(BL)Alpha Made
Chapter 56: Andrew’s trying his best

Chapter 56: Andrew’s trying his best

Maxwell was going to bite someone’s head off.

He hadn’t wanted to come to this damn dinner, but his Mother just so happened to have control over the project he wanted Andrew to work on, so here he fucking was, dealing with all this bullshit.

And he couldn’t believe that Andrew was just sitting there and taking it.

He would acknowledge that his Father was doing his best, and he would also admit that the suit he chose complimented Andrew quite well, but the rest of them? His Mother’s behaviour and her subtle dig at Andrew by bringing him to the condo?

Maxwell wasn’t going to be quick to forgive them.

Andrew was taking everything in stride, which really worried him. He was smiling and joking even in the face of his family being mean to him, and Maxwell hated it. Andrew was his favourite person, he didn’t want him to face any hardship. Especially from people he was blood related to.

At least his Father had smartened up, but now he had to convince everyone else that Andrew was a sweet boy, and that he was a good boy. The problem was, Andrew didn’t come from an obviously powerful family.

Maxwell knew that he probably did from his Father’s side, but that Andrew was also hesitant to reveal who he was. Maxwell didn’t know why, but he also knew it hurt Andrew to talk about it. The man had only just started to open up about the trauma his father had caused him, and as much as it pained Maxwell to admit it, it wasn’t his place to force it.

Even if it drove Maxwell to near insanity to watch Andrew be given the cold shoulder by his brothers at dinner because they thought he was unworthy of him. Maxwell wanted to scream that it was the other way around.

All the money in the world couldn’t make someone worthy of Andrew. He was soft, and caring, and put up with Maxwell whenever he was being a brat. He listened to Maxwell, and scolded him when he forgot to eat because work got too busy. He took care of him, and shared similar passions.

And he was funny, and liked to bake. He didn’t have a vengeful bone in his body, and that was okay. Maxwell could have them all for the both of them.

He was more than the happy, goofy man he projected. When Andrew let his walls down, he was a considerate man, who was thoughtful, and a little mischievous, and it was that man, who had spoken to him over 8 months that Maxwell had grown feelings for.

Not the man he was projecting right now.

Maxwell frowned, knowing damn well that this person Andrew was being was his defense. His body armor of sorts. But that didn’t make him feel any better. He wasn’t like this around Dr. Smith, which told Andrew all he needed to know about their relationship prior. Dr. Smith had been a true friend to Andrew in university.

But his second oldest brother had heard of Andrew, and had only heard bad rumours.

Maxwell’s foot tapped under the table, anxious, angry, and all around, just upset. Andrew’s hand slid under the table and he placed his hand on Maxwell’s thigh, giving it a gentle squeeze. Andrew bent over, his lips brushing Maxwell’s ear.

"Are you okay?" Andrew asked quietly, and Maxwell tensed. Fuck. He’d made Andrew worried. The man already had so much on his plate by dealing with his family, he didn’t want to add more.

"I’m fine, just anxious to get this over with." Maxwell whispered back, wanting to soothe the larger man. When Andrew stared down at him, his brown eyes flickering between the usual, warm chocolate brown he was used to, and the bright amber shade of his genes, Maxwell felt a small shiver go down his spine.

It was something new that was happening to him, and in Maxwell’s mind, proved that Andrew was coming to terms with who he was. It was a good sign, and some of the tension in his body relaxed. If Andrew was actively doing okay, then he had to be too. He couldn’t let the behaviour of everyone else get to him, not when it wasn’t even bothering the man it was targeted at.

But, there were some problems in Maxwell’s plan.

If William’s behaviour was bad, Benjamin’s was even worse.

With William, it was obvious that the idiot was speaking without thinking. It was wild to him that the man was a Doctor like Andrew, but also an actual medical Doctor. Whenever he was alone in a room with him, he behaved like a damn idiot. And he’d also brought a partner?

The man who was notorious for being a man whore?

And he was going to be the one to bring up the ’bad rumours’ he’d heard about Andrew in university like he was trying to sow discord between them? Like he was a child?

