* * *
"I understand and I'm sorry, I was not in my right mind and just did that without much thought."
He had been holding back for quite a long time now because he couldn't think about love with the situation of his family. He just couldn't afford it but he had always liked Fyre, maybe it started that night when the Omega got drunk and clung to him. It was an unexpected attraction he had towards the helpless Omega. Since then, he could not count the many times he wanted to confess and hold Fyre into his arms like he just did but it's too late now. Now, Fyre belongs to someone else.
But then again, he was not allowed to regret his decision because he made a choice between his happiness and selfishness or his family... and he chose his family. He chose Maverick and Ashton, his beloved brothers who were with him through thick and thin. Of course, it pained him to know that he had lost his chance to be with Fyre, but in the end, he was still happy that he chose what he chose. Besides, even if Fyre may no longer be available, his feelings towards him did not change and probably will not for a long time.
He knew because he tried to stop his feelings but it was useless. He didn't even understand himself. It's not like he had not seen women or Omegas even more outstanding than Fyre but his heart just wouldn't budge. At first he laughed at himself for having such unrequited love at his age but in the end he couldn't help it. Now he knew the heart can't be swayed like the brain. Back then he thought he didn't care if he was to marry someone for the family but now as long it would bring harm towards Maverick and Ashton but now, he couldn't even bring himself to go on the blind dates that their grandfather had arranged for him.
"Zi, calm down, okay? A-Anyway, let's just focus on finding a way to find Maverick as soon as possible. We don't have time to argue like this," Fyre tried to ease his lover since a simple hug wasn't really a big deal so there was no need to overreact.
On the other hand, he might be overreacting, but Tian Zi absolutely hates it, especially when he could tell from the way the fellow Alpha looked at Fyre. He was certain that he had feelings for the Omega and Fyre just didn't have any talent at all to know since he's too dense for his own good. He's too vulnerable and thinks a hug from an 'Alpha' friend is okay when it's not! No, it's really not because an Alpha and Omega can never be just friends. Accidents are bound to happen. He could testify to it because, in the end, he fell in love with Fyre when he did not plan to ever fall in love at all. And while he trusted Fyre to not cheat on him, he didn't trust other men or women at all.
It's better to be safe than sorry. That's also why he was particularly but secretly delighted when the reporters took photos of him and Fyre in the car yesterday since because of it, they will soon announce the truth about their relationship. It will damage the market strategy for the movie but their revelation might intrigue many people and cause reverse psychology. It's a risk they would take in order to kill all the rumors about Fyre's supposedly scandalous dating practices.
"Tch. Fine. Only because you said so, but I won't be able to tolerate it the next time he does it," Tian Zi scoffed as he crossed his arms.
"Xiao Zi, Fyre's right. Let's focus on finding a way to better locate Maverick's location. Now that we know how Gabriel is doing, how about we all work together to solve the situation." Laura Mo, who was all this time listening and afraid that a fight might break out, finally interrupted as she stepped in. Meanwhile, Daniel who just arrived quickly understood the situation and sighed now knowing that he just misunderstood. Although he was still curious what had actually happened, he was quick to move on.
"You're right. I just talked to Paul as well, he's doing all he can to help," Daniel mentioned but the second Paul was mentioned, Joaquinn twitched a little, as well as Ashton who remained silent all this time. It's not that they didn't know the Alpha's effort and they do understand that it wasn't his fault that this had happened but they warned Maverick not to hangout with him at all because it wouldn't be good for their reputation. Paul was already known to be their cousin's ex-fiance, even before that, he also had a four year relationship with Daniel. It wouldn't be good for the public to know that he's now also dating Maverick who just recently came out as an Omega.
Not to mention, this would also hurt the Hymlyn corporation's reputation. Paul being the only sole heir of their family business, Joaquinn was sure that both the Hymlyn couple would not agree with their relationship simply because of what had happened in the past with Daniella. Of course, reputation is not everything but for those who rely so much on reputation to support their business and the people under them, they need to be as clean as they are to build more allies and connections. Nothing good will happen if their relationship goes out in public. Obviously, Joaquinn and Ashton do not want Maverick to suffer because of it, especially if the Omega truly loves the man. Their grandfather and uncle agreed to this as well. They're just not the right match.
So basically, if Maverick just didn't go out and stayed at home just like he usually did, those bad people wouldn't have the chance to do this. Maverick has never been a disobedient child but for Paul, he did and went on a date with him anyway despite their disapproval. So despite knowing that Paul was not related to the mastermind, they still couldn't help but blame him.
