Alek didn't know what to think anymore. She could only stare at the figure in front of her with wonder. The figure that she missed the most.
Alek did not see this coming. How was he here? Didn't he tell her in her dream that he was dead and not coming back? Did she hit her head somewhere, giving her hallucinations?
But she knew she wasn't hallucinating as she smelt him, unlike in her dream last night. She had never forgotten his scent. It was warm like the sun and always comforting.
Aether's room was left the way he left it. Sometimes Panacea would clean up the room but not changing the position of things as much. They had thought of removing his things but, when they tried to do that, they kept remembering about him and could do nothing but leave the room.
They have been told to move on by many people but, they were always hesitant. It was hard for them to see the room without the owner but, it was worse to not see the room without the owner. The room was like the proof that he was alive. That he was there. Alek would sometimes go to his room to calm herself even now. His scent had already faded away from the room but it was there in her memory.
When Alek had nightmares as a child, she would go to Aether's room instead of her parents and sleep with him and he would not complain about it. So when he disappeared from her life and had nightmares about it, she would go to Aether's room, and cry 'cause she could not feel the warmness that she used to receive when he was sleeping with her. But ever since Alek got Bia as her roommate, she had not gone to his room when she had nightmares.
Alek brought herself back to reality and saw the boy's face pale as a sheet and eyes wide with horror. He also looked like he didn't expect this to happen.
No one moved since they saw the other's faces. They couldn't move. They were standing like statues connected with the ground.
When Alek started breathing again since she saw his face, she forced her voice out with all the strength she had but, it was barely a whisper.
"Ahmc... You...Dead..." Even when she said that she still couldn't move and, neither could he.
The boy never replied.
Alek started feeling her body weight and she could finally feel her fingers and toes. She raised her arms slowly and walked towards the boy. The boy was still rooted to the ground and he only watched her face as she was coming closer to him.
Alek's hands were only inches away from him when she felt something hitting her neck hard. In an instant, she felt her visions getting cloudy and, she could no longer stand. She fell forward to the boy and, she felt his arms wrapping around her.
She felt warm and breathed in his scent and, she knew he was real. That was the last thing she remember as her consciousness slipped away from her.
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"Aether!" Alek woke up, screaming her brother's name with her hand, trying to reach the ceiling.
"Alek, I'm here." Panacea quickly came to her side and grabbed the outreaching hand.
"Mom?" Alek was confused and quickly sat up.
She found herself in her room, on her bed with her family. Bia was leaning on the wall next to Alek's headboard and Kai and Robin were seated on the foot of the bed.
"Aether," Alek remembered what happened to her and mumbled. "He is alive, mum. He's alive." she looked at her mother.
Panacea made a sad face and spoke. "He is not, sweetie."
"But he is! I saw him. He...He held me, mum! I swear!" Alek exclaimed and looked at all the faces in the room. They all had the same expression apart from Bia, who was expressionless.
"That's not him." Panacea held Alek's hand gently and told her. "Alek, we have something to tell you."
"Mum, I need to get him. I need him." Alek retracted her hand from her mother's hand and hastily climbed off the bed. Panacea didn't stop her.
When Alek was almost to the door, something came in a flash and blocked her way. It was Bia. Alek saw Bia's eyes were split in the middle like snake's and it was not definitely human eyes. She froze in surprise and backed off from her sister.
"Bia, you didn't need to do that." Panacea told her from her spot where she hadn't moved since Alek got off the bed. "Alek, I need you to come sit down."
Alek didn't know what was going on and, she even forgot about meeting Aether.
When Alek didn't move from her spot, Bia used her speed. Within a second, she was on the bed with Bia right next to her. For supernaturals like Bia and the rest, it was not that fast as they could see Bia's movement clearly but of course, for Alek, it was like she had teleported.
Alek looked around her and faced her sister. Her eyes were no longer inhuman but it was scary.
"Alek, I don't know how to explain this but we-"
"We are shape-shifters." Kai cut off his mother.
"What the f*ck?!" Alek cursed in front of her mother.
"Alek!" Panacea exclaimed.
"You met Aether, right?" Bia asked her sister, ignoring her mother. "That was not him. That was one of my friends who is a human shape-shifter. You met him so that's why I knocked you out."
"Wait, a minute. You knocked me out?!" Alek didn't care about the shape-shifting thing even though she had been dreaming to meet one. Right now, what mattered to her most was that her sister knocked her out. "Do you wanna be beaten up?!"
"That's what you are caring at the moment?" Bia asked her sister with disbelief.
"Duh. Are you gonna apologize or anything?!" Alek was now furious.
"Mum!" Bia called her mother for help.
"Alek, did you hear what Bia just said?" Panacea asked her daughter softly.
"Yeah. She said she knocked me out. Rude!" Alek spoke with a duh tone.
Panacea was speechless as everyone in the room. Kai was laughing inside as he watched how his sister acted on the matter. He kind of knew that this would happen as Alek did not like violence.
"Alek I think we can talk about this matter over lunch." Panacea said after hearing Alek's stomach growl.
"Here," Bia also heard the sound and gave the remains of the chocolate that they ate before.
"Awww, I forgive you." Alek forgave her sister easily.
"That's too easy, Alek." Kai told his sister enjoying the chocolate she was given.
"Choco ha seigi yo." Alek replied with a smile, proudly. "And a person who gives me chocolates are not evil."
"How about we order something than to make luch? It would be faster." Bia asked her father, who had been quiet the whole time.
"Order for everyone, Bia. I'll give you the money." Panacea told Bia as she was hungry and also didn't want to make lunch. Panacea worked as an interior designer and she was quite famous in that line.
"Okay." Bia quickly rushed out of the room to make a call and the rest stayed in.
"So Alek, you had heard Kai right? That we are shape-shifters." Robin asked his daughter, carefully choosing words.
"Mmmhhmm." Alek nodded.
"And you have nothing to say?" Panacea asked this time.
"I don't know. I don't know what to say or think at the moment as I am hungry. Any way, how long have I been knocked out?" Alek asked back.
"About forty five minutes." Kai responded.
"Wow, where did she learn to knock me out like that. That was something else." Alek spoke absentmindedly as she remembered the hit.
"Ahhhh!" Alek screamed suddenly, startling everyone in the room. "The fake Aether you said. Where is he?"
"His name is Charlie. Bia sent him home when you fainted." Panacea answered honestly. At this point, there was nothing to hide about the supernatural things.
"So, what is he?" Alek was curious.
"He is a human shapeshifter. A person who can transform into other people." Robin explained. "He recently discovered his powers and Bia was helping him how to control it."
"Then what is Bia?"
"She is a snake shifter." Robin answered her.
"Dang! That's cool. What about you guys?" Alek asked, looking at everyone with hopeful eyes.
"I'm a crocodile shifter." Kai answered Alek's question with a small smile.
"Lizard shifter." Panacea said shortly.
"And I am chameleon shifter. But it's a long story so we'll talk about it over lunch." Robin said.
"Okay." Alek continued eating her chocolate as others left the room and, Bia came back in return. She had done making orders and, they said they would take about twenty minutes.