#sheith omegaverse

The mall has a staff entrance because it's ridiculously fancy like that. Even though it's "staff" only, Keith still always feels out of place when he uses it. He's too rough around the edges--very aware of his status and where he came from. https://twitter.com/justsayins/status/1239615366701232129

He's grateful that he only had to use the entrance twice a day, to clock in and clock out. Otherwise he waits outside at the valet booth waiting to park incredibly expensive cars.

It sometimes makes him a little sick that the mall exists at all. That there are people who come here regularly, because spending money (and so MUCH) is just a fun thing to do on a weekend.

But it's a job. Hr knows half the reason he got it is because he's a young omega who leans toward "pretty" and that--that fucking sucks, he's had enough attention from that to last a lifetime, but. It's a job and he needs it. He's learned well enough how to keep his head down.

So every morning he keeps his eyes on the ground as he hurries inside to his clock in station, which works out fine until he slams into a brick wall of a someone and goes sprawling to the ground.

He just manages to bite his tongue on a curse, but then he looks up (and up and /up) and fuck, it's a huge, handsome alpha in a stupidly fancy suit, and he has to be someone important and Keith is so screwed.

The man frowns down at him and leans forward, opening his mouth, and Keith braces, frozen, not sure what to do, no idea what to expect--

it's definitely not a heartfelt, "I'm so sorry," as a hand reaches out, an offering to help Keith to his feet. "Are you okay?"

Keith takes the hand up, because it would be insulting not to. "I'm fine," he mutters, eyes still trained on the floor. "I'm sorry, I wasn't--I'm sorry."

"My fault," the man says. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Keith's ankle kind of hurts, but he's not about to tell this got that. "Yeah," he says again, quickly. "Fine." He shifts, uncertain. "I...I was just going to clock in. Sir," he adds belatedly, because it can't hurt.

"Oh, of course." The man nods. "I won't keep you." He smiles. "Can't be late on the job, right?"

"Right," Keith says, feeling kind of wrongfooted. He hadn't expected a smile. Certainly not one that looked real. "Sorry again."

The man smiles again, and his scent changes. "Please, don't worry about it. Really."

It takes a second for Keith to realize he's doing the alpha "at ease, you're safe here" scent emission, and it throws him for another loop.

He had an education even if it sucked, and he knows that that emission is really hard to do for someone other than family, close friends, or a lover. And this guy can do it on COMMAND. And directing it at Keith.

It should get his hackles up, because he hates anything that takes advantage of his base biology, but the guy doesn't press his advantage. Instead he takes a step back.

"Have a good day," he says, giving Keith another smile that looks...soft. "I'll see you around."

Keith nods and hurries away, away from that smile and the pull off his scent.

It's only after he's clocked in does he connect the dots that the man couldn't have been a customer. It's the staff entrance. He had to be some sort of staff.

He's not sure if that's better or worse, really. But at least he really hadn't seemed mad. Hopefully not wanting to get Keith fired.

Or wanting something else.

***

Keith finishes clocking out and does his usual rush to the door, his best method to keep anyone from really noticing him, but maybe limping a little, because his ankle still hurts from the morning and then he spent all day standing on it.

There's a bench just inside the staff entrance that no one usually looks twice at, so Keith gives himself a second to sit down before he starts his walk to the bus stop.

He doesn't look up when the doors open, expecting to be passed by, but then he hears a surprised, "Oh." in a familiar voice.

Keith looks up.

It's the alpha from before.

"Hey there," the alpha says with a smile. He's still wearing his suit, but he's undone his tie and his collar is unbuttoned. It's unfairly devastating. "Nice to be off work, huh?"

Keith can't get out of talking to him. "Yeah," he says to the floor. "Nice." He doesn't say anything else. Maybe the alpha will leave him alone.

"I'm Shiro," the man says instead of leaving Keith alone. He doesn't hold out his hand to shake, instead doing the way less intimidating, way more polite finger wiggle-wave that doesn't force omegas to make contact with alphas they don't know.

