Chapter Text
He wasn't sure how long he had stayed at Tim and Wilhelms. Maybe a week or two. Either way, the date was different and Jack hadn't noticed until he returned to his crappy appartment and checked the calender.
It was, once again, in the middle of the night when he found himself on that snowy sidewalk and the trip home had been numbing. The omega hadn't told his twin or his brother-in-law that he had left and the walk itself had taken a good fourty-five minutes.
The cold hadn't bothered him- or rather, it did, despite his leather jacket; not that he could remember it all. The entire time, his mind had felt like it was in a fog. Like he wasn't even in control of his own body. Honestly, besides the smells and familiar sights, the only way it registered that he was home was the sound of him locking the door behind him and the old fading smell of Axtons calognue that the alpha would always wear because the omega had liked it so much.
Not it just brought a pain to his chest. Jack would have to throw it out sometime....
...Probably after Axtons funeral..... a funeral that Timothy had insisted on planning and paying for.
Not that Jack could fucking afford it with his shitty wages anyway.
To break him of his thoughts, he went about his routine- one that always started with checking his messages, not that he needed to, usually. He had no friends outside his brother and Nisha. And Nisha never called unless it was to get blackout drunk.
You can imagine how often that happened since he'd gotten knocked up.
“You are so fucking lucky that Wil saw your note!! You're an asshole, you know that, right?!” That had been the message his brother left on the voicemail recorder beside his landline. His twin had said more but Jack hadn't bothered to listen, or even pay attention to it at all, before hitting the erase button and wiping the tape all together.
For some reason, after that, Jack had made his way to the nursery that Axton and his best friend, Mordacai made; the omega sitting in the rocking chair without a word as he glared spitefully at the painted green trees on the walls and the horribly made animals lining the walls.
He hated it all. Mostly disgusted by it.
Jack didn't want kids, not after what happened to Angel. The twins had, honestly, been a mistake- an aftermath from a party that one of Axtons friends had thrown.
Friends that hated the omega as much as he hated in return. They left him alone and he kept quiet. Both parties keeping civil on behalf of the alpha they all adored.
There had been too much alcohol. Too much loud music and flashy lights. The ball overhead had dangled dangerously over their heads when his alpha had pulled him onto that floor for a wobbly dance. Despite the laughs being thrown at him and not shared by Axton like the alpha had assumed, Jack had a good time in that moment.
A bitter and hallow laugh escaped him as he reached over to grab a toy clown that had been gifted to the upcoming babies when the group found out that Axton was going to be a dad. Some kind of running joke about the alpha being a clown or something; Jack didn't know.
Imagine their surprise when they get the news he fucking died and left behind his pregnant mate...
The cribs were a mocking reminder of what was happening to him and his own body. How hard it would be to move around soon. How vulnerable he was right now.
Weak.
Useless.
Jack was used to all nights in the bar. Fighting nearly nightly in drunken rages- sometime even for fun. Arguing with anyone who dared to change his tunes on the jukebox before hurrying to change it back despite Moxxi's warnings for a peaceful night for once.
This weak shit wasn't for him. He'd rather be spending his grief in a bar and drowning his sorrows so hard that he would black out or cease to feel anything.
But he couldn't. Not right now.
Not until these parasites were born.
He risked a look in the mirror in the standing mirror across the room and scowled in disgust; throwing the wooden clown at it so hard that it cracked the glass in a mash of spiderwebs. And with a yell, he stood to his feet; only to crumble down to his knees on the wooden flooring with only a circular shag carpet as coverage.
Damn Axton for wanting these kids!! Damn him for knocking him up then dying!!
Fingers clinging tightly to the rug under him; Jack growled out his frustraitions.
It was the alpha that wanted to keep them. He'd been so happy to get the news and Jack just couldn't say anything or deny the man anything. Axton never knew the omegas distaste or lack of desire to have these brats and now he never will.
