"Jason, now your mama is carrying your little brother, you need to grow up, become stronger and protect him. That's what being a man is all about." "Jason, what's with these grades? A real man's gotta get an education, so he can get a job, support his wife and kids. You need to knuckle down, son." "Look at my son, so strong with his black belt! You'll have all of the ladies after you, you know!" Ichiro rubbed his sore eyes as they flickered open from sleep, before scratching at the salt beside them. The voice that had echoed inside his head and dreams faded away with the drowsiness and he began to wonder just how he got home last night. A plethora of uncensored memories poured into his mind and he shuddered from a sudden internal heat swelling within his belly. Groaning in shame, he pressed his head into his pillow, even grabbing it to wrap it further around as if that could make a difference. Why!? Sex had always been in the category of a pleasurable bonus for him in the past; it sated his personal needs while making his clients happy. It had been difficult not being able to do it and release sexual tensions since Zandre had appeared in his life like a bull to his red flag. The hand was neither a substitute nor an option thanks to that same Alpha bastard! So he'd given in that one time, flittered away his anal virginity like it was not the last oasis in the storm ridden desert, but give the man an inch... Deep down, he knew that the situation between them was not that simple. The attractiveness of the man's scent called to him like siren's song, filling his veins like an aphrodisiac and turning him into a needy mess of hormones. At the same time, his own pheromones drugged Zandre to the point that his manhood would always stand in salute as soon as Ichiro was before him. It was as if almost every time they met, Ichiro would go into a sort of heat, one where he was fully aware of what he was doing, but his resistance to the Alpha was weak. If not that, then his body showed subservience and emotional reliance on the man instead. This was the truth of a true Alpha and Omega pairing. A fated pairing. And now Zandre... now they had both tasted the forbidden fruit and had become completely addicted. But Ichiro did not want to recognise this; it would be like declaring a flaw within his makeup that he truly was nothing but another stereotypical member of his secondary gender. Omegas were not respected. His own father did not seem to want to recognise the Omega within his firstborn son, let alone acknowledge that his second and third sons shared the same secondary gender. Before he turned fifteen and received his collar, Ichiro didn't really recognise it himself, or rather, he couldn't understand what lie ahead in his future. What one doesn't know, they can't fear, after all. But just as a girl develops into a woman and a boy into a man, Ichiro developed the characteristics of an Omega and experienced the exhausting, lustful craving of his first heat and all the crap that followed it. Not that he'd been respected since he was first collared, things definitely were more difficult after that heat. And so perhaps in order to protect himself, his mental health and certainly in order to protect his cute brothers, he tried to continue to live in a similar way that he'd always done, just with an added inconvenience every twelve weeks. Otherwise, he was the same strong, decisive man he'd always planned to be, earning money to support his family. And perhaps one day, his wife and their children. Shit! He was gonna be late for work! His shower was sparse, the water had barely heated up before he was getting out of the shower, shivering and pissed off. That bastard had left his seed inside as well, so most of his attention had been cleaning up down there! He once more vowed never to let the man touch him, all the while deeply aware that if Zandre did, it was unlikely that he would be able to resist. Breakfast was a slice of bread, toasting it would take too long and Saburo had left a note on the fridge saying he was off to meet up with his girlfriends. Jiro was out as well, off studying at his schoolmate's house... Ichiro hadn't even been aware that Jiro had made any connections with others at his school. Well the youth never talked to him about the students of the school, actually, he never said much about the Teachers either for that matter. And he'd never had time to go to those 'parent's evenings'. Ichiro pouted for a moment before tossing the note in the bin and running out of the door, with the bread in his mouth. Had he paid more attention, he would have noticed another note under the one from his brothers. It briefly mentioned that Zandre was leaving in the morning, heading up North for work before travelling abroad. He apologised again for the evening before and promised to call as soon as he possibly could and could Ichiro please answer it so they could talk properly... Ichiro arrived at the Hall just as the mothers and fathers of the little ones he taught were arriving. There were even a few new faces, which made Ichiro's chest swell with joy. He begged for their forgiveness as he unlocked the doors and the parents of his long-term students laughed and dismissed his concerns with a light gesture. As Ichiro rushed to the bathroom to throw on his gi, a couple of the mothers headed for the kitchen to boil a kettle. Others kissed their precious children goodbye, but the little ones were too excited, pulling the mats out and practicing their 'cool finishing' moves. The Omega had almost frozen when he looked at the mats, but fortunately, he saw no suspicious stains and quickly relaxed into the lesson. At least that bastard had cleaned up the Hall after he'd passed out, he begrudgingly gave Zandre some credit. Half way through, the women and the one man, who'd stayed behind, gave all of the children water and juice. Bathroom breaks were a must and the session recommenced. Overall, it was only an hour in total, the little ones attention span couldn't last any longer, but they were still buzzing with energy when the rest of their parents came to collect them, take them home. The man who had stayed picked up his son, both were new to Ichiro's class and introduced themselves. They shook hands, before the man stated he would bring his boy back next week much to Ichiro's delight. As he wiped the sweat from his brow with a dry towel, he leaned against the wall and watched through the window as the little ones bounced about down the street, holding their parents hands and chatting animatedly. A husband, wife and child... he hadn't thought about his original plans for the future for a long time. "Get a good paying job, find an excellent bride and give me some grandkids to spoil..." Ha! What a joke! How can a man spoil his grandchildren from the depths of a prison cell? That old man should have thought about that before... He sighed. No point dwelling on the past, just keep looking towards the future. Just that when he tried to imagine his future now, two molten brown eyes filled his vision and was accompanied by a deliciously deep voice that pulsed through him like a rumble of thunder overhead. It was calling his name. In that same vision, warm, large hands engulfed his, a strong physique supported his weary body and the scent of freshly cut teak wood completely filled his senses. Not unlike that night a few weeks ago, when he'd been so very tired and really had needed someone there for him. He sank upon his knees, recognising the stirring emotions within his heart. He pressed his hand against the wall to support himself as he dropped down. "Shit, why did this have to happen to me?" He complained beneath his breath. "Why does it have to be him?"