7- Why not Snoopy?

(Song of the chapter: 'Lovely' - Billie Eilish & Khalid)

I stood in a hospital room, staring at the prone figure lying on the bed. It was a little boy, probably eight or nine years old.

Wires protruded from almost every inch of his skin. His lips were blue-tinged despite the oxygen mask attached to his face. A heart monitor showed off a thready and unsteady pulse, and a high-pitched sound went off whenever it was close to flatlining.

I'd visited this scene almost a thousand times in my dreams, yet my heart still clenched at the sounds of his pitiful, irregular heartbeat.

He wasn't gonna make it, I knew. Not without a special kind of treatment.

Treatment from the same person who'd put him in there.

IF YOU DECIDE TO GO, JUST KNOW THAT YOU WON'T BE GOING ALONE. 

My brother's words filled the room, hauntingly devastating in the sincerity of their promise.

My throat bobbed as I continued to stare at the kid. This wasn't real, this didn't happen.

I stayed, so he'd left him alone.

I knew all this, yet my brain still liked to give me this reminder. Of what was at stake.

Of why I couldn't just kill myself.

The body on the bed changed and suddenly it was a little girl with pigtails who lay there, fighting for her life. Then another boy, this time with different colored hair and freckles. The figures kept changing features and gender until it shifted back to the little boy once more.

IT WOULD BE MY OWN FORM OF JUSTICE, HURTING THOSE THAT HURT YOU SO BADLY WHILE YOU WERE ALIVE.

I'LL SHOW THEM WHAT IT MEANS TO LOVE SOMEONE WHO'S CONSTANTLY FIGHTING TO LIVE ANOTHER DAY DESPITE ALL THE ODDS, THEN HAVE THEM JUST GIVE UP ONE DAY.

My throat bobbed. No. This was NOT real, this was NOT happening.

Time to wake up.

Nothing. I continued staring at the little boy, dread filling my every pore. Then, before my eyes, his skin shriveled and started to decay.

My eyes widened. This hadn't happened in any of my previous nightmares.

His face gradually crumpled in on itself, and an odor permeated from the body. I got a whiff of it before I reflexively covered my nose.

It smelled like...pizza...

_

"Jasper, knock it off."

I slowly rose to consciousness, hearing the sound of Rhys's voice bounce around the room. I lay very still for several seconds, regaining my bearings.

"What? This is going to work," I heard the redhead whine. The smell of pizza was oddly very potent.

"She'll wake up and then she'll bite your head off," I heard what sounded like Brandon speaking.

"Pfft, no she wouldn't," Jasper bristled.

He was very close, probably right by my side. With my eyes still closed, I switched on my wolfie senses and perused the air.

Yes, he was right beside me, and the smell of mozzarella cheese was coming from right above my head.

The dimwit was holding a slice of pizza above my nose.

"I'm sure she's actually really nice, and was just cranky earlier because she was hungry. Once she's had pizza, she'll be happy. Pizza makes everyone happy."

I heard someone snort.

"Replace Pizza with 'Pepsi' and see for yourself just how dumb your argument is."

I didn't have to guess at the tone to know that was Rhys speaking, because of the way it sent my pulse skipping.

"Why don't you chill out and have a pizza, Rhys dear?" I felt the air around my head shifting, like he was wagging the slice back and forth across my face.

I'd had enough. My eyes snapped open and I reached for Jasper, grabbing onto his wrist in the same moment.

He shrieked in soprano.

The fool was wearing the same type of surgical mask Alex had used, which meant that while his eyes were widened in horror and feminine screams were gushing from his mouth, I couldn't exactly see his mouth moving.

The sight was so confusing to me I dropped his wrist and just stared at him, leaning my back against the bed. Brandon and Rhys stared at him too - Brandon in bemusement, Rhys in boredom.

He finally quit. "Jesus, woman," he swore, placing a hand on his heart. "You scared the pickles out of me."

I raised my eyebrow at him slowly, wondering whether his cranium was functional.

"So, I wake up to see some dude with half his face covered, holding what seems like a pointy object above my head while I am sleeping, yet I scared you?"

Brandon snickered. Rhys's lip twitched but he became serious when he looked over at me.

"How are you feeling?" He asked.

My heart started thumping again at the sight of those eyes and the sound of that voice. I discreetly checked to see if I'd been attached to some sort of heart monitor while I was sleeping.

