The heat from the noon sun finally put a frown on his face. Tay pulls his head to the left, hoping to find shade but his back now feels the burn.
Frowning and still half asleep, he made his way to the window, wanting to pull his curtain. Instead he bumps into something which should not have been there. His feet are also on something fluffy. Opening his eyes, he jumps a little when he realizes he is in an unfamiliar room and backs his step until he reaches the bed. He stays there, holding his temple.
"You're finally up..."
Tay finally hears a familiar voice. "Urgh..."
"Come, I've made you lunch." The butler calls but Tay is still confused. "Where am I?"
"Your new apartment. From your grandmother." The man replies monotonously. It answered his question, but that isn't enough. Why is he in his apartment? And isn't he supposed to live on campus? He is sure he got the key to his room-
"You should eat." Chris' voice cuts him from his thoughts. Tay shakes his head, to clear his muffled thoughts. He then turned to look at the butler cum bodyguard, here for whatever reason. Why is he here again? "Got it...What's your name again?"
"Just call me Chris." Again, the monotonous tone. His life must be boring.
"What time is it?" Tay keeps his hold on his temple, his head is throbbing. Did he drink last night? This does feel like a hangover... "How long did I sleep?"
"It's 12:30. Come, I'll explain as you eat."
"Explain what?" The door closes, leaving him hanging. Hearing his stomach growl as if on cue, the young alpha lazily gets out of bed and the room. He finds the dining table at once - a counter top, and takes a seat, looking around the medium-sized apartment.
Surprised.
He expected his grandmother to at least give him a larger one, not that he hates it. It just came as a surprise, knowing how she likes to spend money on him since she didn't get to spend time with him due to his leave to Netherlands when he was little.
Tay takes a deep breath, loving the smell of what is being prepared. He doesn't feel very good, so he is thankful that lunch is chicken soup, rice and some side dishes. "Explain what?" He repeats the question again, lazily while munching, not bothering to look at the man standing in front of him.
"You've been asleep for more than a week."
"Wait what? Why?" A week?! That is physically impossible!
"You had a really high fever," the man replies calmly, "I didn't tell your family, as requested."
"What request?" Tay frowns. What happened to him? Why did he ask Chris to keep it a secret? Why did he have a high fever?
Instead of answering his question, Chris continues sternly, "And, I highly recommend you not going to the west district of the city. I will not be here to help you if anything happens again."
Irking him.
Tay stops eating and looks at the man in the eyes. He is getting annoyed. "What request? And what happened? I need answers."
"You told me to keep what happened that night a secret from your grandmother."
"And what happened that night?"
"You don't remember?" Chris inquires, his voice still void of any emotions. To the stupid question, Tay only closes his eyes. Of course he didn't remember! Would he even ask if he did?? "I remember hanging out at the bar after the registration. That's about it."
"What else do you remember?"
"Why is that important?" Tay is trying his best not to snap. He needs answers, not more questions. Why is that so hard? Just answer his damn questions!
The young master sighs and continues eating, trying to retrace his step and recall his memories. After lunch with his family, he headed to the new university with this new guy. Then, he filled in all his necessary details for his transfer, and headed towards the city, to find some place to hang out and find some good plaything.
He remembers drinking by himself, not finding some sweet omegas to bring home. He dislikes their scent; Thai omegas are just not his taste. He doesn't hate them, he just doesn't find Thai scent appealing. It is just so different from what he is accustomed to. He likes the tulips and lavenders, the sweet minty smell of Netherlands' omegas, the scents that makes him wild in bed.
He remembers sitting at the counter, enjoying the view, releasing his pheromones, hoping to find one sweet omega with weaker scent to bed. And he remembers one sexy little thing strutting towards him, leaning his slender body on the counter, clearly thirsty for him. He remembers them talking, and then nothing.
Blank.
No matter how hard he tries, there was nothing. Maybe he got wasted. Is there something he should remember?
"What should I remember, Chris? I'm getting really annoyed here so you better spill it!" He glares.
Chris takes a deep breath, looking at his young master. He is trained in a lot of things but none of them involves having to explain something sensitive to someone. He is not trained to deal with human emotion. He is hoping that the man would lose his interest in the matter, to save him from the humiliation but instead, he manages to boost the man's curiosity. "I need to tell you that I took care of it, and you won't meet them again."
"Who? Stop going around in circles and tell me. Everything. Goddammit!" Tay rolls his eyes, "Did I kill someone? Did I force myself onto someone? Just tell me!!"
