His breaths came quick and shallow. His face and neck were flushed with heat, while sweat had soaked his rumpled clothes until they clung tightly to his body. His lips stayed slightly open as hot breaths escaped between them, and his entire body seemed consumed by an uncontrollable restlessness.
"We've arrived, Mr. Lewis. Please hang on a little longer. We'll have a doctor take a look at you."
The one who spoke was the driver. His palms were damp against the steering wheel. He had managed to make the twenty-minute journey in only ten.
He quickly got out of the vehicle and assisted Jasper out of the back seat.
Under normal circumstances, Jasper would have recoiled from even the slightest touch and struck out without warning. Tonight, though, he resembled a starving lion that was too exhausted to bare its fangs.
He did not swear at the driver or push him away.
They arrived at the emergency department two minutes later.
A nurse drew Jasper's blood to determine whether his pheromone levels were stable.
"It certainly appears that you're entering a rut." After observing Jasper shifting uneasily in his chair, the doctor placed his chart to one side. "The earliest we can have your blood test results is fifteen minutes from now."
He pointed to a small room nearby. "If the discomfort becomes too much to bear, there's a calming room next door. It releases broad-spectrum Omega pheromones that should help ease your symptoms."
Jasper slowly curled his hands into trembling fists. Moist strands of hair rested against his forehead, while sweat gathered along his neck.
He was undeniably handsome, yet there was normally a coldness in his presence, a hostile edge that discouraged anyone from approaching him. Even now, despite his weakened condition, he remained intimidatingly unapproachable.
"I don't need it," Jasper replied without hesitation.
Ever since reaching adulthood, he had depended on suppressants to endure every rut. He had never encountered an Omega whose compatibility with him was perfect.
This time, though, the oral suppressant had failed to work. Even the injection had done nothing to relieve his symptoms.
The turmoil within him only grew stronger.
What was even more unusual was that he felt no desire whatsoever to mark an Omega.
He did not yearn for an Omega's pheromones, nor did he want one nearby to calm him.
This was nothing like a normal rut.
An Alpha could receive only one injectable suppressant within a single day. He had already taken his dose, which left the hospital as his only option.
"Where is your Omega?" the doctor questioned.
"I've never marked an Omega." Jasper made an effort to keep his voice steady, though his growing impatience was impossible to hide.
The doctor examined him with obvious doubt.
An Alpha who had never marked an Omega should not have deteriorated so severely during a rut.
A rut was the period when an Alpha's possessive instincts toward an Omega became strongest. The more intense the symptoms, the more urgently the Alpha required the comfort provided by a partner's pheromones.
From the doctor's perspective, there was no doubt that Jasper had a partner.
"You can't lie to your doctor." The elderly physician's stern tone reflected the authority that came with years of medical experience. "You told me you'd taken an oral suppressant before receiving an injection. Yet your condition has already deteriorated to the point that isolation is required. If you leave the hospital in this condition, you could lose control and attack an Omega at any moment."
The law mandated isolation for Alphas whose rut symptoms became dangerously severe. The regulation was designed to safeguard Omegas, whose physiology made them more vulnerable. An Alpha experiencing an extreme rut could become unstable and aggressive, making it unsafe for him to remain among the public.
Jasper had no idea how he could possibly explain what was happening to him.
"I'm not lying!" The agitation inside him was already approaching its limit. "And I'm not going into isolation."
He genuinely felt no desire to mark an Omega.
All he felt was excruciating pain, as though his body were burning from within. Every inch of him was overheated, restless, and painfully tense, leaving him incapable of finding even the slightest relief.
The sound of hurried footsteps came from outside the consultation room.
"Doctor, the patient's blood test results are out." The nurse walked in carrying a laboratory report. She appeared visibly uneasy, particularly when she looked toward Jasper.
She passed the report to the doctor and stood quietly, waiting for him to examine the results.
After reading through the report, the doctor raised his eyes to the nurse. Just as she had anticipated, the shock on his face mirrored her own.
The nurse's expression grew solemn. "We tested the same blood sample three separate times. Should we collect another sample and run the test again? The machine could be faulty. Or should we have the patient transferred to a larger hospital?"
Jasper's brows drew together at her words. Transferred to a larger hospital? Had a simple rut somehow become a life-threatening condition? From the concern in the nurse's voice, this clearly wasn't something trivial.
"What exactly is happening?" the driver asked as he stepped forward.
The doctor held the report between his fingers and gestured toward the doorway. "You can leave now. There's no need to repeat the test."
The nurse gave Jasper a cautious glance before walking out.
Jasper stayed seated on the small stool opposite the doctor, though he was barely capable of remaining upright. He had one hand gripping the edge of the desk, and it trembled uncontrollably.
