* * *
After returning from the hospital, Fyre was at Tian Zi's house with a computer on his lap. Actually, at this time the two of them should have been driving off to the Mo Estate where they are invited to but after checking his phone this early morning and seeing a notification from his personalized app, he had a feeling this wasn't just a simple hacking request and so now instead of rushing out where everyone was currently gathered, the two—especially Fyre—are now at the living room currently doing a quick investigation.
"I knew it! They have the nerve to ask me to recover a file for them and at such a cheap price!" Fyre expressed with a frown, putting the computer on the coffee table. Tian Zi who was sitting beside him helplessly sighed, pulling his—now—lover, into his arms.
"Don't stress yourself about it now, you're still sick... And besides, doesn't this prove to us that they wouldn't be able to further humiliate Maverick?" Tian Zi said, suddenly hugging Fyre who has now become flushed. Normally, he would have pushed the Alpha and yelled at him hiding his embarrassment but being that Tian Zi has now become his lover, he wanted to try and become less moody and impulsive. It's the first time he was trying so hard to be more likeable to someone even though he knew full well Tian Zi liked him despite his unlikeable personality.
"Y-Yeah... you're right, b-but still... I can't believe they want to humiliate Mav this far," Fyre replied, trying hard not to mind Tian Zi's touches. Fyre already knew that there are different kinds of people out there and a lot of them are hella rotten to the core, he also had some encounters with them all throughout his chosen career but he still couldn't stand them no matter what.
"I mean, why would they go this far?? Was it that easy to mess with the Sullens?? They're like one of the most powerful families in the country, right? Sure they've had their reputation slightly tarnished over the past years but it's not like they've lost their wealth and power."
"They're getting confident because Gabriel Sullen stepped down from his position and the Sullen Corporation passed down to my Eldest Brother instead of the Eldest son. The fact that people believed the Mos and the Sullens actually had a bad relationship is spreading after Daniella Sullen's case. And you notice it too, right? Gared Sullen and George Sullen aren't close... These people must have thought they could grab this chance to topple the Sullens and climb at the top by using Maverick," Tian Zi replied, analyzing the situation. And he was right! People are greedy and they would do just about anything to be able to stand a step closer to the top. They believed the Sullens had lost their influence and thus, making this time the best time to pull them down.
"Hmm, I could never understand rich people. For us poor people, we're satisfied that we're able to eat 3 times a day. As long as none of us are sick and we're together, we can be happy," Fyre said, giving up the thought. He just couldn't understand why those who are already at the top of the mountain still wanted to soar up to the sky. Having money is great, that he could understand, but having too much is something he could never.
"I'm not saying I don't understand what you feel and I could care less about those people. I'm just happy that this gave us less work but Fyre, I assure you that as long as I'm here, you don't have to worry about eating three meals a day or getting sick. As your lover, it's the least I could do. I'll also do my best to make you happy, okay?" Tian Zi chirped happily before snuggling close. Truthfully, he could never understand the feeling of having just enough to eat 3 times a day, but it is true that he understood Fyre to some extent. As for now, all he could do was to make sure his lover wouldn't get sick or starve.
Meanwhile, feeling flustered by his lover's promise, Fyre quickly didn't know what to do or say for a second. He wanted to yell and act angry as always but he's too shy and can't deny that he liked what he was hearing. He never expected that Tian Zi would be such a smooth talker because all this time, all he did to him was tease and annoy him as if it's the only thing he could do all day.
"Wha...! I-I can feed myself without a problem though..." Fyre burst at first before slowly his became smaller. "A-Anyway, enough with that. N-Now that we're sure it's them, w-we should hurry up and go to your parents' house..." Fyre suggested, hastily changing the topic wanting to get away from Tian Zi since it seemed like the Alpha already forgot that they were in a hurry. There was no time for them to snuggle. Well... it's not that their presence was of importance but Daniel Mo especially wanted to talk to Tian Zi, though the both of them already knew what it was going to be about.
It was about Maverick's gender being revealed just recently...
The gathering at the Mo Estate was for the same reason as well but aside from that, it was also because Elder Sullen had come back home due to the matter. Of course, no one should know about Maverick's scandalous videos aside from the siblings, Tian Zi and Fyre. However, because this event was strange enough to alarm everyone. If the Sullens were a normal family, this wouldn't have caused an alarm but because they are not, it was best to stay alert to some extent. Right now, everyone must have thought there was more to this than what was on the surface. It was natural to think this way simply because their family had a lot to protect, one of those was their reputation and the company that supported countless people for so many generations. If things go awry, the company and their people will take most of the damage.
