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“Chris.”
The man in question glanced up from removing his skates when his coach quietly said his name. “Yes?”
“New Omega skater. I think you might be interested.” Josef held out his phone for Christophe to see.
The young Alpha cackled gleefully. A boy, perhaps 15 or 16, had posted a selfie of himself winking at the camera with a wide grin. The caption read “Guess whose first heat passed without any complications! #ChuChuNeedsAMate #ImSingleBoys.”
“Phichit Chulanont from Thailand. He’s 15, nearly 16. He skates with Satsuki Muramoto,” Josef explained while Chris scrolled through the boy’s Instagram account.
“Not ideal age wise. We can’t consummate our bond until he turns 18,” Chris frowned as he considered.
Josef rolled his eyes. “Not everything is about sex.”
“No, but you and I both know that a bond between an Alpha and an Omega makes them desire sex with each other. If I stay away from him until he’s legal though, it’s doable. He seems like he’s got a fun personality. I’d like to at least consider him as a possible mate.”
“Want me to reach out to his coach?”
Chris shook his head. “I’ll send him a message. He reached out via Instagram, I’ll reach back the same way. Maybe give her a heads up and find out if I should reach out to his parents as well.”
Josef nodded. “I’ll email her now. When I hear back, I’ll text you.”
“Thanks, Josef. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Chris stuffed his gloves into his skating boot and gathered up his belongings to hobble into the locker room in just his socks. He knew that he was pushing himself hard, probably too hard, but he really wanted to beat Viktor this season. His best friend was quickly rising to the top of the skating world, placing on the podium in every competition, getting more golds than any other metal. He opened Instagram on his own phone and found Phichit’s post. He considered how best to approach the young skater. He had heard of him through the skating gossip rounds but had moved up to Seniors before the boy had even started competing in Juniors and Phichit hadn’t made the upward move yet. He considered what would be the best way to approach him. Despite Chris’ flirty and sometimes slutty reputation, he wanted Phichit to realize that he was being serious. Deciding to be straight-forward and to the point, he tapped out a private message to the younger skater before going to shower.
christophe-gc: Hi, this is Christophe Giacommeti. I’m an unmated Alpha. I just turned 21. Is that too big an age gap for you?
~*~
“No. No. No. Maybe if I’m absolutely desperate. Oh hell no. No. No.” Phichit made a face as he went through the messages that he had received in response to his post looking for a mate. The majority of the responses were pervy and made his skin crawl with the need to wash himself. The rest were from Alphas that would limit him in some way, making him move to be with them, making him give up skating, restricting his access to his family. Maybe he should have listened to his parents' protestations that posting on Instagram was not a good way to find a potential mate. With a sigh, he flopped back on his bed tossing his phone in the direction of his nightstand. He grunted when his phone chimed and debated if he should leave it until the morning before reaching for the phone. He recognized the name on the message so he opened it and quickly read the message from Christophe Giacommetti. “Yes! Finally a good one!”
phichit+chu: Hi Chris! The age difference doesn’t bother me. But it might my parents :/
christophe-gc: Should I have contacted them first? Sorry.
phichit+chu: No, they’re letting me pick my mate my way. Although I do have school in the morning and it’s nearly 2 am
christophe-gc: oops :/ I forgot about the time difference. Get in touch after school if you want to discuss mating
phichit+chu: ok goodnight Chris
christophe-gc: goodnight phichit
The Thai boy grinned and placed his phone on his nightstand. THE Christophe Giacometti wanted to mate him. He couldn't wait to tell his parents and younger sister.
~*~
“I got some information from the kid’s coach,” Josef said when Chris strolled into the ice rink for his morning training session.
Christophe had woken up to a slew of messages from the freshly presented Omega. Most had been questions about what hobbies Christophe had, interesting places that he had traveled accompanied by Phichit’s answers to the same questions. The boy’s favorite animals were hamsters. His favorite movie was The King and the Skater and actually, Phichit wanted to someday skate to the popular song from the movie. The younger skater hadn’t done much traveling yet, he had only been competing internationally for one season and had gone to Lake Placid in the United States and Dresden, Germany. Chris had been informed that Dresden had better architecture but that the Winter Olympics museum in Lake Placid was cool and that Chris should definitely plan a trip to go see it.
He set his bag down. “Yeah, what did you find out?”
Josef gestured for him to sit down on the bench outside of the locker room. “His coach says that his parents are, for the most part, letting Phichit find his own mate. They are supervising him and have veto power if they don’t approve of who he chooses.”
“Make sense. He said when I messaged him that his parents were letting him pick.” Chris nodded thoughtfully.
“His coach says that the kid is bubbly, easygoing. He wasn’t tested but suspected that he was an Omega before he presented so she said he’s not really having any emotional backlash from it. She really wants him to find an Alpha that will allow him to continue to skate because not only does the boy really love doing it, she says that he has a lot of untapped potential.” Josef studied his skater. “I know that your reputation is exaggerated, but Chris, I’m asking you, please if you’re not serious about being a devoted Alpha and treating this kid right, cut off contact now before he gets hurt. He doesn’t deserve to be hurt over something that he couldn’t control.”
