A/N:

Hello everyone! Sorry for leaving you hanging for too long, again. So much things happened that delayed this. For some reasons I decided to take up a short semester in uni, and that made me quite busy.

I also had some troubles sorting out the plot because I'm not sure where to end the story before I'll pick it up in the sequel, so I hope it's not too messy.

Not to mention that I struggled with the smut scenes because I swear to God my brain just won't cooperate these days and I have to pull the scenes out my arse, bloody hell. Sorry if they're bad *sigh

And I'm sorry for this monster of a chapter?? It's 32k words long??? I've checked it five times already but it's so long so I'm certain that there are tons of mistakes. Please point them out, thank you hehehehe. And there are so much things happening in this one, goodluck with reading xoxo

Thank you again if you're still with me this far. I can't ever thank you enough for the support and taking your time to read my long chapters and being patient while you wait. I love you. Thank you. Hope you'd enjoy the chapter xx

Edit: The full thing didn't upload so I reuploaded! Hope it works out now! x

---

Would you know my name,
If I saw you in heaven?
Would it be the same,
If I saw you in heaven?
I must be strong and carry on,
'Cause I know I don't belong here in heaven.

- Eric Clapton

As his heat approaches, Louis becomes more and more quiet. It's unsettling for the Alphas since they're used to Louis' loud voice and laughter, or the way he's always all over them, trying to get their attention and demanding touches and cuddles that none of them could say no to. It's not just the talking that has ceased, Louis has also started to keep to himself. Even when they're sitting in the lounge together, Louis stays in his seat and barely looks at them.

It makes the Alphas sad, especially Harry, to see him like that. He's clearly upset, but he's not letting it out this time. The way he's dealing with it is quite unhealthy in a repressed way that the Alphas don't know what to do.

They know that it bothers the Omega that he has to take birth control, that he's not ready to have babies. They try to distract him, but it doesn't work. Louis brushes off their efforts, saying he just needs time and space.

The particular time to take his pills is the worst for them all.

Louis doesn't cry when he's taking it, but once they've put the strips away and he's safe in their arms, that's when Louis has his breakdown. He keeps saying he's sorry, that he's a bad Omega. Whatever his Alphas try to tell him fall on deaf ears.

It's hurting them to see how much it's affecting him that it gets to this point.

However, the matter is put aside when Louis' heat arrives. Harry wakes up to Louis shaking him, desperate noises coming out of the Omega.

The whole thing only lasts for a day and a half; probably due to the pills. For the first time ever, his Alphas are glad that it didn't last long. Because even though Louis needed them during his heat, he still barely talked. He just whined and whimpered whenever the urge washed over him, but he's making no sound when they're taking care of him. He's just an empty vessel.

It's driving the Alphas crazy.

The morning after his heat ended, Marcel finds the Omega crying in the bathroom.

---

"When is your rut coming?" Louis wonders during lunch three days later. He's not back to his usual self, not quite yet. But the day after his heat, it's apparent how much Louis changed. He spoke more words in a day compared to the whole previous week. Louis knew that his heat was the trigger of his grief, and he's glad that it's over now so he doesn't have to worry his Alphas anymore.

The Alphas pause at his question, staring at their plates instead of hin. Edward is the first to lift his head, throwing a cautious glance at his brothers before he faces Louis and opens his mouth to speak.

"Um..." He starts, scratching the back of his neck. "It's not... it's not coming. Not this time."

"What?" Louis narrows his eyes, confused. "Why?"

Marcel sighs a little. "We...." He shares a look with the rest of the Alphas. "We took suppressants this time."

The Omega blinks as if he didn't hear that right. "What?"

"We took suppressants." Harry repeats for his brother.

It's Edward that explains. "It just... just doesn't feel right to go through a rut right now."

Louis takes a deep breath, placing his cutlery down. "Oh..."

"It's one thing less for us to worry about, at least." Marcel says.

"Right." Louis nods. He looks at them, one by one. "You didn't do it for me, right?"

The three of them are in sync when they shake their heads, as if they've rehearsed it before entering the dining room. "No.." Edward trails off. "We mostly did it for us. We didn't want to, didn't really feel like it."

Louis nods again. "Okay." And then he's turned back to his food, and the topic is dropped.

---

The car roars to life, and Louis squirms in his seat. "Harry, I'm nervous."

Harry turns to him with a blinding smile. He reaches out to his Omega, cupping his cheek and brushing his thumb over Louis' skin. "Don't worry, babe. You'll be fine. They'll love you, I promise."

Louis sighs, but he's smiling too. He turns his face into Harry's touch, gripping Harry's wrist. "Okay."

It's been two weeks since his heat, and Louis is absolutely his chipper self again. All of them act as if nothing happened. And if one were to ask Louis, he would say that he'd prefer it if they dropped it completely. It's not something that needs to be talked about. Time is the healer, after all.

"I've already told them that we'll be having an addition and it's my own Omega." He says, face lighting up. "They're excited to meet you."

"Really?" Louis perks up at that, a bit of tension leaving his composure.

"Yeah. Don't worry, okay?" Harry pulls him close to give him a kiss, allowing him to relax even more.

"Alright." He replies, kissing his Alpha again before both of them settle back in their seat.

Harry manoeuvres the car out of the parking lot and out of the basement. They speed out of the gates and into the city. Louis looks at the roads they take while they drive, trying to familiarise himself with the directions. He sucks with them, always having to depend on his GPS.

It takes about thirty minutes from home to the office, and soon they find the car parked in a reserved spot with Harry's name.

The Alpha is grinning as he cuts off the engine and gets off so he could open Louis' door for him, an arm at Louis' lower back once the Omega climbs out. Harry pulls him close until their lips meet in a sweet kiss. It takes Louis by surprise, his cheeks heating up and widening Harry's grin.

"I have a good feeling about this." Harry tells him, closing the door behind them and taking Louis' hand to lead the way.

"Why?" Louis wonders as they walk past the entrance of the building.

The Alpha shrugs. "Just feel like you're my lucky charm or something of that sort."

Louis chuckles, squeezing Harry's hand and turning his face away to hide his smile.

They stop at the lift in the lobby, waiting for one of them to open up before stepping in and then Harry is pressing the button for the twenty-eighth floor.

"I bought this building the moment I decided things won't continue in America anymore." Harry tells him while the lift rises. "I asked Edward for his recommendation, and he suggested this one. It's more expensive than my other choices but he insisted with this."

Louis frowns, but there's a hint of amusement in his face. "Did he say why?"

Harry laughs to himself. "It's the nearest to his office."

"Why am I not surprised.." Louis trails off with a smirk.

Harry grins, keeping a hand on the middle of Louis' back as they step out of the lift and walk through a series of hallways. The office looks lively and busy, lots of talks and laughter compared to Edward's office. There are also more smiles from the people rushing about.

It already loosens Louis up a bit to see how happening things are at Harry's place. People greet Harry like he's an old friend as they pass by, carrying things from fabrics to files to boxes and furniture.

"We're still setting things up here, so it's still a bit of a mess." Harry tells him when Louis stops to peek into one of the rooms to see people assembling a shelf. "We turn some of the rooms into office and some of them into studio so everything is in one place for now."

"They look like they're having fun instead of working." Louis notes, smiling.

Harry nods. "Yeah, that's what I told them. We want to get things done here, but that doesn't mean we can't have fun while we're at it."

"You're a fun boss." Louis says with a raise of his eyebrow.

The Alpha's face changes, and then he is wearing a tiny smirk. "Now I don't have to pretend to be your boss anymore when we fuck in my office."

"I haven't even started working yet and you're already trying to get in my pants?" Louis teases, taking a step closer and toying with the collar of Harry's shirt.

Harry grabs his arse and brings him forward until their chests are pressed together. "What can I say? I have to take my chances."

Louis chuckles. "Pervert."

Harry just surges forward and kisses him, causing the Omega to smile against his lips.

Louis pulls back despite Harry's disappointed noise. "Come on, introduce me to your team."

Harry's face clears out, as if he just recalled that that's what their actual objective is. "Right." He replies, sheepish as he releases the Omega and they continue down the hall.

It ends with a double door, and Harry quickly pushes it open the moment they arrive. Louis gulps down his nerves as he follows his Alpha past the threshold.

"Hey, Harry's here!"

"There he is, our bossman!"

Louis' face brightens the moment Harry gets attacked with a group of people, all of them either ruffling his hair or hugging him. It's nice to see that Harry isn't that strict with the boss-employee relationship, and they look more like his friends rather than his staff.

"Right, this is Louis." Harry is saying, turning to him with that look on his face. Like Louis is the only person he sees in this world, like Louis is the only one that matters. It warms his heart every time Harry looks at him like that.

"Hi." Louis says meekly. "Nice to meet you."

"Hi, Louis!" One of them comes up to him and gives him a small wave. "How are you? I'm Jane."

All of them start to introduce themselves too, and eventually Louis knows the names of everyone in the room. They shake his hands, pat his back and smile at him like they've known him for years. It makes him feel welcomed, and soon enough Louis is in an animated conversation with one of them. Harry watches from where he's standing, beaming at the attention his Omega is getting.

They pick up where they left off after that, and Harry pulls Louis out of the room and back to the hallways they came through.

"See? They love you." He murmurs in Louis' ear as they walk.

Louis' eyes crinkle. "They look like an amazing team."

"Don't they?" Harry dimples, then slows his pace before coming to a stop. "Here we are." He says. His dimples are still on show, and he gestures at the door.

Harry Styles.

"I've always wanted my name on a door plate."

"Why isn't there any title?"

"I still haven't figured out if I want to handle the company or if I should hire a CEO." Harry frowns to himself. "Edward told me to handle it myself since I can get everything run my way, but I don't really want to give up my career."

"That's a tough decision to make."

"It is." Harry agrees, nodding. "But we'll talk about that later. Do you still want to see my office?"

The Omega bursts out laughing. "Alright, show me."

Harry pushes his door open and steps back to give way for Louis to enter. His eyes watch with contained excitement as he walks in after Louis, waiting for the Omega's reaction.

Louis looks around the room, smiling at how enthusiastic Harry it is. It's not as big as Edward's office, but it does have the same touch to it that reminds Louis so much of the other Alpha. He believes Harry is the one responsible for the decorations and arrangement. Louis turns around to look at the rest of the room and freezes when he sees the huge painting on the wall, an explanation as to why Harry is so excited. "Harry...." He whispers in disbelief.

"Like it?" The Alpha teases as he takes a step closer to him, his hands gripping Louis' hips while he plasters himself to Louis' back and rests his chin on his shoulder.

The Omega gently knocks their heads together, unable to stop smiling. "How much did that cost you?"

Harry shrugs. "Can't remember." His response makes Louis want to roll his eyes, especially the dismissive tone in it. Must have cost a bomb, then.

On the wall opposite them, is a realistic painting of Louis' face. It's a huge canvas; anyone who steps into the office wouldn't miss it. It looks exactly like him, is the thing. Louis doesn't know too much about art but he can appreciate the beauty of the masterpiece.

"That's so sweet, Harry."

Harry straightens up and pulls back, gripping his Omega by the arms and spinning him around until they're face to face. "I love you." He says, putting a smile on Louis' face. His fingers are gentle when he touches Louis' chin to tilt his face up. "The moment you appeared in my life, you made it all better."

"Harry.." He sighs, trying to turn away but his Alpha holds him still.

"I know it's easy to say that, but that's the thing." Harry grins, his hand moving until he's cupping Louis' face so he could pull him forward until Louis is sighing into his mouth. The Alpha is still grinning when they part, his thumbs rubbing small strokes on Louis' face. "It's easy to say, because it's true."

Louis huffs, trying to prevent the smile from blooming on his face. He mostly fails. "I hate you."

"Liar. You don't." Harry pokes his arm, pressing his face against Louis' and making the Omega giggle.

"Of course I don't." Louis says, stretching on his toes to kiss his Alpha properly. "I love you."

The way Harry beams at that probably just adds up ten years into Louis' lifespan.

Louis pulls away from him to continue looking at the office. He walks up to Harry's desk to see what he has. So far there's only a computer on one side, a name plate, a small flower, and some photos on the front. Louis rests himself on the sturdy wood while he grabs one framed photo to look at.

It's one of him and Harry cuddled up on the couch while the Alpha is kissing his cheek and Louis is giggling. He remembers Marcel taking that photo because he thought it was a cute sight. They look so good together. Louis will never get used to how well they fit with each other.

Harry watches him, content to be silent while Louis puts the photo down and looks at the other two. The next shows the triplets with Anne and Gemma while the last one is the same photo of Louis that Edward has in his office. He snickers, turning to the Alpha again. "Obsessed much?"

Harry makes a face, shrugging as he walks over to trap Louis against the desk. "Hard not to be." He sighs, as if the victim. "You're just too perfect."

"Far from it." Louis replies with a roll of his eyes, but his arms curl around the Alpha. "Don't let me stop you, though."

Harry kisses his nose, cupping his jaw and pecking his lips. "So beautiful. With the best arse in town."

Louis lightly punches his arm. "Pervert. How would you know it's the best? Have you tried all the other arses, then?"

"Do you want me to?" Harry grins.

Louis scowls. "Don't you dare." He quickly turns into a koala, wrapping all his limbs around his Alpha. "Mine." He growls.

The Alpha leans forward, cradling Louis' head so he won't knock it against the desk as Harry lies him down. "Only yours." He murmurs, grabbing Louis' thigh before his lips claim the Omega's.

It's heated right from the start, Louis' hands easily pushing the Alpha's coat off of him before they find his buttons and start to unclasp them. Soon enough Harry's chest is exposed and Louis doesn't hesitate to get his hands roaming on the skin.

It's amusing how fast and steady Harry is growing hard against him, and Louis loves knowing that he holds that power against the Alpha. Though, he's not much better himself. He's already starting to get wet, excited as Harry begins to undress him too.

A phone suddenly rings, and Harry stops touching him to pull his phone out of his pocket. Their lips stay connected, but Louis pulls away when Harry answers the phone.

"Hello." Harry pants, tilting his head back to let Louis suck love bites on his neck.

"Are you having sex?" Edward drawls out.

Harry chuckles breathily. "Trying to."

Edward makes a noncommittal sound. "Do you want to have lunch today?"

"Yeah, sure." He moans when Louis pulls his cock out.

Edward is definitely shaking his head on the other side. "I'll let you know the time and place. Say hi to Lou for me. Love you."

"Love you too." Harry replies, then quickly tosses his phone to the other side of the table. He directs his attention to the Omega that somehow managed to push him away while he was on the phone, and is currently kneeling on the floor with Harry's cock in his mouth. "Hi."

Louis' lips tighten around his cock, mirth in his eyes as he waves at him in greeting.

"You look so good like this, Lou." He reaches down and tangles his fingers into Louis' hair. When the Omega relaxes, Harry carefully starts to fuck his mouth. He tries not to be too rough, grunting when Louis looks up at him with red eyes. "Fuck."

Louis pulls off when Harry releases him and Harry's eyes focus on the way the string of saliva is connected from his cock to Louis' lips. "Ready to fuck me or do you have more calls to answer?"

---

By the end of the month, Louis is comfortable enough at his new workplace to start joking around with the people in his team and go to work without Harry. Sometimes the Alpha has to be away for a shoot, so Louis would drive to work on his own.

Everyone in the team has been helpful to him, teaching him the ways in the office and how to do work that he has zero experience with. It's such a positive atmosphere that sometimes Louis doesn't even feel like they're working because they're all having fun.

Harry had told him right from the start that he doesn't have to worry about too much responsibility since Harry only wants him to mostly learn first in the office. Most of his work would be things that don't require extensive knowledge to be done. It took a lot of fights and an equal amount of make-up sex before they could agree on the amount that Harry can pay him for doing literally nothing.

When Louis got his paycheck, he sent half of it to his Mum and kept the other half in his account. He still has a separate account from the triplets, and he doesn't really plan to join their accounts just yet. When Louis voiced it to his Alphas, they looked at him like he spoke another language. The told him that they knew that, that they don't want to subject Louis to that unless it's his choice.

Despite how secure Louis feels their relationship is right now, he's still haunted by the memories of what happened when he ran away from home and felt like he had nothing, had lost everything. He knew that he shouldn't think about those things happening again, but he doesn't want to go through it like he did if things were to repeat themselves. He needs to look after himself no matter what.

---

November greeting means dropping temperature and Louis tries his best to be inside at all times since he's always been prone to getting cold. Usually, he does a good job at avoiding the cold weather; maxing up the heater at the office and making sure he doesn't have to go outside.

Of course the car breaks down on one Wednesday. He's alone; Harry left for Italy two days ago to look at fabrics. Louis has brought the Hyundai again, the only car in their garage he's comfortable enough to use as if it's his own. The car is old. The only reason the Alphas kept it is because it was one of the cars their grandfather left them and they'd feel bad about selling it.

Well, he should've asked them to take a look ever since he felt like something was wrong.

"Fuck." He sighs, kicking weakly at the tyre as an act of reprimanding the car for breaking down on him. Louis looks around, hoping to have another car pass by so he could ask for help. His phone is dead and the car is dead so there is no way for him to charge it up. He's shivering, hugging his arms close to himself in a lame attempt at conserving heat.

After leaning against his car and waiting for almost twenty minutes, he gives up and climbs back in. The emergency light is on, making sure that people could see him from far.

It's cold even inside especially when it's already getting dark, and Louis curses himself for not taking the Maserati like Edward had suggested this morning. Hell, he should've even taken it up with Edward's offer to drive him to the office. At least he could've had his Alpha pick him up and won't be alone for the drive home.

His Alphas probably won't even bat an eyelash in this temperature, but Louis is already shaking. He's wearing a coat, but it's not thick enough to keep him warm.

He decides to wait. It's currently four in the evening, so that means Edward would be coming home in two hours. Hopefully the Alpha would notice him by the roadside and rescue him. The thought of waiting that long doesn't appear very tempting, but what choice does he have?

Louis grumbles to himself, curling up in his seat while he gets comfortable. He's cold, he's frustrated and all he wants to do is go home and take a hot bath. But he's stuck here so he might as well just take a nap while he's at it. It takes him a while but eventually he loses himself to unconsciousness.

It feels like hours later before a knock wakes him up. He blinks, surprised at how cold it got and how much he's shaking. He hears louder knocks and startles. Looking up, he sees a panicked Marcel outside of his window.

"Lou! Unlock the car!"

Louis grabs his bag and does as told, his movements slow. Marcel doesn't waste any time opening the door and hauling him up into his arms. The Omega's teeth are chattering, and Marcel makes a worried sound as he rushes back into his car. He's brought the Ferrari, and the hum of the engine feels soothing when Marcel deposits Louis into the passenger seat. The warmth inside immediately makes him feel better, but he still wraps his arms around himself.

He's out of it for the moment, can't think of anything other than absorbing the heat. When he's fully aware again, they're already driving into the garage of their home.

"What about my car?" Louis croaks.

"I'll send someone to take a look later." Marcel replies, halting the car in a perfect park before he cuts off the engine and climbs out. The Alpha rushes to Louis' side and scoops him up again.

"Do you want to take a bath?" Marcel asks when they arrive in their room, already heading for the bathroom as if he can read Louis' mind. When the Omega nods, he fastens his pace.

