Chapter Text
When Near had woken up in a messy display of pillows and blankets wrapped around him he knew the day would be abnormal. Sometime in his sleep he had unconsciously pulled the blanket into a circle around him, also adding in pillows for support. He had woken up comforted in a nest of blankets and pillows. It was unusual for him to do such a thing, but today he didn't feel like his usual self at all.
Despite his body feeling more warmer then normal, Near could see his skin prickle on his arms causing the small white hairs to stand up. His cheeks felt hot to the touch and a light coat of sweat covered his face. Even though it was spring he must be coming down with something.
Near put his bed back to normal, making sure not even a crease was missed before changing into identical, but fresh, oversized white pyjamas before heading off to the dining hall to collect breakfast.
The day had progressed relatively normal. He played with his toys in the common room and helped the caretakers with things when they asked. Things had only turned when classes began.
Near always sat in the middle row next to the window. Due to spring bringing in some of its warmth, windows were allowed open. The breeze was welcoming and refreshing to Nears overly warm skin. The teacher chatted on about a book in her hand. English was always a questionable subject. Having to read thick books and do analysis on them or write written reports that you'd never need to do it in your life again. It seemed pointless. Nonetheless Near picked up his pen and wrote down the teachers points.
After he was done, he unconsciously rubbed the back of his neck with his palm, sending an electric shiver down his spine. He quickly removed his hand from his neck and looked down at it to see it was wet with sweat. This was defiantly abnormal. Even during the hottest of summer days, Near would hardly break a sweat. Now he was sweating all over. There was a strong scent filing the room now. His head was getting light.
When Near finally looked up, he focused on the teacher who was now looking around the classroom with a concerned look. Near paid it no mind as he tried his best to focus on what she was trying to explain but the growing scent within the small room was becoming insufferable. The scent wasn't one of spring. It wasn't of freshly bloomed flowers or the natural earthy smell of the outdoors. It was more like a perfume. One he couldn't describe. The teacher began walking around the classroom slowly, eyeing each student as she did so. The students followed with their eyes as they darted down to their text book to write things down then back up at her so she could continue.
Near could see some of the other kids shifting in their seats. The boys on the far side of the room were clearly growing agitated. Rubbing their faces, trying to stay focused, their heads kept snapping upwards and looking around the room in search of something. The teacher made her round before stopping in front of Near. She didn't look down at him or pay him any attention, her focus was only on the book in her hands.
When she had finished her sentence she slowly closed her book and looked at the classroom with a smile. "Today is very nice out. Shall we continue this class outside on the grass?" She asked enthusiastically to her students. There was many happy cheers and "Thank god's" as everyone collected their stuff and began leaving the room. Turning back to Near the teacher smiled gently. "I think you should go to the nurse." She insisted quietly to the younger boy. Near looked up at her with his onyx eyes and nodded in response.
He wasn't sure why or how the teacher knew he wasn't feeling well but he wasn't going to question it. Silently collecting his stuff, he bowed his head briefly as he moved passed the teacher. As the students headed down the right hall to go outside, Near turned and headed to the the infirmary, books pressed against his chest, it wasn't until he walked passed a window and looked at his reflection did he see how flushed his cheeks really were. It looked like he was blushing which was embarrassing.
Near approached the nurses office and knocked on the door quietly.
"Come in." The female voice called.
Near opened the door slowly and stepped in. His eyes looked around the small room. It had two single beds, one had a curtain pulled around it while the other was opened and empty. Surprisingly Near has only ever been in here once before.
The nurse spun on her chair and looked at the boy before her. She smiled at the boy before looking him over incase of an injury. "What can I do for you Near?" She asked curiously.
"Im not feeling so well. The teacher sent me here." He replied with his usual monotone. The nurse nodded before pulling out another chair for Near to sit on. He put his books down on the table next to him and sat down in front of the nurse.
"Whats happening? Are you vomiting? Experiencing headaches or chills?" She asked as she pulled out a clipboard and paper.
"No, I've just been very hot since this morning,"
"Mhmm," The nurse hummed as she wrote what he said down, "Anything else?" She looked up at him briefly. Near shook his head. The nurse looked back at her clipboard before standing up and pulling out a temperature reader. "This will go in your ear, it will feel a bit weird. I'll just record your temperature." She reassured. Near nodded and allowed the nurse to do the temperature. When the device beeped, the nurse removed it from his ear and wrote down he numbers. "Very high temperature indeed."