I hadn't, which was great, but this reaction was becoming disturbing.

Instead of answering, I slid my hoodie up and tugged down the material holding my ice-pack in place. The area of my bruise was considerably less dark than it was before.

I poked around at it, then at the spot on my rib that had produced a sharp ache earlier.

Nothing.

"Dude's a wizard," I remarked, sitting up properly. Jasper eyed my stomach as I removed the half melted ice-pack from it.

"Why Snoopy?" He inquired, glancing at my tattoo.

"Why not Snoopy?" I shot back, raising an eyebrow.

The dog loved food and sleep. What more could I ask for in a patronus animal?

I eyed the melted ice-pack with a frown. "What time is it?" I asked out loud.

"5:35," Rhys told me, checking an expensive-looking watch on his wrist.

I was simmering with irritation from the confusing effect his presence had on me when his words sank in. That meant I'd been asleep for...

"Three hours," Jasper filled in for me.

I gaped at him for a single shocked moment before springing into action. I threw back the covers to get up but felt a tug on my wrist. I looked over and saw that the IV was still attached to it.

The bag was nearly drained, so I saw no harm in removing it. I darkened at seeing the Band-Aid on my wrist but continued to peel it back, exposing my wrist tattoo. I plucked the needle out of my flesh then stuck the Band-Aid back onto my skin.

Jasper caught sight of my wrist before I covered it with my sleeve but didn't comment on it. "Want some pizza?" He asked instead as moved to I swing my feet off the bed, holding out the slice.

I scowled at it. Hawaiian. I was too hungry to waste food and turn down pizza, but one of those toppings had to go.

I beckoned at him to bring over his other hand. He slowly held it out, perturbed.

I plucked out all the ham and placed it into that palm, then took the slice from him.

He looked down at his palm holding the toppings, then up at me. I stuck the slice between my teeth and dragged my shoes over, starting to stuff my feet into them.

"Don't like the meat?"

I shook my head. His lip twitched.

"You're very chatty when you wake up, you know."

I grunted, tying my laces. When I'd finished I bit off a little piece of the pizza and tugged the thing out of my mouth.

"You look ridiculous with that thing on your face," I told him scornfully. "I can't take you seriously at all. Why the hell are you wearing it?"

Brandon and Rhys chuckled. They were also sitting on the bed, the far end, snacking from a Domino's pizza box. Since when did we all get so cozy with one another?

"You basically asked for it, bro," Brandon told Jasper, smirking at him. Jasper folded his arms and pouted into the face mask.

"Haters. I think it looks cool, so I don't care what you think," he pompously declared. I stared at him blandly. What a weirdo.

I tried to get to my feet. The IV fluid had erased most of my pain so I wasn't really feeling anything, but my body knew I was hurt. So now I was in this weird place where it was trying to convince my mind I still was.

Get over it, I commanded my system. Gathering momentum, I shot up like a rocket, quickly gaining my balance. Then we heard the footsteps of someone coming down the stairs.

"I heard a high-pitched scream coming from down here. Jasper, was that you?" Alex's wry voice preceded his presence.

Jasper was already scowling when he waltzed into the room.

"Not cool, bro," he whined, tugging down the face mask. "How do you just automatically assume it's me out of everyone else here?" He looked pointedly at me. I gave him a flat stare.

Alex was undeterred. "Am I wrong though?" He smirked. Not waiting for an answer, he turned to me and raised an eyebrow at seeing me on my feet.

"Of course you'd try to leave before I cleared you to go, Lady Stark," he teased.

"Well, what more do you want from me?" I quipped, folding my hands into my hoodie. "A strand of my DNA?"

Not like he didn't already have it. This 'pretending not to know each other' thing was fun.

His lip twitched at that. "Just needed to give you this," he told me, handing over an orange container holding four pills. I took it, examining the contents curiously.

"Painkillers," he explained. "The ones I gave you are going to wear off soon, so you might need these. I can't give you more at once without an actual prescription, but you can pick up some more in a pharmacy or something. Or you come back whenever and I'll set up an IV if you want."

I looked at him. He was treating me like I was someone he'd never met before, so that meant he did things like this for ordinary people on a regular basis. The fact filled me with actual genuine warmth. I made a note to try and get him a bonus or something.

"Gracias,"  I told him, tucking it away. He grinned.

"Try not to do any strenuous exercises for a while."