Louis takes his clothes off while Marcel fills up the tub, making sure the water is warm enough before he lets Louis climb in.

Immersed in nothing but warmth, Louis leans back and shuts his eyes. "Oh, thank God."

"What happened?" Marcel finally asks, and once Louis opens his eyes after a great hesitation, he sees the Alpha sitting by the tub.

Louis' eyes fall shut again. "The car broke down on me."

"I figured." He replies. "Why didn't you call?"

"Phone was dead. I was hoping Edward would see me on his way home."

"I was so scared when I saw you in the car. You were freezing and I couldn't do anything." Marcel mumbles out, sounding genuinely upset. "How long did you wait?"

"From four.."

"Fuck." Marcel takes a deep, shuddering breath. "You're going to take the Audi from now on. The moment you feel like something's wrong you're going to take another car that is in perfect condition. I don't want this happening again, am I understood?"

Louis sighs, letting it move his whole body. His Alphas are always so dramatic. "Yes, Alpha."

His eyes flutter open when insistent palms cup over his jaws. He finds Marcel staring at him, his gaze intense. "Lou, I love you. Please, just. I know you find it ridiculous but God, please just take care of yourself. I can't lose you again."

"Okay." He nods. "I promise."

"Okay." Marcel releases him, pressing a kiss to Louis' forehead before returning to his seat.

---

When Louis wakes up, his head is heavy and pounding. His breathing is limited when he gasps his breath in, one of his nose blocked. "Fuck." Louis rolls over with a groan, trying to sit up on the bed but his head is aching too much that he has to lie back again.

He feels the mattress shift underneath him, and then there are arms circling his body. "You okay?" Marcel flinches back the moment their skins touch. And then he's pressing a palm to the Omega's forehead. "You're burning up."

"Head hurts." Is the only thing Louis mumbles out.

"I'll get you some pills and water."

Louis couldn't even nod, just lets out a low hum. Marcel kisses his forehead, and then the Alpha is climbing off the bed before leaving the room. For some reasons, Louis thinks that he's alone, so when another pair of arms is hugging him, the Omega jumps in surprise.

"Shh, it's just me." Edward's hold tightens and then there are lips against his hair. Louis melts into the embrace with a pleased hum, leaning into the touch as Edward presses himself closer.

"Thought you left." Louis' mouth barely moves when he speaks, but Edward understands him just fine.

"Baby, it's four in the morning." The Alpha chuckles, his lips travelling to Louis' cheek. He presses his lips there, lingering for a long time before he nuzzles into the Omega's neck.

"Oh." Louis pulls away from his Alpha before he could say anything else, and then he's letting out sneezes that jerk through his whole body.

Edward coos as Louis leans back into him. "You're cute even when you're sneezing."

The Omega's response is a weak attempt of digging his elbow into Edward's ribs. It makes Edward chuckle as he scoots closer so that there's no space between them, then resumes his position.

"You're being awfully clingy." Louis murmurs after a long silence, but he soaks up the attention.

"I know." Edward says.

Louis would roll his eyes if he had the energy. "I'm sweating all over us."

Edward pauses. "Is it creepy if I said I love the smell of your sweat?"

Louis makes a disgusted sound, pretending to push him away but the Alpha bursts out laughing and holds him in place. "You are so weird."

"No, I'm not. I'm just obsessed with you."

Marcel walks in with a tray in hand before Louis could reply, face contorted with worry.

"Look at Marcel, being the useful, kind, and loving Alpha." Louis says. "You just wanted to grind on my arse."

"That's not true!" Edward protests. "I was just keeping you warm while we wait for Marcel."

The younger Alpha shakes his head, a small smile on his lips at his lovers' antics in the morning. His face is serious again as he reaches the bed and looks at Louis. "I've made you porridge and chicken soup. Do you want to eat now? I know it's too early, but it'd make you feel better."

Louis is cruel as he nudges Edward off of him so he could sit up. The neglected Alpha makes a pitiful sound that the rest of them ignore. "I don't know what I did to deserve you, to be honest." He says as Marcel places the tray on his lap once he's sitting with his legs crossed on the bed.

Marcel grins. "Whatever it is that you did, I'm glad you did it because there's no one else I'd rather make soup and porridge for at four in the morning."

Louis sighs, a dreamy sound. "Wish I could kiss you right now."

"I love you, but you'll get me sick too." Marcel pecks his cheek. "Now eat up. I've brought you some pills."

"Thank you, lover."

"Thank you, lover." Edward mimics him in what supposedly is his attempt of Louis' voice.

Louis reaches out and weakly smacks him. "Stop talking, I'm about to eat."

Marcel cackles a loud noise from his belly when Edward stares at Louis in disbelief, the Omega grinning as he starts sipping on his soup.

"Are you going to work today?" Marcel asks his brother, changing the topic.

"I planned not to." Edward shoots Louis an accusing look. "But I think I'm changing my mind."

The Omega whimpers, pouting. "You're really going to leave your sick, weak Omega?" He even adds a fake cough to add support to his claim.

The Alpha is glaring now, which makes Louis giggle. "Well, you don't look too sick anymore."

"I am!" Louis widens his eyes.

"Let him eat, Edward." Marcel scolds. "His soup is going to get cold."

Louis beams when Edward sighs in defeat and scoots closer to them. He makes sure the Alpha stays there before he focus on his food.

The brothers share a fond look when Louis enthusiastically sips his soup, momentarily ignoring his Alphas. Marcel yawns into the back of his hand before shifting on the bed to sit in between Edward's legs so he could lean back into his brother's chest.

"You can go to work if you want to. I can take care of him." Marcel murmurs once he's safely tucked underneath Edward's chin.

"I'll stay home. He wants me to." Edward replies. "Harry's coming home too, so we can just lie in."

"Sounds great." Marcel nods, glancing at Louis again. The porridge is only halfway eaten, but he looks like he's about to be done. "Finish your porridge, Lou."

Louis makes a face, scowling at the bowl. "I don't feel like eating."

"That's because your fever makes you lose your appetite." Edward reminds him. "Finish it, baby."

The Omega glares at them both, grumbling under his breath but he does grab the spoon again.

"Do we have to pick Harry up?" Marcel wonders aloud to Edward.

"I don't think so." Edward leans down and noses at his hair. "I'm sure he'll have David pick him up."

"Good, because I'm not in the mood of getting out of bed." Marcel stretches out his limbs and moans. "Can't wait to sleep in."

"Go back to sleep." Edward mutters, brushing his lips at the spot behind Marcel's ear. "I've got Lou."

They turn back to Louis to see him finishing the last bit of his soup. The bowl that once held his porridge is also empty. Marcel straightens up again instead of replying to Edward. "Now take your pills."

"Yes, Mum." Louis sighs, grabbing his glass of water while Marcel helps to take out his pills. He quickly downs them and drinks the rest of the water.

"There's our good Omega." Edward says, reaching for the tray before Marcel could. His words make Louis preen, and he sends him a smile. Edward climbs off the bed, turning back to Marcel with a stern look on his face. "Go back to sleep."

Marcel blows him a kiss, already making himself comfortable on the bed. Edward has disappeared out of the door, and Louis is climbing back under the duvet to find his way back into Marcel's arms. The Alpha drops a kiss on his head once he has the Omega purring in his embrace. "Feeling better?"

"Much." Louis says. "Thank you."

"Now get some rest."

---

Louis glances at his reflection, about to look away before he turns back to the floor length mirror.

He stands sideways in front of it, staring at himself before a scowl slowly appears on his face. He tilts his body, stretching his neck to look at himself and moving again to look from another angle.

One of his hands reaches back and grabs an arsecheek, and a scandalous look takes over his face when it doesn't feel as full as before. He widens his eyes, shifting again so he's looking at himself from the side. He's ready to shoot laser into the reflection. He's pretty certain his arse is a bit flatter.

It's a travesty. No matter how much he manipulates the angles, there is still a noticeable difference to it. It used to be full and curvy and satisfying to look at but now it just looks like a disappointment.

He takes a step back to look at the picture as a whole. Now that he's really looking, he does look much thinner. But at the same time there's that little pudge on his tummy that he doesn't really like. He knows if any of his Alphas were here, they'd be petting his tummy and kissing all over it. That thought always erases a bit of his insecurity, but Louis should do something about it.

His arse has always been the one thing that amplifies his confidence ever since he met the triplets, they love his arse, and he couldn't just sit still and watch it go just like that.

He has to do something.

---

Louis hired a personal trainer.

It's something he did on impulse. He was just doing a survey on the web about how to grow back his arse and somehow that escalated to results about exercising and suddenly he's on a website of a personal trainer that holds session at the client's house and the next thing he knew, he's already contacting the person and within minutes he had a trial session coming that he apparently agreed to.

Her name is Marie and she's going to come in today. He already informed her that they have a gym at home and she doesn't have to bring anything. They agreed that she should take a look first and make do with what they have since it's a trial session, anyway.

Louis also told Harry that he will come to the office a little later since he doesn't plan on starting the day too early. His Alpha had agreed without a single question, which made Louis feel a little bad about lying. But if he told his Alphas that he's hiring a personal trainer, he wouldn't hear the end of the teasing. Besides, he also wants to surprise them with his improvement later on.

Marie is a thirty-five year old Omega that has ten years' experience of being a trainer. Her rate is considerably high but Louis does get monthly allowances from his Alphas and he also has some money he's saved up from before they met, so he's not worried at all about the payment. He also tells himself that he doesn't mind using the money they gave him since the Alphas would also benefit from this themselves.

Marie arrives at eight thirty sharp. Thankfully, all of his Alphas have left for work and he doesn't have to go through awkward confrontations. Louis has already put on his tracksuit and a t-shirt that he deemed alright for light workout, not that he ever really tried. When Louis opens the door, she's looking up at the building before noticing him. A bright, friendly smile replaces the awed look on her face and she holds out a hand. "Hi! I'm Marie!"

Louis takes the offered hand, his smile equally wide. "Hi, I'm Louis." He steps back and lets her in, closing the door behind her. He hears her quiet gasp and chuckles to himself. "I reacted the same way when I first came here."

"I have been to a lot of rich people's houses, but I don't think I've ever seen any of them this big." She says, still in awe as he leads her inside. "What a beautiful home."

"It is." Louis agrees, slowing down as they reach the lift and pressing the button to go up. "My Alphas aren't here, so I'll thank you on their behalf." They share a chuckle over that.

"How long have you been mated?"

"Less than a year, actually." Louis steps into the lift when the doors open. He feels a bit surprised himself at the fact. It does feel like they've been together for longer. "Um, the gym is on level two."

They say nothing else as they head to the gym. And truthfully, it's probably Louis' second time entering the gym ever since he moved here. Throughout his whole stay, he's avoided the room like a plague.

"Oh wow, they have a big one." Marie claims when they step past the glass door. The room is a bit warm since Louis had reminded the Betas to turn on the heaters so it wouldn't be too cold. She places her backpack down and looks around. "I think I wouldn't have to bring anything since you already have everything. It does look complete."

"Oh, that's good, then." He replies. "Should we start?"

"Right, let's get on with it."

---

"What's gotten into you?" Edward asks that night when Louis keeps frowning as he moves, his body sore and shocked from his workout that morning. Marie had asked him to do light activities to ease him into it but at the same time he's never truly exercised so he was bound to be affected like this.

"Nothing." Louis quickly schools his face. "Why are you asking?"

Edward stares at him, but when Louis doesn't budge, he lets it go. "How was your day, Princess?"

"Good." Louis walks over to him, dropping onto his lap and sighing. "Had a good laugh with the team, as usual. What about yours?"

"Fine. But I think Sarah really wanted to yell at me when I told her that I felt like going home early. It's not like I did, and even if I did, I'm her boss. Who does she think she is?" Edward says, making Louis laugh. Louis likes to think that Sarah's main responsibility is babysitting.

"She keeps you in check, as well as your company. You would cry if she wasn't there." Louis reminds him, poking at his cheek.

"I know, but I reckon if I wasn't her boss, she'd be bullying me." Edward is still grumpy, glaring at nothing in particular.

Louis bursts out laughing. "I can see that happening for some reasons."

The Alpha directs the glare at him. "Are you insulting me?"

"Yes."

The result is fingers digging at his sides and Louis flails around on the Alpha's lap while he shrieks from the abuse, tears springing in his eyes from his uncontrollable laughter.

"Take it back!" Edward says, tickling him harder when he shakes his head even in the middle of laughing.

"Okay, okay!" Louis gives in when he almost falls over, clutching tight onto the Alpha. He finally relaxes when the fingers move to cup his thighs instead. Though he does flinch when Edward grips him, his muscles still aching from the squats Marie made him do.

"What's wrong?" Edward asks, gripping him again and frowning when he sees Louis' face contorting in pain. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, I promise." Louis waves it off. At Edward's unconvinced face, he leans forward to kiss him. "It's nothing serious. I'd talk to you if it was."

Edward sighs into his parted lips, arm draping over the curve of his back. "Okay. I trust you."

---

Louis curses his Alphas under his breath, pulling the jumper tighter around himself while he pads away to the gym. It's a Sunday, and Louis wanted to go out on a date with them but of course they turned him down because they're going to the gym. Stupid Alphas always working out and leaving him to suffer in the winter. He should be cuddled and showered with kisses, but instead he's left to be cold and alone.

Of course, they promised that all of them could go out for a dinner date, and that is enough to make up for the rejected suggestion. But Louis will not tolerate being cold when he has three Alphas that can hold him.

The gym is bright when he opens the glass door, music filling his ears as he steps inside. It's loud but not too overwhelming. He immediately feels relieved at the warmth inside the room, though nothing would ever beat the warmth of his Alphas' hugs.

He goes further inside to find a sight that weaken his knees. All of his Alphas are topless, wearing only a pair of shorts that shows off their toned legs and muscles that ripple with every movement. They're all sweating heavily, the moisture even dripping from their bodies while they work out. A shudder runs through him when he remembers one particular event between him and Edward when they were in Fiji. That was and still is one of the best fucks Louis ever had.

Louis lets his eyes roam Harry and Edward's backs as they run on the treadmill. He really wants to put his hands on their shoulders and feel their bodies move beneath his hands. He turns to the side and notes how strong Marcel looks as he's lifting some weight. Louis is probably already half hard, especially when he sees the way Marcel's biceps bulge every time he lifts the weight. Oh, this room is a living fantasy.

"Lou?" Marcel says in surprise when he sees him, and then he's putting the weights down and grabbing a towel. What he said causes Edward and Harry to turn around, and then the Alphas are slowing down on the treadmill. "What are you doing here, babe?" Marcel asks while he wipes his face, able to see better without the sweat hanging on his eyelashes.

Louis is reminded of his whole purpose here and he huffs, crossing his arms. "I was cold." He complains, dissatisfaction clear on his face.

Marcel grins as he puts the towel away, approaching the Omega. His wet body glistens under the light. "You want to cuddle?" He teases as he opens his arms once he nears Louis.

The Omega crinkles his nose, taking a step back. "Don't touch me."

"What are you talking about? I thought you wanted a cuddle?"

Harry giggles when Louis starts shrieking from Marcel's embrace, the Alpha's sweat soaking into his jumper.

"I'm calling the police!" Louis pouts where he's wrapped up in Marcel's arms. "Disgusting Alpha trying to touch me."

Marcel chuckles, kissing the side of his head. "You're really cold?"

He nods, his lower lip jutting out even more. "I was cold, bored, and lonely. Could you even imagine?"

Marcel makes a sympathetic face. "Poor thing. Why don't you stay here and watch us?"

"Why do you suggest that as if that would help?"

The Alpha bursts out laughing. "What do you want to do, then?"

Louis stares at the way Harry and Edward have started running properly again on the treadmill. He could join them. It'd be a good start to ease his Alphas into the idea that he does work out too, even without them knowing. "I could join you?" He shrugs, a half-hearted suggestion.

After his first trial session, Louis had continued to have more with Marie. He usually has three sessions per week, and now, three weeks later, he could say that he actually enjoys the way it burns when he moves and how much sweat he produces is always satisfying at the end of the day.

Marcel looks at him with surprise, an eyebrow rising. "Really? You want to?"

At his response, Louis makes a face of disbelief as if his Alpha had just challenged him. "What, you think I can't?"

"I didn't say that." He's got a crooked smile now. "You've always despised the idea of working out." He pauses. "Or moving, in general."

"Don't be a twat!" Louis slaps his arm, groaning when his palm hits wet skin. "Disgusting."

"Well, join us then." Marcel prompts, retracting his arms to cross them over his chest. He's clearly amused, and Louis knows that he thinks Louis won't do it. Well, the Omega is ready to prove him wrong.

"Alright. Give me a moment to change, and I'll be back." Louis scoffs, pushing away from his Alpha and disappearing out of the door before Marcel could say anything else.

"Did I hear you right? Lou is joining us?" Edward asks all of a sudden, and when Marcel turns around, his brother is seated on the bench. He chugs from his bottle, and Marcel eyes the way his throat moves.

"Yeah." He answers a bit distractedly, then shakes his head to focus. "A bit out of the blue, if I'm honest."

"You're right." Edward agrees. "Why is he so keen?"

"Maybe he's seeing the benefit?" Harry supplies, still running.

Edward entertains the thought. Then he shrugs. "He's probably feeling left out."

"Could be." Marcel hums.

Harry slows down to a stop before he turns the machine off and heads over to where Edward is sitting. "Break, and then continue?"

"Yeah, let's wait for Louis."

"I feel like he's run away." Edward smirks. Their Omega has never been one to work out, always dodging the topic whenever they'd invite him to the gym. He doesn't mind; Louis isn't exactly unhealthy.

"Excuse me." Louis calls from the door, and they look up to see him entering the gym with a scowl on his face. He clearly heard what Edward said.

But the Alphas' brains have gone haywire in their heads, mouths falling open and eyes widening the moment they notice what Louis is wearing.

The Omega has put on possibly his tightest tracksuit, one that hugs all over his thighs like a second skin. They can't wait to see his arse in that. He's also in a tank top, showing as much skin as possible. It's always been a wonder how Louis could look so ethereal but so endearing at the same time.

"What did you say?" Louis continues, glaring directly at Edward. "If I didn't want to join I would just say so."

Edward gulps, part because he is in trouble now and part because Louis is sauntering towards him with that angry look on his face and oh no, Edward is getting hard. "I'm sorry, baby. I was just joking."

Louis stops in front of him. His face falters a little in surprise when he sees the growing bulge in between the Alpha's legs, then he just gives Edward a bored look. "Really? Are you fifteen?"

The Alpha at least has the decency to look embarrassed, making Harry howl out a laugh. "Can't help it. You're so fit."

The Omega rolls his eyes, scoffing before he's turning around and walking up to Marcel. Edward makes some pathetic, desperate sounds that he's not proud of, but he's ignored. Instead Louis grins at Marcel and touches his arm. "So, what do you reckon I should do first, then?"

Marcel stammers. "Um, you should, uh.." He clears his throat, blushing lightly. "Why don't you do some squats?"

They really just make it easy for him. "Oh?" He says. "Okay, could you teach me how to do it?"

"Yeah. Okay."

