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Eliot didn’t know Parker was an omega until the day he came over to Hardison’s place to have a beer and found Parker building a huge nest of pillows and blankets on the floor of Hardison’s living room. Hardison doesn’t even bat an eye when Parker comes running down the hallway dragging a giant comforter and flings it onto the already gigantic pile.
“What the hell is going on?” Eliot asks. He’s frozen in the doorway, not sure if he wants to take another step into the apartment. Parker disappears down the hall again and returns with a stack of pillows so high that Eliot can’t see her over them.
Parker drops all of the pillows but one, which she flings at Eliot’s face. “What does it look like?” She retorts. “And close the door.”
“You’re building a nest.” Eliot says, finally stepping into the apartment. “Why are you building a nest? That’s what omegas do when-” He stops dead and glares at Hardison. “You said you’re on suppressants.”
“I am.” Hardison says. “The nest isn’t for me, it’s for her.”
“Parker’s an omega?” Eliot asks just as Parker takes a running leap and dives into the pile she’s created.
“What did you think she was?” Hardison asks. Parker surfaces with a laugh.
“You don’t have a scent. I always thought you were a beta.” Eliot tells her. “And you don’t act like an omega.”
“And I do?” Hardison asks, and Eliot winces. Normally he’s pretty good at not falling back on stereotypes – hell, he’s an alpha, and he loves to cook, and Hardison can’t handle anything harder than putting something in the microwave. But stereotypes are always built on something, and there are certain traits that most omegas have. Hardison, for all his sass, is pretty submissive when it comes to serious situations. But Parker is…Parker. Eliot knows he’s pulled the alpha card once or twice before on the others, and Nate’s certainly done more times than called for, back when he was drinking, and he can’t remember Parker really reacting to it the way most omegas would – the way Hardison did.
“Fair point.” Eliot says in apology to Hardison. “But honestly, you don’t have a scent.” He tells Parker.
Parker shrugs. “I’m an omega. Just a defective one.”
Eliot doesn’t like hearing her saying that. Parker still hasn’t shared much about her past, but he knows it wasn’t a happy childhood, and he wonders who was cruel enough to call her defective.
“Parker doesn’t have true heats.” Hardison says, and Eliot realizes this is way more personal a conversation than he’s had with the pair before. “But she builds a nest and she gets super cuddly. So I keep the spare room stocked with everything she needs so she doesn’t have to be alone.”
Parker’s watching Eliot closely, her eyes narrowing even as she burrows further into the blankets. “Hardison didn’t know I was going to be here.” She says softly. Eliot’s reminded again that Parker’s a lot more observant than he gives her credit for. She may not be great at interpreting things, but she notices everything. “You don’t have to stay.”
Eliot doesn’t know what to say at first. This was definitely not how he thought his evening was going to go – the plan had been to knock back a few beers, eat some pizza, and watch the football game. He knows he could just walk out the door, call it a night, but something – okay, the alpha in him – is telling him to stay. Parker’s got a wistful sort of look on her face that Eliot thinks means she wants him to stay, but he also knows Parker and Hardison have got something – and he’s not entirely sure what – going on, and he doesn’t want to interrupt whatever that is.
“Do you want me to stay?” Eliot finally settles on asking. Parker’s grin is answer enough. Eliot kicks off his boot and walks towards the nest.
“Lose the shirt.” Hardison advises from the kitchen. He’s pulled out several bottles of water from the fridge. Eliot gives the other omega a slightly horrified look. “Look, man, do you see how many blankets the girl has? I’m telling you, you’ll roast in there if you don’t ditch the shirt. But it’s up to you.”
Eliot stands at the edge of Parker’s nest. She’s practically vibrating with energy. Her eyes are darting between him and Hardison, and the wistful look on her face has turned into something more urgent and needy. Eliot’s at least familiar with that – he’s been with a couple of omegas through their heats, and he recognizes the switch from the nest-building instinct to something more primal. But he’s still not entirely sure what to do.
