Song for the chapter- Pray by Bebe Rexha

When I was younger, much younger, I used to think that when I went outside, I could see the opposite side of the world. That as long as there were no mountains, I could see forever.

Truth is a hard thing. As a little boy, after I learned that I couldn't in fact see around the world, and I came to the facts that there was a horizon— a limit, it hurt my heart.

And learning that I had weeks left until everything changed, until I was on my own, that truth hurt just like finding out my vision was limited as a kid. That forever wasn't actually forever.

Kind of makes me wish I never learned the truth. That I was still young, small, a believer of endless sight and non-existent horizons.

But, obviously, that's not the case. You can't un-learn something. You can't forget something as big and as simple as this.

Especially since Mr. I-Have-Rainbow-Eyes is sitting next to Gem. My Gem. The girl in my life who brought back endless horizons.

I glared at the back of his head, imagining that somehow he would catch on fire. It was a dream that sadly, would never come to be true. Very very sadly.

However, I have to have a little pride in Gem. I know she hates being mean to anyone who hasn't deserved it, yet she's been rude to him the entire time.

Every time he attempts conversation, she waves him off or rolls her eyes dramatically.

He still hasn't given up. Suddenly she widens her eyes and looks back at me before glaring at him.

She gulps and then suddenly looks very worried. What did he say to her?

I continue watching, and since that moment they didn't attempt to have any type of conversation.

When the bell finally rang, signaling the end of class, I quickly gathered my stuff and walked to her.

"Gem." Her name came out as a soft whisper, a ghost of a word really, but she heard it.

I know she heard it because she stopped, froze, gathered her breath, and shook her head. She then kept walking.

And when I called her name, louder this time, she didn't even turn and look at me. I was invisible to her for the first time in a long time.

It made my heart ache, a saddening feeling running through my body.

Rainbow-Eyes walked past me and I grabbed his bag, dragging him to the boy's bathroom where I knew no one would follow me into.

Of course, I didn't bet on someone already being in there.

Aris, our class's notorious Aries bad boy, and Arius, the sweet Aquarius kid who loved Gem, were in there, having a heated conversation.

I didn't care.

I slammed Rainbow-Eyes against the wall and pressed my forearm against his chest. "What the hell did you tell her."

The new student, the world's first Ophiuchus that I knew of, just shrugged. "Nothing that concerns you."

I could feel Aris on my side, Arius on my other.

"What happened, Cor?" Arius asked.

I glared at Rainbow-Eyes, shaking my head. "He said something to Gem, she glared at him, and now she won't talk to me." I was this* close to just hitting him in the face, getting my answers from him, but I had to play this smart. "So now I'm trying to figure out what he told her." I said angrily, the fuel of fire and anger burning in my bones.

Aris sighed, running a hand through his blonde hair. "Why don't we just relax?" He took a calming breath.

"Did an Aries seriously just tell me to relax? Aris, this is about Gem I'm not gunna relax." I snapped.

Arius and Aris took a step back, but neither of them were done talking. "You're just stressed about the week. You're paranoid." Arius offered, and he was right.

I widened my eyes and nodded. "Hell yeah I'm paranoid. What else am I supposed to be? Comfortable." I looked back to Rainbow Eyes. "What did you tell Gem?"

He finally sighed. "Only that I know you two are dating."

None of us had anything to say, we were shocked into silence for the first time in our lives.

How did he know? "How?"

Rainbow Eyes pulled my arms down, and pushed me into the wall, my face pressed against the cold tile. "Because I'm observant. An—"

He was roughly pulled off of me. "That's enough violence for one day. Cor, are you good?"

I scoffed, shook my head and began to walk out. "If you tell anyone—"

"I won't. Can't have the class bad-boy hating me, now can I?" Rainbow Eyes retorted, raising his eyebrows.

My eyes looked at his hair, and I knew I'd never get use to it. Not to his eyes. Not to him. "It wouldn't be a smart thing."

I walked out.

***

I pushed open the doors to mom's bar and sucked in a heavy breath. I was glad to be off work, a new job downtown catering to rich people I didn't like.

I locked the doors shut and grabbed a bottle of bourbon, smiling to myself.

I slid into one of the booths and poured a glass, looking at the alcohol like maybe it would have the power to save me.

Through the windows of the bar, I could see the snow that had fallen on the ground outside like a second skin. And it reminded me of Gem. The softness of it, how beautiful it was. But how harsh and strong it could be.

I looked up, and took a drink of the bourbon, welcoming the familiar burn and harsh taste. She was snow and I was... I was bourbon. I was harsh and dark, and yet everyone had past experiences with me that seemed to hurt them.

Great. I was bourbon.

