus laughed awkwardly, "You know how Achilles is. He didn’t mean it seriously."

"I'll send them to you later," Achilles said firmly.

Patroclus shoved his elbow into Achilles’ side once more.

--------------------------------

Dinner consisted mostly of fancy meals that Patroclus didn’t know. It had been cooked by the chef of the house, though in his mind he still preferred when Achilles cooked.

Phoenix and Peleus sat on one side of the table, and Achilles and Patroclus on the other.

"I read the Hobbit when I was a kid, and I love it now too; maybe it's because of nostalgia, but occasionally when I've got the time, I stop to read it again," Peleus smiled.

"Achilles says he doesn't like books a lot," Patroclus offered.

Peleus shook his head, "No, I tried to make him read when he was younger, but it was akin to squeeze water from a rock."

Achilles huffed with a little annoyance, "You know, it's because it’s hard for me to focus." 

"But when he's playing music, it’s like magic, and he has this look on his face that you can tell that he has become one with music," Phoenix interrupted.

Patroclus smiled, that sounded like a beautiful feeling, "He hasn't played anything for me, he just sings."

Achilles leaned his body on Patroclus, "I haven't played anything for you, yet."

Phoenix got up, "Let me go for the album so you can see him." He walked away. 

Achilles rolled his eyes at that.

Peleus shook his head, "Let that old man have his fun."

Phoenix reappeared again with a book in his hand. "I'm 10 years younger than you, love."

Peleus chuckled, "They don't need to know that."

Phoenix gave Patroclus the album and sat again.

Patroclus opened it slowly, as if it was something invaluable.

Inside, he found several pictures of a young Achilles doing different activities. There it was Achilles winning a race, Achilles winning a basketball match, Achilles riding a horse. But one that caught his attention was Achilles' playing the violin. He was wearing a little suit with a bow tie, his strawberry blond hair that now was past his chest was cut short to his shoulders on the picture. His eyes were closed, and a small smile decorated his feminine face. 

"You looked so pretty!" Patroclus smiled at his side, "Everyone would've thought you were a little omega!" 

"Am I not pretty now?"

"Of course you are, you're prettier than I. Though that's not hard," Patroclus said nonchalantly.

Achilles hugged him and kissed his cheek, "Don't say that; you’re beautiful."

Patroclus giggled at Achilles' kiss, he looked up and saw Peleus and Phoenix smiling at him.

Phoenix sighed. "Ah, there's something so beautiful about young love."

Patroclus kept watching the photos that spanned years of his fiancé's life. There were a lot of Achilles playing any instrument imaginable, even the tuba and the oboe. A lot of photos of Achilles playing sports or dancing. He seemed like the textbook definition of an overachiever.

Patroclus turned the page and found a photo of what looked like Achilles at approximately 18-years-old, he was wearing a nice blue suit, and his arm was around the waist of a young, small, curvy woman. She was wearing a beautiful red dress that complemented her dark red hair and pale skin, her eyes were a beautiful shade of green. She was astoundingly beautiful. 

"Who is she?" Patroclus asked as he eyed the photo. Both of them were smiling, though Achilles' smile looked a little forced.

Achilles leaned towards him to look at the album. "Oh." He took the photo out of the album and put it in his pocket, "Nobody important, don't worry about it." 

Patroclus frowned at Achilles, nonetheless he kept looking through the album until it ended. He couldn't help but notice something.

"Where are your baby pictures? The youngest you look in this is like 10," Patroclus said and softly closed the album.

At that, Peleus stood up, "I'm a little tired, I guess I'll go to sleep early today." He quickly walked away.

"Is 9 pm?" Patroclus frowned, "did I say something wrong?"

Achilles shook his head, "My dad is being dramatic."

Phoenix hummed, "Achilles' early childhood is a difficult topic for Peleus." 

Patroclus then remembered the things both Achilles and Eudoros had told him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make him uncomfortable."

Phoenix shook his head, "Don't worry sweetheart." He turned his gaze towards Achilles. "You should tell him about it."

Achilles nodded, "I already told him part of it, and I was planning to tell him the rest before meeting Chiron."

"Chiron?" Patroclus raised an eyebrow.

Achilles smiled and gave Patroclus a little kiss on his lips, "I'll tell you later."

"Well," Phoenix got up from the table. "It's better if I go to check on Peleus." He turned towards Patroclus, "Do you have anything you need? Toothbrush? Towels?"

"I'm not spending the night here," Patroclus said quickly.

Phoenix laughed, "Of course you are! What kind of host would we be if we let you go in the middle of the night."

Patroclus wanted to point out that it was only 9 pm. But it'd be rude of him to do so, instead, "I didn't bring anything with me."

"We have anything you could need here, Toothbrush, clothes; shampoo, towels, and even if we didn't, we'll just go and buy it." Achilles said and hugged Patroclus.

Patroclus frowned. He knew it was pointless to say no, "And where would I sleep?"

Achilles wiggled his eyebrows.

"No," Patroclus said firmly.

--------------------------------

Patroclus sighed and looked at himself in the mirror on Achilles' bathroom; because he had a bathroom all for himself, the spoiled brat.

He had been given the option to choose one of the many pajamas Achilles had. However, since Achilles was thinner than him, all of them were tight on his chest and tummy and the pants were tight on the ass and thighs, which made Achilles give him a look.  

So, Patroclus decided against using them, and instead found in Achilles' massive closet a comfortable old shirt of a concert of some band he didn't know. It was big enough to not be tight on his body, and finally gave up and decided to sleep in his boxers.

He got out of the bathroom and was confronted with Achilles' room again. 

Unlike the rest of the house, Achilles' room was sterile and empty, with a lot of space. White walls and white floor, with almost no furniture, the bed had a gray blanket and gray pillows; a window covered by gray curtains. 

There was an air of almost hostility.

It was the opposite of Patroclus' tiny room that had barely had any space for his individual bed and all his things, but at least the yellow walls and decorations made it look warm.

Achilles' eyes predictably went directly to Patroclus' legs, "Hi there, handsome."

"Menis and Penthos?" Patroclus said, and looked around to search for the dogs that were with them in the room minutes before.

Achilles was sitting on the edge of the bed already wearing his Pajamas, he had put his hair in a braid for sleeping, "I took them to their room already so they can sleep."

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, "Your dogs have a room only for them?"

"Yeah, why?" He said as if that was the most normal thing in the world.

Patroclus shook his head, he walked to the bed, "Which side do you sleep on?" Achilles' bed was king-size, more than enough space for both of them. 

Achilles looked at him with a puzzled look on his face, "I don't have a side? I just sleep on whatever side feels more comfortable at the moment."

"Well, what is your favorite sleeping position?"

"On my stomach," Achilles said with confidence, which, didn't help Patroclus at all.

"I'm just going to sleep on the left side," He muttered before jumping into bed. He could feel Achilles' eyes all over him as he got underneath the blanket, it wasn’t an entirely uncomfortable thing.

Patroclus stayed on his back, Achilles got in and with a clap of his hands the lights went off.

Achilles turned to him. Of course that even with all the space in the bed, he had decided to be as close as possible to him. Patroclus turned away, giving Achilles his back. He sighed but didn't close his eyes.

They stayed like that for some minutes. Patroclus felt some kind of energy bubbling up around them, making the atmosphere thick.

Finally, Achilles' put his hand on Patroclus' waist, "Hey, I have an offer for you."

"I won't have sex with you."

"It's not that."

"Then what is it?"

Achilles got closer, and his hand traveled down to Patroclus' hip, "I want to jerk off while you're here."

Patroclus didn't answer.

Achilles put his mouth almost over Patroclus' ear, "You won't have to do anything you don't want to. I just want to feel you here, close to me."

Shivers traveled down Patroclus' spine when Achilles breathed on his neck, he sighed. 

"If I accept… Nothing else will happen, understood?"

Achilles kissed Patroclus' neck, "Thank you." He breathed deeply Patroclus' scent, "can I touch your body?"

Patroclus bit his lips. "Just, don't touch me underneath the fabric, and keep your hands off down there, ok?"

"Ok," Achilles moved Patroclus so he was lying on his back instead of his side, and then positioned himself on top of him, both of his knees caging Patroclus in. He leaned down, and began kissing him slowly, then traveled down his neck, leaving a trail of wet kisses. 

Patroclus could feel the slight movement of Achilles' hand as the other stayed at his side to support some of his weight along with his knees, though most of his weight was against Patroclus.

Achilles stopped kissing his neck and traveled down to his chest, there, through the fabric of the shirt, he licked his pecs and then bit him slightly. Patroclus barely contained a gasp. After that, Achilles began sucking his nipple.

High-pitched airy moans began coming out of Achilles mouth, his hips moved, it was a calm movement; almost like he wanted to dance with Patroclus instead. 

The hand Achilles was using to touch himself began moving faster. His breath became shorter and more labored, his hips snapped forward suddenly, and he stopped sucking Patroclus' nipple in favor of just drooling on top of him when he moaned.

His body tensed, and he gasped. Everything but his hips stilled. Then Achilles relaxed, and he breathed deeply, he kissed Patroclus again before laying at his side.

"Gods, you're ruining me... you aren't doing anything and still you're ruining me," Achilles giggled.

Patroclus didn't answer, just stayed still.

Achilles hummed. "Do you feel ok? Do you want me to touch you?"

"No," Patroclus said stiffly.

"Then, let me go to the bathroom to clean myself a little, and we can sleep," Achilles got up from the bed and walked to his bathroom. Patroclus looked at the ceiling, willing his body to relax a bit. After some seconds, Achilles came back from the bathroom and got under the blanket, he hugged Patroclus and breathed his scent deeply.

"Good night, my beloved," He purred in Patroclus' ear.

"Good night," Patroclus' voice sounded strained.

Achilles breathed deeply and closed his eyes.

Moments later, Patroclus could hear Achilles snoring softly. He carefully slipped from under Achilles and walked to the bathroom. When he entered, his body fell against the door, and he covered his face with his hands.

He had never felt so turned on and paralyzed with fear at the same time. Patroclus sighed, one of his hands began absent mindlessly rubbing one of his nipples. He bit his lips to stop the moans from falling down his mouth. 

His brain told him how he shouldn’t be doing that, he shouldn’t even feel that way, but his body demanded release, and he was weak, especially with Achilles.

Patroclus pulled his boxers down. He had a painful erection and his underwear was wet with slick. He sighed, and he took his dick in his hand, squeezing the head. Patroclus mewled softly, his hand moved up and down once, twice, by the three time, he had to bite down his lip to not scream when he reached his climax.

His feet slipped from under him until he was sitting on the floor. 

He felt dirty.

Hot desire and guilt trapped under his skin, boiling and burning him alive. He didn’t want to do that; he shouldn’t be doing that, but the way Achilles moved, the way he smelled and looked…

His mind began drifting to Hector, tears formed in his eyes. What was he doing? He had promised he'd never fall in love again, and he knew that lust and love weren't necessarily connected. But…

Patroclus had been with other alphas that weren’t Hector in the past, he had hated every single one of them, especially… And yet, Achilles felt different. Patroclus felt like he was betraying Hector just by holding Achilles' hand and looking at his beautiful ocean eyes. Nonetheless, wasn't that what he wanted? To hurt Hector? To betray him? 

It felt wrong, there was an immense amount of guilt in his chest. He promised, he had given himself to Hector freely and would do it again. Yet Achilles… Achilles and his smell like a rainforest that made his heartbeat faster...

Patroclus cried for a bit; then he cleaned himself as best as he could and walked back into the room to sleep.

--------------------------------

Patroclus woke up on Achilles' bed, the artificial lights were on, making everything look washed out and cold. He turned to his side to say something to Achilles, but then he discovered that he was alone in the room.

Patroclus frowned, but reasoned that Achilles surely was with his parents. He tried to get off the bed, however, he couldn't. Something was holding him back. He frowned and threw the blankets away. Patroclus noticed that he was naked, and that his skin was fusing with the bed. He tried to pull away and free himself, to not avail. The more he struggled, the more the bed absorbed him. First it was only his back, then his legs, finally his arms and hands too, leaving only his head free.

"Achilles!" He tried to call for help.

The door of the room opened, and then Hector entered, completely naked and erect.

"Hector!?" Patroclus gasped, he felt that the bed underneath him became a bunch of roses.

Hector walked slowly to him, with dark eyes.

Patroclus shook his head, "Wait, no!"

Hector arrived at the roses and climbed it slowly.

"Wait a minute, Hector! Nothing happened! We didn't do anything! I swear!"

With a sick smile, Hector got on top of Patroclus.

“Please! Stop! I didn’t want this! I don’t want it!!” Patroclus screamed desperately, then Hector began touching him. It hurt. "ACHILLES! ACHILLES! HELP ME!" However, roses began growing out of his mouth, and prevented him from screaming. Patroclus began crying, his muffled screams were the only thing that could be heard as he tried to trash around to no avail. Hector grabbed his face and forced him to look at him, then began vomiting rose's petals on his face.

Patroclus screamed.

--------------------------------

Patroclus woke up and sat on the bed, everything was dark. He began crying in the darkness.

"Patroclus? Is everything alright—"

Something touched Patroclus’ arm, he screamed and jumped out of the bed.

"Patroclus! What happened!?" Achilles quickly turned the light on with a clap.

