Middle Child Syndrome - Chapter 159

Chapter 159: Ch 159: The yelling contest Pt1
Mark was distracted. This was the best time for Rika to pick up the phone and finish her call.

“Rika, where are you? We went to get Charon for a minute, and you disappeared from your seat. Hurry up! We need to head back home.”

Fey sounded frantic, but her voice was low. She did not want Charon to be worried about Rika or her health.

Rika felt a pang of guilt for Fey’s worry, but she also knew that Mark’s control over her was absolute. There was no way he would allow her to leave that quickly.

“Fey, you all head back without me. I think I will crash at my friend’s house, which is nearby, and commute to school from there. Tell Flourite to feed Shuu and take him out for the daily routine. Bye! I will talk to you later.”

Rika’s words tumbled out in a rush, ensuring the person on the other end would only catch half of what she said.

But Rika felt Fey would understand what she said when she cut off this call.

Fey did not call again, which likely meant she got the message that Rika wanted to avoid talking to her right now.

‘That’s one problem taken care of. Now, I need to know what to do with my bother.’

Rika wanted to sigh, but even that would feel like too much effort wasted on her brother. Mark was not worth all this in her mind.

“So, what do you want from me, Mark? You said that you wanted to talk. Ah, maybe we should go to an empty room before we have our shouting match? Would you prefer that?”

Rika asked in a hollowed voice.

Her phone rang once more, and she almost cringed when she saw Emily’s name on her phone.

‘I forgot that both Emily and Damian also came to support me. I don’t think I can handle them both right now on top of my brother.’

Mark looked agitated. He did not like how Rika’s attention was getting diverted repeatedly. But he reeled his feelings in and asked the question plaguing him for a long time.

“Why! Mother told me about your condition, and I want to know why you turned out this way. What did you lack for you not to feel satisfied?”

Even though Mark asked this question, he already knew the answer. He and Rika knew that Mark was not asking this question but rather asking, ‘Why did Rika never say anything?’

“Are you asking this question because you don’t know or don’t want to face what you know? If you ask such silly questions, I don’t want to talk to you anymore.”

Rika made her stance clear on the situation, but Mark refused to give up.

“No, wait! This was not what I wanted to say. Ugh, I am not good at this. I want to say that I want to help you.”

Mark’s pheromones were soft when he released them.

Since he had often helped Suzie during her seizures and overwhelming moments, Mark had developed incredible control over his pheromones. He knew how to use them well to make others feel secure.

That was what he was trying to do with Rika.

He needed to flutter around her pheromones and make her feel safe enough to release her own.

An intense burst of pheromones slammed into Mark, and he almost lost control of himself.

“What do you think you are doing? I never accepted your apology or your offer of help. What gives you the right to do whatever you want to me?”

Mark suddenly felt flabbergasted as he held his hands up and quickly stepped back.

“Rika, calm down. I am just trying to help you out. We usually do this to newly presented kids to make their glands open up better. Don’t panic; remain calm.”

Mark tried to tell Rika that he did not mean any harm. But Rika thought the same way he did.

“I am not a child, nor are we close enough for you to try and touch me with your pheromones. Please stay as far away from me as possible, Mark.”

Rika warned Mark, but the air was saturated with a very light fragrance that had the potential to intoxicate someone.

Mark instinctively knew that those sweet yet addictive pheromones belonged to Rika. It made his instincts to see her as a family rise.

“Let me scent you. It is not safe for you to roam around like this with your body unprotected. Having me scent you would keep unwanted attention away from you. It’s a win-win for both of us.”

Mark reached out to touch Rika’s neck and scent her. But Rika instinctively pulled away before Mark could place his hand on her neck.

“I am afraid that I would have to decline this offer. We are not close enough for me to feel comfortable with your scent marking me and protecting me. I would rather deal with unwanted attention than feel uncomfortable constantly.”

Rika’s refusal agitated Mark’s inner alpha. He did not know why this pack omega refused to associate with him.

That agitated alpha annoyed Mark’s rational part as well. He did not know what to do anymore, and it annoyed him.

“Rika, stop trying to push me back. I am your pack, and you need to listen to me. Otherwise, you can-”

Mark started, but Rika snapped before he finished speaking.

“Don’t give me that ‘pack’ crap! When have you ever treated me like your family? I was always the ‘extra’ thing you had to care for. You only looked at me when you needed something from me.”

“Father is the only one who showed that he did not want to even look at me and made his stance clear. The rest of you made me feel like crap all the time. If you wanted me to leave, you should have spoken it aloud. I would have left then and there.”

Rika promised but flinched as the pheromones rose around her, and Mark seemed to be doing his best to hold back.