Page 33 of Shifter Omegaverse AU

“Oh, and because I keep fucking forgetting, your name should be on this list, and you can take a corresponding wristband,” Hank gruffed, nodding at a stapled stack of papers that had seen better days, and a box filled with red, green, and yellow wristbands.

“I’ll take a daiquiri, please and thank you, Hank!” Ray said before scurrying over to the list.

“The usual for me,” Milo said. They almost didn’t say anything more, but at the last second they added, “And I’m not really going by ‘boy’ or ‘man’ or ‘guy’ anymore.”

Hank raised both eyebrows as he picked up a cocktail shaker and began shaking it next to his head. “Roger that. I’ll try to remember for next time.”

“Thank you!” Milo said, giving a campy salute before following after Ray.

“So, it looks like the bracelet color corresponds to whether you’re looking for something serious, something playful, or you’re just here to socialize,” Ray said.

Without hesitation, Milo grabbed a red “socialize” bracelet, and Ray pursed his lips, but didn’t comment as he fished out a green bracelet for himself. Most of the greens were already gone, which made sense given it was a singles’ event. The red was probably for folks like Milo who were there for emotional support.

“One Daiquiri and one usual,” Hank said, appearing in front of them with their drinks. He held out his hand, and Ray handed over his card.

“Aww, thanks, sweet pea.”

Ray rolled their eyes and turned to survey the bar. “I think I can keep you stocked on Shirley Temples for the night without breaking the bank.”

Milo hip bumped him, and Ray hip bumped them back. Milo used it as an excuse to start swaying to the upbeat music. There were small clusters of shifters all around the room, but the majority were already on the dance floor. Usually, at events like this, Milo would suggest they dance first so Ray could work off some jitters, but they could also take a lap around the room and scope things out.

“Do you want to—” Milo went to ask, but a tall shifter seemed to materialize at Ray’s side. He had a green bracelet on and eyes only for Ray.

“Hey there. I would offer to buy you a drink, but since you beat me to it, could I offer you this first dance?”

Milo bristled at the fact that the man had probably been watching Ray since they walked in, but Ray blushed and peered up at him through his lashes. “I’d like to get through a little more of my drink first, but then yes, you can have my first dance of the evening.”

“Care to get to know each other a little first?” the man asked, holding out a hand for Ray like he was offering him help up out of a chair.

Ray glanced at Milo, and even though their pony huffed, Milo nodded.

“I’ll catch up with you in a bit?” Ray asked, and all Milo could do was nod again.

Ray followed the shifter over to one of the few available high-top tables, leaving Milo alone at the bar as shifters continued to stream into the club. The mixing scents of cologne, perfume, and pheromones had their pony curling their lip back in distaste.

The dance floor was in the center of the room, with strobe lights flashing out from the DJ booth in the corner. Milo spent the next few minutes people watching, starting with the DJ and skimming over shifters in all kinds of sexy, flirty, revealing, and even professional outfits. A glimmer of red hair caught Milo’s attention, but when they homed in on the ginger hair, the person was a fair bit shorter than Rowan, with shaggy locks more similar in length to Milo’s.

Maybe Milo would grow out their hair. They loved the long tendrils of curly red that would fall out of Rowan’s buns and top knots. Maybe Milo could have hair as long as their pony’s mane.

Their pony let out a loud whinny, which Milo ignored. They could probably pull off long hair if they maintained it well enough. Their pony whinnied again, and Milo huffed, turning away from the dance floor. Okay, yes, fine, they weren’t always the best with self-grooming. They had their haircut appointments pre-scheduled for the rest of time because after Anabelle died, they’d let little things like that go.

Andrew had hated that. He’d once called Milo “mangy,” which was rude and definitely not true. Yes, there had been a few weeks when they hadn’t showered more than a handful of times, and yes, Andrew had once found Milo attempting to unstick a lollipop from the back of their hair, but it was still hurtful and—

“Milo?” a warm, familiar voice called, and Milo glanced up to find their ginger giant standing there.

“Hi!” Milo said, their voice coming out closer to a squeal than they would ever admit to anyone. “What are you doing here?”

Rowan held up his wrist, displaying a red wristband. He slowly dragged his gaze down Milo, pausing noticeably on their exposed midriff and short shorts before landing on their wristband.

“It seems the same thing as you. Let me guess, Ray?”

Milo smirked and tipped their head towards the row of tables. Rowan turned to look, but a furrow appeared in his brow. Milo whipped around and found that the table Ray had just been at was empty.

“Oh, come on,” Milo grumbled, pivoting to the dance floor. Thankfully, Ray and the tall shifter hadn’t made it very far into the throng of people and were dancing facing each other, the other man’s hands on Ray’s hips and Ray’s hands on his chest.

Rowan’s voice was a low rumble, just loud enough to carry over the music. “If it makes you feel any better, Ruben works fast, too.”

Ah, that explained it.