Someone like you..

9. You want me to spill everything?

Wang Yibo was in his living room reading the file he had asked Jili to put together. Going through the contents of the file, he felt a wide range of emotions he didn't dare name. Since the day he had seen Xiao  Zhan, he had known the man was unlike anyone he had ever met before. Never in his twenty-eight years of existence had he found anyone who intrigued him like Xiao Zhan did and the experience was as refreshing as it was maddening. Just a few minutes in Xiao Zhan's company and he was all Yibo could think about now. He was through the file in half an hour but still wasn't satisfied. He knew what the man liked, what restaurants he preferred, what he had managed to achieve so far but the fiesty Alpha was still a mystery. Wang Yibo knew Jili had pulled all of their respective resources to milk this information. The man had been working with Yibo for five years now and was only two years his younger but he followed Yibo's instructions well. Wang Yibo glanced at his nightstand and realised Haoxuan was an hour late. He had asked his cousin to come so that he could get an insight on Zhan. Xuan was mated to Jiyang who had known Zhan all his life but asking Jiyang was out of question. He had sensed how deep Jiyang's loyalty ran to Zhan when the Omega had hacked into the company's systems. Jiyang was careful around the entire Wang family because of Haoxuan. The poor boy wanted everyone to like him even though Wang Yibo knew it didn't matter to Haoxuan. The man didn't care if his family didn't like Jiyang, what he cared about was what was said about Jiyang. One wrong word and Xuan turned into a madman, ready to ruin people. The man would be fine if half the world hated him, he only wanted Jiyang on his side. Wang Yibo also knew that Song Jiyang felt the same way for his cousin. So, if the man was ready to make an enemy out of Wang Yibo for Zhan, Yibo could guess how much Jiyang cared for Xiao Zhan. Though he could see why. There was just something about the firecracker that brought out protective instincts in people.

He stared at the digital clock and realised twenty more minutes had passed. Haoxuan didn't fear Yibo and the latter wasn't shy of making the fact clear. After a while, the doors opened and came in Wang Haoxuan acting as if he wasn't an hour and a half late. Yibo shut the file in his hands and leaned back getting comfortable eyeing his cousin. "You said you wanted me here,you didn't say when", said the bastard with a smug face and Yibo smiled at him coldly. "Seems like I should tell Jiyang the truth about how you guys really met." A single sentence and the smile on Haoxuan's face was replaced by a hard scowl. Jiyang was the one thing Xuan cherished more than his own life and was smitten by his Omega. The man grounded him and was one thing that could keep Xuan in line. "You know I could make Jiyang hate you with a few words yet, you act foolishly and piss me off. Are you tired of your mate already?" Haoxuan snarled at him and Yibo's eyes flashed wolf in annoyance. "Don't threaten me", his cousin growled and Yibo stood up from the couch getting into Xuan's space sneering at the man. "Don't give me reasons to destroy you, Haoxuan. Do you need a reminder of who calls the shots here? If I say I want you here that means you haul ass and come here as soon as fucking possible,we clear?" Yibo growled low and the Alpha before him turned his eyes down submitting to him. Now that pleasantries were done with, Yibo walked back to his seat unbothered by his cousin's glares and gestured for the man to take a seat as well. "What's so urgent"?Wang Yibo smiled at the grumpy look his cousin was sporting, amused by his antics. Wang Haoxuan was an unpredictable man. You could never guess what he was thinking. The man could be smiling at you softly while silently plotting your death in his mind. Haoxuan liked it this way, saying that it kept people around him on their toes and it was more fun that way.
Wang Yibo liked the guy because Haoxuan stood by his side never questioning his decisions. Despite of knowing Wang Yibo's true colours, he was loyal to Yibo. Yibo needed people like him around himself. People might accuse Yibo for being a manipulator, stooping low enough to threaten his cousin's mate but did that upset Yibo? Fuck no. Yibo had learned it early on that exploiting other's weakness was the way to survive. He hadn't made to where he was by being considerate and giving second chances. He had forced, manipulated and on occasion killed to get his way and he wasn't sorry for any of it.

"Come on, tell me. You look scarier than usual. What is the matter?", pressed Haoxuan and Yibo answered with a straight face. " Xiao Zhan." "What about him?" "He is the one I discussed the terms with about the...arrangement. I need to know if he could possibly double-cross me and if he does, I need to be prepared for it."  The words were said with no emotion and Haoxuan was staring at him, trying to figure out if there was more to what he said. Yibo raised an eyebrow at Xuan and when the latter was convinced that Yibo wouldn't say anything more, he gave up. "What do you want to know? I won't deny that I know more than most but Jiyang told me those things in faith. I mean, Jiyang is really protective of him, you won't hurt the boy, right?" "Will it bother you if I do?", retorted Yibo with a frown and Haoxuan snorted. "Jiyang cares about him so, I will appreciate it if the boy doesn't, you know....stop breathing." Yibo didn't say more on the matter, just stared at Haoxuan silently ordering him to spill everything he knew. "He is a good guy. His parents died when he was two and was raised by the Alpha pair of Yunmeng. He was often getting into trouble as a child due to his condition, his aunt wasn't exactly welcoming." "What condition?",questioned Yibo. "He isn't a full Alpha. He is half Omega as well." Yibo couldn't hide the shock on his face at Xuan's words. A part Omega? Didn't the boy say he wasn't one? Yibo was surprised to hear the words but at the same time, this somewhat explained Zhan's behavior. He was fiesty when challenged but took a step back when there was a need to. There was this need in Yibo to protect, to dominate, to control Zhan which could be his Alpha instincts responding to the Omega side of Xiao Zhan.  Yibo tried his best to control the smile that was threatning to creep on his face, making sure his interest in Zhan wasn't exposed. Haoxuan would ask questions and Yibo had no desire to answer them. "Why wasn't his aunt welcoming?" Yibo didn't get an impression that Zhan was being mistreated by his family. The boy had after all, fought him tooth and nail regarding the alliance. "Jian Min is a good Alpha and his son Zhuocheng is next in line. When the Alpha took Zhan in Jing Tong, Zhuocheng's mother thought of Zhan as a threat. She was hard on Zhan. Nothing he did was good enough in her eyes. She was convinced that Zhan would one day fight Zhuocheng over the pack so, she did her best to undermine Zhan. Reminded him everyday that he was defective. It is a little sad though", mused Xuan and Yibo cocked his head to the side listening intently. "The man can't shift,they say his wolf was traumatized. He can't lead his own pack one day because he is a part-alpha and he can't even call himself an omega because he can't bear any children. The guy really is the living breathing epitome of misfortunes." Haoxuan peered at his cousin who appeared angry and his next words were softer.

"Yibo, go easy on the guy. He has already been through enough."  Yibo gave Haoxuan a look of disbelief and the boy laughed at his expression. "Don't worry, it's not that I care about him. Remember, these are the words you will say that I said to Jiyang in my defense when my kitten finds out that I have tattled off everything to you. Put in a good word for me, ok?" Yibo could only shake his head at his cousin in amusement. Haoxuan would never change. They talked more about the Yunmeng pack and Xiao Zhan and when Yibo realised he knew enough he let Xuan go back to his mate.
Later that night, Yibo texted Jili to find someone to keep an eye on Zhan from afar. He had no idea why he did such a thing and Yibo wasn't going to think about it either. He had learned a lot about Xiao Zhan and he was more interested than ever. Along with the need to tease there was a need to protect, to care and to devour Xiao Zhan.