Maxwell wasn’t new to his tactics, so they weren’t going to work, but it was fucking fresh coming from that idiot. Maxwell bet that if he looked into the rumours about his own brother, he’d find more scandalous things about him then he ever could about Andrew.

That. Being. Said.

Benjamin didn’t even look at Andrew throughout the whole damn meal!

He had his back turned when Andrew entered the living room, and hadn’t even turned around to greet him face to face. When he had gone to pick up Amir, his mate, for dinner, Maxwell had watched him completely ignore Andrew’s presence. Then the man had the audacity to sit next to Andrew and not say a goddamn thing.

Maxwell was going to cancel all of his contracts with his family after this. This was fucking horrendous. He’d at least give them two weeks to get their shit together after he announced it, but he could not deal with people who so openly disrespected the one alpha he actually had feelings for.

At least Amir wasn’t being that way. It seemed like he was actually curious about Andrew, but because Benjamin was being such a dick, he couldn’t even open his mouth to speak to him.

Maxwell was shaking again, angry all over again, and Andrew chuckled. Glancing up at the man, to see what he found funny, he found that Andrew was staring at him with soft, chocolate eyes. Maxwell felt his ears turn pink, and he glanced away, his anger forgotten.

It was never fair when Andrew looked at him like that. Like Maxwell hung up the moon and the stars. Maxwell was pretty sure that Andrew didn’t know he’d been looking at him like that for a long time, way before he broke up with his girlfriend, and Maxwell was never going to be the one to tell him that.

It was clear that whatever their relationship had been, had been on the rocks, even if Andrew hadn’t admitted it to himself. Otherwise, Maxwell was pretty sure Andrew wouldn’t have let anything get in between them. And that included Maxwell.

"Dr. Knox, are you any good at fencing?" Maxwell’s eyes shot open at Benjamin’s quiet question. He wanted to reach across and strangle him. Of course Andrew wasn’t any good at fencing? Who the fuck did fencing anymore, you lunatic!

"Ah, no. I haven’t had the pleasure of trying fencing before." Andrew answered with a smile. Benjamin didn’t even look in his direction.

"A pity." There was a beat of silence, as if everyone was wondering what next he was going to say, but that was it. The crazy motherfucker really only said that to Andrew. Maxwell was ready to get up on the table and brawl, but it was his Mother’s voice that stopped him.

"Dr. Knox, what are you a Doctor in? My son, William, spoke as if you had been in the same class in school. Is it right to assume that you are a medical Doctor?" She asked, and Andrew gave a wry laugh.

"Ah, well, I was originally pursuing the medical profession, but I dropped out in my second year for personal reasons, and because the school was having some issues with me. I am a Doctor in a different scientific field. I don’t work with humans in a true sense, but I still look after their health in a different way." Andrew told her with a smile, and Maxwell watched as his Mother frowned. His eyes went wide as he realised what she was going to ask, and knowing Andrew, he knew damn well what the man’s response was going to be.

Trying to warn her, he shook his head at his Mother, but she frowned further, and continued. Sighing, knowing that she was going to feel like she’d put her foot in her mouth, he let her, and put his head in his hands.

"If I may be so rude, but why did you stop pursuing becoming a medical Doctor?" Andrew shrugged, a slight smile on his lips.

"Well, because my reason for pursuing my degree stopped mattering." Andrew smiled at them, as the words washed over them, but Andrew forged ahead before they could process what he had meant. "I was actually informed by Michael, ah, Dr. Smith, that the Beckett family had been the ones providing my scholarship, so I am quite sorry that I dropped out suddenly. The problem from the school’s point of view was that I was missing too many days, even if everything else was perfect." Andrew’s mask hadn’t slipped, and Maxwell groaned, knowing what was coming next.

"The problem was your attendance? Why on earth were you missing so many classes?" His Mother asked.

"My Mother was dying, and then when she finally passed, I felt that the medical field had failed her, so I switched degrees." A pin could have dropped in the silence that filled the room. Maxwell wasn’t sure that there was a way to save this dinner anymore, even if his Father tried his hardest.