13

Word Count: 1828

~Onyx

This is a big fucking mistake.

Sienna is going to kill me when she finds out. Unfortunately, I've spent the entire day considering doing otherwise to this, and yet I'm still here, standing before Kayn's door.

I knock twice, firmly.

His door swings open, his eyes widening at the sight of me.

"Alpha."

"May I come in?"

"I was just about to..." He stumbles back as I brush past him, taking in the room I now stand in. He clears his throat. "Okay then. Is something wrong?"

He's done absolutely nothing to this guest room. His suitcase is half open at the foot of his bed. He's clearly endeavouring to leave as soon as possible.

With my friend, no less.

"Close the door," I prompt.

He physically gulps, taking a painful amount of time to follow my simple instruction.

"I want to talk to you about Sienna." I turn to look at him.

He ruffles a hand through his hair. "Fuck."

I've seen many men cower in my presence, and this man looks unbelievably small suddenly. I'm certain Sienna spilled the details of our arrangement to him so something romantic could flourish, and yet he still appears as though I'm about to snap his neck.

Tempting, but not today.

"I'm not going to punish you." I can't help the quirk of my lips at his helplessness. "I implore you to speak freely."

"Are you going to disembowel me?" He shifts a step away from me as if there is anywhere in this world he could run to if I wanted him dead.

I shrug, sliding my hands into my pockets. "Perhaps."

"Is this because of the whole mistress thing? Because she told me it's just a title." He rubs the back of his neck, which is stained bright red.

"Are you planning on fucking her tonight?" I ask.

I'm not here for pleasantries. Preferably, this conversation wouldn't be happening, but Sienna is my friend, and I care for her. I need to make sure this man is worthy of her time.

Even if I'm inclined to doubt anyone will meet such a high threshold.

"Huh? Ah...no," he stammers.

"Be truthful."

"I am. We are just having dinner," he insists, a little too quickly.

I just stare at him until, after a few moments, he crumbles under the pressure. "But if she wanted me, I wouldn't say no."

I assumed as much. I'm not certain there's a straight man around who wouldn't fall to their knees and beg for just a taste of Sienna.

"So you like her a lot?"

"She's attractive and interesting. I like her." He takes yet another step back.

If I allow him, he's going to pursue her seriously. I wonder if she would be joyful at such a surety or if she has doubts about him. They hardly know each other yet, but he seems pretty certain he wants her.

"Do you plan to leave here with her in the future?"

He blinks rapidly. "No!"

"Try again."

"I mean, not unless she wanted to. My home is always welcome to her if she likes," he says tentatively, wincing with every word like he anticipates a violent reaction from me.

I suppose it's my own fault. This reputation of mine hasn't exactly spawned from nowhere.

"You've just met her." I quirk my head to the side.

He scratches under his ear sheepishly. "I'm a romantic."

I take a step forward, sending him bumping back into his desk as he tries desperately to keep a healthy distance between him and I.

Sienna is also a romantic. That's the problem. She's visualised a future with every crush she's ever indulged to me.

"Are you scared of me?" I ask quietly.

"Fucking terrified."

"Good." I step back, noting the obvious release of tension from his shoulder. "Treat Sienna nicely. She deserves it. Make her happy, and we don't have a problem with each other, alright?"

It physically pains me to stand by and watch this occur. I don't know why, when I have no authority over her. She's my friend. She's allowed to move on.

I need to get rid of these corrupted thoughts.

"Of course. My plan is to make her very happy," Kayn assures me quickly, his voice breathy and a little relieved.

I head to the door. "Don't push it."

"Got it."

I close the door behind me, releasing a breath I didn't realise I was holding. I did the right thing.

I just hope I don't regret it.

~Sienna

I take a long drink from my glass, giggling at Kayn's story.

"That's when my father dumped Lex into the cow's drinking trough. She was mortified," he tells me, ripping into some garlic bread with a warm smile.

I grin. I would love nothing more than to see Lexa is such a situation. So would Alex.

"I don't blame her."

"Every chance dad gets, he knocks Lexa's ego down a peg." Kayn shakes his head a little. "Unfortunately, he's not as fast at ridding of them as Lexa is at growing new ones."

I roll my eyes. Kayn rarely has something positive to say about his sister. It must just be their relationship, and considering how unfamiliar I am with having a sibling, I don't have the right to judge him.

