After having dinner with Jasper, Aunt Beth drop him off to his home. He lives in a mansion that overlooks the public beach. He mentioned that he sometimes like to surf whenever he has the time. 

We bid him goodnight and then Aunt Beth drove us both home. On the way, Aunt Beth's phone rings outloud with dad's contact displayed on the screen.

"Hello," I answer on behalf of Aunt Beth.

"Bubbles?" He sounds distorted. "Where's your aunt?"

"She's driving."

"Put me on speaker phone. It's urgent."

I do as he say.

"Hey, Augustus," Aunt Beth greets, stopping at the traffic light. "How's things in HQ?"

Dad lets out an irritated sigh. "We were so close to catching her. There are some cameras that caught Polly in the act of breaking in, but there were enough predatory shifters here to stop her from whatever she's after. She burned down a part of Gurney City in rage and the firefighters were able to come in time to prevent from more casualties."

"Does this mean Polly is being targeted by HQ?" I ask.

Dad chuckles darkly. "Oh Bubbles, she was a target all this while. Just this time, every HQ Agent is ordered to kill on sight. She's too dangerous to be contained since she doesn't seem to have any weaknesses."

I gulp. 

"How much does HQ know about Angra?" Aunt Beth asks, resuming our journey home when the streetlight turn green.

"As far as I'm concerned, they don't know what she is. They suspect that she's one of Asmodeus's allies. I don't dare to give them any information since everything I know is from what Melinda told me..." he growls at the thought of me being physically close to a destructive spirit. 

"Is there any news on Valerie?" I ask. Her girlfriend Elise had been bugging me all day on whether I have any information since she thinks I'm close to Valerie's demigoddess mother. 

The change of topic made dad chuckle in amusement. "Yeah, apparently Lisbeth and Caleb made an appearance here a few hours ago, demanding to speak to the Director. Caleb threw tantrums in his Minotaur form, forcing the HQ Agents to knock him out. I swear, he's such a furry baby. Emily offered to get the paperwork to release Caleb done while I accompanied Lisbeth to the Head of the Identification department. They only know that she's a demigoddess. The Head drilled her on Valerie's familial ties since Valerie was documented as a human since baby, unlike her brother. Let's just say this afternoon's meeting opened up a can of worms for the Minotaurs and there is nothing anyone can do about it..."

Aunt Beth sighs tiredly. "The Minotaurs are in such a mess now."

"Indeed," dad agrees. "I've tried to keep whatever's left contained, but the damage is done. The Minotaur group has to announced themselves to HQ and be legally processed just like any other packs or covens. Valerie has slight golden blood, so she has the demigoddess tattoo. Lisbeth is not pleased with Caleb's behaviour and Caleb's blaming me for all the misfortunes that's happened."

Aunt Beth and I snort at the end. 

"It's a good thing that Eleanor is the Alpha; not Caleb! You did all you could when Lisbeth asked for your help all those years ago and Caleb's being nothing but ungrateful," Aunt Beth complains.

"Is Valerie safely home now?" I ask.

"As far as I know, yes. They left an hour ago so they're probably on the way back to Newborough."

Dad talks a bit more about the situation in HQ before promising to call once the situation has settled down and will try to get home as soon as possible. The conversation lasts for less than 5 minutes as he once explained that the line is untraceable in case HQ tries to listen in. 

Once we've reached home, Uncle Seb is sprawled on the couch watching some game show. Aunt Beth fills in Uncle Seb about how my school runs with the supernatural system and Jasper's swimming competition.

"So is Jasper your boyfriend now?" Uncle Seb asks me, wiggling his eyebrows like a creep.

I give him a disgusted look. "No! And stop wiggling your eyebrows like that!"

Aunt Beth giggles at our interaction. "She's right, Sebastian. It makes you looks so unattractive."

"Does this mean I am attractive if I don't wiggle my eyebrows?" Uncle Seb tries his luck, winking at Aunt Beth.

She rolls her eyes at him and calls him an ape. It doesn't take long for them to start bicker about whether or not Uncle Seb is truly an ape. While they argue, I make my way to the kitchen and start to search for something to snack on. 

A few hours later, I excuse myself to retire to my room to get ready for bed. Just when I'm about to fall asleep, I receive a text from Jasper.

Thanks for coming and supporting me today! 

I really appreciate that you and your aunt's support

it's no worries haha

i hope my aunt didn't scare u off with the questions :P

Nah, she's cool

Also, are you free tomorrow?

yeah, i will be in the afternoon... what's up?

There's an amazing new Indonesian restaurant in town

Will you accompany me for lunch tomorrow?

like a date?

Yes

I stare at my phone in bafflement. 

Jasper's asking me out on a date! 

Just when I'm about to accept his invitation, I think twice. If I accept this, I will have to open up to him. This also means that I will have to constantly lie to him about myself. Everything my dad taught me since I was young wanders in my mind. 

If Jasper finds out what I am, there is a possibility that he could give me up to HQ. That's a risk that I don't want to take. Dad, Aunt Beth and Uncle Seb had sacrificed almost everything to keep my existence a secret. I will not let their sacrifices go in vain.

I stare at the phone for 5 minutes before gathering the courage to compose a response.

i'm sorry for leading u on

i think we should just stick as friends 

Without waiting for a respond, I hide my phone away from my reach so I won't be tempted to read his reply. My heart clench in regret although my brain praise me for being smart. I realise that I can never get into a relationship without having to lie. My chance of true love and being married one day is almost close to zero.

I fall asleep that night with tears falling over my lonely future.