Omega Manual chapter 45

Sleep, it’s okay

One second, two seconds.

As soon as this address came out, Shelley stood still for at least three seconds, his fair cheeks turning redder and redder at a visible speed, “No!”

Irey took three steps forward and grabbed Shelley’s hand, “What are you shy about now, we’ve already slept together in the same bed.”

“That was then, this is now!” Shelley struggled hard, his ears burning red with embarrassment.

“But you just said, today is my birthday, can’t you fulfill a little wish for the birthday boy?” Irey looked innocent, “Shelley?”

Hearing this address made Shelley’s skin crawl, “Don’t call me that!”

“How should I call you?” Irey pressed closer, leaning towards Shelley’s ear, “Shelley? Shel~ley?”

Warm breath sprayed on the sensitive earlobe, a tactic that Irey Halton, the alpha, often used to tease. Yet, despite knowing this, Shelley inevitably fell for it every time.

The glands released a bit of sweet pheromone beyond his control, and Irey chuckled, leaning closer to the nape of his neck, his nose teasingly brushing against the slightly raised area.

As if a proud beast showing off its prey: Look, whether you admit it or not, you’ve been mine for a long time.

Excessive shame accumulated in his chest, Shelley couldn’t bear it any longer and raised his voice, “Irey Halton!”

A low chuckle escaped Irey’s throat as he reached around Shelley’s waist, resting his chin on his shoulder. This time, the posture was proper, with no disarray anywhere.

“I won’t do anything, really, I just suddenly want to sleep next to you,” Irey said softly. “Thank you, this is the best gift I’ve ever received in my life.”

Irey Halton was a person without a birthday.

He was born on the run from debt, sleeping on cold, hard ground since he could remember. The first words he heard outside his home were mockery, and the first time he had the right to speak in front of others was through his fists.

There were people everywhere in the lower district. People lived in piles of garbage, under bridges, in dog kennels, between bricks, and in toilets.

But they were more like animals, like weeds, like unprocessed garbage, nothing like humans. And he, like all the other Lansai people, was just a worthless life, struggling to survive.

No one remembered his name, no one cared if he had a family.

They saw through him to vested interests, handy tools, troublesome stains, but their gaze never lingered on him.

Only Shelley saw.

With those eyes, like gemstones, transparent, clean, and pure.

Shelley fell silent, looking down at the floor, strands of hair brushing against Irey’s cheek.

“I believe you, you big idiot,” he said softly.

Irey chuckled, offering no defense. He adjusted the position of his arms and suddenly, with a strong effort, lifted Shelley horizontally.

Shelley was taken aback and instinctively struggled, “What are you doing?”

“If the soft approach doesn’t work, then only the hard way is left,” Irey said, holding his hips steady and taking the opportunity to give them a squeeze.

Shelley’s cheeks flushed red, more from anger than embarrassment. “Halton! I warn you—”

“No.”

“If you don’t put me down now, you won’t get paid today!”

“Mm-hmm.”

Before Shelley could come up with a more threatening threat, Irey had already carried him into the bedroom. In the chaotic struggle, Shelley fell onto the bed first, with Irey following closely behind, one hand propped on the mattress to avoid crushing Shelley completely.

The wind outside the window had stopped at some point, and the moonlight gradually emerged from the clouds, casting a dim blue light.

The gauzy curtains hung half-open, casting a swaying shadow on the floor in the moonlight.

Irey stared at Shelley’s eyes from close range, those eyes presenting a deep-sea-like depth in the dim light. The owner of the eyes pursed his lips and nervously grasped the wrinkles of the bedsheets with his five fingers, like a rabbit trapped in a cage, powerless to resist fate.

Lovely enough to want to swallow whole.

Shelley closed his eyes and waited for a long time, but instead of Irey’s next move, he felt a warm touch on his forehead, which quickly receded.

Shelley furrowed his brows and opened his eyes, only to see Irey lifting his upper body and pulling away from him.

“I mean it, boss,” Irey’s bangs fell over his forehead, covering half of his eyebrow, “No one has ever given me a gift, and I never thought I would see my family again.”

With that, Irey got up from Shelley and sat on the other side of the bed.

Shelley’s breathing had not completely calmed down yet. He lifted one arm to cover his eyes, turning his face to the side. “…Has anyone ever told you that you’re the biggest idiot in the world?”

Irey chuckled, “Caroline and my mom often say that.”

That night, Shelley suddenly became particularly obedient. Whether it was helping him take off his coat or tucking him in, Irey’s actions were not met with resistance. When he reached out to untie the hairband from Shelley’s head and let down his golden hair, Shelley even tilted his head voluntarily to make it easier for him.

As soon as the bedroom light was turned off, he obediently closed his eyes.

The room soon quieted down, with only occasional rustling of fabric. Before long, even that rustling disappeared, leaving only the steady sound of Shelley’s breathing.

On the small table beside him was a half-full glass of water. Shelley took a white pill from it and swallowed it with the water. When Irey asked what it was, he casually said, “Vitamin.”

Now, Shelley’s face rarely relaxed, his chest rising and falling rhythmically, his long eyelashes occasionally trembling but quickly returning to calm.

Irey looked at Shelley’s sleeping face and remembered his mother, Jenny.

During the most unbearable years in hell, she would often spend whole nights unable to sleep, sometimes crying all night, sometimes inexplicably getting angry with him or Caroline, then regretting and hugging them.

Every night, Irey would put Jenny to bed and sit beside her until she fell asleep.

But most of the time, even after staying up for hours, she couldn’t fall asleep. To avoid worrying her son, she would deliberately pretend to breathe steadily, waiting for him to leave.

She didn’t know that Irey had a very keen sense of observation. Whether his mother was really asleep or not, he could tell at a glance.

Later, Jenny started taking medication. Those ordinary, white little pills had miraculous effects. As long as she took one before bed, Jenny could sleep well all night.

At that time, Irey was genuinely relieved. He thought the insomnia problem that had plagued his mother for so long had finally been properly resolved, but he didn’t expect that just a week later, the effect of the pills would deteriorate.

Jenny had to gradually increase her dosage. At first, she only needed to take one pill to sleep soundly, then she needed two, three pills…

When Jenny increased the dosage to four pills, Irey stopped her, because if she kept taking them, the side effects of the medication would outweigh the benefits. Since then, no matter how sleepless Jenny was, Irey never allowed her to continue increasing her dosage.

But he had just seen it very clearly, the pills poured out of the bottle by Shelley were six in number.

There was a muffled groan from the other side of the bed, and Irey turned to look at the sleeping Shelley. Even under the influence of the medication, he still slept uneasily, as if trapped in some unpleasant nightmare, with furrowed brows and unconsciously clutching the sheets beneath him.

Irey sighed softly and said, “Were you drugged with sleeping pills?”

Of course, Shelley, in his slumber, couldn’t hear what he said, just writhing more anxiously, fingers tightening even more.

Irey leaned over, rescued the sheet from between Shelley’s fingers, and held his hand.

Shelley’s palm was cold and damp, and Irey tightened his grip, ensuring every inch of his palm was pressed tightly against Shelley’s hand, slowly transferring warmth while releasing a faint pheromone.

“Sleep, it’s okay,” he whispered softly, “it’s all over.”

Whether it was the warmth Irey provided in his daze or the comforting pheromones, Shelley’s furrowed brow gradually relaxed, and his breathing became steadier.