MY ONE & ONLY OPTION ( Wangxian Rom-com)(COMPLETED)

Chapter-10

“He was always this...this prick,” Lanzhan murmured. “For as long as I could remember. My mom met him when she was in college, and she got pregnant with me. He wanted her to have an abortion, but when her parents found out, they wouldn’t have it, so they told his dad. They basically forced them to get married and have me.” He shook his head bitterly. “He never wanted me. Xichen though...he adored him. He used to tell me that he was born lucky. And that I was lucky to be born.”

Weiying blinked back the tears that had suddenly sprung into his eyes. Lanzhan took a drink off of his bourbon and let out a deep breath.

“He never hit him. Xichen.” He cleared his throat. “He tore his down in other ways. Held his to these...these perfect standards. he always had to be the best in everything. School, his hobbies. And if he wasn’t...he would just give him this lecture, and his disappointment was enough. But he knew what he did to me and to our mom, and it terrified his. Not enough, though.”

Weiying finally found his voice. “What do you mean?”

Lanzhan exhaled. “Well, after Mom left, she won custody of us. After my father got out of jail, he fought for custody of Xichen. The courts were skeptical of it, given what he’d done to me, but he did his parenting classes and anger management and all of that shit, and by then Xichen was old enough to choose, so he went and lived with him. he didn’t walk away from him until a few years ago.”

“Oh. Um, what made him do that?” Weiying asked hesitantly.

He shrugged. “he came out. On top of being a raging asshole, my father is also centrolling.” Lanzhan let out a wry snort. “So he disowned him, he called me, and I brought him out here. We hadn’t had much of a relationship before that, but we’ve gotten closer. I introduced him to Meng Yao. The two of them hit it off. Meng Yao’s really helped him get through this shit with our dad.”

“That’s good,” Weiying said quietly. He peeked over at him. “What about you?”

Lanzhan glanced at him briefly before he looked away. “I’m alright. I’ve worked through it. Went to therapy. Made my peace with it.” He polished off his drink. “It hasn’t been easy. But I think I’ve come out on top of it, you know?”

“I think so,” Weiying said. “And I really think you have. That sounds like it must have been...really awful. I’m sorry it happened to you.”

Lanzhan shrugged. “Shit happens. But it’s made me who I am. I’m stronger because of it. And I know I will never, ever be like him.”

Weiying leaned forward and set his drink down. “Thank you. For telling me. I know how hard that must have been.”

Lanzhan let out a dry chuckle. “You have no idea. I’ve never told anyone else about it, except for Meng Yao, and even that was...the censored version. It’s hard to talk about that. To open up. I don’t...really do that. Open up to people.” He snorted. “Maybe that’s why I can’t keep an Omega. I don’t know how to let anyone in.”

“I don’t let anyone help me,” Weiying said softly. “I feel like I have to do everything on my own. I always have. I worked my ass off in high school to get all the grants and scholarships I could, so my parents wouldn’t have to give me any money for it. I think that turns most Alpha off.”

“Well, I think it’s one of your finer qualities,” Lanzhan remarked.

Weiying quirked his brow at him. “Seriously?”