Deion sat at the edge of Shiro's bed and looked at his friend with worry. Shiro hid his face in a pillow, looking so very small in the big bed.
Deion hated this. He wanted so desperately to keep the man he regarded as a younger brother safe, and the older man felt so helpless when he wasn't able to do anything for Shiro.
"Are you hungry?" Deion asked, but as he predicted, Shiro shook his head.
The long-haired man had the moment he got into his hotel room, thrown himself on the bed, clothes on and all. He was now clinging to a pillow and keeping his eyes closed.
Deion had picked Shiro up with a cab, and he came right in time to witness the parting between the tall blond alpha and Shiro. It was the most uncomfortable thing Deion had ever seen. Even he got anxious when he saw how awkward they behaved towards each other. Deion knew that they had spent all night having sex, but now they said their goodbyes like they were strangers. Only giving each other a quick nod as they got in separate cars, their gaze towards the ground.
Deion watched Shiro closely while the cab drove back to the hotel, waiting for him to say anything, but the singer didn't say a word. The man just leaned against the car door and stared out through the window. He looked broken.
It had been almost an hour since Deion picked Shiro up, but the singer still hadn't said a word, and Deion finally lost his patience.
"Perhaps you should give Ikumi a call?" Deion suggested, but Shiro shook his head again.
"Maybe later. I'm waiting for Dorian to text me."
"Oh, really!" Deion said wide-eyed; that surprised him.
"Yes," was all Shiro said, but Deion couldn't let it be.
"Shiro, I know you, and it's obvious that you're not happy. Please talk to me, buddy!"
Shiro glanced at Deion and sighed, sounding defeated.
"He doesn't want me!"
Deion had figured as much, but it still hurt him to hear the sadness in Shiro's voice.
"Well, then he's a fool."
"Yes, but a very kind and sexy fool at that," Shiro said, actually sounding like his sassy self again.
"You are feeling much better right?"
"Yes, being exposed to his pheromones seemed to cure everything."
"That's great, and I bet Dorian feels better as well! That will make him realize that he needs you. Don't you think?"
Shiro shrugged, and Deion noticed the grave look on his face.
"I don't think he will."
Deion pulled a hand through his short curly hair and sighed. He wouldn't get anything out of Shiro, and he needed to know more, so Deion decided to give Joy a call. Joy and Deion had gotten close these past few days; this without Shiro knowing anything about it.
Deion was very attracted to the doctor. From the start, he felt drawn to the younger woman. Deion liked her attitude, and she was stunningly beautiful, especially her cat-like eyes. But Joy seemed to be still recovering from an unpleasant divorce, and Deion realized that the woman probably wouldn't be interested in a new relationship at the moment. So Deion slowly approached the younger woman, carefully not to be friend-zoned from the beginning.
"I'm going to go and make some calls, but come get me if there's anything you need. Okay?"
Shiro nodded and watched Deion leave. When Shiro was alone, he got up from the bed and took out his precious box. Shiro didn't care about his toys; the man went directly for Kei's shirt and took it out of the box. But to his horror, he felt nothing. Kei's warm, spicy scent was all gone. He couldn't smell Kei anymore.
It was too much, and Shiro left out a heartbreaking whimper as he put the shirt to his face and wept.
The Prime-Alphas overwhelming pheromones had claimed the omega. Even though they weren't bonded, Shiro now belonged to Dorian, and no other pheromones would reach him. Not until the drug would erase everything, and just the thought of that made Shiro feel so hollow. He had lost Keis scent, and now he would lose his fated person.
When his phone rang, Shiro clenched his eyes shut. He didn't want this. He didn't want to get rejected again. Sill, Shiro reached after the phone, slowly looking at the screen, fearing it was Dorian. But it was Finian, and with trembling fingers, he answered the call.
"Hello," he said, his voice unsteady.
"Hi, Shiro, its Finian here. How are you feeling?"
Shiro could hear that Finian sounded tired, a feeling Shiro shared.
"My body is alright, but that's about it," Shiro said truthfully.
"I thought so. Dorian told me that he wasn't very kind to you, and I feel awful about that."
Shiro sat up in the bed, his eyes wide.
"He told you?"
"Well, he didn't go into details, as I'm sure you understand. But Shiro, I know about the drug."
Shiro's heart was speeding in his chest, and he grasped the phone so hard his knuckles were turning white.
"Oh!" Shiro just said, convinced that Finian would approve of it.
"But we have taken the syringes from him, and he has promised not to buy something like that again."
"Why?" Shiro said, confused.
"What do you mean?" Finian sounded equally confused.
"Why would you do that. Don't you want Dorian to be all yours again?"
Finian didn't say anything for a while, and sensing his fragile nerves slowly getting the best of him, Shiro held his breath, waiting for Finian to respond.
"Oh Shiro, Luv, no! We are not taking any chances with your life."
