One of the things that the DUO loved to drill in everyone's heads was the importance of deadlines. Greyson wasn't sure if he learned it the normal way or the hard way, but he sure as heck learned it. He remembered back then, when everyone in the Investigation Squad was so pressured with an important case that his mother didn't allow him to come to work for days. He himself had his own experiences with deadlines, so he knew how important they were.

So he wasn't sure if he should be thanking the Underworld for not giving them a deadline.

Five days. It had been five torturous days of him entering and leaving every computer and laptop, traveling back and forth between different offices in the HQ, and even opening dusty physical files to find anything about Demon. The Intelligence Database hypothesized that Demon was an artifact that had been possessed by actual spirits and demons. But whenever he thought he was close to solving the case, the only thing that would greet him was a dead end.

He usually trusted Viktor's judgment, and he trusted it now. But Greyson didn't always understand them. Was it really the Investigation Squad's job to look into this?

There was also Lucinda's whatever-her-status-with-him was, who may or may not be... related to Greyson. Every time he thought about Deimos, it would give him another layer of headache. He didn't want to ask her about it, either. After the incident, she never brought Deimos up ever again. And besides, she was also stressed with the extra workload. He didn't want to give her more problems.

Everything was just so... confusing. And annoying. He never felt this kind of anger before, and it made him want to tear something to shreds. If something else was going to pile itself on him—

"Greyson James Saffirus!"

Greyson jumped up at the mention of his name, and his ears flopped down when a loud bang echoed in the meeting room. He looked around, though he immediately regretted his decision. All eyes from the Intelligence Database were staring at him. And it didn't help that their director, Director Simeon, was shooting him one of his signature cold glares. The moment Greyson met his gaze, he lowered his head and suppressed a whine.

"Are you even listening to me, child?!"

Greyson flinched back from his voice again. He flicked his eyes to the left, where Lucinda sat. Her head rested on her palm, and her other hand tapped the table. However, Greyson could see her shooting Director Simeon her own glare, and her fingers subtly removed the glove on her hand.

He wanted to reach his hand out and stop her, but he didn't want to be yelled at again. It was unprofessional to treat his mother as his mother at work. Right now, she was a coworker, not family.

"I- I'm sorry," he said as he stood up from his seat. "I didn't hear what you sa—"

"Clearly you didn't." Director Simeon groaned as he placed a hand on his forehead. "Do you know how many times I called your name?"

"N- No—"

"Once should have been enough!"

On his right, Viktor stood up and placed his arm in front of him. "Greyson, sit down. Director Simeon, if I may. The Investigation Squad is here to have a meeting with the Intelligence Database. I do not recall you yelling at my subordinates to be a part of the meeting."

"I don't recall your child not listening to be a part of the agreement, either."

"Director, he's twelve. Just turned twelve, even."

"And you don't think that's an age where he should be more responsible? Look around. He's not the only child. We have children in the Intelligence Database younger than him, and yet they're doing better."

"Simeon, he is a child. He's just tired from the extra workload given to him."

Director Simeon sighed. "Sir Viktor, I don't think you understand. We're all tired. We're all stressed from the extra workload that we have. But you know what? We still work. We're all tired, but we still do our job. The DUO does not rest!"

Greyson gripped the ends of his jacket and clenched his hands into fists. Even though he was wearing glasses, his vision was slowly becoming blurrier. Still, he sucked in a breath and hoped that his tears wouldn't fall down from his eyes. He could hold it in. He didn't need to cry. He was at work. Crying wasn't professional. Crying wasn't allowed.

"Hey."

Lucinda placed her hand on his own and gave it a light squeeze. When he lifted his head to look at her, there was a soft smile on her face. "Do you want to talk after this?"

Greyson wiped his eyes and shook his head. "I- I'm fine."

"And if I recall," Director Simeon continued, making Greyson look at him again. "He wasn't having problems when he was younger. He was excellent for his age. We insisted that he should be transferred to the Intelligence Database so he can hone his skills, and you said no. Now look at him. Perhaps the child is not the one at fault, but the Investigation Squad's leader."