"No, sir..." A pause, "They slipped some drugs into your drink."
Tay almost gasps. He cannot believe what he just heard. Drugs? "What the hell..."
"...and they were trying to take you somewhere."
"What kind of drug?" It can't be...
"Nothing happened. I-"
"WHAT KIND OF DRUG??!!" Tay has enough of the man and knocks his fist on the marble counter. It cannot be... He knows where this is going but he just... he needed the man to tell him otherwise. "It's a kind of rape drug."
"Heh..." Tay closes his eyes, swallowing hard. The damn omega used rape drug on him... He can only laugh at how absurd that is. How dare that bitch drugged him?? They were going to fuck even if he didn't use drug anyway. How fucking dare that bitch...
"... and some other drugs like...." Tay frowns deeper as Chris lists some other mixture of drugs found in his systems. Those are not party drugs. He was given the hard stuff that addicts take. And not only one type. Tay wants to know why. Why did the omega give him such things? With the amount of pheromones he released that night, people would know his intention right away. But still, the rape drug? And all the other drugs? Just, why?!
"I need to assure you that nothing happened. I was waiting outside for you and I managed to stop them from doing anything."
"Them?" The young student is shaking now. A few days in Thailand and this happened. Nothing like this ever happened to him back in Europe, even with his wild lifestyle. The fuck is wrong with this place? "How... How many are they?? HOW MANY??!!"
"I took care of them. They're already..."
"ANSWER ME CHRIS!! HOW MANY???" He growls, very, very agitated.
"Four. Three omegas and an alpha." His breath is heavy. His chest pumping so hard he feels suffocated. He still cannot remember anything, nothing Chris said jog his memory. What did they do to him? What did they do to him before Chris discovered them? Did they manage to do anything? Did they do anything to him??? What...
"You are safe now. The doctor managed to pump all the drugs out."
He never thought he would hear that about himself. Drugs being pumped out of his body. Never in his whole life, has he touched drugs. He might drink regularly, and he might be sleeping with different partners every night, but he never ever dared to touch those powders. That is the one line he would never cross. And now, to hear that the doctor had to pump those damned stuff out of his system... Everything seems laughable.
Who would've thought... who would...
"Pathetic." Yeah, pathetic losers. They probably know he is a noble hence the drug. Like he would fuck them. Pathetic...pathetic...pathetic...
"Mr. Tawan, you need to calm down."
"You know what?? Fuck you. FUCK YOU AND YOUR OMEGAS! LIKE I WOULD..." Tay feels his chest narrowing. He cannot breathe. He needs air but he feels the need to let his thoughts out. To make it clear, "...like, I w-would...even..!!"
He feels a hand on his left shoulder and flinches. Disgusting! How dare!!!
"Hey Mr. Tawan, it's just me!! Here, breathe!" Finally, there is some emotion in the young butler's voice. Tay looks up at his companion, taking some desperate breaths into the paper bag. He feels himself calmed down after a while, a hand moving in circles at his back aiding him. "The doctor prescribed some anti-anxiety pills. Just in case. And some anti-depressant... Just in case."
Tay closes his eyes and nods. "They're in the drawer. Please take them only if you need them."
"The apartment's is on the east side, I checked the area. It's the safest place around here." Another nod. "There are four police boxes, and the apartment has CCTV and auto-lock. There are securities guarding the whole building."
Tay finally releases the bag from his mouth, staring at the floor. His head empty.
"And don't worry, I didn't tell your family."
★★★
New gasps desperately for air as he opens his eyes. His body is still shaking. He had that nightmare again. At the alley. The alphas circling him. He sees them every time he closes his eyes. Every single time. Up to the point where he is afraid to close his eyes to sleep and tries to stay awake for days.
He searches frantically for his pills on the bedside table and finds it. With his hands still vibrating violently, he manages to open the lid and takes out two pills. He swallows them and leans back on his bedrest, trying to catch his breath and relax. He feels his heartbeats slow down and closes his eyes. After a while, he shakes the bottle of pills and looks inside. He is almost out. Which means he either has to see the doctor to get another one, or finally has to take his sleeping pills because he can no longer calm himself down if he wakes up like this again later.
New stares at the other bottle hidden in the drawers. He refuses to take this because it means he is too weak to even sleep. That he cannot do anything without any help. But it is either that, or going out to the hospital. And he would rather die than go outside.
