River woke to his phone buzzing. A message from his parents. He sat up, groggy, and tried to force his eyes to focus on the smaller text of the actual message contents.

He blinked.

Well, shit.

×

Elliott was expectedly prompt, pulled up outside his front door and waiting when River bounded outside. He had made an effort to dress extra warmly today so that the alpha couldn’t make any more complaints about looking like a neglectful mate. He also had a bundle of fresh laundry to hand back to him.

“Sorry it took so long, I had to wait for my slot with the tumble dryer.”

Elliott balanced the folded items on the back seat. “I wouldn’t have minded if you needed to borrow them a little longer, given your habit of heading out half-dressed.”

River pouted. “I actually tried to cover up today,” he mumbled. His cream dungarees were long and knitted, his boots chunky with extra thick socks, and he had layered a pastel pink woolly jumper over a top and a vest. What more could Elliott ask for?

“Yes, you’ve done a terribly good job of it, too.” He started the car and pulled off from the edge of the pavement.

“What does that mean?”

He glanced over and a wink flashed at him. “There’s less of you to look at.”

River choked on air and changed the subject immediately. “So, my parents are coming to visit this weekend.”

It was Elliott’s turn to be caught out. He kept his eyes ahead, but River caught the swallow flexing his throat.

“I hope you’re not expecting me to meet them.”

“No,” he said, too blunt and too quick. “Of course not. I just… wanted to warn you.”

His smirk returned. “I think I can manage to stay away for two whole days, petal.”

“Well, only Saturday.” River wriggled in his seat, crossing and uncrossing his legs. “You’re welcome to bother me on Sunday.”

Elliott chuckled. “You like it when I bother you?”

“I like it when you play nice.”

He bit his lip and rocked his head from side to side. “That’s an interesting way of putting it.”

River wanted to question his odd words, but they had already arrived at his first activity of the day and the art society members gathered in the car park had all taken notice. Elliott took a space right by the crowd.

“Better get going, they’re looking pretty eager for your grand entrance,” Elliott teased. He bent two fingers off the steering wheel at them in a nonchalant wave. A few onlookers had the grace to look away, embarrassed by their own staring.

“You could come, too, if you wanted.”

“Not my thing, petal.”

River frowned. “You don’t involve yourself in anything.”

“It’s for the best.”

All of his answers were too short and cryptic. It was beginning to frustrate him. Why was River always kept in the dark? Why did Elliott keep himself in the dark?

Audience be damned, River decided to press him for once. “Why? You’re actually quite good at being sociable.”

A surprised laugh burst from him. “Quite good?”

“You know, for an introvert.”

Elliott’s incredulity almost stretched his face into cruelty. He wasn’t sure why, but River got a sense that he was on the brink of being… mean. “River, darling, I am not an introvert.”

“Then why don’t you get involved in anything - or anyone - outside of class?” In fact, he seemed to work hard at avoiding all social interaction that could find him outside of the lecture halls.

He went to speak, froze, and fell back against his chair. “That’s a topic for another day, petal.” Everything had flat-lined, returning to factory settings, bland. “Now, go and wow them with your new scent mark.”

River obliged begrudgingly, unbuckling his belt and slinging his tote bag over his shoulder. “It’s not exactly n-”

Elliott caught his chin and pulled him back, stealing a quick kiss and then stepping out of the car. By the time Elliott opened his door for him, River had almost recovered from the shock. Elliott hunched over him, leaning into the car, and he hoped for a moment he intended to do it again.

“Don’t look so horrified, people can see you,” he hissed. Then, much louder, he asked, “Do you need help with your things, my mate?”

River stumbled free of the door frame. “Um, no.” He righted himself and brushed a curl out of his eyes. “I’m fine- just- still half-asleep.” He laughed, it sounded forced. Elliott winced down at him, his back was to the society members. River’s was not, he needed to put on a brave face. Or a happy one. Anything but the dazed emotion he was feeling from his second kiss ever.

“Well, if you decide you’re not up to this after all then I’ll be waiting for your call.” Elliott adjusted his jumper collar and hiked the straps of his bag up his shoulder. “Have fun.”

River nodded. Pink as his outfit, he stepped away from him and walked to the group waiting for him, feeling like he was approaching the noose. They were all so expectant.

“Morning, everyone!” River called.

A chorus of greetings echoed back to him and the committee took the chance to begin explaining the excursion ahead of them.

Rowan and Sky sidled in to his sides, eyes ahead, nodding along with the instructions being given.