Weakly, the omega bit his lip to keep himself from screaming everything he felt in that moment. Grief, loss, abandonment. He bit back the omegan wails that called for his missing mate.
'It will get easier.' His brother had said, as if the asshole knew what he was talking about!! If it wasn't for Wilhelms confirmation; whom, HAD, lost a mate before he paired with Timothy, then Jack would have decked his twin in the jaw.
But he couldn't muster the strength to argue it at the time, however irrational that would have been to even attempt.
The sound of his landline ringing downstairs sounded mocking to his ears and he refused to acknowlage it. For all he cared, he didn't have a phone.
But he would have to see it when he wondered into the kitchens, which was the unfortunate part, considering he was actually getting hungry yet he had no actual desire to eat. Jack had promised to take care of himself long ago after being sent to the looney bin after cutting himself as a teenager. Tim insisted on him minding his own well being.
Axton made him forget his self hatred and disgust over his own endotype. With him gone, Jack had no idea what he was going to do now.
Timothy and Wilhelm would want the twins to be healthy when they eventually adopted them, anyway.
They hadn't volenteered but that's what he planned to do; leave them with his brother. As an beta, Tim couldn't bear pups, only sire. But being with Wilhelm, there was no chance of them becoming parents naturally outside of adoption anyway, and Jack knew his twin wanted to be a parent.
And in the next few months, he would get his wish in the form of a surprise. Maybe once he signed over his rights to them, he could convince them to take this ugly furniture with them.
The ringing stopped, only to start again about a minute later.
Growling in annoyance, he got to his feet and made his way out of the nursery and down the stairs. Once he reached his destination, he zeroed in on the cabinets; all the while, ignoring the ringing phone that continued the cycle.
The tape was blinking again. Tim could have left a message when he didn't get a call back and knowing his twin, if the beta didn't get a response after the third call, then he would personally drive over.
And that was a headache Jack didn't want tonight.
So on the third ring, the omega abandoned his quest for food, temporarily and grabed the phone; snapping at whoever was calling him so late at night.
“What?!!”
“Hey, Dipshit.” Nisha. “Heard what happened from a buddy of mine down at the station.”
Not bothering to hide the rude snort that came out of him out of reflex, he lifted the cord over his head so he could have room to pace without restriction. “Don't tell me that you're actually calling to send me condolences, bitch. I've got enough pity from my own brother.”
'HA! You wish!! Just calling to see if my favorite drinking buddy had fallen into despair or not. Was wondering if I had to do some kind of welfare check on you, what with your condition.” Then she paused for a moment before speaking up again.
“Actually, we did get a call, asking to check in on you, which lit a fire under my ass on actually making this call. Would come in person but I'm busy and I figure you don't want some random newbie popping over after everything. Don't know who it was that, obviously but they said you knew them.”
With the roll of his eyes, he stepped away from the counter holding the small table that housed the phone and voice recorder on it, along a list of menus and phone numbers.
“So, Lori then.” He grumbled; the landline wire stretching as he searched through the cabinets and mentally griped how they should have gone for one of those new fangled wireless phones that the rich assholes were going crazy for. “Great. Another way for my mother-in-law to stick her nose in everything.”
“You do realize that, once it comes out that you're actually doing alright, she might come over, right? I doubt she would waste her time to call, especially if she wants to see the brats.”
“Good luck to her. We moved across the country due to Ax's work. It'll take her weeks by car and a couple days by plane.”
The cabinets were bare aside from cereal; a cold reminder that he was supposed to go grocery shopping after Axton called to tell him he got to the base safely.
A call that never came.
Shaking away the grief for another hour, he turned away from the counters and cabinets; away from the sink with dirty dishes and the countless dirty mugs that his alpha liked to use.
Axtons coffee from that day still sat right there next to the toaster and when Jacks eyes scanned it, he had to swallow the lump forming in his throat.
“Look, Nish, I'm alive and fine. Going to go out and get some food. Maybe stock up before the storm hits.”
