Once Upon a Time - 1. Which proves you should always be careful when choosing your companions.

Being the only son of the president who ran a company that created the most popular brand of cigarettes in the country was not easy to say the least. Also, considering that Daniel was the heir of his father’s throne was more pressure than a young man who was close to graduating college could handle, and the only thing that calmed his nerves was a long puff of a cigarette, without his father’s knowledge of course. Despite the frequent smoke breaks, he was working very hard to not only be a successful replacement for his father, but also keep his reputation of the public intact even if that meant not indulging in his primitive desires.

So, it was a surprise when Daniel’s father told him one day at his office that he was getting a bodyguard. There was no explanation, just that this bodyguard was going to be by his side everywhere Daniel went and was even going to stay at his penthouse for added protection. He objected, but his father dismissed it, stating it was only necessary for someone with his status to have protection. However, he knew there was more to this than what his father told him, but he could not think about it at that time since his father asked his secretary to summon Daniel’s bodyguard who walked into the office a few seconds later.

The mere sight of his new bodyguard took Daniel’s breath away and he was beginning to think that having him by his side all the time would not be a bad thing. The tall, muscular man that was standing beside him with his arms crossed over his broad chest that stretched the fabric of his black shirt to its limit made his mouth water, but when he saw a tattoo on the side of his neck that revealed he was a wolf, he immediately looked at his father with shock in his eyes. However, his father did not notice and introduced Daniel to his bodyguard/wolf, Don, and that his job began that same day.

When Don left the office to get the car from the underground parking garage, Daniel said to his father, “Do you know he’s a wolf, Dad?”

“Of course, I know, Daniel,” his father said with his eyes glued to his computer screen. “Why else would I hire him as your bodyguard. Yes, wolves don’t have the best reputation, but not all of them are bad and this includes Don. They’re very powerful in terms of physical strength and I need the best to protect my only child. I would not want anything less than that.”

“Yeah, but—”

“Don’t argue with me, son. Just go with it and you’ll adjust as always. Understood?” his father said as he coughed a few times before reaching for a bottle of water from his desk.

Sighing, Daniel nodded and walked out of his father’s office with the knowledge that continuing this argument was not the best thing for his father’s health and that he should let it go, at least until later. Having a wolf as a bodyguard was just unbelievable.

And to say that being driven back to his penthouse by a wolf was awkward was a definite understatement. There no way his father would hire a criminal, especially a wolf. Wolves in general commonly dealt with drugs and prostitution in their gang-like packs that have ran amuck in the poor areas of the city, using trickery and their ability to transform into literal wolf-like creatures as their main tools to commit crime. Daniel was not trying to be prejudice since he knew there were some good wolves out there like the one who became the first wolf in the city’s police force and oversaw the force’s K9 unit. But it was foolish not to know that most wolves, at least in his city, were involved in some form of criminal activity.

Daniel made a sideways glance at the wolf driving his car with distrust, but he still could not deny that the dark-haired, scruffy man was very easy on the eyes despite him not saying a word to Daniel yet. That did not change even after the wolf moved into his place and did his job as his bodyguard. Though he was basically a mute, Don was by his side and protecting him as he went to his classes and worked part-time for his father’s company. Despite having the man glued to him like a shadow, Don did save him from a few instances of paparazzi attempting to take pictures of him and even stopped one from trying to instigate a fight with Daniel.

Things changed when Daniel sneaked to the balcony that connected to his living room during the night for a quick smoke as usual while only wearing a pair of boxers and a bathrobe that was untied. He heard a deep voice from behind him and he quickly turned around to see Don standing at the threshold of the sliding glass door who had a disapproving look on his face, very different from the stoic look he usually had.

“Ah, what the fuck!” Daniel exclaimed as he looked at his half-used cigarette that fell to the ground when he got scared.

“You do know smoking is bad for you, right?” Don stated like it was not the most obvious thing in the world.

Sighing, Daniel picked up the cigarette and said, “Of course I know! Why do you think I do it discreetly?”

“Regardless, you shouldn’t be doing it,” Don requested as he looked up at the night sky that was blank of any stars due to the smoke emanating from the city.

Daniel rolled his eyes and said, “Why do you care? Your job is to protect me, not to dictate what I put inside my body.”

“I can think of better things that would be better inside your body,” Don said as he stepped closer to Daniel.

Feeling heat on his face despite the cool night air, Daniel scratched the back of his neck nervously, wondering if he interpreted what Don just said correctly. “Um…okay.”