“Why haven’t you been responding to our messages?” Rowan mumbled.

“I had a lot on yesterday, I’m sorry.”

Sky had to bend a little to effectively whisper into his ear, “And Alpha Elliott?”

“He’s been generously chauffeuring me to all my lectures and meetings.”

“I meant, he’s really your mate now?”

“Yeah.”

“What happened to wanting to be rid of him?”

“He… showed his true colours.”

“At the party?”

River couldn’t pretend to be paying attention to the speech up front anymore, his eyes snapped up to Rowan, shocked. “What?” he breathed.

“There were rumours-” He paused when the treasurer caught him in a dark look. As soon as he was out from under the incriminating lens, he continued, “-that you two got into a fight at Hawk’s party.”

“Not true,” River muttered. “He came to pick me up because I asked him to. I drank too much and wanted to go home.”

“You could have asked us.”

River hummed. He wasn’t sure why he hadn’t thought to phone a friend that night. Maybe because he hated the thought of being a burden on them. But with Elliott? He made it so easy to rely on him, he took it personally if he didn’t.

The boys didn’t push the topic any further, not even when they were dismissed to explore the sculpture garden with their sketchpads and cameras. River knew there would be more questions in the future… they were probably still just trying to process the idea of ‘River the alpha mate.’

To be fair to them, so was River.

×

The sun had long since set when Elliott pulled up outside River’s house share for the final stop of the day.

“Thanks for the lifts again today!” Driving saved so much time between all his commitments - and Elliott was a hell of a lot more reliable than the bus.

“Same again tomorrow?” He was only half-joking, the other half, the weary half, made River a little nervous.

“You can bow out at any time, you know?”

Elliott’s mild smile became contemplative, and he stared at him instead of answering.

River unbuckled, but didn’t touch the door handle. “What is it?”

“Do you know that you can bow out at any time?”

“I like being a part of it all.” A part of everyone else.

Elliott tilted his head. “Don’t you ever get tired of running around like a blue-arsed fly for other people?”

“No.”

“Have you ever thought of at least… slowing down?”

River laughed. “I’ve only got twenty-four hours a day - it’s not enough!”

“Exactly.” He slumped back, resting his temple against the headrest. There was a softness in his stare that River liked far too much. “Maybe you’re stretching too much out of that time.”

“I disagree.”

He sighed. Not frustrated, almost like he should have known better to even ask. Like he knew him too well. He was good at that act.

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning, bright and early.”

×

“Change of plans for today,” River said as he took his pre-warmed seat.

“There’s physically not a minute left for you to fill,” Elliott said, dropping the handbrake.

River laughed off the comment and dropped his tote bag between his feet. “I’m running out of supplies for painting and I have some pieces I need to finish before the end of term.”

“You were going to work on them tonight,” Elliott remembered. He took a hard turn with the softest of wheel manoeuvres and River swayed with the force.

He nodded. “The university studio has communal supplies, I’ll need to use theirs until my next student loan comes in.”

The car slowed on the approach of yellow lights, halting just before they turned red. “Do you need to book or can you turn up when you like?”

“It’s a free-for-all.”

Elliott grimaced.

“It’s not as messy as it sounds,” River laughed. The prim and proper and perfectly-put-together Elliott might not fit in amongst the chaos of colour, but at least there was plenty of newspaper about if he wanted to protect his trousers from the sometimes-sticky plastic chairs. “I’ll take my unfinished bits there tonight and hopefully make some progress.”

“What are you painting?”

“Still lifes, mostly.”

“Can I see them?”

“If you help me get them to the studio.”

He nodded at the dispersing traffic ahead. After a pause he asked, “Can I watch you paint?”

“If you want, it’s not very exciting.” Neither was his art style, or his preferred subject matter. In the words of the great Miranda Priestly, ‘florals, in spring? Groundbreaking.’ But River liked painting flowers, and he loved spring because that’s when the flowers came back. He had long since realised there was no joy in posing as some serious artist and painting topics he didn’t care for. “I spend more time ‘umm’ing and ‘aah’ing than putting paint to paper usually.”

A small smile, pointed at the road, but it was enough to stir something in River’s belly. He looked away, searching through the window for something interesting to focus on, too.

“It’s a deal, then,” Elliott said. “I’ll drive you and the paintings, and you’ll paint live for me.”

River smiled at the empty trees smoothly flying past, shy all of a sudden. “Deal,” he murmured.