Kaiden's POV
Kylian and I were still lying on the classroom floor. I patted his back while he cried mercilessly in my arms until he finally got a grip on himself and stood up.
I remained on the floor for a moment, looking up at him. His expression was unreadable, like he was still lost in his thoughts, barely even conscious of where he was.
"Are you okay?" I asked, deeply concerned.
It had been over ten years since Mum's death, and it had left a deep scar in all of us. But I needed him to understand that he had to move on and let go. That's what Mum would have wanted.
"I want to go home," Kylian replied, barely audible, like he was trying to hold back his tears.
"Hmm, okay. How about we go get Kaylan and we all leave together? How does that sound?" I suggested, getting up from the floor.
Kylian simply nodded, refusing to meet my eyes. His gaze remained fixed on the floor.
I would probably have to tell my brothers about Rick. I couldn't keep them in the dark forever. They needed to know, and besides, I never hid anything from them.
But I wasn't so sure about telling our father yet. I had no idea how he'd react to the news. I was almost certain he wouldn't support the mating.
"Okay then, let's go," I said, grabbing Kylian's arm as we left the classroom.
I quickly pulled out my phone and called Kay.
It took a few seconds before he picked up.
"What's up, bro?" Kay's voice came through the phone.
"We need to go home urgently," I replied, my tone carrying a hint of worry.
"Uh, okay. Why, though? School isn't over yet." He sounded confused.
"Kylian's having one of his episodes again, and I think it's best to get him home."
"Damn, is he okay? What happened this time?" Kay asked anxiously.
"I'll explain later. Just get here, okay?"
"Okay, fine. Y'all should give me ten minutes to wrap up practice." His voice was skeptical, clearly wondering what was going on.
"Sure. We'll be at the lobby. Bye."
I hung up.
"I told Kay we'd meet him at the lobby, so let's go," I told Kylian, hoping to get some kind of response from him.
But he only nodded like before.
I really hoped he was okay.
At the lobby, neither of us spoke. I didn't want to start a conversation because he clearly wasn't in the mood to talk, and in this state, he was sensitive. His eyes remained glued to the ground, as though the whole world had disappeared and he'd been lost in oblivion.
Ever since Mum's death, he'd frequently had episodes triggered by anything relating to what happened to her. At some point, we all did.
But we got better.
I couldn't say the same for him.
"Sup, bro. How is he doing?" Kay approached us, looking at Kylian worriedly.
"I don't know, but it doesn't look good," I replied, not knowing what was going on inside his head.
"What happened? It's like he's not even here." Kay's voice carried a hint of worry.
"He'll get better when we take him home. Let's just get him home, okay?" I tried to reassure him, even though I wasn't sure getting him home would make him feel any better. But I knew Dad might be able to calm him down and help him snap out of it.
We all headed toward the car. Kay had the keys, so he drove us.
The ride was relatively silent, and I kind of liked it. I really didn't want to talk about everything that had happened today.
It was a lot.
"Can you guys tell me what happened now? I don't like being kept in the dark, and you guys did drag me out of practice for this," Kay pressed.
I let out a loud sigh.
"It's a long story, and I'm not even sure I want to explain it all to you now."
I mean, how could I face my brothers and tell them I was mated to a vampire?
And Kay was going to freak out knowing vampires were actually living among us.
They'd never accept the mate bond, no matter how hard we tried. And I wasn't even sure my mate would accept me being a werewolf.
"I thought this was about Kylian's episode. It looks like you're hinting at something deeper." Kay glanced at me for a second, worry flashing across his face.
"Way deeper," I said plainly, avoiding his gaze.
"Okay, y'all are starting to actually freak me out. Kylian is practically in a coma at this point, and you're gatekeeping something from me. What's going on?" Kay yelled, almost losing control of the wheel.
His voice sent shivers down my spine, but I knew I couldn't tell him yet.
I hated having to keep this secret for now.
I remembered how I'd always imagined meeting my mate and telling my brothers everything. But now, it felt too complicated for things to go that way.
