Alpha Dabi

Dabi had never considered himself romantic.

Romance was for people who could walk into restaurants without checking the exits first. People who had legal names they actually used, homes that stayed in one place, and families who wouldn't sell them out for the right price. Romance belonged to heroes and civilians and all those painfully normal bastards who could stand beneath some flower-covered arch and promise each other forever.

Dabi didn't have any of that.

But he had you.

And, apparently, that had turned him into a sentimental fucking idiot.

You were his omega. Everyone in the League knew it. More importantly, every instinct buried beneath Dabi's scarred skin knew it. His scent clung to your clothes because you stole his shirts constantly, you slept curled against him whenever the two of you had somewhere safe enough to sleep, and Dabi had gotten embarrassingly good at recognizing the smallest changes in your scent.

But he'd never claimed you.

Your neck remained untouched.

It wasn't because he didn't want to. Fuck, he wanted to.

The problem was that Dabi wanted it to mean something.

Your heats had always been unusual. While other omegas could become feverish, weak, or practically bedridden, yours were almost deceptively mild. Your cheeks got flushed, your scent became sweeter, and you became noticeably needier for his attention, but otherwise you could walk around perfectly fine.

Which meant there had never been some desperate moment where claiming you became necessary.

Dabi had a choice.

So did you.

And he intended to keep it that way.

He wanted to wait until your bonding.

Villains couldn't exactly stroll into city hall and file marriage paperwork without risking an impressive number of arrest warrants being fulfilled, so the League had its own traditions. Old ones. Private ones.

A blood bond.

Two people sliced their palms, pressed their hands together and spoke their vows while their blood mixed between them. No government paperwork. No priest. No legal recognition.

Just a promise.

Dabi planned to claim you afterward.

He'd never admitted how much he'd thought about it. He'd rather let Hawks pluck out every remaining hair on his head individually than admit he'd already decided what vows he wanted to say.

So, technically, your scent was still pure.

Unclaimed.

Which ordinarily wasn't much of a problem.

Until today.

The grocery store was supposed to be a quick trip.

Dabi hated grocery shopping. Too many cameras. Too many people. Too much shitty fluorescent lighting that made his staples itch. He'd pulled his hood low over his face and kept his hands shoved into his pockets while following you through the aisles.

You were in heat, but that hadn't concerned either of you.

Your face had been pink since that morning, and your scent was noticeably stronger, but otherwise you were completely functional. You'd even insisted they needed actual groceries instead of whatever collection of instant noodles, convenience-store food and stolen takeout Dabi considered a balanced diet.

So there he was.

Domestic as hell.

Standing beside a shopping cart while his omega examined two nearly identical packages like this was somehow a life-changing decision. "Just pick one."

You glanced at him.

Dabi raised an eyebrow. "They're the same damn thing."

Apparently, they weren't.

You went back to comparing them.

His mouth twitched.

Annoying.

Cute, though.

Dabi was distracted enough watching you that he didn't notice the alpha immediately.

He smelled him first.

Then he noticed the stranger lingering at the end of the aisle.

Dabi's eyes narrowed.

The alpha was staring at you.

Not casually, either.

His gaze had locked onto the side of your neck.

Dabi straightened.

His own scent sharpened immediately.

The stranger noticed him then.

Good.

Dabi stared directly back.

A silent warning.

Move along.

For several seconds, the alpha seemed to understand.

He turned away.

Dabi's shoulders relaxed slightly. "Found one yet, Doll?"

You finally put something into the cart.

"Miraculous." He pushed the cart after you.

That should have been the end of it.

It wasn't.

A couple aisles later, Dabi had moved maybe fifteen feet away because you'd forgotten something. He could still see you. You were reaching toward one of the higher shelves when someone approached from behind.

That same alpha.

Dabi stopped.

The stranger said something to you.

You immediately stepped away.

Dabi's jaw tightened.

Then the alpha stepped closer.

You moved again.

He followed.

Dabi abandoned the cart.

The alpha reached for your wrist.

His fingers barely made contact.

Blue fire exploded across Dabi's palm.

People screamed.

The alpha jerked backward so violently he slammed into the shelves behind him.

Dabi was already between you.

There wasn't a trace of laziness left in his posture now.

His shoulders were squared, scarred fingers curled around flickering blue flames, and his scent flooded the aisle so violently that several nearby shoppers instinctively backed away.

The alpha stared at him.

