Killians POV~
Relief washed over me when Kelsey suggested we head out. The feeling that someone was watching me made my slight paranoia skyrocket. I looked over my shoulder so many times I could have sworn I was an owl. I have always been surveillant of my surroundings, but having the feeling that someone was burning holes in the back of my head gave me chills.
"Hey Killian, do you mind if we ride with you?" Candice asked referring to herself and Elias.
"Of course not, are you two ready to go?" I responded and the two nodded. Each of them wore a grin as they followed me to my SUV. Unlocking the vehicle, I walked over to the driver's side door. When I looked back, their eyes shot back and forth between me and the oversized car. I laughed at their slack-jawed reaction and climbed into the SUV. Once they recovered they climbed in as well. Candice sat up front with me while Elias made himself comfortable in the back. He tried to put his feet up on the opposite seat but I quickly put a stop to that.
I pulled out of my parking space and followed the yellow slug bug and black 2017 Fiat 124 Spider out onto the main road. Knowing about cars and Bikes came in handy as Elias and Candice talked about the various mufflers they considered for their older motorcycles. Though Elias whined about being jealous of John's Spider, he was happy with his silver 2019 Honda CB300R. Candice told him he was crazy for being jealous. They both had the same bike and she couldn't believe people preferred cars.
By the time we pulled up to our destination, the two of them had thanked me twenty times for offering to drive them during winter. Their siblings hate when they have to take them. While the other two scrambled out of the car after I parked, I took my time to look around. Nostalgia washed over me as I read the name on the front of the building; 'Old Tommies Arcadium'. It hadn't changed a bit from when my birth parents brought me here as a young child for my birthday.
"Come on Killian!" Thomas called as the others whooped and hollered. Snapping out of my nostalgia, I raced after the others and followed them into the building. The first stop was the exchange station where we loaded up play cards with points we paid for. It also stands as the place you exchange your points for prizes. It only took about ten minutes for everyone to have their cards loaded and for everyone to branch off to different games. Elias was the first to claim me as he dragged me over to the skee ball tables. I held my poker face knowing it was my all-time favorite game. Elias didn't need to know that though, but I am sure he figured it out after losing to me three times.
When Elias begged me to end his misery, Candice stole me away and made me player two in a bike racing game. Elias watched and called to play the winner. Both of them stared at me like I grew not only a second head but a third as well when I won. Of course, Elias and I played and I let him win so I didn't completely destroy his ego. Though, I think Candice figured me out when she winked at me. After that, the group pulled me around the arcade to try to win against me. I focused on not winning every game as I was pulled around, I didn't want them to hate me too quickly.
"How in the hell did you beat me in every single game we played together?" Thomas asked and I frowned.
"Perk of being an outcast I guess," I replied with a shrug. He frowned at me but it didn't seem malicious.
"You aren't just an outcast now, you are our outcast!" Mira cheered and her twin nodded behind her with a grin. I smiled at the two as I shook my head. I had not been this happy since before I lost my best friend, eleven years ago. I was told that he drowned and that his body couldn't be recovered.
We had all been at the arcade for hours and it was easily one of the best nights of my life. As I walked over to the exchange center, I checked my phone for the time. Much to my relief I had another hour until I had to leave. A tall guy stood behind the counter as he took my tickets and fed them into the machine. Once they were counted, he handed me a receipt with the final amount on it. Thankful I came in with everyone else when they collected their prizes, I knew what to get them all as gifts. I conversed excitedly with the guy behind the counter as he helped me collect everything I needed into a paper bag. Luckily, I had just enough credits to get everything.
When I was done and had spent all of my credits, I walked out to join the others with my bag of gifts in my arms. As they noticed me, I noticed that the reaction of disgust, annoyance, and hatred was not what was on their faces. Instead, each of them looked happy, relaxed, and best of all: like they didn't hate my presence. I walked over to the group with a smile on my lips.
"Gather around subjects of the gaming king! I have gifts to bestow on each of you!" I announced and Kyle smiled mischievously.
"Oh yes Lord of Games. I, Kyle, bow to thou's talent." Kyle said as he bowed. I laughed along with the others at his crazy antics. I took my spot next to Kelsey and dug into my bag. The first thing I pulled out was a stress ball. It was made of foam and was painted yellow with a crying laughing face on it.
"The first gift goes to my ever loyal jester! To whom, I may never have laughed this much without." I joked as I handed him the ball. His eyes seemed to light up as he looked at the ball.
"You told me not to buy this while we were in there, you little sneak!" Kyle said and I only shrugged while I feigned innocence. I reached back into the bag and pulled out two keychains. They were both small motorcycles that looked like Elias's and Candice's.
