Clipboard Files and Pin-up Boys [R-18]

"Arthur E. Kirkland," he read the name out loud from the file. A two-by-two picture of a blonde young teen with striking emerald green eyes and unusually thick eyebrows, face forming a frown, was neatly stapled at the right-upper side of the first page of his file. Alfred rubbed his temple, a headache forming on his right temporal. Housing a new student in this institution, and an Omega to boot, would be a very difficult task. Omegas were rare, thereby treasured by the society - they were treated like royalties, and at times, they were like celebrities - persons to be admired and drooled on, even fantasized about. That was the part Alfred feared the most. He could only imagine these young, hot-blooded immature Alphas going around in their school and attempting to dominate this Omega, to even mate him, and it'd be a total pain for the doctor.

Alfred F. Jones, the resident school physician, placed the file neatly on his table. He'd been assigned to take care of this Omega because of his extremely rare ability, and he was told by his superiors that he'd be keeping an eye on the Omega, and to cater his every need, especially if the Omega was having a hard time adjusting to this school.

Protecting the said Omega from these foolish Alphas was also his responsibility, and Alfred felt this experience would totally be such a annoying one.

He shrugged off his whitecoat and adjusted his glasses, feeling weary all of a sudden. He hoped that this Arthur Kirkland's presence wouldn't be too troublesome, especially the responses of these horny teenage Alphas in their school.

Ah well, he thought, he'd just have to show anyone who touched the Omega inappropriately what it was like to violate rules.

For as long as he remembered, he was a golden boy. When he was born to an Alpha mother, whose Beta partner had left her and whose family was already filled with children, there was not much hope for the newest baby of the Kirkland family. They were poor, they were struggling. Yet, as soon as he was born, people could tell that there was something different - something incredibly special about the child wrapped in blankets.

A small prick to his finger, and a blood test confirmed what the doctor who had delivered him suspected. When the news was announced, the nurses who had been involved with the birth and the important officials of the hospital were all called in to meet the tiny child, much smaller than most of the babies of his age in the ward. Word spread through the hospital quickly. Arthur's mother wept happily, but died later due to complications. For the few minutes of her son's life that she lived for, she loved him with all her heart.

Her Omega Son.

Arthur Eames Kirkland, born April 23rd, was recorded as an Omega. Omegas were rare jewels that society appreciated like demigods. They were of Adonis, Aphrodite, Venus and perfect alignments of stars - legends were told in texts dating back to the first century speaking of theories of their birth, and the conditions for one to be born. Perhaps it was simply a genetic mutation, but it was not something hideous and rejected - it was loved, amazing, miraculous. A male omega in particular was prized above all else. Arthur Kirkland would be treated like royalty.

On the day after his birth, a newspaper recorded the birth of a new Omega. Not just locally, but internationally. The chance of an omega child being born was, statistically close to one in a million. The UK itself had the highest population of Omegas in the world per acre of land, and even that only had 400 who were alive. 100 male.

Every school Arthur had ever been to, he was given a special place to sit at lunch. He was told that they would cater to his every need. He was made to shake hands with people he did not want to talk to, and he was treated with constant respect by the adults. The children, back then, shunned him - because they did not get it. They did not see how special a child like he was. They treated him like an outsider and pushed him in the mud.

His brothers never really grew out of that. They treated Arthur like a normal person, even going so far as to understate and resent Arthur for 'having such an easy life'. It was not easy, though. He was not the same as others, and he was made to feel that way. He did not belong to any social group, friendship group, or otherwise. His room was his only sanctuary to get away from it.

Eventually, they had to move - away from the UK and to new lands, flying across the sea to start a new life in America. Arthur was made to enrol in a new school and that, of course, brought even more challenges.

An Omega as well as new. There had never been such an exciting person. People stopped conversations to watch him as he walked by. His body was oogled and the teachers also paused to stare at him for a little too long. He felt vulnerable.

Without even needing to provoke them, Arthur immediately was given access to the school physician. Once again, they pulled out the stops to give him preferential treatment. He did not know what he felt about that. It was useful but it was still exactly what made him feel like such an outsider - like a guest throughout his life, not belonging to anything or anyone.

As he waited in the waiting room, readying himself to meet the school physician for the first time, Arthur twiddled his thumbs and reflected upon this - upon everything, preparing himself for talking to the physician. He did not know what to expect, and it frightened him - but he would deal with it. He always would.

