Alpha Assignment (BL) Chapter 5 (Early Access) (Patreon)

Quinn pushed one of his many spiral notebooks across the dining table.

While Remi had eaten his breakfast, interspersed with sniffs and swipes at his swollen pink cheeks, Quinn had been scrawling in the notebook when he should have been creating brightly coloured graphs.

“I wrote out my daily schedule on the first page of this notebook. You can use the rest of it for whatever you like.” He rolled a new pen to Remi’s side, too.

“Thank you, Alpha,” Remi said sincerely. His voice was a little croaky, but he wasn't shaking or crying and that was a win to Quinn. Hopefully they never had to speak of what had transpired that morning ever again.

Remi curled his hands around the notebook and pulled it close. He studied the handwritten schedule as though he were going to be tested on it.

Quinn’s Schedule

WFH - Mondays & Wednesdays & Alternating Fridays

6:00 - Wake Up & Wash & Dress

6:30 - Morning Meditation & Stretches (Headphones On - please do not disturb)

6:45 - Prepare Breakfast & Coffee

7:00 - Eat Breakfast & Drink Coffee

7:30 - Leave For Work OR Set Up WFH

8:00 - 16:00 - Work

16:30 - Gym OR Yoga Class

18:00 - Cook & Eat Dinner

19:00 - Cleaning & Laundry

20:00 - Bath

21:00 - Reading & Planner Organising

22:00 - Bedtime (No noise after this time please)

Weekends

Saturdays - Errands/Chores

Sundays - Rest

Quinn interrupted his memorisation, “you’re obviously not a morning person, so you’re welcome to have your breakfast whenever you want." He hoped he sounded friendly and teasing, but it was a mystery at this point how Remi would interpret anything Quinn said or did. "But we should have lunches and dinners together to save time - there’s no point cooking different meals. I already cook double portions of meals to use leftovers for work lunches.”

Remi nodded, but kept his eyes on the paper. “You… live a very efficient life, Alpha.”

“I like to make the most out of every day.”

“Does that ever tire you out, Alpha?”

“No.”

“Oh.”

Quinn hesitated, wondering if he had been too abrupt in his answer. “I make the most out of the day to fit as much self-care and as many healthy habits in as I can. I plan my time to spend it taking care of myself.”

“I understand, Alpha.” Remi nodded very convincingly. “I will try to be healthy, too!”

It was impossible to fight the small smile that pulled Quinn's cheeks up. Remi's enthusiasm, as frustrating as it could be in the context of their expected relationship, was endearing. “Sure," he replied. "Why don’t you use the notebook to make your own day plans?”

“Yes, Alpha!” He clicked the pen and brought it to the paper. “Um, Alpha?”

“Yes, Remi?”

Remi pinched his lips in disapproval at hearing his own name, but said nothing in reprimand. If he called Quinn Alpha with every other breath, Quinn felt it was only fair he should get to call him by his name. Especially after the events of the morning. Remi's name was a palate cleanser over the word that had lined his throat with bile. Omega. As though he were nothing more than his genetic structure. You wouldn't address a woman as 'Woman,’ and you wouldn't refer to someone with yellow hair as 'Blonde' instead of their name. Whether you received your name from your parents or yourself, it was meant to be used.

“What day is it today?”

Quinn tilted his head. “You don’t have a phone?”

Remi shook his head.

"We’ll sort that out at the weekend." The sooner the better. They weren't on pack lands, they couldn't call to each other like dogs in the neighbourhood. "It’s not safe to be without a phone in the human world. And today is Wednesday."

Remi's beaming smile was interrupted briefly by a hiccup, followed by another sniff. "Thank you, Alpha! I can use it as an alarm clock, too. That’s what the alpha and betas at my old pack did."

"Sure. For now, do you want me to wake you up right before I leave for work?"

Remi squeezed his little fists either side of the notebook. Determination brightened his eyes and pressed his lips into a pink line. "I want to wake up when you wake up, Alpha!"

Quinn hummed his scepticism, but didn’t try to reason with him.

"I need to get back to work. Do you want to... watch TV or read a book or something?"

"I'm going to work on my plan, Alpha!"

"Sure."

Quinn got very little done in the hour that followed. His eyes were drawn to the other end of the table, to Remi, over and over. Crowded over the notebook, Remi scrawled on the paper in sudden bursts. Quinn started to wonder if he was actually drawing pictures on the lined paper. Anything that kept him entertained, he supposed.

