Babe knows to maintain his position as one of the top racers in Thailand he should take good care of his health, and not do anything, well almost anything, in excess. That includes drinking.
Damn Tony for sending one of his children to offer to buy Babe's contract from Alan. It had obviously been done on purpose, knowing Babe would find out. When he had confronted Kenta, the man had only laughed and said it was time for Babe to stop playing and come home.
Home? Tony's house was not his home. Tony might be his stepfather, but the time had long passed since Babe had thought about him that way. The other children Tony had raised weren't related to Babe in any shape or form. His only family now were Phayu and Saifah.
Kenta coming to the track had brought up too much of his past.
"Do you want to stay at my place tonight?" Way asks, "or I can drive you home?"
Babe shakes his head, "Charlie is waiting."
"Wouldn't want to keep Charlie waiting," Way mutters sarcastically.
Babe gets home to find Charlie sitting outside in the drizzling rain working on his laptop.
"Why didn't you go inside?" Babe asks him.
"How could I? You changed the code." Charlie says.
"You could have called and asked." Babe says.
"You told me not to call and bother you, besides I am just a sex buddy, remember?" Charlie says.
"Oh, are you still upset over that? Fine I don't think of you as just a sex buddy, you are different." Babe says and realizes he means it. Charlie really is different. So innocent and cute on one hand and yet so many secrets.
Babe remembers the first day they had met, he had Charlie come to his house that night for an interview. Even Charlie had known he was there for sex, but the young alpha had been so inexperienced. He had said it was his first time with another alpha, but the way Babe had to walk him through the process, made him wonder if Charlie had many partners at all.
"I'm not different, if I was different, I would know more about the real Babe." Charlie pouts.
Oh that's rich, Babe thinks. What he says is, "You really want to know?"
Charlie, nods smiling.
"Fine, but let's go inside." Babe says.
They sit at the kitchen counter, and Babe says, "Babe isn't the name my parents gave me."
"It was Mek, right?" Charlie asks. Babe raises his eyebrows and Charlie says, "Big fan remember."
"Then did you know I have two older brothers, twins?" Babe asks. Charlie shakes his head looking surprised enough that he might not have known, or he is just a really good actor.
"Phayu and Saifah are three years older than me and when they were eleven and I was eight our parents divorced. Phayu tried to tell me it wasn't either of their faults, they just didn't love each other anymore. In my mind, though, it was my father's fault. He worked too much, he didn't spend enough time with my mother, that sort of thing." Babe says. "That was the first rift between me and my father and brothers. The second came when my mother remarried less than a year later. I should have thought it was strange how Tony wanted nothing to do with my brothers but readily accepted me. At the time I was just happy that I could stay with my mother, and I found Tony very charming and charismatic. He taught me so much and we played games together. There were lots of other children there that Tony called the orphans, although I was kept isolated from them. I never even met most of them. It wasn't until my mother died when I was sixteen that I found out the truth. The reason Tony took me and not my brothers was because I had heightened senses and special abilities. All of Tony's children did. The games they played with us were training to hone our powers. Worst of all is my mother knew everything and had more or less used me as a bargaining chip in her new marriage."
"I ran away and went home to my father's house, leaving Tony and his rich lifestyle behind me. Although after so long my brothers and father were more like strangers to me. Then not long after that my father died in a car accident and it was just me and my nineteen-year-old brothers, and they were at the university at that time. I went a little wild and started partying a bit too much. That's when I changed my name. It was only thanks to a family friend that I was introduced to Alan and got into car racing, a better outlet for my time. The rest, as they say, is history."
"Does it still hurt, what your mom and stepfather did?" Charlies asks him.
In a way it does, but Babe says, "It's over, someday I'll probably just forget everything."
Charlie hugs him and holds him tight and Babe admits it's just what he needs at the moment.
It's no secret that Rain is in love with Phayu. Rain is the type of person that easily wears his emotions on his sleeves. Everyone around him, even Sky who has only known the little omega a few days, knows that if you let him, Rain will go on for hours about his precious P'Phayu. The only thing is, people tend to dismiss Rain's feelings as just a boyhood crush, or idol worship, even the alpha himself.
Rain knows it's not. He has loved P'Phayu for as long as he can remember. As time has passed and Rain has matured so has his feelings for the alpha. It has progressed from childhood idolization to something deep and true in Rain's heart.
Rain just doesn't know what to do about it, how to convince the alpha that he is grown up now and that his feelings are real. Occasionally, P'Phayu looks at Rain in such a way that he thinks the alpha feels something for him, but then the alpha will say something that makes Rain feel small and childish. Or even worse, ignore Rain altogether. Rain doesn't think P'Phayu means to hurt him, he is only keeping up a wall between him and Rain, a wall that says we are only senior and junior, Rain is like a little brother to me.
Now that Rain is an adult he is determined to break through that wall and either have P'Phayu confirms he feels something more than brotherly affection or Rain will just have to lock away that part of him forever. He can't keep living on nothing but hope.
Rain doesn't know how to do it, but he does have one ally. There is one person who understands Rain better than any other, who has never treated Rain like a child who doesn't know his own mind.
"P'Babe, can I talk to you?" Rain cries as soon as the alpha opens the door.
For a minute P'Babe looks disappointed as if he had been expecting someone else. Then he gives Rain a brilliant smile, the one only Rain and one other person gets to see. Rain and Babe have always been close. Part of it is because they are closer in age but it's Mostly because they share a bond. Both have felt extremely isolated and lonely in a way the older two would never understand.
