Ichiro paused and stared at the screen for a bit, his heart racing before he'd even took a step beyond the hall's boundaries. He licked his dry lips for a second, in thought, before popping the phone into his inside pocket and starting on his run. The sky had been dark for sometime, not only due to the currently lengthy nights, but the heavy clouds blanketing it, blocking out the smattering of stars and the cold moon. With only dim light from the streetlights that had not yet been smashed to light the way, he didn't want to hang around in this neighbourhood any longer than necessary. But, the message on the phone... His mobile felt heavy in his pocket as if it no longer weighed a few ounces, but rather several stones. It burned against his chest and after five minutes of running, Ichiro's legs began to slow and his run became a walk, his walk ground to a halt. He reached inside his pocket and reread the text. It's Zandre. Call me when you are free. It wasn't a command, per say, but it still had the flavour of a message demanding attention. With an undertone of 'ignore at your own risk.' Not that Ichiro planned to ignore it, but it was just that, he didn't know if he planned to answer it either. Pfft, he suddenly laughed at himself. "What am I getting all flustered over?" Didn't he figure out that Zandre could be classed as a friend? Zandre was actually a good guy, had been Ichiro's impression of him over dinner. In fact, his only fault, apart from filching the last onion ring that night, was the whole pursuit thing and insistence that they were soulmates, a fated pair or whatever. Zandre was originally straight, same as him, so once the man got over this 'dating' thing, they both could relax and hopefully hang out as buddies. He'd not had a male friend since the awkwardness of revealing openly that he was an Omega in his teens. Before that, his friends had assumed he was an Alpha, like his old man and there'd been no drama, although they'd teased him for liking his little brothers too much. When they'd all drawn away from him, stopped talking to him and began treating him as if he was some disgusting mess on the bottom of their cheap trainers, he'd wished he had been born an Alpha. But if he had been one, would he have been as insufferable as his father in the end? Zandre was an Alpha and to him, still had some of those arrogant, insufferable traits of the gender... at least, he thought he had. Hearing a bit about the man's family life, the messes he got up to with his brothers, how protective those brothers were when it came to their sisters, he sort of could relate and those traits no longer seemed so bad. Ichiro glanced at the text once more and his thumb slid over to the call button. However, before he could press down, the heavens decided it was not the time and chilly water rained down him, instantly drenching him and the ground all about him. He gave an unmanly squeak, before sprinting towards the apartment block. Despite the heat in his legs and chest, he was still shivering from the deluge when he arrived at the entrance to the block and groaned pitifully when he realised that the lift was out again. Without any other option, he began jogging up the stairwell. His phone began to chime as he reached the second floor. "H-hello?" He stuttered slightly from the cold. "....Ichiro, are you alright?" The sultry tone of his... his new friend came through the receiver and tingled along his lobes. "P-peachy," Ichiro chuckled through chattering teeth. "G-got c-caught in the r-rain on the w-way home!" "Go take a hot shower," Zandre ordered, but it was a command that Ichiro didn't mind him making, he had planned to shower anyway. "I'll call you back in a while." "We-we can t-talk now," Ichiro mentioned, glancing upward at the numerous flights of stairs he still had to climb. "You're helping t-to d-distract me. The lift is out." Zandre sighed on the other end of the phone, but without seeing him, there was no way of knowing what he was thinking. "I'm assuming you walked home, if you got caught in the rain to the point your teeth are chattering." "En," Ichiro replied. "N-no other way." "No car?" "N-no driving l-licence." "What about a bike?" Ichiro laughed. "N-no where to store it s-safely. Around h-here, even if they don't c-cut the lock and take the b-bike, they'll s-steal the seat. Or the front wheel." "I can't say I like the neighbourhood in which you live," Zandre told him, somehow giving Ichiro the impression that he was wording this carefully. "Neither do I," Ichiro admitted, but what could you do when it was all you could get on your wages as an Omega. There was a prolonged pause, but Ichiro didn't check to see if Zandre was still on the other end; he knew he was. The silence wasn't uncomfortable this time either, it was as if the presence of the Alpha was not on the other end of the phone, but walking next to him, climbing these stairs beside him. "What floor is your apartment on?" Zandre asked quietly after some time. "T-Tenth," Ichiro responded. "I'm almost there." "I'll let you go, Ichiro," the Alpha