Dabi smiled.

It wasn't friendly. "Touch them again."

The stranger froze.

Dabi tilted his head.

"C'mon. You seemed pretty confident five seconds ago."

The alpha's gaze flicked toward you.

Wrong move.

Dabi stepped forward.

Blue flames climbed higher around his fingers. "Eyes on me."

The stranger swallowed. "They're unclaimed."

For half a second, everything went silent inside Dabi's head.

Then something ugly snapped into place.

Unclaimed.

As if that meant available.

As if the absence of his teeth in your neck meant you belonged to whoever decided to grab you first.

Dabi laughed softly. "Oh."

His smile widened.

"So you're stupid."

The alpha stiffened. "Their scent is pure. There's no claim."

"And?"

"They're in heat."

Dabi's flames surged.

The alpha finally seemed to realize just how badly he'd miscalculated.

Dabi stepped close enough that the heat rolling from his body forced the other man against the shelves.

"Yeah. I know." His voice dropped dangerously low. "I've been taking care of them through every heat for a long fucking time."

His hand lifted.

The fire illuminated his scarred face in blue.

"I know what snacks they want. I know when they get too warm. I know which blankets they steal. I know exactly how their scent changes before they even realize their heat started."

The alpha didn't move.

Dabi's smile disappeared.

"So don't stand there and tell me about my omega."

My omega.

The words came out coated in enough alpha command that you felt it behind him.

The stranger did too. "But you haven't claimed them."

Dabi stared at him.

Then he stepped even closer. "Because I'm waiting."

Confusion crossed the stranger's face.

Dabi's voice became quieter. "For our bonding."

That was all the explanation this bastard was getting.

Because Dabi didn't owe him the details.

He didn't need to explain the knife he'd hidden away specifically for the ceremony, untouched because he wanted something clean for once in his life.

He didn't need to explain how he'd imagined your palm against his, blood mixing between your fingers while he promised you the closest thing to forever a man like him could offer.

And he sure as hell didn't need to explain that afterward, when you were officially bound to him and he to you, he planned to finally put his mark on your neck.

Dabi glanced down at the hand that had touched your wrist.

His flames crackled. "So here's what's gonna happen."

The alpha went pale.

"You're gonna walk away."

Dabi's eyes lifted. "And you're gonna spend the rest of your life remembering that an unclaimed omega isn't an invitation."

The flames crawled higher.

"Especially mine."

The stranger left.

Fast.

Dabi watched until he disappeared around the corner.

Only then did the flames vanish.

The aisle was a mess. Several products had fallen from the shelves, someone had abandoned their basket, and practically every civilian nearby was pretending very hard not to stare.

Dabi couldn't have cared less.

He turned around immediately.

His expression changed the second he looked at you.

His eyes dropped to your wrist.

Red.

The bastard had left fingerprints.

Dabi's jaw clenched.

He gently took your hand, turning your wrist beneath the fluorescent lights. His thumb passed just beneath the marks, careful not to press them. "You okay?"

His shoulders dropped a fraction.

Dabi brought your wrist toward his face and deliberately rubbed his cheek against it, covering the stranger's scent with his own.

Possessive?

Absolutely.

He wasn't apologizing for it.

When he lifted his head, he noticed you staring at him.

"What?"

Your gaze lingered.

Then dropped toward your entwined hands.

Dabi understood.

His ears turned slightly red. "Don't."

Dabi groaned and pulled you against his chest, tucking your face beneath his chin so he wouldn't have to look at that smug little expression anymore.

"Yeah, yeah. Apparently I've gone soft."

His arm tightened around your waist.

His nose brushed your hair.

Your sweet heat scent surrounded him, mixing with the smoke and spice of his own until his instincts finally began settling.

Dabi glanced toward the aisle where the alpha had disappeared.

His eyes narrowed once more.

Then he looked down at you.

His omega.

Not because he'd bitten you.

Not because biology demanded it.

Not because some ancient instinct had decided it.

Because you'd chosen him.

And he'd chosen you.

Dabi's thumb brushed slowly over your wrist.

His voice dropped low enough that only you could hear. "Maybe we shouldn't wait much longer for that bonding, huh?"

Dabi's mouth curved. "Don't get excited. I'm still doing it right."

He leaned down until his forehead rested against yours.

"I only get one chance to promise you forever." His fingers slipped between yours. "So I'm not half-assing it."