Don then took a few more steps forward which caused Daniel to walk backwards until his backside pressed against the railing of the balcony. He was indeed blushing as Don placed his hands on the railing, blocking any attempt for Daniel to slip away and instead felt the heat of the man radiating from his body that must have been because of his wolf origins.

“Uh, what are you—?”

“You shouldn’t be smoking. It masks the natural smell of your body,” Don informed.

Daniel raised an eyebrow to that and then Don leaned his face forward. Instinctively, he bent his head back as he thought the man was about to bite him like the wolf he was, but when he felt Don’s warm breath on the side of his neck, his body instantly relaxed like his breath was some sort of gas that calmed his nerves that were wound up tightly ever since that morning.

“Your smell…is very captivating,” Don said as he began lightly sniffing Daniel’s neck.

Then when Don grazed the tip of his tongue on Daniel’s neck, he literally shivered as he gripped the railing for support but instead grabbed Don’s hands instead. And when Don turned his head to face Daniel again, their faces were just an inch from each other and before he knew it, their lips joined as one and they were kissing. He could not believe this was happening. It was true that he had an undeniable hunger for his wolf bodyguard to the point that he would lick his lips upon just the sight of him, but never in his dreams did he think he would be kissing him and allow the quiet man to devour him instead. And the kiss was ferocious, like Don also had the same feelings as Daniel, a beastly urge that could not be tamed any longer.

The next thing that happened was Don lifting Daniel by grabbing his ass with his big hands like he weighed no more than a feather and carried him to his bedroom where they fucked all night long. The man had a sex drive and virility like none of the few secret hookups Daniel had during his early years in college, and when the lights finally went dark his body was sore but very satiated as well as he curled his body and pressed his face onto Don’s bare chest. Nuzzling his chest hair like a puppy, he soon fell asleep with his bodyguard kissing him on the head being the last thing he remembered of that amazing night.

Then the morning came and when Daniel opened his eyes, he was greeted by Don who had dreamy smile on his face as he gently stroking the back of his fingers on Daniel’s cheek. Smiling back, Daniel moved his face forward and locked his lips with Don’s once again. It was not aggressive and fiery as the kisses they shared last night, but it was very gentle, even loving as the morning light softly glowed through the curtains and into the bedroom. Then Daniel had an epiphany.

Unlocking their lips, Daniel said, “What…What does all of this mean?”

Don cocked his head. “I like you, and you like me. That’s all that has to mean.”

“Yeah, that’s true, but what I meant was…” Daniel sighed and rolled his body to face away from Don before continuing. “You’re my bodyguard…and you’re a wolf as well. I don’t think my father would like that at all.”

Daniel felt Don’s body pressed against his back and a hand on his bare shoulder which eased some of the tension that was tightening in his own body.

“From what I gathered by being your bodyguard for the past few weeks, you and your father don’t always get along.”

Daniel snorted. “That’s an understatement.”

“And I also gathered that you will inherit your father’s position in just a few weeks after you graduate from college, correct?”

“Yes…”

“So, why should your father’s opinion matter when you’re going to be the president of his company?” Don asked. “No longer will you have to hide who you are or who you like since you’re basically the overseer of an entire multimillion-dollar company…even if it’s your own bodyguard who also happens to be a wolf.”

“Yeah, that sounds simple, but…he could easily rescind his decision and kick me out of the position for anything, like hooking with my wolf bodyguard,” Daniel countered.

“And who is he going to replace you with?” Don asked. “And it was obvious by just a few conversations with your father that his health isn’t the best and he has no other opinion than to allow his only child to be his replacement, a man he trained personally to run his business and is almost complete in his education to fulfill that role. Don’t you agree?”

Daniel turned his head to look at Don. “You thought this through, haven’t you?”

Smirking, Don said, “Being your bodyguard, I have to. For every decision that you make, I have several scenarios to think of and plan out, so when one of them occurs, I’ll be ready to tackle it… And there’s only one scenario I see you in. That’s being the sole owner of your father’s company. And you can do whatever you want with that title.”

Turning the rest of his body around, Daniel placed a hand on Don’s hard bicep that flexed in response. “And what about us?”

“I’ll be whatever you want me to be. I like you, Daniel. At first I thought you were just another job assignment that would pay handsomely…but I now see there’s more to you…like that cute ass of yours that was so tight around my cock last night.”