Nisha was quiet on the other end; giving off a sound of hesitants before she spoke up again.
“Maybe I should get your groceries this time. It's getting bad and with your pregnancy, I don't think it's smart- especially not with that rickety ass bike of yours.”
Scoffing, the omega rolled his eyes; turning on his heel and getting tangled a bit in the cord before wondering over to the phone table once again.
“It's fine, Nisha! I'm not made of glass!! Besides, I'll take the ca-” Now it was his turn to go silent. He was about to say he'd take the car to the store.... The car his mate crashed and died in.... the car that was totaled and sitting in some junkyard by now.
All he had was the bike now. Would that be better or worse than riding on a horse in this point in time.
Clearing his throat free of tightness, he blinked the burn from his eyes.
“I'll walk, it's not far. Maybe take the bus.” Nisha sounded as if she was going to protest but he interrupted her, uncaring of her arguments. “I'll call you tomorrow to prove I'm not dead.”
Then he hung up. The click of the reciever as he set the phone sharply back down in its home was immensely satisfying. It had almost made him forget the mention of his in-laws and the rest of Axtons nasty ass family.
Axtons family; mostly his parents, didn't like him. When his alpha brought him to meet the family, the amount of puzzled and judgemental stares was all the hints he needed to know that they hadn't approved of Jack in the slightest. The omega wasn't a small and gentle thing. He had no softness, he didn't cook and clean how an omega should (sure he did cook but they sure as hell assumed he didn't). Jack was brash and loud; blunt to a fault.
Overall, he could pass as an alpha easilly, had he not smelled like his endotype.
Holidays were awkward and Jack had often attempted to distract or plan around them so they never had to go visit. But in the end, he would cave when the alpha gave him those large blue eyes and tender kisses behind the ear that Axton knew was his weakness. Often times, if he wasn't ignored outright or had insults thrown at him in the form of questions; the small town politeness of it all made him want to hurl. One time they even invited over another omega they knew. Some little church thing they wanted to pair with Axton in hopes of pushing Jack out.
It had caused a fight between him and his alpha the entire christmas break. At first, his alpha hadn't believed him when Jack had told him of this discovery. His parents were just being nice and she had nowhere else to go for the holidays. There was no way they'd do such a thing, right?
It wasn't until Axton overheard his mother and father talking about it in the kitchen did he finally believe Jack. His parents had been gleeful as all hell; having heard the several fights this new omega brought on.
They had gone low contact for months after that. It wasn't until they got an apology letter did Axton try to give them another shot.
Jack, of course, was weary ever sense.
They day they told them of their engagement and bonding, Axtons mother began to sob in sorrow and his father left to go work on his truck; something he did when he was upset and needed to calm down.
When they were told of the baby, that was when they had finally started to treat the omega with some kind of respect, even if it was for the unborns sake alone. It was like they had gone out of their way to be extra kind and sweet to him. Giving him extra snacks, not letting him get up to help for anything when, previously before the pregnancy, they would comment on how 'lazy' he was when he didn't move fast enough.
He and Axton knew it was just so they wouldn't be cut off from the baby. The family had gotten near suffocating with their joy when they learned there was not one, but two babies in the omegas womb.
Due to the alphas work, not long after his second month, they had to move to Pandora. And all was fine and they were getting closer to having their dream house; the alpha keeping in contact with his folks and siblings weekly through calls.
Now that Axton was gone, he hadn't heard a peep from anyone. Maybe they had tried but just didn't leave a voicemail, or maybe they were shocked.
Or they just didn't care. Personally, he liked the peace and quiet these days.
If what Nisha said was true, then there was a likely chance of them coming over, uninvited, in their own grief. Their eldest son was gone and all they had left of him was the twins, that the omega they hadn't liked, carried.
How fucking sentimental.
