CHAPTER 4: FIRST CONFRONTATION

Kai woke up the next morning to the sound of a door slamming. He checked the clock - 6 AM. Leo was leaving for work, just like he had the day before. He’d come home late the night before, so quiet Kai hadn’t even heard him.

Kai got out of bed, pulled on a hoodie, and walked to the kitchen. He wanted to make coffee - something simple to start the day. As he was reaching for the coffee maker, he noticed a stack of files on the counter - Leo’s files, left there by mistake.

Curiosity got the better of him. He pulled out the top file and flipped through it. It was full of photos - photos of the Vasquez family, maps of their territory, notes about their operations. Kai’s stomach twisted. This was mafia business - dangerous stuff. He shouldn’t be looking at this.

“What the hell are you doing?”

Kai jumped, dropping the file. Leo was standing in the doorway, his face red with fury. He’d come back for the files.

“I… I’m sorry,” Kai stammered, bending down to pick up the papers. “I was just making coffee. I didn’t mean to touch them.”

Leo strode over and grabbed the file from his hands, his grip so tight his knuckles turned white. “I told you to stay out of my things,” he growled. “Do you have no respect? This is dangerous - if you get caught looking at this, the Vasquezes will kill you. And me too, by association.”

“I didn’t know,” Kai said, backing away. “I’m really sorry, Leo.”

“Sorry isn’t enough,” Leo said, his voice like ice. “You’re here because of the baby, not because I want you here. The least you can do is follow the rules. Stay in your room. Stay out of my business. Stay out of my way.”

Tears stung Kai’s eyes. “I understand,” he whispered. “I’ll leave you alone.”

He turned and ran out of the kitchen, out of the penthouse, and into the elevator. He didn’t know where he was going - he just needed to get away. The elevator opened in the lobby, and he ran out onto the street, the cold morning air hitting his face.

He walked for blocks, his mind racing. Leo’s words echoed in his head: You’re here because of the baby, not because I want you here. It was true, but it still hurt. He’d never asked for any of this - the one-night stand, the pregnancy, the marriage. He’d just wanted a quiet life.

He stopped when he saw a small garden tucked between two buildings - a patch of green in the middle of the concrete jungle. He walked in, sitting down on a bench under a tree. The garden was quiet, peaceful. No cars, no people, no Leo yelling at him.

He pulled out the ultrasound photo from his wallet, holding it in his hands. “I’m sorry, little one,” he whispered. “I’m trying to be strong, but it’s so hard. Your daddy hates me, and I don’t know how to make him not hate me.”

A bird landed on the bench beside him, chirping softly. Kai smiled, reaching out to touch it. It flew away, but the sound of its chirping made him feel a little better. He sat there for an hour, watching the birds and the flowers, trying to clear his head.

When he finally decided to go back, he was scared. Scared Leo would be even angrier, scared he’d tell him to leave. But he had nowhere else to go. He walked back to the penthouse, taking the elevator up to the fortieth floor.

The door was open. Leo was standing in the living room, his hands in his pockets, looking out the window. He turned when he heard Kai come in.

“Where were you?” he asked, his voice less angry than before.

“In a garden,” Kai said quietly. “I needed to get away.”

Leo was quiet for a moment. “I… I didn’t mean to yell at you that way,” he said, his voice almost too soft to hear. “But those files are dangerous. I can’t have you getting hurt.”

Kai looked at him, surprised. Was that… concern? “I know,” he said. “I won’t touch them again. I promise.”

Leo nodded, turning back to the window. “Good,” he said. “Dinner will be here at 7. You can eat in the living room if you want.”

It wasn’t much, but it was something. Kai walked to his room, closing the door behind him. He felt a little less alone, a little less scared. Maybe Mia was right - maybe he just needed to give Leo time.

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