She sat back down in her chair, her hands flicked through files until she stumbled upon Nears and pulled it out. It was relatively empty since having never really visited the nurses office. The file gave his basic information, weight, height and age. "I can't seem to find on here your presenting results." She muttered, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
It was not normal for such information to be missing.
"I believe I am a beta." Near commented, sitting straight in his chair. The nurse flicked her eyes up at him as he continued, "Betas don't have heats or release pheromones. I do neither of those."
"Usually someone would find out if they are an Alpha, Beta or Omega during their early teenage years when they start presenting, heats are usually the first presenting signs, have you been tested before coming here?" The nurse asked curiously.
"No. I have never seen the importance of getting a test done, when I am the text definition of a beta. As you said, usually someone finds out in their early teenage years if they are an Alpha or an Omega due to heats. I am well past the age people would normal present at."
The nurse was silent as she tried processing what the other was saying. After a moment of silence she cleared her throat and closed the file. "Yes, usually one would find out early on what status they are. But some people present later on in life. Its not completely uncommon for people to present when they turn eighteen." The nurse stated, she lifted her right leg over her left one, crossing them together. "I believe you're experiencing a heat." She concluded.
Near furrowed his eyebrows at the nurse, showing clearly disproval of the response.
"With what evidence do you believe I am experiencing a heat? Without proper evaluation I could just be sick, coming down with a virus or be having a reaction to something. Just checking my temperature is not enough evidence to come to the conclusion I am experiencing a heat." Near stated.
"Im a trained professional. You are not the first young boy to come to my office all hot and flustered. I experience at least three people a month with the same thing you're going through. I'm also an Omega and can smell Pheromones quite well." She uncrossed her legs and leaned forwards, "And you are releasing a lot of pheromones right now."
Nears lips turned into a flat line. His nostrils flared as he breathed in deeply. If this was a heat, his life was going to get more complicated then it needed to be.
"I'll run some tests." The nurse stated as she pulled out some gloves from her desk and applied them. She grabbed out a fresh swab and turned back to Near. "I'll just need to swab the inside of your mouth. Theres a reader in one of the caretakers office where I can put the swab into it and it'll be able to tell me with certainty what category you are."
Near opened his mouth and let the nurse swab the inside of his mouth before putting it in a little plastic tube. "Results may take thirty minutes. So for now I want you to rest on that bed over there until I return."
Near nodded silently and got up off the chair, he brought his English book with him as he laid down on the white bed. "If you need a drink there is a water dispenser in the corner by the door." Near gave another silent nod as the nurse pulled the curtain over, giving him privacy. He laid back in the bed trying to get as comfortable as he could as the nurse left.
He was feeling a lot more hotter now as he unbuttoned his shirt just a little bit. Opening his book up on his lap Near began reading from where he left off in class. Even though his body was a hot sweaty mess and his mind was becoming unfocused, he could still use this time to read the next couple of chapters they were going to study in class.
Near turned the page to a new chapter, his mind lost across the words, he didn't acknowledge the rustling of sheets behind the curtain.
'We thought those days would never end my friend.
Where we would play and be happy, fight and make up,
share in the delight of our youth,
all without knowing that those days would come to an end.
That we would play together for the last time without even knowing.
Those were the days;"
Nears head snapped up instantly as the curtains separating the two beds was sharply pulled across. Nears eyes widened with brief shock before returning back to normal.
Onyx eyes stared into Sapphire ones.
The blond boy stared down at the younger one. His eyes raked over Nears body before looking him in the eyes again. "You stink," The blond boy snarled.
Near noticed that Mello had his left foot off of the ground with a white bandage circling his ankle. He turned back to his book and continued reading without saying a word.
Mello clenched his jaw tightly as he grabbed the book from Nears hands and flung it to the other side of the room. "I said you stink."
Near sighed to himself quietly, already drained, "What does Mello wish me to do about it?" He asked as he brought a hand up to play with a curl in his hair.
"ANYTHING!" Mello groaned as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
"If you close the curtain and return back to your bed it should be enough distance for you to no longer smell me,"
"Its not! I only got up because I could smell you from over there." Mello bit back.
"I cannot leave until the nurse comes back." Near stated as he removed his finger from his hair. Mello wrinkled up his nose in disapproval. He took a deep breath in and could feel his throat instantly get tight.
"I heard what you and the nurse were talking about." Mello stated as he hopped over with one foot, closer to Near.
Near shifted in the bed and moved over. Not exactly meaning to make space for Mello but to try and create more distance between the two. "You are not a beta." Mello said matter of factly.