Grabbing his wallet and keys from the junk drawer, that he usually threw those items in; the omega gave a moments pause to rest a hand on his belly; feeling a flutter under his skin. He didn't know what prompted him to do that, but he did.
For all his bluster and hatred from earlier, he didn't really hate these kids. He wasn't happy that he was going to be a parent, but he didn't hate them. Jack had found out a while ago that he actually did care for them. Just because they were his and Axtons.
But he wasn't going to be a good parent, especially now. Tim was a better choice for them.
Jack would just ruin them. At least the beta could grant stability and care.
Wallet and keys shoved in his pocket, the omega hurried to get dressed for the weather. Slipping on Axtons old this coat, mostly for the smell, and a scarf to cover the gap in the neckline where the coat didn't block, he rushed to get his boots back on and left.
And nearly fell on his ass, going down the stairs thanks to a patch of ice on his steps.
--
“I don't know what Axton sees in you.”
Sitting on the pool lounge chair, Jack looks up from his book that he had been reading while sipping the ginger ale Axton had gotten him to combat his morning sickness that decided to show up at three in the afternoon.
It was in the middle of summer and while Axton had fun splashing in Rolands pool with his gaggle of annoying friends, the only omega, Jack himself, was left to spend his time nursing pregnancy issues in his swim trunks and - being hounded by red haired bitches, it would seem.
At least one of them was having fun.
“Oh like you're any better.” Sneering as he flipped up his sunglasses to sneer at Lillith as she stared him down; arms crossed and scowling at him; a hilarious combo considering her bathing attire was nothing more than a polka dotted one piece. “What do you want, Lillith, I'm not doing anything to anyone right now.”
As if to prove his point, Salvador gave a loud 'WOOP!' before cannonballing into the pool, followed by exclimations of the rest of their crew.
“What I want,” Lillith began, not looking anymore pleased by this conversation than he was. “Is to know what it is about you that has Axton wrapped around your finger? If it's the sex, I know a few people better than you.”
“Oh?” Adacity at that claim, Jack had slid off his glasses as his brows shot to his forehead. “You happen to know how good in bed I am?”
“Don't have to, you look the type. Cocky and smug. Bet you're a pillow princess.”
“You're copping a lot of attitude for someone who claims to actually like my mate.”
“Mordecai won't even come around here anymore when you show up.” Outright ignoring Jacks previous comment, Lillith merely stated accusingly to the omega before her. “Not after what you did to Bloodwing.”
“Oh my god.” Groaning, the omega threw his head back; eyes shut in exasperation. “Is he STILL pissy about that?!”
“You killed his bird-”
“-It was an accident, okay?! Not like I knew the dumb bastard was going to hit the glass that hard-”
“-You don't open a clearly closed cage that is housing a hunting falcon in it.” Lilliths brow twitched. “Everyone knows that?! Have you even gotten tested lately for sociopathy?!”
Jack, with eyes open once more, gave the woman beside him the most heated glare he could muster.
“Yes.” He barked, turning his glare to the pool and watching his mate and his friends play some dumb chicken game. “And for the record, I'm medicated.”
That, seemed to catch Lillith off guard and the female faltered slightly.
“'Medicated'.” She echoed, eyeing Jack up and down. “So you do have something going on with you?”
Still not looking her way, he sneered. “Borderline personality disorder, or so they said. They're still trying to figure out what the fuck to do about it. Not sure the meds do shit, really, but I take them.”
“And they're letting you have a baby?” Her eyes glance to his stomach for just a second. “I think you need a rediagnosis. That, or maybe get you locked up in an asylum.”
“Oh fuck you!!” Head snapping back her way, the omega gave a warning snarl. “Look, we don't have to like each other but you could, more or less, ease off. The quacks said stress isn't good for the pup and all you do is stress me out.”
With a small huff, the alpha didn't respond to that and merely turned to watch the fun before them along with the omega. A breeze went by, rattling the leaves of the tree overhead that cast a shadow over them both. They could still smell the hotdogs for lunch and the burgers that Roland had planned on making once everyone took a break from the pool.