Alfred placed his whitecoat on a hook behind his door, before entering the next room. The Omega, Arthur Kirkland, was sitting on one of the leather couches of his reception room. Despite his experience in dealing with these rare Omegas, Alfred was surprised to see that this particular Omega looked... relatively nice and cute, but not as outstanding as the other Omegas he had seen before. The previous ones were gorgeous, that he would admit. They had this beautiful and delicate features that would really identify them as the perfect Omegas. This Omega, however, had the potential to become even more stunning, but as of now, he was still struggling with his delayed Omega puberty, an uncommon occurrence - Arthur hadn't even experienced his first heat yet, and that was something he was quite worried about, and as the Omega's guardian of some sort, the responsibility of seeing through Arthur's first heat was shoved in his hands.

"Good morning!" Alfred greeted with a big smile on his face as he finally walked closer to the seated Omega. His priority now was to establish rapport to the Omega, and a warm and sunny attitude always worked, even with the Alphas and Betas.

One thing that Alfred had learned from his experience with dealing with Omegas was to make them feel comfortable. Treat them like normal. Just like a human being, not as an Omega. So he took a seat on one of the armchairs in front of the Omega, a coffee table between them.

"How have you been, Arthur?" A sunny smiled radiated on his face, his fingers laced together, and his torso tilted just a bit forward, signifying that he's interested in what Arthur had to say.

The waiting room had been somewhat boring. There had been no magazines as such, or reading material. He divulged in a copy of a bestseller that he had bought that weekend instead - only a day in, and he was almost finished. Reading was a very large part of his life. He would do anything to bury himself in a story.

As the door opened and out of the office came a quite tall, very Alpha-looking man, Arthur knew he was the physician. He was a figure of authority and that was clear from the way he was dressed sensibly, and Arthur could have not been intimidated by that - but he was. The alpha made him uncertain and cautious. There was a very dominant scent coming from him.

Despite the intimidating aura Alfred sported, the cheeriness of him made Arthur a little more at ease. He lowered his book onto his thigh, and he gave a quick glance around the receptionist's room. They wouldn't do it in here, would they? Not out in the open?

"I've--erm. I'm well. Excuse me. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me," Arthur muttered. His voice was a little deeper than expected, but it was not too unusual for a boy of his age. He cleared his throat. His fingers tapped his knee in a jittery fashion - Arthur was uneasy.

Trained clinical eyes spotted Arthur's fleeting glance to the receptionist's room - nervous and uncertain. Now that Alfred had seen and heard the Omega personally, he found it odd that this Omega - one who was used to royal treatment and esteemed praises - would be feeling jittery. His scent, upon closer examination, was full of sour, nervous energy and it made Alfred baffled and confused as to why an Omega would feel this way. They were loved. Cherished. Protected by the law. So this Omega shouldn't be afraid of Alphas and Betas, let alone to talk to him, his responsible guardian.

"Do you want to talk to somewhere private?" he gently asked. Blue eyes made contact with green ones, hoping to convey his assurance that things would just be alright. He smiled at him encouragingly and stood up, waiting for the Omega to do so too. He then walked back to his office's door, opening it and motioned for Arthur to enter first. He followed closely and closed the wooden door.

The doctor gestured Arthur to sit on the chair near his table and sat on his plush armchair. He smiled at him again, and said, "So, once again, how have you been, Arthur?"

He was thankful that Alfred understood his need for privacy - even though throughout his life, people had been trying to deny him that simple right. The fact that he had not had a heat yet had been published on the school paper once. It was downright embarrassing.

Once they got inside of the office, the sour scent had faded a little and he seemed to be a bit more at ease - although the British Omega was still fussy. He opened up his bag and carefully - very carefully - made enough room to be able to fit his book inside. It seemed like a precious object to him. Despite the fact that he was quite a way in, the spine was completely undamaged. The omega took a seat, and looked up at his Alpha physician and now, personal help.

"Well," Arthur murmured again, repeating his previous words but in an even more closed off manner. He appeared to like keeping to himself. Even his body language portrayed understated beta more than adhered and treasured Omega. "Actually - not so."

He didn't immediately try to evaluate his words. He was unusually hard to crack into.

