Page 23 of Full Body Hit, Part 1 (Alpha Omega Hockey #5)

The embarrassment of last night washed away. His daddy was constantly showing Chase how much he cared. Chase sending him a semi-drunk voice memo babbling about how much he thought about Aunix was nothing in comparison, surely.

He took a picture of the box and sent it over to Aunix.

It was still pretty early, just shy of eight in the morning, and Chase had the whole day stretched out before him. He sat on the couch with a fresh cup of coffee and texted Sammy.

Chase

You wanna go buy stuff for my apartment today?

He didn’t get a response, but Chase hadn’t expected to—Sammy was probably still passed out in bed.

It was a little over an hour later when his phone buzzed. Chase grinned so wide his cheeks hurt as he opened the message.

Aunix

Morning, baby

I didn’t know you could send voice recordings over this thing. You have a nice voice

Charlie

Thank you daddy although I used an app to distort it slightly

Aunix

Oh, well, smart thinking. What’s the app?

Chase sent it over, and then there was radio silence for at least five minutes.

He pouted at the box. He’d wanted to open it straight away.

He was interrupted from his mental whining as his phone vibrated. But not just a little one—it was an incoming call.

From ??Aunix???

Chase fought the urge to fling the phone to the other side of the room, a million grasshoppers going wild in his stomach, his heart turning into a kaleidoscope of butterflies.

He took a breath and answered the call.

“Hello?”

“Hey, baby.”

Chase was melting. Chase was a puddle of thick, warm goo on the floor as that deep voice growled into his ear.

Holy fuck. He knew Aunix must be using the distortion app, but there was still something almost familiar in the cadence of his voice.

Maybe they’d met in another life. Maybe this was just a reunion between bonded souls.

Luckily, Chase wasn’t sappy enough to say that out loud. “Hey, Daddy.”

There was a slight pause. “Fuck, that sure sounds good out loud.”

Chase was so red he could probably fry an egg on his face. “It’s good to hear you too.”

“You sound shy, baby. Haven’t put you on the spot by calling you, have I?”

“Well, I can’t say I was expecting it, but I’m glad you did. Sorry about the dumb voice memo I left yesterday, I was kinda drunk.”

There was a low, syrupy laugh.

Chase seriously had to sit down on the couch. How did his daddy sound that fucking hot? It wasn’t fair. He wasn’t going to be able to function like a normal human being if he could just listen to Aunix’s rumbling voice all day.

“Yeah, I figured you’d had a few. And I liked it. I like it when you think about me. I really, really like you too.”

“Yeah?” Chase mumbled, a smile taking over his face.

“Mmhm. Now, what’s with this big box you have there?”

The smile turned into a grin. “I think some generous donor sent it to me.”

“That was nice of them.”

“ So nice.”

“You wanna open it up?”

“Yes, please. Wait, though—you have yours?” Chase checked

“Yeah, mine got here yesterday. Want me to open it with you?”

“Yeah!”

They situated themselves with their phones on speaker, Chase practically bouncing as he sliced open the tape, pulling back the flaps to reveal a bounty of soft things.

“Oh my God, Daddy. Oh, my gosh. How is this so soft? Holy—what is this made of? It feels like a cloud. And this pillow?”

Aunix was laughing on the other side, the kind of sound that meant someone was happy instead of amused at someone’s expense.

Chase described everything as he pulled things out—the thick, unimaginably velvety blanket made of some sort of mythical creature’s fur—cruelty-free, Aunix assured when Chase asked if it had been taken from that big dog thing in The Neverending Story .

There were pillows that were so perfect it was like they were made from a material Chase had never seen before. There were thinner sheets, and fluffy cushions, and cashmere sweaters.

Chase held up the piece of clothing, putting it to his chest. “Did you get one of these too? The sweater?”

“Nah, I got you a few things extra. Look in the bottom of the box.”

Chase dug through the remaining blankets and stopped at some oddly shaped thing.

He pulled it out. There, springing to life, was a big duck plushie. It was mostly round, with its little feet and wings and beak poking out.

He gaped at the stuffy for a full ten seconds. He hadn’t had a stuffed animal since…since he was like three. His mom thought they were silly.

Chase wasn’t going to get emotional about this. He pressed the duck to his chest. “I found the duck. Thank you, Daddy. I love him.”