Gosh.
We used to open up to each other so easily. But it felt like we'd changed, like we'd become distant in just a single day.
We're better than this.
What's happening to us?
What's happening to me?
"Chill, Kay. Just don't do this, not until Kylian is stable, at least," I said, trying to calm him down.
Kay looked over at Kylian, his eyes filled with a mixture of fear and fury.
"Fine," he replied plainly. His tone still carried some anger, but he let it go.
None of us said anything for a while.
Kylian was probably hearing all our ranting, but he wasn't going to say anything.
"How about we take him out to eat or something?" Kay suggested, his anger seeming more manageable now.
"I'm not sure that's a good idea. I don't know if Kylian will be up for it." I looked over at Kylian worriedly.
I wasn't sure he'd want to be around random people in this state.
"Hey, Kylian, wanna go eat? I heard there's a new Thai restaurant that opened around Block 9 called Siam Garden. Weird name, but I heard they have good food." Kay beamed at him excitedly, hoping to get a positive response.
Kylian didn't respond.
Kay's smile faltered as he finally understood that this was more serious than he thought.
"I guess I'll take that as a no," Kay said sadly.
"Sure, I'll go."
Kylian suddenly looked up at Kay and responded.
Kay's smile immediately returned.
"Alright, baby, let's go."
He pressed the gas and sped off.
I still wasn't sure about this, but if that's what Kylian wanted, then I wasn't going to stop him.
"Are you sure? Will you be okay with people around?" I asked, looking over at him.
He simply nodded, and I didn't want to press him any further.
As we drove closer to the restaurant, I felt a strong pull, just like before.
Is he here?
I asked myself, my heart beginning to race.
My mate was likely close by.
I looked around, wondering where he was, so distracted by the strange sensation that I didn't even notice Kay pulling into the restaurant's driveway.
"Guys, we're here."
"You seem excited about this place. Any reason why?" I asked curiously.
"I just thought it would help Kylian," Kay said with a smile.
"How, though? Because it doesn't seem like you're thinking about Kylian at all," I replied, my tone edged with anger.
The smile on Kay's face fell.
"Yeesh, chill. He's also my brother. I just thought us eating together and catching up over food could lighten the atmosphere for him a bit."
"I'm sorry. I was just worried about him, okay? I didn't mean to shout." I looked away, unable to meet his gaze.
I really didn't mean it. It was just that everything that had happened today was getting to me.
I couldn't even get to know my mate properly before he had to run.
Yes, it was Kylian's fault, but I didn't blame him. My werewolf instincts would have made me react the same way if I'd found out vampires were living among us.
I wondered if there were more of them.
"I'm worried about him too, okay? Now let's get out of the car." Kay smiled lightly, though it almost seemed fake.
What I said was kind of awful. It's just that he's always been the playful one, always taking things lightly.
Don't judge me.
Kay got out of the car and walked over to Kylian's side to help him out.
"Sorry, when did we get here? I was so lost in my thoughts," Kylian said finally.
A full sentence.
I wondered if he was finally getting over it. I hoped he would get through this episode like the previous ones.
As I got out of the car, I felt it growing stronger and stronger.
The pull.
It was drawing me toward the restaurant.
"Can you guys feel that?" Kay asked, confused, holding a hand over his chest.
"Feel what?" Kylian and I asked in unison.
"Like a weird, strong pull that feels so hard to resist," Kay replied.
What the heck?
I couldn't believe he was feeling the same thing as me.
It couldn't be.
We're brothers. We couldn't have the same mate, right?
Damn, I was freaking out.
Yes, there had been previous occurrences of twins and triplets having the same mate, but it just couldn't happen to us.
Could it?
Kylian didn't seem to feel anything, though.
Oh, Great Deity, what's happening?
Why did things like this always have to happen to me?
First, I was mated to a vampire, and now this.
Or maybe I was imagining things.
Maybe it was all in my head.
I really hoped it was.
Because I didn't think I'd be okay sharing...