He thought he is getting better. He slept just fine at the hospital. The nightmares started the day he got back home. And it continues to hunt him every night, causing him to wake up crying and screaming for help. And his shaking won't stop, even when he keeps staying awake. It drains him off his energy, making him sleepy again so he began to take those pills to calm his nerves.
Gulping a few drops of water from the bottle, the tired omega looks out the window to see the dark sky, before turning to look at his watch. It is 3 a.m, he is sweaty from the nightmare and needs a bath. Everyone should be asleep so he should be able to go to the bathroom without bumping with anybody.
He doesn't have enough courage to see them yet. He needs more time.
Slowly opening his bedroom door, New tiptoes towards the bathroom. This has been his routine for the past few weeks. He manages to avoid both his parents and siblings, going out to the toilet early in the morning, and late at night when everyone is sleeping. And also, eating the food his mom leaves in front of his door once everyone is out of the house. It is hard to do so at first, he refused to get out of bed but after a few begging from his mother to eat, he finally decided that starving himself to death would not change anything.
New hears some voices from the first floor which stopped him from his track. They are not his parents'.
It can't be... the alphas?! No, he isn't giving off any scent anymore! They shouldn't be able to find him! He's at home! Did they break in?
His body froze from the memory of that night. His whole body shaking again even though he had taken those pills. This can't be happening. Not again. He won't be able to handle it again. He would die.
"Newwiee... is that you?" New jumps at the voice. They are calling him. They know his name!!
"No!!! No more!!! Leave me alone!!!"
"Newwiee!!! What's wrong-"
"STOPPP!!! GET AWAY FROM ME!!!" He hears footsteps getting up the stairs, heading towards him. Realizing that he is out of his room and is vulnerable, he runs. Back into his room.
Locking the door behind him and sitting with his back against it to block them from coming in, in case they manage to unlock the door. He sits down with his knees near his chest, covers both his ears and prays. That they will go away.
"New..."
"Stop!! Stop!!"
"New-"
"SHUT UP!!! LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!"
"My son..." New freezes. That voice...
"It's okay son... it's papa. I'm here. I won't let them hurt you..." His father is crying. He can hear it from the shaky voice. His mighty father is crying. Because of him.
"It's okay Newbear, you're safe now. Papa will protect you. I will always be there for you. It's okay now..."
He remembers that name. His father used to call him Newbear when he was little, when he would run to his father to cry for every little thing. And his father would carry him and wipe his tears before comforting him with a hug. New finds himself longing for that hug.
"Newbear, papa loves you. Papa loves you no matter what. I will protect you until I die you hear me? Papa loves you..."
He can hear the man breaking down on the other side of the door. It breaks his heart it is getting harder to breathe. He feels hot tears flowing, wetting his sleeves and his chest tightens. He is sobbing hard enough he couldn't stop himself even if he wanted to. That is all he wanted to hear. That they still love him even when he is dirtied. That they think nothing less of him even after everything that happened to him.
He longs for that. For the love and safety of his parents.
All he ever wanted is to be able to feel safe again.
****
"Newwiee, honey, breakfast is ready..." Mrs. T knocks lightly to tell her son to eat. Last night must have been really hard for him. Everybody is awoken by the scream in the middle of the night. His younger sister even got out of bed to sleep with her because she is worried. And her husband, he fell asleep in front of New's room after crying his eyes out. Everyone is tired.
Things are not going well in the house. Her other children kept asking what is wrong, and why they haven't been able to meet New even though he is already home. They kept on pushing; Pluem, his younger brother even got mad for the lack of response and ran away from home for a few days thinking it was unfair to keep such heavy secret from them. Everyone needed a break, so she finally asked her husband to send their children to her parents.
And now she is alone. With her oldest son.
The mother takes a deep breath. She is really reluctant to leave her son at home alone to go to work. He needs her but he will probably not eat if he knows she is still at home. She tries the door. Although she knows it is going to be locked, she is hopeful that he would finally let her in. There is no response, so she tries opening the door anyway.
To her surprise, it isn't locked.
Gently opening the door as to not make a loud sound to startle her boy, she stands at the door.
There he is. Her precious son, all bundled up in his blanket while lying on the bed, facing away from her.
"Aren't you hot, honey?" She asks softly, not expecting an answer, rather, just to let him know of her presence. The room is humid, hot, yet her son is all covered up. She looks for the remote and switches on the air-conditioner, making sure to open the window a little to let the hot air out. She puts his breakfast on the table and stands there. Just watching her boy.
"Honey..." she places her palm on his left shoulder and gently caresses it with her thumb. She sits down behind him and lays back, spooning him. Her precious baby boy.