Lunchtime arrived, Quinn set his status, and Remi immediately noticed the switch in Quinn's body language. He glanced up warily, and Quinn stretched his arms above his head with a quiet groan.

"Time for lunch," he explained. Before he voiced the question, he knew the answer, but he still asked, "would you like to help me make it?"

Remi jumped up from his seat. "Yes, Alpha!"

The fridge was full, but Remi stared at the contents as though he wasn't seeing anything edible between the doors.

"Do you like pak choi?"

"I don't know what that is, Alpha."

Quinn pointed at the leaves hanging free of their packaging. "This vegetable."

"Oh, it looks nice," Remi said uncertainly.

"What kind of foods did you eat back home?"

"All our vegetables came from the garden, Alpha. Lots of potatoes and onions and green beans. Some other stuff. We didn't have as many different greens as... this."

"Well, I buy my vegetables from the supermarket and they get them from all over the world so if there's anything you don't recognise, just ask."

Remi scanned the various shades and textures of green crammed into Quinn’s refrigerator. "What is that?"

"Kale."

The finger darted away to point at the punnet of strawberries on the other side. "Those are out of season, aren't they?"

"You can have anything in any season from supermarkets, Remi."

A nod with raised eyebrows. "Sometimes we bought things from supermarkets, too... but only if we couldn't make it ourselves. Or trade it with another pack. There was a pack a little way from us with a huge greenhouse. The plants grew all the way to the ceiling." Something had set off Remi's chatterbox function, but Quinn wasn't necessarily eager to switch it off. It was refreshing to hear his voice. Talking about anything that wasn't rules or apologies, that was. "They had grape vines! They didn't grow many ripe bunches, though, so they wouldn't sell them to our pack." His voice got quieter and quieter. "We bought their soaps sometimes and they bought our leeks." There was an expectant pause. Quinn giving Remi a moment to check he had nothing else he wanted to say, and Remi uncertain of the response he would receive.

Quinn wasn't sure how to respond himself. He didn't want to share his childhood pack's imports and exports, didn't want to relate to Remi over something he was trying to forget. "That's very interesting, Remi," he said finally. "Does that mean you would prefer foods that you're familiar with? I have some potatoes..." He turned away to pull the wicker basket full of potatoes from the bottom cabinet of the island.

"I can eat anything, Alpha!"

As tempting as it was to revert back to the lunch he had planned to make today and have half tomorrow, potatoes sounded comforting. Autumn was on the horizon and eating a warm and hearty meal was one of the best parts of the colder seasons.

"Let's have pesto baked chicken with potatoes," he decided aloud.

Chicken duty was Quinn's, and he gave the potato prep to Remi. Seeing such a tiny hand wrapped around such a big knife was a disconcerting sight, but Remi seemed pleased beyond words to be allowed to assist.

Together in a ceramic dish, Quinn spread pesto and shredded cheddar cheese over the top of their meat and veg. He let Remi sprinkle over some pumpkin seeds. When he checked his watch, he noted that by now he would have already eaten his salmon and mixed vegetables, and have a portion stored in the fridge to take to work the next day.

To keep Remi's fidgeting at bay while their main dish cooked, Quinn produced ingredients for a side salad. They washed and chopped in near silence. Silence was normal for Quinn, but having another being in the room with his brought about the urge to speak. To say anything. As though silence alone was acceptable, but silence with another was inherently rude.

The timer on Quinn's watch rang and they brought the plates and dishes to the dining table. Quinn peeked around the edge of his laptop screen to ensure he hadn't received any urgent messages since he changed his emoticon to a plate and utensils. According to Jordan, setting the status to 'on lunch' was too boring, and he had demanded that everyone on their floor use the emoticons. Jordan's was currently a teacup and saucer, which Quinn could only assume meant 'coffee break.’

The silence continued to hold the pair as they ate. This time, at least, Remi seemed to be eating much more heartily than he had his breakfast. It eased some of the tightness in Quinn's chest to watch him enjoy his meal.

When Remi caught him watching, he slowed and reverted back to his nervous, self-assuring glances to Quinn every few seconds. Quinn tried to smile in a way that would appear at ease. Remi didn't return it. There was the wariness again, self-preservation creeping back over Remi's good mood. It felt like the young man kept forgetting where he was, and who he was with. When reality snapped back like a rubber band he would lock up again and Quinn felt quietly defeated.

Perhaps, over time, the elastic could be stretched out.