Keith swallows. He doesn't get waved to very often. Most alphas he's dealt with say screw politeness and go right into trying to touch. "Keith," he says.

Shiro's smile grows impossibly brighter. "It's nice to meet you, Keith."

"Uh, yeah," Keith says in the face of that smile. "Same."

Shiro nods. "Well, I won't keep you any longer. I'm sure you had long day. I hope you have a good night."

"Um, yeah. You too."

Shiro waves again and then walks away. Just like last time. Leaving Keith alone.

It's not the worst interaction Keith has ever had, not by a long shot. Even if getting to the bus stop makes his ankle ache worse, even if by the time he's walked the rest of the way home it's throbbing.

He can't help remembering a smile, a calming scent, and being waved to.

***

Shiro's favorite cafe is directly across from a pretty little local park only a block from his work. He likes going there every morning before work, getting his usual latte, picking out a pastry, and then taking a seat by the window.

He's enjoying a chocolate chip muffin one morning when he spots a young man walking over to a bench near there park entrance.

He's pretty, with messy black bangs and a lean figure, but Shiro mostly notices him because he's wearing the uniform valets at his work wear.

The man looks from side to side, as if checking that the area is Dave before he sits down on the bench. Even from across the street, Shiro can see the man sigh, body slumping.

He's struck with the urge to go over and say hello. Offer him breakfast.

Instead, Shiro tries to focus back on his own breakfast. But he still find himself looking up at the man, until it's time for him to get going and head over to work.

Shiro's been working as an SA at Omega, an incredibly upscale accessories store at the local high-end mall for several years now. It's not bad work, and being a well-built alpha who knows how to regulate his scent properly means he's in demand and makes a killing in commission.

He finds himself thinking of the man from that morning as he clocks in. And then has to blink in surprise when he turns a corner just in time to see the very same man hurrying down the hall to the staff exit.

In person, he's smaller than Shiro had first thought, and just as hunched over as he was that morning.

Shiro also gets a noseful of his scent; sharp and sweet and /omega/ and riding the line of anxious and upset.

Shiro quickly swings around to look behind him, ready to deal with whoever was causing trouble, but there's no one there. When he turns back, the omega is gone, his scent just lingering in the air.

Huh.

Shiro makes a note to keep an eye out for him. Just to make sure he's okay.

Shiro sees him again the next morning, though the window of the cafe. The omega is back at the park bench, sitting tucked up tight on one end, as if he's worried about taking up space.

Shiro watches as the man suddenly sits straight up at attention...and then gets to see his while demeanor soften as a woman walks by with a wiggling little dog on a leash.

The dog goes right up to the man's feet to sniff at his shoes, whole body clearly wriggling in delight, and the man looks just as delighted. His smile changes his face, turning it from pretty to beautiful. He asks the woman a question, and when she nods, he bends to pet the dog.

Shiro has to wrench his gaze away in order to get ready to leave for work, and he spends most of his morning thinking about that smile.

***

The omega is there at the park every morning now. He walks over to the bench and sits, sometimes he walks further into the park itself, but Shiro gets to see him every morning.

He already knew the man loved dogs, but it's clearer every day, how happy he is to see one. He also brings seed with him and scatters it for the birds.

By the end of the third week, some birds practically hop into his lap.

Shiro will admit it: he's utterly, completely charmed.

But he also notices other things.

The omega only will ask certain people about their dogs. Everyone else, dog or no, he'll look away from, ducking his head and hunching in on himself.

Sometimes, his eyes will widen and then he'll hurriedly slide off the bench and go deeper into the park.

Usually, right after he does so, Shiro will see another person --often men, often /larger/ men-- sit down where the omega just vacated

and audibly take a deep breath in before looking around.

Shito is not ashamed of being an alpha, but he is often ashamed (and infuriated) by how other alphas will act.

It's one of the reasons he doesn't approach the omega, even though Shiro sees him every morning now, even though they work at the same place.

Until the morning that they collide--literally.

And Shiro meets Keith.