"Of course, Rain, you know my door is always open to you." he moves aside to let Rain in. "I assume this is about my idiot of a brother?"
"P'Babe, I don't know what to do. He never pays any attention to me. Will P'Phayu ever see man as anything but a junior?" Rain pouts and throws himself down on the sofa dejected.
"Let me tell you a secret Rain, my brother has a big possessive streak when it comes to you, he always has. Even when we were children, he would get jealous if you played too much with the rest of us and he wasn't involved." Babe says, smiling at how he always used this fact to torment P'Phayu. "Maybe you just need to bring out that jealous streak. Remind him that you have options."
"What options? I have never even flirted with anyone else. It's only ever been P'Phayu for me." Rain says.
"I know that, but P'Phayu doesn't have to. The problem is he takes for granted that you will always be there chasing him around." Babe says, "I will give you some tips for what to do."
"Will you, Phi?" Rain asks excitedly.
"Of course, although I still think you are too good for my brother. I will help you." Babe says. Rain jumps up and gives him a hug.
They carefully lay out their plans. Rain's eyes sparkle mischievously while they discuss how to get P'Phayu to admit his true feelings.
Before he leaves, Rain says, "Oh, I almost forgot." He goes to his bag and pulls out a manilla envelope "The information you asked for on that person. I hope it's what you needed."
Babe takes the envelope as if he is wary of the contents, "Tell your pa and P'Chai I owe them one."
Rain laughs and says like the true mafia son he is, "I am sure they will find some way for you to repay them."
After Rain leaves Babe sits down at the kitchen counter and dumps out the contents of the envelope.
While he isn't surprised by the pictures and the report, he is slightly angered and saddened by them.
The next time the bell rings, it's the one Babe has been waiting for. Babe has changed the door code again. He could have sent Charlie a text to let him know what the new code was, but it amuses Babe to see the younger alpha sulk about it. Normally Babe would tease Charlie until the other alpha would smile for him, but tonight Babe is too upset about the information he was given. He tells Charlie to just go to bed and ignores the hurt expression on his face.
The next day is the qualifying race, something Babe should easily win but he knows from the beginning he is in trouble. His head is not in a good place. His mind is too much on Charlie, Way, and the other information he has been given and he is not concentrating on the racetrack like he should be. He loses the field, a first for him, and just barely manages to come back and take second place after Kim from the Red Racing Team. The worst thing is when that idiot Winner from Red Racing taunts him as if he hadn't come in behind Babe.
Phayu, Pai, and Saifah stop by the club on a Friday night for a few drinks. Phayu has half a mind to pick someone and take them back to his crash pad over the garage. It's been a while. He isn't like Pai who goes home with someone new almost every weekend, and more than a few weeknights too. Phayu is particular, and even the few hookups he has had usually leaves him unsatisfied. He can't help but think of who they aren't.
"Enough Phayu," he tells himself. "Rain is a friend you've known him your entire life."
"Isn't that Rain?" Pai asks, surprised.
Phayu's head jerks up and he sees the boy he was just thinking about dancing way too close to a female alpha that in Phayu's opinion is much too old for him. The worst thing is how Rain is dressed in a pair of shorts that barely reach the top of his thighs and a crop top.
Phayu sees red, especially when the woman slides a well-manicured hand down and cups Rain's pert little bottom.
Phayu stalks onto the dance floor and snatches Rain away from the woman.
"P'Phayu, how did you get here?" Rain asks in surprise.
Phayu glares at the woman until she holds her hands up and back off.
"Rain, why are you here?" Phayu asks, "You're not even old enough to drink."
"It's Friday night, my friends and I came to relax and dance, we aren't drinking," Rain says. He points to a table where Phayu sees Sky and some other first year students. Pai has already spotted Sky and is making a beeline to the table.
"You shouldn't be here at all; this isn't the place for a young omega like you." Phayu says.
"Why are you here, if the place is so bad?" Rain asks. "My Pa owns this place you know."
For a minute Phayu had forgotten that fact. That isn't the problem. "I'm taking you home," Phayu says.
"Why?" Rain asks, "I'm an adult, it's not even a school night. You're not my daddy."
"Rain," Phayu says, his voice threatening with a warning.
"Well you're not. Stop treating me like a kid, even Pa doesn't treat me that way." Rain says. He turns to stalk off. Before he takes a step, Phayu grabs his arm.
"Where are you going?" Phayu asks.
"To see if I can find Malai, we were having a lovely dance before you interrupted." Rain says.
"That woman is much too old for you." Phayu says.
"We were just dancing." Rain says.
"Dancing, I saw the way her hands were all over you." Phayu says.
"So what, it's not your business." Rain says.
Phayu has had enough, he grabs Rain's hand and pulls him from the nightclub.
"Let me go." Rain says but Phayu ignores him.
"Get in," Phayu says when they reach the land rover.
"I won't," Rain says stubbornly.
"Get in or I will pick you up and put you in." Phayu says.
"Why are you doing this?" Rain asks. "I wasn't hurting anyone; I was just having some fun. Admit it, you just didn't like another alpha touching me."
Phayu freezes, that is the problem isn't it, he didn't like seeing Rain with that other alpha because, "You are mine." Phayu growls.
Rain lets out his breath and says, "Finally." He leans up and kisses Phayu and instead of pushing him away, Phayu finds himself kissing Rain back.