"Mmm, sure." The dude was a comedian. I gave him a bare hint of a smile before slipping past him, heading up the stairs towards the exit.

I heard sounds of the guys following but I ignored them, quickening my steps. I easily retraced the path I'd been brought in, making my way towards the side door of the building.

Just before I got there I spotted my reflection in a glass mirror at the side of the room.

My face looked like someone had taken a meat-grinder to it. My head was a bit lumpy and had an obvious Band-Aid stuck to it, the side of my cheek was scraped, I had a slowly blackening eye, and my lips were a bit swollen.

Might as well scrawl the word 'Victim' across my forehead.

I scowled at my reflection and pulled my hood up and over my face, then scurried away before the Horsemen caught up with me.

The sun was considerably lower in the sky when I made my way outside.

I pulled out my phone and opened Google Maps as I walked, trying to find a route home. The search produced no results. I paused, frowning, then noticed my network reception was weak.

I turned on the WiFi signal and scrolled down through the networks, trying to find the one that belonged to Alex. 'GetYaOwnWifi' popped up. I smirked and clicked it.

I was typing in the password when a notification popped up on my screen, showing me that my phone battery was low.

Mierda.

"Why me?" I whined up at the heavens. El Señor gave me no response.

I sighed and switched off my phone to conserve the battery, then swiveled around. I was about to head back in and ask Alex to call me an Uber or something when I spotted the Horsemen standing close-by, looking at me.

"Something wrong?" Brandon asked, looking towards my phone. Why the hell were they still here?

I lost my patience. "Why are you people following me, huh?" I snapped, folding my arms. I stared them down.

"You've done your good deed for the day, okay? You get a gold star, or whatever form of validation it is you require. Now run along and do whatever it is you people do. I need to get home."

Rhys looked insulted. "Gold star?" He echoed, raising his eyebrows at me. I had no interest in repeating myself, so I ignored him and walked towards the building.

"Wait, where are you going?" Jasper asked, getting in my way. What ever did I do to deserve this?

"I'm going to get someone to call me an Uber," I forced out through gritted teeth. Patience, I needed to be patient with the humans. 

"Now move."

"Why don't you just ride with us?" He asked me curiously.

"Like I did so voluntarily last time?" I snorted. "You know what? Forget it. I'll even be happier hitchhiking. You're not getting me in there unless you're planning on manhandling me again."

"Your backpack's still inside the car," Rhys spoke up then. His tone was seemingly calm, but by the way his eyes flashed I could tell he was getting annoyed by me.

"Unless you want to go home without it, I would suggest that you get inside."

I studied him. Somehow, the fact that I was pissing him off - reciprocating the same effect he for some reason was having on me - made me... happy. More comfortable in my own skin.

Which started to give me an idea.

"Fine," I said, shrugging. I walked over to the Porsche and waited, feigning complacency. My lip twitched however, which I think Rhys noticed.

He gave me a suspicious look as he unlocked the doors. I batted my eyelashes at him.

"What's your address?" he asked me once we'd settled in.

"I'll show you the way," I responded carefreely, buckling in my seatbelt. He raised his eyebrows.

"You know the way from here?"

"Of course I do," I showed him my teeth, lying right through them. "I know Connecticut like the back of my hand. We'll be there in no time."

Rhys gave me a bland look, like he didn't even know what to expect from me anymore, but he went ahead and started the car.

He'd looked away at that moment, so he didn't see the evil grin that spread across my face.

"Okay, so we might be lost," I chirped.

"But the important thing to remember is we're mostly just human, and sometimes humans make mistakes."

Rhys glared at me, hot enough to burn my socks off. I pursed my lips to keep from smiling openly.

"Oh, really? You realize this now?" he snapped. 

I couldn't really take offense at his harsh tone, because I was totally at fault.

It started once we left the café. Under the pretense of leading them to my house, I'd instead directed Rhys to a Wendy's drive-thru and ordered myself a Frosty. He'd pointedly stared at my order.

"What?" I'd snapped defensively.

I normally just ordered Wendy's on Postmates, but since these yahoos were so insistent on driving me around, I made the most of the situation and got myself some vanilla goodness.

There was a noticeable twitch in Rhys' eye when he'd asked me, "Are you good now?"

I'd nodded. "Oh yeah. Now we can go."

Lie.

Next, I'd given them a series of random directions, just saying whatever had come to mind. Coincidentally, we'd passed a Taco Bell on the way.