The young Alpha sighed. “I won’t apologize for like sex. I do want a mate though. While I’m not ready to make an offer yet, I would like to meet him and his family and discuss what he would want out of the relationship before I do something like that, I am genuinely interested in him. He’s a little young for me now, but as an adult, five years isn’t that large of a gap. It’s only because he’s still technically a kid that the gap seems so huge. Besides it’s not that uncommon for some Omegas to be mated by Alphas in their 40s, 50s. Hell, I’ve even heard of Alphas in their 60s mating young kids Phichit’s age.”
“I just wanted to make sure that you knew where I stood on the issue. Otherwise, I am completely supportive of you on this. I think being mated would be good for you. Then I don’t have to worry about walking in on you and some stranger making out in the hot tub anymore.”
“That was once!” Chris cried indignantly. “And he wasn’t a stranger. It’s not my fault that you didn’t recognize Georgi.”
Josef shook his head. “I thought he was straight anyway.”
“He is. Viktor dared us and neither of us was willing to let Viktor get the best of us. So,” he shrugged.
“Are you going to be able to concentrate on practice today?” Josef asked. He really did not want to hear any more about Chris’ escapades with the Russian skating team. Whenever they were around was when Josef had to worry the most about what trouble his skater was going to find himself in.
Chris nodded. “Yes. Phichit is supposed to message me when he gets out of school. They’re six hours ahead of us so that should be about break time.”
“Good, go get changed and let’s get to work. You won’t beat Viktor Nikiforov sitting on this bench.” The coach walked away.
A few hours later, Chris swiped his sleeve across his forehead when his phone rang with a phone call from Phichit. “Hello.”
“Hi! It’s Phichit! Is this Christophe?” a young happy voice filled his ear.
“Yes, it is though most people just call me Chris. How was your day?”
“Okay, I have a ton of homework to do since it was my first day back. How’s your day? Although, it’s still morning for you isn’t it?”
“I’ve been up practicing for a few hours already. So have you talked to your parents?”
“I did. They would like to meet you. I’d like to meet you also. When would it be convenient for my family to come to visit you?”
“You don’t have to come to me. It would be quite a bit less expensive for me to come to you. One person flying is cheaper than a whole family. And I’ve never been to Thailand. I’d like to visit it.”
“Really? That would be great. I’ll talk to them about it.”
“Good. Phichit, are you really interested in me as a potential mate? I don’t want to waste your time and I know that I have a reputation that precedes me. If you or your family is not comfortable with that reputation, I respect that.”
“Is it deserved?”
“I like sex. And I am a flirt. I will flirt with anyone, even more if I am friends with them. But no, I have not slept with all of the people that I have been accused of sleeping with.”
Phichit sighed and was quiet for a few moments. “I think it’s something we should talk about. I won’t share. But I’m willing to talk about it and I know that your reputation is part of why my parents would like to meet you. They want to meet you and see what you’re really like and judge whether they think you would be a good Alpha for me.”
“Okay, good.” Christophe nodded in response to Josef’s wave to get back to the ice. “I need to get back to training. Let me know when would be a good time to travel to come to see you and I’ll book it.”
“Great! I can’t wait to meet you Chris.”
“I can’t wait to meet you either. Have fun at practice. I’m leaving for the rink soon also.”
“I will. Have fun Phichit. Talk to you soon.” Chris smiled at the boy’s exuberance.
“Bye!”
~*~
Chris took a deep breath and knocked on the door of the Chulanont home. He smiled when Phichit pulled open the door. “Hello,” Chris placed his palms together in front of his chest and inclined his head to the Omega.
“Hello! You did some research!” Phichit returned the gesture. “Come in. Leave your shoes here.” he pointed at the small bench and shoe rack beside the door. “I hope your flight was okay.”
“It was as enjoyable as an 11-hour flight could be.” Chris smiled. The boy’s grin and sweet nature were infectious. While he tried not to allow himself to do it often, there were periods where he fell into a bit of a melancholy mood. He could see where Phichit’s happiness had the potential to keep him from falling into those moods, and when he did, would provide what he needed to pull himself out of them quickly. He tucked his shoes in the rack and followed Phichit inside to meet his family.
It was hours later after they had eaten dinner and Phichit’s younger sister Kanda had retired to bed for the night that Chris, Phichit and the teen’s parents Preecha and Mali were able to discuss the potential bonding that was facing their son. Chris liked Preecha and Mali. Preecha was an Alpha but instead of trying to intimidate the stranger in his home, the man had a quietly strong presence. Mali’s smile was the same as Phichit’s. Her nature was much the same as her bubbly son’s. She surprised Chris by being the one to broach the subject that they had carefully avoided through the previous evening.“We are very concerned about our son’s future. Not every Alpha is a good Alpha. We want him to have a good Alpha.”
“I try to be a good Alpha. My parents have a loving relationship despite having been matched by their families without their knowledge or consent. I want to have a relationship like theirs. My Alpha mother has always treated my Omega mother as a partner, not a belonging. I was taught to respect Omegas as people first.” Chris explained.