The doctor's office had a professional but surprisingly warm atmosphere to it - deep moss-colored drapes framing his glass windows, shelves of medical books lining the walls, mahogany table situated at the right side of the room, file cabinets housing the more important records of his students, wooden floor tiles adding to the overall appearance of the room. Alfred personally liked the decor, the feel of his office. It never failed to remind him that he should strive for seriousness whenever he was dealing with his clients and the tasks assigned to him by the higher-ups.

Alfred observed everything - from Arthur's closed-off expression on his face, the way his fingers handled his book as he placed it back in his bag, to the decreasing sour scent he could smell off Arthur - the Omega was not happy, and as far as the handsome man know, Omegas weren't supposed to act this way. Their pride could rival the Alphas' instinctual ones, all due to the treatment society spanning a thousand years had given to them. They knew they were beautiful - and they were confident about it. If an Omega would want to, they could just seduce whoever they wanted. The Omegas always had the last say in whoever they wanted to be mated with - granted that the Alpha also courted them first.

Arthur was not acting like the cherished Omega that he was. And it honestly concerned Alfred.

Upon hearing Arthur small admission of what he was really feeling, a certain protective feeling sparked inside of the Alpha. He wanted to help ease Arthur of what was burdening him. Maybe now he was slowly accepting his assigned role as this Omega's caretaker.

"Arthur," his voice carried a gentle, deep tone laced with genuine worry. "Tell me more about it?" A hint of pleading, casually urging the Omega to talk to him about his feelings. He smiled at him, clearly open and accepting.

Arthur was a little bit taken aback by Alfred's positive attitude, but he supposed it was much better than having someone who was drab and uninterested in helping him. Alfred seemed caring enough. At least these sessions were private. He just hoped that Alfred would not communicate his personal feelings to the teachers with not asking for his permission.

"I'm--Not comfortable here. Or anywhere, really," Arthur stated, twiddling his thumbs. He looked at the long couch he had sat on and wondered personally whether or not it would be advisable for him to lay down on it. Like a psychiatrist's chair. He had seen that on television - not that that was his constant medium. Arthur rubbed his temples, trying to figure out the route of his problem for himself.

"I've been given preferential treatment above everyone else for no reason. None at all, except the fact that I have a uterus and I shouldn't, and I'm meant to smell nice and look nice," Arthur started to evaluate, bowing his head as he spoke. He could not really speak to Alfred while looking him in the eye. It sounded so bigoted of him, really. Everyone was pulling out the stops, trying to give him the silver spoon, and here he was turning his head away like a disobedient child.

"...I don't conform to the standards of Omegas." He pointed out. "I'm a disappointment."

Ears listening, eyes searching for more clues, the Alpha doctor patiently waited for Arthur to finish expressing his sentiments. Oh, how odd, Alfred thought. Arthur was nervous. That was acceptable. But the words that flowed from his mouth was a bit... different from the Omegas he had encountered before. Alfred had met and handled many Omegas during the span of five years. He was also celebrated, in a way, because he possessed this unlikely capability of controlling his own Alpha instincts - the ability to suppress them and act rationally in the midst of an Omega's heat - a feat so rare he, an Alpha, was trusted by Omegas and now, Alfred's own superiors in the school he was working on.

Though he still wanted to approach Arthur's problem professionally. "You are aware of how celebrated, how important Omegas are in our society, right? What makes you think you don't confirm to the Omega standards? What makes you think you're a disappointment?" he asked, leaning forward to show his interest. This was really a curious case.

Though Alfred honestly thought that the society's reception of the Omegas were too flamboyant and exaggerating. They were almost like romanticizing the existence of Omegas, when in fact what the Omegas were capable of, female Alphas and Betas were also capable of. It was just Omegas were natural in producing offsprings. Healthy pregnancies, healthy deliveries, healthy babies. Plus the bonus of a male Omega having a uterus, it was, as bizarre as it may seem, understandable.

Recalling all this Omega treatment made Alfred feel empathy for Arthur's concerns.

"I'm not pretty," Arthur stated, cutting straight to the chase. His wording seemed to disturb him, by the way he suddenly bowed his head and narrowed his eyes at the thought of it.

No, he was quite right. He was not pretty. He had not filled out perfectly yet. His hips had not plumped out. He still looked scrawny as ever. His skin was not quite flawless, with the presence of small freckles on the outer line of his cheek bones. His knees knocking and his fingers a little bit too bony. He needed to fill out a bit. He was like a caterpillar before the transformation.

Maybe more of a larva to turn into a moth, if he had anything to say about it himself.