I'd stopped him there, stating I wanted to use the bathroom. Instead, I went inside and got myself a delicious Bean Chalupa, then waited until after I was back in the car to order myself a Sprite at the drive-thru.

The sounds of me slurping my drink through my straw while avoiding Rhys's gaze were the only noises in the car for a long time, at least until Jasper and Brandon started to chortle. 

Rhys, however, was not amused.

"What next, McDonalds?" he'd asked sardonically, steering towards the main road. "Applebee's?"

I looked at my finished taco with a frown, and the crumpled paper wraps in my lap.

"What do you take me for, Pac-Man?" I asked incredulously.

"I'm full now," I patted my stomach. "For real, I'm taking you to my house now."

By then I was already a little lost, but I chose not to admit that. Instead I bluffed the directions and somehow ended up leading Rhys to some random homeless shelter.

That was where he finally lost his patience, hence the discussion we were now having.

"No dude, seriously, I recognize that tree!"

"You've said that four times now!"

"How is it my fault all the trees look the same?" I whined.

We'd been bickering for at least ten minutes now, after I'd admitted that I didn't know where we were. I hadn't heard from Jasper and Brandon in a while, they were probably asleep or something. It was now completely up to Rhys to deal with me, and I was at least 95% percent sure he was currently battling the urge not to kick me out of his car.

I don't think I was doing a very good job at concealing my amusement, but since it was dark he probably couldn't tell.

He rolled his eyes and switched on the GPS device in the front. Once the device booted up it showed our location.

"Oh, I know where we are!" I exclaimed, reading the address.

"Do you, now?" He retorted.

"No I do, I promise. Don't you trust me?" I asked him cheerily.

"Not as far as I can throw you," he responded darkly. I had a feeling he'd prefer doing the latter.

I was getting a funny sort of validation from pushing his buttons, and was also secretly awed by the fact that he was still invested in getting me home instead of throwing me out or... or hurting me.

Goes to show Archer had a point when he said that not every kid in high school was automatically evil. Most just chose to be.

I knew I wasn't being fair, though. I was choosing to be difficult to people whose only crime had been wanting to help me, but I needed them to think twice next time before doing so again. I didn't want anyone getting close.

I finally threw him a bone. "714 Circle St.," I rattled off. 

"It'll be the street two turns after this one on the right."

Rhys regarded me for a moment, but then he put the car in motion and started off, following my directions. In less than five minutes we arrived at my place.

He looked at it, then at me, then back at it and stared.

"This is where you live?" His voice was flat, like he thought I was pranking him again.

"Yup." Popping the 'p', I switched on my phone and opened the software that allowed me to put in entry code. The gates slowly swung open.

Yeah, gates. You read that right. My house was a mini-mansion, with a rustic architectural décor, and it had an eight foot tall gate right in front barring entrance.

It hadn't always been my home, though. After the... incident, my security was made priority. My parents moved out here and did the most to make it secure.

Sometimes, though, I wondered who they were trying to keep safe.

I looked up to see Rhys staring at me again, this time with a stunned expression on his face. He probably lived somewhere way more guarded and expansive than I did, so I wondered at his reaction. Did he just automatically assume that I lived in a dump?

"I told you my parents were doctors," I said, unlatching my seatbelt. "They can afford to buy shit like this."

I got out and slammed the door, turning towards my house.

"Hey, Sunshine, you're forgetting your bag again!" Jasper hollered at me before I'd taken two steps. I breathed through my nose, then circled back towards the car.

"Hand it over, Ginger Spice," I demanded.

Brandon snorted. Jasper raised an eyebrow in amusement, passing my bag to me through the window.

"Ginger Spice?"

"Sunshine?" I mimicked his tone and eyebrow raise. He smiled at me.

"We still don't know your name," He pouted. "Why won't you tell us?"

I sighed, draping my backpack over my shoulder. They were probably gonna find out soon anyway.

"It's Avalon, okay?" I gave him a second to process that, then turned away.

"Bye."

"Wait, wait, wait!" The gates were starting to close, so I stepped in but craned my head to hear what he had to say.

"Tomorrow we're gonna be at that coffee place everyone at school likes so much," Jasper told me. "Like, around noon? Can you meet us there?"

I raised an eyebrow. "You mean after the pleasant day we've had, I should spend even more time with you people? Why would I do that?"

"Because we're fun to be around?" Brandon sounded confused, like I should already know this.