And Finian told Shiro about the side effects of the drug, making Shiro getting angrier by the second. He couldn't believe that Dorian would risk putting him through something like that. How desperate had the man been to get rid of him?
"But there's a reason why Dorian was willing to go to this extreme. Your brother has contacted him. Hayate has been threatening to hurt me, our children, and Dorian's family if he not bonded with you and rejected us."
"Oh my god!" Shiro exclaimed, feeling himself going pale, shivering with fright.
Shiro didn't know what to say, and he was panicking. This was what he had been afraid of, but instead of targeting Ikumi, Hayate had gone after Dorian. His mother probably knew of it all and didn't care one bit. It explained it all. Why Dorian, who seemed to be such a kind man, had been so desperate and harsh toward him.
"Tell Dorian that I'll take care of Hayate. You have nothing to worry about," Shiro said, sounding confident, but in reality, he was entirely clueless in what to do!
Shiro promised to contact Finian a few hours later. When he ended the call, Shiro got up and walked to Deion's room, knocking the door until Deion got out. The taller man had his phone by his ear, and when he saw Shiro's panicked expression he said to the one he was talking to;
"Shiro is here right now, Joy, I will have to call you later. Okay?"
Deion then said goodbye and let Shiro get into his room, which was identical to Shiro's.
"Joy told you everything?" Shiro said, turning to his manager.
"Yes. What the fuck is Hayate thinking? I know his a money-grabbing fucker but to threaten someone like this. What did he think he would get out of it?"
"I don't know! Perhaps he thinks that Dorian has some connection that can help him rise in the yakuza or something?"
"Yeah, that's probably it. What do you want to do?"
Shiro looked at Deion and made up his mind.
"I want to go home."
That wasn't the answer Deion had expected, and he looked quizzically at the other man.
"Why?"
"Ikumi needs me, and I don't have a reason to be here anymore."
"But without Dorian's pheromones, you will die!" Deion said, desperate.
He knew that look on Shiro. The man didn't care anymore. He had been like these after Kei's passing.
And Shiro just shrugged.
"At least I die close to Ikumi."
"You don't mean that!" Deion said with a terrified expression.
Shiro got up and looked at Deion closely.
"I don't fucking know what else to do. Dorian doesn't want me here, and I don't blame him. First, I fuck up his marriage, and now my brother threatens his family. Me being here only hurts everybody. So I want to go home to my daughter. Are you coming with me or not?"
Deion shut his eyes and frustrated; he exhaled deeply.
"Yeah, of course, I'll go with you."
"Good. So get us on the next flight out of here and don't tell anyone about it. I'll call Ikumi and tell here that we're coming home."
Shiro turned around and left the hotel room, leaving a very frustrated and discouraged Deion behind. The American slowly counted to ten, while keeping his eyes still shut. Trying to stay calm; when all he wanted was to scream his lungs out. Deion felt powerless, he didn't wish Shiro to do this, but he couldn't force him to stay in London. So Deion did what Shiro asked and bought tickets to a flight that would leave in only three hours. While Deion was packing his suitcase, he tried to figure out how he should deal with that bastard Hayate. Somehow that bastard would pay for this.
*********************************
The exhausted Prime-Alpha was sitting on a chair by the dinner table. On the other side was his beautiful husband. Dorian felt like a little child being scolded by his father, and it didn't seem like there was an end in sight. Luckily Joy and Lucas had left, but Finian was furious with him.
Finian had, after talking to Shiro, asked why the younger man had sounded so sad. Dorian had, though reluctantly, told him about what Shiro had experienced with his late husband. Dorian then told Finian about how he'd been treating Shiro whenever they met. Finian didn't approve. He was furious and embarrassed by his husband, and he had been going on for almost thirty minutes.
Even though Dorian hated being yelled at, Dorian wholeheartedly agreed with Finian; he knew he deserved to be scolded at. But when Dorian heard the front door open, and his father Keith call, the alpha felt so grateful for the perfect timing as Finian had to stop yelling at him. Dorian jumped up on his feet and ran towards the hallway, taking his surprised son and daughter in his arms, hugging them close.
"Dad, what are you doing!" Eamon said while smiling, patting his father on the back.
"I missed you!" Dorian said and kissed the top of Eamon's head.
He looked at Caomihe and caressed her cheek.
"Did you have a nice sleepover at your grandfather's?"
Caoimhe looked at her dad, suspicious, and Dorian cursed the girl's bright mind.
"Sure, Daddo took me shopping for shoes," she said.
"How nice, can you show me them in a while, Sweetheart? We need to have a word with your grandfathers," Finian said from behind Dorian, and the blond man groaned.
He hadn't escaped the scolding. Now Finian would bring his parents into this, and it would get much, much worse.
Gathering on the sofa in the living room, Finian began to tell his in-laws everything that had happened. And the reaction of the two older men was as Dorian had expected it to be. Keith and Simon were furious and very disappointed in him. That was one thing Dorian had worked hard to avoid all his life. His parent's regard had meant the world for Dorian.