"...By which I mean, I am not attractive--" The British Omega suddenly interjected. Why did he change his wording? A non-omega male was not meant to be pretty. "--Omegas are meant to be attractive, aren't they?"

He remembered hearing people talk about him behind his back, both here and back home. 'Plain', they called him. 'Nothing special'. 'What's so great about him?' 'He's drab'. 'Sort of ugly'.

His fists clenched and he shifted.

Ah. So he felt insecure, the doctor thought. Alfred recalled his earlier assessment of Arthur's features - nice and cute, but not overall impressive for an Omega. But then, it was clearly stated in his file that Arthur hadn't had his first heat yet. An Omega late bloomer.

Omegas were praised and treasured because of their extreme beauty, elegance and rarity. The pressure on Arthur's shoulders was so huge, it would definitely make him feel that he's not fit to become an Omega, judging by the way he viewed himself.

"Arthur," he spoke, directing his student's attention back at him. "You haven't experienced your first heat, right?" he verified, sapphire blue eyes staring intently into emerald green ones. "Omega hormones start to take effect on your body during the onset of your first heat. It is a gradual process," at this he smiled at him, "but don't you worry about it. You deserve to be called an Omega. You are an Omega."

"It doesn't matter what I am biologically, I'm still not an omega. Or at least not by society's terms. I'm nothing more than an ugly boy who happens to have a bloody uterus, am I?!" Arthur cut through, insisting almost immediately after Alfred had spoken. He looked up, eyes filled with something dark and it was most likely hurt. His head was aching already from this. Yet another day of being miserable just by being himself.

Be yourself? What a sodding lie.

He deflated his shoulders and shook his head. "Sorry, Sir. I shouldn't snap at you. But I don't think you understand the gravity of the situation. I'm intelligent, I've had the highest scores in the class for all of the subjects we've been tested on thus-far since I have come to this school, but none of that matters does it?" He scowled, thinking back to the way they teased him.

"...The world doesn't need an omega with brains. It needs an omega to look pretty, make people love them, and have lots of sex and babies."

The thought of it both made him feel sick and made him excited. He didn't like having his intelligence ignored, but at the same time--it was something that he wished for. Yes. He'd like to fulfil those desires. To have a person actually want to kiss him and make him happy.

He was reading too many romance books. He was glad Alfred did not pick up on the novel he was reading - it was romance and plot second.

Despite his control, a frown wormed its way onto Alfred's vibrant face - he was clearly displeased with how Arthur raised his voice at him. Here he was, trying to be patient to an Omega who clearly didn't want to be here, adding to his stacking responsibilities as the school physician and this Omega's presence was what he had predicted - troublesome.

Yet when his blue eyes met with pained and apologetic green, he realized that he should extend his patience for this lost Omega who wasn't sure of what his actual place was in this society. 'He's insecure,' he reminded himself. 'No need to get angry at him - he's supposed to trust you and rely on you, Doctor.'

Alfred recalled the additional information on Arthur's chart - the boy had high scores on his entrance exams, higher than the highest recorded score for the past two years. It was unusual for an Omega to score like that - but Alfred was slowly forming the conclusion that this Arthur Kirkland was full of surprises.

But listening to Arthur talk about Omegas in general just like they're tools to feed people's desires - it really made him annoyed. "Didn't you listen to what I just said?" he said, his voice tightly controlled. "Your body hasn't experienced heat yet. When an Omega begins his or her first heat, the hormone estrogen is released in abundance by the ovaries, with the assistance from the follicle-stimulating hormone secreted by the pituitary gland. The abundance of estrogen your ovaries release will determine how fast your body will develop. That hormone will help your body grow into the Omega that you believe you should be!"

He took a deep breath. This Omega just ticked him off in a different way. He looked at Arthur's hunched form, very small compared to his mature, athletic body, and he wanted to kick himself for snapping out like that, losing his cool. Alfred looked away and said, "Sorry." He wasn't used to apologizing.

As the physician started to talk back at him in that tone of voice, Arthur could not help but be stunned. Really? This was his way of helping? Shouting at him? Though in a way, it reminded him of his relationship with his brothers. They never put up with his nonsense either. Honestly, nobody did. Whenever he complained it would always be shot down. He was a golden boy after all - loved despite having a reason to be, other than that thing in his cells, woven entirely into his DNA.

