Page 4 of Slick Handling

“She needs help, Apollo. Something…something happened and she almost got forced into a bond here. Gracie brought her home after a mixer at the academy and your fathers and I took care of it. Now we need you to just watch over her until Christmas break. You can bring her home then and we will figure the rest out.” My mother speaks in a no-nonsense tone now.

She isn’t asking me to help. This is a command and I am not getting out of it.

My mother is on the council; the government that runs our world. They make all the rules and regulations to keep all the designations safe. It wasn’t just Alphas and Omegas who mattered, Betas deserved a say in everything as well.

Things have changed a lot in the past twenty years when it came to designations. It wasn’t just Alpha’s ruling the world anymore. Beta’s had taken more active roles and Omega rights had been a very hot topic.

The Omega Academy restructure was the biggest project my mother took on. A new-age finishing school where they would be taught about their designation and would be introduced to Alphas and potential packs. It changed how Omegas were educated and presented to society.

Even though we are a family of mainly Alphas, my mother is the one who broke down the barriers that were previously placed on The Omega Academy. Before she rose in the Council, the school was for wealthy and elite families to send their Omega daughters too. It left a lot of girls from middle class and low income families without the resources to bring their daughters to a safe place. This created a lot of forced bonds and put Omegas in a vulnerable situation. My mother made it so that The Omega Academy is funded by the council and that Omegas who attend do not have to leave with a bond. The Omegas are given plenty of opportunities to excel in whatever they want.

Not many Omega pick the traditional rolls anymore. We have Omegas in the workforce enriching our communities as more than just the caretakers that they had been before.

Growing up, my Mama was the center of our family. She is an Omega who was a caretaker and took care of our family. She also broke stereotypes and would teach other Omegas about the designation and worked outside of our home. It gave us a better view on how the world could change for the better.

It was also a terribly kept secret that my two dads and mother were hopelessly wrapped around her finger.

Since we grew up always learning about how the world was changing it pushed my family to push for equal opportunity in education.

Beta’s previously were the only ones who really learned about all designations. They were taught everything because it was as if they were expected to earn a place in packs. The idea of a Beta just being loved wasn’t as accepted when I was young.

Thank fuck that changed.

My mother also is a big advocate for Alpha education as well. Equality was preached over everything. Not only had I been taught my whole life how to treat an Omega, but my mother drilled it into me that if I did the wrong thing that she would be the one I had to deal with. There wa a respect that had been previously not given to Omegas.

Now they were cherished.

The only problem with my mother being so involved with The Omega Academy, is that she’s been trying to get me to attend one of the parties and meet an Omega. I’ve explained, over and over, to her that my pack is focused on our careers right now, and we can’t properly give an Omega what they need.

“Are you listening Apollo?”

“Can you send me the information about her? And her name. I’ll head to the airport now.”

We hang up now that I’ve been given my task. My mother is probably moving onto whatever her next project was.

Thankfully it isn’t a game day and I have the time to do this favor for her.

A text from my mother comes in with the information of where this girl is going to be. It’s quickly followed with a reminder that I need to park my car and help her with her bags instead of waiting outside.

As an Alpha, this girl is absolutely going to hate that but, I know that if I don’t do what my mother wants then I am going to face her wrath.

The airport is only ten minutes away and $25 to park for the hour. I have to go up to the sixth level to find parking and I try not to get furious about that.

I’m a picture of calm.

This girl didn’t ask to have someone try to force her into a bond.

I wonder if it was an older pack looking to add a female for some sort of balance to them. Maybe they had been rejected by an Omega and she hadn’t been. This attempt to bond could have been a retaliation against her?

There was no point in making up stories of what happened to her, I’m sure that I’ll find out soon enough what her backstory is.

Thankfully it’s early enough in the day that the guys will still be at school and won’t be looking for me at home. I have no idea how to explain that for the next three months, we’re going to have a stranger live with us. The fact that she is Gracie’s friend is already a strike against her.

Vaughn is going to be the wildcard in all of his. He hasn’t been the same since the breakup with Terry and the fact his family, outside of us, sort of exploded this summer doesn’t really help. I’m not sure how he is going to handle a female presence in the house.

Griffin had stopped bringing girls home once he saw how surly our pack mate had gotten around them. Usually Vaughn was the calm one with things, so seeing him so upset lately has been hard. He isn’t opening up and talking about it, so it feels like he's shutting down on us.

None of us had been particularly upset about Terry and him breaking up. She had been pushing him to drop out and go to the draft early. She wanted him to take care of her and provide for her. I don’t think that pack life was ever something she was interested in.

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