Hardison drops the water bottles outside of the nest and strips off his shirt. Parker’s focus zeros in on him. She whines softly. It’s a noise Eliot never expected to come from her. Unexpected as it is, it hits him stronger than either of the other omegas he’s been with. He stops thinking as he pulls off his shirt and joins the pair in the nest. Hardison’s right. The blankets do make it hot. But Eliot doesn’t have much time to consider that because Parker practically melts against him, her whole body pressed against his arm. Eliot tries to pull her off so he can at least get comfortable, but she whines again.
“Alpha.” Parker says, nothing more than a whisper. It’s still desperate, and Eliot looks over at Hardison for help. Parker’s attention had gone from him to Eliot in a split second. Now Eliot’s more than a little concerned that he’s really interrupting whatever relationship the two omegas have. But Hardison only grins and gives a little shake of his head.
“It’s okay.” Hardison says, like he can read Eliot’s mind or something. “I told you, she likes to cuddle.”
This, though – this is more than cuddling. Parker begs him not to leave when he pulls her off of his arm, but Eliot’s only moving them both towards the center of the nest. He leans back against the pillows and lets Parker drape herself over his body.
“Better.” Parker mumbles against his neck. “Hardison?”
Hardison curls in against Eliot, his hand running up and down Parker’s back. “I’m here, baby girl. We both got you.”
Parker is practically purring with contentment – which, given personality, is probably a fairly accurate comparison. For a few minutes Eliot doesn’t more, just lets Parker settle herself over him until she’s completely comfortable. She murmurs, “Alpha” again before Eliot can sense her whole body go lax and her breathing slow. He’s not sure if she’s asleep or just caught up with the feeling, mostly because he’s never met an omega who’s had a heat like this.
Eliot shifts slightly, reclining more into the pillows so that Hardison can move even closer to Parker. Hardison leans up and kisses the back of Parker’s head softly.
“This is weird. A good weird, but still.” He says.
“What do you mean?”
Hardison is quiet for a while before speaking. “You know. Most omegas either go on suppressants like me or have an alpha to have their heat with. Not Parker. Suppressants make her sick, and most alphas aren’t interested in the types of heats she has, not when there are other omegas who are desperate for something more than cuddling.”
“She’s never had an alpha with her during a heat?” Eliot asks.
“Not recently. Something happened, I think, a long time ago.” They’re both silent for a moment as the weight of those words sink in. “As soon as she decided I was safe, she started coming to me during her heats. It’s not ideal, but it’s better than her spending it alone.”
Eliot shudders. Although long gone are the days when it was thought that an omega in heat without an alpha would get sick or possibly die, he also knows that omegas don’t like being alone during their heat. The sex component is part of it, sure, but that’s not everything.
“She’s touch-starved.” Eliot says slowly.
Hardison eyes him. “Most alphas don’t really know about that. The whole sex thing kinda takes care of the need to be touched. How do you know?”
“I used to date a nurse.” Eliot said. “She was an omega.”
“It’s good that you’re here.” Hardison says. “Cuddling with another omega is one thing, but there’s nothing better than being wrapped up in an alpha’s hug.”
There’s a hint of longing in his voice, like he’s not just talking about Parker, and Eliot thinks about how often the other man hugs him. Huh. Maybe he wasn’t interrupting something after all. Maybe he was just a little late on getting the message.
Eliot moves Parker slightly so that there’s more room for Hardison. Hardison settles in, half draped over Eliot’s body too, one arm tucked under Eliot and the other wrapped around Parker. It’s strange how quickly Eliot goes from feeling uncertain to feeling like there is no place in the world that he needs to be other than right here with Parker and Hardison.
Parker lifts her head slightly and smiles at Eliot and Hardison. “Feels safe.” She says sleepily. “Like having both of you.” She kisses each of them on the forehead before curling in closer. This time she does fall asleep, and Hardison isn’t far behind. Eliot stays up for quite a while longer, an old alpha instinct kicking in telling him that he needs to stay awake to make sure the two omegas are safe.