“I am not comfortable with Phichit leaving us until he is an adult.” Preecha watched Chris solemnly.
Chris nodded. “I understand. I wouldn’t feel comfortable asking that of him at this point anyway. No one would question my mating an Omega that’s only 15.”
“I’m nearly 16!” Phichit protested.
“An Omega that’s nearly 16,” Chris corrected. “But I would not feel comfortable with doing more than bites and maintaining a friendly relationship until he was ready. Whether that’s when he turns 18 or beyond that, I respect his right to choose.”
Mali smiled. “You can provide for him?”
“Yes. I have several sponsors and have enough income that I could provide him with an allowance that I believe is acceptable. I could possibly talk to some of my sponsors and get them to extend their sponsorship to him directly. Then he would have some income of his own and he wouldn’t have to rely on my allowance.” Chris watched their faces while they considered.
“I could still skate?”
Chris nodded. “Sure, why would I stop you from doing it when I have no intention of stopping any time soon myself. If you want to skate, I would support that decision. If you wanted to quit and move to Antarctica to study polar bears, I might be confused by that idea but I would be supportive.”
Phichit snorted. “Polar bears are from the Arctic, not the Antarctic.”
“You get the point I was trying to make,” Chris rolled his eyes.
The teen nodded. He looked at his parents. “This is your choice Phichit.”
He nodded and turned to Chris. “I’d like to get spend some time with you. Get to know you before I make a decision. Is that alright with you?”
“Yes, of course. Perhaps you could play tour guide, show me around so that I see the best sites in Bangkok before I return home.” Chris grinned at him.
Phichit nodded. “I’d like that. Tomorrow?”
“If that fits your schedule.”
Phichit nodded again. “Yes, I’m excused from school while you are visiting. So other than training, my schedule is empty. Do you need to go to the ice rink?”
“If I can, yes. I have the numbers of a few rinks to call.”
“I’ll talk to Satsuki tomorrow. Maybe you could go with me to practice?”
“Sure, if you would like me to.” Chris nodded.
“Yes, I’d like for you to come with me to practice tomorrow. I’ll meet you at your hotel at 8:45? It’s only a few blocks from the rink.” Phichit said.
Chris smiled. “Sounds good. I will take my leave now. Thank you for having me and the wonderful dinner.” He bowed to Phichit’s parents before being led to the door by the boy. “Goodnight Phichit.”
“Night Chris. See you tomorrow.”
~*~
His cheeks hurt. Chris had never smiled and laughed so much in his life as he had in the four days he had spent with Phichit and his family. Even when he spent time with Viktor. Phichit was genuinely funny, telling jokes and providing intelligent and entertaining commentary of the places that he was showing Christophe. Even if Phichit decided not to mate with him, he fully intended to keep the boy as his friend. Everyone should have a Phichit in their life. Chris wondered if the boy had made a decision yet. In just over 18 hours, Chris would board a flight back to Zurich. The Omega hadn’t given him any indication whether he was open to mating and if he was expecting to be mated before Chris left. It was doable for Chris to return to issue a mating bite, but it made his already full schedule even tighter.
“Chris, let’s sit.” Phichit gestured towards a bench. The pair walked over and sat. “I’ve made my decision.”
“Have you? I hope you don’t feel like I was pushing you for one.” Chris watched a young family stroll by in the pretty twilight.
Phichit nodded. “I’ve enjoyed spending this time with you. You’re respectful of me as well as intelligent, funny, generous, and good looking. If you’re serious about allowing me to remain here until I’m ready to be with you, I would like to mate with you.”
“Yes, I am serious. I want you to feel comfortable in this relationship.”
“Will you be faithful?” The teen blushed slightly and averted his eyes.
Chris wanted to reach out and force the boy to look at him, but he knew that touching in public was not as acceptable in the Thai culture as it was at home in Switzerland. “Yes. The bond between an Alpha and an Omega is sacred. If you want me to completely cease with my flirting, I will.”
“No, no. Flirting is okay. I just want to know that you won’t do anything intimate with anyone once we’re mated.” Phichit finally looked at him.
“Definitely not. Is there anything else that you’re concerned with?”
Phichit swallowed nervously. “My parents would like to be in attendance to ensure that we do not do anything intimate when we exchange bond bites. They believe that I am too young for that.”
“That’s fine. I would like to wait as well until you’re older. When you’re comfortable with that, you know how to find me.” Chris smiled.
Phichit gave him a dazzling smile. “Then that’s everything. We can exchange bites tomorrow before you leave for the airport. “Can we post a selfie? Announce that it’s happening?”
“Of course,” Chris nodded. He leaned in close, grinning while Phichit snapped several selfies. He waited while Phichit selected the best one and posted it. His phone chimed with the notification that he had been tagged.
A photo version of himself and Phitchit grinned at him from his phone screen. “Meet my Alpha! Can’t wait to cheer christophe-gc on in competitions as his mate. #ChuChuFoundAMate #NotSingleAnyMoreBoys”