Patroclus breathed and looked around him. He was still dressed, the bed was still a bed, and only Achilles was there. Patroclus sobbed and got back on the bed.

Achilles looked at him, "What happened? Are you hurt?"

Patroclus shook his head and kept crying.

Achilles observed him with worry, "Did you have a nightmare?"

Patroclus nodded. 

Achilles bit his lips, "It was because of something I did?"

Patroclus shook his head.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Patroclus shook his head again.

Achilles then got closer to Patroclus, "Do you want a hug?"

He nodded, and then let himself be hugged. Achilles gently put his arms around him, protecting him from the outside world. He cried on Achilles' chest. 

After some minutes had passed, Patroclus had calmed down enough to stop crying, but he still held Achilles tightly. They were both lying on the bed. He had his ear just right above where Achilles' heart was. He could hear the calm "thump, thump" of it.

Patroclus remembered one time when he was approximately 7. While all his memories from before were fuzzy at best and completely gone at worst, he remembered that one quite clearly. On that occasion; Patroclus had been crying because a kid at school had been tormenting him more than usual, and Patroclus had been heartbroken at the prospect of going back to school; to hell. So, he had begun crying and didn't stop.

His mother and sister did everything they could to calm him down, to no avail. He was crying and crying; and it seemed like he would keep crying all night long, until his father took him and put him over his chest.  Patroclus had heard the heartbeat of his father, and in a matter of seconds he had calmed down, then he had fallen asleep. He didn't know if it was an instinct about his father's heartbeat, or if it had been about the warmth and love his father never gave him. But in any case, he had the best sleep of all his life.

Perhaps it was weird to think about his father when he hugged the man that soon would be his husband, but he didn't care. He was safe in Achilles' arms, in Achilles' heart. No one would hurt him if he was with him. He let his consciousness sink into that infinite feeling of comfort and safety as he heard Achilles' heartbeat, and slept.

--------------------------------

When he slowly gained his consciousness back. Patroclus realized that he had been sleeping with his mouth open and now half of his face was wet with drool, but he had slept so well, he truly didn’t care. He yawned and hugged his comfortable pillow.

"Good morning, my sleeping beauty," His pillow told him.

Wait.

Patroclus lifted his head to recognize that he had been drooling all night over Achilles' chest. He immediately tried to put some space between them, but Achilles threw his arms around Patroclus' neck and forced him down to his chest, "Did you sleep well?"

Patroclus briefly nodded as he tried to get up again, "Yes... uh... I'm sorry about drooling all over you."

Achilles laughed at that, "Oh baby, you can do all sorts of things all over me and I won’t mind," He winked. 

Patroclus pushed Achilles face down, "Shut up."

Achilles bit Patroclus' hand softly.

"Hey!" Patroclus got on top of Achilles with each of his legs at his side, "you're mean, I'm the only one allowed to bite," He said with a playful tone on his voice.

Achilles smiled, "Ok, mister bites, what do you want for breakfast?"

"What are the options?" Patroclus pressed their foreheads together.

"Anything you want. Cereal, pancakes, baklava, sushi, burritos, kung pao chicken, arepas, pizza. You name it, it's yours."

"Pancakes with berries and honey?" Patroclus asked softly.

"Of course," Achilles once again threw his arm around him.

"And a strawberry milkshake," Patroclus added playfully.

Achilles nodded, "And a strawberry milkshake, got it."

Patroclus gave Achilles a small kiss.

--------------------------------

After breakfast with Peleus and Phoenix, they went back to Achilles' room to take a shower. Patroclus had to borrow some of Achilles' clean boxers, because he preferred the somewhat tight underwear than his very dirty boxers. He had put on the same clothes he wore yesterday as he didn't have any change of clothes.

Patroclus showered before Achilles and dressed inside the bathroom, then got out, not wanting to repeat a scene like the one of the other day. Now he wanted to brush his hair while it still was a bit wet, but couldn't for the life of him, find a brush inside Achilles' room. 

Patroclus sighed, at that moment, he heard the door of the bathroom open again.

"Hey, Achilles, I was wondering if you had any—" Patroclus' words died on his throat when he saw Achilles.

"Yes?" Achilles stood completely naked on the door of his bathroom, his hair was still damp and clung to his skin. Patroclus could see the lean but defined muscles of his body.

His first thought was that, indeed, the carpet matched the drapes.

Achilles was clearly amused by Patroclus' reaction, "Hey, my eyes are up here." He walked to the other side of the room and passed by Patroclus' side.

Patroclus' second thought was about Achilles' bubble butt and how thick his thighs were, maybe they were strong enough to crush a watermelon—

"If I have a what?" Achilles said as he bent down to search a drawer.

Suddenly there were a lot of thoughts in Patroclus' head.

"Patroclus?" Achilles asked with some boxers on his hand as he stood straight, "hey! Patroclus!"

Finally, Patroclus snapped out of his thoughts about Achilles’ body, "I'm sorry?"

"I said, if I have a what?" Achilles put on his boxers.

"What?" Patroclus frowned at that.

Achilles chuckled, "The thing you were asking for when I came out of the bathroom."

Patroclus remembered. "Ah... I... wanted to know if you had a brush I could use." He felt warmth rushing to his cheeks.

Achilles pointed to a drawer behind Patroclus. He scrambled for the drawer and saw several brushes there, maybe it was normal for someone with Achilles' long hair to have a collection of brushes. He selected the one he liked the best and began brushing his damp hair.

Patroclus turned slowly to see that Achilles already had pants on, and a part of him felt a little disappointed by that.

"Hey, do you shave?" Patroclus muttered.

"Like, my beard?"

Patroclus shook his head. "No, I mean, like your body."

"No, actually I don't, but my body hair is very fine and blond, so it looks like I don't have a lot of hair." Achilles walked to Patroclus, "look closer," He pointed towards his chest.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow at him, but then leaned down closer to Achilles' chest. It was true, there were some small wispy blond hairs there. All things considered, if his hair was a bit thicker or another color, Achilles’ chest would’ve looked a bit hairy.

Patroclus thought about licking and kissing Achilles' chest, just like he had done with him before. Instead, Patroclus put his hand on Achilles chest, and pulled out some hairs.

"Hey!" Achilles walked back, "Why did you do that!?"

Patroclus giggled, "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself."

"You're mean!" Achilles pouted, he turned away from Patroclus.

Patroclus laughed more and went to hug him from behind, "I'm sorry." He kissed Achilles' shoulder. 

Achilles turned his face towards Patroclus, "If you give me a kiss, I might forgive you."

Patroclus chuckled, but kissed Achilles nonetheless. It was short and sweet. He hummed as he observed Achilles' face, "I like how you look with your blond eyebrows."

"Even if it looks like I have no eyebrows?"

"It doesn't look like you have no eyebrows, it just looks like you have blond eyebrows."

Achilles huffed; he gave him another kiss before walking away, "Whatever you say."

Patroclus then continued brushing his hair, "But you didn't wash your face yesterday."

"What for?" Achilles said and observed his closet, thinking about what to wear for the day, "not like I use a lot of makeup anyway, just eyebrow pencil and some blush from time to time."

Patroclus frowned, "That's bad for your skin."

"Nope, that's just overreacting."

"Achilles..." Patroclus huffed.

"Achilles..." Achilles repeated in a mocking tone. 

Patroclus put down the brush, went for a pillow and threw it to Achilles' head.

--------------------------------

When it was time to go. Patroclus petted Menis and Penthos on their head once more before kissing them. "See you soon, babies!" Patroclus cooed to them, "remember to be good babies!"

Penthos moved her tail happily and whined with barely contained energy. Menis, only looked at Patroclus with her tongue out.

Patroclus laughed and petted them one last time. 

After that, he walked to Phoenix. Phoenix hugged him and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, "It was good to meet you, son."

Patroclus nodded. "It was nice to meet you, too," he returned the hug and the brief kiss on the cheek.

Phoenix let him go as he patted his back. Patroclus walked to Peleus.

He leaned down to hug him, once again being enveloped by his sweet scent of oranges and honey.

Peleus got close to Patroclus' ear and whispered, "Don't make Achilles angry."

Patroclus stopped the hug and observed Peleus with a raised eyebrow, "Ok?"

Peleus nodded. "Welcome to the family, Patroclus," He smiled softly.

Patroclus felt a little confused by that. Nonetheless, he nodded and went to the door, where Achilles was waiting for him.

"What did my father say?" Achilles asked.

Patroclus shook his head, "Nothing important."

Achilles hummed, he put an arm around his waist, "Let's go to your house so you can change, and then let's go out and do something."

Patroclus chuckled, "Something like what?"

"What do you want to do? We can do anything you want." He took Patroclus' hands and began walking.

Patroclus hummed, "What if we go to a library? Or is that way too boring?"

Achilles shook his head; they walked out the house and towards a nearby building, "Nothing is boring as long as you are with me."

Patroclus chuckled at that, "Maybe we can find a book you'll like. I know it's hard for you to focus, but have you tried graphic novels? There's a really good graphic novel that you'd love called ‘Persepolis’ ."

"Sure, if you say I'd love it, then I'll love it," Achilles nodded, they entered the building.

They walked past security and then through a door. Patroclus looked around him, the gray cement was a stark contrast against the many expensive cars, "Uh, what is this?"

"Is my car collection, pick one."

Patroclus frowned, "Can't Eudoros drive us?"

"Why? Too much of a douchebag car for you?" Achilles smiled.

"I wouldn't say that, but… I mean, it's not my taste," Patroclus said, looking around.

"Then I'll get rid of them," Achilles said with confidence.

Patroclus shook his head, "You don't have to do that. If it's something you like... I guess I can manage."

Achilles smiled at him. "Then pick a car, my beloved."

Patroclus sighed. He pointed at a red car in the corner, "I like the color of that one."

Achilles smirked at him, he grabbed his hand and walked towards the car. After they entered; Achilles looked at Patroclus, "Would you like one?"

"One what? A car?" Patroclus frowned.

Achilles nodded.

"I'm an omega. I'm not allowed to drive without the supervision of an alpha or beta."

"That only applies if a cop sees you, but if he doesn't, well..."

Patroclus didn't know what to answer at that. He said the first thing on his mind. "I don't even know how to drive?"

"Then I'll teach you."

Patroclus smiled awkwardly, he turned away from Achilles. All the alphas he had met in his life had always been somewhat against omegas driving alone. Achilles was the first one to be in favor of omegas being more independent.

"Hey, Patroclus?"

"Yes?" Patroclus turned back to him.

Achilles grabbed his chin and kissed him, long and deeply. When the kiss stopped and Patroclus was speechless, Achilles simply smiled at him.

"Nothing, I just love you." He turned on the car.

--------------------------------

Patroclus was happily looking through his closet. Achilles had told him that they’d go camping for a week to meet his old teacher, Chiron. Apparently he was a very important person in Achilles’ life.

But before that, Achilles had mentioned that he wanted to show him something. Patroclus didn’t know what it was exactly, but the mere thought of spending more time with Achilles began making him smile.

He was sweet and considerate. A friend Patroclus felt he could rely on.

He looked through his closet, thinking about what to wear. It wasn’t like it was hard to impress Achilles, but he wanted to look good. Patroclus was pretty sure that if he asked him what he should wear, Achilles would say something along the lines of “Nothing.”

Patroclus chuckled thinking about that.

He looked at his phone and saw that it was 1:04 pm already. Achilles hadn’t told him when exactly he’d come to pick him up, so Patroclus unblocked his phone to call him and ask. Not that it was very important, Achilles would just wait if he arrived before Patroclus was ready. Yet, he wanted to hear his voice again.

As he opened the list of his contacts; the first thing he saw was the one saved as “My prince”.

Patroclus stopped smiling.

Right. His love, the love of his life. The one for whom he was doing all of this, not Achilles.

Something felt heavy in his heart.

But, why?

“Why what?” He asked himself. There was nothing to ask. He loved Hector, he knew he loved Hector, and he was keeping his promise. He blocked his phone and threw it on his bed. Suddenly he didn’t feel like going out anymore. However, Achilles said it was important.

Patroclus grabbed the first clothes he saw, a plain white T-shirt, with baggy blue jeans. After he was ready, he jumped to the bed to wait for Achilles.

Ever since he had that nightmare with Hector, and Achilles consoled him. Something had changed; in Patroclus’ heart something wanted to grow and flourish like a tiny dandelion in concrete. It was his duty to stomp out those feelings before anything happened. He shouldn’t get distracted with pretty faces and charming personalities.

Which one was better? An unfulfilled relationship? Or a relationship based on lies?

Sorry, I don’t actually want to marry you, I was just using you to hurt the person I actually love. Yeah, funny thing, right? Hilarious even.

He closed his eyes and thought about Achilles’ heartbeat.

--------------------------------

"Are you tired? My beloved?" 

Patroclus felt a soft caress on his cheek. He opened his eyes and turned towards that hand.

Hector?

Achilles smiled while sitting on the edge of the bed. Patroclus couldn’t decide if he felt disappointed or not.

"Did you sleep well yesterday? Or did you just want to take a power nap?"

Patroclus rubbed his eyes, he nodded, he must've fallen asleep, "Yeah, don't worry."

Achilles softly touched Patroclus' lips.  It was clear what he meant by that gesture.

Kiss me.

Patroclus turned away. He sighed and stood up from his bed. "Well, what time is it? We should go already."