"No," I said simply, turning away.

"I'll pay for the food," Rhys spoke up.

My neck nearly cracked as I turned back to look at him. He was entirely serious.

I stared. What was wrong with these people? Why on earth were they still treating me like a person, even after all the shit I'd just pulled?

Apparently, I would have to sit down with them and spell out exactly why they needed to treat me like a pariah, like everyone else did. It wasn't going to be pleasant, but it had to be done.

I also didn't want to pass up free food.

The gates were only an inch apart when I said, "Okay". I couldn't tear my eyes away from Rhys's, not until he hit the gas pedal and drove away at the same the gates shut in my face.

I remained standing in that same position for a long time after he'd gone. Weirdly, I suddenly felt lonely.

You'll see him again tomorrow, my thoughts whispered.

I don't care, I shot back.

But I couldn't deny that I felt cheered up as I turned and headed towards my house.

There was a long driveway that curved around the fountain before leading towards the front door, and I felt his presence every step of the way. I didn't need my werewolf senses to tell me that he was here.

I unlocked the door as I stepped in, knowing my parents weren't home yet. I calmly made my way up the stairs and to my room. I flung my door open and there he was, sprawled across my bed like he owned it.

Archer flipped the page of the book he was reading, not looking at me yet.

"Quite the day you've had, little one," he remarked, eyes running across the page. My lip twitched up. I shrugged off my backpack and threw it at him.

Lightning fast, his arm shot up and plucked it out of the air before it ever came close to hitting him. He gently set my bag down with a smirk, still not looking away from his book.

"Good reading material?" I asked, biting my grin. He held Stephenie Meyer's Twilight in his hands. He shrugged, eyes focused on the page.

"It was on your bedside table."

"That's because you lent it to me," I snorted, sitting on the side of the bed. My brother was trying to be cute.

Yes, Archer is my brother. Technically he's my half-brother, but screw technicalities. He currently ranked third in the Pack, and everyone else saw him as this really powerful, prickly person who was not to be crossed.

Yet here he was, a 20-year-old dude reading a romance novel while lying on my bed. I was the only one he showed his sappy side around, which was fine with me.

"You're reading that for what, the third time?" I asked him, raising my eyebrows at him.

My brother and I mostly shared the same taste in books, but he liked the romantic stuff way more than I did.

"I just find it so interesting the way she portrayed werewolves," he told me. "She got so creative with it. I mean, look... she says they have to cut their long hair so they won't be too furry when they shift." He snorted, finding that amusing.

He would, I figured. His hair was currently bound at the nape of his neck with a simple hair tie. It almost reached his shoulders.

"Well, she wasn't too far off with everything," I argued, reaching out to flick the hardcover. He looked up at me questioningly.

I smiled at him sweetly. "Care to explain to me why it is that I've had this recurring dream where I'm constantly making out with this really attractive brunette?"

I raised my palms, fighting a grin.

"I mean, I'm starting to question my sexuality a little bit here, Archer."

His eyes darkened and - dare I say it - he blushed. His skin was only a little tan, not like my golden-brown one, so I could clearly see his flush. He finally dropped the book and ran a hand through his hair, embarrassed.

"Sorry about that," he muttered, still blushing.

My brother and I had a sort of mental bond between us, which nobody else in the Pack shared or could explain. We'd finally concluded that it must be because of our blood relation, but Gavin never clued us in on whether or not he was also part of the group chat.

Maybe he was and just didn't want to admit it for whatever reason, we'd never know. My biological father could be a bit of a prick sometimes.

"Awww," I cooed, reaching out to poke hiss cheek. "You have a cruush," I sing-songed.

He shot me a dark look. "Stop that," he scolded, smacking my hand away. He got a good look in my face for the first time that night, and I saw gold flash across his eyes as he noticed my bruises.

"Let me see it," he growled out, standing up from the bed. He came by my side and switched on the light, illuminating the room. Only my reading lamp had been on previously.

Archer's jaw clenched at seeing my bruises cast in stark relief.

"You're changing the subject," I pointed out gently. I got to my feet, only a tiny bit slower than I usually did.

He ignored me and reached over to tug my hoodie up. I saw and felt him getting even more ticked off at the sight of my injured stomach. 

I placed a hand on his arm, staring straight into his eyes. He looked back at me and sighed, some of his rage dissipating.

