Transition - Beta's Omega

( 3 )

( Kayley )

I heard my bedroom door creak open and glancing up from my spot on the bed, I saw that it was my Aunt.

“What do you want for dinner, sweet pea?” she asked, using the endearment casually.

“Whatever is easiest,” I said with a smile.

“Mac and cheese it is then,” she said with a laugh before she left me alone once again, closing the door behind her. I glanced down at my phone and blushed as I read Decker’s text.

✉Decker: How was your day?

Did he really want to know? His interest in me was confusing. I had been in the pack for a while now and he never took any notice of me before, so why now? I still wasn’t sure how I had managed to get his attention and the only person I could talk to about him was Wyatt. He had been the one to suggest that I should give my number to Decker. It was apparently clear that the soon-to-be beta was just as shy as I was. I didn’t believe that though. I had spotted him around school, and he seemed at ease with his friends. Of course, in all honesty, I hadn’t taken much notice of him before that night at King’s Apple.

✉Kayley: It was just like any other day

I hit send and wondered if that was a good enough answer. Maybe I should have kept it simple. By this point, I figured that Decker must know about my parents, but I wasn’t sure. It would’ve been easy for him to get the public information, especially from his dad. Reed often stopped by their house to check up on us to see if we were settling in all right. Although my Aunt and Uncle had spent almost four years helping me get things in order, I was more than aware that it had taken a lot longer than expected. No one knew the truth. Everyone thought that my parents had been murdered by a hunter. It wasn’t false, but it certainly wasn’t the whole story.

✉Decker: Is that a good thing or a terrible thing?

I groaned as I read his response. Of course, I should’ve given a better answer to his earlier question. Now I would have to think about my next response a lot more carefully. Although Wyatt had teased me about Decker’s obvious crush – it wasn’t obvious to me though – my cousin had made it clear that I should also be careful. Decker would be transitioning soon, and he could potentially meet his mate, which could leave me rather heartbroken, if I chose to get invested in this.

✉Kayley: Today was a good day

I was already invested and curious about the boy who had taken a sudden interest in me. Why me though? Plain, boring, and weak little me. It was clear that I was the smallest and the weakest omega in this pack and I still couldn’t wrap my head around why someone like Decker would show any interest in me. I knew that I was overthinking things, but I couldn’t help it. Maybe Decker just felt sorry for me?

✉Decker: Was it?

That simple question made me cringe. Who was he to question me like that? This boy was certainly trying to get me to open up and I wasn’t sure how to do that. I didn’t make friends for a reason. Could I actually be friends with someone like Decker?

✉Kayley: Yes

I wanted to tell him that it was because of him that, yes, it had been a good day and that this conversation was clearly the highlight of my day. But, of course, I didn’t say that.

✉Decker: Well, that is good. What are you doing right now?

That question threw me for a moment. Was this something I should consider as flirting? I had zero experience and I quickly climbed off my bed and went in search of my cousin. I knew he had a shift tonight on the patrol but that was only later. I found Wyatt in his room.

“Hey, Kay,” he greeted when he saw me hovering by his door. “What’s up?”

“I need help,” I whispered as I took a small step inside of his room. Wyatt was a mystery all on his own and although I did consider him a friend, I didn’t know my cousin all that well. He had taken me under his wing, but he didn’t talk much about himself.

“Come on in,” he said as he sat up and patted his bed. I hurried over to him, but I tripped over my own feet and landed on the carpeted floor with a hard thud. “s**t, you, ok?”

“Yeah, yeah,” I quickly got up – even though my knee was throbbing from the fall – and sat down on the edge of his bed. I silently handed over my phone and watched as Wyatt read my conversation with Decker.

“Ok…so?” he looked over at me questioningly.

“I mean…is he…is that…is he flirting with me?” Wyatt looked back down at my phone before he shrugged.

“Maybe…but I think he is just fishing,”

“Fishing?” I asked, dumbfounded. “What does that mean?”

“It means he is fishing for information. Look,” he handed me the phone back. “He is asking what you are doing right now… which means he is interested in finding out what kind of things you like to do…so like…are you reading? Watching TV? That kind of thing…”

“Oh,” I blushed hard at my own assumptions. Did I want it to be flirting? Just because Decker had taken an interest in me, didn’t mean that he was interested in flirting with me.

✉Kayley: Nothing much, just texting you and chatting with Wyatt

I answered honestly. If Decker wanted to know about my hobbies, then he should simply ask me.