Daniel bit his bottom lip as he felt his cock jump from under the sheet. “That sounds great, but…”

“But what?”

“We…We barely know each other. I mean, I’m sure you know everything about me considering you’re my bodyguard and you have to, but I don’t even know your last name.”

“Then let’s get to know each other then, since I don’t know everything about you either. But considering what he did last night, I have a pretty good indication that you loved everything I did to your body,” Don said as his finger brushed against Daniel’s already hardened cock.

Moaning lightly, Daniel, “And what if it doesn’t work?”

Grasping Daniel’s cock that caused him to moan shamelessly, Don said, “Then I’ll continue to be your bodyguard no matter what. But…do you really want to give this up right now?”

Daniel quickly shook his head and Don smirked devilishly before positioning himself on top of him and starting his second serving that would undoubtedly not be the last for the two of them.

And Don was true to his word. As the weeks went by, Daniel got to know more about his personal bodyguard like how he was the eldest of five siblings and he was using his job as a full-time bodyguard to support them and his father who was partially paralyzed from a pack war that also resulted in the death of Don’s mother. Daniel learned that despite disagreements with his father on how his siblings would be raised, among other things, Don still cared for them all deeply and it pained him to have to be away from them. He would call home every day and Daniel admired that quality of Don greatly and it made what friction he had with his own father so minuscule in comparison.

In turn, Don got to know more about Daniel other than the classes he took and what files he had to print for his father’s company, like the fact that he loved animated princess movies where the princess was rescued from an evil witch by a prince and they would live happily every after at the end. Don thought it was silly for Daniel to be so obsessed with movies that were mostly targeted towards young girls, but Daniel was able to change his mind when at nights after they fucked each other’s brains out and watched one of his movies as they lied on the bed, soon falling asleep when the end credits rolled. A few nights like that and Don became a quick fan, though not as much as Daniel who believed these fictional works were proof of the possibility of finding true love that would last forever.

Overall, things were going great with the final week of his final exams coming closer and the growing the relationship between Daniel and Don becoming more intense, and dare he say even romantic. Also Daniel and his relationship with his father was becoming less conflicted as he was becoming a more promising replacement for his father’s position, due to in no small part to Don. He even tried to quit smoking by going cold turkey, but that did not go smoothly as he expected and instead he was weening off the cancer sticks which so far was working with Daniel only smoking a cigarette every three to four days. Everything seemed perfect, but something had to go wrong somewhere.

Things were becoming stressful once again as final exam week occurred and Daniel was awake at nights studying to make sure he would ace those exams, which meant no time for fun under the sheets with Don and they were unfortunately replaced with a cigarette or two. Also, his father’s confession that he wanted to transform the company that would save lives instead of taking them by selling treatments for lung-related illnesses, including cancer was also another stress since he did not think it was possible to transform this company’s reputation that flawlessly even though it was a good thing overall.

Life still progressed however and after his last exam was taken, Daniel felt like the main source of his stress was gone and he could return to quitting smoking with his focus solely on his father’s company. Don was cooking barbecued pork for a sandwich in the kitchen for dinner and was relaxing on the living room couch when he received a call on his phone, and what that call was devastated him beyond belief.

His father’s secretary told Daniel that his father was dead which was gut-wrenching enough, but when he heard that Don was also not his bodyguard, but was a secret agent hired by higher-ups in the company to kill Daniel, he froze. With his phone slipping from his hand and breaking on the hardwood floor, he could only stand there in shock as the reality of situation began setting in.

“Hey, Daniel, are you okay?” Don asked as he walked out of the kitchen and wiping his hands on his plain white apron.

Looking at Don, the man who he shared everything with, who made his life seem perfect, was just a disguise. He was an agent sent by his father’s own people, hired to assassinate him like the Big Bad Wolf who used disguise and trickery to fool his prey before eating them when they least expected it. His father was dead, and Daniel was just a food that Don would play with like a child until he laid the final bite.

“Why?” Daniel muttered.

With furrowed eyebrows, Don asked, “Why what?”

A sob escaping, Daniel said, “Why? Why haven’t you killed me yet?”

The confusion on Don’s face quickly turned to realization, and then to regret when he said, “Daniel, I…”

“Why did you do all of this for me, huh?” Daniel rasped as his feelings were beginning to over-flood his emotional barriers. “Why did make me share my bed with you? Why did make me believe you actually cared about me? Why did you make me believe that I was actually in love…?”