He has gotten so thin.
She places a kiss on his head and just sits there with him, caressing his head lightly, just like she always did when he was little. She hears his soft breath and closes her eyes; he must be sleeping. Last night must have been terrifying for him too. Especially for him.
Why did this have to happen to him? Her child? New had always been a good boy growing up. Minus the constant naughty pranks he and Inn pulled when they were little, New had always been the good son. He never throws tantrums, helped her out whenever he could, he never even went through the rebel phase. The closest he ever got is dressing all emo, but he never did anything dangerous.
Why did it have to happen to him?
She remembers what she heard last night - New was screaming about being dirty and disgusting. He had a hysteria maybe. Nobody knows what happened that triggered that reaction, but he was screaming all night while her husband calmed him down from the outside.
"Newwiee... Mae just wants you to know that... mae loves you. You're not disgusting. You're not tainted..." she whispers. She hopes he can hear her even while sleeping. "Everything will be okay. You'll be okay. We'll make it okay. I'm not giving up on you."
She hears heavy breathing coming for her son. Is he having nightmare again?
"It's okay. Mae's here. Shhh..." she pats her son's back lightly, hoping to ease the fear.
"I'm... sorry." His breath is getting heavier. He is sleep-talking. He is apologizing in his sleep. Her poor son... "Shh... it's okay..."
"Mae...I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." New is not sleeping. He has been awake the whole time.
New is tired of his nightmares. He is tired of getting through all this alone. He wants help. He wants his parents. He doesn't know how long he can handle it anymore.
"I'm not..." New struggles with his breath. He cannot speak clearly, "I'm not... I'm..."
"I know... it's okay. It's over..."
"No... I'm not... a beta."
"I know..."
"Mae... I'm omega..." he is sobbing so hard he thought he could faint. He cannot breathe properly and has to take deeper ones because it feels stuck in his chest. "I'm not... beta..."
The mother can only nod in understanding. This is all her fault. She knows her womb is cursed, that her family is cursed. That she cannot give birth to betas, only to omegas, and with strong scents as well. Yet she and her husband wanted to believe. When New's eldest sister presented, they had expected it.
But then, New's younger brother presented, yet New still hadn't, they were hopeful. That he might be able to live as a beta after all. And when he turned 17, and his youngest sister presented, both her husband and her was delighted that New didn't present. They were happy that he gets to live like a normal beta, be whatever he wants to be without anything to hold him back. That he will have all the opportunities his brother and sisters will never have.
They thought she is not cursed after all. Or that maybe, New escaped his ill-fate.
They should have known that it is impossible.
They should have known but they chose to ignore it.
Now their son had to pay the price.
"I'm sorry honey... Mae's sorry..."
"I'm not beta... I'm sorry..." she hugs him tightly. This is not his fault. He is the victim of their ignorance. If anything, New should blame her, not himself. Her son did nothing wrong. It hurts to hear him blaming himself. She feels herself tearing up but tries to hold it in for her son. She has to be strong. "I'm sorry m-mum..."
She rocks him gently while rubbing his back. She keeps on giving her son light kisses on his head to calm him down. He is shaking really violently, and there is nothing else she can do to ease the pain. "I'm dirty."
"No honey, you're not! Don't say that... never say that." She turns him towards her; his eyes are red and puffy, his cheek bones protruding. He is so skinny it hurts. "You're my beautiful son. The only dirty ones are those damned alphas. Okay? You're not dirty." She holds his face in place and nods her head, asking him to do the same. He needs to nod. He needs to understand that.
"I'm claimed... I'm his..."
"That doesn't mean anything! Look at me New. We'll break that bond. We can. And I will kill him. Or her. I will cut off his fucking dick, pull out all his teeth and blow his head off with a rifle."
New nods. He knows this is all talk but he feels safe, even just a bit. He finally feels safe. Letting his mother wipe off his tears, the son hugs her stomach, wanting to sleep in her embrace. In her warmth.
He smiles to himself. What she said was serious, but it is also really funny. "Mae, you just cursed."
"Oh my... I did? You didn't hear anything." She hugs her son back. He is now smiling and making jokes again. That smile that she missed so much. A few more days and she might be able to convince him to finally get out of this room and walk around the house.
"You're such a badass..."
"Where did you think you got that trait from? Your wimpy father?"
New manages to laugh at that one. She called his father wimpy. Wow.
.....
Thanks for reading 😊 please vote and comment 💙💕