Argh!
Just thinking about it made Leon's head feel like it was about to explode. That wasn't even his job— his role was just being his uncle's supposed 'assistant', sometimes stepping in for him at important events across different places. Everyone already assumed Leon would inherit his uncle's empire when the old man eventually passed, but Leon prayed that wouldn't happen.
Anyway, He still had an older brother far better suited to take over, even if he was busy with their parents' business in New York.
Leon just wanted a normal life.
It sounded naive, and people would probably call him an idiot if they heard what he wanted to do with his life, but it was likely the lingering influence of his childhood dreams.
When he was a kid, his grandpa often took him to eat at public places. Leon would catch the mouthwatering scent of fresh bread and drag his grandfather to those spots.
Seeing the array of pastries and cakes in the display cases, watching people sip drinks and eat desserts while chatting and smiling with each other, Leon imagined himself grown up, owning a little shop like that— a place where laughter and happy faces were the daily view. That dream grew stronger when he met Ethan, his first love in middle school.
Ethan wasn't from a wealthy family, and even then he often invited Leon to eat together at cafés. Back then, whenever Leon saw Ethan, whose face was usually scrunched up, suddenly break into a smile while eating strawberry cake, Leon couldn't tear his eyes away.
He told himself he wanted to spend his life baking cakes for Ethan. But then something unfortunate happened, and after middle school graduation, Leon lost the courage to ever seek Ethan out again.
'Look, I don't get it. If you want to open a café or your little shop or whatever, just do it. Let others handle the business too, and you can still manage my business on the side.'
'Uncle…'
'Your mom's the one worried about you, you know. That's why we talked about you marrying that woman. Mr. Carter's daughter, don't you think she's gorgeous?'
'Uncle! Don't tell me you still think arranged marriages are a great idea to pitch to me? in this modern era? Don't joke like that.'
'What else can I do? You're never interested in dating. Even when you do have a lover, you dump them quick. And… if you really can't handle romance, you could marry for business to secure power. No need to be loyal, no need for the traditional husband-and-wife life. You can still live free even if you're married. It's not uncommon in our circle. And Sarah … she's a beautiful, intelligent woman. Your kids would have some seriously strong genes. Plus, Mr. Carter isn't keen on sloppy business alliances. So, your mom and I discussed this, if you can't fall in love, what's wrong with a business marriage?'
'Uncle… God, why are you suddenly so greedy like this?
'Greedy? Ha… I've always been like this. Doesn't mean I don't care about you, Leon. I'm just thinking ahead so you're not lonely when you're old. You don't have to love your spouse, but love for a child comes naturally.'
'…Is it because you can't get pregnant that you're projecting onto me? Shit—'
Fuck, what did I just say?! Leon clamped his mouth shut, staring at his uncle with a face that obviously screamed he felt guilty. On the other hand, his uncle tilted his head with indescribable smile.
It wasn't that his uncle couldn't get pregnant despite being an omega. It was more about the circumstances, he had a male omega partner, and they'd both agreed not to have kids. It wasn't that male omegas couldn't impregnate; it's just that their sperm had a much lower chance of causing pregnancy compared to betas or alphas. Still, his uncle and his partner genuinely had no interest in having children.
'I'll pretend I didn't hear that, Leon.'
'Sorry, Uncle.'
Pulling a pack of cigarettes from the inner pocket of his suit jacket, his uncle lit one, taking a drag and exhaling as he sank deeper into the sofa. Leon, still standing, decided to sit on the ottoman. Watching his uncle, he muttered another, 'Sorry.' But his uncle just waved it off, gesturing that it wasn't worth dwelling on. His uncle offered him a cigarette, but Leon shook his head.
'I'm not saying I'll force you. I'm just giving you options.'
'What options, really? You have Uncle Adrian, who you love, and my parents married for love too… so why are you pushing me toward an arranged marriage?'