Achilles looked taken aback by Patroclus reaction. But didn't seem like he wanted to acknowledge it. "It’s only 2:56 pm, we can rest a little if you want to."

Patroclus shook his head, he took a jacket and wordlessly walked out of the room, leaving Achilles to stumble after him.

Achilles had gone to pick him up in one of his expensive cars. Patroclus scowled, of course he had to be a showoff.

Achilles reached at his side, and probably saw his expression, he simply muttered, "I'm sorry, I know you don't like this kind of car."

Patroclus sighed. "It's fine," He entered the vehicle without looking at Achilles.

Achilles too entered, "Something happened to make you upset?"

Patroclus thought about Hector, about how he probably was making a mistake and hurting Achilles in his way to hurt Hector.

"No."

Achilles just looked at him with worried eyes.

--------------------------------

The ride was a quiet one. Patroclus could see that Achilles was thinking something every time he turned to see him. Whatever it was, he didn’t say.

Patroclus looked out the window and tried not to think about Hector and all the heartache he caused him.

Finally, the car entered a graveyard. It was one of those very big and fancy ones that went on and on for kilometers. Patroclus turned to see Achilles; yet, for once, he wasn't looking back.

The car stopped and Achilles got out. Patroclus followed him. 

"Why are we here?" Patroclus asked.

"Because I told you I wanted you to meet my family before the wedding, all my family." Achilles walked towards a big white mausoleum, "this is where most of my family in the side of my dad is buried. This is where I'll probably be buried, too." He stopped in front of a white wall.

Patroclus arrived at Achilles' side. The wall had several spots for urns.

Achilles smiled at Patroclus, "This, are my brothers. Or what remains of them." He pointed to one spot marked by a date with the single year of 2015 and a name, "big brother Nikolaos. He was the only one my father named. He probably knew what would happen to the rest." Achilles pointed to the spot right down that. "Baby 2." The next one. "Baby 3." The next ones. "4, 5, 6."

Then he pointed to himself, "And Baby 7. The lucky number…" 

Patroclus didn't know what to say to that, so he simply didn't.

"You know. When I was younger, I used to make up names for them, and then I pretended I was playing with them. That probably creeped out my father a lot." Achilles chuckled, "I was an extremely lonely child. All alone in a big house with no friends or anyone to talk to…"

Patroclus read the dates. The one who got to live the longest was the first one, he lived to be 6 months old, well, that one and Achilles. "This must be a very personal place for you. Thank you for showing it to me."

Achilles sighed, "Actually, I wanted to show you this to explain who my teacher Chiron is to me." 

He moved his hand towards all the spots with urns on the wall. "After this happened, and my father saved me. He wasn't very emotionally stable, certainly not to take care of a baby. My mother left temporarily right after I was saved. So the only one who took care of me for my first year of life were the staff of the house.”

Achilles kicked an imaginary rock and kept talking. “Then my father's old friend; Chiron, saw what was happening and decided to take me in while my father recovered. That was until my mother came back briefly when I was 4. But she left again after my 5th birthday, that time was for good. Chiron came back for me, and I spent most of my childhood with him, until my father met papa Phoenix when I was 10. Phoenix helped him a lot, without asking for anything in return.”

Achilles shook his head, “Chiron and Phoenix were the ones who raised me. I’d spent half of the year with Chiron and then return to Phoenix’s house where he would take care of me. My father didn't get mentally stable until I was 15, I'm afraid. I think seeing me made everything worse, no matter how hard I tried to help.”

He chuckled, “That's why there's no baby pictures of me in that house, all of my baby pictures are with my teacher Chiron." 

Patroclus pursed his lips, "So, Chiron is like your adoptive father?"

"More like my adoptive grandpa." He turned to Patroclus and smiled, "You know, Chiron was actually the one who named me."

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

Achilles nodded, "I don't think my dad had a lot of hopes about me living long, even after he saved me. So he didn’t name me. The people who took care of me nicknamed me Ligyron. It means ‘the wailing one’. When I was a baby, I spent all day and all night crying and screaming."

Patroclus felt so bad for little baby Achilles, crying for a mother that wasn’t there and a father that probably couldn’t even hold him, "You missed your parents... Of course you’d cry all the time, you were just a baby."

Achilles shrugged, "And then, when Chiron picked me up, he decided to name me Achilles...” He smiled, “there was a point in my life where I really hated my name."

For a moment, Achilles didn’t seem Achilles at all. He wasn’t the beautiful, strong, swift, perfect man Patroclus had grown to know. He was just a nameless man, confused, naïve, sad, lonely, and angry at the world for the hand he had been dealt in life. 

"Why?" 

Achilles sighed, "When I was old enough to know what it means; 'pain of the people' Or 'the one who causes pain to people' I thought it was such a cruel name. I know my teacher probably meant it as like a warrior's name, the one who makes his enemies suffer. But I thought. 'That's all am I? I somehow didn't die… I; out of 7 babies, was the only one who didn't die, and all I'm good for is for causing pain? That's why I'm on this planet? To hurt someone?'” he sighed, “I don't know... At least I lived. The one with the pretty name is long gone now," Achilles laughed and put his hand over the engraved name, ‘Nikolaos’.  

Patroclus noted the expression on Achilles' face. Almost as if he wished he wasn't the one alive, that made Patroclus’ chest hurt so bad. He wanted to comfort Little Achilles, who hated his name. He wanted to coo and smile at baby Achilles so he could stop crying for a moment. Patroclus forgot everything that was on his mind about Hector and hugged him.

"I like your name, though; I think it sounds kind."

"Kind?"

"It's like the name of the hero who will protect everyone."

Achilles smiled, "I like your name too, like, it's sounds strong and serious."

"Is that a nice way to say I have an ugly name?"

"No, I mean, your name is like the name of a warrior who'll never miss an attack."

Patroclus hugged him tighter, "Then we should be a team. Achilles the one who protects, and Patroclus the one who defends. How does that sound?"

Achilles observed Patroclus' face for a second before his expression gained a sad tint to it, "I wish I had found you before. Maybe then I wouldn't have felt so lonely growing up." 

Patroclus stopped the hug and grabbed Achilles' hand, "I'm here now."

Achilles nodded, "You're here now." He sighed and smiled again, but it was a sad expression. "Do you want to take a walk?"

"In the graveyard?" Patroclus looked around.

"Yeah, why not, is peaceful. Besides, we are with family," Achilles pointed at the mausoleum.

Patroclus chuckled, "But none of my family is buried here."

Achilles began walking as he held Patroclus' hands, "Soon, they'll be your family too."

Patroclus decided to ignore that part, "Hey, so I'll be meeting Chiron soon, no?"

Achilles nodded.

"How is he? Do you think he'll like me?" Patroclus walked calmly with Achilles between the tombs.

"He's very calm, wise, and kind, the definition of a good teacher. And he'll probably love you, I mean, it's not hard to love you."

Patroclus squeezed Achilles' hand, "I'll try my best not to disappoint."

"Don't worry about that. Have you got everything you need for the trip already? Remember that we'll be out in the wild for a week."

Patroclus thought about what he had packed already, "I think I do."

Achilles leaned closer to Patroclus, "If you don't have something, I can buy it for you."

"I know mister rich man. You kept saying the same thing to me for days." Patroclus smiled at Achilles, "keep doing it and people will call me a gold digger."

“That’s fine by me. Everything that is mine is yours too.” Achilles leaned even closer to Patroclus' face, "Hey?"

Patroclus had a feeling of what Achilles wanted already, "Yes?"

"Kiss?"

Patroclus wondered what he was going to do with Achilles. It was a game that neither of them would be able to come out of unharmed. He decided to forget for now. He kissed Achilles.

Chapter Text

Patroclus checked everything he needed twice, and then he checked again. He felt nervous about meeting this person that apparently was so important in Achilles' life. 

For some reason, his mind drifted to Priam; his welcoming but cold presence. He could remember the day Priam called him into his office to tell him he was kicking him out, he had been a father figure to him, but to Priam he was just a burden.

He thought about Hector’s reaction.

Then Patroclus shook his head. If he was doing this, he was doing it because he deserved something better than the idiot of Hector. Something better than just being left behind.

He sighed. What was he doing?

Someone knocked on the door.

"Come in." Patroclus said as he patted his backpack.

The door softly opened, and Achilles entered. He was wearing brown clothes for camping instead of his normal fashionable clothes. "Hi, your dad let me in."

"I should've known it was you. My dad screams and knocks on the door to assure I'm listening, and my sister never knocks." 

Achilles put his arms around Patroclus' waist, and he kissed him quickly, "Do you have everything you need?"

"Yep," Patroclus kissed Achilles again, he put his hand on Achilles’ lower back, "I have absolutely everything I need."

"You love provoking me, don't you?"

Patroclus smirked, "Just a little."

Achilles then bit Patroclus' cheek; Patroclus felt something burn inside him at that. But Achilles quickly let him go. "Let's go before Chiron gets mad at us for making him wait." 

Patroclus grabbed his backpack, and both walked out of his room. Patroclus quickly said goodbye to his father and sister, then went out with Achilles. A black normal car was waiting outside.

Eudoros helped him put his backpack on the truck before he got in.

"Why didn't you bring one of your sport cars?" Patroclus said as he got closer to Achilles.

"I thought you didn't like it."

“Well, yeah, but that I don’t like it doesn’t mean that you should stop doing something that you love for me.” Patroclus pouted.

“I’d stop everything for you no matter what… You want to know why?” Achilles smiled as he asked the question.

Patroclus could already tell what he meant, ‘because I love you’ but Patroclus didn’t want to hear that. He didn’t want to know for sure that he was hurting Achilles. If they stayed like that, he could pretend that nothing was happening between them.

“How long till we arrive, though?” Patroclus smiled.

Achilles frowned at the sudden change in topic, but he smiled again, “It’ll take a while, and then we’ll have to walk a little after to go to my teacher’s house. That’s in part why I wanted Eudoros to get us there, so we wouldn’t have someone pick the car later. Then we’ll have to walk some more to get to the camping site.”

“Why do you call him teacher and not dad?” Patroclus tilted his head, “I mean, he literally raised you alone at some point.”

Achilles seemed to think about that. “Well, I don’t know. I guess in a certain way, a dad is like a teacher?”

“What did he teach you?”

Achilles lifted a hand and began moving it around, “You know, things like how to grow food, take care of an animal, hunt, which plants are safe to eat and which not, which plants are medicinal, and stuff like that.”

“Wow… I wish my dad had taught me that,” Patroclus chuckled.

“What did he teach you?”

“Let me think about it.” Patroclus bit his lip for a moment, “Basically, that omegas should find a partner; an alpha because a beta was a no-no, then become a stay-at-home parent and have lots and lots of children, so the alpha won’t leave you.”

“And you don’t want to?” Achilles looked at him with serious eyes.

“What?”

“To have children.”

Patroclus for some reason blushed at that. “I mean, it’s not like I don’t want to; with the right partner… It’ll be fine; and maybe not lots and lots, just 2 or 3 are fine. But… He said it like I didn’t have a choice, that was the part that annoyed me.”

Achilles seemed pleased by that answer, “I mean, he probably thought that it'd help you.”

Patroclus sighed and looked outside the window, “I know. I know that it was because he didn’t have a choice either. And as much as I love my mom, I know that she put him in a spot where he didn’t feel like he had an option. But… I wanted him to be something else…” Patroclus pouted, “I didn’t want a perfect father, a better father would’ve been enough.”

“I know that feeling… Like, you understand it was hard for them, but it was hard for you too. You want to be angry because of that, but you feel too guilty to truly feel angry. Like, somehow it was your fault that their lives weren’t easier, but you didn’t ask to be born either.”

Patroclus nodded energetically, “Yes! Exactly!”

Achilles was smiling softly; his eyes were slightly crinkled, and his posture was relaxed. The exterior didn’t betray the weight that his gaze held. I know you because I’m the same, he seemed to say.

Patroclus’ mom had been kind and never completely abandoned him until she died, and Patroclus’ dad still held him when he was a baby and named him. Even so, for a second Patroclus thought that he could understand Achilles, and he would be understood in return.

It scared Patroclus.

He cleared his throat. “Yeah… Like that… Hey, I’m feeling a little tired, do you mind if I sleep for the rest of the ride?”

“Sure, do you want me to hold you?” He opened his arms.

Patroclus thought about saying no, but a part of him yearned for that comfort and safety. He wanted Achilles to protect him so much. To forget about the outside world for a moment. 

“Ok.”

--------------------------------

Patroclus was dreaming that he played with puppies, when he felt a gentle nudge, he ignored it and tried to go back to his dream, but there was again another gentle nudge. 

"Five more minutes, dad..." Patroclus mumbled.

He expected Menoetius' voice telling him to stop being so lazy, or to be like in that particular occasion where he pushed him off of bed. Instead, the movement stopped, and Patroclus dozed off again for a moment. Then there was a gentle touch of lips against his cheek. Patroclus stretched, before hugging the body beneath him, he could still hear the gentle heartbeat. He opened his eyes and saw Achilles watching him closely.

Patroclus hummed, "That explains why I didn't hear screaming."

Achilles raised an eyebrow, "What?"

Patroclus sat straight, letting go of Achilles, and stretched again. "I thought you were my dad who was trying to wake me up."

