Finian got home three days after the frightening incident. He was tired, and it still hurt a bit when he moved, but other than that, he felt fine, considering the circumstances. The kids were ecstatic when Finian got home, but Dorian was surprised by how calm they were. Especially Caoimhe. Dorian could see that she was close to tears, but she never cried. She just gave her daídai a gentle hug and kissed his cheek. Finian smiled the whole time, and love filled his tender expression with love. Eamon, on the other hand, acted rather strange. The fourteen-year-old boy never left Finian's side for the whole day. He looked after his father like a hawk and followed him wherever he went. He even stood guard right outside the bathroom if something happened. Dorian only grinned at the boy, feeling proud, but Finian was concerned. He didn't like that his son felt the need to look after him. It wasn't right. He was the one that should take care of his children, not the other way around.
Finian was confined to the bed the first days, and when he wanted to make dinner or do housework, he was scolded by the family. So he rested on the bed, read books, watched movies on the laptop and just talked with whoever was with him. He was rarely alone, and there was always someone by his side, keeping him company.
On the third day, he and Shiro played a game of chess while the kids were in school and Dorian was out shopping. Shiro hadn't played chess since he was a child, and he struggled. He knew Finian was taking it easy on him, and Shiro was thankful. The game would have ended a long time ago if Finian hadn't. While he tried to remember how the tower moved, Finian looked at him.
"Thank you."
Finian's sudden voice startled Shiro, and he looked up from the chessboard. Finian was smiling. It was a gentle smile, and he's gaze were warm.
"Why are you thanking me?"
"For taking care of our family."
Shiro first didn't know what to say. Finian's words filled him with comfort and relief. He had been useful.
"I'm really glad that Dorian's fated pair is you, Shiro. It could have been a completely obnoxious brat after all."
Despite the serious tone in Finian's voice, Shiro burst out laughing and shook his head in disbelief.
"You're so weird."
Finian also burst out laughing and nodded.
"Yeah, but ain't we all?"
Well, Shiro couldn't disagree on that, and the two men just sat there on the bed, laughing. That was how Dorian found them when he got home just a few minutes later. Giggling in bed.
"What's so funny?"
Finian and Shiro looked at each other, smiling, and Finian then looked at Dorian with a mischievous expression on his face.
"Nothing, dear."
Dorian looked between the two men, shook his head before leaving the bedroom to prepare lunch. He was glad that they got along so well, even if he felt a little left out when they seemed to have so fun without him. He wanted to have fun too.
When Dorian had left, Finian put away the chessboard and rested against the pillow.
"Are you tired?" Shiro asked, and Finian nodded.
Well, it was no wonder he was exhausted. Not only did he have placental abruption, but he also had preeclampsia, and the only thing he could do about that was to rest. And not to mention that he was anaemic, which also made him tired.
"Why don't you spend some time with Dorian while the kids are away? All you two have been doing these past days is to look after me. You need to take care of each other more."
Shiro's eyes grew big. He was once again stunned by Finian's carefree attitude towards his relationship with Dorian. It was really astonishing.
"Your relationship is still rather new, after all. You need to get to know each other better and do all that stuff you do when your bond is fresh," Finian said with a smirk. Shiro couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"Are you really okay with that?"
"How many times do I have to tell you that I am? Dorian is not only the love of my life, but he's also my best friend, and if he is happy, then I'm happy. And you make him happy. Right now, I'm not able to satisfy Dorian at all, so for the next following months, I will leave Dorian in your care."
"I won't let you down, guv," Shiro said in his best cockney accent and did a salute, making Finian burst out laughing while shooing him out of the room.
Still smiling, Shiro walked out of the room. He looked at the man on the bed before closing the door, and Finian was already sleeping. Shiro quietly closed the door and walked straight to the kitchen, where Dorian stood in front of the stow. Without a word, he embraced the much taller man's broad back. Dorian glanced over his shoulder, and he had a soft expression on his face.
"Are you hungry, Luv?"
Shiro shook his head and hugged Dorian even tighter.
"I want to cuddle."
Shiro's voice was so soft and so sweet. And the words worked like magic on Dorian. He just took the frying pan from the heat and switched off the oven. He then slowly turned around and looked at Shiro with such heated gaze that a shiver passed through Shiro's body, and he felt like his leg would give in. Dorian didn't say anything when he picked up Shiro, who put his legs around Dorian's waist. Like that, they went from the kitchen to Shiro's room, and Dorian carefully put Shiro down on the bed.
