Mikey dragged his feet up the stairs to his room, barely acknowledging the muffled sounds of his mom's soap operas playing in the living room. The familiar creak of the staircase beneath his sneakers echoed through the hallway as he unzipped his bag, pulling out a mess of notebooks and crumpled papers. Another typical day of high school. His mind drifted as he let the notes fall onto his desk.

He had managed to tune out most of the day's droning lectures, barely participating in the small talk about weekend plans. Why bother? Nothing exciting ever happened to him. His life was a monotonous cycle of school, studying, and pretending to care about what his classmates thought was "cool." None of it ever felt like it mattered.

With a sigh, he flopped down onto his bed, his fingers hovering over his phone, aimlessly scrolling through notifications. His thumb paused over a new message, a text from a contact marked with a simple "Dad."

Dad: Meet us at your spot. 7:00 PM. Don't be late.

Mikey blinked at the message. Your spot. That could only mean one thing—Leon's Diner. It was his favorite place in the city, the one place he could always count on for comfort. The cozy corner booth, the retro neon sign, the milkshakes... it was the one slice of normalcy in his otherwise repetitive life. He hadn't been there in weeks, not since school had become more of a prison than a place to learn.

But why now? His parents never just randomly invited him out for dinner, especially not to a place like Leon's. It was always business with them. Always too busy to take a break, caught up in their own world. This... this was different.

Another vibration. His phone lit up again—this time, a message from his mom.

Mom: Don't forget to bring your bag.

A knot tightened in Mikey's stomach. His bag? Why would he need his bag? For a brief second, he considered blowing it off, pretending he hadn't seen the texts. But he knew better. His parents didn't ask. They instructed.

He threw his phone onto the bed and stared at the ceiling for a long moment. Something felt off about this. His parents had always been secretive, but they were even more distant lately. His dad had been leaving earlier in the mornings, his mom glued to her laptop well into the night, barely sparing him a second glance during dinner. If they weren't arguing in hushed tones behind closed doors, they were texting cryptically in front of him, thinking he wouldn't notice.

Maybe tonight he'd finally get some answers.

Mikey glanced at the clock—6:15 PM. He had just enough time to make it if he left now. Grabbing his phone and slinging his backpack over one shoulder, he jogged down the stairs and out the front door without a word. His parents were probably already at Leon's. They hated being kept waiting.

---

The neon lights of Leon's Diner flickered against the darkening sky as Mikey pushed through the door. The familiar chime of the bell overhead rang out, and for a moment, he let the nostalgia wash over him. The place hadn't changed. The smell of burgers sizzling on the grill mixed with the sweetness of the milkshakes being poured behind the counter. A couple of waitresses bustled around, taking orders and balancing trays.

But Mikey's gaze fell to the corner booth near the window. There they were—his parents. His mom sat with her back straight, her hands folded neatly in her lap, while his dad stared down at his phone, his expression unreadable as usual.

Mikey hesitated by the entrance. For a second, he considered turning around and leaving. Maybe he didn't want to know what this was about. Maybe it was better not knowing.

But he forced his feet forward, making his way to the booth. His dad glanced up first, acknowledging him with a brief nod before returning to his phone. His mom smiled—a small, tight smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Right on time," she said as Mikey slid into the booth across from them. "Good."

"Uh, yeah. What's this about?" Mikey asked, trying to keep his voice casual, but there was a noticeable edge to it.

His dad finally pocketed his phone and leaned forward, his gaze sharp. "Mikey, it's time we talk. There's something you need to know."

Mikey's stomach tightened again. His dad's tone wasn't harsh, but it carried weight. Whatever they were about to tell him, it wasn't going to be some casual conversation.

His mom exchanged a glance with his dad before turning back to Mikey. "You've probably noticed we've been... busier than usual lately. We've tried to keep things as normal as possible for you, but—"

"Cut to the chase," Mikey interrupted, his patience wearing thin. "What's going on?"

His dad sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. "There's no easy way to say this, so I'll be direct. Your mom and I—we're not who you think we are."

Mikey blinked, confusion flickering across his face. "What do you mean? You're not who I think you are? What is that supposed to mean?"

His mom leaned in, her voice softer but no less serious. "Mikey, we're agents. Secret agents."

The words hung in the air between them, heavy and surreal. Mikey stared at them, waiting for the punchline, waiting for the laughter or the sarcastic quip that would break the tension. But there was none. His parents just sat there, watching him, waiting for him to process what they had just said.

Secret agents?

Mikey let out a breathless laugh, shaking his head. "Yeah, right. Good one."

His mom's expression didn't change. Neither did his dad's. They were serious.

Dead serious.

The laughter died in Mikey's throat as the reality of what they were saying began to sink in. He stared at them, trying to make sense of it all. His parents—secret agents? It sounded ridiculous. Absurd. But the look on their faces told him it was true.

"You're... serious?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

His dad nodded. "Deadly serious."

Mikey's mind raced, a thousand questions flooding his brain all at once. How? Why? How long had this been going on? Had they been lying to him his whole life? Every memory, every moment with his parents—it suddenly felt like a lie. A carefully constructed lie.

"How... How long?" he managed to ask, his voice strained.

"Since before you were born," his mom said quietly. "We've been part of this world for a long time, Mikey. And we wanted to keep you out of it. We wanted to give you a normal life for as long as possible."

"A normal life?" Mikey scoffed, his anger bubbling to the surface. "Is that what you call this? You've been lying to me for—what? My whole life? And now you just expect me to be okay with it?"

"It wasn't about lying," his dad said, his voice firm but not unkind. "It was about protecting you."

"Protecting me from what?" Mikey snapped. "From the truth?"

"From the dangers that come with this life," his mom said, her tone pleading for him to understand. "We did everything we could to keep you safe, to keep you out of this world. But things have changed. We can't protect you from it anymore. Not the way we used to."

Mikey's heart pounded in his chest, his mind spinning. This couldn't be real. His parents—secret agents? Everything he knew, everything he thought he knew about them, it was all unraveling right in front of him.

"You need to know the truth, Mikey," his dad said, his eyes locking onto Mikey's. "Because soon, you're going to be part of it, whether you like it or not."

Mikey stared at them, his thoughts a chaotic mess. The truth. His parents were secret agents. And somehow, this was just the beginning.