Chapter Text
The first time Jayce noticed something was off, was during another late night at the lab. Viktor was drawing on the chalk board, then paused to untie his cravat, and Jayce couldn’t. Stop. Staring. His eyes were locked on to Viktor’s fingers, his slender neck and the tantalising sliver of chest that was now exposed. It made his mouth feel dry and something surged in his chest. He only managed to tear his eyes away when Viktor dropped his cravat on the table and cleared his throat.
“Are you tired, Talis?” Viktor asked with a quizzical look. “We can stop—”
“No, no. It’s just been a long day,” Jayce sighed. “Please, let’s just finish this last part?”
Viktor nodded and turned to continue his sketches. Jayce had to shake his head and screw his eyes shut to stop himself from ogling his partners back. But also at the way his hair fell, the curve of his back, the way his pants were hugging his ass—what was he thinking? He needed to sleep, that was probably what it was. He was still on suppressants, and shouldn’t experience a heat for months, but there was something about the thought of Viktor’s exposed neck that was making his thoughts wander. It didn’t help that Viktor smelt like lavender, fresh sheets and comfort. Jayce really needed to sleep.
“Hey, Viktor. I’m actually going to turn in.” Jayce gave him a sheepish look and stood to collect his things.
“That’s the best idea from you in hours. You’ve barely contributed tonight.” Viktor sounded monotone, but Jayce knew he was teasing. “I’ll be here a short while, I’m almost done.”
“Is that a good idea? When was the last time you slept more than six hours, Viktor? Or washed that cravat?” The cravat still held stains on the tips from a failed experiment weeks ago.
“I fail to see why that’s important, you can’t even see it while I’m wearing it,” Viktor scoffed. Jayce walked over and inspected the fabric. The stains might come out with some elbow grease. Viktor was always so busy, he could do this for him and take something off his plate. He wanted to help.
“Let me wash it for you?” he blurted out. Viktor stopped scratching at the chalk board. Jayce couldn’t be sure if he was mulling over the request, or his own work.
“If that will make you happy, Talis.”
“Sure, Viktor. I’ll get this back to you later.” Jayce picked up the cravat, barely hiding his grin. “Goodnight, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Sleep well, Jayce.” Viktor said, a faint smile on his lips.
Jayce felt butterflies in his insides. He suppressed another embarrassing grin that was about to give him away and sped out the door. Viktor didn’t smile often these days, normally he was so fatigued, but when he did, Jayce had to commit them to memory. This was a new one to catalogue, with that sliver of skin exposed it made him blush thinking about what the rest of his chest looked like.
When Jayce reached the safety of his quaint room, he slapped a palm on his forehead, almost trying to beat out the thoughts of his best friend. He dropped off the cravat on his bedside table, quickly undressing, then diving into bed. He was always cautious about letting others into his space. While he was an alpha externally, there were a few tells in his room that could give him away as an omega. He couldn’t help himself from making a comfortable sleeping space and nesting. It could be hand waved as being an attentive alpha getting ready for an omega, and while Jayce had a reputation for bedding partners, they had always been betas. Activities had always been in their room, and it had never gone past second base. This way, no one would be able to detect the faint omega smell in his sheets. It was a small source of comfort at times, and Jayce took a deep breath in. It smelt like himself, and like—Viktor? Jayce’s brows furrowed. Of course, the cravat on his bedside table. He reached over and pulled it close, inspecting the stain.
Jayce couldn’t remember what the stain was specifically, only that it had been from something they worked on together. Was it grease? God it smells kind of nice—or a chemical? Smells like an alpha—Maybe ink? It was getting hard to concentrate. Something primal grabbed a hold of his brain. Suddenly he was shoving his nose into the fabric and inhaling. It was heavenly, like a scent he had always been searching for. It smelt like home. His insides clenched, and if he wasn’t on suppressants, he knew he would be leaking slick.
“Shit,” he whispered.
Alpha pheromones had never been very effective on him. When he had to take breaks from his suppressants, he was either angry at an alpha’s scent, or tolerating it because it was ‘supposed’ to help. Viktor’s scent made his body feel limp and needy, and he wasn’t even in the room with him. He couldn’t help himself from sniffing the cravat again, rutting mindlessly into the bed with a groan. Jayce’s thoughts were filled with Viktor. The way he walked, talked, his gorgeous accent, the way he challenged him, treated him as an equal, his amber eyes and cheeky smiles. The omega part of his brain was crying out for Viktor, for more of his delicious scent, for Viktor to take him—
Jayce’s eyes snapped open and he was throwing the cravat on the other side of the room. It hit the door with a pathetic thump. He sat up, panting, sweat on his forehead and cock furiously hard. He couldn’t think about his best friend like this. Viktor had never displayed any interest like that in Jayce. He sighed and padded over to the shower, turning it to cold and shocking the offending thoughts out of his system. When he fell back into bed, only a tiny part of his brain wished Viktor was there with him.
The next time it happened, was a month after Jayce had washed and returned the cravat. Viktor had thanked Jayce with a warm smile and a hand at his shoulder. Jayce had made it a bigger deal in his head than it should have been, but being praised by Viktor did something to him.