More bangs echoed inside the room. This time, Azul, Anthea, and Lucinda all stood up from their chairs. Lucinda removed her gloves from her hands and buried her nails in her palms, while Anthea's hands were balled into fists. When Greyson turned to Azul, he sighed in relief when his bangs covered his eyes. He had seen Azul become angry before, and it wasn't a memory he wished to happen again.

"The three of you, sit down," Viktor said, his voice soft and low.

"I'd watch my mouth if I were you, Simeon," Anthea spat. "You already insulted one of our members, don't think you can get away with insulting another."

Director Simeon hummed, and he lifted his head high. "I still question whether or not Miss Sedah made the right call in creating the Investigation Squad. However, I do believe that you have potential. Your leader is just incompetent and holding you back."

"That's it!"

Greyson's eyes widened as he stood up from his chair. "Kuya Azul, no!"

Just as Azul lifted his head and threw one of his hands back, Viktor grabbed his wrist and shoulder, holding him in place. Azul turned to Viktor, who only responded with a shake of his head.

"If you're not going to sit down, then at least back down," Viktor said to him. "Now."

Azul scoffed, and he lowered his arms. Next to him, Anthea whispered a few words, but they were too low for Greyson to hear.

Viktor sighed. He brushed some of his hair away from his face before turning to Director Simeon again. "If you have nothing else to contribute, Director, my squad and I will be leaving for lunch. This conversation is over."

He turned around. When Lucinda followed behind, Greyson decided to do the same.

He hung his head low, and he bit back another whine before it could turn into a sob. The meeting was probably going well until it came to him. Maybe if he hadn't spaced out, it wouldn't have gone bad. The director was right, too. He wasn't the only person who was tired. The Intelligence Database also had their own work to deal with, and this was also stressing them out. He had no reason to slow down when everyone else was catching up.

"Yo, Grey."

Greyson lifted his head and turned to Azul. "Hmm?"

"You coming out of the elevator or not?"

He blinked his eyes a couple of times and looked around. When did they enter the elevator?

His face burned from embarrassment, and he reached for his bag's strap. Without another word, he stepped out, letting the elevator close and move to a different floor. Just as he was about to join his coworkers, a hand on his shoulder made him stop. He didn't need to look up to know that it was Lucinda's.

"The three of you go ahead," he heard her say. "We'll follow right after."

"If you say so." Viktor ruffled Greyson's hair before turning around. "Take care, both of you."

"And if you ever see any of those database snobs, don't be afraid to tell me," Anthea added. "I'll rip their bones apart."

Greyson chuckled as he waved a hand at them. Lucinda tapped his shoulder again, making him look at her.

"Let's go somewhere else," she said as she opened her palms. "Come on, I know a place."

Greyson looked down and stared at his mother's hand. He raised his own and almost accepted it. But just as his hand hovered above hers, he placed it back in his pockets and turned his head away. His own actions made him flinch, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to look at his mother's reaction.

"Where is it?"

She placed her hand on his back. "Come on, follow me."

Lucinda's steps were slow as they walked down the DUO's halls. He was glad that the other DUO members were too preoccupied with whatever they were doing to notice the two of them.

It was a while until they reached their location. It was one of the lounging areas that he had passed quite a few times, but never spent any time on it. The one she led him to was near the window, where the table had a vase of white flowers. Greyson sat down on one of the chairs, and he reached for the petals. At first, he thought they were white roses. But upon closer inspection, he realized that they were white carnations.

"Tell me what's wrong."

Greyson looked in front of him, where his mother sat. Her arms were crossed, and her dull golden eyes made him flinch. At least she didn't look angry at him. The last thing he wanted to see was her glare.

"N- Nothing's wrong," he replied as he turned away. "It's like what Director Simeon said. I'm tired, but I shouldn't use it as an excuse to—ow, ow, ow!"

Greyson placed a hand on his left cheek, where his mother had just pinched him. It didn't hurt much, thankfully, but it was still surprising. Especially since it had been a really long time since she pinched his cheeks.

"I forgot how fluffy that face of yours is," she said with a soft laugh. "You know, Greyson, whenever you lie, your nose turns red."