Louis can feel how intensely he's being stared at as he 'attempts' to do a squat like how Marcel demonstrates to him. He already knows the right way to do it. Marie has scolded him enough to get it right. But he supposes he can have a little fun.

"Is it like this?" Louis pretends to wonder with an innocent voice as he purposely does it wrong, sticking his arse out too much to even be considered as a squat as he lowers himself. He gets no answer, and when he turns his head around, all of his Alphas are staring at his backside with a hypnotised look on their faces. What an idiot, each of them. He snaps his fingers, growing to his full height again and turning around. "Perverts, my eyes are up here."

"Um." The Alphas look like a deer in headlights, confused while they alternate between staring at each other and the Omega.

Louis sighs. "Marcel, are you ever going to let me know if I'm doing it right?"

Marcel widens his eyes, more alert now. "Right, of course. I'm sorry." He walks up to Louis again. "I'll focus."

The Omega smirks. "Thank you."

Louis obviously gets a good dicking once his Alphas can't take any more of his teasing. He shamelessly lets Harry fuck him on the floor while his brothers watch, then he gets on his knees and lets his Alphas come on his face.

He should really have more gym sessions with his Alphas.

---

Louis snuggles into Harry's chest, almost making the Alpha drop his hot chocolate. Harry's sound of distress only makes the Omega giggle. "Oops, sorry."

"Lou, be careful." Edward reprimands from the driver seat.

Louis looks at him through the rear view mirror. "Okay, Alpha." He flashes his teeth, then continues burying his face into Harry's chest. A hand runs through his hair, pulling gently and making Louis hum in pleasure.

"Did we remember to bring everyone's present?" Marcel voices from the passenger seat.

"We did." Harry responds, taking a sip from his hot chocolate before frowning when small hands are prying it out of his grip. He lets it happen anyway, his eyes stuck at the cup that isn't in his hold anymore. The things he does for this Omega.

Marcel is quiet for a few moment before he finally sags in his seat. "Okay."

It's two days to Christmas, which means that tomorrow would be Louis' birthday. He's especially excited because they're going back to his house for Christmas Eve and he'll get to celebrate his birthday with his loved ones. On Christmas, they'll be leaving to Anne's so that they get to celebrate with both families.

"Are we there yet?" Louis asks, his top lip stained with chocolate as he peeks his head out from Harry's arm.

"Not too long now." Edward replies, fond of Louis' messed hair.

"Alright." Louis chirps, taking more sips from the warm drink as he looks at Harry and giggles again when the Alpha is scowling at him.

"Tastes better when it someone else's, isn't it?" Harry says, tugging the cup out of his hold and making him pout.

"Sharing is caring, Harry." He scolds, but he's back to smiling as he lets Harry take three sips before reclaiming the cup.

The Alpha gives in, just resorting to holding the Omega tight while he finishes Harry's drink. "You're such a child." He mumbles, but his lips press against Louis' neck.

Louis' reply is a noncommittal hum, proceeding to drink more of the hot chocolate.

"Did you get us a present?" Harry wonders, breath tickling the back of Louis' throat.

Louis stiffens, turning around and giving Harry a small smirk. "Yes, yes I did."

Harry looks surprised at that, as if he wasn't expecting Louis to say yes. "Really? What did you get?"

"That's for me to know and for you to guess."

---

"Louis!" Daisy and Phoebe shriek happily at the front door, excited to have their brother coming home again. Both of them dash out, running straight toward the Omega in question.

"Hello, girls!" Louis grins, wrapping his arms around them the moment they collide. He showers the top of their heads with kisses, beaming when they giggle at the affectionate gestures. "Missed me?"

Despite his obnoxious question, Daisy hugs him tighter and nods. "Of course."

Louis takes their hands and leads them inside, repeatedly calling out for his mother until she answers. His Alphas could only watch with amusement as he disappears into the house with his sisters. Edward is pulling their bags out, passing them to Marcel before throwing one for Harry to carry. He holds two bags in his hands after the boot is closed, careful as he walks. The bags are filled with presents for the Tomlinson household, and he wouldn't want anything to break.

When they enter the house, Louis is talking to Lottie and Fizzy, all of them shining with happiness at their reunion. Harry puts the bag down by the door, beaming when Jay stands up to welcome him with a hug.

"How was the drive?" Jay asks, kissing his cheek before moving on to Marcel.

"It was eventful." Edward replies, recalling the small banter between Harry and Louis regarding the hot chocolate. "Just your son being the child he always is."

Jay chuckles, her arms pulling Edward into her embrace. "Glad you got here safely." She pulls back. "Have you eaten, yet?"

"No." Harry pouts, clutching his stomach. "We're famished."

"You poor thing." Jay coos, touching his cheek and kissing his forehead before she's grabbing his arm to lead him to the kitchen. "We've got food for you. Knew you'd be hungry."

Edward and Marcel brighten, disappearing with Jay and Harry to the kitchen. Nothing lures them in more than food.

---

Louis wakes up the next day to kisses all over his face, three pairs of lips tickling his skin as they whisper 'Happy birthday' repeatedly. He giggles, trying to push them away but they keep coming back until he's laughing, one that comes out of his belly. "Go away."

"No, it's your birthday." Harry says, kissing the corner of his eyes. "Happy birthday, Lou!"

They finally pull away to let him sit up on the bed, identical fond smiles that make his heart sing. His cheeks hurt with how much he's smiling. "Good morning."

"Happy birthday, love." Marcel says.

"Thank you, Alphas." Louis ducks his head, bashful.

"You're old." Edward murmurs.

It makes Louis look up with faux betrayal, hitting his arm just as laughter fills the room. "Don't disrespect me on my birthday!"

Edward grins. "I still love you...my old man."

Louis' frustrated scream only make the Alphas laugh even louder.

---

When the four of them appear downstairs an hour later, it's to find Jay and the girls in the living room with a cake. Louis almost wants to cry when all of them begin to sing Happy Birthday, bringing forth the cake in Fizzy's hold with two big candles propped up in the middle and surrounded with seven smaller ones.

As they finish singing, Louis shuts his eyes and blows them out. The girls cheer as the candles go out, attacking their brother with hugs and kisses.

"Thank you." He whispers when he's wrapped up in Jay's arms, burying his face at her neck and holding her far too tight to be comfortable. She only squeezes him even more, leaving a lingering kiss at his cheek.

"I love you so much, my big boy." She whispers. "Happy Birthday, Boo Bear."

"Thank you, Mum." He repeats.

"Can we eat now? I'm starving." Lottie asks as her brother and mother pull away from each other.

"Yeah, yeah, let's go." Louis wraps an arm around her neck, trapping her head under his pit. She shrieks as he tugs her away, slapping at his back to make him let her go.

---

"Hey." Lottie says as she sits down next to him that night. Edward is napping while Harry and Marcel are in the kitchen with Jay. Louis hasn't seen the rest of his sisters and figures they must be in their rooms.

He quickly puts his phone away to focus on her. "Hey." He says back, wrapping his arm around her and she scoots closer until she can rest her head on his shoulder.

"Can we talk?"

Louis hesitates. "Yeah, sure."

Lottie takes a deep breath, but she doesn't approach the topic right away. The heavy pause between them makes Louis a little nervous, but he patiently waits until she starts to speak. "I think we never really sat down and talked, and I never directly asked you about it."

"About what, exactly?"

Lottie sighs heavily. "About your miscarriage." When he tenses up against her, she quickly continues. "Is it okay? If we talked about that?"

Louis shuts his eyes, his hold loosening around her figure.

She pulls back slightly to give him a worried look, gnawing on her bottom lip. "We don't have to, if you-"

"No, it's fine." He shakes his head, opening his eyes and sending her a small, reassuring smile. "Let's talk about it."

She stares at him, saying nothing for a while. Then she leans forward to resume her position where she's been cuddling him. "How are you coping?"

"I don't really know, Lotts." He sighs, toying with her bracelet when she drapes her arm over his tummy. "Sometimes I feel like I've moved on, but most of the time I think that I'm just doing a lot of pretending."

"Pretend that you're fine?"

"Pretend that I'm fine, that nothing ever happened in the first place. Makes it easier." He whimpers. "Do you think that makes me a bad mother?"

"I don't think so." She replies.

"It's just.." He trails off. "I never really stop thinking about it, if I'm honest. Too many things remind me of them, and that's fucked up, really, because I never got to meet them in the first place."

"Doesn't mean that they weren't real." She says. "You had a connection with them that no one else could relate to." When Louis doesn't reply, she continues. "I understand why it can be hard for you to move on."

"Sometimes I wonder if the Alphas feel annoyed that I haven't made much, real progress. I know that I have to move on eventually but, it's not that easy. I'm even sick of it myself."

"Don't say that." Lottie gently smacks his chest. "They're not like that. If anything, they're worried. They love you so much, Lou; babies or no babies." She huffs. "And you have the right to take as long as you need to move on. You're the only one who can decide how long is enough because no one else will ever be able to compare to how you felt."

"Thanks, Lott." He murmurs, squeezing her tight.

"I just hope you know that I think you're really strong and brave. If I had to go through what you went through, I don't think I'll be able to make it."

"I had a lot of people by my side." He grins, kissing her cheek.

"Still..." She chuckles. "They told me about you taking birth control." She quickly continues when she sees his face fall. "I know you feel disappointed, but you shouldn't. It's completely okay for you to do that especially because you're not ready."

"I just don't want to get pregnant yet. I don't want to be caught up with my unborn babies and abandon my new ones." He sighs, his body slouching on the couch. "I'm also afraid most of forgetting them..."

"You won't forget them, Lou. We won't." Lottie grabs his hand. "I know I found out after...." She trails off, her voice getting thicker. "And I admit that I don't feel as attached, but that doesn't mean that I'd forget. It's not just something you dispel from your memory."

He nods, quiet.

"I just want you to know, that you'd get over this, Lou. But you need to tell yourself that you will. One day you'll get pregnant again, and you'd be able to love your babies with all your heart and not forget about the ones you lost. There's always room for love. You can see it yourself with our own Mum, she loves all of us the same."

"That's right." Louis finally smiles again. "You always know what to say, don't you?"

"Of course." She makes a proud face as Louis pecks the side of her head. Then she turns to him and hugs him properly again. "I love you, Lou. I just want you to be happy."

"Thank you, love." He replies.

---

Louis starts Christmas alone on the bed. He wakes up to an empty room and voices coming from downstairs. He takes his time in the bathroom before he puts on a decent outfit and finally makes his way down.

Daisy and Phoebe are chatting and giggling in the living room, Lottie and Fizzy seated next to each other while on their phones. Louis continues to the kitchen where he hears his Alphas talking, smiling when he sees them and his mother seated at the small table.

"Good morning." Louis greets.

There's a chorus of replies before Harry opens his arms and offers his lap for Louis to sit on since there's no more chairs around the table. Louis accepts the offer, taking the chance to kiss his Alpha.

Marcel has gotten up to grab Louis a plate for breakfast while Edward and Jay continue with their conversation before Louis came in. The Omega doesn't bother trying to join. Instead he focus on Harry's arms around him.

He thanks Marcel when the Alpha pushes a plate towards him, already filled with food. Louis digs in right away, quiet the whole time while his Alphas and his Mum chat. He can feel the way Harry shakes against him when the Alpha laughs, and it makes him smile.

When he feels a hand on his knee, he looks up to see Edward staring at him, a silent question if he's okay. Louis just nods reassuringly, squeezing his hand.

Edward can see the honesty in his eyes and he nods before turning back to the conversation.

"Let me." Harry says when Louis is about to get up to wash his plate.

"Okay, thank you." Louis says, kissing his cheek. He'll never be immune to the smile on Harry's face whenever Louis touches him.

"You ready to open the presents?" Marcel curls an arm around him after he parts with Harry, both of them making their way out of the kitchen.

"Mmhmm."

Marcel grins, but he keeps staring at Louis. Both of them have halted at the doorway. "You're awfully quiet this morning. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah."

"You know you can talk to us if anything's wrong."

"I know." Louis chuckles, surging forward and kissing him to shut him up when he tries to speak up again. He smiles when he pulls back, stroking his Alpha's cheek. "I'm fine. I promise."

"If you say so."

The Alpha takes his hand, and both of them continue their way into the living room. The girls are sitting near the Christmas tree, already beautifully decorated. They had spent last night doing it together; Edward kept lifting Louis so he could get to the higher spots. The Omega knew that Edward had purposely done that just to touch him and get a close and personal look at his arse. Regardless, they had fun and Louis is glad that Jay had taken pictures of them.

"Happy Christmas, Lou!" His sisters chime upon seeing him.

Louis beams as he takes a seat next to Harry, Marcel on his right side. "Happy Christmas, girls!" Then he turns to his mother. "Happy Christmas, Mum."

"You too, darling." She says, reaching out and kissing his forehead.

Louis kisses each of his Alphas next, blushing when his sisters make loud, whooping noises every time an Alpha claims his lips. "Shut it!" He says when they're still laughing even after he's done.

The Alphas don't mind at all, joining their laughter upon seeing Louis' flushed face.

"Leave him alone." Jay finally says, though she's chuckling too as she pulls Louis to her as if he's a small child who needs protection.

"Come on, let's open our presents." Marcel prompts, unable to resist it when Louis pouts at the teasing.

"This is why Marcel is my favourite Alpha." Louis says, blowing him a kiss. Edward and Harry barely bat an eyelid, their smiles growing.

"Who cares? Harry and Edward are ours." Daisy sticks her tongue out.

"Okay, okay, let's settle down." Jay cuts in, not wanting them to drag this on longer. "Fizzy, darling, why don't you open your presents first?"

Fizzy gets a new make-up palette and some other cosmetics that she apparently wanted, a present from Jay. She also gets a beautiful Gucci dress courtesy of Louis and his Alphas, one she shrieks happily about before leaping forward to hug her brother.

The twins open their presents next to have new books from Jay, and headphones from Louis and his Alphas. Jay had once said that Lottie won't stop complaining about her current phone so Louis and the triplets decided to team up with Jay and bought Lottie a new phone.

Louis finally got his mother a new handbag after a great help from Lottie. He had asked her to do some survey about them before she finally chose one that she's sure Jay would like and let Louis know about it. Louis simply had to go to the store and buy it.

Louis had told his Alphas about the handbag, so he had assumed that it's a present from all of them. So he's really surprised when Harry suddenly pulls a small, rectangular box out and hands it over to Jay after she put the handbag away.

"Happy Christmas, Jay." Edward says. "Please accept this from us three."

Louis sends his Alphas a surprised look, but Marcel shakes his head and mouths 'later'.

"Oh my God." Jay gasps upon opening the box. "I can't accept this!"

Harry chuckles when she tries returning it into his hand, making sure she holds on tight to it. "Of course you can."

"We'll be terribly offended if you refused to, Jay." Marcel makes a sad face, and Louis knows right then that his mother has nothing else to say. Though, the Omega has no idea what his mother has in her hands since Harry is still blocking her from his view. He is curious.

His siblings seem to share his thoughts since Lottie is already crawling over to their mother to peek at the object within the box. Then her eyes widen and her mouth falls open to let out a shocked scream. "You bought Mum a car?!"

The rest of the girls gasp, rushing to hover over Jay to see it for themselves.

"You bought my Mum a car?" Louis is dumbfounded as he finds himself saying those words.

"Louis said you've been having some problems with your old MPV, and it made us worry because Louis almost died when his car broke down. So we decided we should buy you a new one." Edward explains. "We hope you would let us handle your maintenance too."

Jay is already crying at this point, still staring at the car key in her hands in disbelief. Then she puts the box down so she could hug Harry tightly, alternating between his dimpled cheeks as she kisses him. "Oh, my boys. Thank you so much."

"Of course, Jay. We already think of you as our own Mum." Harry murmurs, holding her while she sobs a little.

Her face is wet when she reaches for Edward, then Marcel. She keeps thanking them, repeating how grateful she is over and over again.

"We love you, Jay. Thank you for willing to accept it." Marcel says in her arms, kissing the top of her head.

"If she won't, I would." Lottie says.

"Lottie!" Jay scolds, making all of them crack up.

Louis is still rooted to his spot, speechless. His heart is so warm, so full of love and fondness for his Alphas. There was absolutely no gain for them to buy Louis' mother a car. They're already bonded and happily in love, and Jay loves them like her own. There's nothing that this could contribute to their part within Louis' family or the Omega himself except make their bonds and love stronger. So that means his Alphas did it out of the kindness in their heart and their love for this family.

He's crying all of a sudden, his face wet with tears that he can't stop. And when Edward looks at him, it's blurted out of his mouth. "You really love us." At the Alpha's confused look and the sudden attention from everyone, Louis explains himself. "You love me, my Mum, my sisters. You love us."

"Of course we do." Edward stares at him. "Are we not family yet?"

"You still haven't put a ring on it." Lottie says, causing Fizzy to gasp and then Fizzy's hand is clamped over Lottie's mouth to prevent her from saying anything else.

"You are." Louis answers Edward's question. "Sorry, of course you are. I just, it's just surreal to me." He blinks. "You love us."

"We love you. We love your family. Everyone and everything associated with you." Marcel clarifies.

"Lou, have you really just realised that?" Daisy wonders, her face frowning in confusion.

"No, I always had. I just... it hadn't really occurred to me that it's to this extend."

"Well, I'm glad that we've established that we are, indeed, arse over tits for you and would do anything for you and your Mum." Edward says, ignoring the girls' outburst of 'Hey!' and instead handing Louis a blue, velvet box. "Now, would you like to open your present?"

Louis nods quietly, wiping his tears away before taking it from Edward. It's flat and big, slightly bigger than his palm even though it looks small in Edward's hand. When he opens it, he gasps to see a white gold necklace resting within the satin interior of the box. A heart shaped locket is attached to the chain, elegant and pure.

"It's beautiful." He whispers.

Harry crawls over to him, gesturing to the box. "May I?" When Louis nods, he pulls the necklace out and tugs at the knob on the side of the locket until it opens up to three connected hearts. Then he hands it back to Louis.

Louis stares at it, unblinking. He's frozen, eyes slightly widened to complete his alarmed look. His Alphas watch quietly, waiting for his reaction. Even Jay and his sisters say nothing upon seeing such response.

The breath he subconsciously held is released through a shaky exhale that moves his whole body. And then he's crying, tears running down his face as he looks up at Harry. He's speechless, unable to spit out whatever he wants to say. He just sits there and cries, clutching the locket to his chest.

"What's wrong?" Jay whispers, her own eyes wet. She doesn't know why he's crying but seeing her son like that stabs at her heart. She looks at Harry, and the Alpha is staring at Louis with as much sadness as Jay probably feels.

"It's um.." Harry croaks, weakly gesturing at Louis and the necklace in general.

Louis looks at the locket again, a small smile tickling his lips and he presses them together. Each of the heart shaped metal holds an engraving of the words Louis would forever hold dear.

Amara. Charity. Darian.

He turns back to Harry and wipes at his cheeks, chuckling quietly to himself. "Thank you." He croaks out, giving an equally thankful look to Marcel and Edward. "Thank you." He repeats.

Harry nods, taking the necklace from him so he could put it on the Omega.

Jay and the sisters still look confused, and Edward and Marcel share amused looks. The latter finally takes pity of them and scoots forward to sit beside Louis. "Louis named them, so we decided to put the names into something that he can bring anywhere with him."