***

Keith wakes up and his ankle hurts, to the point that standing up has him gritting his teeth in pain.

A positive of his little studio apartment; he doesn't have far to hobble to get to his bathroom.

He pops a Tylenol before taking a shower that has him leaning heavily against the wall, then hunts up an ace bandage to wrap his ankle. He's not a stranger to bumps and bruises. He'll be fine.

He pulls on his uniform, downs breakfast, then takes a deep breath and sets out for the bus stop.

It's hard and it hurts, but he makes it. His stop is an early one, so at least there's a seat for him.

As usual, he doesn't listen to music. Plugging in means not being aware of your surroundings.

Keith has learned to always be aware.

Forty minutes later and Keith arrives at the mall stop, half an hour early as usual. As usual too, he takes his usual walk to the park that's not too far from the mall, preferring to sit outside while he waits for time to pass.

The walk takes longer this time, and his limp gets more pronounced, so it's a relief to settle down on his usual bench.

Time drifts.

He decides to start making his way back to the mall a little earlier than usual, because he knows it'll take him longer. He's going to spend the rest of the day on his feet, so best to take it easy while he can.

He gets to the mall and has to duck inside to sit down in the bench to catch his breath. Fuck, that hurts.

"Keith?"

Keith jerks his head up to see Shiro just coming into the alchove. He looks concerned, and his scent almost immediately turns calming. "Are you okay?"

Keith nods. He's always okay. "Yeah, fine." Then to change the subject, "uh, g'morning."

Shiro smiles warmly, but still looking a little concerned around the edges. "Good morning. Ready for the day?"

Keith shrugs and ducks his head. "As I'll ever be." He doesn't know why Shiro keeps wanting to talk to him.

But he's also not setting off any alarm bells. Yet.

And better not to chance getting him angry anyway.

But fuck, he's terrible at small talk. "What about you? Are you ready?"

Shiro grins. "Yeah, I think so. My day's already started out well."

"Oh? Uh, that's nice."

"Mm." Shiro's eyes crinkle when he smiles, and his scent goes /warm/ all over. "I'll see you later, I hope. You take care of yourself, okay?"

"Okay," Keith says dumbly. /I hope?/

But he can't dwell on it anyway. He's got work to do.

He stands, and winces.

The smile wipes off Shiro's face. "Keith?"

"Fine! I'm fine. Just...stepped wrong." The last thing Keith wants to do is show weakness. Especially to an alpha. Even one who has been nice, and polite, and smells warm. "I'm fine now."

To prove it, he puts weight on both feet, only barely managing to not gag at the pain that spikes up his leg. Bad idea, bad bad idea.

Shiro looks very unconvinced, but Keith can't pay attention to that. "I've got to clock in," he says. He takes a step, and then another.

"Right," Shiro says, voice firm. "I'll walk over with you. I'm heading that way anyway."

Keith reminds himself that this is inconvenient, not something to make unexpected pleasure curl in his gut at the idea of an alpha wanting to look after him.

Fuck--that--/no./

Distract. Distract. "So where do you work, then?"

"I work at Omega," Shiro says easily.

Of course he does, Keith thinks, stomach dropping. The luxury accessory and scenting shop. The sales associates there are almost as high class as the clientele they serve.

"Oh," Keith says feebly. "That's...nice."

Shiro laughs. "I can't complain about it."

Keith nods. He still had no idea why Shiro is even giving him the time of day.

But he continues to do so. Keith clocks in and then steels himself. Is this where Shiro pushes? Is this where he shows his hand?

Shiro puts his hands behind his back and takes a step to the side, giving Keith full access to the door.

"I hope you have a good day, Keith," he says softly.

"Thanks," Keith manages around a dry throat. "Um, you too."

Shiro smiles and does the wiggle wave, and his scent suddenly changes again, calm and warm but also subtly spicy.

It make Keith's cheeks heat, and he hurries away before he can think too much about why.

***

Keith is counting down the minutes until his day is over. He's essentially been standing on one leg for the last couple hours of his shift, because putting weight on his ankle really fucking hurts.