"She's just sure of herself."

"Let's hope she is sure enough to get the Alpha's hand in marriage so he can start leaving us alone," Kayn mutters, his smile drowned out by the storm gathering on his features.

"Wait, what?"

"Never mind." He clears his throat, trying to backtrack. "This food is incredible."

I narrow my eyes. Onyx...I know exactly what he's done. That meddling man can't stay away for even a second.

Instead of pressuring Kayn to relay what Onyx said to him, I focus on the food in front of us. He's set up a blanket and a slightly raised table for us to eat off of. I must admit, it's strange to be eating off my bedroom floor, but the privacy is very much appreciated.

"Diane is an amazing cook," I agree. I'll miss it, and I'll miss her if I leave with Kayn. "She's basically my Aunt."

Kayn's eyes grow dark, solemn. "It must be hard without your mother."

"It is, but I have such an incredible support network here." I shrug off the emotion crawling up my throat. I wish my mother were here to look over Kayn and decide if he's a good fit for me.

In the short time she was alive while we were here, she took a liking to Onyx, and she was right about that. Even if it took me a while after her death to realise it.

"What was she like?"

"Quiet, a little secretive. But she was warm, gentle and kind. She did so much for me." I rub my forehead. "She ran from a dangerous man to get me to safety."

My mother fought with everything she had to give me a good life. I just wish she could have lived it with me.

"It's lucky Onyx's family took you in."

"Lucia gave my mother a job, then me. Diane did the rest," I tell him. I wouldn't have gotten the job had my mother not passed it on to me. Onyx offered for me to be an assistant for him, but I wanted to keep our friendship as clean as possible.

"What about Onyx?" Kayn asks.

"Hmm?"

"What role did he play?" His tone is slowly morphing from curiosity to slight irritation.

"He ignored me for months, then vaguely despised me. Then, my mother died, and we've been best friends ever since," I say. "His dad died when he was seven, so we relate a lot."

I can no longer count the nights he let me soak his shirts with tears when I cried on his shoulder. The amount of nights he stayed up and listened intently to my outpour of emotions.

Without him, I wouldn't have processed my grief so well.

"And he's not in love with you?" Kayn tilts his head, ruffling his soft brown hair.

"No, why does everyone keep asking me that?" I put my spoon down, shaking my head. "It's strictly platonic between us two."

Kayn smiles, shifting a little closer to me.

"So he won't mind if I do this."

I watch with wide eyes as he brushes his hand along the side of my face and into my hair before pulling me closer until his lips touch mine.

I've only been kissed a handful of times, and each time, I knew it wasn't someone I could see any future with. So, having someone who I could see myself being in a relationship is an entirely different experience.

I sink into the kiss as his tongue tentatively runs along the seam of my lips. The sensation nearly makes me giggle, but any hint of amusement vanishes as his hands delve into my hair, keeping me close.

Resting my hands on his shoulders, I feel my inexperience rattle through me. I always thought it would feel more natural, more easy.

This feels a little...forced.

Kayn leans over me, his lips never drifting from mine as my back hits the floor. He's practically on top of me, his hands sweeping down the sides of my body.

I freeze, feeling slightly uncomfortable with how quickly this kiss is advancing.

Suddenly, a guttural, raw scream echoes through the house from a distance, making me push Kayn off me.

I sit up, eyes wild, hair tangled as the cold horror of that scream settles over me.

Someone is in trouble.

"Fuck, what was that," I ask breathlessly, looking toward the door.

Kayn keeps his hands on me. "I'm sure it's nothing."

"It sounds like your sister," I state blatantly.

Reluctantly, he pulls his hands off me and helps me up. I race out the door without waiting to see if he's following, jogging down the hallway as I attempt to make sense of where I heard that coming from.

Reaching the top of the sweeping stairs that head to ground level, I see Lexa at the bottom, her hands over her mouth, staring at a figure slumped at her feet.

Kayn is right behind me as I hurry down each step, familiar aspects of the figure lying at an unnatural angle at the bottom of the steps becoming obvious as I approach.

It's Elora.

Lexa is breathing heavily, panicked, as she stares down at the girl's body.

It only takes one glance at me to realise she's gone.

She's dead.

💙••💙

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~Midika 💜🐼