"You named them?" Jay gasps, her lower lip trembling as she turns to Louis.

"Why don't you tell her the names?" Marcel suggests to Louis.

The Omega nods, touching the necklace again. He smiles wetly at her as he takes place in front of his mother. He can feel his sisters' eyes on him, but he only focus on her. "They were triplets, right?" He doesn't wait for her response. "Well, I had a feeling of what they'd turn out to be." Louis grabs the locket, bringing it up and showing it to her.

Jay starts crying too, hugging him tightly. "They're beautiful."

"What are the names?" Lottie asks, prompting Louis to look at his sisters. Surprise colours his face momentarily when he sees that the girls also look affected, their eyes brimming and red.

Louis glances at his Alphas, then back to them. He smiles when he says the names.

He doesn't expect it at all when Fizzy and Lottie throw themselves at him, crying onto his shoulders.

---

When they arrive at Anne's later that day, they show her Louis' necklace too, and she holds the Omega so tightly, so long until Louis feels like whatever sadness he has left has been squeezed out of him.

She keeps saying the names after that, smiling whenever she does it. She appears to be trying to see how they'd sound like out loud. Then she'd be quiet and her gaze would be unfocused; occasionally she'd smile again. The triplets tell him that she's probably daydreaming about her unborn grandchildren.

It makes Louis realise that his babies are so loved even if they weren't born. Especially when he recalls how his own family reacted, and his heart warms. He hopes his babies know about it, about how much they're loved. Louis loves them so much that even if his family don't, the amount of love he has would be enough to make up for it.

---

"I want to sleep until next week." Louis groans the moment he throws himself into bed, grabbing one of the pillows and hugging it close. "God, I need a bath too."

Edward chuckles, placing the duffel bag down on the floor before he heads for the bed and lies down beside Louis. His arms curl around the Omega and his lips easily finds Louis' cheek. "Knackered from the ride?"

"Very."

"You have something you need to do first before you sleep, though." Marcel who just came out of the toilet says.

Harry frowns as he stares at his brother, trying to understand what they're on about. Once he's recalled their plans, his face clears out and he turns to Louis with a small smirk. "Yeah, Lou. Get up."

"What is it? God, you Alphas never let me rest."

"Come on, up." Edward sounds far too gleeful. Louis had always known the Alpha likes to torture him.

Louis sits up and grunts, glaring at them. He looks murderous, but his Alphas merely laugh. "This better be worth it or I'm slaughtering all of you."

"You'll love it." Marcel is confident when he says that, already reaching out for Louis' hand and pulling him onto his feet.

The Omega huffs, crossing his arms. "I better do."

Marcel grins, releasing his hand and spinning around to head to the table and pulling open the drawer to pull out a small box. It's black leather, sleek and elegant and looks proper expensive.

Louis is quiet now, filled with curiosity. He wonders what the box holds and why his Alphas are so keen to give it to him now. They just got home for Heaven's sake.

"What's that?" He voices, eyeing the box as Marcel walks back to him. He holds it out and Louis doesn't hesitate to grab it.

"It's your birthday present."

Louis pauses from opening the box upon hearing that. "My birthday present? I thought this was my present?" He touches his locket, confused.

"That's your Christmas present." Edward corrects him from where he's lying on the bed.

"Oh." Louis says, then he makes a disapproving face. "Should've combined those and save money. You spoil me too much."

"And who else would we spoil if it wasn't you?" Harry asks.

Louis points out his tongue. "Shut up." He smiles as he turns back to the box, careful but enthusiastic as he slowly peels it open. A loud gasp falls from his mouth when he sees the car key sitting inside the box. The shiny, Mercedes logo proudly stares back at him. "Oh my God!" He shouts, eyes wide. He looks up at Marcel and laughs in disbelief. "You're pulling my leg! You have to be pulling my leg!"

"Happy Birthday." Marcel says instead, chuckling at his reaction.

"You didn't just buy my Mum a car, you bought me a car?!"

"Go and let Marcel take you to see it." Edward suggests. "It's in the garage."

Marcel smirks at that. "Do you want to see it?"

"Oh my God, yes!" Louis nods, in glee as he runs to attack Edward with a thorough kiss. The Alpha chuckles, but Louis is already heading for Harry before he could do anything else. The Omega keeps thanking them, looking like he's about to get on his knees and thank them properly if a car wasn't waiting for him. He saves Marcel for last, jumping onto him. The Alpha catches him with ease, and his legs automatically wrap around Marcel's waist. Any other methods to thank his Alphas can be done later. For now, a kiss should be sufficient. "Take me there." He says, grinning.

Marcel doesn't bother putting him down, moving in ease even with the Omega attached to him. Upon entering the lift, Marcel pushes him up against the wall so they could snog properly. Giggles fall out of the Omega's swollen lips as Marcel carries him out of the lift. When they finally reach the garage, Marcel puts him down. "Okay, close your eyes."

Louis gives him an incredulous look but obeys, shutting his eyes. "I already know what it is." He grumbles.

"I know. But you don't know which model." Marcel points out, reaching out and covering Louis' eyes with his hands.

"I don't even know cars." Louis retorts, but he follows when Marcel eventually start to lead him away.

"Oh, hush. It's for the sake of excitement."

"Fine."

They come to a stop and Marcel drops his hands.

Louis' eyelids flutter open and he gasps once he takes in the beauty in front of him. It's black, shiny, sleek, and new. The sedan is carefully wrapped with a red ribbon, big and standing out compared to the dark colour of the car.

"Holy shit!" He says, still in disbelief. "Really? For me?"

"All yours." Marcel replies, nothing but fond. "Do you like the plate?"

Louis reads the plate and chuckles at how short it is. "I love it." He says, loving how it says L0U.

"Edward wanted to put Kitten, but I didn't let him."

"Thank God we still have a sensible Alpha in this house." Louis rolls his eyes. "What did Harry want to put?"

Marcel bursts out laughing. "Harry wanted Princess."

The Omega groans. "I would've punched both of them on the face."

"Thank God for me." Marcel is cheeky as he grins at him.

"Thank God for you." Louis echoes, playfully nudging at the Alpha's tummy with his fist. "Should we take my new car for a drive, then?"

"We definitely should." Marcel nods, acting as if the decision was made after a long, deep thought.

Louis leans forward and kisses his cheek before reproducing the car key from his pocket and unlocking the car. He shrieks excitedly at the beeping sound and skips to the driver's side with another enthusiastic giggle while his Alpha takes off the ribbon.

Marcel doesn't hesitate to climb in next to him, watching as Louis looks at the screen and the steering wheel to familiarise himself with his new car. "How do you find it?"

"I can't believe this is mine." Louis whispers, reluctantly placing his hands on the wheel before giggling. "I love my rich Alphas."

"You're so ridiculous." Marcel shakes his head, but he's smiling. "Well, come on, then. Let's see how this baby works."

Louis cheers as he starts the car. He quickly puts on his seatbelt before manoeuvring the vehicle out of the parking spot and towards the exit. He's quiet as he focus on getting the car to the gate. "It feels so smooth."

"Innit?"

Louis lets the car pick up speed as they reach the main road, and once they get to the highway, he lets Marcel persuade him to go faster. Eventually Louis is driving fast enough to give him the adrenaline and he shouts happily as he speeds past all the other cars.

He notices that Marcel has gone quiet as he drives, but he's too excited from the ride that he doesn't bother pointing it out. The Omega takes an exit so they could head home again, but he decides to stop by for McDonald on their way back since all the excitement wore him out.

Upon reaching the drive-through counter, he turns to the Alpha to ask what he'd like, but the question dies in his throat. He quickly makes an order without taking his eyes off of his Alpha, then continues forward. Louis is quiet too as he pays for their food and eventually grabs the offered paper bag.

Instead of continuing home, Louis finds a secluded road and pulls over. He clears his throat, unbuckling his seatbelt before looking at Marcel in the eye and starts laughing. "Did you really get hard from watching me drive?"

The Alpha blushes, shifting in his seat to adjust himself. "Well, you've always said we look hot when we're behind the wheel. It's the same for you, babe."

"Move your seat back." Louis bites his lower lip.

Marcel groans, but his hand is already reaching for the button and moving his seat back so there is a lot of leg room.

Louis doesn't hesitate climbing over the console and settling down in between Marcel's legs before nosing at his bulge. "Naughty Alpha."

---

Louis appears from the toilet that night in his bathrobe, and the moment Harry sees his face, the Alpha just knows that his Omega has something up his sleeves. He sits up straighter as Louis saunters towards the bed, his brothers still oblivious and Harry wonders if he should be anxious.

Upon noticing Harry's distress, Edward and Marcel turn to him to see what's bothering him so much. When they see Louis, all the triplets are aware and guarded, wondering what Louis is up to now.

"Okay, what's going on?" Edward is the one bold enough to ask.

Louis grins. "You've never asked me what your Christmas present was. You've never gotten it."

"That's right." Marcel nods, still wary and dubious. "What did you get us, baby? Are you giving it to us now?"

Louis nods, biting on his lower lip as he reaches the bed before starting to climb on. He's got that sultry look on his face, and for some reasons Marcel's cock is already twitching in his pants.

"What is it, then?" Edward prompts when Louis is seated in front of them.

The Omega hums, rising onto his knees on the mattress as he undoes the bathrobe and slowly shrugs it off his shoulders. Marcel was right to get hard because once the fabric is on the floor, Louis is only in a lilac lingerie and a white, lacy knickers and the Alphas almost got a heart attack.

It's not unusual for Louis to put this on sometimes to spice things up a bit, but it takes their breath away every time they're presented with it. The Omega always looks so good whenever he's in his lingerie, ones he always coaxes the Alphas to buy for him which makes things ten times hotter. His tanned, soft skin never fails to make them want to touch, to caress, to hold, to kiss.

"You look magnificent." Edward breathes out, the only one capable enough to form a coherent thought and sentence.

"You haven't seen it yet." Louis murmurs, lightly touching his thighs and giggling to himself when his Alphas stupidly follow the motion.

"Wha-?"

Louis turns around on the bed, getting down onto all four so his arse is presented to his Alphas. Normally the sight would make them go all crazy, and Louis' arse always makes them feel like having a stroke but Harry is certain a fatal heart attack is highly possible in this situation.

On Louis' right arsecheek, embedded on his smooth skin is a beautiful, black cursive. The word flashes repeatedly in their eyes, and the Alphas might have forgotten how to breathe.

Styles.

"Fuck." Harry moans out, he sounds like he's going to cry.

Edward's eyes are blown wide, still staring at the jet black tattoo. "It's permanent!"

Louis rolls his eyes. "And your bond marks are not?"

"Fuck!" Harry says again. He's rolled onto his back now, eyes covering his face while he mumbles nonsense to himself. His cock is proudly tinting his pants, throbbing in between his thighs as each thought of the image keeps sending jolts of pleasure down his spine without having to touch himself nor his Omega.

"Fuck." Marcel echoes.

Louis silently pats his past self on the back for doing things on the whim and getting him the personal trainer. His arse is better than it ever was, pert, full, and round. He's glad his hard work paid off, and makes a silent promise to himself to personally thank Marie later. Especially with his Alphas' reactions.

Edward is the first one to reach out and touch. He gently brushes his thumb across the word, his breath hitching as Louis pushes back into his palm. "Jesus, Lou."

The Omega wiggles his arse with a smirk. "You like it?"

Edward delivers a slap across his cheek and Louis whimpers. "Fucking hell, Louis."

"Happy Christmas." Louis' smirk widens. "And thank you for the car."

---

The text from Alex comes in early January, and Louis squeals out loud the moment the notification appears on his phone. His heart almost bursts out of his chest as disbelief courses through him.

He thumbs the message open and rereads it over and over again to make sure he doesn't read it wrong.

Hailey gave birth to our beautiful baby boy three days ago. We're home now. Come visit us, tit.

Louis quickly finishes up whatever work he has left that he can complete by today, then he's packing his things up and letting his team know that he'll be leaving early. They tease him about slacking off, but they wave him off and let him be on his way.

He drives a bit recklessly in excitement on the way to his destination, but when he thinks of what's waiting, he only presses on the pedal even more.

He still manages to park the car properly in his haste the moment he arrives, but he doesn't wait too long to jump off and run straight into the building. Louis bounces on his heels while he waits for the lift, impatient.

He's out of breath by the time he stops in front of the door, taking a break to breathe properly. Once his breathing is normal, Louis knocks. He usually would've pounded on the door until Alex opens up, but this time around he knows he can't do that.

It doesn't take long before his friend appears, and Louis' eyes water as he leaps forward. Ecstatic laughter rings in his ear, and Louis hugs his friend even tighter. "Congratulations." He murmurs, voice thick with emotions. He's chuckling as he lets his friend go, smiling wider when he sees Alex's red eyes. "Can't believe you're a father now."

Alex shakes his head. "Me neither, to be honest." He claps Louis' shoulder, thumb digging in. "I'm glad you came by." Alex says as he steps back. "Come in, Lou."

Louis obliges, finding that the flat has a different feeling to it. It feels more family-centric, more homey. He doesn't know whether it's because of Hailey or because of their new addition. Regardless, he likes it.

"Where's Hailey?" He wonders, taking off his shoes and pushing them to the side.

"She's in the room, come on." Alex is already wrapping an arm around his shoulder and dragging him away.

Louis' steps slow down when they walk past the threshold to the master bedroom. It's completely different now. It's much better, cleaner. The main reason why he's halted is the cot that's been placed near the bed where there used to be nothing. It makes everything more surreal, and Louis feels his heart racing.

Hailey is sitting on the bed when they walk in, playing on her phone. Though, the moment she realises that she has a guest, she's quick to abandon the device in favour of getting off the bed and hugging Louis in greeting. "Hey, Lou!"

"Hi." He says back distractedly, eyes still glued to the cot. Louis falters when he notices that he's being a bit disrespectful and quickly directs his attention to Hailey. "How are you, babe?"

"Good." She beams. "Can't wait to get my body back, to be honest."

Louis laughs at that. "I'm sure you'll get it back in no time."

"I sure hope so!"

"Let's introduce Louis to our boy." Alex places a hand on Hailey's back to get her attention, then he nods at the cot. "Louis, meet William."

Louis' heartbeat picks up, and he bites on his lower lip as he stops by the baby bed.

He doesn't blink - he probably doesn't even breathe - when he finally sees the little baby. He can hear Alex and Hailey speaking fondly, probably telling him something about their new son, but their voices are merely muted murmurs in his ears. Hailey reaches for her baby, gentle arms holding the bundle of life with love and care. It's not long before Louis can feel pressure against his chest, weight and warmth in his arms when the baby is placed in his hold.

And then Louis is staring at the child, William. And his chest tightens, as well as his grip. Tears stream down his face before he even knows it, and his voice breaks when he speaks to greet the child. "Hi William." He bites his lower lip so he won't start sobbing. "You're so cute."

Hailey and Alex are gone when he turns around, and Louis appreciates the privacy despite his embarrassment.

William is sleeping soundly in his arms, barely affected by anything. He probably didn't even hear Louis' voice, too deep in sleep. It makes Louis cry harder to look at his peaceful face. He's so small, so fragile and warm in Louis' hold.

Louis takes a shaky breath, willing his tears to cease. He can't cry like this. He should be happy for his friends, not throwing a pity party for himself.

"You're such a lovely little thing." He whispers to the baby. "Welcome to the world, William. I'm sure you just made your parents the happiest people."

As if listening and understanding Louis' words, the corners of William's mouth raise momentarily before his face is slacked again.

Louis chuckles, content to stare at the innocence and purity shining on William's face. He takes his time, touching William's tiny arm and playing with his little fingers. The Omega chokes on a sob when those fingers wrap around his own, feeling the light but insistent grip that makes his stomach flutter.

He puts William back into the cot after that, not wanting to disturb him for too long. Though, Louis doesn't leave right away; his emotions are all over the place in his chest. They won't sit still, and the whirlwind of it are all caused by the sleeping boy Louis is staring at, barely a few days old.

When he's got himself under control and made sure he's wiped all his tears away, Louis finally steps out to see Hailey and Alex sitting on the couch. She's got her head on his shoulder, and his arm is wrapped tightly around her. They're the perfect picture of happiness, and Louis can't help but envy them a little with their complete little family.

"Hey." He says as he takes a seat on one of the empty couches. "I've put him back in the cot."

Hailey grins. "Thank you, Lou." She presses her lips together as she turns to Alex, then gives Louis a glance before her eyes are on her partner again. It's a silent communication between them, and Louis looks away to give them privacy. After a minute, Hailey grows onto her feet. "I'll check up on William."

Then she's leaving the two of them alone.

"Congrats again, Alex." Louis speaks up before Alex could, his smile a bit forced. He's genuine with his words, but he mostly chose this moment to say it just so Alex won't get to say whatever is going on in his mind. Louis doesn't want his friend to encourage his self-pity. He knows that whatever Alex would say would involve his loss, and he doesn't want that.

Alex melts into the cushion in defeat. "Thanks." He breathes, offering Louis a weak smile.

"He's beautiful." Louis is still in awe. Then his lips form a smirk. "I wonder how that is possible when you are in the equation."

Loud laughter rings in the air as Louis dodges the pillow Alex throws at him. "Don't be fucking rude." Alex huffs at him like a little child.

Louis' smile is so wide he almost can't see anymore. "I'm so happy for you."

Alex relaxes at that, walking over so he could heave himself down on the seat next to Louis. His arms pull at the Omega, and then Louis is wrapped up in his familiar embrace.

He's missed Alex' comforting hugs. Louis tells him just as much.

"I've missed you too." Alex buries his face into Louis' hair, then his arms tighten around his friend. "I'm so sorry, Lou."

Louis makes a tiny whimper, and he clings onto Alex. "Yeah." Is the only thing he can say.

Throughout the whole time Alex holds him, Louis focus on his breathing just so he won't do something stupid like break down. They're supposed to be happy for the new addition to Alex's family, not dwell on Louis' loss.

Alex kisses his forehead before releasing him, and it instantly makes Louis feel so much better.

"So.." Louis prompts. "Tell me how it was. Did you shit your pants when she was in labour?"

"Mate.." Alex touches his shoulder. "You have no idea."

Louis already knows it's going to be a great story.

---

"So, um, where did you disappear to?" Harry asks during dinner, confused and curious. When one of the people in his team informed him that Louis left early, he didn't really question it because he was caught up with work. But now that he's free of his burden, his mind clears enough to process that information, albeit delayed.

At the question, Edward and Marcel turn to the Omega as well, curious. Seeing their reactions, Louis smiles. "Went to visit Alex. Hailey's home now, so I wanted to see his baby boy."

"Oh, that's a good news!" Marcel beams. "Send them our congratulations."

"I will." Louis nods, still smiling. Then he turns to his food and avoids any other eye contact.

"Lou, are you okay?" Harry is the one to ask.

He takes his time before looking up, his smile not quite meeting his eyes. They can see his hands shaking. "Yeah, I'm fine. Why are you asking?"

The topic is immediately dropped, and Edward is quick to bring up something that happened at the office earlier today. Louis listens but doesn't bother to get involved in the conversation. It's obvious how withdrawn he is, and they don't try to make him talk again.