“Yeah? Saw it on the website and, I don’t know…it made me think of you.”

Chase bit his lip, inspecting the stuffed animal, its big, black, felt eyes. “You like ducks?”

“Yeah. I dunno. I guess maybe that’s a little weird, but I think they’re…cute or whatever. I like their feet.”

Chase couldn’t help but laugh at that. “Wow, okay. I mean, if you want me to send you pics of my feet, you just had to ask.”

Aunix made a ‘tsk’ noise and Chase could practically hear him rolling his eyes. “I just…I like the sound their feet make when they slap on the ground, like… flapflapflapflapflap .”

Could a person die from feeling too much affection? Because the feeling was glowing so brightly in Chase’s chest, it threatened to burn a hole right through. “You’re right. That’s super cute. I guess I have to call him something. Hmm …what about Joey?”

“ Joey? ” Aunix spluttered.

Chase squeezed the duck to his chest. “Yeah, what’s wrong with Joey?”

“That sounds like a grown-ass man. Why not Ducky or something.”

“Because I’m not five years old?”

Aunix sighed on the other end of the line. “I mean…I guess Joey works. You weirdo.”

That burst a laugh out of Chase. “Daddy! Did you just call me a weirdo? Oh, my God…”

“I mean, if the flipper fits…”

“You are so mean. I’m hanging up.”

Aunix chuckled. “I thought you were gonna show me how to build a nest. This stuff is cleaned to be heat-ready, no need to wash it again.”

Urgh , there Aunix went, being cute and thoughtful again. “ Fine . But I won’t tolerate any slander against Joey.”

“Your duck is safe from me, although I’m gonna have a mini heart-attack when you tell me you’re in bed with Joey.”

The grin on Chase’s face was so big it strained his cheeks. “Don’t be jealous, Daddy. You know that Joey is only with me because you put him there. He’s a little piece of you.”

A few seconds ticked by. “You’re sweet, baby. I’ll remember that.”

“Good. Okay. Now, I have to find somewhere to put the nest…”

It turned out the box contained some tightly sealed cushions for the base of the nest. Chase dragged everything to the tiny room that was probably meant to be for storage or something.

Aunix chose a bed in a guest room, and they got to work.

“Ok, let’s make the structure out of these pillows. Oh my God, this one is so long. Okay, these can go at the head, bent like a C. Oh, and these little round ones can go on either side. And these big square ones—actually, let’s put one behind the long one and one on either side of the nest.”

Figuring out where everything went was hypnotic. Even when he rearranged things, Aunix didn’t get frustrated with him; he just asked clarifying questions and then followed instructions.

The end result was pretty good—due more to the abundance of materials than to Chase’s skill, but whatever. It still looked great.

The bottom cushions, which were still suffering the effects of being vacuum sealed, hadn’t fluffed up fully, but he still took a photo and sent it over. Aunix sent one of his own half a minute later.

“Damn,” Aunix said. “Yours is way neater. Take a video of it close up, I wanna see how you tucked the blankets like that.”

Chase beamed, lungs turning sticky and sweet like honey. He did as he was asked, showing Aunix how to roll the edges and tuck them in all neat.

“Got it,” Aunix said, sending another picture.

“Perfect,” Chase complimented.

Of course, what neither of them said was that it was missing something crucial—scenting. Chase was grateful Aunix didn’t bring it up—he didn’t know if he’d be able to lie about his condition.

By the time they were finished, Sammy had responded to Chase’s question about going out to buy stuff for his apartment with an enthusiastic Yes , followed by about a million exclamation marks.

“I’m going with a friend to buy some more stuff for the apartment…

I think I’m gonna get some fairy lights for this room and, like, a little lantern.

Oh, and maybe I can get a speaker or something to listen to music.

And it’d be really cool to get a canopy or something to make it into a little cave. ”

“Wait—I can get you that stuff,” Aunix protested.

“Daddy, you already got me so much!”

Aunix grumbled something incomprehensible.

Chase laughed. “Okay, how about this. I’ll let you know if there’s anything we can’t get, okay?”

“Fine. Get some good quality stuff, baby, I can pay for it.”

“My job actually pays really well, don’t worry. I promise to tell you if I need anything else. And you can still buy me things I don’t need. Something you can enjoy too.”

