Let's Just Be Friends

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The next day.

Since Tian Zi usually woke up early in the morning to do some light exercises, he shifted from his sleep. He slowly opened his eyes, still a little dazed from his deep slumber. A brief flashback played in his mind and he almost jumped off the bed if not only for a certain person lying next to him. As soon as his eyes laid on Fyre's sleeping figure, Tian Zi's heart almost immediately leaped out of his mouth and a blush quickly made its way to his face.

The question he'd had for a while now, every time he felt annoyed when Fyre was with other men, suddenly popped in his mind like a light bulb and his mouth slightly dropped open for a quick moment before he closed it and gulped, still stunned.

"Fuck." Tian Zi cursed softly clutching his chest, trying to make it stop from jumping up and down. He never thought that this kind of feeling would hit him one day, that to some point it annoyed him but at the same time made him feel happy, excited, and somehow, despite not fully accepting it, he didn't want to lose it either.

The images of the last night's activities all of a sudden flashed in his mind again and his blush turned darker as his heartbeat continued beating painfully. The pain wasn't agonizing but it was uncomfortable enough for him to not ignore it. Everything was a lot clearer now; why he was so fixated when it came to Fyre. He thought it was all because he had treated the Omega as his friend but now, it was clear to him that it wasn't just that and it had taken him years to realize it.

Tian Zi glanced at Fyre again, and he knew for sure that none of this had ever made him feel regretful. He hated the idea of becoming lovers with someone but with Fyre, he actually thought it wasn't such a bad thing. Looking at his brothers who he looked up to until now so madly in love with their wives annoyed him a lot so he'd promised that he wouldn't be the same. But he was frustrated to think that at this moment, he felt like he understood his older brothers, although it wasn't like he was madly in love with Fyre—or so he thought he wasn't. He wanted to punch himself so badly for feeling so conflicted between his resolve and desire.

"Am I going crazy?" Tian Zi once again mumbled to himself, pulling on his own hair shocked at his own thoughts. Back then he was so determined to live out his whole life as that cool single uncle to his nieces and nephews but now he was already thinking of a future with Fyre and it made him even more frustrated because it actually didn't sound so bad in his opinion. It was like something had corrupted his mind for thinking so differently from his original plan.

While still in his dilemma, because of his light movements, Fyre shifted in his sleep. Tian Zi's heart began to pace faster again thinking that the Omega might wake up, but later he felt relieved that Fyre didn't. But it was only for a brief second as he soon watched the Omega suddenly sit up, as if waking up from a nightmare.

"Urgh..." Fyre groaned, massaging his temples. The pain he was feeling all over his body was excruciating but the fact that Tian Zi was beside him now was what made him have a headache. The memories of last night's event came rushing to his head like an angry tidal wave and he couldn't believe he actually did such a thing. For sure he was in heat but he was positive that he was still able to think straight at least. If he'd wanted to, he could have run away. But he didn't, because deep inside knew that he liked it. He was more indulgent when it came to his emotions during heat and he was thankful that all this time nothing had happened to him. But he also knew that someday the leash he put on himself would snap. However, he didn't think it would happen last night after so many years.

"Uhhm. Is your body okay?" Tian Zi asked awkwardly. This was the first time he'd had sex with somebody and he didn't know what you were supposed to do the next day after waking up together in a bed.

"I'm obviously hurting..." Fyre gritted and finally turned to look at Tian Zi with a glare but that glare didn't last when a blush appeared on his cheeks that he had no choice but to quickly face away and cover his face.

"T-The fuck with your face! It's really annoying!" Fyre said all of a sudden. It was for a quick moment, but he saw that Tian Zi was naked and that only the duvet that they were currently sharing was the only thing that was covering him or rather, them, right now. His memories of last night were quite vivid but he could tell that he wasn't really that focused on watching Tian Zi's body. So looking at it now made him realize that last night wasn't a dream... that he really did it with Tian Zi and that they took each other's first time.

"...Huh? What do you want me to do? I can't change my face though." Tian Zi said, scratching his head. It was really awkward, and so early in the morning the Omega was already angry with him. He realized that even if he knew now that he liked Fyre, it wouldn't be so easy to be with him because the Omega hated him. His feelings were probably unrequited.

"A-Anyway... I'm sorry... I took advantage of you..." Tian Zi added and as soon as he said that, Fyre frowned and looked at him again as if he grew another head. Clearly, from Fyre's perspective, he was the one who took advantage of the Alpha, but now Tian Zi was saying something ridiculous. But then again, he wouldn't admit that.

"D-Do you regret it?" Fyre suddenly asked, preparing his heart as he looked at Tian Zi waiting for his reaction… maybe looking for a sign that would tell him whether the Alpha's answer would be the truth or lie.