The thought of walking to the bus stop and then having to walk the rest of the way home honestly makes him want to cry a little, but that is a problem for future Keith.

When it's finally time to go, he limps slowly back inside the staff entrance to clock out.

He has to stop and breathe three times on the way there, which does not bode well, considering he's not even close to being done walking for the day.

All he has to do is make it to the bus stop. Then he gets to sit for a while. He'll probably be fine enough to walk home after the break, if he's careful and takes his time. He'll just spend the rest of his evening RICE-ing his ankle.

It'll be fine.

He just about makes it to the building exit before his ankle screams at him to take a break, and he leans heavily against the wall to take his weight off it. God, at this rate he'll miss his bus, taking so long.

He scents someone approaching--an alpha--and quickly rights himself, grabbing his phone out of his pocket and blindly focusing on the screen. He's occupied. Unapproachable. Hopefully invisible.

He realizes the scent as familiar just as he registers the person speaking. "Keith? Are you okay?"

He inhales quietly through his nose. Of course it would be Shiro.

He looks up just longer enough to verify, then ducks his head again. "Yeah. Fine."

"You're in pain."

The tone is hard to interpret. Shiro is starting a fact, not asking a question. He still sounds hesitant though. As if uncertain as to how Keith will react to him knowing.

Keith has never met anyone, certainly no alphas, who have behaved like Shiro does.

But he still can't admit weakness. "Twinged my ankle," he says, trying to shrug. "No big deal."

Shiro looks at him for a long, nerve-wracking moment, and Keith starts to sweat. He desperately hopes Shiro doesn't try to offer to take him home or something.

Shiro might not act like a threat now, but Keith knows better than to take chances. Especially when he's only talked to someone at handful of times. He'll have to turn him down, and if he's /lucky/ then Shiro won't push.

If he's unlucky...

Shiro's big and strong and an alpha. Keith knows how to hold his own, but the cards are currently stacked against him.

His throat is so dry.

Shiro nods decisively. "Wait here, okay? I'll be right back." And he leaves, heading out to the parking garage.

Keith lets out the breath he was holding and slumps. He wants to go home.

But he's going to wait, isn't he.

Thankfully it doesn't take very long for Shiro to return, and when he does, it's with a woodsy burst of calming scent. Shiro wears it like cologne and Keith finds himself trying to subtly take more breathes of it.

He just...he could use some calm.

"Here," Shiro says, holding out... what looks like a collapsible cane. "Would this help?"

Keith stares at the cane. "What?"

"To help you move easier," Shiro says, sounding kind. "I'd like to help you get to where you need to go, but I understand if you'd prefer I didn't."

Keith feels like he's having an out of body experience as he takes the cane. "Why do you even have this?" It's out before he can stop himself, which is--he /knows/ better than to ask questions.

Shiro just smiles at him. "I used to need it. Had a sickness that affected equilibrium. I was lucky enough to receive a treatment that worked, but you never know when you need a mobility aid. I found homes for most of my old stuff, but I got used to keeping this in my car."

"Oh," Keith says quietly, gripping the cane. He hadn't expected that much information. That much openness. "I'm glad you're better."

The smile turns into a grin. "Hey, me too. Now it's your turn, right?"

"My turn?"

"To get better."

Keith gives him a funny look. A rolled ankle isn't exactly serious. "I'll really be fine."

"I know," Shiro says gently. His hands are behind his back again. "You kind of always have to be fine when the world isn't nice to you."

Keith goes hot, because what would this high-class /alpha/ know about that-- and his hands tighten on the cane.

Oh.

Maybe Shiro does know about it more than most.

He chances eye contact.

And Shiro looks for all the world like he's not judging, but that he understands how it can feel when life isn't kind.

Keith swallows and drops his gaze.

"Thanks for this," he says instead of other things he wants to. "I'll give it back tomorrow."

Shiro holds up a hand. "Why don't you give it back to me when you're feeling better. Okay?'

