Chapter 218

"Sir, Luna Alana said to remind you of your date by eleven?" Erin says respectfully.

Dale makes a face, all the enthusiasm he had for filing had just hopped out the window. "Sure." He mutters, getting up and putting his things in order.

Erin panics. "Not right now, Sir…"

"I know, Erin." Dale says respectfully. "...and please call me Dale, you're older than I am."

"B-But, Luna Alana…"

"Forget about my mom, I'm saying you should call me by my name." He cuts her off. "Has the meeting with the Realtors been set?"

Erin shakes herself, getting back into work-related conversations with relief. "Yes sir… I-I mean, D-Dale, eight in the morning tomorrow at the town hall." She peeks into her files to confirm and gives him a reassuring smile.

"Good." Dale mutters, walking past her, four years of college studying estate management was about to come in real handy.

"S-Sir… but where are you going?" Erin asks in confusion, knowing that the Luna would question her later.

"On a run." He tells her shortly, hurrying down the hallway to his apartment.

His mom insisted he wore ties to look professional and it felt like a noose around his neck half the time, he was definitely not wearing it to run.

He quickly changes into something more comfortable, a comfortable shirt and old jeans, he could also visit Hayden for a bit, he deserved to smile for putting up with his mom whose sole aim in life was to drive him mad.

Maybe if he ran hard enough, he could escape from her demands.

•~•

Dream pouted his way through the entire morning, having to clean up his room instead of tagging along to the bakery and seeing Hayden making him very grumpy.

Even worse is when there's nothing to do but he can't go anywhere alone without a chaperone, being a male Omega was all parts tiring.

His mom is allergic to cat fur so he can't even get a pet and dogs are out of the question because no one else wants a pet.

He stares blankly at the books Hayden had recommended for him, he couldn't understand why his dark-haired friend had been waxing poetic about them, there weren't even any pictures, how was he expected to concentrate.

He tried watching cartoons but they kept going out to a party or hiking or just plain socializing, shows had similar energy and the one documentary he found was talking about places to visit.

He had officially had enough, he got up in a fit, he was an adult for fuck's sake if he wanted to walk around in the woods that are a couple of steps away from his house, he would.

As long as he came back in time to hide all traces that he left the house with express permission and a chaperone.

It wasn't like anyone even came to these parts of the woods anyway and he never went far, he mostly hung around the creek and came right home.

It was a lot of fun at night when the moon would be so big and bright and he would have to swallow back his howls so his mom didn't come out and drag him back to bed by his ears.

He takes a proper shower, scrubbing thoroughly to reduce the intensity of his scent, he could always carry a picnic basket and go eat brunch beside the creek.

Splashing through the water on bare feet and feeding the squirrels that sometimes kept him company, his mom didn't like his presence at the bakery anymore because now they had a lot of workers which meant it would be harder for Dream to keep his secret safe and not slip.

He didn't totally dislike the closeted lifestyle he had to live, it made sneaking out like this - like he was a ten year old going on an adventure - tons more fun.

•~•

"Hi, Dale…" Jade, one of the first Omegas he had gone on a date with accosts him on the stairs, expectation in her bright eyes.

"Bye, Jade." He waves her away, not breaking his stride across the foyer. 

The arch-nemesis to his wonderful plan of freedom is his mom and there is a very high chance she has already found out about his absence and is currently hurrying down from the top floor to catch him.

He couldn't allow that to happen, practically skidding across the tiled floor in his haste.

The parking lot has never looked more magnificent, with soft sunlight reflecting off shiny metal cars.

He hurries to his Escalade that had been upgraded to a more recent version and peels out of the lot, it might just be his paranoia but he could have sworn he heard his mom yelling his name.

He had left his phone back in his office and he was still patting himself on the back at that quick thinking, she couldn't cause him anxiety by constantly ringing him up.

He leans forward to turn up the volume of the music, thumping rap filling the car.

He drives over to Hayden's, chortling to himself as he mentally pictures his mom's horrified reaction if she found out his destination.

His eyes rove over the bakery when he steps out, a vague memory of blonde hair whispering across his mind when he does.

He feels a pang but that also fades as fast as the faint memory that feels painted out of watercolor, pastel, and unrealistic.

He pushes open the door, the resounding ding bouncing off the walls. He hadn't had the time to come over as often as he'd like but he did know about the new girl working at the bookstore.

The bookstore is mostly empty which is fine by Dale, he needed some peace and quiet sometimes too.

He frowns though when he doesn't see Hayden, faltering as he makes his way in.

Jennie raises her head from her book to see 'the' Dale Ascott walk in.

"Hello, Dale." She grins happily, waving him over. "Looking for your Doll?" She asks brightly.

Dale flinches, thoroughly confused. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Hay! Stop dancing with Apple and come on out, you have a visitor!" She calls over a shoulder and muffled sounds replied to her from the closed backroom.

"How do you know my name?" He asks curiously, taking in the bright lady who was currently struggling to fix a fancy bookmark on the page she was on.

Jennie glances up briefly at him. "How wouldn't I know your name, I belong to your Pack, that and Suzie doesn't ever shut up about you." She shakes her head fondly, struggling harder. "I'm Jennie by the way."

"I know." Dale mutters under his breath.

Hayden chooses this moment to step out, a chubby Apple cradled in his arms. "Oh? Dale! What a pleasant surprise!" He exclaims, happy.

Dale just drops his eyes to Apple who squirms slightly in her owner's hold. "Is that Apple? How did she get so fat?"

"Dream." Hayden sighs wearily, handing the cat over to Jennie so he can lead them to a table.

"Dream?" Dale repeats, frowning.

"Yeah, I'm sure I told you about him, his mom owns the bakery but he's not in today, I'll introduce you both some other time."

"So how did Dream make Apple look like Garfield's younger sister?"

Hayden giggles at this. "He keeps spoiling her with snacks and for some reason keeps coming up with new recipes for cat sushi… I have no idea if that's even a thing." He takes a deep breath. "This is surprising." He indicates the situation and Dale winces.

"I'm honestly surprised your mom let you come." He teases.

"She doesn't know."

Hayden nods. "That would explain it."

Dale didn't even notice the time go by, smiling for so long that his face started to hurt, after sometime Jennie came over with Apple to join them.

"Remind me again why I decided to play Scrabble with either of you?" Dale asks dryly when his three-letter word got converted into a ten.

"You said you wanted to give us an advantage." Jennie hums. "Who are we to not accept your generosity."

"I hope that isn't sarcasm." He mutters darkly, scowling when his turn came and all the letters on his rack were all consonants.

"Who decided that vowels were necessary for a sentence?" He complains unhappily, glaring at the board like a neon arrow would pop out and show him what to play.

"We can always play cards." Hayden suggests nicely.

Dale grinds his teeth, a vein ticking on his neck. "No, we're almost out of tiles."

"My hair is going to fall out before you make a decision." Jennie groans leaning backward without knowing that Apple had settled into the little cozy space behind her.

She lets out an outraged meow at the unexpected uncomfortable pressure, hopping on the table in her bid to escape and upturning the board.

Dale picks her up and places a loud smacking kiss on her face, ignoring the ensuing chaos as all the tiles get thrown about.

"You're the bestest cat." Another smacking kiss. "I'm going to buy you a fish farm and a chef."

"Don't make promises you can't keep." Jennie warns him ominously. "Apple never forgets."