That night before bed, Louis and Harry are lost in a conversation about Louis' little sisters. Somehow the topic of William is brought up again. Though, Louis looks alright as he excitedly gushes about the baby, so the Alphas are not too alarmed about it.

"He made this cute little face when I held him and then he smiled. It was the cutest thing!" The Omega has a dreamy look on his face. "He was so small! So tiny."

"Smaller than you?" Edward teases, his nose crinkling.

"Oh, fuck off." Louis glares, making the triplets laugh especially when he continues talking after that as if nothing happened. "His nose is so cute. I still can't believe Alex named him after me. And he felt so fragile in my arms, so light, but at the same time he was so warm, so-"

One moment his voice was all excited but all of a sudden his voice cracks on the word and then he's crying into his hands. None of the Alphas freaks out, not wanting to make him feel worse. Instead, Harry just gathers the Omega into his arms and holds him tight.

For some reasons, only one word is stuck in their head to finish Louis' cut off sentence. Alive.

Louis is still quiet while he cries, but the violent way his body is shaking puts Edward at unease. Marcel looks as worried as Edward feels, and the Alpha reaches out to put a hand on his back. "Lou..." Edward starts, keeping his voice low. "Just let it out, baby. Let it out."

Louis tenses even more under his touch before his body relaxes and then he's letting out a sound that brings tears to all the Alphas' eyes. Harry buries his face against the Omega's neck and rubs a comforting pattern down his arms while Edward and Marcel cuddle closer.

"Just like that, darling. Let it out." Marcel assures him, a big lump in his own throat. He has to hold himself from flinching every time a sob leaves Louis' mouth.

Edward strokes Louis' hair, struggling just as much as his brother to keep himself in check. "Don't keep it in. It's alright."

It's a long time before Louis' crying ends, and by that time no one's eyes are dry.

---

"Where are Harry and Lou?" Edward asks when he appears in the room. It's empty except for Marcel, and something tells Edward that Harry and Louis are not in the house even though it's dinner time.

"They went out." Marcel says from where he's standing in front of the mirror, brushing his hair.

Edward nods, putting his suit case away. "Why are you all dressed up?" He wonders aloud as he eyes down his brother's figure, loosening his tie.

"I'm going on a date." Marcel puts down the brush and turns around, leaning against the vanity table. He looks delicious.

His words catch up to Edward soon enough, and it makes the Alpha frown. "Are we supposed to join them? I didn't get any message."

Marcel rolls his eyes, pushing away from the table and stopping in front of his brother. He reaches out and pulls off Edward's loosened tie, tossing it away. His fingers go to the buttons afterwards, starting to undo them. "Do you want to go freshen up before we leave?"

Edward grips his hips, pulling him close and claiming his lips. "You made plans, didn't you? Sneaky bastard."

Marcel chuckles, their foreheads pressing together. He finishes unbuttoning Edward's shirt and pushes it off his shoulders. "Hurry." Is the only thing he says before pushing Edward to the direction of the bathroom.

It doesn't take long for Edward to get ready. Fifteen minutes later, he is already stepping back into the room dressed up in a pair of slacks and a jumper.

Marcel grins at the sight, walking towards him before offering his hand. "You look handsome."

Edward takes his hand and tugs until Marcel is pressed against him. His brother gasps at the sudden move, but his grin widens when he feels Edward pawing at his arse. "You look edible." Edward breathes, kissing at his collarbone.

"Edward, stop." Marcel laughs. "We're going to be late for our booking."

Edward makes a disappointed sound, his mouth still working over Marcel's skin. He pulls back after a second. "Fine."

"Edward." Marcel tries to hold a warning tone, but his eyelids threaten to flutter shut when the Alpha keeps rubbing their clothed cocks together.

The culprit smirks, releasing him and taking a step back. "What did you say about our date?"

Marcel really wants to slap him.

---

The restaurant is lovely. The food is delicious with excellent service that guarantees Edward's return in the future.

But Edward couldn't put his mind into those things because Marcel looks so good sitting opposite him. And also because Marcel's foot is at his crotch.

It was halfway through their meal when Edward felt a socked toe on his ankle. He had given Marcel a look, but of course his brother feigned innocence. Then the touch travelled up his leg, until it reached his cock. It's stayed there since.

He really wants to jump across the table and stab Marcel with his fork. Or with his cock. Whichever is fine.

He's half hard beneath the table, and it's all because of that unrelenting foot. It's been stroking and teasing him for the past twenty minutes. Marcel really needs to be put in his place.

"Have you visited Harry's office, yet?" Marcel asks him, nonchalant as ever.

"No." Edward shakes his head. "I've been planning to, but work is piling up and I never had the chance."

"I already did."

"How was it like?"

"He has a huge painting of Louis on his wall." Marcel's touch becomes more insistent, determined.

Edward grips his fork a little tighter. "Marcel." He warns.

His brother blinks at him, pretending he doesn't know what's going on. "What is it, Edward?"

"I will poke your eye out, I swear to God."

Marcel rolls his eyes. "How immature." But he retracts his foot, and Edward can finally breathe again.

"Thank you." Edward mutters, his body visibly relaxing.

It amuses Marcel enough to make him chuckle, looking at his brother with nothing but fond. "How was work today?"

Edward shrugs. "Just the same as always." He pauses. "Well, I realised that Sarah is really a big help and I really couldn't get anything done without her, so I'm thinking of giving her a raise."

"That's good." Marcel agrees. "She deserves it. She works really hard. Very loyal, that one is."

"You're right." Edward nods. "I'll let her know tomorrow. And I think I'll give the others a raise too, see where it fits."

"Or you can just give everyone a raise." Marcel shrugs, proposing the idea. "I mean, it wouldn't hurt." He leans back in his seat, meeting Edward's gaze. "This year has been good to us, money-wise, so there's no harm in giving back to others."

"Yeah." Edward smiles. "I'll talk to Finance."

"Good."

Edward clears his throat, wiping his napkin against his mouth. "When is your book launch again?"

Marcel groans at the reminder. "In a few weeks."

"And?"

"It's been stressing me out." Marcel admits.

"You are always stressed out about book launches." Edward chuckles as he makes the accusation. "It'll be fine. You know that."

"I know.."

"Besides, the worst thing that could happen is that no one wants to buy your book, and which, is not even that bad of a case." Edward ignores the glare Marcel sends him. "And if that happens, I will buy all of your books so you will still have sales."

Edward bursts into laughter when Marcel kicks him in the shin.

"Prat." The youngest triplet mumbles.

"Baby, you know I'm joking." Edward leans forward a bit. "You have a big group of supporters. I know they are dying to meet you and have you sign their books." After briefly thinking, he adds, "or boobs."

Marcel kicks him again.

---

"That was nice." Edward says as they walk back to their car, shoulders brushing. "Thank you for the date."

"No problem." Marcel replies, sending Edward a wide smile.

They slow down as they reach the car, the car is unlocked but none of them makes any move to get inside. Instead, Edward crowds into Marcel's space until his brother is pressed against the vehicle, their mouths connecting in a passionate kiss that doesn't take long before it's heated.

His hands grip at Marcel's waist, keeping him pinned while he works Marcel's lips open with his mouth. There is a quiet gasping when Edward starts to roll his hips against his brother, and Marcel kisses him harder.

Everything gets more intense as his hands grab Edward's face and he's tilting his face so they'll fit better. Marcel is already thickening in his pants, their kiss causing his blood to race with desire while heat spreads through his whole body and making him more and more desperate with each press of Edward's lips against his own.

Marcel throws his head back when their mouths separate, panting as he tries to catch his breath while Edward starts kissing down his neck. He could get lost in it, the way his brother caress his skin with gentle lips and heated kisses. But not being caught up in their kiss anymore allows him to think clearer and it doesn't take him more than two seconds to realise they're in public and he should do something. Edward looks like he's about to ravish Marcel right there and then.

"Edward." He says, moaning when Edward bites onto his pulse point. "Fuck." Marcel gathers all of his strength to push his brother away so they wouldn't do something stupid like get arrested for fucking in public. "Home."

"Fuck." Edward blinks like he just had an epiphany. Marcel's pretty sure his brother forgot that they're outside. "Right, okay. Come on." His eyes are dark when he turns to Marcel again, and the younger Alpha almost got caught in a trance of how hot Edward looks right now. He couldn't dwell on it, though, because Edward has already pulled the door open and shoving Marcel inside.

Marcel tries not to fear for his life after Edward got in the driver seat and sped away. He doesn't look at the road, knowing how worked up both of them are. Instead, he pulls out his phone and ignores it when Edward curses and a pedestrian yells after them.

"They're going to watch a midnight movie." Marcel says after opening a message from Louis. He bites his lip as he looks at Edward. Both of them know what that means.

Edward steps harder on the pedal. "Good."

A shiver runs down Marcel's spine at Edward's low voice, quickly putting his phone away again. He settles in his seat with his hands under his thighs, trying to refrain from touching himself.

There is a tent on his crotch, one that isn't about to go down anytime soon. His head keeps repeating their snogging scene over and over again, and it eventually leads to images of Edward touching him all over, Edward leaving kisses on his body, Edward eating him out, Edward, Edward, Edward.

"Marcel." Edward growls, startling him out of his daydream. "If you keep saying my name like that, we're not going to make it home."

"Sorry." Marcel grunts. He tries not to think too much about his erection in between his legs. That would be taken care of the moment they get home. He just needs to control himself until they get there.

Upon arriving home, Marcel throws the door open even before the car hasn't fully stopped. It's not even parked in its designated spot, let alone properly, but he knows Edward couldn't bother with that now. They'll get someone to fix it later.

Edward appears in front of him all of a sudden, grabbing him by the thighs. His lips crash against Marcel, and the next thing Marcel knows, he's hoisted up and his brother is carrying him up the stairs.

He lets his eyes shut, trusting Edward to lead the way and not drop him. A moment later he's slammed against a wall, a moan escaping him and his eyes fluttering open. They're in the lift, Edward pulling back momentarily to press the button to the top floor.

When the doors shut, his lips are back on Marcel's.

"Gonna fuck you so good, baby." Edward groans into his mouth, the roll of his hips making Marcel lightheaded with how good it feels. The lift dings, and Edward pulls him away from the wall. The journey to their room is quite a struggle since both of them refuse to stop kissing, but they eventually get there.

Edward slams the door shut behind him, rushing to the bed and tossing Marcel onto it. He doesn't hesitate climbing over him, his palm finding Marcel's covered cock and rubbing over his bulge while he claims his brother's lips again.

The way Marcel moans into his mouth at the stimulation makes Edward's cock painful, and suddenly all these clothes feel restricting. He pulls back to take off his top, and Marcel's eyes rake down his torso with hunger. Though, he quickly moves to get undressed too or else Edward would tear everything off.

Soon enough, they're both naked on the bed. They're like a pair of magnets that couldn't separate for too long before they're all over each other again.

"You're gagging for it." Edward says from above him, smirking at Marcel's blown out eyes and the parting of his swollen lips.

"So are you." Marcel retorts, wrapping his legs around Edward's waist. His arms drag Edward down until Marcel can taste his mouth again, hands roaming everywhere while their cocks brush together in between them.

All of a sudden, Edward is grabbing Marcel's arms, gathering his wrists in one hand. He pulls back and smirks, his free hand reaching for a nipple and thumbing over it.

Marcel hisses at the touch, glaring at his brother. "Get on with it, Edward!"

"Fine." He rolls his eyes, releasing him and climbing off to reach for the bedside table where he grabs a bottle of lube from the drawer. Returning to sit in between Marcel's legs, he pops the lid off and coats his fingers with a generous amount so that he wouldn't have to top it up later.

Using one hand, Edward grips Marcel and flips him onto his front. The younger triplet rises onto his knees without any order, spreading his legs with his arse hanging in the air.

Edward bites down onto a cheek while he presses the pads of his fingers against Marcel's entrance. Marcel hisses at the sudden contact, but his body is familiar with it that he's pushing back into the touch without being aware of it.

"Want to eat you out." Edward says, circling his fingers around the rim.

"Later." Marcel grits out. He shoves his arse back. "Come on."

Edward considers disregarding that, considers diving in and taking what he wants. He knows Marcel won't say no once he gets Edward's tongue in his arse. But like Marcel said, that can still be done later.

He slides his pointer finger in, not slowing down until it's up to his knuckles. Marcel's back arches like a bow, a long, throaty moan filling the room while Edward starts pumping it in and out.

"Bloody Hell." Marcel complains. "I'm not Harry, slow down."

"Sorry, baby." Edward stills his finger, letting Marcel get used to it first. He presses another kiss on the bottom of Marcel's spine, a silent apology. "Just a bit excited."

"Me too." Marcel groans. "But slowly, please."

"Alright." He starts pumping again, much slower this time. The muscles along his brother's back visibly relax, making him lean forward to place another kiss on his shoulder.

Marcel smiles, turning his face so Edward could kiss him. It's an awkward angle, and the finger inside him has stopped. So, Marcel quickly disconnects their lips and presses his forehead against the mattress before wriggling his arse to prompt Edward to continue.

Deeming him ready, Edward inserts the second finger. He scissors them open, wanting to rush a bit. Most of his thinking are already happening in his cock. "You okay?"

Marcel hums.

Edward adds the third finger, and Marcel parts his legs open even more the moment he feels it at his entrance. He's panting harshly now, cock heavy in between his thighs. His hands are itching to touch himself, but he knows Edward would slap his hand away if he tried doing it.

Both of them know they can't wait any longer, so Edward pulls his fingers out soon enough to coat his cock with lube. He shoves his fingers back in to make sure Marcel's loose enough. And then he's kneeling behind Marcel, guiding his length to the warmth he's craving for.

"Ready?"

Marcel lets out a choked moan, pushing his hips back.

Edward takes a deep breath before he moves, pushing inside inch by inch. It's been a long time, so it's not surprising how good it feels like. He has to take several deep breaths when he's fully buried inside Marcel, the grip around his cock so warm and tight that he's struggling to keep his eyes open.

"Edward. Edward." Marcel strains out, knuckles wrapped around the sheet. He has a side of his face pressed on the bed, contorted in pleasure with his eyes shut.

"Don't come."

Marcel makes a pained sound, but nods.

After letting Marcel accommodate to his size, Edward starts thrusting. It doesn't take long before he's fucking Marcel so hard that the bed is moving along with them. His blood races at the noises his brother screams into the night. The younger Alpha's shoulders are tensed, his thighs already trembling. His face is fully buried in the sheet now, but Edward can still hear him.

Edward groans when Marcel clenches around him, pressing his fists on either side of the body underneath him as he works his hips faster, rolling them in the way that makes Marcel go crazy. "Fucking Hell." He mutters, his eyes falling shut as he lets his body move as if it has a mind of its own.

Marcel can feel how close he is to his orgasm, but he doesn't want to fall over the edge just yet. It'd be too overwhelming for him to come now and take Edward's knot later. "Edward." He gasps at the jab against his prostate.

"God.." Edward moans, pushing forward until Marcel's elbows give up underneath him. And then he's trapped in between Edward and the bed. Fingers tangle in his hair only to tug hard. His cock is hard and heavy, swinging in between his thighs each time he's jostled forward.

The younger Alpha is whining now, trying not to come. It's hard to do that when Edward moves like he's trying to rip it out of him.

"Don't come." Edward warns again, as if he can read Marcel's mind.

Marcel shakes his head. "I, I don't know if I can."

Edward groans, but he does stop and pull out to give his brother a break. His hand pumps himself quickly while he lets Marcel catch his breath. "Look at you." He murmurs, thumbing his slit and hissing at the touch. Marcel is already limp on the bed, legs still spread wide open and shaking from his effort not to come.

A second later, Edward is manhandling him onto his back. Marcel groans, but he lets himself be bent into two, his own knees pressing to his shoulders before he feels Edward's cock pushing back into him.

"Oh, fuck!" Marcel throws his head back, body jerking with every thrust that punches a noise out of his throat. Edward stares at him, basks in the way his brother reacts to every drag of his cock. It feeds his ego.

"Are you close?" He asks, reaching down to grab a hold of Marcel's cock.

Marcel's response is a weak attempt to swat Edward away, but his cock is already pulsing and shooting strings of come across his chest before his fingers could even graze Edward's hand.

Edward grunts as he fucks him through it, Marcel shouting when the growing knot is starting to catch onto his rim. He yelps when Edward shoves it in once it pops, both of them shuddering at the feeling.

"Fucckkkk." Marcel grits out, Edward' cock an unrelenting force against his prostate.

His brother eventually collapses on top of him, and Marcel's frail arms shake as they move to wrap around his figure. Their chests rise and fall, waiting for the effect of their orgasms to fade away.

Edward finds his lips easily, his touch gentle and loving now while calloused fingers run up and down his skin in a smooth, light motion that prompts goosebumps.

Marcel moans softly at the way Edward is filling him up with his come. It's always overwhelming, and Marcel could never get used to it.

"Alright?" Edward whispers in his ear, stroking his face.

Marcel knows he has the scrunched up look, trying not to dwell too much on the discomfort. He relaxes a little, leaning into Edward. "'M fine."

Edward nuzzles his face and tightens his hold. It makes Marcel's heart skip a beat, and a smile blooms on his face at the touch. When Edward speaks, he can feel his brother's breath against his skin. "Did I hurt you?"

"No." Marcel shakes his head, shifting a bit and hisses when it causes Edward's knot to tug at his rim.

"Stay still, idiot."

He huffs when Edward pulls back to give him a pointed look. "Just wanted to get comfortable."

Edward's face soften, and the look makes Marcel's breath catch. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be." Marcel whispers, hugging him close. "Love you."

"Love you too." Edward murmurs with a kiss on his shoulder. "Should be down in a few minutes."

Marcel chuckles. "Your cock is cute, thinking it could breed me."

"Well, other Alphas only fuck Omegas, in case it didn't get through your thick head."

Edward's retort only brings out loud laughter from Marcel.

Once Edward's knot finally deflates, he slowly pulls out of Marcel. He keeps his eyes on where they're connected as he does so, and his cock can't help but twitch again at the sight of come dribbling out of his brother's sore hole.

Marcel notices how Edward is still hard, and he feels a bit self-conscious to have Edward stare at him there so intensely regardless of how interesting Edward finds the sight is.

Without a word, his brother is pushing back into him.

"Edward." He chokes out, his limp cock giving a weak twitch but his hand is on Edward's shoulder.

"Let's go again." Edward says, already balls deep.

Marcel pants, shutting his eyes while he gives it a thought. Thankfully, Edward stays still to let him decide. "Hurts." Is the only thing he says.

Marcel feels empty right away, and then Edward is cuddling him. "Sorry." He says again.

"Could suck you." Marcel offers, feeling bad for denying him since he can see how hard Edward is.

Edward smiles at him, shaking his head. "Let's just take a bath."

It takes them a while before they're fully willing to get out of bed. Marcel starts the water while Edward takes a cold shower to get rid of his boner. But it all goes to waste because Marcel still rides him in the tub later on.

When Harry and Louis enter the bedroom two hours later, they find Edward and Marcel already asleep.

"They fucked." Is the first thing Harry says when Louis closes the door behind him.