Additionally, even though Elder Sullen is a member of the Sullen household, it has been years since he had gone home to the Sullen Estate. This is because despite his seemingly friendly relationship with his sons, it's actually been years since they had a proper conversation after Daniella Sullen's case. For the past years, instances where the Sullens gathered together was only to show the public that there was nothing wrong with them and that their influence was just as strong. Nevertheless, people were easy to catch on and thought they could simply do anything they wanted just because the Sullens weren't on good terms with each other.
"Hmm, I guess you're right. We should also let Maverick and the others know that they didn't need to worry anymore. With this our victory is secured," Tian Zi replied, feeling regretful after letting go of Fyre but the Omega was right. Although it's quite bothersome to go and listen to someone else's family problem, he can't ignore his Eldest Brother's summon. In exchange for helping him run his company, he promised that he would heed all his calls no matter what. Tian Zi accepted because he didn't want to work and conveniently his Eldest brother is a genius when it came to business and all he wanted was a little of his skills. This was why he didn't really need to show his face in the company since he had his eldest brother work on that and he only had to double check on some of the company papers by the end of the week all arranged for him.
"Let's drop by and go back quickly. I have no interest in someone else's problem," Tian Zi added, and to be honest, Fyre was the same. He wasn't a saint to just blindly offer his help to everyone who needed it. If it was not because of Maverick and Joaquinn, he would have cared less.
Furthermore, he couldn't understand why he needed to come. He wanted to go home and play video games since he's just a complete outsider but Laura Mo and the rest insisted that he should come as well and he couldn't decline such an invite. The Mos has done a lot for him, that's why he simply couldn't cut ties with before and even more now that he had decided to be with Tian Zi.
"Yeah, let's quietly visit then you can talk to you Daniel and your brother while I talk to Mav and the others," Fyre agreed, this time he pulled the Alpha up from the couch.
* * *
At the Mo Estate.
"W-What is the meaning of this?" Elder Sullen muttered, reaching out to Maverick's bruised face. For the past years, even though he declared that he wanted to remove himself from his family, he didn't mean to treat his grandsons coldly. That wasn't his intention. After that day when he witnessed Gared and George fighting, he promised to himself that he wouldn't talk to them until they came to him themselves. But that does not mean he wouldn't talk to his grandsons as well. Despite how it seemed, Elder Sullen loved his grandchildren. He was well aware that his other four grandchildren thought he favored Daniel the most but to him, he loved them all equally, just that Daniel grew up in an unfortunate situation thus he wanted to pay all his attention to him more than the rest who had everything since the day they were born.
"W-who did this to you? Was it Gared?" Elder Sullen asked again, his heart pounded painfully. He didn't want to believe it but Maverick, Joaquinn, and Ashton's silence indicated that his guess was right.
"I'm okay, Grandpa," Maverick replied, smiling softly. To be honest, he didn't want to come because his face was still swollen and he knew that the Elder would feel sad seeing him like this but he had no choice. The situation would only become chaotic if he didn't show up.
"No Dear, you're not okay. Why would Gared hurt you like this?" Elder Sullen said, pulling Maverick into a hug then pulling away to caress his bruised face again. He still couldn't believe that his very calm and composed eldest son would hurt his child like this.
"It's because you don't know anything, Grandpa. Dad, had always been like that!" Ashton suddenly burst, his hands forming into a fist. All this time, the Elder never really showed interest in them and he's feeling frustrated that the Elder was showing such interest now that this had happened to them. He does understand that this was because they have kept the Elder in the dark and never told him anything but Ashton was still angry that their grandfather had let them be in this situation. If only the elder was a little more attentive and had tried to find out what was happening, maybe this would not have happened. Maybe they're a lot happier and free. The Elder should have known there was something wrong but instead of trying to find out, he kept quiet and waited for someone to actually tell him.
"Ash!! Stop it!" Joaquinn yelled, holding Ashton back even though he too wanted to say the same.
"No Quinn, Grandpa needs to know because he never tries to know that's why we were forced to pretend everything was okay. We were given no choice so we had to depend on ourselves. He only really cared about Daniel ever since he came. Mav had to suffer and keep his identity even within his family," Ashton replied angrily. Family was supposed to be the people that they could depend on but they were forced to depend on each other instead. They were given no choice at all! They couldn't trust anyone.
"Ash! That's enough! Please..." Maverick said begging, causing the young Alpha to shut his mouth. Thankfully, since Ashton had always regarded Maverick's words, he decided to shut himself and later suddenly turned back and walked out. Maverick sighed, looking at his younger brother retreating before he turned back to the Elder Sullen who all this time had a pained expression.
* * *
To be Continued...
Hi, two updates todays because first it was my birthday and at the same time, my ink goal has been reached. I apologize for the delay though, I've been completely away from writing for days now as part of the celebration of my birthday.
VOTE.COMMENT.FOLLOW.