"Haay... just when I was looking forward to my long overdue experiment..." the professor sighed.
"Was that your brother-in-law?" I asked.
"Yeah, and he even had the guts to accuse me of defaming my beloved brother in front of his kids!" he rumbled. "The bastard! He's the only one in my smear campaign that I deliberately defame, not my Kuya!"
"And, from what I heard, it seems your brother started having problems after he met his fated pair?"
The professor looked at me and sadly shook his head.
"That's the gist of it..." he answered sadly. "Their family was perfect, though I don't want to admit it. Kuya was the happiest during those days. I hardly saw them fight, and Louie was always the first to bend whenever they do, even if Kuya was the one who started it..."
The professor crossed his arms and sighed.
"They were a perfect family, that is, until Kuya met Winston Heuer. They started having problems since then. Their fights became silent, and Kuya's health went on a downward spiral," he continued. "He couldn't leave his family, especially his mate Louie, so his mind and body weakened, to the point that he almost lost his life. And the worst part of all, is that Louie refused to set him free to help him improve his well being."
"But he got to live through it, right?" I asked. "You said so before that he died of cancer."
"It's a long, complicated story, Habibi," he touched my face gently, "one of these days, I'll tell you all about it, okay?"
"Tell me when you return," I looked him straight in the eye. "I want to know everything about you, professor, as well as the people dearest to you."
He sighed once more and held me close to his chest.
"Okay, if that is your wish."
"Yes, it is my wish," I quickly replied, "you owe me one wish, right?"
"Okay, then, I'll tell you as soon as I get home later," he said, smiling at me sadly. "I got to go now before that bastard starts nagging me again."
He went to the lab and took out a large bottle of alpha suppressants from our stock.
"Something fishy is going on. I just gave that jerk a bottle of suppressants at the end of December. That's 300 capsules! That should have lasted him 5 months even if he's taking two tablets a day, and it's only March!"
"Perhaps he's having trouble with an omega?" I suggested.
"That's unlikely to happen, since that idiot turned into a monk ever since my brother died," he chuckled, "he wouldn't even glance at an omega, much less a woman."
"Then perhaps an omega is troubling him?"
"Well, that's possible... the idiot's rich, famous, and looks good, though I hate to admit it," he said with a pout. "That's why my Kuya fell for him in the first place. Perhaps some sneaky omega's looking for a sugar daddy?" he laughed evilly. "Either that, or he's going senile."
"Perhaps I should go with you to give him a check-up?" I suggested.
Prof. Antonio suddenly turned towards me with a look of horror on his face.
"Ha?! Why bother! I don't want that bastard to see you! That asshole would just make fun of you! He's a snob who likes to look down on people! He's a self-centered, arrogant, gigolo and a flirt, worst than all the bastard alphas in our workplace combined!"
"I thought you just said that he haven't looked at another omega or woman ever since he lost your brother?" I frowned at him.
"Just take my word for it! You wouldn't like him! He'd only piss you off! He's the most irritating alpha asshole you could ever meet in your entire life! You'd be better off meeting all the other alphas in the country, just not him."
I stared at the professor.
"You just don't want me to see him and get bonded, do you?"
"Ha? What the hell are you saying?!" he laughed nervously, avoiding my gaze. "What do you mean, 'bonded'? When fated pairs aren't real in the first place? It's just a mental condition caused by overacting pheromones!"
"Okay, go ahead and meet with your brother-in-law, then." I sighed in resignation. "Do you want me to drop you off?"
"No thanks, I'll just book myself a GrabMe."
The professor left after that.
I went back to the lab to continue my experiment. First, I had to take some ingredients from the professor's hidden storage room, so I pushed at the shelf on the corner and opened the secret door. Once inside the room, I took the ingredients I jotted down on a piece of paper and placed them on a small basket I had with me, crossing them off my list as I did.
I was about to leave the room when I accidentally dropped my pen which rolled underneath the refrigerator at the end of the room. It was the one which was exclusively for the DOME's samples.
I went down on my knees to retrieve it, but it seems it went all the way to the back, so I decided to move the whole fridge instead.
I held on to both sides of the fridge and gave it a tug.
I was surprised when I heard something fall on the floor with a soft thud.
Using my cellphone's flashlight, I took a peak beneath the fridge and saw something dark at the back. It was probably stuck between the fridge and the wall, and was dislodged when I moved it.
I pulled the fridge all the way out and found a thick leather bound journal behind it. In front of it, written in big, bold letters, were the words;
D.O.M.E. PROJECT
While beneath it were the words;
Dominant Omega Mutated Enzyme
I stared at it for some time and felt excitement swell inside me as I turned the cover and flipped through the pages and saw the professor's small, cursive handwriting on every page.
"Oh... my... god... This is unreal... could it be the professor's journal?"
I quickly picked my pen from the floor and placed the fridge properly back into place, taking the journal with me.
This is the find of a lifetime!
I totally forgot about my experiment and went to our room instead, to find a good place to sit.
I went to the professor's study table, sat on his comfortable chair, and opened the journal to its first page...
Property of Ericson Antonio
I flipped to the next page and read the first entry...