"I-I don't know but I'm apologetic... you must have hated it so much..." Tian Zi replied helplessly before rubbing his face with his palms.

"I-I didn't hate it though..." Fyre mumbled softly that if the room wasn't quiet enough, Tian Zi wouldn't have been able to hear it. Luckily he did and his eyes bulged open as he lifted his head and gawked at Fyre's blushing figure.

"What!? Really?" Tian Zi asked in surprise, leaning a little close out of excitement, which was immediately blocked by Fyre using his arm.

"You bastard! Quit getting too close to me! Your face is so annoying!" Fyre yelled, blushing a deep shade of red. Tian Zi on the other hand, because he was a little too overwhelmed by Fyre's words, didn't budge and instead pushed his way through and hugged Fyre instead. Fyre was so shocked at the act and he became frozen, wondering what was happening. His mind turned dizzy at the fact that they were touching each other's bare skin. Not to mention the fact that the Alpha was burying his face against his neck and inhaling his scent. The additional act sent shivers to his spine before finally, his brain exploded.

"I promise I'll take responsibility." Tian Zi whispered, feeling relieved that at least Fyre didn't hate what had happened. Relieved that after this, things won't go bad between them. He couldn't hide the joy that he was feeling after being so worried just now. As long as Fyre didn't end up hating him, he didn't care if his feelings were unrequited.

"W-What are you talking about?" Fyre stuttered, his eyes spinning absorbing the whole situation. Okay, he does admit that he likes or perhaps loves Tian Zi, but he didn't really expect it would progress like this after last night. He really thought that Tian Zi would tell him that they should forget about what had happened and remain friends. He prepared his heart for it and even quickly thought what his reply would be.

"I mean... you're my friend... and I did that to you... so I'll take care of you until you find your happiness." Tian Zi said, pulling away from Fyre. He wouldn't ask for more from Fyre, at least for now. He didn't know anything when it came to relationships and love yet, he didn't want to disappoint Fyre when he wasn't prepared like what had happened last night, he didn't want that to happen again and cause Fyre so much pain.

Meanwhile, as Fyre heard the Alpha, his eyes turned sharp before he glared at Tian Zi. The word 'friend' repeated in his head like a broken cassette tape. 'What does this bastard mean, until I find my happiness? A 'friend' he said??!' Fyre thought as he frowned towards Tian Zi.

"What?!" Fyre asked gently, trying to suppress his anger. He didn't even know why he liked this 'dense fucker' when originally, he was really into women, and all of a sudden he got attracted to the Alpha who was two years younger than him that did nothing but annoy him all the time since they met.

"W-Wait… W-Why are you suddenly so angry?" Tian Zi asked, seeing that despite Fyre's gentle tone, he knew that the Omega was pissed off. He didn't know which among his words had suddenly triggered him.

"I'm not angry. Just answer my question." Fyre denied and later insisted.

"Uhmm okay, but you are definitely angry though. Did I say something wrong? I only said we're friends and that I wanted to take care of you until you find happiness." Tian Zi replied, scratching his nape before looking at Fyre's glare getting deeper and deeper at his words.

"I-I mean… but if you wanted to… w-we can also… maybe… uhmm… be together? I-I mean… well… I-If you want to, that is…" Tian Zi stuttered, contradicting his earlier decision after having been afraid of Fyre's eyes which eventually turned softer by the end of his sentence. Seeing this, Tian Zi sighed in relief. He didn't know why but Fyre glaring at him suddenly made him more terrified than usual so he had no choice but to say that.

"I-If you're forcing yourself then I don't want it!" Fyre said. His heart had leaped in joy for a second, but being that Tian Zi looked like he was forced to say such a thing, his heart sank before he braced himself.

"What? I'm not forcing myself, Fyre."

"Stop lying! I can see it in your face… if you regretted that this happened then you could have just said so. It's not like I was going to cling to you and besides… it was just sex." Fyre said and finally decided to get off of the bed. He didn't care if his legs were threatening to betray him or that he was currently naked, he just wanted to end this conversation.

"Wait, Fyre! You misunderstood me… I do want to be with you." Tian Zi conveyed desperately. He didn't know why their conversation had suddenly taken a 180-degree turn, but it felt like if he didn't fix it soon, he'd regret it.

"I told you! Stop fucking lying! I know you don't like me, and me either, so we can just forget about this and move on. Treat it like a nightmare or whatever and let's just be friends like always." Fyre yelled with teary eyes. He didn't dare look at Tian Zi before he walked towards what seemed to be the bathroom. On the other hand, as soon as Tian Zi heard Fyre's words, he froze and wasn't able to say anything.

He already knew that Fyre didn't like him as a man, but hearing it from him like this felt like his heart was tearing apart. He had only just realized his own feelings but now he was already heartbroken despite already expecting it.

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To be Continued…