Chapter 86: You’ve been deceiving me all this time, haven’t you?
Michael got down from the taxi he had taken back home, the video replaying on his phone for the third time. He was trying to understand clearly if their words held other meanings.
’It’s just a few minutes now. Two minutes?’
They were close to midnight and yet Noah had still not responded.
Did something happen to him? He did not want to think like that and stay positive, but his head was a mess; his heart was also in a frenzy.
He wanted to see Noah and talk to him. He wanted to understand if this was just fabricated stuff to make him hate Noah, who was still innocently oblivious.
But then, another car pulled up in front of him. It looked like an expensive car. He held no interest and simply planned to walk past, heading in, but then the door opened, and from inside emerged Noah with a big white box in his hand. It looked like a cake box.
He shut the door and turned to the driver.
"Sebastian, did you get what I asked you to get?"
Michael paused. He had called the same name he said in the video.
"I have, sir. But all we found are mere speculations. It would be best if you took the female and--"
"Noah," Michael called and Noah’s eyes widened on hearing his voice.
He turned to Michael who was standing still, an expression of disbelief plastered on his face.
Just seeing that Noah was indeed in contact with someone and acting like a boss made it evident that he had indeed regained his memories... if at all he ever lost it.
So, he had been deceiving him all along.
He stumbled a step back, and the phone in his hand fell, still playing the video.
If it was true that he had been deceiving him, then that meant the other was true, too, right?
Noah had... Noah had something to do with the death of his parents.
"Noah," he called again, his voice trembling as hot tears rolled down his cheeks. "I want the truth."
Noah was too shocked to even say a word. He stared at Michael in disbelief and his eyes fell on the phone on the floor, playing his conversation with Sebastian.
Something had gone awfully wrong.
How was the conversation he had with Sebastian the day after Michael’s parents died playing on Michael’s phone?
The blood drained from his face fast as Michael asked,
"Did you kill my parents?"
Noah felt his heart rip in that moment. Michael was never supposed to find out.
"Let’s talk about this." Noah said, taking a step closer, but Michael instinctively stepped back like prey trying to escape from a predator.
"You... You’ve been deceiving me all this time, haven’t you?"
It had started snowing and Noah got worried.
"I’ll explain everything to you. I’ll tell you the truth so can we please go inside first?" He asked. "You’ll catch a cold if we stay out too long."
Michael bit his lip. Even in a situation like this, Michael was worried that he would catch a cold. Was it for real or was he just trying to buy time to make up an excuse?
"No," Michael said, his hands trembling and he bit his lip. "I’m not going inside." He declared. "You have to tell me if it’s true or not."
Noah’s eyes dropped, his face contorting in worry and fear. Michael would end up catching a cold and...
*Bang* Fireworks lit up in the sky as the clock hit midnight.
It was the moment they had been looking forward to. The day they both wanted to spend together.
Just why did it have to be like this?
"Noah!" Michael yelled, his eyes tearing up. "Tell me, dammit! Did you...?" His words got caught in his throat, and he gagged, covering his mouth and coughing.
He began to sob, and Noah planned to get closer in this moment, but Michael stopped him, raising his hand.
"Don’t... Come closer." He said and raised his head. "Not until you tell me the truth."
The reality was hard to accept but it was even harder to deny.
"All this time, Noah, all this time... Have you just been deceiving me? Did you lie? Have you had your memories all along?" He gripped his chest. "Was it just a new experience for you?"
"No, it wasn’t that. It was never that." Noah responded, rushing his words as he felt Michael would misunderstand completely. "I never thought of it as a joke or a new experience."
"Then explain yourself. Why...? Why did you do it? Why did you deceive me? Why did you have a hand in my parents’ death? Did I... Do something wrong?"
Noah went silent, dropping his hand as he stood straight. His eyes trailed to the box of cake in his hands that was starting to stack up snow.
"I didn’t plan to kill your partners." He said. "But something happened and someone got involved." He clenched his fist. "Believe me, Noah."
"Are you saying you never had the thought?" Michael asked.
