Aaren wokeup in the middle of the night, his stomach growling.
It was understandable; he had gone to sleep after heaving up his dinner. At that point, he hadn’t been able to eat anything while his stomach settled.
But right now... Right now, he had a huge, gnawing ache for a Philly cheesesteak sandwich, and he couldn’t stop thinking about it. Thinly sliced pieces of beef smothered in cheese, with crispy fried onions, hot peppers, and crunchy salty pickles, all wrapped up in a bread roll.
He checked his phone. It was 5 AM.
Nothing was open at 5 AM, that could make him a cheesesteak sandwich right now.
He bit his lip and snuggled into Hades’ chest, trying to ignore his hunger.
He managed for all of five minutes. Then his stomach growled again, and he whimpered.
“Sweeth’rt?” Hades mumbled, tightening his arm around Aaren.
“I’m hungry,” Aaren admitted.
Hades took a deeper breath. “What d’you want? I’ll get it fr’m the kitch’n.”
Aaren bit his lip. “It’s okay, you don’t have to get up.”
His stomach growled again though.
“Sweetheart,” Hades said, stirring. “Whassit?”
“I want a Philly cheesesteak and nothing’s open,” Aaren mumbled. “It’s 5 AM. I can’t even make it myself because we don’t have the ingredients. Your beef’s all frozen and we don’t have bread rolls or sliced cheese.”
Hades pushed himself upright, rubbing his face. “I’ll go get them.”
Aaren froze. “Right now?”
“Yeah.”
“But it’s 5 AM! You were sleeping!”
“It’s fine.” Hades shook himself awake and got out of bed, pulling on a shirt.
And now Aaren feltreallyguilty. “But...”
“I knocked you up, sweetheart. If you need a sandwich right now, I’ll make it for you.”
“It’s 5 AM,” Aaren whispered to himself.
Hades wasn’t slowing down, so Aaren hurriedly pulled on a shirt and pants, following his alpha to the door.
Hades turned, blinking in surprise. “You’re coming along?”
Aaren nodded. “So you’re not going alone. It’s5 AM.”
Hades grinned and caught Aaren’s hand, squeezing it.
They were quieter than usual in the car, Aaren still sleepy. “I think I was dreaming about sandwiches. Then I woke up and it became a craving.”
Hades’ smile turned softer, something more private. He parked in front of a convenience store; Aaren hopped out before Hades could open the passenger door for him. He hurried to join his alpha at the front of the car, linking their fingers together.
“Grab the ingredients,” Hades said. “I’ll hold the basket.”
“Why—Oh. Because we’re now a four-legged, two-handed beast.”