“I don't know.” Jack finally said; slightly calmer after a moment of silence. Just watching the alphas, he barely caught her looking back at him with a quirk of her brow. “Your question earlier about what he sees in me. I don't know.”
Shrugging, Jack shut the book in his lap before casually tossing it on the concrete beside him. “I think Axton thinks he can fix me or some shit. Maybe he saw a pathetic worthless omega with mental issues and was like 'this is the one for me.'”
Then, with a chuckle that sounded bitter, he finally looked over at her. “Or maybe it's just my winning personality. Who knows.”
Watching her scoff and roll her eyes, Jack couldn't help but let out a small laugh, more amused than bitter this time.
“They should have kept you in that psych ward. Maybe a bit of electric therapy would do you good.”
“Axton and I were already mated when we found this out and he wouldn't let them.” Smug now, the omega shifted in his seat; bending a knee to sink further in his chair. “Alpha rights and all that. Plus, he's proved he could take care of me, so there's that.”
“Yeah... If anything happens to him, you're kind of screwed, aren't you?”
The bitch had been right, she just never knew how much. It was only a matter of time before someone looked into his medical history to drag him away...
Well, maybe not. If Jack kept going to his sessions, taking the shitty medicine, and staying out of trouble like a good boy, there was a chance that they would deem him safe for community and leave him, mostly, the fuck alone.
While that did little to settle his nerves, the thought did nothing for his stomach that was mostly in knots by now. The twins in his belly fluttered and rolled in his womb; reacting to his aggitation. The walk did nothing for his nerves nor did it put the brats to sleep. All it had done was make his hips and back ache.
He also nearly punched the first worker he saw that gave a look to his stomach and smiled; giving a cheery congragulations to the already aggrivated Jack.
It was that assholes lucky day that the omega had a cart and that he didn't have the energy to abandon it to wipe that stupid smile off his face. What was to be happy about? His mates dead and left him with unborn babies to deal with- or would have to deal with if he hadn't been planning on leaving them with his brother.
It was also, only by stupid coincidence that he rediscovered his empty shelves at the time of night that he had because Jack was not feeling up to dealing with a store full of people that wanted nothing more than to gaggle his way and to touch his stomach unprompted.
He hated it and it irked him that complete strangers would come right up to him and fondle his belly like it was some sort of globe that would grant wishes if they rubbed hard enough. The amount of times he had gotten ill by people doing that had been unreal and if it hadn't been for Axton, many more would have tried.
Axton was always good to people. His alpha had been charming and all smiles. People just seemed to flock to him and forgot Jack was there for a moment or two. Normally, the omega would relish the fawning he used to get before the babies happened. He was handsome and knew it and the attention his face brought had been a massive ego boost.
But not now. Not in his condition where he was big as a whale and miserable. The amount of working out he would have to do just to lose the baby fat was a nightmare and a half.
Fighting back a shudder, the omega gave a grunt mid turning into an isle and was met with the biggest pair of doe brown eyes he had ever seen on a man.
“Oops... Sorry about th-that! I-I'll just....!” Hurried the other man as he backed his cart of stuff out of Jacks way; giving the older man room to slide into the isle. “I am so sorry! I swear I wasn't paying attention!”
“That much is certain, princess!” Snorting, Jack scowled at his cart and shoving it into the isle, through the gap offered; nose flaring as he took a whiff of the looser he collided with and was met with the sweet scent of omega. Not strong and intruding like other omegas usually were. This one was plesent and calm despite the strangers clear flustering.
It was enough for Jack to get a good look on him.
Pale and long legs. When Jacks eyes fell onto the other omegas face, he gave pause and the irritation he felt seemed to melt away. He didn't know if it was from the scent or his instincts, but the second their eyes locked for that second time, he felt... at peace.
“What's your name?” Jack found himself asking.