Daniel could not complete the sentence as he started to break down with tears trailing down his face.

“Daniel…It’s not what it seems looks like—”

“Then explain it to me then!” Daniel exclaimed. “Because I’ve just been told that I was lied to this entire time by you…like the wolf you are.”

Looking down, Don said, “You’re right about my initial intentions of being your bodyguard. I was hired by some of your father’s executives to kill you when prompted. They knew that your father wanted to rebrand the company as a medical one and they did not like that at all. So they hired me to assassinate you under the guise of a bodyguard since your father himself was wary of your safety due to his own concerns with his men. They wanted to stop you from continuing from father’s legacy under the false pretense that the company was also dealing with illegal drugs and was using my own people as servants. That brought me onboard with the mission…”

Looking up with a face full of sorrow, Don then said, “But you proved me completely wrong. The company’s not dealing with anything illegal and instead was trying to change for the betterment of everyone. And you…you yourself showed me how wrong I was since you showed nothing but kindness and love to me. I’m not here to kill you, Daniel because I love you too much to ever let someone lay even a finger on you.”

Breathing heavily, Daniel tried to comprehend what Don just said to him, but it was all too overwhelming for him. “I…I can’t deal with this right now. My dad’s dead and…God!”

“Your father’s dead!” Don said as he began approaching Daniel with an extended hand.

“No! Don’t!” Daniel said, stepping back. “I don’t need your pity. I just need…to get away from all this!”

Daniel turned around and ran out of the penthouse and down the stairs despite hearing Don’s concerns for his safety. Though it was possible that he just wanted to get closer to Daniel to sink his fatal teeth into him and end his life permanently.

After leaving the building, Daniel continued to run onto the streets that were wet from a recent rainstorm, but finally stopped to catch his breath. He looked around and knew that he was at least three blocks from his penthouse as he pressed his back against a storefront for support as he regained his breathing.

On the verge of a panic attack, Daniel pulled out a new box of cigarettes from his back pocket and took one out before lighting it. He needed something to relax his nerves even if it was temporary and one more cigarette was not going to kill him.

With one long puff of his cigarette, Daniel exhaled with his head bowed as he thought about what to do next since everything right then was such a mess. He coughed as he took another puff of his cigarette which caused him to cough again. Another cough and Daniel was quickly becoming concerned since the only time he ever coughed when smoking was when he first did it four years ago during his freshman year in college.

The coughs were becoming heavier as Daniel covered his mouth with the back of his hand, dropping his cigarette in the process. Then things became worse as he collapsed to knees, his coughing becoming violent and his ability to breathe was getting more difficult with each cough retching through his body. He knew this was not normal when blood came spattering on the sidewalk and his lungs felt like they were being crushed.

“Daniel!”

On his hands and knees, Daniel looked up to see a figure running towards him, but he could not tell who it was as he passed out, making one more pained breath before collapsing onto the ground.

***

“Daniel!” Don shouted as he ran to Daniel who collapsed onto the ground.

Dropping to his knees, Don scooped Daniel onto his lap and saw that he was completely pale had blood coming from his mouth. He begged Daniel to wake up as he shook his body and tapped his face with his hand. He continued to beg when he saw a burning cigarette on the ground, and upon taking it near his nose, he knew that his dear Daniel was just poisoned. He identified the smell of that chemical from a magical plant that killed anyone instantly once ingested, and to know that someone purposely placed it in Daniel’s cigarettes made Don realize that he failed at protecting his Daniel from getting hurt.

Placing his forehead against Daniel’s, Don began to sob and prayed that a miracle would occur that would make his lover come back to him. But after a minute passed and Daniel continued to lie there, lifeless in Don’s arms, he knew it was too late.

With reality striking Don like a full-blown hurricane, he lifted his face to the sky and howled out in extreme agony with his dead lover in his arms. Wind began to stir around them both as the sky darkened and rain began pouring onto the city. As Don continued to howl out for the loss of his true love, the wind was intensifying at a very alarming rate with the rain falling at an almost horizontal direction. It was becoming evident that Don’s strong lungs that could blow away houses were causing these huge winds and overall change in air pressure that was developing the powerful rainstorm from above, but the only thing in his mind right then was Daniel.