"He's helping?" Fyre asked in surprise. While he does know that Paul and Maverick knew each other as they grew up together because of their business, he didn't know that the two were that close. And as far as he knew, Maverick had no close relation to anyone except his brothers and probably him and Tian Zi who he had gotten closer to in the past years.
"Yeah. I heard they're dating and Paul was there when Maverick was taken, that's why he got hurt. Didn't he tell you anything?" Daniel replied with a curious frown. Knowing that Fyre and Paul are long time friends, he assumed that the Omega knew about it.
"Oh no, I didn't... The last time I talked to him was... A-Anyway, we haven't had the chance to talk in the past months but he did call me last night but I was not able to answer it. This might be the reason why he called so late at night," Fyre responded, still surprised but he wasn't able to finish his sentence when he remembered the last time he saw both Paul and Maverick. That day, both him and Tian Zi received confessions from the two so to know that they're dating now was quite a shock since it hasn't been that long in actuality. Well, not that he was against it, he was just not sure if the two are together because of love.
"That's probably it," Tian Zi added, especially feeling delighted at the news before he pulled Fyre close to him again in a possessive way.
"Then should we go already and start with the search? The sooner the better," Tian Zi suggested, not wanting to spend more time in the place anymore. He did not like that he had already met two men who are and previously have feelings for Fyre. Although he and Fyre had already bonded and will marry next year, he still did not like it when other men developed feelings for the Omega. It did not sit well with him.
"Let's take all the necessary details," he added as he urged Fyre to go with him. And since that's only reasonable, everyone agreed since it'll probably just become awkward again if the two stayed in the room.
In the end, Joaquinn narrated all he knew about the incident and since he didn't know much, both Fyre and Tian Zi knew that it was definitely not an easy task to take. And just to make sure, they even went ahead to visit Paul and asked him what had actually happened from every single detail since he witnessed all of it. After all the data gathering, they finally went ahead and left. This time they visited the Mo family secret hideout and conducted their research but as they began, they found out that even they couldn't find a single lead because the one responsible for the abduction thought-out everything so they would be untrackable.
"Fuck! They're good. They purposely used a fake plate number and changed cars three times to lose their tracks. It's difficult to find them even if we take all the CCTV cameras all over the city and watch them all day," Tian Zi said while Fyre nodded and he doubted that the police had gone as far as them in the search.
"At this point, it's better to just have the kidnappers call," Fyre replied, massaging his temples.
"Well, it's better to directly go and confront the secretary of defense. If he retaliates we abduct him, torture him until he confesses, and then we get Maverick. It's probably the easier way at this point," Tian Zi commented as if it was the most common thing ever. Meanwhile, for unknown reason, Fyre didn't feel good at all. It feels like they are missing something out and he couldn't help but feel nervous for a while now.
"Hmmm but you know what, even though we have no lead. Don't you think it's weird that the secretary would lie about his cooperation with Mo Laotian? I mean, even if he hid his tracks so well, there's no way we wouldn't think that it was him who did it. I don't think he's an idiot," Fyre commented, still confused at the situation. Unfortunately there was no one who could answer his question. Of course, a certain someone flashed in his mind that he could do this despite his orders but then again, he thought why would that person do this to Maverick and not to him??
In an instant, the possibility that that man could be the culprit was erased in his mind simply because of the fact that he doesn't even know Maverick and even if he did, why would he kidnap him?? To begin with, that man shouldn't be in the country right now. Yes, Apollo might be part of the organization but that does not mean that Lucien is back. And again, even if he's back, he's probably more eager to take him back than divert his attention to someone else, especially when he has shown himself in public.
'Just to make sure, should I go ahead and check where he is right now?' Fyre thought but as he looked at Tian Zi in front of him, he thought otherwise. That is, at least for now, because he can't let Tian Zi know or else he would get worried again since the last time he reacted to Lucien's picture, he panicked and fainted. Well, he overreacted a bit but now he won't as he had already mentally prepared himself.
"Well, everyone's an idiot compared to my brothers honestly. Villains are just like that," Tian Zi replied with a sigh and Fyre couldn't agree more. It might also be because the secretary was too mad at the negotiation that he miscalculated his moves. He thought he was being so slick with his actions.
"True. But I'm worried. It's almost a day since he was taken, I hope he's fine until we find him."
"Yeah, I'll report to my elder brother now and tell him the situation. I'm sure he's already on his way to confront our enemy. I'm sure we'll find Maverick soon." Tian Zi assured. He too can't let this thing stress out his lover especially when he's been advised against it. Not to mention, the current dating scandal they had is still shocking the whole country that they might need to come out and reveal the truth in a day or two."
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To be Continued…
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