Not questioning Keith's obvious choice to keep working. Not demanding Keith stay home and rest. Not insisting that he knows more about what's good for Keith than Keith does.

"Okay," Keith manages. "In a couple of days then, maybe."

"Take as long as you need," Shiro says. "You know where to find me." Then he winks.

Keith goes hot again, but for a completely different reason. Who actually winks? "Thanks."

Shiro throws him one last smile. "Be safe, okay?" and then he's walking away.

Keith makes it to the bus stop. Catches his usual bus. Makes it home.

He eats his dinner and spends the evening taking it easy as he RICEs his ankle, passing the time with his beat-up guitar and his sketchbook. He decides to go to bed early.

He catches himself wondering if Shiro would be proud of him, for taking care of himself.

It makes him scowl, once he realizes what he's doing. He's never needed anyone's approval before. He certainly doesn't care about making anyone else proud of him.

but maybe it would mean more, a treacherous part of him thinks.

Maybe it would mean more if that person understood how hard it could be to keep trying.

Keith burrows under his covers and tries to stop thinking.

If you know you can't get what you want, there's no point in wishing.

***

After three days of wrapping his ankle, keeping weight off of it whenever he could, and walking so slowly it made him twitchy, his ankle starts feeling better.

It has also been three days of Shiro specifically coming to see him in the morning at valet to say hello and ask how he's doing, and wish him goodnight when they get off work.

Every Shiro comes by it's with a smile, his hello pleasant but not overly cheerful. His goodnight is the same.

"Good night, Keith. Feel better." accompanied by a wash of calm.

The thing is that it... doesn't come off as creepy. Shiro never comes closer, or even tries to touch him at all. He doesn't stick around to overstay a welcome. He just smiles and asks how Keith is feeling and then wishes him a good day.

Keith's the one who, on the evening of day four, says, "tomorrow's my day off." He doesn't know why he's dropping this information. "Soo you won't see me.

"Thanks for letting me know," Shiro says, lips quirked just a little. "I probably would have worried, otherwise."

Keith's stomach twists up at the thought of Shiro worrying about him. Caring enough to worry. "Just a day off," he ends up saying.

"Good." The smile is back. "You could use a rest. Maybe spend some more time off your feet?"

Keith flushes. "Yeah, pretty much."

"Good," Shiro says again. He sticks his hands on his pockets. "Well, I won't keep you then. Have a good night, Keith. Be safe, okay?"

"Thanks." Safe. Shiro cares about Keith being /safe/. "You too."

***

His ankle gets better. He returns Shiro's cane.

Shiro continues to say hi to him every morning anyway, always with a smile.

Sometimes... more often then not now, they talk for a little bit too. Keith's not one for small talk, but Shiro doesn't seem to expect much.

He asks how Keith's night was. How his days off go. Tells Keith about some of the more interesting clients he gets. Asks Keith if he has any stories himself to share.

When Keith mentions spending his free time with art or music, Shiro sounds way too impressed. Flustered, Keith tries to change the topic and ask what Shiro does. What /he/ likes.

Shiro grins and shrugs. He says he likes to work out. "I know, I'm a stereotype."

"I didn't say anything," Keith mumbles.

But Shiro also loves to learn. Especially about places not yet explored. Space. The deep sea. He loves the stars and thinks bioluminescence is ridiculously cool.

Keith's not sure what else he can do with this information except be amused and a little charmed by it. He's never met anyone like Shiro before.

And, of course, he volunteers. He walks dogs for his local animal shelter.

"It's a nice day to wind down in the evening, or spend an afternoon," Shiro cheerfully explains. "I'll go for a couple hours taking different dogs out."

"It sounds nice," Keith says wistfully. He's never been in a place where he could give an animal a good home.

"Yeah? You should come some time," Shiro says.

The air goes out of Keith's lungs. He doesn't know how to respond and it-

"Or maybe you could do it for a place closer to you," Shiro says. And then he starts talking about some of his favorite dogs, complete with visual aids, thanks to the pictures he always takes.