And for a half of an hour, Dorian was scolded at again. He didn't even care to try to defend himself. Everything they said about him was right, he had been selfless, and he should have been honest.
"So, what will you do?" Simon asked his son.
The blond omega was heartbroken. Simon sympathized a lot with Shiro, and that made him disappointed in his son.
Dorian shrugged, looking almost crushed.
"I don't know, Dad."
"And how are you feeling after being with Shiro?" Keith asked straightforward, and Dorian adverted his eyes, not feeling comfortable talking about this with his parents.
"Your hands aren't shaking anymore," Finian said, taking Dorian's hand in his.
The closeness made Dorian's chest feel warm, and he cherished his husband's touch.
"Yeah, that's all gone. And I don't feel nauseous any longer and no headache."
"That's great," Finian said and squeezed Dorian's hand, a smile of relief on his lips.
"So it did help with the omegas pheromones," Keith said again, and Dorian finally nodded.
"Yeah, I guess so!"
"So, you will continue to see him?"
When Dorian didn't answer, he just looked down at the table, Finian sighed.
"We still have somethings to figure out," Finian stated.
"But how do you feel about all of this, Finian? I can't even imagine how it would be like if Keith found his fated pair."
Simon took his husband's big hand in his while he talked, looking at Finian with a sad, compassionate expression.
"Of course, I don't enjoy the thought of sharing Dorian, but now when we don't have any other choice, I'm glad it's someone as nice as Shiro. You would like him to if you got to know him," Finian said confident, looking at Keith and Simon.
"So, I accept this, and I will support Dorian and Shiro."
The two older men were as parents anxious about it all. They loved Dorian with all their hearts, and they loved Finian as well. The red-haired alpha had been a part of their family since the boys were nine years old. They were always together for the holidays, and they did everything together. Keith and Simon regarded Finian as their own son, and they hated the thought of him being hurt. But, they also knew that Finian was sensible, smart, and very strong. If Finian said he was okay, then Keith and Simon didn't have any objections.
"We will, of course, support you as well, my son," Keith declared and got up on his feet, walked over to Dorian, and pulled his slightly taller son in a big hug.
"I love you, no matter what!"
Dorian put his arms around his father and closed his eyes, exhaling with ease.
"I love you, as well, Father."
"Oi, I want a hug too!"
Simon, much shorter and slimmer than his son and husband, walked up to them and pushed himself in between the larger men, making everyone laugh. The three men all turned to Finian, who was still sitting down, smiling happily.
"Come, Babe!" Dorian said, reaching his hand toward the love of his life.
Finian quickly got up, took his husband's hand, and joined in on the hug, being embraced tightly.
"Everything will be alright," Dorian said, kissing Finian's templet.
***************************
Caoimhe looked up at Eamon, in her eyes showed defeat, and the girl turned around, shoulders slumped. The two youngest McCallister's had been standing just outside the living room, eavesdropping. It hadn't been Eamon's idea, but the boy thought it was best he kept an eye on his sister. It had been awful for the two kids. So much information that was not meant for their young ears. But both Eamon and Caoimhe realized that things had once again changed in their family.
Eamon was glad that his dad had decided against using the drug and happy that he had listened to Dadaí. Caoimhe wasn't happy at all, but truth be told, she had been terrified when she heard about the side effects of the drug. She didn't understand the severity of it all, but she knew that there had been a chance that her dad would have died, and that made her little heart almost stop with fear.
Caoimhe got to her room and threw herself on the bed, her hand on her phone. She didn't react when Eamon came in, nor did she look at him when he started to talk.
"You got to accept this, Caoimhe. This is the only right thing to do."
Eamon sat beside his sister, tapping her on her head.
Caoimhe sighed loudly.
"I don't have any other choice, do I?"
"No, you don't. Because if you love dad, you will stop being a little brat!"
Caoimhe turned around and glared at her brother.
"Piss off you, smelly twat," she said with a grin but then sighed.
"So you're not afraid that Dad will leave us. You heard what they said about Shiro's brother threatening dad if he doesn't leave us. And some rumors say that Shiro's brother is yakuza."
"We need to tell dad about that. Is there anything more, you know of?"
Caoimhe shrugged but looked at her phone. She suddenly flinched and sat up.
"Shiro is on a plane back to Japan!"
"What? How do you know?"
Caoimhe turned the screen to Eamon, and there he saw a picture of Shiro in an airplane seat. It was a post on Facebook, and it said that the singer had been spotted with his manager on a flight from Frankfurt going to Tokyo.
"We have to tell Dad and Dadaí," Eamon said and stood up, and when he noted that Caoimhe hesitated to follow, he turned to her.
"You love Dad, right, Caoimhe?"
The girl nodded eagerly.
"I love him so much," the girl whispered.
"Then show it!"
They looked at each other for a little while, and the red-haired girl nodded and stood up. Promising to herself, she would never be so selfless ever again.