murmured, his voice seeming even more deep and soothing so much so that Ichiro couldn't help but press the phone closer to his ear. "Remember, hot shower." "Yes," Ichiro sighed and listened as the dial tone followed the click ending the call. His old device still required him to manually end the call his end, which he did so after another moment. Somehow, he didn't feel so cold anymore. A pity that feeling didn't last more than a few more steps. "I'll pass on the message, Mr Brandson," he heard his second brother say aloud. His monotone words echoed in the empty corridor and through the stairwell's door. The glass of the fire exit had been smashed last week, so the volume was no muffled as it reached Ichiro's ear. He groaned inwardly. That perverted bastard, what did he want now? They'd paid the rent last week, passing the man the envelope of cash as they'd all rushed out of the door as if in a hurry. It was the best way of avoiding his lewd suggestions and grabby hands, pretending as if they'd stop and chat if they could, if it wasn't urgent that they be on their way. This cash transaction was clearly questionable to begin with as was the tenancy agreement, but beggars couldn't be choosers and as long as neither side said anything, it could continue as was. Ichiro always kept an eye on the tenuous balance between them and the landlord and apart from a few inappropriate gestures, there had been no tilt. However, an unpleasant intuition chose to awaken at that moment. Sure enough... "Ah, Ichiro!" Mr Brandson was not originally an ugly man, some vestiges of a handsome youth could be vaguely seen upon his face. But the years between his youth and middle age had been wasted, their effects clear. His yellowing skin shone with a thin layer of grease and his chin was developing into two. His hair had clearly thinned upon the brow and the rest was heavy with styling products to provide the illusion it was still abundant. The white of his eyes were tinged red. He reached for Ichiro's hand with his thick, tobacco tinged fingers. "You are looking well as usual." His eyes roamed over Ichiro's body in obvious interest. "Thank you," Ichiro pulled back his hand over touching the other's briefly, trying to suppress the shudder of discomfort from trailing down his spine. "What can I do for you, Mr Brandson?" "Ah, well," the man scratched at his scalp as he looked slightly embarrassed. "Thing is, Ichiro. This building requires a fair few repairs and as you know I'm responsible for the management of it as well as own many of the apartments." In fact the building had once been his grandfather's property, built to hold four to six apartments a level and was a total of ten floors high. Some of the apartments had been sold for debt reasons, others could barely hold their tenants due to the decline of the surrounding area and the cheapness of the succeeding Landlords. Ichiro lived on the top floor, but as far as he knew the other three apartments on this floor were empty. The feeling of despair within Ichiro deepened. "I'm forced to increase the rent, starting from next month," the man continued, confirming Ichiro's fears. "I understand," Ichiro said with a calmness that he did not feel. "How much will be our new rent?" He said a figure which drained the colour of Ichiro's face even if his smile did not falter. The Landlord's eyes roamed over Ichiro's expression as if analysing it. "You know, if there's a problem..." "No, no. No problem," Ichiro denied, imagining in which direction the conversation was leading, however Mr Brandson was not so easily diverted. "I'm quite fond of you and your brothers," the man continued. "I really hate to have to evict you. So just come to me if you find the payment difficult. I'm sure we can come to... some other agreement." He slid a fat digit down Ichiro's arm, before leaving. Ichiro held in his rebelling stomach for a moment longer before fleeing into the bathroom to retch in the sink. "Ichiro..." Jiro called out, witness to everything, but at a loss on how to help soothe him. "Are you alright?" "I'm fine," he reassured Jiro. "Really, fine." No I fucking ain't! He screamed, inwardly. What the hell am I supposed to do? To be honest, the increase was not excessive, especially considering that they had not experienced an increase in rent this past two and a half years. Just... even a few pounds were a few too much right now. Once more he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and ended up reaching for it, thinking to curse Zandre for pestering him. It wasn't the Alpha man, it was just an annoying sales text from his service provider, but... now he was thinking about that man again, the man who had recently barged his way into his life and demanded to be a part of it. His fingers even brought up his contact details, but although they hovered over the call button for a second, he turned off his phone in the end. Why did he need to call him? To vent? To ask for help? He shook his head. Why would he seek to rely on a person he barely knew? This was his problem, he would have to solve it on his own.