Near eyed the older boy carefully. "I don't even know what I am yet." Near replied in a lower voice.
Mello bent down, when he was finally beside Near he breathed in the younger boys scent. It was an alluring vanilla and sandalwood aroma filled with pheromones. The blond boy could feel himself grow warm, it was as if each breath he took, he could feel the aroma filling his lungs before leaving to fill the rest of his body. He could feel himself slipping up and releasing his own pheromones.
"I can tell you for certainty you aren't a Beta. I don't need some stupid test to tell me Im reacting to your scent." Mello declared. He placed a bent knee on Nears bed and moved in closer. Near froze up as he felt Mello's nose brush against the side of his sweaty neck. "Defiantly no beta." He heard Mello mumble in his ear. The contact with his neck sent electric shocks down the white haired boys body.
He wanted to move his arms and push Mello away but he was frozen. Nears breathing quickened as Mello moved closer, accidentally brushing his chest against the younger boys shoulder, Near shut his eyes tightly as Mello pressed his nose harder into his neck and breathed in deeply.
Time seemed to have slowed in the nurses office. The room was filled with nothing but heavy breathing and rustling of sheets. Mello had made his way completely on the bed, making sure to take slow movements. Near kept moving backwards until he was on the very edge of the bed, Mello pulled back and looked down at the bed, noticing the wet patch. Near followed his eyes and gasped softly when he also seen it.
His cheeks flushed a red color, this time with embarrassment.
"You're creating slick," Mello noted out loud, his eyes looking back up to Near with amusement. "You're an omega." The older boy growled out in arousal. His senses were beginning to take over.
"I-," Near couldn't make a complete sentences. For once he was in utter shock. He was embarrassed, flustered, unnerved and confused all in one. It was very unlike him to be caught off guard.
Mello hummed to himself as he used Nears shocked state to lean forward and run his tongue along Nears pale neck. His head told him Near was the last person he would want to do this with but his instincts, that have now been kicked into high gear after being affected by Near, was telling him anyone would do.
Near moaned uncharacteristically before quickly gaining the courage to push Mello away.
The two breathed in heavily, intoxicated by each others pheromones. With the last remaining bit of sanity, Near shook his head and held his hands in front of his chest in case Mello tried coming closer again.
"Stop. This has gone far enough." Near tried to sound as stern as he could.
Mello wrinkled his nose back up in disapproval before pulling away. He collected himself once more, finally managing to take himself off the bed. "You're lucky I'm in a good mood today." The older boy snarled before hopping back to his side and pulling the curtain shut. Near breathed a sigh of relief as he heard Mello get back into bed.
He moved back into the middle of his bed slowly and tried collecting his thoughts. He could feel his heart beating fast in his chest, his skin was more sweater and hotter then before and now he was feeling a mix of unwanted emotions.
Near curled his legs up to his chest and rested his forehead on his knees.
This is so problematic.
When the nurse returned she held a piece of paper in her hands. Near already was expecting bad news. So when she told him the test came back that Near was in fact an Omega and currently going through heat, he wasn't overly surprised.
"Heres some medication," The nurse handed him two containers of medication. One in a white container and the other in a blue one. "The tablets in the white container will suppress a heat. You can go a total of three months without a heat before you NEED to have one for health reasons," She stated before picking up the blue container, "The medication in the blue container are heat relievers. Your heat has already started so its too late to try and stop it. These will help with the affects of the heat and lessen how bad you get the symptoms, because this is your first heat, you will experience intense symptoms that the medication may not be able to help with. That is completely normal."
Near nodded and held onto the containers. His knowledge around Omegas was very limited. His first objective once he is dismissed is to head to the library and do some research.
"I've let Roger know of this as Omegas releasing pheromones is classified a public health hazard due to the fact it can make you or someone else, act in a way that could potentially be violent without having any intention of doing so. For your safety I recommend staying in your room until the symptoms of the heat become weaker, try to take showers late at night when nobody is around and," she moved closer to Near, her face as serious as its ever been, "If you find yourself becoming too sexually aroused, make sure to 'relieve' yourself. Bottling it up during a heat is not good for your health and has led to cases of Omegas ending up in hospital."
Near internally groaned, embarrassed beyond belief from what he was being told but nodded to the nurse before leaving.
As he walked down the hallway Near couldn't hold himself back from cringing. Mello would have heard every single bit of that conversation. No doubt him being an Omega would now spread around the orphanage like wild fire.
Of course this had to happen to him of all people.