Achilles chuckled and opened his door, "No, but we arrived already. Let's go, we still have to walk all the way there." He got out of the car.

Patroclus sighed and did the same too.

Achilles was already at the trunk, taking the backpacks out, then he put both his and Patroclus' things on his back, "C'mon on," He began walking towards a path in the forest.

Patroclus followed, "You don't need to carry my things, I'm capable of doing that myself."

"I know you can," He turned to Patroclus with a smug grin.

Patroclus rolled his eyes, "Well, then, give it back!" Patroclus extended his hand.

Achilles raised an eyebrow, "You want your things? Then let's play a game, if you can catch me, I'll give you your things back." He began walking backwards as he looked at Patroclus.

"Achilles, this is not a game, and stop walking like that! You're going to fall!" Patroclus huffed, he walked closer to Achilles.

Achilles wiggled his eyebrows at him. "Then catch me."

Patroclus scowled, he walked faster, and when he was about to touch him, Achilles moved away and put meters between them.

Patroclus frowned but tried to catch Achilles again, he moved away at the last second.

If Patroclus hadn’t been paying attention, he would’ve thought Achilles was teleporting himself. One second, he was in one place, then a blink of the eye, and he was meters away with a smug grin on his face.

Achilles laughed and stopped walking, "Ok, ok." He took Patroclus' backpack off his shoulder and offered it to him, "Here, come and take it."

Patroclus didn't believe that Achilles was going to let him win that easily, but he still tried to grab it.

Predictably, Achilles moved the backpack at the last second, and threw it up in the sky. Patroclus could only see with despair how his things were catapulted meters into the sky and then fell, only for Achilles to catch them some meters forward. 

"I thought you wanted them?" Achilles said with a very good parody of confusion. But a sardonic smile broke on his lips seconds after.

Patroclus growled, and he took off running as fast as he could towards Achilles.

Achilles laughed with surprise, he put Patroclus' things back at his shoulder and began running too. 

At first, it wasn’t hard for Patroclus to keep up with him, all things considered, there was only like 2 meters of distance between them. Then Patroclus began feeling the toil. Not only was he running for what was the first time in months, but he also was running uphill in rough terrain. After 2 minutes, the distance between them jumped from being only 2 meters, to 8 meters. At 5 minutes, Patroclus could barely see Achilles in the distance, he felt like his heart was about to explode, and he was about to cough out a lung. 

Patroclus stopped running and tried to breathe. He bent down and closed his eyes, he focused on breathing with his nose instead of with his mouth. Then he felt something cold against his cheek.

He looked up and there was Achilles, holding out his water bottle for him.

Patroclus took the water. "Fuck off," he said before gulping the water down.

"Hey, don't drink so fast, it's going to give you a stomachache," Achilles said with a worried tone in his voice.

"I said fuck off," Patroclus finished drinking the water, he closed the bottle and gave it back to Achilles.

Achilles sighed, he took off Patroclus' backpack and offered it to him.

Patroclus looked at him through half closed eyes, not really believing it wasn't another trap. But he lifted his hand, when he was about to touch it, he stopped and looked at Achilles' face trying to see any reaction.

Achilles sheepishly pushed the backpack into Patroclus' hand.

Patroclus sighed, he grabbed it and threw it on his shoulder, "Thank you."

Achilles nodded. Then he leaned towards Patroclus and put one hand on his back and the other behind his knees.

"What are you doing!? Achilles!" Patroclus screamed as he was lifted off the ground bridal style.

"You are tired, and I don't want Chiron to be mad because we didn't arrive on time," Achilles said nonchalantly.

Patroclus puffed his cheeks, "Oh! And whose fault is that!?" He put his hands around Achilles' neck. 

"Well, if you just had let me carry your things for you, this wouldn't have happened." Achilles smiled, "just because I know you can do something; it doesn't mean that I don't want to make something nice for you."

Patroclus shook his head. He thought about demanding Achilles to put him down, but he did feel a little tired. "Idiot. I want a divorce," he said without any real heat behind those words.

Achilles giggled at that, "We aren't even married yet!"

"Then we'll have to hurry up and marry already so I can divorce you," Patroclus said with amusement.

"Sounds like a good plan to me."

Achilles kept walking with Patroclus on his arms; after some minutes, Patroclus began to worry.

"Hey, aren't you tired already? I can walk if you want." Patroclus said with a soft voice, "I know I'm not the lightest person in the world."

Achilles grinned at that. "Don't worry, I've got a lot of stamina." His voice dropped in pitch, "Though this wasn't how I planned to show you that." 

Patroclus felt heat on his cheeks at that comment, "Idiot..." He mumbled.

Achilles laughed.

--------------------------------

Finally, after some minutes of walking they arrived at a clearing with a little beautiful cabin. Achilles put Patroclus down.

"Is this his house?" Patroclus asked, looking at the little house, it was surrounded by different crops that were protected with a fence. 

"Unless there is another man living in the forest with the exact same house that I don't know of. Yeah, I think it is," Achilles said sarcastically.

Patroclus softly slapped Achilles on the back of his head.

"Sorry," Achilles mumbled with amusement. "Master Chiron! Master Chiron!" Achilles began screaming, "We're here, Master Chiron!" He ran towards the cabin.

Patroclus followed him.

From inside the cabin appeared a very big old man dressed in a plain gray T-shirt and dark brown camouflage pants, with long white straight flowing hair and a big white beard. It looked like he might’ve been extremely imposing when he was young, as he was still very muscular.

"Achilles," Chiron opened his arms and received Achilles with a hug, "how have you been, my boy?"

"Good, good. Father and papa say hi by the way." Achilles nodded, then, as if he had remembered something, he ran back to Patroclus and pushed him forward, "and this is my Patroclus! He’s my husband! Isn’t he beautiful!" Achilles said with barely contained happiness.

Patroclus smiled awkwardly; Chiron looked more imposing from up close, "Hi..." 

Chiron’s fair skin made a stark contrast with the many dark tattoos that covered his arms and neck, mostly of different plants and animals. He had a soft smell of chestnut. Patroclus thought he must be a beta.

Chiron observed him with kind brown eyes, "You must be Patroclus, son of Menoetius, grandson of Actor, right?" He offered his hand to him.

Patroclus wondered why everyone knew who his dad and grandfather were, "Yep, that's me." Patroclus shook his hand.

"But I don't seem to remember your mother's name, was she Philomela? Or Sthenele? Or Damocrateia? No, she must be Polymele, or was it Periopis?" Chiron asked kindly.

"Oh, my mother's name was—"

Before Patroclus could finish, he felt Achilles pushing him forward, "C'mon on! C'mon on! Let's go in! We can talk more inside!" 

Chiron let them in. The inside was very cozy and warm, though a little small. Chiron had several photographs and awards hung up on the wall. Patroclus got closer to one and saw that it was a degree in medicine, "Are you a doctor, sir?"

Chiron shook his head, "Don't call me sir, I'm just an old man. And yes, I used to be a doctor in the army, but that was a long time ago."

"That's impressive sir— I mean, Chiron," Patroclus felt himself blushing.

Achilles hugged him from behind. "Patroclus is a veterinary surgeon," he said with pride.

Patroclus thanked the fact that Chiron couldn't see him blushing, "Achilles! That's not—"

"Really?" Chiron asked with interest.

Patroclus shut his mouth with a click, then he nodded. 

"That's very impressive as well. An honorable job very needed, though oftentimes not appreciated." Chiron said with a tone that he could've been saying that the earth was flat, and Patroclus would feel inclined to believe him.

"Yeah... but someone needs to do it," Patroclus smiled awkwardly.

Chiron nodded firmly. "You two look tired, take a break before we go, I have to check something in the garden anyway," Chiron walked out of the cabin.

Patroclus sat at a little chair on a table.

“And? What do you think of him?” Achilles sat by his side, “isn’t he cool?”

“When you said that one of the men that raised you was a hermit that lived in the mountains. I imagined him differently.”

“More or less muscular?” Achilles asked with amusement.

“Definitely less.”

Achilles chuckled, “He’s as strong as a horse even at his age; and you should see the old photos my dad has of him. He would’ve fit right in a strong man competition.”

“Is he a beta?” Patroclus asked as he pointed towards the door.

Achilles nodded, “You’re the first person to guess correctly, most think he’s an alpha.”

“Most people think I’m an alpha or a beta at first glance, too.” Patroclus began fidgeting with his fingers.

“And it doesn’t annoy you?” Achilles asked as he tilted his head to the side.

Patroclus shook his head, “Not really. People treat you differently when they know you are an omega, especially if you are an omega man like me. It’s like you are a lite version of a man, or a very masculine woman.”

“That sucks.”

“At least I’m able to pass as a beta most of the time. I only need to wear that special fragrance of mint to hide my scent and not forget to take my pills daily.”

“That’s a shame, your natural scent is beautiful. I wish I could smell more of it,” Achilles said, leaning closer to Patroclus.

Past Patroclus would’ve been freaked out or disgusted by that comment. Present Patroclus only rolled his eyes with amusement. “You don’t have a filter, do you? What happens in your brain goes directly to your mouth, no matter how inappropriate a comment is.”

Achilles smirked, full of pride and charisma, the kind of smile Patroclus didn’t know if he wanted to kiss or punch, “I don’t need a filter when I’m always right.”

“Well, I guess your scent isn't horrible, either.”

Achilles leaned closer to him, “Oh, is that so?”

Patroclus closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Green leaves, cut grass and rain. He let out a content sigh. When he opened his eyes, he saw Achilles looking at him with that dark expression Patroclus had become accustomed to already. A part of him liked it when Achilles saw him like that.

He laughed and pushed Achilles away, “Behave! Your teacher is close.”

As if invoked, Chiron appeared through the door, “Are you two ready to go?”

--------------------------------

The trek to where they’d be camping was very tiring. Most of it was covered in rocks, and it had approximately a 35-degree inclination to it; making it very easy to slip or miss a step and fall down. Achilles at first had insisted on holding Patroclus’ hand. Patroclus had refused, and Achilles didn’t seem to want to let him walk until Chiron scolded him and told him to leave Patroclus alone.

Patroclus liked Chiron a lot. 

Achilles still insisted on walking behind him.

“How are you feeling, Patroclus?” Chiron turned back to him. “Do you want a rest?”

Patroclus shook his head. “No, I think I can still go.”

“Maybe we should take a break?” Achilles said behind him, “you don’t need to push yourself too hard; you aren’t accustomed to this kind of exercise.”

Patroclus laughed and kept walking. “No, but I still don’t feel tired.” He turned to Achilles, “don’t you know that I have a lot of stamina?”

Achilles giggled at that.

“That’s good to hear!” Chiron said, without looking at Patroclus, “we’re relatively close.”

They kept walking for a minute.

“Look, Patroclus!” Achilles pointed to a herb on the ground, “That’s yarrow, it has medicinal properties.”

“Oh, really?” Patroclus noted that the plant had little white flowers. He bent down to pick it.

“Are you interested in herbal medicine, Patroclus?” Chiron asked.

“Not exactly, but…” For some reason, Patroclus felt himself stumbling over his words, “Achilles mentioned you taught him survival skills when he was little. I’ve always wanted to learn that kind of thing when I was a kid too… I guess it just didn’t happen.”

“You can still learn if you want to, you’re never too old to learn new things.” Chiron said with confidence.

“I suppose that’s true…”

“Well, do you want to?”

“I'm sorry?” Patroclus said, confused.

“Do you want to learn?” Chiron turned towards him.

Patroclus shyly nodded.

“Then I’ll teach you. At least as much as I can teach you during this week,” Chiron said nonchalantly, like it was something so simple.

Patroclus didn’t know what to say to that, then he felt a soft nudge against his side, he turned and saw Achilles smiling at him, “I’ll have you know that I’m his favorite student.” 

“That you know of,” Chiron said without stopping.

“Hey!” Achilles screamed indignant.

Patroclus laughed with all his belly.

--------------------------------

The rest of the walk was spent with Chiron pointing at different plants, saying their name and then their properties. From time to time, he'd ask Achilles what plant he was pointing at and what were his uses. Achilles quickly would recite it as if he was reading from a textbook. Later he began asking Patroclus the same questions, and every time he got one wrong, Chiron corrected him kindly.

It was a more hands-on approach than what Patroclus was accustomed to.

Finally, they arrived at a clearing on one side of the mountain, there was the opening of a cave there too. 

"Well, here we are," Chiron took off his backpack. "Can you two go to pick up some wood for a fire, please?"

Achilles dropped his bag on the floor too, he nodded energetically, "Sure!" He took off Patroclus' things from his back, then grabbed his hand and went running with him.

"Chiron likes you a lot already, you know? It’s very obvious by how he talks to you!" Achilles said cheerfully while they entered between the trees again.

Patroclus couldn't help but smile at Achilles' energy. There was a kind of childish attitude to it, like he was 12 instead of 24. As if he was having the childhood he always wanted. "Is that so?"

"Yeah! I knew he'd like you! But I'm glad he really liked you! He isn't one to offer to teach just any guy, and for him to offer that to you so soon!"

"Then I'm honored!"

Achilles then stopped and began looking around, "Let's start collecting wood before it gets dark, remember to only pick up dry ones, it's better to just use the dry branches that are still on the trees. We also need some tinder and kindling."