"Elias and Candice. You two will be unable to drive your babies to school soon so I got you something that might help." I said as I handed them the mini version of their bikes.
"They are so… perfect!" Candice said and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.
"They are cool, dude. I didn't see these in there!" Elias commented and I smiled knowing I blocked them from their view the entire time.
"Glad you like them," I responded and the two looked over their new gifts. I reached back into the brown paper bag and retrieved another of the gifts. A smile spread across his face when his fingers touched the small soft plush penguin he had gotten for Thomas.
"Alright, and for Thomas, I noticed that you loved penguins and got this Lil dude for you." I offered the small stuffed animal to him and his eyes grew big and shocked everyone at the table. He had let out the most masculine squeal anybody at the table had ever heard as he swiped the stuffed penguin from my hand. When he looked back up and noticed us all looking at him, he tried to regain his dignity with a simple 'thank you' as he straightened his clothes.
"No problem, just glad you like it." I answered with a soft smile. He smiled back and I reached back into the bag of treats. When I recognized the feel of glitter, I smiled at Mira and Mara. They seemed to catch the hint that it was their turn and both turned to me.
"I noticed that you ladies didn't have enough points to get what you really wanted from the store. So, I hope I got the right thing and in the right color." I admitted as I held out two sparkled wallets. One was lavender and the other was yellow. Neither was bright or particularly shiny but still very cute in their own way. Each of the girls grabbed for a different wallet, much to my relief. Mira grabbed the yellow and Mara grabbed the lavender. I knew for sure that they liked it when they rose from their seats and hugged me on both sides. They repeatedly said 'thank you' for a solid five minutes in my ears. Though it hurt my ears, I still smiled knowing that they liked their gifts.
After what felt like hours, they released me and I sighed in relief. The others laughed and I reached back into the paper bag. I knew instantly that they should go last and picked up the only other person's gift. It was a simple snap bracelet that was decorated with the owl 'Hedwig' from Harry Potter. I held it in a closed fist and held it out to Kelsey's brother, Joshuah. His eyes grew big as he stared at my hand.
"You got something for me?" he asked incredulously.
"Of course, you each seem like cool people. I didn't want to leave you out!" I said with a soft smile and he slowly reached out his hand. I placed the bracelet in his hand and he smiled.
"How did you know?" he asked.
"I paid attention, it's easy to see things when you pay attention," I answered and he nodded, his eyes seemed more alive.
"Killiannnnn, what about meeee?" Kelsey asked and I smiled at her.
"I saved the best for last of course," I said with a roll of the eyes. I pulled out two small black boxes.
"Now, you both have to open them at the same time," I warned and the couple nodded. I handed one box to Kelsey and the other to John. They followed the directions and opened them together. They each had a locket with their mates' initials on them.
"Don't you like them?" I asked when I got no reaction. When Kelsey looked up she had tears in her eyes and smiled at me. I knew she understood the sentiment but her mate looked confused.
"I don't understand," John stated with a raised eyebrow.
"I got you matching lockets with each other's initials on them. This is my small way of supporting your relationship." I answered and the confusion was gone in an instant. It was replaced with what I could only guess was understanding.
"Thank you," he said and I gave a taut nod. I folded up the empty paper bag and tossed it in the closeby bin. Kelsey looked at me with wide eyes and I shrugged it off. I looked at my phone and froze. It was nearly eight and we were thirty minutes away from the house.
"Oh shit…" I mumbled as my eyes started to itch and burn slightly.
"What's wrong, Kay?" Mira asked and I explained I was late to be home. My eyes didn't leave my phone throughout the explanation.
"Sorry, Kay. We all should have kept a better track of the time." Mira apologized but I just shook my head. It was not their fault that I was not responsible for once in my life. I looked up at them and my eyes itched worse.
"Holy shite! Dude, what are you?" Kyle asked with wide eyes. The smell of fear wafted off of him but I was too confused about how I could smell emotions to notice. After a few minutes, someone cleared their throat and I realized he had asked me a question. The smell of fear now came from all of them and my eyes grew wet.
"What do you mean?" I asked with a frown, I didn't like that my friends were afraid. The fact that they seemed to be afraid of me made it that much worse.
"Yo-your eyes a-are glowing!" Thomas nearly shouted and my frown deepened.
"Like they have room to talk! Not one of them is human! They are all shifters!" Jun shouted angrily in my mind. I winced at the sudden intrusion and looked down at my phone. Thomas was right, peering back at me from my dark phone screen were two glowing eyes. One was a brilliant red and the other was a dazzling purple.
