Sion Juan stood while looking up at the cloudy sky that greeted his arrival in the Roxan country. The place where he was born that he left for almost 5 years. His left-hand held a large suitcase while his right-hand held his son's tiny hand, who was only four years and four months old.
"I miss Roxan's warmth." he said softly.
"You came at the end of the year. What do you expect? Luckily it's only cloudy. It's only a matter of time before it starts snowing. Maybe in a few days." replied his friend, who suddenly approached him from behind. Even though he had been waiting for him since thirty minutes ago, the man named Orean came casually with no guilty feeling.
"You know how long we've been waiting?" he said, sounding a little annoyed even though he was actually very, very annoyed. Still, he tried to hold it in because his son was beside him.
"Sorry. There was an accident on the road. Traffic was closed for more than an hour. You know, I almost ran to the airport just to pick you up." he explained, which sounded quite dramatic, but still, Sion didn't really believe it.
"I am not lying! If you don't believe you can search now." he said again, trying to convince his best friend.
"Okay I believe."
"Then hug me!" Sion immediately rejected Orean's orders. Even though they had been close friends since their college days, Sion was not a person who was comfortable with excessive physical touch, especially not with an alpha who had a crush on him.
"Fine, if you don't want to!" he snapped. Fortunately, his attention was immediately diverted to the little boy hiding behind his father while holding Sion's hand tightly as if he was afraid of the person who had suddenly appeared before him.
"You must be Ethian...," Orean said in his soft voice. "Hello, I'm Uncle Orean, your father's best friend." he continued again, trying to approach the frightened child.
Seeing Ethian, who was still scared, Sion immediately picked him up. "Sweetie, this uncle is daddy's friend. Even though he looks scary but he is a good person. Come on, say hello to Uncle Orean…." Sion said, trying to persuade and calm his son.
Slowly Ethian started to look at Orean, who was smiling sweetly, trying to give the boy a good impression. "Hello...." The boy finally greeted him with a cute child's voice that sounded so soft and shy. Just one word, "Hello," was enough to make Orean fall in love.
"Hello, Ethian." Orean greeted Ethian back, making Ethian even more embarrassed. Orean really wanted to hug this cute little child, but he resisted seeing him still so shy with him.
This was Ethian's first long journey. This child had been cranky since a few days before they left for Roxan. Sion knew his son didn't like they had to leave Downster country. Everyone that Ethian knew lived in Downster country, a small country with no more than half that Roxan's area. Because of that, leaving Downster country made Ethian sad, nervous, and afraid. But even so, Sion had no other choice. Downster was a country that still needed to catch up compared to Roxan. If Sion wanted the best future for his son, Roxan would be a much wiser choice.
Moreover, as a Roxan citizen, living in another country is quite troublesome. He always had to take care of many permits, periodic reports to the Roxan embassy, administration of this, and that that never ended. Security for an omega like himself still needed to be improved. If it weren't for avoiding his son's alpha father, he wouldn't want to move from Roxan to Downster.
"Let's go now!" Sion ordered when he saw Ethian yawn. The journey they took from Downster to Roxan was far away. By plane alone, the journey took more than seven hours. And during that time, Ethian barely slept. His first experience on an airplane made the boy unable to stop being amazed.
Orean helped Sion carry their luggage while Sion carried Ethian, who was getting sleepy. They walked for a while to where Orean had parked his car. Orean approached a metallic blue Prochy car, one of the most expensive brand cars, that stood out quite a bit compared to the other cars in the area, mostly black, gray, and white. Prominent enough to make Ethian forget his sleepiness, amazed again by what he saw. Ethian loved sports cars, and blue was his favorite color. A perfect combination to make the little boy fall in love.
"Daddy, Ethian likes it." whispered Ethian suddenly.
"Oh, Daddy knew you would like it," replied Sion.
"You like it? Your daddy said you like sports cars. So uncle brought Lolly especially to pick you up."
"Lolly?" asked Ethian curiously.
"Her name is Lolly." Orean replied, introducing the car to Ethian. In an instant, Ethian forgot his bashfulness. He asked his father to put him down and immediately ran toward the car. His eyes, which were still sleepy a few seconds ago, now glowed with excitement.