✉Decker: Ok, cool

That answer left us at a standstill, and I knew I was messing this up. Wyatt was watching me as I tried to think of a way to continue the conversation.

“Kay…you are making this a lot more complicated than it is. Just talk to him the same way you talk to me,” I glanced over at him, and he smiled. “Don’t be shy about making friends,” he then added.

“Ok…thanks,” I hurried out of his room – this time making sure that I didn’t trip or something – and instead of heading back to my room, I went to the kitchen.

✉Kayley: Aunt Yolanda is making mac and cheese, one of my favorites. What is your favorite food?

I hit send and smiled to myself. That was pretty easy.

“Hey sweet pea,” I looked up from my phone and smiled at her.

“Is there anything I can help with?” I asked and she beamed at me, which, in turn, made me blush.

“Oh yes, would you grate some cheese for me?” I quickly nodded as she moved around the kitchen as I washed my hands before I sat down at the island. Soon, I had a large bowl, a block of cheese, and an ancient-looking grater. “You can just grate all of it,” she said with a wink. I nodded as I got busy and even though the soft vibration let me know that Decker had responded, I didn’t stop grating the cheese. No matter how much I wanted to read his text. I didn’t want this boy to somehow overwhelm my life, so I forced myself to finish grating the cheese. Once I was done, the mountain of cheese in the bowl looked comical to me and so I quickly took a picture of it.

“All done,” I said to my Aunt, who glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

“Great, thank you, sweet pea,”

“Is there anything else I can do?” I asked politely, but she shook her head as she went back to whatever it was that she had going on in that large frying pan. I hurriedly hopped off the barstool and washed my hands before I headed back to my room to read Decker’s message.

✉Decker: Mac and cheese is a top favorite, but my mom makes a mean meatloaf.

That made me smile and I thought about the meatloaf my mom used to make and it most certainly brought back some fond memories.

✉Kayley: I love meatloaf!

I then sent him the photo I had taken earlier of the mountain of cheese. Truth be told, I was testing his humor on this. Not many would care or comment about it, but I found it comical. I could only hope that he did too. Somehow.

✉Decker: That amount of cheese looks grate!!

The second I read his response, I laughed aloud. His humor was spot on, even if it was just as cheesy as mine. I continued to giggle as I got comfortable.

✉Kayley: Good one

✉Decker: Thanks

Once again, our conversation came to a standstill, and I wasn’t sure how to continue. I had been the one to push it earlier, so as far as I am concerned, it was his turn. I noticed those three dots bouncing at the bottom of my screen and I waited anxiously to see what he had to say next.

✉Decker: Aside from waiting for dinner, what other plans do you have for tonight?

It definitely seemed like he was doing the whole ‘fishing’ thing and this time I felt a lot more comfortable and relaxed as I responded.

✉Kayley: No plans. Sometimes I like to read or play a game on my phone.

That sounded so stupid, but it was the truth. I decided to add to that before he could respond.

✉Kayley: I don’t really like watching TV, but I do enjoy watching movies. What about you? Do you have any plans for this evening?

Of course, the second I hit send, I started overthinking it. Was it too much? Giving him that piece of information about myself seemed harmless, but did I have the right to ask him about his plans? Surely, I did, right? Since he had asked about mine, it made sense to ask him about his. Right?

✉Decker: No plans either. I enjoy watching sports and movies, but I prefer listening to music.

I smiled as I read that. I didn’t mind listening to music, but sometimes the lyrics sounded too false for me.

✉Kayley: I prefer listening to instrumental music

I shared that tidbit of information which was also pretty harmless. I waited for his response as I got ready to tell him about the music I preferred. That was where this conversation was heading…right?

✉Decker: Would you like to go out for a milkshake?

Wrong. I was blown away by not only the change of topic but the sudden invitation to go out. Was he asking as a friend? Or was he asking me out on a date? I had no idea how to respond and I thought about asking Wyatt for advice.

✉Decker: Was that too weird? I know it's short notice and all, but I was thinking that after dinner we could grab a milkshake and get to know each other more.

Was it weird? I wasn’t even sure if it was or wasn’t. Honestly, I was still trying to figure out if this was a date or if I was truly just overthinking it. I knew that the longer I took to respond, the more awkward it would get.

✉Kayley: I don’t know if that’s too weird, but I would really like that

✉Decker: Great! I’ll text you a bit later.

I didn’t bother to respond as I jumped up and headed straight for Wyatt’s room. If anyone could help me understand what was going on, it would be him.