--------------------------------

When they arrived back, Chiron had already set both tents in the entrance of the cave. 

"Tomorrow, I can teach you how to make an improvised shelter, but it'd be foolish to not use the things we already have. Now, the most important thing you need to know is how to start a fire." Chiron said, looking at Patroclus.

Patroclus nodded eagerly.

He kind of expected to do that thing of the movies where you spin a stick very fast on top of a piece of wood. Instead, what Chiron made him do was clean the floor of leaves and sticks, and then digging a hole for the fire. Then he crouched down to put the tinder and kindling inside that.

Chiron, who had been supervising everything, gave him a weird thing, it was a piece of steel tied to another black thing.

"This is flint and steel." Chiron explained as he crouched down next to him. "They sell this in a lot of camping stores. You should buy one and always carry it with you. Now, the easiest way to start a fire is with a lighter or a match; but in case that you don't have those available, this is your next best option."  He instructed him how to strike the flint to spark the tinder. Achilles sat at his other side and watched him closely.

Patroclus didn't exactly know what he was doing, but he tried to use it nonetheless. The first attempt was too weak, and nothing happened. The second had some sparks, but he accidentally got scared and dropped it. 

He half expected Chiron to reprimand him and Achilles to laugh at him. But that didn't happen. Instead, Chiron kindly encouraged him to try again, and Achilles just kept observing him.

Patroclus sighed, he grabbed the flint and steel again and struck. This time, causing a lot of sparks; but none of them fell into the tinder. Chiron corrected his angle and told him to try again. Patroclus struck again, and smoke began coming out of the tinder.

"It's on fire!" Patroclus said, not completely believing what he saw. 

“Now, gently blow on it until you see a flame.” Chiron explained.

Patroclus nodded, he leaned and did as he was told until a tiny fire appeared.

"You need to add fuel, start little by little. You don't want to smother the fire or get the flames too high."

Patroclus added small pieces of wood until the fire was a bit bigger. 

Chiron smiled at him. "Good job. There are other methods of how to start a fire without flint and steel, but I think they are a pain in the ass, honestly. They require a lot of work and the right conditions. So always carry your flint and stone. Maybe later I can teach you one of the hardest ones if you want to."

Patroclus nodded eagerly, he felt Achilles hugging him. 

"My husband is so smart!"

Patroclus blushed at that, "Stop..."

Chiron stood up, "It's almost sunset. Let's eat something and then go to sleep. Tomorrow we'll rise with the sun and it'll be a busy day." He searched through his backpack, "I have dried meat, some fruits, and nuts too in case you don't eat meat, Patroclus."

Patroclus shook his head, "The dried meat is fine."

Chiron gave them a bag with some pieces of meat, and Achilles happily munched on them. Patroclus ate a little slower, he wasn't a big fan of meat and even had thought in the past about becoming vegetarian. For some reason or another, he just hadn't gotten to it yet.

Achilles smiled at his side. "Maybe tomorrow we can stay late and watch the stars! They are visible here, and Chiron knows all the constellations and their stories."

Chiron chuckled at Achilles' enthusiasm, "Do you like astronomy, Patroclus?"

"Kind of? I mean, I was never very interested in it as a science, but I really like the stories people told with the stars, it makes me feel nostalgic."

"How so?" Chiron asked softly. 

"It just makes me think about how people from old times looked up and saw the stars and began telling stories to each other about them. How a story can be years and years old, and we still like it, still identify with its characters." Patroclus said as he chewed a piece of dried meat.

Chiron hummed, "Stories are the way we connect with each other, the way we show our inner world to others and see ourselves reflected in them. When we listen to stories of old, we are building a bridge between past and present, don’t you think?"

Patroclus smiled, "Yeah, that too."

"Then if you want immortality, you just need to be so famous that people will still talk about you even years after your death," Achilles interjected.

"I'm not so sure about that," Patroclus mumbled.

"Why not? A part of you will never die in that way." Achilles answered.

"And what if people don't remember the way you want to? What if all everyone can think of when they think about you is something you hated about yourself? Or something that wasn’t true?" Patroclus asked Achilles.

"Die forgotten, or live forever in the memory of the people as the worst part of yourself." Chiron took a bite out of his food, "Doesn't seem like an easy choice."

Achilles shrugged, “Not like it's my problem.”

Patroclus giggled at that.

Between the golden light of the sunset and the fire, everything seemed calm and warm. They kept eating slowly, making a comment here and there.

When they were finished, Chiron got up, "Go and prepare your sleeping bags, I'll stay here out a little longer."

Both nodded.

--------------------------------

Achilles had insisted on buying a sleeping bag for two; well, insisting was a way to put it. More than insisting, he had asked very kindly, and Patroclus had just said: "If you want to."

Now they were lying on their side, facing each other.

"Honestly, I don't think I can sleep before 1 am." Patroclus mumbled.

Achilles chuckled, "You should at least try to. Tomorrow we'll wake up early. Chiron wasn't joking when he said that we'll rise with the sun."

Patroclus smiled. "Ok," He closed his eyes, "I'll try."

He heard Achilles moving closer, "Did you enjoy yourself today?"

Patroclus nodded. "Yeah, I did," he opened his eyes and saw Achilles centimeters away from his face, "why do you ask?"

Achilles sighed with relief. "That's good!" He smiled nervously, "I mean, I knew you'd like Chiron because Chiron is amazing. But I didn't know if you'd like this, because this is a little harder than normal camping." Achilles sounded a bit… Anxious? "But you like it, or at least it seems like you're liking it! And that's very good and I shouldn't have to worry as much as I did!" Achilles had an expression on his face that was half grimace, half smile.

Patroclus raised an eyebrow, "You were worried that I wouldn't like it?"

Achilles nodded slightly.

"What would've you done if I hadn't liked it?" 

"I would've gone back. Obviously. But that would've made Chiron sad because I haven't visited in a while... But that didn't happen, and you're happy, and I'm happy too!" Achilles concluded quickly.

Patroclus frowned, "You'd do that to your adoptive father for me?"

Achilles looked like a deer in headlights for a second, "Maybe...?"

Patroclus huffed with fondness, "That's… Kind of cute. But you don't need to put me before your family..." There was a tiny smile leaking into Patroclus' face. "Though... it's cute to know that you care that much about me."

Achilles' face changed with realization, "You liked that? I thought…" He then nodded to himself; as if taking note. "Of course I care about you a lot, I'm marrying you, after all. You’re my family now," He smiled.

Patroclus bit his lips. What was he supposed to do with all that? He wasn’t a good person; he was playing with him. “Hey Achilles, can I ask you a question?”

“You already did.”

Patroclus rolled his eyes, “Not what I meant.”

Achilles chuckled softly, “You can ask, you can always ask whatever you want.”

Patroclus observed Achilles’ eyes, their aquamarine color, he looked happy. “Have you… Have you ever hurt someone you didn’t want to hurt? Like, you did something you knew was wrong, but at the moment you didn’t care because you were thinking about yourself. And then when you realized you were going to hurt someone it was too late to stop, and a part of you didn’t want to stop, but you also didn’t want to hurt that person?” 

Patroclus looked away, “Does that make sense?”

“That’s weirdly specific… Do I know who you are talking about?”

Patroclus shook his head.

“Well…” Achilles thought about it for a moment, “I think I have…”

Patroclus didn’t expect that, “Really?”

Achilles nodded, "It was my ex."

"Oh, that girl Deidamia?" Patroclus said before he could stop himself.

"How do you know her name? Do you know her?"

Patroclus shook his head, "Paris told me about her."

"What did he say?"

Patroclus bit his lips. He and his big mouth, now if Achilles ever met Paris he wouldn't like him. Yet it was too late to regret now, "That you kicked her out and forced her to have an abortion."

Achilles maintained his serious face for a moment before laughing, "Oh gods, the kind of rumors people with no hobbies make up. No, that wasn't what happened. What happened was that my mother wanted me to end up together with the daughter of her old friend, Lycomedes. It was good for business, and she is a nice girl. So, I did what my mom wanted me to, and she became my girlfriend, though I didn't feel anything for her. She fell in love with me, and I knew I was hurting her by pretending to feel something for her… I guess I didn't want to stop because it was easier to pretend. It was easier to be with her than to accept the fact that I was alone."

"And then what happened?"

"I broke up with her. It was the right choice, even if it hurt her more at the moment, in the long run it was better."

Patroclus didn't answer to that.

Achilles caressed his cheek, "And in the end, it was worth it. Now, you're here with me because of that."

Patroclus leaned into that contact, how much he wished to be selfish. To forget about his heartache for Hector and listen to his body screaming for Achilles. 

He could be selfish for the night; just a little, the forest won't tell.

"Hey Achilles..."

"Yes?" Achilles answered, eager to please.

"Can you hold me? I sleep better when you hug me," Patroclus said, ignoring how his mind begged him to stop.

Achilles' response was to get closer and hold him against his chest. There was it again, that comforting heartbeat.

"Can you sing me something to sleep?" Patroclus mumbled as he smelled Achilles deeply, he was a rainforest. Patroclus closed his eyes.

"What do you want me to sing?" Patroclus felt the vibrations of his voice.

"Anything you want, I just need to hear your voice." 

Achilles began playing with his curls, careful to not pull them, then.

"I know you, I walked with you once upon a dream..."

--------------------------------

The next day, Chiron did exactly as he said, and woke them up with the sun. On one hand, Patroclus was amazed at how stunningly beautiful the sunrise was on the mountain. On the other hand, he was exhausted.

But Chiron didn't stop, they began walking through the forest as he talked about how to find a river when one was lost.

"But remember that you can only drink the water if you purify it beforehand. Either with a filter or by boiling it for at least 1 minute. Otherwise, you might catch a stomach bug and get diarrhea, which only will make you more dehydrated, and you could die." Chiron said firmly. "In that case it’s better to search for alternatives of water like fruit that you know is edible."

"Better than dying because of poop," Achilles said as he giggled.

Patroclus rolled his eyes very hard at him.

As they walked. Chiron pointed to edible plants and picked them up. Patroclus tried to look at the characteristics of the plants, but they just looked like plants to him. Then Chiron stopped and crouched down, he got closer to a patch of dead grass and began moving it around. "Look, it's a rabbit nest, there must be rabbits nearby." He stood up and looked at Patroclus, "Do you want to learn how to put a snare trap?"

"A what?"

"A snare trap," Chiron repeated, "We don't have to if you don't want to, I packed more than enough food."

Patroclus processed it for a second, "I... yeah, ok... That'd be awesome, actually."

Chiron nodded. "Then tomorrow, let's come back here and set a trap." He stood up and kept walking.

Patroclus followed eagerly. 

Achilles leaned closer to him as they walked. "I thought you were a vet?"

Patroclus frowned. "I am, and?"

"And don’t you like animals or something?" Achilles looked at him. "Why do you want to kill one?"

Patroclus rolled his eyes with amusement. "And aren't you a musician?"

Achilles blushed, then he smiled so brightly. "I… Yeah, you could say so."

"And how come you got money?"

Achilles slightly shoved Patroclus away.

"Hey you two," Chiron interrupted them, "Stop playing and come, the river is right there."

--------------------------------

The river was surprisingly clean. One could see the rocky bottom and some small fish without much difficulty. Chiron then let Patroclus and Achilles soak their feet for a couple of minutes while he collected more plants and wood.

After they both played in the water for some minutes, they got out and helped him with collecting; or more like Achilles collected the plants and Patroclus the wood as he didn’t want to accidentally poison someone.

When they returned to the campsite, Chiron instructed Patroclus with the basics of how to build a simple shelter and demonstrate it quickly. Then he asked Patroclus to do it. 

First, Patroclus moved some logs and arranged them near the cave's entrance close to the tent he shared with Achilles, then he covered them with leaves. After that he tried to imitate Chiron and make a triangular structure using sticks, but it either fell, or some sticks broke. Patroclus tried three times before he got frustrated.

"Remember that you don't need to do exactly what I did, Patroclus," Chiron said calmly, "there's not one right solution in life, work with what you have."

Patroclus sighed, but he didn't want to disappoint Chiron. He looked at the sticks he had, and then moved his logs. He let the sticks lean on a tree, which worked. After that point it was just about covering it with more foliage until it was insulated enough from the elements.

He sat inside, it wasn’t very big, nor perfect, but for his first attempt it wasn’t that bad.

Chiron nodded at him, "Good job."

Achilles smiled, proud of him, "It's way better than the first time I tried doing one myself."

Chiron smiled with barely contained laughter at that, "You did your best at that time."

Achilles shook his head, "It was the first time I was camping without a tent, and I was alone. Because I had awful luck, it poured down. My poor shelter made of 3 sticks couldn't keep up." 

Chiron began chuckling.

Achilles looked at Chiron, clearly happy to make him laugh, before turning back to Patroclus, "And the worst part was, that there was a cave nearby that I could've used as a shelter!"

Patroclus giggled at that too.

"That's why it's important to know your surroundings." Chiron sighed with amusement.

"How old were you?" Patroclus asked softly. 

"Like, 12," Achilles shrugged, "I got pretty sick afterward."

"That's impressive! When I was 12, I was..." Patroclus thought about it. He remembered Priam's house, and his children, he remembered Paris and Hector. An afternoon spent praying for his love to be returned. For Hector to look at him, "I was... Not doing much..." Patroclus tried to keep his smile on.