"Let me understand, Mr. Jones," Arthur said, leaning back into the sofa and peering at the authority figure. His speech had been passionate, there was no word of a lie there. Yet, it was not welcome. How long would it be till he could experience one of those damned heats? Did he even wish to in the first place?

"...Why are you so bothered by what I said? Is it because you're frustrated over my---my inability to trust that I'll turn out spectacularly like all those other omegas? Or because I'm not taking in your advice as well as I should? Or is it something else?" He crossed a leg. "Tell me, Doctor Jones. Am I grating at your nerves?"

Somewhat of a power exchange. Arthur's eyes lit up, something fierce inside of them. A fire that was silently burning, ignored and non-extinguished. There was something about the Kirkland boy that was not the same as the others. Insecure as he was, he was defensive and had strength.

Alfred had to smile wrily. The nerve of this student to challenge him after explaining to him that he shouldn't be insecure of his own Omega status - damn this brat. The promises of extending his patience for this apparently not only insecure Omega, but also a defensive one, was slowly wearing thin.

"You address me as Doctor Jones, Arthur Kirkland," he said calmly, his fingers shuffling the stack of papers containing Arthur's data. This teenager was grating his nerves alright. He decided to ignore the challenging tone and just answer what the Omega asked. "I don't want you talking like that about Omegas, even if you're one. They're not just meant to be pretty, and their existence is as valuable as Alphas and Betas - and not just for sex or reproduction. I've known more Omegas than you have, and they're all wonderful, marvelous people, and their lives don't revolve around sex and babies like what you believe."

It was never about him - that was for sure. He could take any insult this kid might throw at him, but what really got him to snap was his poor view of the Omegas. It wasn't fair for the other Omegas.

"So I'll take note of your feelings," he explained as he took a pen and began writing something on Arthur's file. The way he said it though was a bit patronizing, and he couldn't filter it fast enough before the words left his mouth. "And I'll be monitoring your progress in adjusting to this school. So Arthur Kirkland," at this he stood up, and with a professional smile that didn't reach his eyes nor radiated any warmth, he concluded their meeting, dismissing his troublesome patient-turned-charge, "I hope you enjoy your stay here."

"We're little fuck-toys and our lives revolve around being fuck-toys and if you don't want to accept that then you simply aren't a very good judge of character, are you Doctor Jones?! They may be marvellous but sex is all they are worth," Arthur growled out. So much for any productive progress. Like so much of this school, Arthur had simply no desire to return to these sessions. He thought that maybe it would make him relax a little, or make him care less about the bullies. Turned out that Doctor Jones was nothing but the same as the people who damned him mentally soon as they saw him.

As he thought. He was nothing but a ugly little bitch who no one would like to be with. No one would want to romance him. No one would want to do things with him. He wished he was a better omega who satisfied all of the men and their dreams for him and his blood-kind. Or perhaps he wished he was a beta so he could have none of this pressure in the first place. Frankly he wished he had never been born.

"Thank you for the first session, Doctor Jones. It has been interesting," Arthur scathed through gritted teeth. He grabbed his bag, pulling it up over his shoulder. The firey boy was angry. His fuse unusually short. What was wrong with him? It's not that he did not know his place, but that he was shy and angry with the system, himself, and that caused him to slowly fall to anarchy.

He stormed out of the office, fully intending not to come back. In fact, he didn't intend to come to school the next day at all. Or the next. He was smart enough. He didn't have to deal with this fucking pressure - beyond anything he had ever experienced. Now was worse than ever. Seventeen and no heat? Figures he would fail at the one thing that made people think he was even slightly worth it.

Grades be damned.

Alfred kept silent as he listened to Arthur's outburst, observing the fiery green eyes and his animated, passionate anger that was, to be honest, beautiful to look at. Arthur Kirkland had the potential to become the Omega that he, along with their crazy society, believed in. But what really wanted Alfred to question was why Arthur giving in to the pressures of what was expected of him? If he could show this kind of defiant attitude to him, why was the green-eyed blond so sensitive about his Omega body?

His face darkened though, when his brain processed what Arthur has said. He didn't make any sound of protest as Arthur vented out his anger at him and stomped his way out of his office. As he heard the door slam shut, he cursed, "Damn it!" He wasn't expecting this kind of troublesome kid he'd be taking care of. Now he had to worry about fending off horny teenage Alphas, especially the unbounded ones, they're the worst and the most arrogant ones - and had to deal with his own charge's defiant attitude. How would he monitor him now, when it was very clear that Arthur didn't want to see him again?