Looking down at his lover whose face was wet from the rain, Don thought the only thing that he could and he kissed Daniel on the lips, as a final farewell to all that they shared together…

Then the realization came when he released his lips from Daniel’s and he opened his eyes to see that everything was so bright. Confused, he looked around to only see the tall tower where the penthouse was located, and then below where he saw a dark mass that he quickly realized was the rainclouds that was pouring on top of them just a moment ago. He also still felt the wind that encircling them and must have been the source offhand they were suspended above the rainclouds and in the sky above.

Don did not know what was happening, and then he looked at Daniel who miraculously took a breath. Don’s eyes widened upon the sight as the color of Daniel’s face also returned to normal. Was this really happening? Was his Daniel alive again?

Suddenly they began lowering back to the ground with an opening in the raincloud allowing them to go through like a passageway. They then were back onto the street and the very sidewalk where Don found him with sunlight from the passageway beaming onto them.

“D-Don?” Daniel said as he opened his eyes.

Looking down from the sky onto his lover, Don said, “Daniel? Are you okay?”

“I…I think so.”

Smiling widely, Don caressed his thumb across Daniel’s wet cheek and said, “Thank God!”

Don smiled back. “You saved my life.”

Shaking his head with another wave of emotions threatening to surface, Don said, “No…No, I didn’t. I almost got you killed is what happened and—”

“Don’t,” Daniel said with a finger pressed against Don’s lips. “I saw it myself…with my dad.”

“What?”

“You helped me breathe again, Don, and my dad’s soul showed me that from heaven above.” Chuckling, Daniel then said, “And the last thing that he said to me was that he approved of us being together and that we’re destined for great things to come… And then I opened my eyes and there you were…my savior.”

A sobbed escaped from Don’s lips as he looked at Daniel like he was his own savior by being that special someone who loved him for who he was despite his major flaws and who Don loved equally back. Overcome with joyous emotions, all he could do right then was press their foreheads together with relief that his lover all right, relishing this moment and will continue to do so for the days onward.

***

Life was certainly hectic after that moment when Don rescued Daniel from a poison that sucked the life out of his body. The people responsible for the death of Daniel’s father and his own attempted assassination were labeled and immediately arrested after private phone conversations were discovered and revealed all the party members involved. In addition, the pack of poisoned cigarettes were also turned in as evidence and would only strengthen the case against the people involved and would eventually lead to the conviction of all five men who were sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole.

After the convictions were settled, some people were wondering if Don should face any punishment even though he changed his stance on killing Daniel a long time ago. Well, Daniel made sure that Don was found not involved with what happened and he also made sure that he was honored for rescuing Daniel from almost certain death with a medal given to him personally by the city’s mayor that was broadcasted for millions to view. This would give hope that wolves like him could make a positive difference in life and this world overall as the company began transitioning into the research and development of treatments for lung-related health issues.

In addition, the actual explanation for how Don saved Daniel’s life was still mystery. However, the results were none the less amazing with lab tests showing that Daniel’s lungs were in perfect health like he never smoked one cigarette in his life and that any traces of the poison that almost killed him was either untraceable and long gone from his systems. Though there was no precise theory to what happened, Daniel believed it was Don’s strong lungs that came with being a wolf that also had some sort of magical characteristics that allowed his kiss to resurrect him from death. And the unannounced rainstorm that created wind-speeds of a hurricane that happened during that moment was also strange, but no one seemed to have been affected by it and Daniel was very willing to let that go.

And after graduation with Daniel being titled valedictorian, both and he and Don moved out of his penthouse and into his childhood home where his father once resided. It was hard at first since the house was a reminder of his father and the life Daniel had with him, but with Don by his side, it was easy to move on and live the house as a happy couple. And with the memory of his father’s blessing that he was confident was real and not just a dream, he knew he was in safe hands.

Daniel even got to meet Don’s family, and though they were a little wary with someone new introducing himself as their family member’s boyfriend, they soon adjusted, and they even accepted him as a part of the family. This with the youngest sister adoring him for having the same love of animated princess movies was the icing on the cake.

“I love you so much, Don,” Daniel said as he lied bare on their bed with his fingers intertwined with Don’s.

“I love you so much too, pup,” Don said, kissing Daniel’s fingers lightly.

Daniel smiled, loving the pet name Don gave him ever since he started calling him his very protective, yet loving guard dog.

Looking at their hands, Daniel admired the gold ring around his finger. The treasure was given to him by Don who proposed to him that instantly led to a wild ride in the bedroom after Daniel said yes to be his future husband. Which proves you should always be careful when choosing your companions, because you might end up falling in love with that person and live your own happily ever after.