Achilles must've noticed the change in his attitude because he walked to him. "Let's go for a walk in the forest."

Patroclus looked up at him from his shelter, "Why?"

"Because I want to!" Achilles smiled and offered his hand.

Patroclus sighed. But he took Achilles' hand, nonetheless. He lifted him up and then guided towards the bushes and plants.

"Don't go too far!" Chiron screamed while they were walking away.

"Don't worry about it!" Achilles smiled at Patroclus.

--------------------------------

After walking all day and Achilles talking about plants around him, they finally came back. Patroclus was still a little upset about Hector, but after walking so much and Achilles constantly bombarding him with new information, he found he just didn't have the energy to care anymore.

The sun was setting, and Chiron had been preparing some tea with the plants he picked up earlier over the fire that Patroclus started. Apparently, it was easier to just keep the same fire going than to put it out and having to start a new one from zero.

They all sat around the fire as Chiron offered them tea. "And how was the walk?"

Achilles eagerly accepted the cup, "It was good! I taught Patroclus a lot about plants!"

Chiron looked at Patroclus with a question in his eyes.

"Well," Patroclus remembered the rapid fire of facts that Achilles had given him, "Taught is a way to put it..."

Achilles lightly pushed Patroclus.

Chiron nodded, "It's better that way, Achilles tends to mix his potions and his medicinal plants."

"Hey!" Achilles pouted. "That's not true."

"Ok, I'll forget everything Achilles told me," Patroclus nodded firmly.

"Hey!" Achilles looked at Patroclus under his lashes, "don't be mean with me."

"Dramatic as his father." Chiron commented.

"Did you teach Peleus as well?" Patroclus tilted his head slightly to the side.

"More or less, I was a friend of his mother Endeïs; Achilles’ grandmother, and I helped after Aeacus kicked him out, and then again when Thetis left."

"Aeacus?"

"Grandpa Aeacus," Achilles grimaced at that name, "He kicked out father and uncle Telamon when they were very young."

Patroclus frowned, "But your dad is an omega? That could've been dangerous for him."

Achilles nodded, "But Grandpa didn't want to see him after what happened to uncle Phocus, well, more like half-uncle Phocus."

"Half-uncle?" 

"He was the result of an infidelity... With one of my mom's sisters, so technically he was my half uncle, complete cousin?"

Patroclus didn't know how to react. "I'm sorry. But did you just say your grandfather had a son with your aunt?"

Achilles shrugged, "To be fair, it was before my dad and my mom met and married. So, it's not that weird."

Patroclus frowned, "Ok, and what happened to that uncle?"

Chiron intervened, "Peleus and Telamon killed him."

Achilles nodded, "But it was an accident, they both were young and didn't mean it."

Patroclus remembered what had happened to Clysonymus, and he felt like he didn't have a right to judge Peleus or his brother's actions, "Yeah, fair."

Achilles looked at him with a funny expression.

"Peleus wasn't officially my student, but he stayed with me for a while before marrying Thetis, then after she left I let him stay on one of my properties while he got better.  I taught him some things here and there. He is a very dear friend to me, almost like my son," Chiron said with a little smile.

"That's why I'm his favorite student!" Achilles smiled proudly.

Chiron laughed at that, "You've got competition."

"Like whom?" Patroclus asked, genuinely interested in knowing more about Chiron's other students.

"Heracles," Achilles said quickly.

"Like the famous actor Heracles?" Patroclus raised an eyebrow.

Achilles snorted, "No, THE famous actor Heracles himself."

Patroclus' jaw fell to the floor. The famous, world-renowned actor who had won several Oscars and then became one of cinema's greatest legends after being poisoned. "Heracles!?"

Chiron nodded, "I was hired to teach him some basic skills and to talk to him about my experience as an army doctor for one of his movies."

Patroclus laughed with shock, "I...! I just...! I can't believe it! I've watched almost all his movies since I was a kid!"

Achilles shrugged, "There were some good movies, others not so much."

"I guess it depends on your taste," Chiron said calmly.

Patroclus huffed with amusement. "Oh gods... Wait, if you knew him. What did he think about that urban legend that he killed his family, and then they tried to cover it up with a car accident?"

"That actually happened." Chiron drank a little of his tea.

"What?" Patroclus almost dropped his cup.

"He was very high, and then began hallucinating... It didn't end well," Chiron shook his head.

"Oh..." Patroclus stayed silent for a moment.

"Guess now his comedies won't be so funny, huh?" Achilles took a sip of his cup.

"Achilles! That's a very insensitive comment!" Patroclus turned to him with a pout.

"Sorry, sorry." Achilles put his cup down and straightened his back, "But! We better go to sleep now, don't you think? It's dark already."

Chiron nodded. "That's a very wise choice."

--------------------------------

Patroclus was lying comfortably on top of Achilles' chest with his eyes closed. He heard his slow kind heartbeat that made Patroclus think of home. He sighed, Achilles was playing with his hair, stopping from time to time to detangle his fingers from his curls.

"I like your hair a lot," Achilles mumbled, "it's so pretty."

"Thank you, but right now it’s kind of a mess."

"Well, I still think it’s beautiful." A moment of silence, "Your hair isn't like your father's."

Patroclus thought about Menoetius' blond, straight hair. He snorted, "Really? I hadn't noticed."

Achilles chuckled, "No, I mean... I wanted to say, your mom's hair was like this too, no?"

Patroclus opened his eyes; inside their tent, everything was dark, "Not really... my mom's curls were thicker, it was almost like her hair defied gravity, you know?"

Achilles nodded, "I bet she was very beautiful."

"She was..." Patroclus bit his lips, "It's funny... because I never knew if my parents loved each other."

"Why do you say so?"

Patroclus closed his eyes, "My mom was the daughter of immigrants from Ethiopia. They weren't poor, my grandfather was the owner of a relatively successful business and was able to support my mom's studies. Thanks to that, she was able to find a very well paid job. But... She was never treated like she was from 'here', even though she was born here and never knew anywhere else.”

Patroclus sighed, “And I know she married my dad because he is from a very important family. Like, he was nothing more than the proof that she belonged... And their marriage was a mutually beneficial arrangement. She got her shiny omega that showed off her status. He got her money."

Achilles kept playing with Patroclus' hair, "I see..."

Patroclus shook his head, "But sometimes... My mom would let my dad help her with her hair... She would sit down on the couch and my dad would help her wash it and style it, sometimes for hours. To see them in such an intimate way... I always thought that was what love looked like. Even if they never said it." He opened his eyes.

"Maybe that was their form of saying I love you to each other." 

Patroclus focused on Achilles' heartbeat. "Then, it all stopped after my mom got diagnosed with cancer. The chemotherapy made her hair fall off, and she decided to shave it off. She did it with a smile, but you could see the hurt in her eyes... Everyone in the family shaved their hair with her, even my dad... He was strong for her and never cried. He might’ve not loved her, but still, he held her hand through the end…"

Patroclus remained silent for a moment, he felt tears on his throat, clogging it. It was hard to breathe, "Sorry, I don't know where that came from..." 

Achilles slightly shook his head. "It's ok, you can tell me anything you want... Hey, maybe I can help you with your hair too, if you want to."

"Honestly, I don't have the patience to take care of my hair properly. That's why I prefer my hair to be shorter, I actually need a haircut now."

"I can help you take care of it if you decide to let it grow then."

Patroclus hugged him tighter, as if trying to melt into him. "I... After my mom died, my hair was a little longer than it is now, and I fell into a very bad depressive episode. I couldn't be bothered to even eat. Much less taking care of my hair. Then, when that passed, my hair was in a very bad condition, and I had to cut it very short. But I prefer it that way."

"I see," Achilles then began slightly scratching his scalp, and Patroclus sighed. "But if you want to let it grow, I'm here to help, ok? Only if you want. I don't have any right to tell you what to do with your hair."

Patroclus smirked, "But you'd like it longer, don't you?"

Achilles shook, "To hell what I want, it's your choice."

Patroclus inhaled deeply. Crushed leaves, freshly cut grass, rain. "I'll try to let it grow, if it starts bothering me though, I'll cut it." 

Achilles nodded. 

Patroclus hummed; his hand reached for Achilles' braid that he did before sleeping. "I like your hair too; I've never seen someone with this hair color before, blond but with a bit of pink."

Achilles smiled briefly, "It's an unusual color, isn't it?"

Patroclus nodded and played with Achilles' braid.

"Once, I found this photo of a baby, it looked exactly like me. The same features, the same eye color, even a mop of the same hair with the same color, and I thought it was me, but..." Achilles swallowed.

"But?" Patroclus felt the pinkish golden hair on his hand, it was soft.

"When I asked my dad, he told me it was the first baby that died," Achilles said without any emotions.

"Oh..." Patroclus stopped playing with Achilles' braid.

"After that, I spent days without looking in a mirror. I was so scared... I thought I'd see a ghost..." Achilles remained completely frozen for a moment, Patroclus thought that even his heart would stop. But then he talked again. "I always wanted to dye it. I wanted to dye it black so much when I was a teen, but everyone always said no, that I'd ruin my beautiful hair... I just wanted… not to see it anymore..."

"I can help you dye it black if you want..." Patroclus then reached for Achilles' hand and squeezed it, "it’s your hair, you can do whatever you want with it, and besides, I bet it'd look just as beautiful as it does now."

Achilles kissed the top of Patroclus' head, "Thank you..."

Patroclus had a feeling he wasn’t talking just about hair anymore, "Hey, sing to me... The same song you sang before, the one from sleeping beauty."

Achilles did as he was told, and Patroclus slept. He didn’t dream about princes and castles, but he dreamed about strawberry blond hair.

--------------------------------

The next day, Achilles woke him up with a kiss on the lips, it was brief but sweet. Then they went out again. Chiron took them to the place of the other day to put the snare trap; he did it first to show Patroclus how to do it. Then he undid his work and gave everything to Patroclus to try it. With a bit of guidance, Patroclus was able to set up his trap, though it didn’t look as good as Chiron's had.

After that, Chiron returned to the camp, and Achilles dragged Patroclus to the river. 

"C'mon! Let's go before it gets too late!" Achilles said as he let go of Patroclus' arm.

Patroclus stopped a few meters behind Achilles, "I don't know, are you sure this is a good idea?"

Achilles laughed, "Yeah, you're right, there might be sharks on the river."

Patroclus huffed, "That's not what I meant. It was more like, is this legal? We aren't destroying an ecosystem or something?"

Patroclus' protest died on his tongue as he watched Achilles taking off his shirt. The muscles were moving gracefully, the planes of his skin caught the light in just the right way. His long hair moved when Achilles turned to him with his angel's face. "I don't know," he kicked out his shoes and began pushing down his pants and underwear, "but stop worrying and live a little."

And there he was again, with his perfectly sculpted body, entering the water and inviting him. It wasn't wrong, was it? It was normal to be attracted to that siren. Everyone would, even Hector, if he was here. Patroclus took off his clothes with a bit of hesitation and followed him into the water.

The water was cold, and even though it was high enough to reach Patroclus' belly button, the current wasn't very strong. At one point he almost slipped, but Achilles was there in a second to catch him. He laughed, even if the water was cold, Achilles felt warm. He hugged him.

"What are you thinking about?" Achilles asked with a playful smile, he put his hands on Patroclus' back.

Patroclus was thinking about kissing him.

"Take a guess."

Achilles' hand began traveling down, and Patroclus thought about how he was going to let him do anything despite his best judgement, "Ok, but first you have to close your eyes."

Patroclus giggled; he did as he was told. He was ready to feel Achilles' lips, instead he felt how Achilles let him go, and then there was a splash on his face.

Patroclus gasped. When he opened his eyes, Achilles was there, snickering like a little boy.

Patroclus couldn't help himself, he started to laugh as well, "I let you know that I consider that a declaration of war!" He began splashing Achilles as well.

Achilles laughed, he covered his face, only to start splashing Patroclus again after some seconds. They kept splashing each other for a while before Achilles leaped to Patroclus and sent the both of them to the water. After holding his breath for a few moments, Patroclus was out of the water and in Achilles' arms.

"Wow. This is the weirdest fish I've ever caught!" Achilles said with a mocking tone. 

Patroclus giggled. "Excuse you! This is the sexiest fish you've ever caught!" 

Achilles hummed. "That’s also true." He began kissing Patroclus, it was a slow and sweet kiss. Patroclus couldn't avoid smiling into it.

Then Achilles broke the kiss to jump into the water again while still holding Patroclus.

--------------------------------

Patroclus looked at the blue sky above him, the clouds moved lazily. He breathed deeply as the sounds of the forest surrounded him. After they had finished playing, they had laid down at the side of the river to dry before putting their clothes back on. 

Patroclus found it strange. Even though he was completely naked at the side of an equally completely naked Achilles, he felt normal. He didn't feel ogled at, or like an object to be used. It was a first time for Patroclus.

His body never felt like a body, it was always a costume that didn't fit well, too much of some things, too little of others. He felt like he ought to peel back a layer of skin and muscles to be himself. But at the moment, he was himself. Patroclus was himself in his own body, and Achilles was seeing only him. Not sex, nor children or anything else he could want from him.

Achilles was lying on his stomach, "And how was your childhood?"

Patroclus laughed, "That came out of nowhere."