Fuck-toys. The words echoed in his head, giving a very sour taste on his mouth. It was very sad that Arthur Kirkland believed he was meant to end up as a fuck-toy of someone else. Alfred took a deep breath to calm himself, getting seriously bothered by Arthur's perception of the Omegas and of himself. He should try harder the next time they would meet. He should be emphatic of Arthur's plight. 'Damn it', he mentally berated himself, 'Why did I have to go and say all those things?'

He had a feeling that Arthur wouldn't show up for their next session - heck, even attend his classes. The doctor paced around his office, racking his brain for the first solution he could think of to help Arthur change his mind. "Oh yeah, I have his guardian's contact number!" he exclaimed to no one.

But then, it might come off too strong, and he'd even push the Omega away. Alfred thought this over, and decided that if Arthur didn't appear on his office after a few days, he'd talk to his guardian.

For the next few days, Arthur Kirkland was marked 'absent' on the register of every lesson. His first few absences of the term. Rumours spread about Arthur starting his first heat, but the teachers were confused. They were told nothing about it, if that was indeed where Arthur had gone to. Arthur had been told that he had to inform the school when he started, and the silence was concerning. They realised it could have been normal sickness or worse, truancy.

And truancy it was. Adriann was often working, and Ianto and Seamus didn't give a flying fuck about what their baby brother did - letting him do what he liked. It wasn't like either of them had perfect records either. Seamus truanted far more and Ianto, the calmest one of the four other than Arthur, had far too much work to do because he was actually going places. So Arthur stayed at home, reading his books and spending his time playing guitar or watching TV. Fuck everything else.

By the fourth day it was getting absurd, and Arthur was actually getting bored. But he wouldn't go back. He hated the place, the hated the people, and he didn't give a damn if his grades fell. Might as well be disappointing there too. He was tempted to try a few of Adriann's cigarettes to quench some of the boredom.

"Arthur, pick your shit up from the living room. I don't want to sit on one of your trashy romance novels."

"That's Romeo and Juliet, you fucking moron. It's a Shakespearian play, not a romance novel. Besides the romance in it is piss-poor frankly. Not exactly a romantic story but more a comedy over how shit their lives turned out to be because they fell in love," Arthur criticised, trudging down the stairs.

"Whatever, just pick it up."

Four days.

The physician went his daily routine in the school clinic - treating minor illnesses and monitoring the student body's general health, making surveillance to the classroom for health standards, and writing on his student's files - with an overall calm and controlled demeanor. But he was internally worried.

Worried for that troublesome, defiant-yet-insecure Omega, damn-fucking-brat, Arthur Kirkland.

He subtly checked for Arthur's attendance in all his classes (subtle, like going over to the teachers and demanding if Kirkland showed his head in the lectures) but they all replied the same thing: No, he didn't attend my class. And it was driving Alfred to the limit of his patience. He knew Kirkland would pull this stunt. He had seen it in the damn brat's emerald eyes when he shouted at him four days ago. He knew he should'd just called his guardian to force him to attend school after their argument. Damn it.

He personally knew that Arthur wasn't having his first heat - he wasn't manifesting the symptoms nor he could taste the sweet scent of heat from him - but what if... what if he did? Arthur Kirkland was full of surprises. What if some horny teenage Alpha followed Arthur on his way to school and just snatched him from the streets? What if he really intended to attend classes and Alfred just assumed that he'd would end up being a truant? What if Arthur really needed someone and Alfred, the one person who's responsibility was to protect and take care of the Omega, wasn't there to save him?

Damn it, he's so worried for the well-being of his charge - he immediately dialed Arthur's home number, tapping his fingers as he waited for someone to pick it up.

It was not Arthur who picked up, but the voice was not too different; male, with a slightly different accent. Seamus had been to Ireland for a few years for college so his voice was somewhat different from the rest of him and his brothers. "Hello?" he answered the phone, and gave a loud sigh when he heard that it was a school official.

"ARTHUR!" He shouted, not bothering to cover up the phone to muffle his voice. It was so loud that the voice crackled on the phone's microphone. "GET YOUR FAT ARSE DOWN HERE Y'PRICK."

"I'm coming, I'm coming! Keep your ginger wig on, Christ!" The young Englishman's voice could be detected behind him. There was a noise as Arthur came down the stairs. "And my arse is not fat."

