Chapter 96

Avi looked down at the ground. "Kevin, please get the Omegas out of here. Now." Kevin nodded and waved both of them over, Mitch hesitantly moved away from Avi and then scurried away. Kirstie got up from the bed, giving Avi a nervous glance before following Kevin into a different room. Scott sat up a little, the flowers still lying beside him. Avi looked up and glared at him. "I want to blame Mitchell. Because it's always supposed to be the Omegas' fault. The only problem is... If you're not enforcing the rules, how can I expect him to be following them? I watched him interrupt you, and I watched you do absolutely nothing about it. If you want to spend your life with that boy, you need to learn how to be the Alpha. I can't keep stepping in and doing it for you." Scott swallowed harshly and nodded. "But I--" "I know there are other circumstances. I know Omegas are easier to take care of when they're under the dominance of a Lead Alpha. I know that male Omegas are harder to take care of for several reasons. That's why most male Omegas belong to Lead Alphas. I admire you for taking him in, even when the challenges were stacked against you--" "Wait. Stop it." Scott began, standing from the bed to hold a hand up to Avi. "That's not true. He isn't difficult to take care of. It's my fault for not being strict enough. I'll get better, I promise. It's not his fault." ********* Kevin was now standing outside the door to Travis' new room, holding food for Todrick. When Todrick finally opened the door, he smiled widely and pulled Kevin into the room with him. Alex was standing in front of Travis, who was sitting on the bed silently, letting Alex get his frustrations out. "I didn't even do anything! I don't understand why we need to have this conversation!" Travis nodded once. "I know, Al. I'm sorry." "He was just being nice to me! I just wanted someone to be nice to me..." Alex replied, eyes filling with tears. "I know. I can't tell you how sorry I am." Alex shook his head, his anger competing with his sadness. "You don't know! You have no idea what it's like to be an Omega! You have no idea what it's like to be raped and abused day after day, thinking there would never be a way out! You can't imagine how terrifying it is to watch your best friend suffer along with you, and all you could ask for is one day when no one would notice you, and you could just disappear..." Alex wiped at his eyes furiously, tears falling relentlessly. Travis stood to try and comfort him, but Alex backed away quickly and continued. "But one day, you get out of the house. Out of the madness. And you get taken in by someone who works so incredibly hard to show you how much you mean to them. That you're not a waste of space... I watched Mitchie fall in love with someone I knew he deserved. And... And I fell in love too, Travie. I did. But... Then, all of a sudden, you turned into one of them. You became one of the people I used to have nightmares about. But when I woke up, you were there to comfort me. Only this time it wasn't comfort. It was fear... And I don't want to be scared anymore." Kevin set the tray of food down and stared at them. Todrick looked at his sad expression and nodded. "I know." Travis finally stepped close enough to Alex to hold both of hands. "Lexi... Listen... I never meant to frighten you. I didn't mean to hurt you, baby. That's the last thing I wanted to do. I get... Jealous. I handled it badly, I know that. I just.. Didn't know what to do... And I got so mad, so quickly but I'm so sorry. You know that. You know that I'm sorry. And whether or not you believe me, I'll never do it again. Not ever." Alex just stared at him, silent tears cascading down his face. His bottom lip wobbled when he whispered out his next words. "How can I believe you? You told me... I deserved better. How are you any different than Matt? Or Jamie?" Travis shook his head slowly. "I'm nothing like them. You know that." Alex slowly nodded, wiping some more tears from his face. "How can I trust you again...?"