Achilles smiled, "I know, but that's something one should know about their husband."

"Fiancé, not husband yet," Patroclus corrected with amusement.

Achilles rolled his eyes, "C'mon, tell me."

Patroclus looked at the clouds over him, "It was... Lonely... I didn't have a lot of friends."

Achilles observed him expectantly.

Patroclus shook his head, "I don't really remember a lot of what happened before I was 9. It's all fuzzy at best. I remember that I suffered a lot of bullying, part of it was because I was an omega, and the other was because I… A kid named Clysonymus used to call me... Not very nice things..."

Patroclus closed his eyes, "Then... I pushed him down a staircase... It wasn't on purpose, or maybe it was? I don't… I don’t… Remember…? He fell into a coma and… Died," Patroclus breathed; his brain began filling with static. It felt as if he was approaching a dangerous zone within his mind, "And then... I was sent away from my family and all the things I cared about... Away from my mom and sister, from my dad..." the static increased, "I was shipped away to a house full of foster kids and..."

Hector...! 

Patroclus sat and hugged his knees, "I don't want to talk about it anymore..." He pouted and felt like a little kid again.

Achilles was sitting at his side in a second, "It's alright," he got closer enough that Patroclus could smell him, and his aching heart settled. "We can talk about another thing if you want to."

Patroclus smiled, "Can I tell you a secret?"

"I’ve told you already. You can tell me anything."

"You… Make me feel safe..." Patroclus wished he had met Achilles when he was a little kid.

Achilles smiled like he had heard the best news of his life. "I'm honored," He kissed Patroclus' shoulder softly, "I think we're dry enough by now to go back. We don't want Chiron to be mad, thinking we're just playing."

Patroclus looked at Achilles, those eyes, watching him, he felt… Weird, he pushed Achilles so he was lying on his back again, he hovered over him and saw his eyes filling with lust.

"Last one to get dressed is a rotten egg."

"What?"

Before Achilles could anything else, Patroclus was up and running to his clothes.

"Hey! That isn't fair! Patroclus!" Achilles ran to him and tackled him to the ground just as he finished putting his pants on.

--------------------------------

What covered most of Patroclus’ vision was Achilles’ back as he guided him through the forest. There was a certain feeling to it, as if Patroclus was watching a memory instead of the present. A memory that never happened of a life where he went with Achilles instead of Priam’s house. Where instead of yearning, heartache and adult feelings, he found Achilles’ warm hand. Where he could’ve stayed a kid a little longer.

That life didn’t exist. However, at the moment, he could pretend it did.

They stopped momentarily to check Patroclus’ trap, to see that it was empty. Achilles accidentally set it off while playing with it to annoy Patroclus, and then helped him to set it up again. Then they arrived back in camp.

Patroclus saw a little bowl on the ground full of figs that wasn’t there before, “Look! Figs! I haven’t had one of these in a while.”

Chiron appeared from between the bushes at that. He was carrying a bowl of what looked to be a type of berry. “I found a tree of figs nearby and decided to pick some,” Chiron looked at them with an inquisitive gaze, “where did you two go?”

“To swim in the river,” Achilles answered, Patroclus grabbed a fig and bit it, it was ripe and as sweet as honey.

“You could’ve used the opportunity to catch a fish or two for today’s dinner.” Chiron said with amusement.

Patroclus hummed. “These are good.”

Achilles then grabbed 4 figs, “Do you want to see me juggle?”

Chiron rolled his eyes and walked away back to the bushes.

Patroclus snorted, “Why?”

Achilles frowned, “What do you mean why?”

“I mean, juggling is a very specific skill. Why do you know how to juggle?”

It seemed that Achilles had never questioned his reasoning as to why learning how to juggle was a good idea. “Because it’s cool?”

Patroclus chuckled. “Did you learn to juggle when you were young, hoping to use it to impress an omega at some point?”

Achilles got red as a tomato, “No…”

Patroclus laughed more, “That’s so cute!”

Achilles looked away, “Do you want to see me do it or not!?”

“Of course!” Patroclus sat on a rock and put the bowl on his lap, he grabbed a fig and pressed it against his lips, “I’d love to,” He took a bite.

Achilles recovered quick enough from his bruised ego and began juggling with the 4 figs. Soon, asking Patroclus to throw him more. As Patroclus did it, the arc formed by the figs became bigger and bigger.

Chiron appeared again and observed Achilles at Patroclus’ side. “You’re going to eat any you drop,” He said firmly, but it was clear he found Achilles’ antics amusing.

“That’s why I’m not dropping any!” Achilles then stopped juggling, catching all the figs on his hands, except the last one. That he caught with his mouth.

Patroclus then began laughing, probably more than the situation merited, but it was worth it to see that prideful look in Achilles’ eyes. He walked to Patroclus with his hands full of figs to put them back in the bowl, then leaned down to offer Patroclus the one on his mouth.

At that, Chiron walked away, mumbling something about dinner.

Patroclus smiled and bit into the fig Achilles had on his mouth. It was very sweet, he decided to moan a little as he ate it. A part of himself felt very ridiculous when he did so. However, he loved when Achilles’ eyes turned darker.

Patroclus pushed him away, got up and ran away, still holding the bowl full of fruit. “My figs now!”

--------------------------------

He laid on top of Achilles' chest. It had become their habit. He made shapes with his fingers on Achilles’ body, first a star, then a flower, and after that, a heart. Achilles meanwhile was humming the melodies of different songs.

Patroclus closed his eyes, "That's Fernando, from ABBA."

Achilles chuckled. "Ok, how about this one,"  he hummed a different melody.

Patroclus smiled. "Rasputin."

"That one was fast," Achilles petted Patroclus' head. 

"Well, why did you choose that song? It's a very popular song," Patroclus made a star again on Achilles' chest.

"I don't want to make it too hard for you. What's the point of playing a game if there isn't a decent chance of winning?" Achilles said softly.

"I guess it's the experience?" Patroclus made two little hearts on Achilles' chest.

"Maybe..." Achilles stopped talking for a moment, "Hey, what is our song?"

"Our song?"

"Yes, the one we'll dance to at our wedding. It has to be special for both of us!" Achilles said with excitement.

Patroclus shook his head, "I thought you were ok with handling all the wedding planning by yourself. You know I’d hate to have that responsibility."

"I know, but it has to be important for both of us, doesn't it?" Achilles asked timidly.

Patroclus chuckled, "Then pick whatever you want. If it's important for you, it'll be important for me as well."

Achilles began scratching Patroclus' scalp softly. "You just want to get away from any work of planning this wedding, don't you?"

Patroclus sighed contentedly, it felt good, "I don't care a lot about that kind of thing. If I could, I'd just go and firm the papers."

"I always dreamed of having a beautiful wedding." 

"That's ok too. That's why you're the one planning it, so you can have the wedding you always wanted and be happy," Patroclus yawned.

Achilles smiled, "I'll be happy, as long as I'm with you."

Patroclus nodded and snuggled closer to Achilles, his smell and the sound of his heartbeat immediately settled down his mind, "Sing me that song again."

"Which one?"

"You know the song," Patroclus mumbled against Achilles' chest, "the song that helps me sleep."

"Ok, my sleeping beauty," Achilles softly began singing, and for Patroclus everything was ok in the world for that instant.

Chapter Text

The next day; much like the past ones, was spent walking around and playing. Other than that, there wasn't much to do. They went to check the trap, but it was still empty. At night, they eagerly listened to Chiron's stories before going back to sleep.

On the fifth day. Patroclus actually woke up before Achilles, but he pretended to be asleep, so Achilles would wake him up with a kiss.

Moments later, and Achilles was on top of him, kissing him briefly on the cheek. Patroclus opened his eyes with a smile, he put his arms around Achilles' neck and held him there. Under Achilles' usual strong smell of a rainforest, Patroclus could smell the traces of sweat and a certain masculine musk. He loved that smell.

"You smell disgusting," Patroclus muttered, barely containing his giggles.

Achilles snorted, "Is that so?"

Patroclus nodded and pulled Achilles closer to him to inhale deeply again. 

"Well, then let me go away and spare your nose the pain." Achilles tried to pull away, just for Patroclus to cling to him and not let go while giggling. Achilles laughed, and he went back to how he was, letting Patroclus fall back to his original position too. 

He started kissing him, and Patroclus happily followed his lead. After stopping the kiss, Achilles hugged him, and put his nose on the part where Patroclus' jaw connected to his neck. 

"I thought I smelled disgusting. Why are you kissing me?" Achilles mumbled.

Patroclus snickered, "You do smell! But that's fine, I'm sure I also smell disgusting."

Achilles inhaled deeply while still in that place so close to Patroclus' pulse. "You smell like roses and vanilla," He kissed him softly there.

Patroclus sighed and closed his eyes, he arched ever so slightly in his back. Achilles' hand slipped carefully under Patroclus' shirt.

There was a soft tap on the walls of the tent. "Wake up you two already, it's late," It was Chiron's voice.

Patroclus sighed, with a little disappointment leaking into his breath for some reason. Achilles simply chuckled and gave him a little peek on the lips, "I thought you wanted to wait till marriage anyway." He said as he stood up.

Patroclus sighed again. "Shut up."

--------------------------------

They were walking calmly in the forest, side by side, holding hands. The plan was to check on Patroclus' trap. 

Achilles was talking calmly about singing, "And you know, you could be on one of my covers, as the backup voice."

Patroclus shook his head, "I'm not good at singing."

"You don't need to be good at singing, you just need to be there. My ex is on several of the songs there, but she couldn't sing to save her life, so you would be fine." Achilles waved his hand around.

"You sang with your ex?"

"I did all sorts of things with my ex; she was always very nosey about what I was doing," Achilles shrugged.

Patroclus hummed, "And what other kinds of things did you do with your ex?"

Achilles raised an eyebrow, "What kind of things do you mean?"

Patroclus shrugged, "I don't know. What kind of things did you do?"

Achilles chuckled, "If you want to ask if I had sex with her. Yes, yes, I did." He smiled at him, "I respect your decision about wanting to wait till marriage, but she wasn't like that, not that it was bad. But what happened, happened. It didn't mean anything, it was just sex."

Patroclus hummed, there was an ugly sensation growing inside him, a feeling of possessiveness, "And how was she? Physically, I mean."

Achilles threw his arm around Patroclus' neck, "Not as sexy as you, that's for sure."

Patroclus couldn't help but smile at that, "Flattery will get you nowhere."

"Hey, I just like you." Achilles said softly, "I like you a lot."

Patroclus shook his head and looked away.

"What about you?" Achilles asked quickly.

"What?"

"Do you like me? Or what kind of body do you find attractive?" 

Patroclus didn't expect that question, "I guess… I've never thought that much about it."

"But you like me?" Achilles asked as he tilted his head, "Like, are you physically attracted to me?"

Patroclus thought about it. He remembered Achilles' muscles, his back, his chest, his thighs, his broad shoulders that somehow managed to still look lean and delicate. He felt his cheeks getting warm. "Well, what does it matter anyway!? I'm still marrying you…"

Achilles stopped walking. He had a pout on his mouth, and it was clear that he wasn’t going to move on until he received a satisfactory answer.

Patroclus stopped with him; he covered his mouth and sighed. "You've got… Your body is… is pretty, ok? I like you too, you have a nice… ass that I like a lot…" Patroclus looked away. It was the first time someone had asked about his preferences.

Achilles took his hand. "Ok," He smiled and began walking again, leading him.

"Is that ok? What I said. It was, ok?" Patroclus mumbled.

Achilles nodded eagerly, "I love when you get like that, all shy and coy, you look so cute."

Patroclus pushed him away slightly, "Shut up."

“Do you want to see me naked? You can ask if you want. I love how you look at me when I’m naked.” Achilles purred at his side.

Patroclus huffed, but couldn’t help how his heart started racing. He was very aware that Achilles was just messing with him by that point.

Achilles began laughing, “I’m just joking! I’m joking, don’t get upset!”

“Maybe if you didn’t joke so much, you’d be able to see me naked earlier.” Patroclus’ voice was barely a whisper.

But that made Achilles’ smile drop, and his face got red like a tomato. “Do you mean, if I asked you…?”

Patroclus began cackling at that. “Now, who is the cute one?” He walked in front of Achilles, him being the one guiding.

Achilles observed him, “C’mon, don’t play with me like that.”

Patroclus was about to answer when he saw it. He immediately stopped, “There’s… there’s actually a rabbit.”

It wasn’t very small, and the fur had a brown color to it. It seemed like the animal was scared.

“I didn’t expect it’d work, honestly.” Patroclus let go of Achilles and took a closer look at the rabbit.

“What do you want to do with it?” Achilles walked to Patroclus’ side.

“I…” Patroclus mumbled, he watched how the rabbit tried to free himself from time to time. “I don’t know… I mean, I set the trap but…” He set the trap, and he knew there was a very big possibility that he’d catch something. However, now that he was confronted with it. He felt unprepared for what he had caught.

Achilles nodded. “Let me take care of it. You don’t need to kill it,” he reached for the rabbit.

Patroclus huffed with annoyance. Before Achilles could grab the rabbit, he quickly put his hands on it and broke the neck with one swift movement, “I’m a vet, Achilles. I’ve killed way more animals than you could ever imagine or be comfortable with,” He took the dead rabbit out of the trap, “I’m not weak, nor will I hesitate.”

