Chapter 3

"Today was your rehabilitation appointment. I cleared my schedule to go with you."

Mitch paused while fastening his seatbelt in the passenger seat.

Oh. He had completely forgotten.

With a shocked face, Mitch checked the date. It really was his scheduled rehabilitation day.

During college, Mitch had fractured his right ankle while doing a labor-intensive part-time job. Being young, it healed quickly, but he returned to work before fully recovering and suffered lingering effects.

When Douglass later found out, he angrily registered Mitch for rehabilitation therapy. Now, while Mitch could carry out daily activities without major issues and even do basic exercise, his ankle area still felt stiff if he overexerted himself or was physically active all day. In severe cases, he would even limp.

Rest usually helped, but it was important to stay within reasonable limits of activity.

"Where is your mind these days?"

Douglass frowned, giving a disapproving look at Mitch sitting in the passenger seat.

"I've been feeling fine lately..."

"But the doctor said not to skip treatments and to go regularly."

"I understand."

"How can you say you understand when you completely forgot the appointment?"

Mitch bristled at being called "kid." There were limits to insubordination. Using "you" or calling him by his full name "Mitch Forbes" was one thing, but calling someone older "kid"?

"Are you going to keep talking to me like that? Besides, I used to go just fine without you."

"Oh really? When did you ever go alone?"

"Last month."

"Last month I missed once because something came up. Before that, we always went together."

"..."

That was true. Douglass was almost excessively sensitive about this issue.

Even after several years, it was always Douglass, not Mitch himself, who consistently remembered and took care of Mitch's rehabilitation.

Seeing this side of him, there should be no reason to doubt Douglass's feelings. Perhaps his mother had lied after all, trying to separate them.

Feeling his sharp mood soften a bit, Mitch pondered how to ask Douglass about the marriage.

"I should call the hospital tomorrow."

"Good thinking, Mitch Forbes. I've already rescheduled the appointment for next week."

"...Thank you."

Douglass smirked with one arm resting on the car window as he drove.

"What sudden craving for pizza makes you forget a hospital appointment?"

"It happens."

"Are you pregnant?"

"What?"

"I haven't come inside much, but you're already pregnant?"

Douglass giggled at his own joke.

"Don't say things like that."

Mitch punched Douglass's shoulder. Then, worried he hit too hard, he gently rubbed the spot.

Douglass snorted as if ticklish. Mitch's punch only hurt his own hand.

"Why not? It's just the two of us."

He focused on driving with a mischievous smile, showing no sign of pain. That made him even more annoying.

The atmosphere quickly returned to normal. Mitch could hardly believe he had met Douglass's mother just hours ago. Everything he heard about his marriage seemed like a dream.

***

Was it because the shock was so great? Today, memories of the past came back with unusual clarity. Mitch glanced at Douglass, who was focused on driving, and recalled old times.

Like most troubled families, Mitch's household had its complications. Mitch was born out of wedlock and raised by his mother alone. His biological father, who had presented himself as a bachelor, was actually a married man with another woman.

As time passed, when his father's legal wife died of illness, he married Mitch's mother in the year Mitch turned nine. His mother finally shed the label of mistress. And at last, Mitch gained a legal father.

But this didn't improve their situation, so his mother had to continue working as a caregiver. Until Mitch was in 9th grade and met Douglass at that villa.

'My head hurts so much I can't sleep.'

At night, when everyone managing the villa was asleep, Douglass would knock on Mitch's door, drenched in sweat.

'Want to sleep here?'

'Yes.'

'Come here.'

Even when woken up, Mitch never turned Douglass away, always offering him a place beside him. Perhaps because he was from a wealthy family, Douglass was more spoiled than others his age.

'Stroke my hair.'

'Okay.'

'Until I fall asleep.'

'Okay.'

'Don't stop.'

'I understand.'

Douglass in 7th grade had round eyes and a doll-like upturned nose that made him cute, but he was demanding and particular.

'I'll wake up in the middle to check if you're still stroking.'

'I said I understand.'

'Are you getting annoyed with me?'

'Sigh. No.'

'When you stroke my hair, my head doesn't hurt, you know. And my throat feels less tight. My throat hurts so much every night.'

'I see.'

'Maybe it's because your hands are so white and long.'

Whenever Mitch seemed annoyed or irritated, Douglass would sense it instantly and know exactly what to say, like the tongue in one's mouth.

Mitch didn't dislike this young master. Despite being the same gender, being two years younger made him seem cute. Douglass's appearance back then was quite pretty too.

Fortunately, perhaps due to the isolation treatment, Douglass's pheromone issues gradually disappeared as he grew up. After spending those few weeks together at the villa, Douglass and Mitch naturally parted ways.

The catalyst for their relationship came much later when they reunited in a joint university club. By then, Mitch had manifested as an omega.

That college reunion had led to their relationship continuing until now.

He thought they had been meeting quietly, keeping a low profile all this time, but...

***

"What do you want for dinner?"

Douglass asked as soon as they arrived home. Mitch pushed away the lingering images of the past that were emerging from deep within.

"Let's just eat what we have at home. I'm not very hungry after having pizza."

Mitch replied while rubbing his tired face. As he headed to the bathroom to wash up, Douglass suddenly grabbed his cheek.

"What, why suddenly..."

"Your expression has been strange since earlier."

"..."

"Mitch Forbes. Are you sure nothing happened today?"

Douglass narrowed his eyes as he made Mitch look at him, as if trying to read his mind.

Mitch yanked his head away and shook it.

"Nothing happened. I'll shower first."

Douglass stared silently at Mitch for a few seconds, then clenched and unclenched his now-empty hand. Then he followed Mitch to the bathroom.

"Let's shower together."

Mitch stopped in his tracks and swallowed a sigh.

Going into the bathroom together always led to sex. He wasn't in the mood for that right now.

"Today I really..."

Mitch faltered mid-sentence. What should he say? He couldn't find the right words.

Come to think of it, he had rarely refused sex with Douglass. He had mostly gone along with whatever Douglass wanted.

"Just shower first."

He couldn't bring himself to say he didn't want to do it today. Until he knew the truth about whether Douglass really had someone to marry, he wanted to act as normal as possible, but it was harder than expected.

When Mitch spoke seriously, Douglass shrugged and entered the bathroom first. Only after hearing the water running did Mitch head to the bathroom in another room.

After washing, Mitch came into the living room where Douglass, already out, was sitting on the sofa. He beckoned Mitch to come closer. When Mitch approached, Douglass pulled him close and tried to remove his bathrobe.

"I'm tired. Let's go to bed early today. I have to go to work tomorrow morning."

Mitch said, pushing away Douglass who was massaging his waist. But this time, he wouldn't be pushed away.

Looking at Douglass's face, he seemed annoyed at being continuously rejected.

Normally, Mitch would have pretended to give in and gone along with Douglass's pull, but the conversation with his mother kept surfacing, making it difficult to act naturally intimate.

"Then don't go to work tomorrow."

"How can I do that?"

"The café runs fine without you anyway."

"Hey."

"It's not like you do anything there."

"..."

That was true. From selecting the location to opening, it was practically all Douglass's doing.