"Finian?"
"He's asleep. He said you and I should take care of each other more."
Dorian chuckled.
"I bet he did. Well, I'm all yours, Luv."
Shiro didn't hesitate. He pulled his alpha to him, put his soft lips on Dorian's and kissed him. They tasted each other, their tongues coming together, playing inside their mouths. Dorian wanted Shiro. He wanted him so much that he thought he would die if he couldn't be inside of him. So Dorian started taking off Shiro's clothes, and Shiro soon followed and almost ripped Dorian's grey shirt open. After a while of kissing each other so passionately that both of them were panting, Shiro suddenly stopped, which made Dorian grunt in protest. But soon, a surprised yet delighted moan passed through his parted lips, and he closed his eyes. Shiro was sucking and licking on his nipples, and Dorian loved it. Shiro gently sucked one nipple while he stroked the other. He shifted between them, and it didn't take long until Dorian's hips were moving, longing for Shiro.
"Shiro, I want you," he begged and sounded desperate.
Shiro grinned but shook his head, looking up at Dorian, who struggled to keep himself from coming just from his nipples.
"I want to feel you more," Shiro said, his voice smooth like honey.
Pressed against each other, so tightly as humanly possible, they continued to kiss while Dorian carefully prepared Shiro. Shiro trembled in Dorian's arms, and when he was ready, he told Dorian to get on his back, and immediately he straddled him. They didn't last long. They were both so turned on that Dorian came as soon as Shiro started to move, which made Shiro climax straight after. It was the shortest sex they had experienced together, and they burst out laughing will hugging each other.
"I guess my new nickname is The Flash," Dorian said, making Shiro laugh even harder. He even got tears in his eyes.
As Dorian lay there on the bed and looked up at Shiro, he was filled with so much affection for the younger man. It wasn't often Dorian had seen Shiro laugh like that, and it was a shame. Because Shiro laughing was one of the most precious things Dorian had ever seen. Shiro looked so carefree, and he beamed like the brightest light. His adorable smile filled his beautiful face. Dorian decided that he needed to make sure that Shiro would have more to laugh at. He needed to protect that smile with all his might-
"I'm going to take a shower," Shiro said and kissed Dorian.
"Are you hungry now?" Dorian asked as Shiro climbed off him and hurried to the bathroom.
The naked man nodded while he walked inside the other room.
"Yeah, I'm starving."
"Alright, I'm on it," Dorian said and got up from the bed and started to dress.
"By the way," he heard Shiro call. "I love you!"
Dorian got the biggest smile on his face.
"I love you too!"
And he really did. So much that he knew that there was absolutely no turning back. He was Shiro's for life.
************************
Midori was in an excellent mood. He was on his way home from his new school, and he was pleased that he had been admitted without any problem. He hadn't told Lucas that he was something of a system engineer genius, and he wanted to keep it that way. The dean had taken one look at Midori's credentials and was so impressed that he almost begged Midori to start immediately. So Midori was going to buy a bottle of good non-alcoholic wine, some cheese and crackers. He needed to pretend that he wanted to celebrate.
"Kenji!"
Midori heard someone call behind him, and he turned around. He smiled when he stood face to face with Ikumi. The girl was wearing a school uniform and was beaming towards him.
'Like an angel,' Midori thought to himself.
"Hi, Ikumi. What are you doing here?"
"Going home from school," the girl answered, and she had a big smile on her lips like she was glad to see him.
"Alone?" Midori asked, hoping that she would say no and Shiro would be there somewhere.
But Ikumi shook her head, and right then, Caoimhe stepped out of a candy store with two chocolate icecreams in her hands. The girl stopped walking immediately when she saw him, and for a moment, she got a dark expression on her face. However, when Ikumi turned around, Caoimhe immediately looked a lot brighter, and she smiled. Midori could see that she was faking it and that she was good at it. Almost as good as him.
"Look, Caoimhe, it's Kenji," Ikumi sounded excited, and Caoimhe smiled at her before turning her gaze to Midori.
"How nice. Is Uncle Lucas with you?"
Midori shook his head.
