For ricochetingbullets; surprise wedding date

[starless_sky]

 
continued from here

Normally weddings were boring for Noctis. Too many people. Too much attention. He wasn't the target audience for weddings. He was a great dancer but he didn't like to show it in public, he didn't like schmoozing with people he barely knew, didn't like being held hostage by someone's grandma asking when he's getting married. This time he'd have to vehemently insist he may not ever get married. After this whole thing with Mr.Poindexter, Noct was pretty sure he never wanted to marry at all.

He'd told his friends after they noticed his paranoia. It had been horrible explaining it and they tried to support him but it just wasn't adding up. In the eyes of society Dex did nothing wrong. Noct tried to explain that is exactly the point, that Dex was acting in a way that seemed innocent to make him sound crazy. Who breaks into someone's apartment to steal things only to return them later? And not only return them but to talk to him and stay over and fuck him? Noctis couldn't even call it rape out loud. He always submitted. In those moments with Dex he wanted it the same as he wanted it at the hotel. He never went to the police or a doctor after... though he started birth control. 

He started birth control! For the guy raping him! For his stalker! He said it was for himself but... he just... wasn't ready for that and if anything happened. If he got pregnant, Dex would never leave. 

His friends found all this charming. What a dashing guy! What a rogue! 'He must really love you Noct! He must be smitten! We're so jealous!'

No matter how he tried to explain it was messed up to break into someone's house, because he never gave Dex his address let alone a key, his friends didn't see it as weird. It was just how alphas were when they wanted someone. So many omegas would give anything to be pursued like that. Isn't he grateful? Doesn't he see how LUCKY he is?? Noct tried to tell them this wasn't a fairytale but it fell on deaf ears. 

"When are you going to bring him around? When are we gonna meet this guy?"

"My stalker? Never hopefully."

"UGH. Noct. You do NOT have a stalker. You have a boyfriend. Stop being disrespectful."

"Disrespectful??"

"How do you think he'd feel if he knew you were calling him that behind his back? Alphas value respect from their omegas. You're new to this so maybe you don't know but you have to learn how to talk about and around him. It could get you in trouble." 

 

It was concluded that Noct was simply new to dating and given his general aloofness, he was not adapting well to having a partner. So they gave him grace about it. Grace! They gave HIM grace! They gave him advice about 'how to talk to alphas' and how alphas expect a certain deference from their partners and 'how to be an empowered omega while also being a trad wife omega'. It was gross. He felt gross. He needed better friends. 

But his friends were good people... they wouldn't ALL think that, right? 

 

So he was anxious about getting through today without being asked why he didn't bring a plus one. He was here at the venue all dolled up in his suit and his hair gelled just so. He looked good and he was loitering the grounds trying to find a place to be alone. It was gorgeous. This wedding was held at the botanical gardens with the main building rented out for the reception. It had luxurious lounge rooms, a dining hall, a kitchen, and a second floor where the bridal party were cloistered. Outside people were milling about, drinking already. The weather was perfect for a wedding so people were chatty.

Relatives and friends were arriving in greater abundance. More and more people were shuffling about, bored, looking for conversation. Noct ducked around a corner before he could be spotted and pretended to be admiring some climbing roses. He just had to make it to the ceremony and no one would talk to him and then he could feign intoxication until it was polite to leave. 

And hopefully Dex wasn't in his apartment right now re-appropriating his stuff. 

Comments

[ricochetingbullets]

"I don't want to talk about it," Dex said childishly and in a very stubborn tone. He made it clear that the idea of leaving Noctis someday was no longer up for discussion. Dex didn't like talking about someone leaving his life in any sense, always afraid that this would end up turning into some sort of self-fulfilling prophecy.

"No, you won't." Dex said the words confidently, certain that Noctis wouldn't want to end up being the family embarrassment and having to reveal just exactly what the relationship between he and Dex was truly like. Besides, deep down, he liked to think that he was growing on Noctis. If nothing else, his body kept reacting positively to Dex, making him think that this was all working out just the way that he wanted.

Dex noticed Noct checked out for a bit when he turned on the TV. He continued to pet Noctis, curling his body up around his mate like he could help fix whatever Noctis felt was going wrong with him. Of course, it never occurred to Dex that he was the reason for Noctis's miseries to begin with.

Dex suddenly sat up straight, his arms tightening around Noctis in an instinctual desire to protect him as Noct turned to him for comfort. "What?!" He said with something close to a snarl in his voice. Then his eyes darkened. "I'm going to kill him," he said in a tone burning with pure fury. That was a definitive statement, not a promise. Water was wet, the sky was blue, and Dex was going to kill the man who had murdered Noctis's father.

[starless_sky]

Noctis flinched at the hard tone. Dex was like an overgrown child and in so many ways he was. Yet an adult sized child was terrifying where a toddler was not. Still, Noct grit his teeth. He wanted to clap back but he knew it was worthless. Like talking to a wall.

Then Dex hit him with another blow, devastating only because it was true. He'd never tell his grandma what happened. The shame of it, the horror of having to say it out loud would gut him. Let alone inflicting that on her and knowing it would change their relationship forever. He knew he could never. He just wanted to pretend he had an edge over Dex. Any edge at all.

Dex was a lot of Noct's problems but not all of them. He had a hard time putting himself out there for one. He was enough of a homebody and a recluse that Dex literally snatching him up was the most effective way to get him into a relationship. He was messy, he was lazy at times, he didn't apply himself. In a lot of ways Dex made him try harder, if only to keep his mind off the horrors. Plus his grief over his father had a tight hold on him. Enough so he went from wanting to discuss the end of their relationship to suddenly needing Dex to hold him.

"No!" he hissed. "Don't go. Please." he forced his voice through gritted teeth, through sobs he was forcing back. Dex's scary voice didn't even cut through it. He knew distantly he should be afraid but it didn't affect him. Nothing did in this moment. That bastard was alive and doing well for himself. His dad was dead and that piece of shit was smiling on camera.

"...Don't leave me right now. Please?"