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

She blinked.

Well, shit.

×

Elliott was expectedly prompt, pulled up outside her front door and waiting when River bounded outside. She 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. She also had a bundle of fresh laundry to hand back to her.

“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,” she mumbled. Her cream skirt was long and knitted, her boots chunky with extra thick socks, and she 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.” She started the car and pulled off from the edge of the pavement.

“What does that mean?”

She glanced over and a wink flashed at her. “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. She kept her eyes ahead, but River caught the swallow flexing her throat.

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

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

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

“Well, only Saturday.” River wriggled in her seat, crossing and uncrossing her 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.”

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

River wanted to question her odd words, but they had already arrived at her 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. She 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 her answers were too short and cryptic. It was beginning to frustrate her. Why was River always kept in the dark? Why did Elliott keep herself in the dark?

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

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

“You know, for an introvert.”

Elliott’s incredulity almost stretched her face into cruelty. She wasn’t sure why, but River got a sense that she 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, she seemed to work hard at avoiding all social interaction that could find her outside of the lecture halls.

She went to speak, froze, and fell back against her 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 her belt and slinging her tote bag over her shoulder. “It’s not exactly n-”

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

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

River stumbled free of the door frame. “Um, no.” She righted herself and brushed a curl out of her eyes. “I’m fine- just- still half-asleep.” She laughed, it sounded forced. Elliott winced down at her, her back was to the society members. River’s was not, she needed to put on a brave face. Or a happy one. Anything but the dazed emotion she was feeling from her 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 her jumper collar and hiked the straps of her bag up her shoulder. “Have fun.”

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

“Morning, everyone!” River called.

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

Rowan and Sky sidled in to her 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 her ear, “And Alpha Elliott?”

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

“I meant, she’s really your mate now?”

“Yeah.”

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

“She… showed her true colours.”

“At the party?”

River couldn’t pretend to be paying attention to the speech up front anymore, her eyes snapped up to Rowan, shocked. “What?” she 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. “She came to pick me up because I asked her to. I drank too much and wanted to go home.”

“You could have asked us.”

River hummed. She wasn’t sure why she hadn’t thought to phone a friend that night. Maybe because she hated the thought of being a burden on them. But with Elliott? She made it so easy to rely on her, she took it personally if she 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 her commitments - and Elliott was a hell of a lot more reliable than the bus.

“Same again tomorrow?” She 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 she stared at her 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 her 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.” She slumped back, resting her temple against the headrest. There was a softness in her stare that River liked far too much. “Maybe you’re stretching too much out of that time.”

“I disagree.”

She sighed. Not frustrated, almost like she should have known better to even ask. Like she knew her too well. She was good at that act.

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

×

“Change of plans for today,” River said as she took her 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 her tote bag between her 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. She took a hard turn with the softest of wheel manoeuvres and River swayed with the force.

She 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 she wanted to protect her 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.”

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

“If you want, it’s not very exciting.” Neither was her art style, or her preferred subject matter. In the words of the great Miranda Priestly, ‘florals, in spring? Groundbreaking.’ But River liked painting flowers, and she loved spring because that’s when the flowers came back. She had long since realised there was no joy in posing as some serious artist and painting topics she 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. She 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,” she murmured.