When Patroclus turned to Achilles, he was looking at him with that gaze that told him Achilles was fucking him mentally.

Before, he’d been extremely scared at that idea. Yet, at the moment. It felt safe when it was Achilles the one who wanted him because he knew he would stop when Patroclus wanted. He began liking it, he liked being desired when it was something he could say no to.

He put one hand on top of Achilles’ face and pushed him away, “Be a dear and pick up the parts of the trap for me.”

Before Achilles could answer. Patroclus began walking back to the camp with the dead rabbit in his hands.

--------------------------------

After they got back to camp, Chiron congratulated Patroclus, and he felt his chest swell with happiness at the praise of the old man. He skinned the rabbit, got rid of the guts washed it, and finally put it to roast very well over the fire, making sure that the heat would kill any parasites that it could have.

Both Achilles and Chiron had encouraged him to eat most of the meat at dinner. As it was his first time catching something. So, Patroclus ate happily, though he had to admit that it could use some spices, at the very least some salt. Still, he ate proudly.

Meanwhile, Achilles still had that dark gaze that constantly was on Patroclus even when Chiron talked, and Patroclus liked how it made him feel.

That led to a heavy make out session later after they went to sleep on their tent.

Patroclus stopped kissing Achilles for a moment. They both were on his side, facing each other. Achilles then began kissing Patroclus' neck. He laughed softly, and pushed Achilles so he was lying on his back. He got on top of him and sat right on top of Achilles' crotch with both his legs at his side.

"I like the view." Achilles said, and put his hands over Patroclus thighs.

Patroclus laughed again, he put his hands on Achilles' chest, "I'm not crushing you, aren't I?"

"Of course not," Achilles began moving his hand in circles on Patroclus' hips.

"Are you sure? I know I'm fat, I'm not offended by that," Patroclus said, suddenly feeling a little sheepish.

Achilles snorted. "What? You aren't fat."

Patroclus rolled his eyes, "Achilles..."

"What? You aren't! You just have muscles, aren't dehydrated, and have a healthy amount of fat. Yes, you have a tummy, but having a flat stomach isn't necessarily healthy." Achilles assured him.

Patroclus smiled gently at him.

"Besides, if you were fat, so what!? Being fat isn't necessarily bad or unhealthy, nor does it make you less attractive." Achilles' hands began traveling up Patroclus' thighs, "It just means there's more of you to touch." 

Patroclus giggled. "If you want to touch me." He pulled up his shirt slightly, "why aren't you touching me?"

Achilles observed him, with a question on his gaze. Patroclus just rolled his eyes and grabbed one of Achilles' wrists. He guided his hand to his abdomen.

It was cold, so he shivered at the contact. But soon enough, Achilles began moving his hand around his skin, leaving the confusing sensation of a cold touch igniting fire on him. 

Patroclus sighed when Achilles reached his chest. He closed his eyes and Achilles delicately caressed him there, he only stopped to teasingly pinch a nipple.

Patroclus moaned softly.

He opened his eyes again, and grabbed Achilles' hand, without resistance, he pushed it back at Achilles' side. "You've had enough fun." Patroclus leaned down to Achilles' neck, "it’s my turn now."

Patroclus kissed Achilles' neck, sloppy and wet kisses; his hand found his way underneath Achilles' shirt, his core was warm. He began moaning softly with Patroclus' caresses. But he didn't move, only let Patroclus do as he wished freely.

On a playful whim, Patroclus moved his hips forwards and backwards while still on top of Achilles' crotch. That stole a loud moan from him.

"I can feel how hard you are," Patroclus giggled against Achilles' ear.

Achilles panted, "You like torturing me, don't you?"

Patroclus shook his head softly. "No, I don't like it... I adore it," He bit down hard on Achilles' neck.

Achilles screamed as he arched his back.

"Wait! Wait!" Achilles complained, "Please stop!" He began softly pushing Patroclus away.

Patroclus did as he was told and rolled off him. "What happened?"

Achilles put both his hands on top of his face. Even in the darkness, Patroclus could see his face was very red, "I need to change my boxers." 

Patroclus felt a bit uncomfortable, but it was mostly funny to him, "Why?"

Achilles shook his head, "I... I think I just came."

Patroclus was shocked for a moment, then he giggled. Not only did he feel safe and in control, but he also kind of liked it. He took Achilles’ hands and moved them aside to give him a quick kiss. "I really like you a lot," he mumbled against his lips.

Achilles then sat. "Stop! Now I need to explain to Chiron why I screamed in the middle of the night!" He whispered.

--------------------------------

The next morning, Patroclus woke up with a kiss, and morning wood. One thing had led to another, and then he found himself holding Achilles while he humped against Patroclus' leg.

Patroclus kept him close, he felt eager to test the waters, to see how much he could do to Achilles, to see him squirm and moan like no alpha Patroclus had met before did.

"Patroclus... Patroclus...!" He whined weakly with sloppy movements.

Patroclus found himself from time to time moving his leg to meet Achilles halfway. 

Suddenly, Achilles movements became faster and erratic.

"You really like this, don’t you?" Patroclus muttered.

Achilles moaned loudly.

Then a tap on their tent, "It's very late already!"

Chiron' voice made them let go of each other as quickly as if the body of the other burned.

Both Patroclus and Achilles laid on their backs and breathed heavily. "We know, give us a second!" Patroclus screamed after calming down a bit.

"Hurry up!" Chiron said before walking away.

Achilles looked at Patroclus with pleading eyes, he still was very hard and without any kind of release. Patroclus was in the same state, but he decided to ignore that. 

He put a hand on top of Achilles' crotch and waited, when Achilles began humping his hand, he massaged him softly through the fabric until Achilles' eyes rolled back, he bit his lips to hide a moan. His hair was a mess, his face was a bright pink, and his lips looked swollen and very well kissed.

Patroclus laughed, he liked so much seeing Achilles in that state because of him, it was a weird sensation of control, he gave him a quick peck on the lips. "You're so pretty like this."

Achilles smiled, clearly happy about being attractive to Patroclus.

Patroclus hummed, thinking. "Please, tell me you still have clean boxers."

Achilles blinked for a few seconds. "Crap."

Patroclus laughed more, "I think you need to go to the river to wash yourself and your clothes."

Achilles then got closer to him and muttered. "Don't you want me to help you with your little problem," He put his arms around Patroclus' waist.

Patroclus shook his head. "No, Chiron is waiting for us." He pushed Achilles away and sat up, "but maybe we can play more later at night," Patroclus coyly.

Achilles sat and gave Patroclus a quick kiss on the cheek, "You make me crazy."

Patroclus kept laughing.

--------------------------------

When they finally got out of their tent, Achilles quickly excused himself, saying he needed to go to the river to fish. Patroclus giggled; he still hadn't calmed completely, but his loose clothes helped him hide it.

Chiron looked at Achilles go and slightly rolled his eyes, like he knew what Achilles and him had been doing. He probably knew.

"Patroclus, grab a bowl and come with me to pick up some fruit."

Patroclus nodded and quickly went for the bowl.

They entered the forest, not so far away from the camp, and Patroclus saw a tree with figs on it, he began picking the ones that seemed ripe enough.

Chiron began talking about different plants that bear edible fruits and the difference between those and poisonous ones.

"Nonetheless, you should never eat anything unless you are one hundred percent sure it is edible, anything else than completely sure could be mortal."

Patroclus nodded firmly as he grabbed another fig.

"Though, I think it was Einstein who said something about not memorizing anything that you could look up in books. I don't completely agree with that statement, but if you have a guide to edible plants that fit in your pockets to double-check your facts, then it certainly won't harm you," Chiron mentioned softly.

"Ok," Patroclus said quickly.

Chiron turned his gaze to Patroclus for some seconds before sighing.

"You really appreciate him, don't you?" Chiron muttered.

"Who? Achilles?" 

Chiron nodded.

Patroclus smiled thinking about him, "I guess you could say so. He’s… a friend."

"I don't think you completely understand what you got yourself into," Chiron replied seriously.

Patroclus stopped collecting figs, "Why do you say that?"

Chiron sighed heavily. He stopped moving, "I'm not saying that you shouldn't be with him, at this point I don't think you have much of a choice anymore. I don't think Achilles is a bad person either, Gods, I raised him myself, I would've known... But I don't think you truly know him."

Patroclus didn't say anything.

"You know in theory how horrible his childhood was, or at least Achilles told me that you knew. But you don't truly know, you’ll never truly know... I still remember the day I picked him up from Thetis' house. At that point, the people in charge of taking care of him gave up and just locked him up in a dark room alone for hours. From time to time they went to check on him, feed him, and change his diapers. They were so tired of his screams... He was extremely small for a 1-year-old baby..."

Chiron shook his head with the memory of it, trying to get rid of the feelings attached to it. "He grew up to be an extremely lonely and sad kid, but would you blame him? He shut down like a clamp, not letting anyone in, not even me. With all the relationships he had, Achilles always kept everyone at arm's length, the only person that he let in, his mother, abandoned him twice when he was a kid... That's why I was so surprised when you appeared, and he not only let you in, but he also seemed to beg for you to stay."

Patroclus bit his lips.

Chiron continued. "He idolizes you. He put you on this pedestal and is constantly begging, praying on his knees for you to complete him... Achilles lacks something, something nobody has been able to give him, and he believes you're the one who can give it to him... I don't know if you are, but you certainly complement him very well..."

Chiron sighed and rubbed his face with one hand, "This is a mess. Achilles is desperate for something he has lacked during all his life. And while I know he isn't a bad person, he's convinced that you are the one who can save him, so he's desperate for you to stay... He'll be anything you want him to be, acting the part you want. He'll be a merciless soldier who kills everything in his wake, or a kind and loving hero, depending on your desires. You could ask him tomorrow to stop singing and become a dancer, he'll do it without even asking why."

Patroclus looked at the ground.

"But the real him, in the end, is still just a sad lonely child, if you ever want to leave... He's not a bad person. He's just desperate, and desperate people make desperate choices. Choices that can and will hurt you if you aren’t thoughtful."

"And what can I do?" Patroclus asked weakly.

Chiron shook his head, "You can't leave, he'll chase you and drag you back kicking and screaming. As I see it, you can only be kind and forgiving, but most importantly, be careful... I'm not saying he'll do anything to hurt you willingly, quite the opposite. But please, be careful with him. He’s… delicate."

Patroclus nodded, Chiron's word were a hit of reality. He had been so warped by the happiness brought to him by the forest and a memory that never happened that he forgot about the rest of the world, about his real reason for his relationship with Achilles. He forgot about Hector. Yet he couldn't escape the things he was dragging as well.

--------------------------------

After that, Patroclus went back to their tent, suddenly drained of any energy or happiness. He had made a mistake; he was using Achilles and betraying Hector. What was he even thinking? He needed to call off the engagement, he'd do so as soon as they were back in the city.

Then Achilles entered the small tent, and Patroclus hid his face in the sleeping bag.

"Hey, Patroclus, I caught some fish! Chiron is cooking them; don't you want some?" Achilles said cheerfully.

Patroclus shook his head.

A moment of silence.

"What happened? Are you feeling ill?" Achilles began crawling to him.

Patroclus shook his head again, "No, I just feel... Tired."

Achilles began crawling on top of him, "Why? What's wrong? Something happened?"

Patroclus shook his head again.

Achilles stopped moving when he was right on top of Patroclus and began searching Patroclus' face, "What's wrong? You can tell me."

Patroclus turned to him. He saw those aquamarine eyes looking worried and that small kind smile. Patroclus felt like his heart stopped for a moment, he was a fool, "Nothing..."

Achilles pressed their foreheads together, "At least come out and eat something, tomorrow we'll go back, you’ll need the energy."

"Ok..."

--------------------------------

Patroclus spent all the dinner eating in silence while Achilles and Chiron talked. Mostly Chiron told some story or another, while Achilles made occasional comments between the worried looks he sent Patroclus' way.

Patroclus was sorry.

As soon as they finished, Patroclus went back to their tent, followed by Achilles. When he entered, Achilles delicately pushed him, so he was lying on his back, then he climbed on top of Patroclus.

Achilles began kissing him kindly as he held him, and Patroclus just let it happen, his mind elsewhere.

Then Achilles stopped, "You aren't here, are you? Mentally I mean."

Patroclus shook his head, "I'm just exhausted... I'm sorry."

"Why are you sorry? I don't care, as long as I'm with you, I'm happy." Achilles tried smiling, an attempt to cheer Patroclus.

Patroclus shook his head. "I need some space, please?" 

Achilles wordlessly got off Patroclus and laid at his side. Patroclus turned away from him and put as much distance as possible between the two of them. He sighed and closed his eyes.

"Good night," Achilles murmured.

Patroclus nodded.

--------------------------------

He was in a bed he didn't recognize, at least not at first. Patroclus knew instinctively whose bed it was, he had been there so many years ago. Patroclus was naked and covered in a gooey, transparent liquid. He panicked and jumped off the bed, he needed to go at that exact moment or something bad would happen.

Patroclus ran outside the room and passed by several doors and halls. He still didn’t know where he was, nor could he find a way out between the identical looking doors and rooms. His heart was beating faster and faster until. Patroclus almost slipped, he stopped, and slowly went to the floor on his knees. Nausea overtook him, and he began throwing up.