The Glasswing Butterfly (Alpha!Negan/Omega!OFC)

Part 3

The war between Chuck and Negan wanes after their encounter in the elevator. Chuck finds herself too preoccupied to really care about it after everything she went through. Not only does she have several days of work to get caught up on, but she also has a ton of information on her new status to absorb.

Chuck realizes pretty quickly that she is woefully ill informed about the group she has found herself in. She had a cursory course in her high school health class on omega physiology. Then in her college American history class, she learned a tiny bit about the omega civil rights movement in the 80s. But it really wasn't a whole lot, so she had some information to get caught up on.

Before the 80s, omegas really didn't have any rights. They couldn't vote, had no representation in government, and actually weren't considered real citizens. It wasn't exactly illegal for omegas to hold jobs or own property, but it wasn't illegal for employers to refuse to hire them or for banks to refuse loans either. So, really, omegas had no choice but to mate early to survive, usually just after presenting in their early teens. And it was perfectly legal for a fully grown alpha to claim a newly presented omega. Non consensual claiming was legal in most states, too. A claim bonds and alpha and omega together when the alpha bites the scent gland on the omega's neck, thus changing her scent for life. So the omega is bonded to the alpha for the rest of her life. And it truly horrifies Chuck that forced claiming was legal not even a generation ago.

But things had changed quickly in the last forty years. Though there is still some prejudice, the current state of things for omegas is definitely the best in the entire history of the country. So at least Chuck can breathe a sigh of relief about that. She doesn't have to worry about being fired immediately or being kicked out of her apartment because she's now an omega. And any alpha that forces a claim on an omega gets life in prison. Advances in medicine also has made it possible to break a claim, if one is forced. It is difficult, but still possible.

During the time that Chuck is wrapping her head around her new status, Negan is busy avoiding the omega next door at all costs. And it's not because her mother threatened him. No, it's because every fiber of his being wants to do anything but avoid her. And that scares him.

He was mated, once. Married to an omega for ten years, his Lucille. But she had died a decade ago. And part of him died, too. People say that alphas don't feel the bond of a claim like omegas do, since they technically aren't the ones that get claimed, but he felt his mate die. Like it was his own body giving out on him.

He never wants to feel that again. Ever. So he hasn't been with any omegas since Lucille died. And he's not planning on changing that. No matter how much of a pull he feels to Chuck.

So when he comes into the building and Chuck is picking up her mail, he rushes to the stairwell so he doesn't get caught in the elevator with her. Or when she leaves her apartment to do laundry, he jumps in the shower to stop him from smelling her scent wafting underneath his door. He even tries not to be so loud in case the girl would confront him about it. Because he's not too sure how much he would be able to control himself if she showed up at his door.

Chuck leaves her apartment for her follow up with Dr. Bailey and it's the first time she's out alone since she presented. Diane couldn't get the day off to be with her daughter, though she tried. But Chuck said that everything would be fine and for Diane not to worry. Even though Chuck is pretty nervous, herself, about it. But she doesn't let that on.

When Chuck steps up into the bus and takes her seat, she can feel eyes on her. It isn't really a very long ride to the medical center, but it starts to feel like forever as an uncomfortable silence makes its way through the vehicle. Chuck knows it's because of her. Though scents aren't as important to betas, they can still easily tell the difference between alphas, betas, and omegas by the way they smell, especially in an enclosed space. And the rarity of omegas means that it's very likely that Chuck is the first one these people have encountered in quite some time.