Pursuing My Rejected Alpha

Ronan cleared his throat.

“Uh, yes, it was me.”

Lucien clawed into Ronan’s coat.

“I am going to return the money to you,” Lucien decided.

His determination made Ronan chuckle.

“No need. I bought them and displayed them in my art gallery. It was an honest business transaction.”

“Your art gallery that you named after me,” Lucien commented.

Ronan cupped Lucien’s face with both hands.

.....

“Am I not allowed to, Mr. Clearwater? Are you going to drag me to court for that?”

“No...”

They leaned closer to each other and shared a gentle kiss. Lucien hummed contentedly when Ronan hugged him afterward, peppering the side of his head with little kisses.

“We are not yet done,” Ronan whispered into Lucien’s ear. “You have to take a look at the rest.”

Lucien wanted to look, but at the same time, he also did not want to look.

Although he was generally satisfied with his creations, it was still rather embarrassing to have them displayed for public consumption. It was even more embarrassing to have a whole gallery full of his artworks only and nothing else.

Traditionally, visitors were able to roam around the exhibition center as they pleased. For those who wanted a brand new experience, they had the option to step onto a broad moving pavement that took them from one artwork to another.

If they wish to linger or take a closer look at a certain artwork, they had to step off the moving pavement into the respective sets.

If they wanted to move faster to the next artwork, they could also walk freely on the pavement.

Waiters swiftly moved along the pavement to offer wine to the visitors. Ronan grabbed two for himself and Lucien when they stepped into the moving pavement and watched the exquisite display.

The pavement was a continuous loop, but at the end of the last artwork were some luminescent footprints that led away from the pavement.

It was all dark, so visitors had to rely on the footprints to move forward.

The footprints led them up the staircase. As soon as they reached the top, they were greeted by a forest.

“...”

Or better said, a very convincing imitation of a forest. The visitors had their mouths open in amazement.

But it was not what surprised Lucien the most. The most surprising thing for him was the two wolf sculptures in the middle of the forest, one with a black coat and the other with an orange coat. They were intimately nuzzling each other.

The sculptures were as real as they could be.

The fur was made of the best synthetic material out there.

Lucien started to feel weird when he looked at the two wolf sculptures and the fake trees around them.

What a coincidence!

He remembered having painted a similar scene before. The thing was that the painting was sold years ago during the Annual Art Exhibition. There was no way that Ronan could get his hands on the painting, was there?

Just as the thought crossed Lucien’s mind, the black screen at the back side of the room lit up with a magnified version of the painting that Lucien was thinking about.

“...”

Lucien’s face turned ashen. He caught Ronan’s wrist in a steely grip.

“Ronan. Where did you get this painting from?”

Ronan coughed into his fist.

“I, uh, found it.”

“Don’t bullshit me,” Lucien furrowed his brows. “This painting was bought by a couple who was visiting from another country! It is impossible for you to just find it.”

“Fine. I searched for it and bought it,” Ronan answered helplessly.

Lucien was speechless.

“How much did you spend to get this one painting?” He asked once he found his words again.

“Oh, I don’t know, I forgot,” Ronan said, beaming with a smile.

“...”

This rich, pampered Alpha from the Silverback family.

Lucien buried his face into his hands and groaned.

“You... Why must you do such unnecessary things?”

Ronan grabbed both of Lucien’s hands.

“Lulu, this is our precious memory. It should stay with us.”

Lucien averted his eyes.

“It is just a coincidence,” he murmured. “I did not intentionally draw us.”

Ronan narrowed his eyes at Lucien with a cryptic smile on his lips.

“Uh-huh,” he said.

There was another staircase leading to the next floor.

This time, it was a scene depicting the same two wolves by a lake.

Lucien turned to stare at Ronan.

“Did you search and buy the second painting as well?”

Ronan scratched at the synthetic grass beneath his feet.

“Did you coincidentally draw us for the second time?”

Lucien smacked a hand against his face. He could not believe it.

He was no longer surprised to find the scene from the third painting waiting for them on the next floor. Ronan literally recreated the hut and turned the painting into reality.

“I can’t believe it,” Lucien murmured. “How did you even find out? This is so embarrassing.”

Ronan hugged Lucien from behind and rubbed the side of his face against Lucien’s.

“Why can’t you just be honest for once? Now, do I or don’t I have the right to keep these paintings? These are our most intimate memories from the Alpha Camp.”

Lucien wordlessly nodded. Whether he agreed or not didn’t matter. Ronan already bought the paintings and put them on display along with Lucien’s other creations.

Lucien looked around, searching for the next staircase, but it was not there. He could not help but feel disappointed.

Did Ronan not know that there was a fourth painting in the series?

Oh, it didn’t matter, the redhead thought to himself. The three amazing paintings had been recreated so beautifully. What else could he ask for?

Lucien turned his head and gave Ronan a peck on the lips.

“Thank you for putting so much effort into the art gallery. It is amazing.”

Ronan replied with another kiss, albeit longer.

“Now that you have seen my extensive effort, I need you to contribute as well.”