'Damn it, you're still a virgin even now. You can't keep a relationship going, and if you really can't handle romance, at least you won't be alone if you marry for business. It won't be some over-the-top telenovela drama. Make a deal with your spouse, play your roles in public, and that's it.'
'Easy for you to say, Uncle.' Leon's face flushed red, unable to believe his uncle was digging into his personal life like this. He couldn't even deny the jab about still being a virgin. 'I'm still young, anyway.'
'You're almost thirty.'
'In three years!'
His uncle blew a puff of cigarette smoke his way while letting out a chuckle, making Leon reflexively cover his mouth and dodge.
'If you don't want that, go to Japan, Tokyo, to be exact. I'm not happy with the guy I put in charge there.'
'Why?'
'There are a bunch of yakuza messing with our business. They know we're a 'legal' operation, but they also know the business tied to a mafia family back home. What's his name again? I can't remember… anyway, he's useless at intimidating the yakuza who keep screwing with the Lumino Group. They think we're trying to muscle in on their territory in Japan. At first, I wasn't interested, just wanted to keep things semi-legal there. But if they're poking at us, then it means those bastards are challenging us.'
'And you want to throw me into a mess with dangerous people like that?'
'They're not aggressive… yet.'
'Yet!'
Leon scratched his head, which wasn't even itchy, his temples throbbing with the ominous premonition he could already feel before his uncle opened his mouth again.
'Come on, you're a natural, Leon. You've got plenty of experience dealing with pests here, so handling it in Japan won't be tough for you. You're sharp at business too, so even if there's no trouble, you can just keep running things at the Japan branch of Lumino.'
'You're cruel, Uncle, tossing out someone loyal to you like it's nothing…'
'If they're not doing the job right, why keep them?'
'Oh, then maybe I'll try slacking off too.'
'This brat.' His uncle let out a small laugh, stubbing out the last bit of his cigarette in the ashtray. 'You've only got two choices anyway; do what your mom wants and marry for business, or do what I want and go to Japan.'
'Why… why are you all doing this? I'm already comfortable working with you here. Why so sudden?'
'Because you speak Japanese, don't you? You were fluent enough when I heard you talking with your grandpa, even if I didn't understand a word.'
'So I've got no other choice…?'
'Well, I'll be nice and say I'm putting you in the Lumino Group's Japan branch as a trial. Just one year, you give it a shot. I was planning to send you somewhere else, but then I remembered you speak Japanese… so why not you?'
Even if Leon refused, he wouldn't escape the constant nagging from his mom and uncle. He couldn't lie about not speaking Japanese either— he'd been taught by his grandfather since he was a kid despite growing up in New York. His grandpa, a Japanese immigrant married to an American woman, his grandma— had a son, Leon's dad, who, surprisingly, wasn't that fluent in Japanese. Leon often wondered how his dad managed to meet his mom, the daughter of an Italian mafia family, marry her, and have three kids all alphas.
One year wasn't that long compared to the constant nagging he'd get about a business marriage. And that's why Leon found himself in Japan at the end of the year.
Since it was still the waiting period before the new year, Leon had nothing to do and was bored out of his mind. So, he wandered around Tokyo, aimlessly strolling, buying useless stuffs, hunting for street food, and somehow, by sheer chance— ran into his uncle's friend, Hajime-san, at a small bar in Shinjuku. The old man said he'd show Leon some -fun things- to do near his apartment, in the red-light district of Roppongi. Leon initially thought it was just a regular nightclub— omegas and alphas as servers were a common sight, especially in big nightclubs, but he never expected to run into his first love in a place like this.
Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing, Leon wasn't even sure what was dominating his emotions right now. What he knew for sure was that he shouldn't indulge this feeling. His love was supposed to be a buried part of his past, locked away for good.
Yeah, it was better for Leon to keep his distance from Ethan, to let life move on as it should.
So many things happen in life, and no one can predict what's coming. But people can control their choices. Leon chose to let things run their course, as they were meant to.
*