part 2 of your omega will x oblivious mack thing WHEN?
things were going suspiciously well for macklin.
not always, of course, as the sharks were still the sharks, which meant that there were plenty of nights where they let in goals they absolutely shouldn’t have, made mistakes that caused his scent to spike with shame, and found increasingly creative ways to make him want to pull his hair out. but mack was doing well individually most nights, scoring goals, making headlines. he’d done this before, with canada and at bu, been the best sailor on a sinking ship. but this time, he wasn’t watching will smith don the gold medal or hold the trophy from across the ice.
will was right by his side. literally. all the time.
the two had become best friends, which was funny, considering that a year ago mack distinctly remembered threatening to print out a picture of him and put it on a dartboard, earning a firm reminder from rick about showing respect toward omegas.
not that that was something mack struggled with now. he prided himself on being a great teammate to will, always making sure he wasn’t pushing himself too hard during practice, that he wasn’t too overwhelmed in a crowded locker room full of alphas, that his glands weren’t too inflamed after a brutal game, that he wasn’t too hot when he and mack snuggled together on plane rides so they could both sleep easier, or that he wasn’t uncomfortable when some creepy fan who stunk of alpha started staring at him all weirdly at a coffee shop.
god. some people needed to learn to mind their own business.
he’d even introduced will to sid, and tried and failed not to blush when sid gave him an approving nod afterward, because yeah, mack was a really good best friend for including his american teammate in stuff like this. plus, a small part of him was glad sid liked will too. maybe he could invite will to train with them in canada during the summer.
maybe will would like that.
still, there was this deep feeling in mack’s chest that he wasn’t doing enough.
there were moments when he’d see will’s gold curls peeking out from beneath his helmet and feel like he’d been winded, or when he’d be so stressed before a game he could cry and will would scent him with a warm smile and a nod, never making a scene as he filled mack’s senses with fresh florals and pastries. will could calm him down better than even dada, maybe. he listened. he never shouted back. he tolerated mack even at his worst.
so mack owed him more than just assists on his goals, because will was perfect.
he was mack’s other half, maybe. they matched each other’s stubbornness and loyalty and passion. they liked the same movies, the same five-inch inseam shorts, laughed at the same dumb tiktoks, and would both rather share a hotel room than get a whole suite to themselves.
because mack wouldn’t want will to be lonely, obviously.
so he started trying to go above and beyond for his— for will.
he offered to tape his stick for him. he scented him before they went out for drinks with the guys, just in case any alphas at the bar got the wrong idea about approaching him. he did research, too, tons of it, the tabs on his laptop turning from the sharks’ shameful turnover stats to wikihow articles about supporting an omega in a new pack.
but he still felt like he was missing something.
like he wasn’t doing enough for will, for his will, who didn’t mind when mack was being bratty, put up with his white noise every night, and smelled so strongly sometimes that mack thought he was going crazy when no one else seemed to notice.
will was out picking them up dinner, and mack was lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling and fidgeting with the crochet blanket will had bought him at a farmer’s market they’d gone to together, sheepishly explaining to his brother that he didn’t think he was doing enough to make will understand just how much he appreciated him.
aiden was quiet for an odd moment before speaking strangely softly—was he in the room while acacia was sleeping or something?—and explaining that if mack “really wanted to do this right” (which was an odd way to phrase something as simple as showing appreciation, but mack wasn’t interested in annoying aiden about it right now), he should start giving will his clothes, his accessories, things that had his scent on them for will to take back to his nest.
mack pointed out that he’d already been invited into will’s nest plenty of times and that it was pretty full of boston stuff and random sharks gear already. aiden went silent for a weirdly long minute before urging him to leave clothes around anyway.
huh. brothers were so weird.
but mack listened, really willing to do anything to make will happy. he started leaving his beanies in will’s car, shedding his layers the second he walked through the marleau’s door, offering him his favorite number 71 hoodies whenever will looked even slightly cold.
he was doing well, he thought, when he started spotting some of his “forgotten” things in will’s nest, little pieces of mack that will had apparently decided were worth keeping.
he was doing really well.
and then it all fell apart one night after a fairly good game, a rare win.
will was driving them home, cheeks flushed and lips pink from the late-night cold, when a small smile touched his lips as he noticed mack tossing his beanie into the backseat and shaking out his hair.
“do you do this with all your friends?”
“hm? do what?” mack asked, trying to play it cool despite the gummy grin threatening to give him away.
will rolled his eyes, laughing softly. “you know. the clothes thing.”
“nope,” mack said, popping the p, pleased with himself. “just omegas.”
something flickered across will’s expression. his eyes stayed on the road, though, so mack assumed he was just focusing on driving.
“yeah.” mack nodded, completely missing the way will’s fingers tightened around the steering wheel. “i mean, it’s important for omegas to have a good nest. especially during the season. they sleep better, they recover better, they play better.”
he loved helping will, helping will play better hockey just like dada helped him improve all the time. but will’s smile disappeared.
“so that’s why you’ve been doing all of this?”
mack frowned. “doing what?”
“the clothes. the scenting. everything.”
“oh.” mack shrugged, still not understanding why will suddenly sounded so strange. “yeah, i mean... obviously.”
will went quiet, and mack waited for him to laugh, to at least say something, but he just stared at the road.
“i thought...” will starts, then stops.
mack tilted his head. “you thought what?”
there was something wrong with his voice, so mack opened his mouth to ask if he truly felt okay after playing all those minutes, but will spoke first.
“so you don't actually want me to have your stuff?”
will's eyebrows pulled together. “but because i'm an omega.”
mack blinked. “well... yeah.”
the words landed wrong. very wrong. mack could tell immediately from the way will's shoulders went stiff, but he couldn't figure out why. he'd only told the truth. he'd spent weeks researching this. he'd been trying so hard to make sure will was comfortable, healthy, and playing his best. he didn't understand why that seemed to upset him.
“so all of this was for hockey?”
“i mean...” mack thought about it. “mostly?”
it was will. it was mack. everything in their lives came back to hockey, didn’t it…?
but will flicked on the turn signal far too sharply and he didn't speak for the rest of the drive.
mack watched him pull into his driveway, waiting for the usual smile, the usual invitation inside for milk and cookies, but will just unlocked the door and waited for him to get out.
the door shut before mack could say anything else, and he stood on the curb and watched will's car disappear down the street, completely baffled.
maybe will was tired. they'd just played a game, so that had to be it.
except will didn't answer his texts the next morning about getting breakfast. weird.
mack sent him an instagram reel about the patriots at ten, because obviously that would make everything better. will read it, and yet didn't respond or even like it. really weird.
and when will didn't show up to their weekly golf session, mack felt his stomach sink.
something was wrong. there was no way will just didn't want to see him.