Page 84 of Ashley & the A-Listers

He swayed and sang and threw his fist into the air when required by the rock gods, but he was a million miles away.

His dad had been an alpha. His dad was the reason why Dylan’s mom was raising an omega—and now an alpha—all by herself. His dad was the reason his mom had spiraled through his childhood.

And apparently, Dylan was doomed to follow in his footsteps.

Ashley knew everything about his dad, and in turn, he knew her own dad had fucked off once he’d found an omega with a pack to keep his knot warm.

Would she see him with the same disdain he knew she felt for alphas?

“Dylan?”

He blinked, realized the band was leaving the stage and the concert was over and Ashley’s hand was soft on his arm.

“Yeah,” he said, shaking himself back into the moment. “That was awesome,” he said, as if he even knew what the last three songs had been.

She looked like she didn’t believe him, but nodded, and dropped her hand. “Ready to get out of here?”

He swallowed and nodded, and suddenly her scent, a barely-there citrus, was a bit stronger to him, though it had always been faint.

He stalked behind her as they left the venue, keeping an eye out for any assholes stumbling drunkenly out of the building. Thankfully they made it to the car without any events, and the silence felt oppressive once they shut the doors.

His ears were ringing and he couldn’t tell if it was from the concert or the new revelation.

“I can hardly hear anything,” Ashley said, probably a bit louder than she intended.

“Good, it’s not just me, then,” Dylan replied, trying his best to sound normal and not like his entire world was turned upside down.

It was late, and they wouldn’t be back for another two hours. Which meant he’d have to sit here. In the car. With Ashley’s light scent swirling around them.

“Can I play the setlist again?” Ashley asked, already fiddling with the cord that plugged into the cassette tape converter.

“Of course,” he said, and scrambled for anything so his response didn’t sound so short, so uninterested when in fact, it was the opposite. “Especially since I didn’t recognize it the first time.”

Her grin was sly as she restarted the playlist, and the thump of the electric bass filled the car, matching the beat of his heart.

The car ride lasted far too long and not nearly long enough. And as the dotted lines of the road disappeared behind them, Dylan realized he and Ashley had spent way too long avoiding the future.

Like what would happen now that they’d graduated. Now that summer was almost over and the college that Dylan’s omega sister applied to had accepted her, and even though he hated school enough as it was, he wanted to follow and keep her safe.

Like how Ashley was going to the community college nearby because she didn’t want to leave her mom.

How they’d assumed they’d keep in touch. How hard it was going to be to say goodbye.

Maybe that’s why they hadn’t talked about it, because they both knew the answer, and were dreading it.

Dylan knew he was.

That’s why this night was supposed to be so important. Celebrating Ashley, seeing their favorite band.

One last hurrah for them to remember until they could see each other again on some school break.

If they even made it that far. What if Ashley presented as an omega, like she secretly wanted, and got scooped up by some alpha?

His chest ached at the thought.

He replayed that kiss in his mind, and for a split second he almost convinced himself that the alpha supposed to scoop her up could be… him.

I’ve been an alpha for five minutes and I’m already convinced I could make Ashley mine.

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