Louis raises his eyebrows as he looks at the Alphas on the bed and back at Harry. "How did you know?"

Harry's nose twitches. "Can smell it."

"Well, we did too." Louis points out, blushing as he does so. He has to remember to tell Harry to send the car for a thorough cleaning later.

"Yeah." Harry grins.

Louis leans forward to peck him. "I'm going to take a shower."

"Can I join you?"

The Omega rolls his eyes. "Okay, but no funny business!"

---

"I don't know what to give to you three." Louis complains.

Edward rolls his eyes from the sofa opposite him, reading the newspaper. "You don't have to."

"I want to." The Omega narrows his eyes. "But what do you give to someone who is rich enough to buy me and my family?"

"Always overdramatic." Marcel sighs.

"I'm serious, alright!"

"We know you are, baby." It's Harry who approaches him, folding his arms around Louis and kissing his cheek to calm him down. "We need nothing but you."

Louis burrows himself down in Harry's embrace, trying to make himself smaller as if he wasn't already small enough. "I feel useless. I have nothing to offer you on your birthday."

"You know that's nonsense." Edward scolds.

"Don't invalidate my feelings!"

"I'm not." Edward groans. He puts the newspaper down and clutches at his temples. "It's just a fucking birthday."

"Well, you were the one who bought me a bloody car for my birthday." Louis peeks his head out from beneath Harry's chin to glare at the Alpha. Then he hides in Harry's chest again.

Edward makes an annoyed sound. "It was Marcel's idea."

"Jesus Christ." Marcel puts down the nail clipper he was using. "Why are we fighting about this?"

"Ask your Omega."

"I'm yours too, dickhead." Louis almost shouts.

"For fuck's sake!" Marcel booms. It gets everyone to shut up. "Could you two grow up?"

Louis huffs.

"Louis.." Marcel's voice is soft when he starts again. "The fact that you are with us for this birthday is already a present itself. We don't need anything else."

Harry hums his agreement. "He's right."

"You even said it yourself." Edward supplies. "We could buy anything we want. You don't exactly have much choice."

"Not helping." Marcel tells him.

"What if you give us something that other people can't?" Harry suggests.

"A blowjob."

Louis looks like he's ready to jump out of Harry's arms and stab Edward right there and then, so Marcel quickly intervenes.

"Honestly, Lou. We will appreciate whatever you give us."

Louis sags where he sits. "Isn't there anything you'd want from me?"

The question prompts his Alphas to fall silent, and when Louis realises why, curiosity bubbles up inside him. Each of them are staring at each other with a knowing look, and Louis knows that they do have something they'd want from him.

"Tell me." Louis says.

Edward's eyes meet his, and the Alpha smiles. "Nah. We don't want that for our birthday. Maybe something else."

Harry and Marcel chuckle, and the arms around Louis tighten.

"Mean." Louis pouts.

"Okay, let's just agree to disagree on this." Marcel brings them back to the topic at hand. "A simple gesture like a wish is already enough. You don't have to go above and beyond."

Louis sighs heavily. "I guess that birthday blowjob will do."

"I agree wholeheartedly." Edward nods, all serious and thoughtful.

It's such a simple reaction, but it makes Louis smile all the same. "After all, you are obsessed with me. Maybe I could use that to my advantage."

"See? Our Omega is brilliant, knew he'd figure that out." Marcel teases.

---

When the triplets wake up on their birthday to Louis in cat ears with a tail butt plug, they know it's the first of many amazing birthday celebrations to come.

It's already the best birthday ever.

---

"Do you give to charity?" Louis randomly asks one day. They're having lunch on a Saturday, and it was mostly comfortable silence until Louis asked the question. "I mean, you have the money and all..."

Harry nods. "Yeah. Every year."

"Oh, good." Louis' heart warms at the response. "What do you mostly donate to?"

"A lot of things, really." Marcel replies, his eyes unfocused as he tries to recall some of them. "We mostly gave to single mothers last year."

Louis really got the best Alphas for himself. "Do you go and see them, then? The people you give to?"

Edward shakes his head, clearing his throat. "We just help from financial aspect for the most part, so we have someone handle the rest of the process. We don't really want it being traced back to us."

Louis widens his eyes. "Why not?"

Edward just shrugs.

"Why did you ask? Do you have any suggestion?" Marcel asks.

"Well..." Louis trails off. "I was thinking, like, if we can donate to the orphans, especially children and stuff. Would be good."

The Alphas share a worried look, and Harry instantly stops eating. Edward leans forward in his chair, settling Louis with a look the Omega could not comprehend. "Lou..." He starts. "Is this about...."

"No." Louis rushes to say it, meeting his eyes with a convincing look. "It's not about them. I just, I just want to."

Edward leans back. "Okay." He still eyes the Omega warily. "How much do you need, then?"

"How much do you want to give?" Louis beats back.

Harry raises his hand, as if they're in a classroom. Once all of them turn to him, he speaks up. "I was thinking about it, too. But like, was just a thought." His eyebrows furrow up like how they always get whenever he's thinking. "What if we have a focus every year to what cause we're donating to?"

Marcel hums in agreement. "That's a good idea. It's better to stick to one rather than have them all scattered and not knowing how they're doing later on."

"You want to make direct contact?" Edward stares at Harry. "The press might get a hold of this, you have to keep that in mind."

Louis frowns. "But isn't that good? If you bring attention to the cause? Other people might join in too, especially since Harry is highly influential."

"Thank you. I've been trying to say that right from the beginning." Harry huffs.

Edward rolls his eyes. "What's for this year, then?"

"How much do we plan to give away this year?"

"Around twenty, I think."

Louis awkwardly stares at them. "Twenty? Thousand?" That amount is quite low for someone with their wealth, so he thinks he can be excused for the disbelief in his tone.

Marcel shakes his head distractedly. "Millions." He replies, dropping the matter. Then he turns to Harry. "Do you remember that children's home you wanted to give to last year but you couldn't remember where you put the brochure?"

"Yeah, what about it?" Harry has continued eating.

"Millions." Louis whispers to himself. Whatever the Alphas are saying fly right over his head. His eyes are wide open, hands frozen where he's dropped his cutlery.

"I think Marcel is trying to suggest that we focus on children's homes this year." Edward supplies. "That's a good place to start since Lou wants to see the kids, anyway."

"Sounds good." Harry agrees, then turns to his Omega. His gaze also prompts the rest of the Alphas to do the same. "What do you think, Lou?"

"Millions!" He blurts out at the sudden attention. "You give out millions every year?!"

It's in sync when all of the Alphas let out a long, heavy sigh before leaning back in their chairs. Marcel starts shaking his head, dragging his palm down his face. "Lou... no.."

"If we can spend millions of pounds per year for other things, why not for charity?" Harry is tilting his head thoughtfully, and if Louis wasn't so caught up in this, he would've taken the time to admire how precious his Alpha looks.

Edward chuckles quietly to himself. "You're adorable, Omega."

"Give him a break, he just doesn't understand yet." Harry says, coming to his defence, though he, too, has that amused smirk on his face.

The rest of the Alphas make sounds of agreement under their breaths, but offer no further explanation. Louis glares at them in betrayal when they give him their shitty grins and continue with lunch again.

---

"Okay, Lou." Marcel sits him down that evening when the Omega keeps complaining that they left him hanging. "We've never really went into it, but I think you have the right to know."

Louis crosses his arms and legs where he sits opposite the Alpha, an angry look on his face. He's even got a little pout which ruins the whole thing. He just looks like a pissed off kitten; cute and harmless. "Yes, I believe I do."

"I think even a blind man could see that we're quite, um, comfortable." Marcel chuckles when Louis scoffs at that, but he continues. "Well, I'm not sure if you understand just how... comfortable we are." The Alpha scratches at his head. "Basically, we could give out twenty millions per year for the next hundred years and we still would have more to spare."

Louis' arms fall back to his sides. "Really?"

"Yeah." Marcel confirms with a bashful smile, reaching out to take Louis' hands.

"Okay, continue please."

"Our grandfather was really wealthy and he left us so much that we don't really know what to do with it. On top of that, we have our investments and all of us have occupations that pay well, obviously, so it just keeps multiplying every year, really." Marcel sighs, as if having that much money is a burden to him. Louis sort of wants to slap him for that. "Even though our tax is really high, we still have a lot at the end of the day. And it doesn't really sit well with us, having this much money that didn't even come from our effort. That's why we aren't really concerned about the amount. Harry said that from that much money we have, inherited or gained, it's impossible that some of it aren't actually meant for others; those that need it, deserve it more than we do."

If it could happen, Louis would have heart emojis flying out of his eyes. He's so, so fond of his Alphas. He can see it in Marcel's eyes, how genuine and pure he is. Every single cell in his body is tingling, and it makes Louis feel undeserving to be here, to be able to call this Alpha sitting on front of him as his. "Are you real?" He has to wonder, laughing when Marcel gives him a look. "I just, that's, that's so noble, Marcel. Wow."

"Really? Edward called us a bunch of twats when we made it into paper for donating too much a few years back." Marcel chuckles.

"Edward really wants to keep things anonymous, eh?" Oh no, Louis' fond has multiplied.

Marcel nods. "He never really liked press attention. Said that it's better if people didn't know that we were the ones who donated it. It'd make everything more sincere." The Alpha's expression says that he's just as fond as Louis is. "He just doesn't want us to forget why we give in the first place. Imagine how tragic it would be if we let it get to our head and start donating just for the sake of temporary fame?"

Louis sighs in contentment, getting up from his seat so he could straddle Marcel's lap. He shamelessly wriggles his arse. "I really have the most perfect Alphas."

"The most perfect Alphas for you." Marcel agrees, his arms circling Louis' petite body. His cock is twitching beneath the Omega, unable to be in contact with him without having some sort of reaction.

"Yes. So perfect, so kind, so handsome. So rich." He whimpers when Marcel starts brushing his nose down his cheek.

"Would you slap me if I offered to fuck you on a pile of money?"

Louis pauses, pulling back and giving Marcel a glare. "People are starving, Marcel."

The Alpha removes his hands so he could lift them up. "I guess that's not happening, then."

An idea pops in Louis' head and he smirks. "You can fuck me in your Ferrari, though. If you want."

Marcel's groan is already an answer. "You're not backing out of this."

"Get your keys, you animal."

---

They try to make it as discreet as possible despite making direct contact. Louis tries to gather as much information as he can about the number of children's homes near them. He eventually comes to the number of 25 homes.

After a lengthy discussion with his Alphas, they decided to visit only three of them. Edward had to put his foot down when they were discussing that. Louis wanted to visit all of them, but Edward didn't want Louis to hold on to his feelings.

He knows that his Omega is doing this to spend as much time as he can with the children that have no parents as if to make it up to their unborn pups. That's actually a healthy way to channel his frustration and emptiness, but Edward fears that Louis would cling to the temporary reassurance instead of accepting that their children are gone and it wasn't his fault. He is not a bad mother just because he lost them.

Louis knows it too, which is why he doesn't protest when Edward made the decision.

---

The first home they go to is somewhere in the outskirts of the city, forty minutes away from them. They're travelling in the rover, Harry driving with Louis sitting in the passenger seat. Edward and Marcel are in the back, the former on his phone while Marcel is content to stare out of the window.

Since they're visiting, they also rang up a good caterer to treat the children to some good food. The home owner had already been contacted and everything will be ready by the time they arrive.

Louis can't stop moving in his seat, excited at the thought of meeting the children. He keeps gushing to Harry about how the kids would be like. "What if they don't like me?" Louis wonders aloud when they finally reach the home, a big bungalow that looks very old but homey.

"Ridiculous." Marcel scoffs. "They'll love you."

Louis is torn between being nervous and excited as all of them climb off the car. Though he's eventually leaning more towards the latter.

As they walk up to the home, they are greeted by a woman who looks to be in her late forties. She smiles at them, bright and welcoming. "Hello, thank you so much for being here today." She reaches out to Louis for a handshake. "I'm Rita, we talked on the phone."

Louis beams. "Lovely to meet you, Rita. Thank you for letting us do this."

"No." She softens. "Thank you. Whatever benefits the children, I'm all for it."

Louis' heart warms at that. He knows she must be a great caretaker for the kids. Not wanting to waste any moment, he gestures to the triplets. "These are my Alphas."

"Hello."

"Pleasure."

"Nice to meet you."

"The pleasure's mine." Each of them shares a handshake with Rita before returning to Louis' side. Behind her are four young Betas, and she prompts them to step forward to introduce them. "These are my assistants, Betty, Fiona, Holly, and Jenna."

"Hi." Louis nods, smiling.

"Everything is ready. The children are waiting for you, they're very excited. Why don't we go inside?" Rita says, clasping her hands together.

"Yes, please."

When they walk in, it's into a very wide hall with a lot of sofas pressed up against the walls. The middle of the hall is left empty but decorated with a big carpet. Louis gasps when he sees the amount of children waiting. They're scattered on the sofas, on the floor. Most of them are playing with each other, giggling and some of them even rolling on the carpet. They are of many ages, but he can see that most of them are probably around seven to twelve years old.

"Our eldest are Megan and Christine, 15 and 18 respectively." Rita says, then her face falls. "Sadly, we have many people leaving babies at our door, so we have five newborns and eight toddlers."

"How is your financial management every month?" Edward wonders, his eyes taking in the sight of the children who have fallen a bit quiet at their presence.

"The state does have provisions for a children's home like ours but most of the time it's barely enough." Rita sighs. "The children here are mostly results from rape cases. Some of the mothers handed them over to us personally but most of them were just left on our doorstep."

"I hope what we'll chip in would relief some of your financial burdens." Marcel replies, offering her a reassuring smile.

"You definitely will." She retaliates with a grateful nod. Then she claps her hands. "Come on, children! Let's meet our guests."

Louis will never forget how he feels when the children crowd up to them with inexplicable excitement, shaking his hand and asking for his name. His Alphas are surrounded too, and Louis beams when he sees that even Edward turns to mush from the little ones' attention.

Soon enough they are to begin lunch, and Louis lets the little ones tug at his hand while they move from the hall to another equally big one that houses a lot of banquet tables that it reminds Louis of their ballroom. There are enough tables for all of them, so Louis takes his seat with the group of children he's made friends with.

He's too content to see them happy while they eat that he doesn't feel hungry at all. So he sits there and entertain their questions and stories. They're all so curious and excited to have visitors that the things they want to ask are endless.

Louis finds it heart-warming that Rita has provided such a lovely home and family for these children. All of them are so close to each other. He's also glad to see that most of their basic necessities are fulfilled and they live comfortably even if a lot of things are barely enough.

He plays with them, giving as much hugs and attention as he can to each and every child he talks to. For the moment, he almost forgets that he came with his Alphas. All he can think of is the children, their high, happy voices talking animatedly to him while he watches them colouring after lunch. They tell him about their drawings, about what they like, their daily routines, and Louis listens to all of it.

God, he wants to be able to sit down with his children and hear them babble about their days and what they like and what they hate. He wants that so much.

Rita takes them to see the babies after that, and Louis' heart is beating wildly in his chest as he and his Alphas follow her to the room where the little ones are sleeping.

There is a queen bed pushed on one side of the wall and three cots placed near the bed. Louis can see that two of the cots hold two babies while the other one only has one baby.

Louis is already melting at the sight of the sleeping babies, cooing softly while he stares. He feels a hand on his arm and looks up to see Edward smiling at him. It looks strained, but Louis isn't going to ruin this visit by dwelling on that.

Rita lets them pick the babies up, and Louis is so captured looking at his Alphas with babies that he almost forgets to pick one up himself. Even once he's seated on the bed still cooing at the baby in his hold, he keeps glancing at his Alphas.

He's so overwhelmed at the sight of Edward and Marcel chuckling to themselves about something as they look at the baby in Marcel's hold, and Harry is at the corner, talking in a low voice to the little one in his hold.

His Alphas could probably feel his emotions, but he's glad that they don't point it out. Though, he notices Edward occasionally glancing at him to make sure he's okay.

Louis wonders how one could give away their own child. But he also knows that sometimes the babies come from unwanted circumstances and keeping them would be like holding on to traumatising reminders. Not to mention that most of them are not in a state to have a baby. He can understand why leaving them at the children's home could be the only way out. At least they're safe and loved.

Louis believes in Rita. She will do her best to provide the children with as much as she can, and he silently thanks his Alphas for being able to help her with that even only in the form of financial support.

---

The second one they went to mostly homes teenagers compared to little children. Despite taking some time before opening up to him, Louis had fun with them. He and his Alphas were delighted to find out that lunch was prepared by the teenagers themselves. The money the triplets provided for catering has been used to buy the ingredients needed.

The fact that they actively seek his advice once they're comfortable with him put him in his maternal mode and Louis has the strongest urge to protect them from the harsh challenges of the world.

Louis tried to give everyone his attention, and he's happy to know that they enjoyed the visit as much as he did. Even though there's less than a decade of gap between his age and some of them, Louis still feels like they're babies that need proper care and love. He gave as much of those as he can.

He has had so much thoughts over the visits, but only one of them stood out.

Louis wants a baby.

The first time it crossed his mind was when he visited the last home. The little ones were much like the ones at Rita's, so enthusiastic and all over him. They were a bit more touchy, always clinging onto him, hugging him. Louis finds it adorable that they're so comfortable around him from the get go.

He was just watching them play, running around with each other before one ran towards him for protection but all of them were also instantly upon him that they just ended up in a giggling mess on the floor.

It was then, as Louis started tickling the closest kid to him and prompting startled giggles to ring in the air that the thought ran through his head.

God, I want a baby.

It had startled him, then. Even more so when the child in his arms accidentally blurted out something in between his giggles that made Louis' heart kick start. "Mummy, no."

The kid probably didn't even realise what he said, only grinning even wider at Louis when the Omega stopped his tickling. Then, Louis got a heart-warming hug from a pair of tiny arms, and a sloppy kiss landed on his cheek. Louis almost cried on the spot.

Since the homes, Louis' awareness also has been heightened that he would always notice whenever there is a child around, especially babies. He'd grown so fond seeing people with their babies whenever he went out.

This morning itself, he almost ran into a pole because he was staring at a couple with a five year old. The parents held her hands while they walked, and the little girl looked so happy that he can't stop imagining having additions to his own little family.

He's currently seated opposite Niall, both of them at a restaurant somewhere in the city. Niall had called him early in the morning to ask if he wanted to have a lunch date. Louis realised that he never spends time with Niall anymore, so he didn't hesitate to agree.

Niall has brought Heather along, the little girl settled in a high chair with her stroller parked next to it. Meeting up with Niall and seeing him taking care of his daughter makes him so fond. Especially when his friend keeps scolding the little girl whenever she makes a mess. Heather only giggles every time Niall tells her off, the sight of her Mummy's angry face – albeit only feigned – is amusing to her.

He's so overwhelmed with emotions as he looks at Heather, her chubby arms flying everywhere in the air and her high pitched giggles ringing every now and then makes him want to burst. Without realising it, the words are falling out of his mouth. "I want a baby."

Niall's eyes lazily flick to him, and then back to his daughter. He makes a disgusted sound when Heather purposely spits out her food. Niall sighs heavily as he grabs some tissues before responding to Louis. "Okay. Wonder what's stopping you." He murmurs as he wipes the spilled food off of Heather's pink dress.

