Broken Bond: Between Vices and Virtues (BL)
Chapter 166: Family [2]

Chapter 166: Family [2]

Azrael spoke again after sighing deeply, "Oh, God, Knox, you don’t know how relieved I am when I see you still by the door, standing safe and unharmed...but I still couldn’t control myself and charged in. Did I scare you again?"

Knox patted Azrael’s back and smiled genuinely, "A bit," he answered, sensing the alpha’s body stiffened. Knox rested his head on Azrael’s shoulder and added, "But I told you already, even if you scare me to my bones, I won’t disappear again. We’re family now. There are times when these kinds of things will happen again. So, instead of turning away from each other, let’s face it and be stronger together."

Azrael slowly pulled away, lifted his head, and gazed down at his fiancé’s lovely face.

Knox showed him a warm smile and wiped the peeking tears at the corner of his alpha’s eyes. He then spoke again, "I don’t care about your past. It’s not like I didn’t know you before we met, right? And honestly, even I wondered how many children you had out there back then."

Knox chuckled when Azrael’s face crumpled.

He quickly added, "What matters is the present. If someone came knocking on our door, asking you to take responsibility, we will. So, don’t worry, I won’t leave you just because of Elise’s words. I’ll stay with you. We’ll grow old together, right?"

Azrael nodded like a lost puppy that finally found his owner, acting obediently and attached, his eyes filled with a mixture of worry and relief as he bore them on Knox’s ethereal façade.

He was never a man of faith. He only believed back then that people were only moved by money. But that moment, that interaction he engraved in his heart and encrypted in his memory, was something that made him thank the heavens for giving him a wonderful partner.

"I’m so glad I met you," Azrael whispered in a voice deep with love and gratitude. His hand reached out to the little guy, the living proof of their bond, and stroked his sweaty forehead. Even when he knew everything was all right, he still asked anxiously, "Is he alright?"

A voice barely more than a whisper answered him, "I think he was frightened and overwhelmed by the intense pheromones released by you and that person earlier, and...he was startled when I slammed the door. I’m sorry. For a bit, I was mad at you for leaving our son behind. I didn’t know your friend came to visit. Were you two talking outside?"

Azrael nodded.

He took a deep breath and tried to calm the storm inside him, rising again after knowing that he was at fault for his son’s breakdown. The shrill voice of Elise came to mind again, but he pushed it aside and just focused on the present.

"He must be a dominant if his already that sensitive," Azrael remarked, flashing a proud smile. He adjusted his position and took Knoa from Knox, gently touching his son’s back and offering silent comfort.

Knox had already forgotten his friend who stood by the kitchen, leaning on the counter and watching their loving interaction. Franz sighed in relief, he could see his buddy finally happy, and witnessing that moment made him feel like a proud parent watching his child graduate.

He pressed the save button and lowered his phone, then he stood straight and silently approached the living room.

Thankfully, Knox noticed his movement and turned to him, so Franz mouthed in silence, "I’m going. Call me if you need anything. No need to see me out."

Knox mouthed back, "Thank you. Drive safe."

Franz waved at him, and quietly made his exit, leaving the family to process that nerve-wracking event and giving them a more private space. He was already done with his purpose anyway, so he left without greeting Azrael.

Azrael didn’t even notice him because he was too engrossed in memorizing his son’s face. Knox smiled lovingly, his expression a mix of exhaustion from the unfolded events and newfound determination to protect his family and not just rely on Azrael.

This led him to finally decide to meet his father.

’If he still won’t give us his blessing, or even if he threatens to disown me, I will no longer hesitate to choose my family from now on,’ Knox thought to himself.

"He must be," Knox answered Azrael. The latter glanced at him, so he added, "Athan and I suspected it before, but since the normal age of the sub-gender manifestation is seven, we couldn’t confirm. Shall I have him check by your cousin?"

"Hm. Let’s get him checked after all this."

"Yeah."

The room fell into a heavy silence, punctuated only by Knoa’s occasional gasps from whatever he was dreaming. Knox watched as Azrael continued to soothe their son and made sure he wasn’t waking up from those little jolts.

While Azrael was still disturbed by his heart aching from the weight of his earlier mistakes, his gentle touch was as light as feathers brushing away the strands on the little guy’s forehead, and his tender look hid the lingering guilt he kept feeling.

"I should have been more careful," Azrael said, his voice lowered and self-reproaching. "If I hadn’t noticed someone watching our son, that bastard might have continued stalking him. I should have kil—...kicked out that woman in the country when she tried to climb—my gates."

Knox gasped. "She even tried to do that? Then, what are you doing allowing her to roam free? Why not file a complaint or get a restraining order?"

Azrael grimaced. He shook his head exasperatedly and explained, "She’s one of the highest-grossing artists in Idol Entertainment, and she signed lots of advertising contracts. I hesitated before thinking about the impact it would have on Diva’s company, but now I don’t care."

He turned to Knox and gave him a reassuring look, "I will personally put that woman behind bars, whether it’s a prison or a mental asylum, I don’t care as long as she will never be able to approach us again."

"What will happen in your friend’s company?" Knox asked, just out of curiosity, and not against the idea.

"As the parent company of hers, I will mostly take the financial loss from paying penalties and reimbursement. Diva can just appoint a replacement to all her canceled projects. Don’t worry about it," Azrael reassured Knox as he kissed his forehead lightly.

He stood and guided him to the bedroom. The sun quietly set in the west, while the picture of a three-person family napping on the bed, arms linked together hugging a little child in between, glowed as the golden lights of the retiring star cast on them.

When the night fell, Azrael woke up and prepared dinner.

The clock ticked after he finished cooking, but instead of waking up the two, he stayed in the living room and let them get a good rest.

Sitting alone on the couch facing glass walls, Azrael took a deep breath and sank onto the couch. His mind began racing through the events of the past hour. He recalled Elise’s face, her angry accusation, the way she handled herself, and her claims about his past were like a whirlwind in his thoughts.

Azrael admitted that he had to confront those issues eventually, but something was bothering him after remembering how Elise acted. She was bold and brave enough to charge into their unit but was whimpering under his attempts to strike back, clutching her body as if she didn’t expect to be hit after trying to harass someone.

He had never hit a woman directly, except for the casual sparring he had with Diva, but he wasn’t gentle with them as well. He was really out of his mind back there. If Knox hadn’t blocked him, the corridor would have been stained with blood.

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