Page 3 of Galaxy Between Us

“You’re a genius, Ari.”

“I try to tell ‘em.”

He smiles at me and I turn away from the scope to smile back, holding onto his dark-blue gaze. Man, I’m going to miss him. I may be seen as one of the strongest Alphas in my class, but I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t shed a tear or two at night, thinking about how Ari is leaving. We’ve been inseparable since we first met at a block party when we were two.

His family had just moved into the neighborhood. I’d crowned myself king of the sandbox, challenging any other toddler who approached, until Ari’s mother had plopped him down beside me.

Since he’s an Omega, he’d been naturally submissive, letting me play with the sand toys I wanted. Not being fussy and competitive like the Alpha toddlers. He just sat and stared up at me with big doe eyes and messy light-brown hair. Our parents became close friends as well, giving us the opportunity of countless play dates.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, taking in my drop in mood.

I lean away from the telescope with a sigh, wondering where to begin without coming off as emotional. Alphas are supposed to be tough.

“It just sucks. I wish you were an Alpha so they wouldn’t send you away,” I grumble, collapsing on his bed. The Comet XI logo is sprawled out beneath me on the covers. The “C” creates a violet whirlpool galaxy surrounding the rest of the letters.

Arius rolls his eyes. Am I being too dramatic? He’s my best friend; I should be able to keep him!

“We've been over this, Knox. First of all, I’m proud to be an Omega, it’s the rest of the world you should wish was different. Second, I won’t be gone forever. As soon as I finish what’s required, I’m booking it out of there and meeting you at our spot. You have the easy part. All you have to do is wait for me to get back and then we’ll be that much closer to getting our feet in the door of Comet XI.”

He makes it sound so simple. He thinks I have it easy? I’ll be alone for years. Chet is the second closest friend I have, but he –and I quote– doesn’t give a rat's ass about stars and rockets and shit. It’s bad enough he thinks poorly of Ari.

Chet comes from a traditional family and thinks Arius is a sorry excuse of an Omega with the way I let him talk to me. He couldn’t be more wrong, but if I were to show Chet and the others just how smart and strong Ari is, not as an Omega, but as a person, they’d probably accuse him of being a witch and burn him at the stake.

Fools. All of them.

I must take too long to respond to him because his confident expression from moments ago falters.

“You will wait for me, won’t you?”

My chest burns at his tone, urging me to comfort him. I sit up on my elbows to make sure he sees the stern look of sincerity on my face.

“I won’t step foot inside Comet XI if you’re not right beside me, Ari.”

The worry in his brows softens a little as his mouth lifts into a grin, drawing my eyes to his perfect lips. My heart adores this Omega with fervent passion, but my brain knows that I have to let him go. I’m only feeling possessive due to my natural instincts as an Alpha.

He’ll come back to me. All I need to do is wait.

Noise from the open window has us hustling to stand on either side of the telescope and peering out at the street below.

“Hey, Knox!” Chet calls up. “When you’re done making out with your Omega come take a look at Uranus!” He’s standing on the street in front of Ari’s house along with a small posse of Alphas and Betas from school. One of them is turned around and bent over, flashing his ass toward us. One of the Betas is also turned around rubbing his own hands on his back to mimic a make out session.

“Not cool, guys,” I scold them. “If the old lady next door catches you doing that, she’ll clutch her pearls and then strangle you with them.”

The herd of them giggles.

“Relax, we’re just teasing. You guys coming to the park with us or what?” Chet asks, tossing a baseball between his hands.

“Yeah. We’ll be down in a sec.”

I'll admit, I did find it a little bit funny, but I know Ari didn’t. He doesn’t tolerate objectifying Omegas, even if it’s just a joke.

I didn’t always understand that and told him to lighten up once because I pridefully like that everyone thinks I’m making out with an Omega in my free time. That was a mistake. Ari made me watch a video of an Omega giving birth as punishment, just to emphasize a fraction of what their bodies already have to endure without the world degrading them.

Besides, as the leader of the group, it’s my job to be the mature one and guide the others. Ari and I throw on baseball caps, and I grab a hoodie before we head downstairs. It’s more for him than for me. Since he’s much smaller, I know if we’re outside late, he’ll get cold.

I lead the way to the local park and begin my mature Alpha lecture about how they’ll all be single and never find their mates if they continue to act like duds in the presence of an Omega.

“Arius barely counts as an Omega,” Ricky, a freckle-faced Alpha, mumbles under his breath, and a few of the others snicker at his remark.