"Can Ethian touch?"
"Of course. This belongs to Ethian," answered Orean, who Sion immediately denied.
"No!" Sion said firmly.
"Okay, no... but whenever Ethian wants to ride it you just need to tell me and I'll take you anywhere you want with Lolly."
"Really?" asked Ethian with great enthusiasm. Orean looked at Sion first before answering. Tried to find out Sion's response to his efforts to please Ethian.
"As long as your father allows it," Orean finally answered, noticing that Sion didn't seem too keen on the idea. Now it was Ethian's turn to look at his father. His gaze was full of expectation to the extent that Sion could not give an answer that would disappoint the boy.
"Not all the time. Only when Uncle Orean isn't busy, so is Ethian. Remember, Ethian will soon have to go to school." Sion answered carefully. Ethian was a little disappointed but also relieved.
"Okay daddy."
"Okay! Since Ethian really likes Lolly, shouldn't Ethian treat Lolly's father well?" said Orean giving the code for the child to hug him. But Ethian didn't understand the code at all. After all, he was only four years old; how could he know such an obscure code?
"Ethian will be good to uncle?" the answer sounded more like a question.
"Hug uncle!" said Orean after he was sure that Ethian was no longer nervous about his presence. He lowered his head and spread his arms, ready to receive a hug from the little boy. Hesitantly Ethian started hugging Orean. But just as Ethian hugged him, Orean immediately hugged the boy tightly, picked him up, and spun him. Ethian laughed loudly as his body continued to rotate in the air. He enjoyed the surrounding scenery that seemed to revolve around him and the cold air that hit his body. After a while, Orean finally stopped spinning the boy. He threw the small body a little and immediately caught it again. Ethian let out a slight scream as his body was sent flying. He was shocked and scared for a moment, but soon he loved the adrenaline rush through his body and continued laughing.
"Okay, now let's go to Ethian's new house." Orean ended the fun.
Sion had bought a small apartment long before his return. Even though it was still in credit, with his new job as an editor at one of the largest publishing companies in Roxan and the sales of the books he had written, which had been increasing lately, he was sure, soon, he would be able to pay it off.
After an hour of driving, they finally arrived at the apartment. The apartment was quite small. There were only two bedrooms, just right for Sion and Ethian. He did not expect any guests to stay at his house anyway. Even so, the price of this apartment was quite high. Although small, the location was very strategic. The neighborhood had a particular kindergarten school for neighborhood kids, at most 10 minutes with a walk. Access to the highway was only fifteen minutes by car, and a large mall, the largest mall in the country of Roxan, appeared in the majesty that can be seen from all directions for at least three kilometers. The main reason housing and apartments in that place had fantastic prices. Another reason was that the apartment was in one of the elite neighborhoods in Roxan's capital, Coron. Coron was included in the list of the world's 10 best cities for children's education, so many wealthy parents were willing to move to Coron for their children's education. And Sion also thought about that factor when he moved to Coron. He didn't want to be a father who was too demanding of his child. But he wanted when Ethian found his interest later, Sion could provide the best support for his son.
"He's an alpha, isn't he? The pheromones have even started to smell. A four-year-old child already gives off a pheromone scent. He will definitely become the dominant alpha." said Orean while Sion was busy taking out things from his suitcase. Meanwhile, Ethian had fallen asleep. He had fallen asleep since they were still on the road.
"Maybe, whatever it is he will be a good alpha."
"You like bad alpha," replied Orean. Sion then only responded with a slight smile. Sion didn't want to deny it; it's just that he knew where this conversation would lead if he replied to Orean's words. A conversation he desperately wanted to avoid. That was why he chose just to smile.
Orean immediately understood Sion was still uncomfortable talking about that alpha even though five years had passed. He wanted to ask if Sion might have still loved that jerks alpha. But Sion wouldn't answer him. What might happen was Sion kicked him out. Opening the heart of this one omega was indeed too difficult. Even eight years of friendship couldn't make him open up to Orean.
"Could you please order some food? Ethian will be hungry when he wakes up," said Sion trying to change the subject very smoothly.
"Sure... want some sushi?"
"Yeah...."