just friends

Henry had opted to ignore the way Clover tensed when he first pulled her close to him, it was all but expected given what she had been through. The fact that he had been away from her for so long was the part that broke his heart the most, he thought. He forced back a grimace, not wanting Clover to see it and somehow begin to feel guilty when that was the last thing she needed right now. Clover wasn't here to comfort him because he felt guilty, he was the one that was supposed to care for her.

Running his fingers up and down her arm in an effort to ground her with his touch, Henry only lifted his head at the beginnings of Clover's question. He started to nod even before she finished her question. His lips parted to vocalize his answer but then his title slid from her lips and Henry couldn't deny the stir it caused in him. "Won't go anywhere. I'll stay with you when I take you to bed. And in the morning when you're ready to, I'll make some breakfast. I'll take real good care of you. Promise."

He meant what he had said. Henry wouldn't leave Clover until she was comfortable. But the minute he had the chance to leave her, Henry was going to go on a hunt for the bastard that had done this to her. He wasn't going to let an alpha get away with hurting her. It simply wasn't something that he would ever do.

"You wanna talk about it or no?" Henry asked after a few minutes, continuing to pull his fingers through her hair. He was gentle, not pushing her to talk. He was only giving her the option to, wanting her to know that he was here in every aspect for her. After a few minutes, Henry's eyes narrowed as he turned toward her. "When was the last time you ate? Probably be a good idea to get something into you now."

Clover couldn't help wonder if he meant his promise this time. Surely he did, but she remembered just days ago when he asked her if he had ever broken a promise to her. It was silly she was bringing that thought up, after all, the promise he had broken was only over breakfast. Not something actually important. She was still scared she might wake up and he'd be gone again, and then what?

"I don't even know what I'd say." She whispered, knowing part of her wished she could tell Henry everything that happened, everything she had felt, but that wasn't fair to him. It was already evident he felt so horrible, what good would it bring to put him through more of it? She quietly shook her head no, instead, deciding to focus on how nice his body felt underneath of her. It was the first bit of comfort she had received since being hurt so badly.

The mention of food only served to make her scrunch her face up, before she just shook her head no. "I'm not hungry," she whispered, finally opening her eyes again. Glancing down over her body, she could see the man's fingertips bruised into her skin, the bite marks he had left over her shoulders and chest. She could only hope they'd disappear sooner rather than later. Running her hands over her face, she sighed, letting her shoulders drop. "I'm sorry, I'm s-so sorry, you shouldn't have to be d-doing any of this." Again, more tears burned her eyes. They were already so red and bloodshot from the crying she had been doing, and now they only ached more.

Clover shifted slightly so she could lay in the water on her side, so she could press the side of her face into Henry's chest and wrap her arms around his torso. "Y-you're so good to me, alpha," she whined, knowing she didn't deserve any of this from him.

@ castle.

"Doesn't matter. Whatever helps you is what you can say. Doesn't have to be details or nothin'," Henry answered her in a low voice, squeezing Clover in an attempt to help her to relax. But the moment that Clover said she wasn't hungry while actively avoiding when the last time she had eaten was, it was all Henry needed to know that she probably hadn't eaten since Thursday evening. And even if she had, it was probably minimal and once. Maybe twice.

Henry shook his head as he looked down to her, leaning forward just enough to press a kiss to Clover's temple. "When we get out, I'll order some food. Whatever you want but you need to eat something. Because I'm betting its been days since you last eat and there's no way I'm going to let you not eat," his voice dipped slightly. It wasn't intentional by any means but Henry was appreciative of the control his voice could exercise in situations. Sometimes it simply made things easier, particularly in this because Henry could force her to eat. It wouldn't be a five course meal but something was better than nothing.

"Think about what you want and I'll get it. Doesn't matter what it is, okay?" Henry was going to give her as much leeway as he could with picking what she wanted to eat. He shook his head when she started apologizing, fixing her with a stern look. "You didn't do this, Clover. It's not your fault. It's that bastard's, regardless of whether you take suppressants. Regardless of whether you were at the bar looking for me, regardless of whatever other circumstance you can name. It's not something you need to apologize for. Understad?" Henry asked, wishing like hell that he could comfort her more. There was nothing that he could really do beyond what he was doing, not unless he pushed Clover even further.

