Chapter Text
1.5 years later
Alec puts the second cake on the table and waves over to the man entertaining the pups in their garden to get them under the outdoor shower to clean up.
The weather god had mercy on them today and kept the rainfall to a few drops in the early morning, so the pups have been tumbling around the garden.
Chairman Meow brushes around his bare feet. He was a surprise guest in Izzy's 'luggage' when she first visited them a year ago. Magnus swears he just had something in his eyes when he took him in his arms after months of separation.
Alec is still lighting the candles on one of the cakes when tender hands land on his hips and brush forward to rest on his stomach.
"Two cakes again? You baked as many last year already," Magnus chuckles and presses a kiss to Alec's mating bite.
"I owe you two," Alec smirks and pulls to the side, snickering at the tickling of Magnus' beard brushing over his sensitive skin.
"You don't owe me anything," Magnus coos and nuzzles against Alec's shoulder.
"Just for all of this," Alec says and makes a wide movement with his free hand.
"All of this wouldn't exist without you," Magnus points out and makes Alec turn around inside his arms. "The time with you were the best years of my life. You and the boys, your father behind bars, your sister slowly dismantling the whole corrupt system—"
"You needing to learn to handle a sick and uneducated mate, become a father on the shortest notice ever, leave the country you used to call home, the houses that you're planning but will only ever see on photographs because it's too dangerous for you to travel there," Alec continues.
"The good morning and goodnight kisses from my wonderful mate, our pups going to school and kindergarten, your brother staying with us and helping so that you can catch up on your education," Magnus adds, grinning at him widely.
Alec can't help but smile. Getting to know Max, who he had last seen as a baby, is one of the sweetest surprises their life here in Indonesia has given him. That they would hit it off so well that Max would move in next door, would help look after the kids and film his successful YouTube videos in the isolated shed in their garden—who would have thought that when they first met a year ago?
They've fully settled in now. Alec is getting more and more confident in his language skills—not least because Magnus' family welcomed him and their pups with open arms and patiently listened to his very first attempts—and the new freedom of moving around, of driving a frigging motor scooter, makes him breathe easy and his heart beat calmly in his chest.
He misses his mom, his siblings and friends back in New York. But he is happy like he hasn't been since winning a reading competition in 2nd grade. They are only a video call away anyway, and his family will be all over for Christmas, just like they were last year.
Magnus is still a sought-after architect, still jets around the world. But neither he nor Alec need to worry about anyone knocking at their door and taking him or the pups away when he's away.
Alec goes to a normal doctor, pays at the same till as his mate. He can walk the streets without scent blockers or long-sleeved shirts. They go to the beach, buy their clothes in the same shops, and no one bats an eye at the sight of Magnus' mating bite.
Alec accepts help with the pups and the household chores, his frame growing rounder each passing month. They jump into the ocean as often as they can, they make love, raise their strong-willed kids, hold each other after nightmares, and go on weekly date nights since Max has been around.
The loft in Brooklyn has been confiscated by the State as repayment for the 'stolen' pups, but Indonesia won't extradite them. After all, three of them are citizens of the country they all call home now, and the only charge against Magnus is leaving the United States with their pups.
Their family is as safe as it can be, and Alec couldn't be happier.
Not every question in his head will receive an answer. He has made peace with the fact that he'll never learn who the mysterious professor was and if it was her he has to thank for his survival or if it was a simple administrative mistake. He'll never learn the kind guard's name from the farm or the one of the immigration officer who waved them through and into freedom. He doesn't know if Aldertree lost his job or if his speech in front of Starkweather made a difference for the omegas still used as breeding machines.
These loose ends sometimes pop up in his mind, just like flashbacks and deeply buried memories, but they don't steal his sleep anymore. He did what he could, and he is thankful for this new lease of life. He's still struggling sometimes, thinking it's not fair that he's alive and thriving while other omegas are still enslaved. His therapist calls it survivor's guilt. Maybe she's right. But he knows he's come so far, and it will only go up from here.
He has big plans for the future when he's stable enough not to get triggered by other omegas' suffering. He hasn't told Magnus about it yet, but he knows his alpha will support him. Just like Magnus supports Catarina and Ragnor financially, now that he learnt why an alpha trained in human medicine knows so much about omega physiology and a young rebel law student seemingly assimilated to the status quo. Who would have thought that Magnus' closest friends worked for an underground organisation that saves omegas and smuggles them across the border?
One day, Alec will have a qualification for trauma therapy and will support omegas like him adjusting to their new life. But for now, family and high school graduation are his main focus and will be for a while. He deserves this, his pups deserve this, and his wonderful mate, too.
"What are you thinking about, my love?" Magnus asks, amusement clear in his voice.
Alec chuckles, a little embarrassed about zoning out like this. He takes a moment to ponder over the answer, tries to find words that sum up all the things simultaneously existing in his head.
"That I'm very happy," he settles on.
Magnus smiles at him, eyes sparkling with joy.
"I am very happy, too, Alexander. This is the perfect birthday, and I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you," he says, brushing his nose against Alec's.
Alec returns his mate's smile easily and pulls him in for another kiss, deep and full of passion, until Magnus pulls back laughing, scolding him, "The kids are right there, around the corner."
"So I can't kiss my mate?" Alec pouts.
"Oh, you know how we get," Magnus chuckles and kisses Alec's pursed lips more chaste. "Aku cinta kamu," he whispers.
Alec's lips curl into a wide smile. "Aku mencintaimu sayangku."*
THE END
*I love you, my darling.