Archer was never going to be okay with the way I was treated in school. He absolutely hated it. He'd offered to do certain things - terrible things - to those who did this to me, but I couldn't allow him.

For one, I was still convinced that I was the problem. The other reason was that I couldn't let my brother draw himself back into such darkness. He'd done such a good job at moving past his, well, past, and I loved him to pieces for that.

Someday I hoped to love him enough to stay without an ultimatum hovering over my head.

Gold filled his irises, then abruptly changed to blue. He placed a hand on my abdomen, and as I watched, a faint blue light started to glow around the area that he touched.

The darkness of my bruise faded away in a matter of seconds.

Ordinary, I healed a bit faster than the average human. In the space between wolf and man, when I was closer to wolf than man, I healed at an accelerated rate and was completely fine in a few minutes.

But in my daily life, whenever I was injured in an open spot, I couldn't let myself heal like that. I had wear makeup to hide the injuries, which eventually did fade away faster than they were supposed to, but the evidence that I'd been hurt needed to remain.

In these times, Archer did my healing.

The werewolf gene not only allowed us to be able to shift from man to wolf, some of us also got a little extra oomph. A handful of werewolves that were particularly powerful got powers - special abilities unique to just them. In my brother's case, he could manipulate water, and along with that came the ability to heal people.

My brother was actually the only reason why I was still alive. And I couldn't hate him for it. I just couldn't.

He dropped his hand from my stomach, eyes changing back to black, then frowned at my face. I could see that he wanted to take care of the bruises there too.

"No, Archer, you have to leave them," I said patiently, grabbing his hand before it could travel up to my face. We'd been over this a lot.

I placed a kiss on his palm, trying to make him feel better.

"It will be fine in a few days, okay? I can handle not being pretty anymore for that long," I joked. His lip twitched up a bit, but I could see that he still wasn't satisfied. He really hated seeing me hurt.

"So what's the deal with the girl?" I asked flippantly, trying to distract him.

It worked. He huffed and turned away from me, heading towards the window.

"There's no deal, okay?" He complained. "There's nothing. Drop it already. I'll make sure to keep you out of my dreams."

"You like her," I remarked, clearly not dropping it. "Like, really really like her," I folded my arms.

"So what's the problem? Why aren't you two together already? Or are you?" I doubted it. He would've told me if he'd been seeing someone.

Archer exhaled loudly. "It's complicated," he said, turning back to me.

"That's bullshit," I countered, merciless. "I'm sure it's really not. Does she like you back or not?"

Archer hesitated, lip twisting to the side. "I don't know," he replied honestly, tugging on a lock of his hair. I had never seen my brother look so vulnerable.

I gaped. My brother was a total heartthrob at university. With his dangerously good looks and bad-boy aura, females lined up to get his attention or to get into bed with him. He didn't leave broken hearts in his wake exactly, but he did leave a trail of satisfied girls, most of whom were begging him for a second round.

Ew. That was hard to think. I needed to rinse out my brain.

"Why wouldn't she like you?" I wondered, getting heated on my brother's behalf. His lip twitched at my tone.

"We really should get going," he told me, changing the topic yet again. Damn, he must really have it bad.

"You ready?"

"Yup," I replied, making my way towards him. He stopped me.

"Could you... put something on that?" He asked hesitantly, gesturing at my face.

"Dad also gets upset at seeing it, you know. Though he wouldn't let on."

I snorted, seconds away from bursting into peals of laughter.

"The Sinner? Have feelings?" I loaded my words with as much incredulity as I possibly could as I headed into my bathroom.

"He'll just tell me I look like Quasimodo or something. You know the drill," I continued, fishing out my foundation. I peeled off my Band-Aid from my face then lathered on make-up. The bruises disappeared almost completely.

The power of Fenty Beauty.

"He cares, you know he does. He's just uncomfortable about showing it," I heard Archer's voice coming from directly behind me.

I snorted again. I had a brother who cared way too much, and a biological father who didn't seem to care at all. Such was my life.

I wiped my hands and turned to my brother.

"Better?" I asked, raising a brow. He gave me a thumbs-up. Grinning, I headed over to him, lacing our fingers.

What we got up to at night was actually the only highlight of my life. I just wish I appreciated that a bit more.

Archer led me over to the window and pushed it open, exposing the short balcony. Together we leaped off it, landing lightly on our feet.

We got out Arthur and climbed on, riding off into the night under the crescent moon.

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