Clovers eyes fell down to their bath water, hating that she knew he was commanding her to do something, knowing that when his voice fell like that, there was nothing she could do to reject it. An alphas command was like law to an omega, just another reason she was always so against them. But in this context, she knew Henry was just looking out for her. When he pressed his lips against her temple, her whole face heated up, her cheeks turning a bright red. It had always been somewhat easy to ignore the pull she felt towards him, but now, it was almost impossible.

Was it better to just lay it all out on the line? To let Henry know exactly what she was feeling, what was confusing her? Would he help her through it, or would he take advantage of her? It was almost impossible to know.

"I..." She parted her lips, wanting to explain everything she was feeling but she barely knew how to put it into words. How could she admit a part of her enjoyed what had happened, her inner omega had enjoyed it? Instead, she just shook her head and shut her mouth, deciding it was better to keep it inside.

Running her hands back over her face again, she tried to relax, but by now the water was beginning to get chilly. She didn't want to pull herself away from Henry, but she forced herself to. "Maybe Italian?" She finally spoke as she forced herself up, slowly stepping out of the bath. Her whole body was trembling, her hands shaking as she reached out for her robe, quickly sliding it over her shoulders.

@ castle.

Henry knew Clover well enough that he wasn’t the least bit surprised about the way her scent soured when he demanded she eat something. She had never liked being told what to do and when he took the option away from her, it only made the whole situation even worse. He bit back an apology, just needing to show Clover some sort of security. He was convinced that would help her start to heal.

When Clover moved to stand, Henry dropped his head forward to give her as much privacy as he could. It wasn’t until he was sure the robe was secure around her that Henry stood, nodding at the suggestion of Italian food. “Why don’t you decide what you want while I go put some clothes on? Meet you in the living room,” he promised. Henry pauses beside her, just long enough to kiss the side of her head before leaving the bathroom entirely.

Henry changed as fast as he could, a fresh pair of boxers and sweets pants slid over his legs before he tugged a tshirt over his head. Henry towel dried his hair before stepping out of his room, heading right for the living room. Already, Henry planned to order himself chicken Alfredo and garlic breadsticks but he’d wait for Clover’s order before calling the order in.

Clover left Henry alone so he could get dressed, slinking out of the bathroom quietly and tiptoeing into the living room. She sunk down onto the couch and let her head fall into her hands as she sucked in a deep breath, trying to keep her composure. She had to stop crying, she had to pull it together. If not for her own self, but for Henry. The last thing she wanted was him feeling like this was even slightly his fault.

No matter how he liked to think she was his omega, his responsibility, she wasn't. She appreciated him, endlessly, but this wasn't his fault and she knew he was beating himself up over it. Hearing his footsteps, she quickly raised her head and reached forward to grab the remote and flick the tv on. Any kind of distraction was helpful.

"I can call in the order," Clover tried to offer, reaching forward for her cellphone she had thrown on the table. "W-what do you want?" She opened her contacts, flicking through them all until she found their favorite Italian take out place.

@ castle.

Henry raised an eyebrow when Clover offered to place their order. He opened his mouth to argue, to tell her that he was going to take care of her but she had already pulled up the restaurant's phone number. His shoulders sagged as he moved to sit on the other end of the couch. Henry lifted Clover's feet up and set them in his lap, gently rubbing her ankle. He made sure to keep his touch light, never passing her ankle because he knew how sensitive Clover had to be at the moment.

"You know, I think I'll get the stuffed ziti. With alfredo sauce and chicken," Henry added with a groan as he leaned back. It wasn't often that he differed his takeout meals but on the occasion, he did. He grinned as he glanced toward Clover. "Oooh! And don't forget the arrancini," he added with a firm nod of his head.