"No, he's working from home today. I was just visiting London University College. I've been accepted to a course there. "
That made Caoimhe flinch, and Midori could see the dislike in her eyes. She obviously hated the idea of him staying with her uncle, and Midori had to fight the urge to laugh in her ugly face.
"That's great! So you're going to stay here in London?" Ikumi asked in her soft voice.
More bore his eyes into Caoimhe's, and the girl flinched.
"Of course, I love Lucas so much. I can't imagine ever leaving him."
As soon as he said that, he turned his gaze to Ikumi and had the sweetest smile on his face.
"So I hope we can become good friends."
"We already are friends!" The girl quickly answered.
"I'm really glad to hear that. Thank you, Ikumi. Now, if you two girls excuse me, I have to get going."
They said their goodbyes with a promise to be in contact, and when Midori walked pass the girls, he suddenly felt a smell he recognized. It was that soothing scent from an alpha. That one he had felt on Simon several weeks ago. It was a bit stronger this time, and it startled him. Midori stopped walking, turned around and looked after the two girls. Who did it belong to? One of them? Someone they were close to? Could it be Ikumi? No, that was unlikely. Ikumi was most definitely an omega. Or could it be Caoimhe?
Midori felt fear built up inside of him, and he was paralyzed, frozen to the ground. Until someone passed him by and accidentally bumped into him. Midori almost jumped by the sudden touch, and in panic, he looked around, saw a restaurant and quickly walked in. He ignored the waiter, walked straight inside and found the nearest restroom. There he stared at his reflection in the mirror. First, he felt only fear and panic. His body trembled so much that he thought his legs would give in. But fear and panic eventually subdued and turned to hatred. Burning, suffocating anger. It felt like his blood was boiling.
"I hate her, I hate her, I fucking hate her!" Midori screamed and punched the mirror with his fist.
The shards shattered all over the sink and the floor. From a big open cut in Midori's knuckles, blood poured out, but Midori just glared at it without showing any pain.
"Goddammit!" He screamed, reached for the paper towels and pressed them on the wound,
trying to stop the blood.
He had to take a lot of paper, but he lost his patience and just put his bleeding hand in the pocket of the coat and walked straight out of the restroom. He passed the people who were waiting for their turn, ignored their curious stares. They all had heard him and were about to call the staff, but no one stopped him as he walked through the restaurant and out on the street. Midori was so angry, so furious that he barely noticed his surroundings. He walked straight out on the street and was just a few inches from getting hit by a car. The driver managed to stop and honked the car's horn, making Midori snap out of his dazed state. Midori glared at the driver, took out his bleeding hand out of his pocket and flipped his middle finger. Blood splattered all over the hood of the car. He then put his hand back in his pocket and just kept walking.
Lucas was working from home, but he had trouble concentrating. Kenji had suddenly started talking about how he wanted to go to college, and out of seemingly nowhere, the dean called Kenji and asked him to come to school for a meeting. Lucas was rather confused by everything that was happening, and he was nervous. He really wanted Kenji to go to college here because that meant he had a reason to stay in London. Lucas didn't want to even think about not having Kenji in his life anymore. He knew that he never wanted to let Kenji go now.
Lucas was in the kitchen when he heard the front door open, and he peaked his head out. His eyes grew huge, and he felt ice-cold by what he saw. Kenji was leaning against the door, and from his left hand, blood dripped onto the floor.
"What happened?" Lucas ran up to Kenji and carefully took his hand, looking at it before he looked up at Kenji's pale face.
Midori didn't look at him. He had his eyes closed.
"Someone pushed me in the subway, and I fell. I braised myself with my knuckle, and this happened."
"Let's call an ambulance," Lucas said and was about to leave when Kenji opened his eyes and vigorously shook his head. His eyes were filled with panic.
" No, please, I don't like hospitals," he begged, and Lucas frowned, trying to figure out what to do.
"But I think you need stitches. The cut is really deep."
But Kenji continued to refuse.
"Alright. But please let me clean it and stop the bleeding."
Kenji did as Lucas asked and followed the blond man to the bathroom. Lucas put him on the toilet seat and held soft towels against the wound. He saw that Kenji was close to passing out, so he kept asking him if he saw who pushed him, trying to keep him awake. Lucas couldn't stand seeing Kenji like that, so while he continued to try and stop the bleeding, he called the family physician Jonah and asked him to come. Midori wasn't happy when Lucas told him that a doctor was on the way, but the desperate, worried look on Lucas' face made him give in. And when the doctor came, he just sat silently and let the man treat him. Jonah also wanted Midori to go to the hospital, but Midori kept on refusing. So the doctor stitched the wound together, took a compress, bandage and gave Midori a prescription on painkillers.
