Page 17 of Heat Clickbait
Among the noise, Dr. Yates had sent a clinical but caring message with heat management tips and a reminder that this kind of intense bonding was normal but to monitor for dehydration and exhaustion.
My phone buzzed again. This time, our group chat.
Nova: Status report?
Me: The internet exploded. We're viral. Callie hit 1M subscribers.
Crash: HOLY SHIT REALLY?
Me: Michelle's handling media. Security outside. We're trending worldwide.
Milo: Is it bad?
Me: Mixed. Some support, some hate. Standard internet.
Ghost: Coordinates?
I dropped my location pin, even though he probably already knew exactly where I was. Ghost was weird like that.
Nova: Take a break if you need it. We've got her.
But even as he typed it, I could feel the pull back to the nest. My skin felt too tight, like wearing clothes after a really good massage. Everything in me screamed to get back to our Omega, to make sure she was safe, satisfied, protected.
I grabbed water bottles from the fridge, protein bars, and, with a grin, a pack of dinosaur nuggets from the freezer that Milo had bought for some kid-friendly content that never happened.
The walk back to the nest felt like swimming upstream, fighting against the current of the outside world trying to pull me away. But then I hit the wall of pheromones coming from the room, and everything else ceased to matter.
Callie was awake, sprawled across Milo and Nova, with Crash playing with her hair and Ghost... was Ghost reading to her? His voice was so low I could barely hear it, but Callie's eyes were half-closed, listening with this soft expression I'd never seen on her face.
"The internet's losing their minds," I announced, setting down the supplies. "We're either the greatest love story ever told or the biggest marketing scam in streaming history."
Callie laughed, the sound raspier than usual. "Can't it be both?"
"Michelle says Kara offered support. And someone named Zia threatened to destroy my audio quality if we hurt you."
Her eyes flew open. "Zia? Zia messaged you?"
"Yeah. Said you forget to eat when stressed and like dinosaur nuggets."
Pink flooded her cheeks. "That absolute traitor."
"Also said you saved her career once?"
Callie shifted, uncomfortable with the praise. "She's being dramatic. I just... helped with some stuff. Audio engineering for female vtubers is rough. Creeps with voice fetishes everywhere."
Of course she'd helped. Under all that savage independence was someone who cared so deeply it probably terrified her.
"The nuggets are in the freezer," I said, climbing onto the bed. The nest embraced me immediately, like coming home. "For when you're ready."
"My hero," she murmured, but there was real warmth in it.
Nova's phone buzzed. He checked it, frowned. "Some idiot named Rex is making posts about 'fake pack bonds' and 'marketing manipulation.'"
The mood in the room shifted, all of us bristling at the threat to our... whatever this was.
"Let him," Callie said firmly. "I've got receipts on that asshole from college. He wants to play? We'll play."
But that was future Callie's problem. Right now, heat Callie was already reaching for me, her skin flushed and eyes dilating again.
