CHAPTER 64: LOVE AND SECRETS.

Hiro opened his eyes after what felt like a lifetime. He had been in bed for more than twenty-four hours. It was all Taros’ idea—his crazy way of forcing Hiro to rest. If it wasn’t for the damn medication, he wouldn’t have stayed still for that long.

And to make it worse, it was Saturday morning. Nothing to do. No action. No mission. Just an empty day.

He sat up and looked down at his chest. That was where the bullet had hit him. The pain was gone, but the scar was there—clear and ugly. That wasn’t like Taros. He never left a scar behind. Hiro was just about to complain when the door opened, and in came Taros and Kael.

"Thank goddess. I was about to send for you," Hiro said, looking at them both. He noticed the way they glanced at each other, confused by his welcome. He shook his head. "Taros, man, why the fuck did you leave a scar? You know how much I love my skin. It sparkles, bro. Why?"

Taros didn’t look amused. He walked over to the drawer beside the bed, pulled out a bottle of pills, and placed them in Hiro’s hand.

"It’s a reminder that you should stay away from trouble," he said.

Hiro frowned and touched the scar on his chest. It was just above his heart. A close call. Too close.

"That’s not a good enough excuse," he muttered. That guard hadn’t missed by accident. Whoever sent him wanted Hiro dead. He aimed to kill.

"And next time, you’ll remember that when you look in the mirror," Taros replied, handing him a glass of water. "Take the pills. They’ll clear out any poison left in your system."

Hiro didn’t argue. He took the pills and swallowed them quickly, chasing them with water. Then he looked at Taros.

"Thanks," he said. "But not for the scar. Just the meds."

Taros smiled a little. "All the same."

He sat beside the bed while Kael remained in the chair, silent. Hiro glanced at him and could already guess what was coming. That same damn question.

And just like he feared, Taros didn’t wait long.

"Tell me, bro," he said. "How did you get shot? What did you do this time?"

The usual smirk on Hiro’s face faded. He looked away and rolled his eyes. This again. Kaito had asked the same thing last night. Now it was Taros. Renn would come next. The questions wouldn’t stop. And him? He wasn’t planning to tell any of them.

"Don’t start, Taros," Hiro said as he leaned back into his pillows. He had hoped they’d be glad to see him awake. But no, they were all too busy trying to dig into the story. "It was nothing serious."

"Nothing serious?" Taros snapped, turning to Kael, who nodded in full agreement. "You got shot in the chest with a deadly bullet. If we were one second late, you’d be in the ground right now. Are you mad? What kind of lie is ’nothing serious’?"

"I didn’t die. Thanks to you," Hiro said with a small chuckle. But inside, his thoughts were far from light. He didn’t understand why the blue-eyed Alpha was so interested in what happened to him last night. Was he trying to help, or was he just gathering information to pass to Kaito? After all, Kaito and Taros were close.

"Thanks again. But I need to get rid of this scar," Hiro added, touching his face. "I can’t face any girl like this."

Kael chuckled, trying not to laugh too loud. But Hiro couldn’t hold it in and laughed anyway.

"What’s funny now?" Taros asked, his tone sharp. "You always do this. Use jokes and laughter to cover up the pain. But I know you. You’re hiding something. Since you don’t want to talk, fine. I’m leaving."

"Thank you for finally understanding that it was just an accident," Hiro said quickly "Thanks for finally getting that it was just an accident."

"I made sure of it," Kael said, his voice low and cold.

"But if it wasn’t an accident," Taros said, his voice low and serious, "then you’ve just created a mess that could pull us all into danger. You know that weapon used on you wasn’t ordinary. It was made especially for alphas. Rare. Expensive. Not something you just find anywhere. If someone had that kind of bullet and used it on you, they might come for the rest of us too.

The room fell silent. Taros’ words sent a chill through Hiro’s body, though he didn’t know why. It was just his brother talking. Still, something about the warning sank deep into his bones.

"You don’t need to worry," Hiro said, trying to sound calm. "If there’s a mess, I’ll clean it up."

He paused, then asked, "Have you seen Angel?"

"He was here the night you got hurt," Taros replied. He noticed the small smile that formed on Hiro’s face and found it strange. "Don’t get out of bed till tomorrow. Got it?"

"Sure, doc," Hiro said with a lazy grin.

As soon as Taros left, Hiro sighed deeply. That was close. Taros had almost seen through him. Almost uncovered the truth. Hiro knew he had to fix the damage he caused. But if what Taros said was true... if that he involved them all in this mess?

Could it be that Principal Valois gave the order?

**

Taros made his way to the West House. It had been a while since he last saw Angel. Last night, Kaito mentioned that Angel had gone missing. The news shook him. He had offered to help search, but Kaito told him not to worry and that he could handle it.

Since Taros had spent the whole day attending to Hiro, he stayed back and rested as advised.

Later that night, Kaito sent a message saying Angel had been found. He had gone to the East House. Taros didn’t bother asking what took him there or why. Knowing Angel was safe was enough to calm him.

This morning, he decided to go and see him. Maybe they could talk, maybe catch up on all the time they’d missed. But even as he walked, he wondered why he was trying so hard. Since the day they met, Angel had been on his mind, and he wasn’t going to lie about it—not even to himself.

He had thought about Angel every day.

He remembered the night they went out together. They had almost kissed, and he wasn’t ashamed of it. What hurt more was how much he thought about that moment afterward. Maybe something inside him changed. Maybe he had started to like boys.

But why just one? Why Angel?

He didn’t have the answers, and he was tired of questioning himself. If Angel were a girl, things would be easier. He would have told him how much he cared. How deeply he felt. Because this wasn’t a crush. This was something more. This was love.

But Angel wasn’t a girl. So Taros told himself he’d make it work another way.

Maybe the Mother Goddess wouldn’t understand why he wanted someone who wasn’t his mate. But not everyone’s story followed the rules.

If loving Angel meant giving up who he thought he was, then maybe it was worth it.

But then, he stopped in his tracks. Was he going too far?

He sighed.

He had always been the Ladies’ man. Girls adored him. He never struggled for attention. So why now? Why this change? Was it really possible that Angel wasn’t a boy at all? Was there something he didn’t know?

No. That couldn’t be. If Angel was a girl, he would have said something by now.

"Are you alright, Alpha?"

The voice brought him out of his thoughts. It was Alex. He had a backpack slung over his shoulder and looked ready for class.

"Hey, Alex," Taros greeted and raised his fist. Alex smiled and met him halfway with his own. Their knuckles touched lightly.

"How are you? And how’s Hiro?"

"He’s good. We’re both fine," Taros replied, glancing around as if searching for someone.

"You’re looking for Angel?" Alex asked with a knowing smile.

"Yes. Do you know where he is?" Taros didn’t bother to hide it.

"He’s in class. We were supposed to study together, but he left earlier than me," Alex explained. Then he offered, "Why don’t you come with me? I’m heading there now."

"Alright. Let’s go," Taros agreed without hesitation.

They walked side by side, chatting a little about the football match coming up that evening. But Taros wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation.

His mind was somewhere else.

All he wanted was to see Angel.

**