Niall's response calms the horrified thoughts in Louis that were about to surface.

Niall's right. What's stopping him? The only thing preventing him from having a baby is himself.

"Oh." Louis breathes out, blinking rapidly.

Niall gives him a wary look. "Are you okay, Lou?"

"I want a baby." The Omega says again, more certain this time.

"Yeah, you said that." Niall's face contorts, holding back his laughter.

Louis waits for the part of him that would freak out, the guilt that would ensue, pulling him deeper into the mess that stops him from fully moving on. But surprisingly, none of them comes.

He thinks of his past pregnancy, dreading the horrible feeling in his stomach. But that doesn't make a show either.

"Ni.." Louis starts, eyes widening. He doesn't know what he's feeling. Relieved? Scared? Horrified?

His hand goes to his necklace, and he holds it tightly. There's a fluttery feeling in his chest, one that isn't all pleasant. But Louis knows that the sensation will always come whenever he thinks of his unborn triplets, no matter how long into the future. But all his loud, horrible thoughts have been reduced to that, a single, fluttery emotion within him.

And Louis knows right there and then, that he's properly ready to move on.

"Ni, I want a baby!" Louis almost screams in enthusiasm, already over his epiphany.

Niall huffs, giving him an exasperated look. "Really, Louis. This is the third time you've said that."

Louis bites on his lower lip. "I know, I'm sorry. I just, I just can't wait to have a baby."

"Making them is the most fun part." Niall winks. Then he pretends to roll his eyes when Heather gurgles beside him. "Taking care of them, not so much."

"Don't be a twat, Ni! She's your everything." Louis laughs, growing soft at the way Niall looks at his daughter.

"Damn right she is." Niall sighs out, as if frustrated by that fact. "Stop growing so fast!" He points a finger at his daughter, faking a glare.

Heather giggles, grabbing his finger and putting it into her small bowl.

Louis is already howling with laughter when Niall shrieks as his finger is dipped into baby food.

---

"Hurry up, Marcel!" Louis whimpers when Marcel is a few paces behind him. "You're so slow."

The Alpha gives him a reprimanding look, one that makes Louis grin. He stops in his track to wait for his Alpha to catch up with him. His right hand is holding his ice cream, already halfway eaten while Marcel's is barely touched. Louis holds out his free hand and lets Marcel tangle their fingers once they're side by side.

"What are you so excited about, darling?" Marcel asks, cannot resist dropping a sweet kiss on his lips.

Louis refuses to let him pull back, leaning forward and catching his lips before he giggles. "I'm always excited when I'm with you."

Marcel shakes his head, fond. "I think it's the sugar rush."

"Maybe." The Omega sing-songs in response.

They continue walking, hands clasped tightly and swinging back and forth between them. Louis is humming softly under his breath, a clear sign he's in a good mood. It makes Marcel smile.

By the time they arrive at the restaurant they're having lunch at, it's almost a little crowded. Though, Marcel's booking guarantees their seats and they get their table immediately. The Alpha makes his way to the loo to wash his hands, leaving Louis alone at the table while he scans his menu.

After making his choice, Louis folds the menu and leans back in his chair. He glances around the restaurant, looking at the people and the interior design. His eyes eventually land on a pregnant Omega sitting a few tables away from him. In an instant, Louis is smiling.

The pregnant Omega is getting up from his chair, but before he could even take a step forward, his mate is by his side. Louis could relate when he sees how wide the smile on the Omega's face is upon seeing his mate. That's exactly his face whenever he looks at any of his Alphas.

But what makes him happiest is the big bump on his middle, stretching his jumper forward. He looks gorgeous and glowing, walking slowly with his hand under his belly while the mate leads him to the counter to pay.

Louis can feel Marcel sliding back into his seat, but he doesn't take his eyes away from the expecting couple. He can't wait to have that one day, to walk everywhere with one hand on his belly and one hand on his back, to complain about swollen feet and cravings. It's inevitable to feel a bit of jealousy in his chest, looking at them.

"Love." Marcel calls, and Louis finally looks at him. The Alpha has a weird look on his face, and he briefly glances at Louis' subject of attention before turning back to him. "Have you decided what you want to order?"

Louis nods, telling Marcel what he wants. Then his eyes find the couple again, and the smile already plastered on his face grows wider. He probably looks like a loon and a creep.

"Darling, it's rude to stare." Marcel reminds him, a hand covering Louis' own on the table.

The Omega shakes his head, giving his Alpha a sheepish grin. "Right."

Marcel squeezes his hand, then calls for a waiter. After making their order, he looks at his watch and tilts his head at Louis. "We have around two hours before the film. What do you want to do to pass the time?"

"Let's take a walk."

"Okay." Marcel nods, taking Louis' hand again and brushing his lips across the Omega's knuckles.

It causes a tinge of pink on Louis' cheeks, but he doesn't pull his hand away. "What'd you do that for?" He asks, trying to suppress his blush.

Marcel's crooked smirk causes a jump in his heart despite the Alpha's nonchalant reply. "No reason."

The meal at the restaurant is delicious, but once everything is finished, they don't hesitate to get going.

Louis has an arm around Marcel's elbow as they walk, both of them engaged in an animated chatter. Though, Louis' words trail off all of a sudden, happening at the same time as the decrease in his pace. Eventually he comes to a stop, bringing Marcel with him while he stares at the store they've stopped in front.

"Lou, what's go-" The words die in Marcel's throat the moment he sees what the sign says. He clears his throat, loosening the hold Louis has around his elbow in favour of taking the Omega's hand in his. "Come on, love."

Louis frowns when he's being tugged away from the baby shop, but he doesn't protest. Instead he just glares at Marcel as they continue on their way. None of them talks after that.

When they arrive at the cinema, Louis gets excited to watch the film but not enough to forget about the act Marcel pulled just now. "I want popcorn." He says, more to himself, as he pulls his wallet out.

But Marcel glares at the object as if it's the reincarnation of Satan. "Baby, I'm paying."

Louis rolls his eyes, already shoving the wallet back into his pocket. "Right."

The Alpha chuckles, wrapping an arm around Louis' waist and claiming his lips. "You know I love spoiling you."

The Omega sighs as he's released, taking a step back and waving his hand. He stands facing away from Marcel. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Marcel's face falls a little at his reaction, but he says nothing else as he goes to buy them some drinks and popcorn.

Louis offers him a smile when he returns, but Marcel can spot that fake smile from miles away. He doesn't point it out, just shoves the drinks into Louis' hands and leads him into the cinema.

Louis is upset with him, Marcel can tell. Usually the Omega would be talking his ear off, but this time he's quiet. He still looks so cute sipping on his drink while the trailers roll, but Marcel feels like Louis wouldn't appreciate it if he pointed it out.

A loud gurgle comes from the speaker, and then a trailer of a baby-centric film starts playing.

Marcel hears a delighted coo comes from beside him and turns to see his Omega beaming at the screen. He can feel how happy is Omega is from the giggles and mumbles that fills the cinema hall. But the moment he detects the slightest sorrow in the Omega's emotions, his hand is reaching out and grabbing Louis' shoulder.

He knows it takes Louis by surprise when their lips meet, but Marcel is pushing his tongue past the Omega's lips before Louis could react. He feels Louis melting against him, and then Louis is kissing him back. It doesn't last long. The Omega is already tensing up and shoving him away before they could get into it.

The screen is showing a different trailer.

Louis sits with his back to Marcel for the whole film.

---

Marcel sighs, resisting the urge to slam his forehead against the steering wheel.

Louis is sulking in the passenger seat. He's still not facing him, his arms crossed while he looks out of the window. The moment the film ended, Louis had stormed out without waiting for his Alpha. Even as they walked back together towards the car, Louis had refused to take his hand. He didn't utter a single word.

"Baby.." Marcel starts. "I'm sorry."

"No, you're not." Louis says, clipped. "You're only saying that because you don't want me to be upset with you."

Marcel is ashamed to admit that Louis is right. "Is there anything I can do?"

Louis doesn't reply.

"Lou, please."

"Just drive home, Marcel." Louis huffs, and that puts a stop to it.

The Alpha complies, turning the volume of the radio up as he pulls the car out of the parking lot.

---

Louis wants a baby.

He can't stop thinking about it. It's driving him crazy. He wants to get pregnant. He wants his Alphas to fuss over him while he carries their babies. He wants little ones running around the house, wants to see and hold and kiss them. He can't stop thinking about how they'd look like, who they'd look like.

And it's making him miserable that he's the only one having that kind of thoughts in the house.

So, Louis doesn't do much thinking anymore as he pads away to Edward's office where his Alpha is doing work. Edward has taken the day off today, but he still has some things he needs to look at so he's spending time in his office.

He knocks once, but doesn't wait for Edward's approval before he enters. Thankfully, Edward is not on his phone and he doesn't look too busy.

"Alpha.." Louis calls softly as he stops in the middle of the room.

"Yes, Kitten?" Edward glances up for a second before turning back to work.

Louis takes that as an invitation, so he walks until he reaches the desk. "Can we talk?"

Edward nods, abandoning his computer screen to stare at his Omega. "What is it, love?"

Louis takes a deep breath. "I want to talk, about us."

Edward raises his eyebrows, his eyes casting sideways to recall if anything seemed off or if there's anything important they need to discuss. He comes up with none. "What about us?"

"I want to talk about us.." Louis restarts. "...having a baby."

In an instant, Edward has grown to his feet. And then Louis finds himself being engulfed into a hug and Edward's lips pressing at his hair. "Lou, we don't have to talk about that."

"But I want to. I jus-"

Edward shaking his head sadly halts Louis' speech, and the Alpha hugs him tighter. "The time will come for us when we're ready." He says, kissing Louis' forehead.

Louis melts into his hug. He wants to talk about it because he's ready, but he forgot to take into account that his Alphas might not be. His arms rise to wrap around his Alpha too, and he inhales everything that is Edward. "Okay." He replies. "Okay."

---

"Harry, do you like children?"

The Alpha gives him an incredulous look. "You know I love children, why would you ask me that?"

Louis shrugs from his spot. "Just asking. What about Edward and Marcel?"

Harry lowers the volume of the TV, wanting to pay full attention to Louis. "They love children too. You know that."

The Omega crawls across the sofa so he could lie down with his head on Harry's lap, grinning up at him. "Do you see us having a family in the future?"

Something flickers in his expression, and he hesitates to answer Louis' question. "Well, of course."

Louis doesn't let it deter him, grabbing Harry's hand and kissing his palm. "How soon do you think the future could be?"

"When we're all ready..." Harry says, avoiding his eyes. He's choosing his words carefully, wary.

Louis's face falls, and he sits up with an intense stare at his Alpha. "Are you not ready, babe?"

Harry shakes his head, looking at him again. "It's not that. I just, let's just, I don't think we should talk about that so soon, yeah?"

"I just want to know if you're not ready." Louis says. "I'd understand."

The Alpha sighs, a heavy sound. He clamps his eyes shut, taking a deep breath. "Are you?" His green eyes appear again. "Are you ready?"

Louis frowns, taken aback. "I wouldn't ask if I wasn't."

"Isn't it too soon? I mean.." Harry looks lost for a moment.

The Omega gulps. "You think it's too soon."

"We just.. we just don't want you to rush into it."

"We?" The way Harry's eyes widen in panic just confirms Louis' guess. He laughs out loud, a humourless sound that makes his Alpha flinch. "Is that why they've been refusing to talk to me about it too?"

Harry's giving him the puppy eyes now, slowly reaching out for him. "Lou..."

The Omega slaps it away. "Don't, Harry. Just don't." He pinches the bridge of his nose. "You're supposed to be on my side."

"You know it's not that, Lou."

"Is it so fucking hard to ask to check up on me?" He stares at Harry with narrowed eyes. "Do you have a meeting and discuss if I'm feeling better instead of asking me?" He could cry when Harry looks away in shame.

"We're just worried if we said anything, it'd disturb your healing process."

"How would you know?!" Louis asks in disbelief. "How would you know when you refuse to be with me for it?"

Louis knows it's unfair that he's letting his anger out on Harry. But he's so taken off guard that his first reaction is to lash back.

When Harry doesn't say anything, Louis takes the time to breathe. Each of his breath comes out in a huff, and when he's still upset, Louis knows he needs to get away from Harry before he starts crying. He climbs onto his feet, taking another deep breath. "I'm going to bed."

Harry doesn't come after him.

---

Louis grumbles to himself, bitter. He's been trying to get his Alphas to talk to him about them having babies but stupid triplets keep dodging the question because they don't want Louis to be sad.

Despite his conversation with Harry, he's been trying to convey to his Alphas that he wants a baby for the past three weeks, even dropping hints like buying baby stuff and leaving it in random places just to get them interested but they just thought he's still caught up about his miscarriage and threw the stuff away. And the worst thing is, they still won't talk to him about it.

Louis admits it, he's still not fully over that. But at the same time he's ready to move on. His desire to be a mother doesn't stem from wanting to fill the vacancy his unborn children left him. He's ready for the next step of his life, to build a family with his Alphas and move on from his past. But his Alphas are really keen to think that Louis wanting babies is an unhealthy way of him trying to cope with his loss.

And whenever Louis wants to set the record straight, he could never be able to get the upper hand. It's always three against one and there's no way Louis is going to win that.

Stupid Alphas. What do they know? They've never been pregnant. Stupid. Louis hates them.

He glares at the birth control.

As much as he wants a baby, Louis doesn't want to decide for all of them. Having babies is a big decision that will lead to big changes and involvement and he wants his Alphas to truly want that.

He sighs, dejected. His heat will come in a few days, and most likely the Alphas' rut too.

Louis tells himself that it's fine, that by the next heat hopefully his Alphas would fuck him with the intention to impregnate him.

A shiver courses through him, and he smiles to himself at the mere thought. One could hope.

Louis pops one tablet out of the strip, letting it fall onto his palm before he's shoving it into his mouth. He's about to grab the glass to wash it down with water when a loud, high pitched scream echoes in the house and he chokes.

Louis gasps, the tablet stuck in his throat. The glass falls from his hand as he bends over, repeatedly slapping at his chest and trying to cough it out. It comes out soon enough, and Louis sucks in a huge breath. His hands are shaking, his vision a little blurry from his watery eyes.

What the fuck?

Louis is still coughing as he makes his way out of the pantry to find the source of scream. He wonders what's going on, couldn't help but let worry seep into his veins.

He finds three Betas in the living room, Rachel, Jess, and Paige. Rachel is seated on the floor, looking shocked with a hand on her chest. She's full on crying, her face red and flushed while the other two are working on the other side of the room.

"What happened?" He asks, widening his eyes as he crouches down next to the sobbing Beta.

"A spider." She gasps. "A spider fell on me." And then she cries harder.

Paige sends her a worried look. "She's really terrified of them. It's usually rare for us to find a spider around. I guess it's her bad day."

Louis frowns, reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder. He feels bad that she's crying this hard. It must've really scared her. She's one of the young Betas they just took in for part timers, and Louis can't imagine how she'd feel like to have a bad experience when she's just started working "It's alright, love." He says quietly. "Come on, let's get you out of here."

He takes her hand and pulls her up to her feet, then give the other Betas a nod while he leads her out. They go downstairs to the kitchen, where Louis sits her down and asks her what her favourite drink is.

"Hot chocolate." She mumbles, her tears slowly drying.

Louis nods, requesting two hot chocolates from another Beta before he sits down in front of her. "Are you feeling better?"

A small nod. "Yeah, I'm sorry."

"No, don't be sorry. We all have our fears." He reassures, holding her hand tightly to help calm her down. "Who are you closest with among the Betas here?"

She starts telling him about Ingrid who taught her the way around the house, which leads to stories about her first day of work. And by the time the hot chocolates are ready, her face lights up every time Louis makes her laugh.

---

When Louis wakes up three days later almost suffocating in his Alphas' arousal, he wonders why they didn't wake him up. Clearly, their rut is in full force. Even his body is reacting to them, since the first thing he notices is how wet and hard he is.

It takes him a moment as he sits up, but eventually he is able to drink in the sight that stands before him. His eyes widen, cock twitching. His hand automatically goes to palm himself as his mouth drops open at what he's seeing. It's happening right beside him on the bed, and Louis doesn't know whether to come in his pants or pass out.

He had always known that Harry liked to please his brothers, had heard it too many times from Edward and Marcel, and even Harry himself. But seeing it is another different kind of experience in itself.

Harry is on all fours, sweaty and flushed body rocked forward with the steady thrusts Edward is giving him. He can hear Edward's animalistic grunts, sending jolts of pleasure down his own body while he watches his Alphas.

Marcel is standing in front of Harry, hands fisted in the Alpha's hair while he makes Harry choke on his cock.

Louis is so pleasantly surprised and taken aback by this experience that he knows if he waits long enough, he could come from watching alone.

"Fuck." He groans, reaching down to squeeze himself. Louis doesn't waste any time pushing his pants down his legs and discarding them somewhere off the bed.

The sound of Louis' voice notifies them of his presence, and all of a sudden all eyes are on him.

Marcel pulls Harry off his cock, letting the Alpha breathe while he crawls over to Louis. He's still hard, eyes clouded and dark.

The Omega is greeted with a hand around his ankle, tugging him across the mattress until he's flat on his back. Louis gasps when he feels a finger sliding into him without any warning, and at the same time Marcel's mouth is swallowing him down.

"Baby, I'm close." Louis grits out even though Marcel has barely started with him. All the visual stimulation he had really contributed to his pleasure, and Louis is dangerously hanging over the edge.

Marcel doesn't appear to have heard him, or if he did, he simply doesn't care. He sucks harder on the head of Louis' cock while he adds up the fingers inside him.

The Omega comes on the third finger, with Marcel's free hand holding him down, three fingers rubbing at his prostate, and his cock nudging the back of Marcel's throat.

In the midst of the ringing in his ears, Louis can hear Edward cursing and Harry wailing while the bed rocks one more time before it stops. He couldn't entertain the thought for more than two seconds, grounded by Marcel's actions. The Alpha has barely slowed down despite Louis' climax, instead he's added one more finger to stretch the Omega up, pumping them vigour while his mouth has travelled even further south.

Louis keeps his eyes shut, hands gripping the sheet beside him while Marcel licks at his entrance, stretched around four fingers that barely let him breathe.

"Alpha." He moans, already feeling a second orgasm approaching with the way Marcel is fingering him. "Please."

Marcel meets his eyes briefly, a sultry look that makes Louis want to cry. He pulls his fingers out and replaces them with his tongue.

"Oh, fuck!" Louis gasps, hands flying to Marcel's hair to keep him there. His hips are tilted up now, Marcel's strong hands gripping his arse while he eats Louis out like it's his last meal. "Fuck, Marcel." The Omega mewls, rocking his hips into it.

Louis is so close, can already feel his toes curling.

But Marcel pulls back before he could reach his peak, and a pathetic sound escapes his mouth.

It happens so fast that Louis doesn't even get to be disappointed. In an instant, the Alpha is hovering above him and he feels a blunt head nudging at his entrance. He yelps in surprise upon being impaled fully, Marcel starting to pound into him right away.

Louis is already coming before he knows it, screaming as he tightens around his Alpha.