Henry glanced over to Clover, wishing he could take all of her pain away from her. The thought broke him when he thought too much about it. "Get whatever you want, okay? Don't matter how much it is," he said quietly. "Whatever you don't eat, you can save for later. Italian always heats up real good."

Clover chewed on the inside of her lip, a shiver running up her body the moment Henry touched her, dragging her feet into his lap. "Got it," she laughed, nodding when he made sure not to forget an order of arancini. Dialing the restaurant she placed an order for delivery, reciting Henry's order first before she would forget anything and then her own. Chicken parmesan and a house salad. If Henry was going to force her to eat, she was at least thankful she got to pick her favorite thing.

After placing the order, she sat her phone back down on the coffee table before lifting her eyes to Henry again. "About forty-five minutes." She told him, and then nervously let her eyes fall to his hands, watching him massage her ankle. Pulling her feet away from him, she crawled forward on her knees and instead laid her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him. Clover couldn't help it, she had enjoyed laying in his arms too much in the bath, she wanted to be pressed against him again.

"Did you not have work tonight?" Clover whispered, trying to distract herself from what she really wanted to talk to him about. It wouldn't be fair, or right, to try and announce to Henry she wanted to be his omega. Just because she was scared. ...It was only because she was scared, and wanted to be protected, right? Letting her eyes flicker up to his, she tried to ignore how her heart seemed to just stop, how her breath caught in the back of her throat and she was forced to instantly look back down.

@ castle.

Henry was a bit annoyed by how long Clover told him their food was going to take but he couldn't say he was surprised; it was right around the typical time it took for food to be delivered to them. He let out a sigh, his head dropping against the back of the couch. When Clover pulled away from him, Henry frowned and looked over toward her, about to protest her moving away from him. But before he could, Clover had cuddled into his side. He inhaled her scent, a slight smile on his face as he nuzzled the top of her head.

"No. Anthony's covering tonight because I told him I'd need to relax once I got home," Henry supplied. He wasn't so sure he wanted to admit to Clover why he had been gone for so long. Henry had been afraid he wouldn't be able to control himself around her during his rut but.. would it have been better if he had been the one to violate her instead? At least it wouldn't have been a stranger. He would have loved her and taken care of her instead of abandoning her.

"Tomorrow, I'll actually make us breakfast," Henry finally spoke, breaking the silence that had spread between them. It was his admittance to. having done wrong and this was only the beginning of him trying to make it up to her.

The next morning, Clover woke up slightly confused, in Henry's bed. She vaguely remembering falling asleep on the couch and small moments of waking up in Henry's arms throughout the night. His bedroom door was open and the smell of sizzling bacon was wafting into the room. Clover stretched out on his bed for a few more minutes, staring up at the ceiling as she tried to make herself move.

Dragging herself up out of bed, she brushed her fingers through her hair and headed straight for the kitchen. She was partially surprised Henry had kept his word about breakfast, or rather, she had suspected she would've woken up before him and cooked anyway. Taking a seat at the counter, she rested her head in her arms, her eyes still aching from how much she had cried the day before. Clover was in a much better mood now, after the way Henry had cared for her. "Morning," she yawned, looking up at him.

Henry had the news playing on the tv in the living room behind them, though she wasn't paying much attention to it while she watched Henry finish their breakfast. That was, until she heard the mention of changed to the omega protection and equality act. Slowly sitting up straight, she turned around on the bar stool to give her attention to the news.

"Articles 2 and 3 have been repealed, effectively reducing the amount of health coverage afforded to omegas, also banning the use of medications such as birth controls and suppressants. Also banning omegas from being out in public without a beta or an omega, unless heading to and from work or school... This is for their protection as the amount of violent crimes towards omegas have skyrocketed..."

Clover almost couldn't believe what she was hearing, her hands beginning to shake as she turned back around, not wanting to listen to anymore of it. She couldn't believe something like that could've passed, and it only made her more fearful as she hid her face in her hands, feeling sick to her stomach. Swallowing around the lump in her throat, she glanced up at Henry from between her feelings, wondering what this might mean now.

@ castle.