'I can't have normal eyes when they are glowing now, can I?' I thought as I looked back to the group. The tears in my eyes tried to escape as I saw the fear clearly. While I loved my mismatched eyes, the way they were while they glowed was mesmerizing.
"Killian, sweetie, I need the truth," Kelsey asked hesitantly. I narrowed my eyes at her, anger filled me as she spoke. She dared to question what I am when she hadn't explained what she was.
"You are all hypocrites." I spat before I was pulled to the back of my mind. I watched as my eyes grew brighter in the dark screen of my phone. Suddenly, I heard a voice echoing not only through my mind but aloud to the others.
Selene's POV
Each of them looked at me with confusion, fear, and guilt while I looked back with anger. Sadness and fury swam within both mine and Killian's heart's as I looked at each of them. The scent of their emotions gagging me. They claimed I was part of their group only to fear me when they see I am different as well.
"My name is Selene but I am also Killian. Due to me being sealed away at birth, Killian was born to take my place until I matured. I was meant to dispose of Killian but I found myself entranced with his soul. He is kind... even to those who do not deserve it. He takes being bullied so his friend does not have to. He is oddly maternal when it comes to those he cares for. Even after all he has been through, he is still so innocent and caring. I could not end his life so we have merged into one soul. Though, he does not know of me yet. I only know most of this thanks to the three guides that we share, they have chosen to call us both by my name which I don't mind. Neither Killian nor myself know what we truly are." I explained as I hid my anger. When I looked at Kelsey, she had her neck bared to me along with the others. I recognized the position of submission instantly.
"Why do you submit?" I asked and Kelsey was the first to answer.
"Ever since I met Killian, both my wolf and I have felt a pull towards him. We have felt the need to protect him as though he was our family. Now that you have appeared, my wolf insists that we submit to you. Feeling the power that radiated off of you, I decided to listen." Kelsey admitted with a soft weariness. I had enough of their nonsense and decided I had enough socializing. I retreated back into Killian's mind, able to feel my connection to him. Killian was pushed forward and I watched with a thoughtful expression as control was returned to him.
Killian's POV
Dizziness washed over me as I was forced back into control. It felt as if I had just woken up from a nap as my eyes fluttered. When I noticed all the pairs of eyes on me I looked at them with a stern expression. Not happy one bit about their reaction when none of them are human either.
"Why are you all just staring at me?" I asked with obvious anger.
"You are not human and we have no idea what you are. All that we know for sure is that your eyes were glowing some freaky" John replied but was quickly cut short but an elbow to his ribs.
"You are a hypocrite." I spat as I looked him in the eye. I saw them stiffen as though I were going to attack.
"What do you mean?" he asked and I rolled my eyes.
"Don't play dumb with my Jonny boy, you know exactly what I mean! Not one of you is human! I don't know what the hell you are but it's not human. Yet, you have the audacity to treat me like a freak because I am not the same as you!" I whisper-shouted.
"I am very disappointed in all of you. I have enough to deal with now that I am late getting home so I will be going home." I seethed before I rushed off to my car. It didn't take long and soon enough I had climbed inside my oversized marshmallow. With tears in my eyes, I buckled myself into the truck and turned it on. Without even a second glance, I pulled out of my parking space and drove back to the house I hated more than any other.
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It was nearly ten at night by the time I returned home. Between Selene's appearance and traffic it took so much longer. I parked my truck in its usual spot and took a breath before climbing out. I knew there would be hell to pay the moment I opened the back door. A strong smell of different liquors and body odor assaulted my nose. Cringing, I stepped back and took a deep breath. I held it in as I walked inside the house but it came bursting out as I gasped. Inside the house, leaning against the fridge was my worst nightmare. Frank Fulkturt had his arms crossed over his chest as he glared at me. I knew instantly that my night was about to get a hundred times worse.
"And where the hell have you been, boy?" he asked menacingly. I flinched as he pushed off the fridge.
"I-I wa-as ou-out jo-ob hunt-ting" I muttered as he walked closer. Each step he took brought another wave of fear.
"Uh-huh, and what made you get home so late?" he asked with a sick grin on his face. I didn't have time to answer before he grabbed me by the neck and forced me to my room. He gathered up my barely inflated bed and I watched as he carried it out of my room. I knew from experience that it went to the trash bin. When he returned, he came with his wife, Stacy. Each holding something behind their backs. Tears welled up in my eyes as they walked in and closed the door behind them. I shrank against the furthest wall as they stalked forward.
'Help…'