The boys had spent five days at Kieran's mansion, enjoying the lavish surroundings and hospitality, but the tension between them and Kieran only grew. Despite the smiles and pleasantries, there was something about his intense gaze and the way he subtly complimented them that made them uneasy. As the time for their departure came closer, they found themselves dreading the final moments.
Cior was busy with some last-minute preparations when Kieran summoned the boys to his office. His expression was unreadable, his usual carefree demeanor absent. They stepped into the room, the air thick with anticipation.
Kieran stood by his desk, arms crossed, his gaze piercing as he looked each of them over. "I have something to say," he started, his tone unnervingly calm. "This might stir up emotions, but I need you to listen carefully. You will break your friendship with my little cupcake."
The boys froze, unable to fully process what was being said. "That's impossible," they all said, voices firm but shaking with the weight of Kieran's words.
Kieran's eyes narrowed, and his tone grew colder, sharper. "Do you think you can protect her when you don't even know the full story? She's here for a reason. She joined the boys' academy because of things none of you understand. And one or two of your families are involved in all of this."
The room grew unbearably silent, each of the boys feeling the weight of Kieran's words press down on them. They wanted to ask, to demand answers, but the chill in his voice made it clear that it wasn't the time to push.
Before they could gather their thoughts, Cior burst into the room, her presence commanding attention as always. She glanced at her father briefly but then turned her focus to the boys. Without saying a word to Kieran, she waved her hand, and in an instant, the boys were teleported out of the office and into another part of the mansion.
The boys stood in the new room, the silence between them deafening. They didn't speak, not yet. They could feel Kieran's words lingering in the air like a storm that hadn't yet passed.
Cior, clearly unaware of the weight of the conversation they'd just had, sighed as she looked at them. "You guys look like you've just seen a ghost. It's just my dad—don't mind him. He can be... intense."
The boys exchanged uneasy glances, but none of them spoke a word. They had heard enough to know that the truth was far more complicated than they could have imagined, and they weren't about to bring it up to Cior. Not yet.
Instead, they silently nodded, pretending as if nothing had happened, but each of them was shaken in their own way by what they had just learned—and by the storm that seemed to be gathering around her, and them.
The boys gathered in the corner of the mansion, away from Cior's room, their minds heavy with the implications of Kieran's words. It was late at night, and the moonlight filtered through the windows, casting shadows on the walls as they tried to process everything.
"So you mean that the experiment thingy... one of our families is involved?" Mateo asked, his voice low, trying to make sense of the revelation.
Arven crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, his expression serious. "According to his tone, it seems like she doesn't know which of us—or that she doesn't suspect any of our families. But why would he say something like that? It doesn't add up."
Ziven, who had been uncharacteristically quiet, rubbed the back of his neck, his usual smirk replaced with a rare frown. "If what Kieran's saying is true, it means that someone we know—someone close to us—is tangled up in all of this. But... why would she join the academy then? If she knew about the involvement, she could've easily gone after the truth herself. Why go undercover, of all things?"
Amaias, who had been the most composed, glanced at the others. "Maybe she didn't have a choice. Maybe the only way to get close to whoever is behind this is to stay in the shadows. But then again, her dad… he's not the kind of man to be vague unless it's for a reason. Maybe he's trying to protect her. Maybe she doesn't want us to know."
Mateo shook his head, the weight of it all sinking in. "If she doesn't know, why is Kieran so certain about it? He's been keeping an eye on us, hasn't he? He knows everything about us, about what we're capable of... What if he's just trying to protect her from us? Or worse, from some of us?"
"Whatever his reasons are," Ziven added, his voice rougher than usual, "he's making it clear that we're not just dealing with some normal academy drama. There's something much deeper here, and we've just been pulled into it."
Arven's eyes narrowed. "You're right, Ziven. And if we're honest with ourselves... none of us really know Cior that well. She's been hiding things from us for a reason. What if everything we thought we knew about her was just a front?"
They all paused, the weight of those words hanging in the air. For a long moment, none of them spoke. The idea that Cior, the girl they had come to care about, was hiding such a massive part of herself, was difficult to accept.
"She doesn't suspect any of us, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't be careful," Amaias said quietly, his voice steady. "If she's been involved in something dangerous... something that involves our families... we might be in over our heads."
Mateo sighed, running a hand through his hair. "We need to figure out who's involved in this. Not just for us, but for her too. We can't keep pretending everything's fine when Kieran is laying it out like that. He wouldn't make a threat unless he meant it."
The room fell silent again, each of them lost in their thoughts. Finally, Ziven broke the silence with a hard, determined tone.
"We'll figure this out. And when we do, we'll make sure she's safe. No matter what her father says, no one is taking her away from us."
Amaias nodded, his usual calm demeanor unshaken. "We don't need to rush, but we need to be smart. Whatever this is, we'll get to the bottom of it."
But in the silence that followed, there was a shared feeling of unease. They couldn't help but feel that they were on the verge of something far bigger than any of them could have anticipated.
And Cior, despite her strength and resolve, was right in the middle of it.