And when the doctor had left, Lucas' put his arms around his boyfriend, and Midori let him without forcing himself. He was too exhausted to care. The anger had started to subdue, and soon he fell asleep on the sofa, in Lucas' warm and safe embrace.
*********************
For as long as Caoimhe could remember, she had wanted a dog for. She didn't care which breed, as long as the dog was hers. And now, when she finally got Duke, she loved him, and Duke loved the girl back. He followed her everywhere, slept in her bed and cuddle close on the sofa.
And every day when it was time for the kids to get home from school, the little black dog waited by the door, and when he saw the red-haired girl with a happy smile on her face, he gave away a little bark and wagged his little tail with delight. But one day, Caoimhe wasn't smiling when she walked in. Instead, she had an awful grin on her face. Sure, she patted Duke and told him that he was a good boy, but there were no laughter and hugs. The black-haired girl was walking close behind Caoimhe, and it was clear on her face that she was worried.
"Caoimhe, what's the matter?" Ikumi called.
Caoimhe turned around and looked at the younger girl with panic in her eyes.
"Shhh!" She hushed and held a finger in front of her lips. "Don't talk too loud. We can't make daídai worried."
Ikumi looked regretful and nodded.
"Sorry, I won't do it again."
"Thank you. And you don't have to worry about me. I just have a headache, so I'm going to go and rest for a while. Okay?"
"Alright," Ikumi said, but before she went to greet her father, the girl looked at Caoimhe with anxiety.
Caoimhe said hi to her dad, who was making dinner. Dorian kissed her on the cheek, and he immediately noticed something wrong with his girl. When Caoimhe explained that she just had a headache, Dorian frowned. She could see the worry in her father's eyes, but she forced herself to smile and said that it was probably just her period that was approaching. That made Dorian look uncomfortable, and he let the subject go. He just stroked the girl's hair and told her to take a painkiller and rest until dinner. Caoimhe nodded and then went to Finian, who was still lying on the bed. His was on the phone, and Caoimhe immediately understood it was aunt Siobhán because daídai always got his Irish accent when he talked with her. Finian told his sister to hold on a bit, but the phone against his chest and looked at Caoimhe with so much love that the girl felt close to crying, but she fought it and smiled like nothing was wrong. He asked her how the school had been, and Caoimhe told him that it had been okay. Nothing special had happened. Finian then asked if she wanted to talk to her aunt, but Caoimhe said no, that she was a bit tired and wanted to rest. Finian looked a bit suspicious because Caoimhe loved talking with Siobhán. But he decided not to pry any further. He just told the girl to come back later and keep him company, and Caoimhe promised to do just that.
After talking to her father, the girl walked quickly to her room, not talking with anyone else. She let Duke in, closed and locked the door behind her, and her smile vanished within a second. She threw herself on the bed, and she screamed into the pillow. She let out all the frustration she felt, but she was still angry when she got up. How could Lucas be with someone like that? Why couldn't anybody but her see how fake Kenji was? Caoimhe couldn't understand it. Was everybody blind? Kenji was always hiding a fake smile, and his eyes were full of despise. But never against Ikumi, Shiro or Lucas, but always when he looked at her or her fathers. How could they not see it? Did they want Lucas to be with Kenji so much they just ignored it? Did they actually think that Lucas would be happy with Kenji? And now he would stay in London to study. She hated it.
But Caoimhe was too scared to talk with anybody about it. What if they thought she had something against him just because he was an omega. She was so afraid that her family would be angry with her because she really didn't. She never had. That Shiro was an omega had never been the issue. She had only wanted to protect her family. And now she loved Shiro more than she ever did when she was only his fan. He was so kind, a good listener, and he made her dad very happy. He was also a good friend to daídai, and he took care of him. Caoimhe was happy that Shiro had become a part of the family because otherwise, she would never have met Ikumi, who was now Caoimhe's best friend.
"Come here, Duke," Caoimhe called, and the little dog jumped up on the bed.
Caoimhe put her arms around him, and the dog snuggled close. Caoimhe fell asleep with the little dog in her arms, and Duke was a happy little dog.