Marcel grips his thighs, spreading them further apart as he bends Louis almost into two. The angle hits all the right places inside him, and the Omega could only shut his eyes as he takes it, his nails almost piercing the bed sheet where his knuckles are turning white.

The Omega comes once more before Marcel is plugging him up with his knot, pressing kisses to Louis' neck and all over his face while Louis shudders beneath him. The Alpha even takes his hand, whispering praises at the Omega for being so good for him.

Louis takes as many deep breaths as he can while he goes down, finally able to open his eyes and be aware of his surrounding now that his Alpha isn't fucking him into the mattress anymore. He smiles at the words Marcel whisper into his skin, their fingers tangled together when the Alpha finally drops a sweet kiss on his lips.

Marcel tucks his face into Louis' neck while they wait for his knot to go down, and Louis takes the chance to peek at the rest of his Alphas. He sees Edward sitting at his usual sofa, staring at him in silence. Louis blinks and realises that Harry is still awake, pumping his cock with Louis being the subject of his attention too.

His heart skips a beat, and excitement beats within him at the knowledge that he's going to take both of them after this.

Marcel's knot goes down soon enough, and Louis' stomach flutters when he feels all eyes on him as Marcel pulls out. The moment he sits up, Louis almost wants to giggle at the feeling of his Alpha's come dripping out of him. He can feel it trickling down his thighs.

Harry is already grabbing him, manhandling Louis onto his lap. He moans when Harry gathers the come on his thighs and pushes it back inside him. It's so, so filthy but it burns the heat of arousal in his stomach. He bites on his lower lip when he feels Harry's fingers at his rim, circling the hole. Harry holds his gaze when he shoves them in, Louis' mouth parting open in a whine.

He feels a pair of lips on his shoulder, leaning into the touch and whispering Edward's name. Louis' giggle is quiet as Edward presses his body along his back, his hand trailing down Louis' spine until it bumps against Harry's knuckles in between the Omega's cheeks.

A gasp falls from his lips when one of Edward's fingers pushes in alongside Harry's. His head lolls back, and his eyes flutter open to see Edward staring at him. Louis smiles, wrapping an arm around his neck as the Alpha leans forward until he's licking into Louis' mouth.

By the time they pull away, Louis has more fingers inside him. "Alpha, so good." He whimpers the words, his hips moving before he could think about it. Pleasure shoots through his spine every time the fingers are buried deep, pulling louder and higher sounds from his mouth. His Alphas have such long fingers, could reach so many parts of him that he'll never be able to. "Please." He pleads when it only gets better.

Harry uses his free hand to cup Louis' face, gently pulling him forward so he could kiss him. His moan is muffled against Harry's lips when fingers start to stroke his prostate, body jerking. The fingers won't stop now that they've found it, and Harry swallows all the sounds he makes.

The Alphas pull their fingers out at the same time Harry withdraws from the kiss, and Louis almost wants to pout at the lack of attention. Before long, their hands are grabbing him to position his body. Louis winces when the grip is too tight, but he says nothing.

He thinks it's Harry that lifts him up by his arse, and Edward's hands supporting his thighs. He can feel their cocks brushing his cheeks, and tries to move down to get them where he wants them but his movements are restricted by the palms that hold him in place.

"Come on." He breathes, impatient.

Edward bites on his bond mark all of a sudden, and Louis goes pliant at the sensation. His eyes roll back into his head as a cock slowly pushes into him. Choked moans reverberates in the room when another one nudges past his entrance.

"Oh!" Louis weakly clutches at whoever's arm he manages to reach the moment his Alphas start moving. They start slow, thrusting up into him with steady rhythm to make him relax, stretch him out.

His head clears a little once Edward releases him from his canines, and the pleasure catches up with him soon enough.

Edward grunts in his ear, and then they're not sparing him any mercy. The Alpha pushes closer to him, and a hand leaves his thigh to toy with his nipples. He hears Harry's pleased howl as he clenches down just before both of them pick up their pace and begin fucking him properly.

"Fuck, fuck!" He screams, limbs flailing out of his control as they take him as they please. He feels filthy with Marcel's come coating his thighs, his own come drying on his tummy and two cocks filling him up. "Oh, Alpha!" He moans, thighs trying to shut together as he feels his orgasm approach.

Edward growls, holding his legs open while Harry uses the hold he has on Louis' arse to make him move faster on their cocks.

"Please, please." The Omega is begging; he doesn't exactly know for what.

Louis' body is tensing up, nails digging into the skin he's holding on to for dear life. He's so full, God, he's so full. He's going to come. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."

"Come, Omega." Edward says into his ear.

Everything is white noise for a few seconds, and once it fades Louis can hear his own scream echoing in the room as he seizes and covers his and Harry's chest with come. Edward chuckles in his ear, jostling him forward with a hard thrust that makes his cock blurt even more.

Tears spring in the Omega's eyes, overwhelmed. He buries his face in Harry's neck as the Alphas keep going, chasing their own finish. His legs have started shaking, and Louis knows he's going to fall apart again when they knot him.

He feels a tugging at his rim and braces himself for it, but it still takes him by surprise when both of them pop their knots together, burying themselves to the hilt as the first load of come is pumped inside him. A silent scream is ripped from his throat when the three of them tumble together on their side, the movement stretching his entrance.

"Sorry." Harry is murmuring, staying still now that they're lying down.

Edward hushes him when he starts sobbing, kissing his tears away and rubbing his arm. "There you go. What a perfect Omega you are."

Louis takes a deep, shuddering breath and tries to smile. "Good?"

"Perfect." Harry replies, lips pressing at his cheek.

---

Louis had expected his heat to come, but he hadn't expected it so soon. He's not sure he has a firm grasp of the concept of time when he'd been so caught up with his Alphas' rut, but it'd probably be a good guess to say that his heat happened a day after the rut started.

The moment his heat fully kicked in, the only things that matter to Louis' senses are his Alphas and their cocks.

Which probably explains why he's riding Harry while he has his breakfast.

He doesn't really know what happened. He just wanted to fuck, but the Alpha had shoved a sandwich into his hand before lowering Louis onto his cock. It's a good sandwich, so Louis tries his best to finish it even when he keeps moaning as Harry grips his hips to guide his movement.

"Come on, love." Harry prompts. "Finish it so I could fuck you properly."

"Harry." He whimpers, arching his back.

It takes him a while but eventually the Omega is swallowing the last bit of sandwich. Harry makes him drink two glasses of water, then pulls Louis off his cock and proceeds to make the Omega come with his mouth.

---

Louis already came too much in the past hour, but for some reasons it's still not enough. He has jumped from one Alpha to another without any rest in between, and he still feels like he needs more.

Somewhere in between Harry and Marcel fucking him, Louis tells them that he wants them all at the same time. The triplets groan in unison at that, Harry and Marcel pulling out of him before the former tugs at his arm until the Omega is on all fours on top of him.

God, his Alphas are so good, always giving him what he wants.

He feels Harry pressing into him first, and then Marcel is kissing his shoulder before pushing in alongside his brother. It's already a tight fit, but Louis knows he can take Edward too. He's done it before, he definitely can do it again.

Louis is out of it when Edward manages to press into him, making him as full as he can be. He focus on his breathing even when he has no control over the noises he makes, pressing his forehead into Harry's chest as they rock into him as much as they can. There are so much hands on his body that Louis almost has trouble keeping track of them.

"Fuck, yeah, yeah, yeah." The Omega screams when Harry reaches up for his sensitive nipples. Pain and pleasure mix up together, the strong hold on his body being overpowered by the feeling of his Alphas thrusting into him. His own voice is drowned by his Alphas' growls and grunts, and Louis lets himself gets lost in it.

He's out of it for a moment, and then next thing he knows his Alphas are coming.

They don't knot him, knowing that there wouldn't be enough space for all of them. But their cocks are still tucked inside, and Louis can feel it as they dump their generous amount of come into his arse that everything starts to leak and dribble out, trickling down his legs.

After a few moment of bliss that Louis wouldn't ever forget, one of them pulls out and Louis feels the rest of the come shooting at his cheeks adding on to the mess covering his body.

---

Louis rolls over on the bed, and every single fibre of his being protests the action. His body is tensed, taut muscles trying to withstand the pain it caused when he moved. He slowly opens his eyes, noting the lack of darkness outside of their windows, something he's only capable of doing for the first time after four long days.

He needs three weeks' worth of shower, and probably ten sessions of scrubbing to get everything off of his skin. Why does he feel like an animal every time he gets out of heat? He doesn't even want to try and touch his hair. God, and his arse is probably a nightmare. Everything is disgusting.

He struggles to sit up, groans falling out of his mouth. It takes him a while longer than usual, but eventually he succeeds.

He hears rustling behind him, and turns to see Marcel stretching out, a long, satisfied moan filling the room. The Alpha is surprised to see him awake, but he does give Louis a smile. "What time is it?" He croaks out.

Louis glances at the clock. "Eleven." He takes a deep breath as he climbs onto his feet, but curses when everything hurts and he's tumbling back into bed before he could do anything.

"Lou!" Marcel rushes over to his side. "Are you okay?"

"Could you carry me to the bathroom, please?" Louis mumbles, already draping himself all over Marcel. God knows how much he's trying not to flinch every time he moves.

The Alpha obliges, gentle as he scoops him up into his arms before walking away towards the bathroom. The moment the lights hit Louis and both of them are reflected in the mirror, Marcel almost drops him.

The Omega groans at the colours all over him, darker and more than they were during his first heat. Those are going to take a long time before they heal. Louis really doesn't want to think about his arse.

"Lou." Marcel chokes out, but the Omega is already squirming in his hold to be let down. The Alpha is reluctant to release him, but Louis is very insistent.

Louis starts the water on the sink, grabbing his toothbrush. "Could you fill the tub for me, please?" He says, ignoring Marcel's alarmed look.

"Louis, look at you!" Marcel says, gesturing at his bruised body.

"Yes, I know, Marcel! I can feel it." Louis snaps, shutting his eyes. "Now could you please fill the tub for me because that would really help."

Marcel stares at him through the mirror and Louis stares right back, daring him to say another word. The Alpha finally relents, the tension barely seeping away. "Okay."

"Thank you." Louis turns back to the sink and starts to put toothpaste onto his brush. He can hear the water running, and no other movement from his Alpha. Louis knows Marcel is still staring at him, silently accusing him for not saying anything.

"Louis, please."

The Omega spits into the sink, proceeding to wash his face next. And then he turns around and heads to the tub. Despite Marcel being upset, he still offers Louis a hand while the Omega shakes as he climbs in.

Louis lets out a loud sigh the moment he's engulfed by hot water. He peeks up at his Alpha. "Want to get in with me?"

Marcel sighs, but he accepts the offer. He makes himself comfortable with Louis sitting in between his thighs, grabbing a sponge to start cleaning Louis' skin. He's the one who flinches back when he gets a closer look at how bad the bruises are along Louis' back, fingerprints and marks that they left.

Marcel drops the sponge and his arms curl around the Omega, pulling him close to his chest as he presses his lips to the nearest bruise he can reach. "I'm so sorry, baby." He's begging for forgiveness. Nothing could excuse him and his brothers. They hurt him; they hurt their Omega.

Louis hums softly, leaning into his touch and snuggling back. "I'll be fine, Marcel."

"Look at you, Lou!" Marcel sounds like he's going to cry. He might just do that. It hurts him seeing the marks on Louis and knowing that he did that.

Louis sighs heavily. "I know, baby." He grabs Marcel's arms and wrap them tighter around him. "God, I bet it'll take days for them to disappear."

Marcel stays quiet.

"It's done. Nothing you can do about it." Louis continues. "Wash me."

Marcel wonders how Louis could pretend like his body isn't battered and bruised. But he keeps his mouth shut.

---

"What are those?" Edward asks. He's changing into another shirt at the same time Louis is, and his eyes caught colours on his Omega's skin when Louis pulled his shirt off.

Louis quickly grabs a jumper and puts it on. He turns around, feigning a confused frown. "What?"

"Louis." Edward growls.

The Omega takes a step back, but Edward follows him. "It's nothing."

"Louis."

He sighs, caving in as he stays rooted to the spot while Edward approaches him again. The Alpha is gentle despite the look on his face. His hands carefully peel the jumper off of his Omega.

Edward's heart drops to his stomach at the same time the jumper drops to the floor. When he speaks, his voice is pained. "Baby..."

Louis shakes his head. "Edward, it's fine."

"It's not fine." Edward snaps. "How could you say that?!"

"I said it's fine. Let's leave it at that." Louis snaps back.

The Alpha grabs his hand, pulling him to stand in front of the mirror. "How is that fine, Louis?" He asks, pointing at a purple bruise on Louis' hip. It's gotten much worse, and the Omega feels like cringing looking at it.

"What's going o-" Harry gasps, stopping in his track with his hands clasped to his mouth when he sees Louis' naked torso. He looks over to Edward. "Did we... Did we do that?"

Louis groans, already reaching for the jumper again. "Stop overreacting, please."

"Overreacting?!" Edward booms, snatching the jumper away from him. "Your Alphas are hurting you."

"Not on purpose, okay?" Louis glares. He's feeling really vulnerable right now, half naked with his Alphas screaming at him.

"Why is everybody yelling?" Marcel huffs when he steps into the closet. His eyes widen, and Louis groans in annoyance.

"Oh, of course. Everyone's here. Should we start the party, then?" Louis walks over to Edward, grabbing the jumper again and putting it on.

Harry sniffles, eyes already red. He looks like he wants to wrap Louis up in his arms, but at the same time he looks scared that he'll hurt Louis even more. "We're so sorry, Lou."

"Just, don't apologise, please. You did nothing wrong."

"Are you mad?!" Marcel bursts. "You're mad!"

"What could you even do about it, anyway? Why are you so bothered? It's already been done." Louis tells him.

Edward turns around, his hands clenching. "Louis, please come to your senses." He shakes his head, as if he can't believe they're even having this conversation. "We shouldn't spend our rut with you anymore."

Louis' eyes snap up to him at the tone of finality in his voice. "That's not up to you alone!"

"No, I agree." Marcel looks determined with his arms crossed. "You're not getting hurt again."

"Me too." Harry says, quiet.

"You told me I would get hurt. I got hurt before and I knew it'll happen again. That's my choice." Louis copies his Alpha, his own arms crossed. "None of you made me do anything I didn't want to."

"You are so stubborn." Edward grits out, frustrated.

"I thought you've known that since the first time we met." Louis rolls his eyes.

Harry groans, walking up to the Omega but not close enough to touch him. "Louis.... how could you look into the mirror and be okay with what we did to you?"

"Bloody Hell, Harry!" Louis throws his hands up. "You gripped me too tight during sex, so what? Are we going to have this discussion every single time your rut comes around? It's not like you hit me on purpose, could you stop this? Just stop exaggerating this."

"Are you fucking serious, Louis?" Edward is red in the face now. "Your Mum took good care of you only for you to be hurt like this by the Alphas that claim they love you?"

"You have no room to talk about hurt, Edward." Louis replies, surprisingly calm.

"Louis, please. Just, please. Listen to us." Marcel pleads, not wanting this conversation to drag.

"No." Louis would've stomped his foot if that wasn't so childish. "Fuck off."

"Seriously, you're going to walk away from this conversation?" Edward calls out when Louis pushes away from him and starts to limp towards the door.

"I said fuck off."

---

"Anne, could you please knock some senses into them? They're being absolutely ridiculous, I'm going barmy." Louis huffs into the phone, tears threatening to fall.

In his moment of vulnerability after their heat and rut, what Louis needs are cuddles and comfort from his Alphas, not intense confrontations.

"Oh, baby." Anne coos back pitifully from the other line. "Did you sit down and talk?"

Louis sniffs. "Tried to, but they're so stupid that I just get angry because they won't listen to me." The tears flow freely now, fuelled by his anger and frustration. "I was bound to get hurt in the first place. What were they expecting? There are three of them!"

Anne sighs. "Darling, I'm sure they won't react this way if it's not serious. Are you sure you didn't get hurt too bad?"

"It's nothing I can't handle, but the point is.."

"Louis, if they hurt you, admit it." Anne suddenly cuts in, voice low but stern.

The Omega takes a deep breath, his tears still flowing. "Okay." He clears his throat and shuts his eyes. "They did, hurt me."

"What does it feel like?"

"Everything hurt, and I couldn't really walk the first morning. Still hurts now." He mumbles.

"Did you tell them that?"

"And make things worse?"

"Lou, dear." She's probably pulling at her hair right now despite her calm tone. "Talk to them, please. Acknowledge that they hurt you, and let them know how they can make it better instead of fighting about whether or not you did get hurt."

Louis falls quiet, leaning his head back against the sofa. "Okay. Okay, I'll do that."

"Alright, darling." She replies. "I know it's inevitable that you'd get hurt during their rut, I've been worried too. But let them take care of you. Okay? They're just looking out for you."

"I know." He whispers. "But they were talking about not spending their rut with me anymore.." Louis' voice cracks. "Why would they want to take that away from me?"

"I'm sure they just said that in a spur of the moment. Just sit down and have a proper talk. All of you are mature adults, you'll figure this out."

"Fine." He huffs, but his voice is soft. "Thank you, Anne. I'm sorry for having to call you about this."

"You can always call me. Take care, Lou. Love you."

"Love you too." He mumbles just before the line cuts off.

---

Louis still has that glare on his face, a little pout on his lips as he steps into the lounge where his Alphas are watching a movie. His arms are crossed, and he probably looks like he came here to initiate more yelling sessions.

Edward is aware of his entrance but chooses not to acknowledge him at all, staring straight at the telly. Harry at least glances at him, but when he notices the Omega's stance, he looks away. Marcel is the only one to hold his gaze, wondering what he's going to say.

"You hurt me." Louis speaks up, arms still intact on his chest. Harry quickly reaches for the remote and mutes the TV. "I'm sore and bruised everywhere, and it hurts every single time I move." All of them are listening, Harry and Marcel staring at him sadly while Edward still refuses to look at him. "It's going to take a few days before the bruises will be gone, and I still can't walk properly because it hurts."

The eldest Alpha finally breaks and turns to him. "Loui-" Edward tries to speak up but the Omega quickly cuts him off.

"Could you please take care of me and make it feel better rather than fight me over it?" Louis' arms fall to his side and he sighs. When he speaks up again his voice cracks, eyes brimming up. "I need you to take care of me, not yell at me."

"Come here, darling." Marcel prompts, opening his arms. Louis goes into his embrace straight away, burying his face into the Alpha's neck and shakily inhaling his scent. Tears prick at his eyes now that he's in his Alpha's embrace with the promise of no hard feelings.

"Could you please let us apologise instead of brushing it off?" Harry asks, and he feels a hand in his hair.

Louis sniffles, pulling back a little in Marcel's hold so he could look at Harry. "Only if you buy me ice cream."

Edward smiles at that, watching as Harry leans forward and gives Louis a kiss. "Anything for you, Princess."

---

A/N:

What do you think would happen in the next chapter? I think you know. ;) dun, dun, dun!!

Did you like it? Let me know what you think! I've missed you guys!

Drop me some comments and leave a vote if you enjoyed that! Thank you! Hope everything's going great for all of you. <3

Love, Rose.