"I did. I planned to get rid of them because..." He raised his head, his eyes meeting Michael’s. "...they kept messing with your life. They... Made your life hard."
Michael’s heart thumped but this truth only made him cry more.
"But I decided against it when I felt you didn’t mean it when you said you would do fine without them." Noah continued. "That was the plan but it got messed up. I... I messed up. I’m sorry."
"This makes no sense." Michael said, wiping his eyes that kept tearing up. "It makes no sense."
"Michael, please let’s go inside first." Noah said, once again pleading for his own good. "It’s true I’ve been deceiving you all along and I never wanted you to find it because..."
"Because you love me." Michael completed, his hand on his face as he scoffed at the reality of it.
He believed Noah’s feelings. How could he not believe it when he had felt it so genuinely every time he held him and cared for him?
He’d be a fool to suddenly suspect his feelings for him. He wouldn’t doubt it but he still didn’t understand a lot of things.
If Noah had regained his memories along the line, why did he not decide to leave before he grew feelings for him?
He had a huge name behind him, a job that everyone envied, an image that was worth billions... A pack. He had everything.
So, why was he putting all that off just so he could be with him?
Michael slowly couched down, folding his arms on his knees as he sobbed.
He didn’t understand. And because he didn’t understand, it made him so scared. So very scared that he felt he had been hindering Noah’s future.
"Michael," Noah called and finally got to him, putting the cake down and hugging him. "I’m sorry. I’m very sorry. I’ll apologize for as many times as I need to but I know it won’t right my wrong. Still, I will continue to apologize. I was selfish. I wanted to have you to myself. I wanted to keep the peace we had and that is why I have kept so many secrets from you. I promise I never intended to make a fool out of you. Please, believe me."
Michael heard his words but they don’t make him feel better. He ended up crying more.
"Noah, have I... Made you so something you shouldn’t?"
"What?"
"Have I...?" Michael’s grip tightened as his arms trembled. "...made things hard for you?"
"Michael you..."
"Have I hindered your life decision, causing you to stray away from the right path? Have I... Become the reason for your downfall?"
Noah couldn’t understand why he was asking such questions. He would do anything for Michael, that was for sure. But did they include being able to give up his position as an Alpha?
Maybe he could...
Ah... he paused. Was this what Micheal was just talking about?
Becoming his downfall was no different from being the reason he would fall from his mighty position.
Was Michael worried about that?
"You don’t have to worry. You did not hinder me from anything. All the decisions I made were what I wanted. Being with you was also my decision even after regaining my memories. It’s not like anyone misses me or anything, so I can still--"
"I know you’re Noah Lenovo," Michael said, interrupting him and Noah froze. "I know that you’re a big figure, Noah. I knew but I..." His body trembled. "I wanted to selfishly keep you by myself while thinking you were oblivious. I wanted to be with you forever. But I felt guilty. I felt guilty that I was tricking you, who had a life out there. But to think I was the one being tricked. I... I feel so stupid right now."
"Michael," Noah called with a worried tone and Michael looked into his eyes.
This man loved him. He loved him so much that he was willing to keep up his act as an amnesia patient just to stay with him, to be by his side and keep loving him.
But how long did he plan to keep that up? Not long, he supposed.
"You were going to leave at one point, weren’t you?" Michael asked and Noah paused.
Wait, no. It couldn’t be, right? Michael wasn’t going to...
"There’s no need to waste any more time, is there?" Michael asked and began to stand up, dusting the snow off his body.
He was cold and he was hurt. He felt all sorts of emotions swirling in his heart that his head couldn’t keep up.
"Noah, the moments I spent with you were the most beautiful." Michael said, forcing himself to smile, but it did not stop the tears from sliding down his eyes. "I wished it could last forever but I guess it was only a dream."
"Michael," Noah reached for his hand but Michael slapped his hand away.
"I... I’m thankful that you love me. I’m thankful that you could give up your life just to be in mine but I don’t want that." He said and then yelled. "I don’t want our life to be built on lies. So, hurry up and leave, Noah. Hurry up before I..." He bit his lips, his body trembling from both the cold and his unsteady emotions. "...lose my mind. Please, just go."