He puffed his cheeks and crossed his arms. "Haha. But I'm not eight anymore, Mom. That doesn't work anymore."

"Are you sure? Because your nose is very red right now." And just like that, she pinched his nose as well. Before Greyson could groan in protest, she already removed her thumb and placed her index finger on the tip of his nose. "Tell me what's wrong, or that nose of yours is going to be even redder. And don't give me the 'we need to work' excuse. I asked Viktor to give us a moment, so don't think you can slither away from this conversation."

Greyson poked his tongue out and huffed. But maybe she was right. This was probably the only time he could tell her what he was feeling. At the same time, it still felt like a bad idea. Multiple 'what ifs' scratched the corners of his mind. As much as he believed she wouldn't be angry at him, he wasn't sure if she was going to be angry if he mentioned Deimos.

He placed his hand on top of hers and held it tight. "Promise me you won't get mad."

"I promise."

Gulping, Greyson finally asked, "Is Deimos... is he... how do you know him?"

His ears flopped down and he held his breath. Three, two, one...

Lucinda laughed.

He blinked his eyes a few times and tilted his head to the side. She was laughing, just like how she laughed back in the control room. One of her hands was on her lips, while the other on her stomach. She wiped an imaginary tear from her eye before meeting his gaze again. The light, however, still didn't reach her eyes, and he wasn't sure what to make of it.

"Is that what you've been bothered about recently?" she asked.

"I mean, there's a lot of things." He placed a hand on his nape and chuckled. Maybe it was stupid. "But I guess you can say that he's the one that had been on my mind too much."

"Do you want to talk about other things, too?"

Greyson shook his head. "Not yet. I just... want to know who Deimos is first."

"Well." She crossed her arms and leaned back on the chair. "What do you know about him?"

"He's your 'old friend'."

"If you look at it like that, he is an old friend. But to answer that one question in your head, he's... your father."

Greyson had a feeling that that was the answer. Every time he imagined this conversation in his head, he always expected that she would say those words. He always readied himself to accept that fact. But now that he actually heard it, it still felt like someone poured ice-cold water on his body.

Deimos was his father. Deimos, someone who worked for the Underworld, was his father. Lucinda knew someone that worked for the Underworld. Every new bit of information was making his head spin, and it made him want to lie down on the ground and sleep for the rest of his life.

His mother leaned forward and placed a hand on the right side of his hair, brushing some strands away from his face. "He and I used to work in the same place when we were younger. He needed help with one of his research projects, and I did what I could. Things happened, and now we're separated. It's my first time seeing him again after thirteen years."

Silence passed between the two of them. Greyson opened his mouth a few times to break it, but he never found the courage or the right words to say.

Eventually, his mother sighed. "I'm sorry that you had to find out like this. In all honesty, I didn't know how to bring it up to you, either."

"It's- it's fine, Mom."

"It's not fine. Even if I wasn't going to meet him ever again, I should have at least told you about him."

"We should head back to the office now!" Greyson jumped out of his chair and placed his hands in front of him. Great, he made her feel guilty. He mentally palmed his face, then pulled his ears down. "Come on. The others are probably waiting for us, and I've used up way too much of your time."

His mother smiled as she stood up. "Let's."

She opened her hand to him once again. Like before, Greyson placed his hands inside his pockets. Lucinda lowered her hand, and she placed it in her coat's pockets as well. For now, it was probably better like this.

Before he continued walking, Greyson took a deep breath and asked, "Lucinda, do you still love him?"

Lucinda stopped in her tracks. Then, she turned around. "Come on, we're going to be late.

When she started walking once again, Greyson cast one last glance at the vase of flowers before following her. One of the white carnations was missing a petal. Rather than it being connected to the rest of the flower, it was resting on top of the table.

Was it always like that, or did he not just see it earlier?

Throwback to the time when I constantly got yelled at when I was twelve for acting childish and not acting like a mature grownup and constantly being compared to people my age and kids younger than me because they already had their life together while people were wondering why I was suddenly falling behind when I used to be a good kid with good grades.

I'm not trauma dumping I swear.