"Fattest arse in the house. Wobbles while you wa--"

"LA-LA-LA--I'm not listening!" Arthur said in a high-pitched voice, and there was some audible pushing and shoving and general grittiness. It was like listening to a group of Alphas butt heads. Finally, the phone was picked up.

"I'm not going to school anymore. Good day, good riddance," Arthur said into the phone immediately, not even bothering to check who it was.

Alfred closed his eyes as his ears picked up the background noises on the other line. 'So this is how Arthur's family is,' he mentally noted while waiting for the omega's voice on the other line.

He immediately relaxed when he heard the familiar voice, but his blue eyes narrowed and his brows furrowed further in the middle upon hearing Arthur's quick dismissal with a casual declaration of not going to school anymore. "What did you just say, Kirkland?" the alpha asked, his voice laced with disbelief and a tiny hint of anger. Was Arthur serious? He couldn't just quit school, for crying out loud. The omega was becoming more of a brat than he could ever hoped for. Alfred closed his eyes and counted one to ten, quickly finding his professional patience for difficult clients like this Kirkland.

"Please explain to me the reasons for not going to school anymore or I'll contact your legal guardian," Alfred answered back, his voice firm and he wouldn't accept any other answer except for what he wanted. Or else, he'd do something drastic.

"Do what you like, my legal guardian gives less of a toss than I do, Sir," Arthur said, bringing the telephone into the living room so he could sit down, only to have Ianto glare at him for intruding on his walking his television programmes. Why was he watching the damned thing in Welsh when there was a English setting? Just because he was the only one who could understand it and he wanted to be a twat.

"Trust me. My brother was expelled for not attending when he was younger than I was, he's not going to be concerned if I did the same. I'd probably get a medal from him, frankly - he's the most dysfunctional adult figure I probably could get," Arthur snorted, and rolled his eyes. Yes, as if he was going to go back to that crummy school. After the way he was treated? No. No, thank you.

"Look, Doctor Jones. I'm being bullied, I find the teaching methods ridiculous, the teachers themselves are not at all sympathetic, I'm constantly excluded, and I'm smart enough to get a job now like Adriann has. I don't need your bloody school and I certainly don't need you either."

"Fine," Alfred bit out, feeling his anger burning again. His grip on the pen he was twirling on his right hand became so tight he broke it. This damn fucking brat of an Omega certainly wanted to grate his nerves, to test him to the limit of his patience - and the administration would be after his ass if he didn't haul Kirkland back to school. So much for being understanding, Doctor Jones. So much for knowing how to handle Omegas properly, Doctor Jones. Arthur's existence was a direct slap on his pride.

But he still couldn't imagine it - Arthur being bullied by other alphas and betas. What was really making him miserable that he kept on dissing the omegas and had little faith on himself? Arthur Kirkland was an enigma - a bafflement to Alfred's previous knowledge about omegas - and it wasn't helping him at all.

He ended the call and waited for a few moments to calm down and think rationally. One, two, three... He felt a little coherent now that he'd reached the number ten. Despite Arthur's previous threat about his brother, Alfred had to try.

He dialed Arthur's legal guardian's number, hoping that he would have a higher success rate than his conversation with his bratty Omega.

The phone was picked up with another crackle. A husky voice was on the other end, sounding like a grating scratch as he spoke. "Hello, Adriann Kirkland speaking?" He was a heavy smoker - that much was immediately clear from his dark tone.

The oldest brother of the four worked at a small investment banking firm. Nothing too big, but the UK office was closed down, causing him to have to go to the US or lose his job. He had mouths to God damned feed so he really did not have much choice.

"What is it?" He insisted. He sounded like a busy man.

"Good day, Mr. Adriann Kirkland," Alfred's jovial voice greeted on the phone. He was hopeful, if only for a bit, that this call would help him with his dilemma. "This is Alfred Jones from South Hills High School, and I would just like to inform you of your younger brother, Arthur Kirkland's four-day absence from his classes. It has caught the attention of the administration," that wasn't the truth - yet. "And they would like to inquire if there is anything we can do to have Arthur Kirkland back in school?" The we he meant there was Adriann and him, but he could take whatever answer the legal guardian would give him.

Omegas were, as what Arthur had pointed out over and over again, treated very differently from Alphas and Betas. They were given special privileges from the local government, and that included their education. It would be a total waste to just toss everything because Arthur Kirkland didn't want to go to school anymore.