**After the Shower**
Phuwin thought things would change after that night. After Pond claimed him—rough and raw, trembling in the cold shower while the heat of their bond ignited something primal between them—Phuwin had hoped.
Hoped that maybe... Pond would soften.
Hoped that maybe he'd be held again, not just *used.*
But the next morning, Pond was gone.
No words. No lingering glance. No mention of the claim or the fevered way he had kissed him, like Phuwin was the only thing tethering him to sanity.
Days passed.
And nothing changed.
Pond kept his distance like always. He didn't speak unless necessary. He came home late. He didn't touch Phuwin. He didn't even *look* at him like he had in the shower, when their breath had mingled, and Phuwin had seen something like *hunger* and *hate* in his eyes.
But what hurt the most wasn't the silence.
It was the *cage.*
Phuwin wasn't allowed to leave the estate anymore. Pond had locked the gates with a digital key only he had access to. The guards had been instructed not to let Phuwin out under *any* circumstances. He couldn't even step past the garden without being followed.
And worst of all—he didn't know *why.*
He hadn't done anything wrong.
He'd submitted. Obeyed. Stayed quiet. Smiled when Off and Gun asked him how he was adjusting.
He tried.
He *wanted* to be wanted.
---
**Off and Gun Intervene**
One rainy evening, Off found Phuwin curled up alone in the guest room, still clutching the thin pillow Pond had thrown at him the night after the claim.
Off's brows furrowed. "Why are you sleeping here?"
Phuwin sat up, blinking fast. "I—um... I thought Pond needed space—"
Gun joined them, arms crossed, eyes narrowed. "Are you two not sleeping together?"
Phuwin hesitated. "Sometimes. I mean... not really. Not anymore."
The silence that followed was thick and loaded.
Off and Gun exchanged glances. Disappointment. Concern. Anger.
"He claimed you," Off finally said. "You're bonded. You're his mate. That boy doesn't get to lock you away and then pretend you don't exist."
"Starting tonight," Gun said firmly, "you sleep in his room. No more hiding. No more separate rooms. We didn't raise a coward."
Phuwin's heart squeezed. He knew Off and Gun meant well—they thought Pond was just shy, stubborn, slow to open up.
They didn't know the truth.
That Pond wasn't just cold—he was *terrified of himself.*
That every time he touched Phuwin, he looked like he regretted it.
---
**Back in Pond's Room**
That night, Phuwin stood awkwardly by the door of Pond's room, a pillow clutched to his chest. Pond was already inside, shirtless, hair still damp from a shower.
Their eyes met.
Pond's jaw tightened. "What are you doing here?"
"Your parents said I should sleep here from now on."
Silence.
Pond looked away. "You don't have to do what they say."
"I *want* to," Phuwin whispered, not knowing if it was the truth. "I don't want to be alone anymore."
Another silence.
Then Pond sighed and turned away, climbing into bed without another word.
Phuwin curled up at the far edge of the mattress, as far from Pond as he could without falling off. The silence between them buzzed louder than any argument.
He thought claiming would bring them closer.
He was wrong.
Now, they were bound by blood, but still miles apart.
And every night in Pond's bed only reminded Phuwin of how deeply unloved he was.
Pond didn't sleep.
He waited until Phuwin's breathing softened beside him—light, trembling, like he never quite felt safe—then slipped out of bed and sat by the window, staring out into the night.
The mark on Phuwin's neck was faint now, healed. But Pond could still *feel* it. The bond thrummed under his skin like something alive and angry, a constant reminder that he had taken something innocent and made it his.
But he wasn't an alpha.
He never had been.
He was something else. Something broken. Something *wrong*.
An *Enigma* pretending to be what everyone wanted.
They'd forced the lie on him since he was a boy—trained him to hide what he was. Smile like an alpha. Act like an alpha. Pretend like an alpha.
But with Phuwin...
He couldn't pretend anymore.
Phuwin made him feel too much. The way the boy trusted him. Obeyed him. *Loved him.*
It terrified Pond.
Because he didn't know how to love back. He didn't know if what he felt was affection or obsession. Hunger or hatred. Need or cruelty.
So he pushed him away.
Kept him inside, locked up, far from anyone who might take him away or *tempt* him to care.
Because if Pond truly let himself feel—
He wasn't sure he'd ever let Phuwin go again.
And that kind of possession?
It wasn't love.
It was dangerous.
The next morning, Off caught Pond at the breakfast table, looking like he hadn't slept in days. Phuwin sat silently at the far end, hands folded, eyes downcast.
Gun poured tea and didn't speak, not until Phuwin stood and quietly excused himself.
Once the boy was out of earshot, Gun placed the cup down hard.
"You've had weeks," he said. "Weeks to figure it out. And yet every day that boy looks more broken."
Off didn't sugarcoat either. "We brought him here because we trusted you. Because you *claimed* him. And now you treat him like a prisoner in your home?"
Pond said nothing.
"You haven't even told him, have you?" Gun's voice was sharper now, quieter. "What you are. Why you're afraid."
Pond's fingers curled around his mug.
"I'm protecting him."
"From what?" Off snapped. "Yourself? Or the truth?"
Pond finally looked up, eyes blazing. "You *don't* understand. If I let myself feel everything I feel for him, I won't stop. I'll ruin him. I'll consume him."
Off's face softened. "He'd *let* you. He'd *want* you."
Gun stood slowly. "The only thing ruining him is your silence. You don't need to be perfect, Pond. You just need to *try.*"
That night, Pond walked into his room and found Phuwin already curled up on the bed, looking so small, so tired.
He sat on the edge of the mattress and reached for him—gently, hesitantly.
Phuwin blinked up, startled by the touch.
"I'm not what they told you I was," Pond whispered. "I'm not an alpha. I never was."
Phuwin's breath caught.
"I'm sorry I've been cruel," Pond added, voice rough with guilt. "It's not because I don't want you. It's because I do."
Phuwin slowly reached out and touched his hand. "Then stop fighting it."
"Just let it go" Pond turned and walked away