Over the past month they had been trading little gestures. Viktor would drop off small treats for Jayce from his favourite bakery and Jayce would wash his clothes sometimes when a stain just wouldn’t budge. For as good as Viktor was at repairing clothes from his time in Zaun, stain removal hadn’t been an afforded luxury. Their trades only started to become a problem when Jayce started keeping things. At first it was an accident, he had rushed out of his room one morning and simply forgotten to return a shirt. Then a part of him had decided it liked to keep Viktor’s scent in his room, and when the weather cooled, Viktor had borrowed his jumpers, soaking his scent with them. Viktor had said he preferred Jayce’s jumpers because they didn’t catch on his back brace, even if he had to roll up the sleeves and it would droop on his shoulders, exposing his neck glands which were oh so distracting for Jayce.
His rational brain knew this was a bad idea to share clothing. Jayce always made sure they were free of his scent when Viktor borrowed them, but it was what he did when Viktor returned them for a spot treatment. The scent was intoxicating, and late at night in his room, he would put the jumper on and sleep with it. His best ideas had always been the day after sleeping in those jumpers drenched in Viktor’s scent. He always woke up refreshed with a fire in his belly.
This arrangement worked well until Viktor had to take a few days leave, to get over his rut. Jayce had wished him well and tried his best to hide his disappointment at not being able to help him. He had dropped off small packages at his door and thanked whoever built the Academy that bedrooms were scent proof. When Viktor returned, he sheepishly refused to return Jayce’s jumper, stating that it needed to be replaced. Jayce had insisted he didn’t need to buy him anything, he would fix it, it was his favourite jumper, after all.
Viktor came by one evening before Jayce had to leave for a gala and was immediately regretting asking Viktor to return the jumper, because it reeked of rut.
“Jayce, I can replace it,” Viktor said. “Surely this would set off your own instincts, it would be gross to you—”
“No, no, it’s fine. I’ll handle it.” Jayce must’ve looked odd, with his nose scrunched, but he was trying really hard not to drop to the floor for the alpha in front of him and submit. It wasn’t gross, it was the best fucking thing he had ever smelt. “Viktor this reeks, I’m going to wash this in the lab. It’s got a better wash tub,” he joked, trying his best to imitate an alpha reaction and clapping his partner on the shoulder.
He heard a small ‘thank you’ from Viktor before he was already off, making a beeline for the lab. He needed to get this scent away from his room, and away from himself. Leaving this in his room might set off his own hormones but he also didn’t want to make Viktor feel bad. Viktor knew how much this jumper meant to him and it wasn’t his fault it smelt like rut, it was just bad timing, right? No way Viktor was using this during his rut, it was just in the same room. Surely.
Jayce shook his head to stop his thoughts running away from him as he entered the lab. He turned on the water and sat down on the navy couch, waiting for the tub to fill. It would stop by itself when it reached a certain weight. The sound of the water drowned out his thoughts and he thumbed at the neck line of the jumper. Viktor must’ve tried to wash it as it was a cool to the touch, not quite dry, but it the smell was still so heavy. He couldn’t help himself, he inhaled the fabric and a choked moan escaped his lips. He rubbed his face in it, dragging it over his own scent glands. He needed Viktor’s scent all over him. His cock twitched in his pants and, oh gods, he could feel slick trickling onto his thighs. Either his suppressants were wearing off or he was actually just that desperate.
He unbuckled his pants and dipped past his waistband, another moan falling from his lips as he grasped his leaking cock. He stroked himself slowly, revelling in the feeling. He hadn’t allowed himself to think about Viktor while he was doing this but it was like the floodgates were opened and nothing was going to stop him. Not even the fact that Viktor could open their lab with his keys and see him whimpering muffled moans into the jumper like a desperate omega. He pushed his pants down and plunged a finger into his wet cunt.
“Fuck… Viktor.” He moaned, spreading his legs, displaying himself. He was so needy, so empty and desperate for Viktor. His brain supplied delicious images of Viktor in various positions: on top of him, underneath while he rode him, Jayce between his knees. He wondered if Viktor was a talker. Would he praise him like when Jayce did something good in the lab, would he be soft or rough? Would he let him to take his knot and breed him? He keened at the thought and something in him snapped, slick gushed out of him as he came with Viktor’s name on his lips.
Jayce sat there, panting with his cunt clenching around his fingers. He was so fucked.
“What the fuck? Who left slick on the couch?” Viktor looked incredulous as he pointed his cane to the navy couch. Jayce’s face flushed and he fidgeted with his hands. He thought he had cleaned up last night’s… activities. He’d been an hour late to the gala trying to remove evidence of what had occurred. Jayce was pulled from his thoughts with the clacking of Viktor’s cane as he walked over to the couch.
“Jayce, I know about your… proclivities, but this?” Viktor’s words were icy. He had every right to be annoyed with him. Jayce had been keeping his true presentation a secret and he must’ve felt betrayed.
“Viktor I can explain—”
“I don’t mind what you do with omegas, but please, not on the couch. At least the day bed can have the sheets removed.” Viktor sighed and turned back to his workbench.
Oh. Jayce wasn’t sure what was worse, Viktor thinking he brought someone back to their lab, or Viktor finding out it was him, unable to control himself by the smell of Viktor’s rut and cumming all over the couch. It wasn’t that he wouldn’t tell Viktor for fear of his reaction, but he didn’t want Viktor to think less of him. He didn’t want anything to change between them. They were equals, and that was so, so precious to Jayce.
“Sorry, Viktor. Won’t happen again.” He faked a smile and got to work.