Being unable to control himself was excruciating. It was like being submerged beneath deep water and desperately struggling toward the surface. Yet every attempt he made to regain control only sent his agitation spiraling higher, making it impossible for him to think clearly or do anything purposeful.
The doctor rotated the report toward Jasper and passed it across the desk. "Sex pheromone concentration-above nine thousand. Glandular blood ketones-above three hundred."
Jasper stared blankly at the figures. He spent much more time in bars and nightclubs than studying medical reports, so the numbers might as well have been written in another language.
"What does that mean?" he asked.
Were his pheromone levels just abnormal?
"You're not experiencing a rut." The doctor lightly tapped his fingers against the desk. "These results show that you're in heat."
He stopped for a moment to watch Jasper's reaction.
As expected, Jasper's annoyance intensified. A cold, disbelieving laugh almost escaped him, and for an instant, he felt like destroying the entire hospital.
Everyone knew that Omegas experienced heat. He was an Alpha. How could an Alpha possibly be in heat? Even the most absurd soap opera would never invent something this ridiculous.
"Are you going to tell me that my condition belongs in your hospital's collection of rare cases?" Jasper asked with biting sarcasm.
The doctor made no attempt to deny it. Instead, he seemed genuinely interested in the possibility. "If you give me permission, I'd like to record your case. It's extraordinarily rare."
Fuck.
Jasper was just about to swear when the doctor added, "I know this may be difficult for you to accept, but you are in heat. Your glandular blood results also show that you've been marked."
The doctor allowed him a brief moment before continuing, "Your body is searching for the pheromones of the person who marked you. You want to be close to them. Since medication has failed to suppress your symptoms, I strongly recommend that you locate that person. Their pheromones may help you get through this heat. There is no alternative."
Jasper's breathing became increasingly labored. The doctor continued speaking, but Jasper could only catch scattered fragments, the rest dissolving into an indistinct hum.
What the hell was this doctor talking about? Was this some kind of joke?
A mark was supposed to be an Alpha's way of claiming an Omega. He was an Alpha. How could anyone have possibly marked him?
The driver was equally bewildered. "Doctor, are you certain there hasn't been some kind of error? He's an Alpha."
The doctor kept his attention on Jasper. "There is absolutely no mistake. This is a private hospital dedicated to Alpha care. I'm fully aware of your designation."
Cases of an Omega marking an Alpha were extremely rare. Only two had been documented in the previous hundred years, and both involved Omegas whose differentiation into Alphas had been unsuccessful.
There was another possibility as well-one that was considerably more disturbing.
Still, until he could confirm the truth, the doctor refused to make any assumptions.
He stood from his chair, his expression turning solemn. "Your symptoms are already quite severe. If you don't find the pheromones you need, you won't be able to remain here and have a conversation with me like this for another two hours."
Seeing the uncertainty in Jasper's eyes, the doctor continued, "If you were bitten while unconscious, I can arrange for the bite mark to be traced. You can also report the person responsible for sexual assault. Forced marking is a criminal offense. In less serious circumstances, the matter may be settled privately, while severe cases can result in imprisonment."
A sexual assault complaint. That was the sort of accusation Omegas usually made against Alphas.
For an Alpha to file such a complaint was humiliating enough that Jasper would rather have his head ripped off and thrown around like a ball. He had never imagined anything could be more disgraceful.
Someone might as well put him out of his misery. He wouldn't even object to being hanged.
The doctor stared straight at Jasper. "Do you remember who did it? You're almost out of time."
Jasper inhaled sharply, his thoughts completely tangled.
No matter how absurd the diagnosis sounded, he could not ignore the way his body was reacting.
Every rising wave of anxiety urged him toward the same solution-find the pheromones that could soothe him before he completely lost control. Otherwise, he would be driven insane. He could already feel himself nearing that point.
His limbs were rapidly losing their strength, while his insides seemed to twist and churn without end. He was unbearably hot, as though one tiny spark would be enough to set his entire body ablaze.
Jasper desperately racked his brain for an answer. Trouble had always seemed to follow him, and without anyone restraining him, he seldom made it through a day without getting himself into some sort of mess.
He had picked countless fights and accumulated more enemies than he could possibly recall. If his family and Alpha status had not protected him, someone would have made him pay dearly for his behavior long ago.
Ordinarily, he was the one who caused trouble for everyone else. Nobody had ever been bold enough to turn the tables on him.
He dug through one muddled memory after another until a familiar figure suddenly appeared from the shadows of his mind.
The stark hospital lights seemed to fade, replaced by the extravagant neon glow of that night.
Then it struck him.
An Omega had indeed bitten him a month earlier.
Jasper abruptly turned toward the driver. Using every bit of strength he had left, he forced himself to speak clearly. "Find out who that Omega was-the one I flirted with at Spirit Lounge a month ago. Find out where he is now. I want an answer right away!"
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