"Drinking is bad, don't you know?" I grabbed the glass, ready to throw it at the familiar silky voice but the guy held his hands up. "Don't shoot, I'm just here to talk."

I rolled my eyes, setting the now empty glass on the table. "You're never here to just talk. What do you want?"

"They have Ginny." Lucas said, my dad said, as he took a seat next to me. "I tried to stop them but they took her."

Ginny. My little sister. Same mom, different dads. But I consider her Dad, Liam, a better dad to me than my actual one.

"I know they have Ginny." I said sadly, not daring to meet his eyes. I left out the fact that I knew he turned her in.

He gave me a sad look, a compassionate look. "Your mom told you? Cor, I'm so sorry. If I can help in any way, just ask."

I rolled my eyes, leaning back in the booth and looking at the empty cup like it meant so much more than it did. "You can get her back."

He nodded, biting his lip. "Son—"

"Don't call me that. My dad is asleep at home right now. You're just some rodent in my life that comes in and messes with everything." I say, biting my lip.

"What?" He hissed at me, his jaw line set. That wasn't what he was expecting to hear. "What are you talking about."

I widened my eyes, smirking. "You must think that I don't know that you turned Ginny in." I could say more, but I don't. Telling him I know more than he thinks I know could be dangerous.

"I did it for you." He responds, calm and sad once again.

"Oh please, don't give yourself that kind of credit." I snapped, leaning forward and keeping my back straight, the waiter suit still on me, making me feel can look a little more professional. I was about to make him the most paranoid person in the world. "I know you, I observe, I learn."

He raises one eyebrow. "Then you would know I do care about you."

I nod. "Oh yeah, they tell me that all the time. It doesn't make a difference though. Bad things for a good cause doesn't make it any less right."

He squeezed his eyebrows together, a look of confusion written on his face. "What?" He snapped. "Who's they?"

I gave him a look of surprise. "Oh you don't know!?" I exasperated. "One of your close friends is a mole. They've been updating me on things since the beginning."

He widened his eye. "How much do you know?"

"Enough. Not everything. And some things don't add up. But I know enough. My mole is very educated." I chuckled darkly.

He stood up. "How much is 'enough?'"

I stood up too, and even though he was a little taller I knew I was more intimidating. "Enough to end you if you try to hurt anyone I care about." I leaned over and whispered. "Enough to destroy you in a single moment. To send you running." I smiled.

So I didn't know that much. But obviously it struck a cord with him.

"Let me rephrase my earlier statement. I gave Ginny to the Elders. My close colleague has the power to kill her. If you do anything I will pull the plug on her. I want you—"

"Kill her and you have no leverage. I'll let all your precious secrets go." I smirked, acting uncaring when in reality I was destroyed.

He narrowed his eyed. "You're lying. You probably don't even have anything on me."

"I know you want to kill Gem." The only other thing I knew about him. If he asked for more info about what I knew, my entire charade would fall.

But he bought it. "Okay, Cor, then you also know I have the power to kill her. You can still save her."

I learned forward. "How?"

"By listening to my instructions very clearly." I'm not sure if I played into his hand, but I knew this was where the conversation would have gone no matter what I said.

His plan was methodical, evil, diabolical. Scarily organized. As he explained it to me my pride started shutting down but I didn't let him see that.

I scoffed, shaking my head in anger at Lucas. "No, I won't do it." I stated, watching his face fall quicker than it smiled.

But like the actor he was, his face recovered and he looked like nothing happened. Maybe that's where I get my stone-expression from.

"Yes you will, because if you don't I'll—"

"Kill Gem? Yeah? And won't you get in trouble for that?" I ask, knowing that Pierce, Aria's Dad, talked to him.

He shook his head. "Without me they don't have proper funding. They'll live with one Gemini." He smiled maliciously and it made my stomach roll like a gymnast, but I wouldn't let him know that.

I glared at him, grabbing the butter knife and pointing it at him in the most threatening way I could. "And who's to stop me from doing to you what you want to do to Gem? Huh?"

He didn't even falter, no slight of change, no wince or cringe. "You're not a threat, Son." He said lowly.

"I'm not your son." I seethed. "And please, I'm the biggest threat you have." I growled.

He tilted his head. "And why is that?" He asked, not scared. But he should've been.

"You don't want to know." I let the idea hang as I stood up from the booth, staring down at him like the rodent he was.

"I'm sure I'd get in trouble for killing Gem... that doesn't mean I care." He smiled, standing up with me.

Something shifted in the air, and I knew he'd do it. He'd do it just because he could. He doesn't care about consequences.

"Fine. I'll do it. But don't expect my threat to mean less than yours." I didn't give him time to reply before I left into the kitchen, leaving him alone in the bar.