Aunix hummed. “Such as…?”

“I dunno. Something to wear for you?” Chase suggested.

“Okay. Yeah. Do the pyjamas fit well? I guessed on the measurements.”

“They’re perfect.”

“Okay. Watch out for a package, then.”

“Okay. Thank you, Daddy.”

“You’re very welcome.”

There was a pause. “Does this mean we can talk on the phone whenever now?”

“Yeah. Whenever you want.”

“Okay. Good. I like hearing you talk.”

“Same here, baby,” Aunix responded, the smile clear in his voice.

Chase grabbed Joey and held him close to his chest, feeling like his heart might burst right out of it.

***

Surprisingly, shopping with Sammy turned out to be fun.

“ Surprisingly? ” Sammy echoed with a wrinkled nose when Chase said that out loud.

“What I mean is that the shopping bit has been surprisingly fun, not the you part. The you part was just fun,” Chase appeased.

“ Hmph . And you better not forget it. Okay. How the hell are we gonna get all this up to your apartment?” he asked, hands on hips as they looked into the trunk of Chase’s car.

They’d gone to five different places. They’d bought art pieces and throws and rugs and tea towels and a lot of lamps.

They’d even ordered a new dresser that had been a ridiculous three thousand dollars, as well as a couch that had been just as much.

They’d even gone to a hardware store to get all the stuff they needed to set everything up.

“I have an idea,” Sammy said, answering his own question. He took his phone out, swiped something on the screen, and lifted it to his ear.

It rang as they got into the car, Chase sliding into the driver’s seat.

“Hey,” Sammy said as whoever was on the other end of the line picked up. “Can you meet us at Chase’s?…Because we need the help of a big, strong Alpha.”

Right, it was Noah on the other end of the line.

“ Urgh , fine, we’ll just carry it all ourselves.” Sammy hung up with a roll of his eyes.

“So it’s just us, then?” Chase checked.

“Oh, no, he’ll show up. He just likes to complain,” Sammy said offhandedly.

Chase laughed. Those two had such a weird relationship.

Noah was, indeed, waiting for them at Chase’s when they arrived, hair dishevelled as though he’d been taking a nap.

“I was taking a nap,” Noah complained and then widened his eyes at the sight of the car, peering into the back seat, which was also crammed with stuff. “Holy shit, what the hell did you guys get? The whole of Ikea?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. As if we would go to Ikea.”

Chase and Noah exchanged raised eyebrows and twin shrugs. Chase also didn’t know why they wouldn’t go to Ikea.

The doorman, despite Chase’s many, many protests, helped them get the stuff into the elevator—they were lucky there were two, or Chase would probably be hearing from the neighbours.

It took them three loads and a lot of sweat and panting to get everything into the apartment.

“I feel like that should have been easier to do. We’re athletes ,” Chase whined.

“There were like a million things,” Noah pointed out.

Sammy clapped his hands together. “Okay, enough whining. Let’s decorate.”

Chase and Noah convinced him to get some food first, and they ate some acai bowls, in the mood for something sweet.

“Okay, now let’s get to decorating.”

They’d bought a toolbox, too, and Sammy proved to be stunningly handy with it. Chase watched him in awe as he used a spirit level to hang the paintings and the shelves. They placed the rug under the coffee table and scattered the apartment with lamps.

Sammy helped Chase set up the lights for his nest and the canopy they’d figured out.

Four wooden planks were flush to the wall, and a thin, cream cloth was nailed to them so the canopy hung like a dipped ceiling, letting a diffused light in from the fairy lights.

Joey was tucked into the blankets, waiting to be cuddled.

It was perfect.

By the time they were done, the whole apartment was perfect, honestly. Chase walked through the space, surprised by what some art, colour, and warm lighting could do.

“What do you think? Obviously, it’ll look better when the couch gets— oof .”

Sammy was cut off as Chase tackled him into a hug. “Thank you. It’s amazing. You’re amazing.”

Sammy wrapped his arms around him and squeezed. “So it’s good?”

“It’s perfect.”

Sammy beamed. “Good. You deserve it.”

Noah stood nearby, watching them. “ Uhm …can we order some pizza? I’m hungry again.”

Sammy snorted. “Yeah, okay. I think we deserve it.”

Chase smiled, not even thinking of protesting.