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I made him promise that he’d never utter a word of what he saw. He didn’t. His vow has stayed strong since that day until now. It was the last time I saw Yasmine, and then only a week later, there was an accident, and Tarian’s world was tipped on its axis.
Nothing we did could heal him, so we waited. We got drunk with him every weekend, and I only drowned my sorrows because I thought I’d lost the one woman I loved. She told me everything about her relationship. I learned things that her son probably didn’t know.
And all this time, secrets were kept. Years of truths hidden away because we’re all afraid we’ll hurt those we love. And that’s the problem with keeping things inside, they tend to fester until there’s nothing good inside you anymore.
“So,” Ares speaks again. “Open your mouth.” I do as he says and feel the straw on my lips. I suck on it too quickly, choking on the icy liquid that trickles down my throat. Everything hurts. My chest burns, and I wonder what they did to me, how long it took for my friends to find me before they escaped with Rukaiya.
It feels as if every time I get close enough, she slips through my fingers. I want to find her. I need to find her. She doesn’t know it yet, but she’s mine.
“I saw her,” Ares tells me in a hushed whisper. “Tarian’s mother is alive.”
“W-wh-what?”
“Don’t play coy with me, Etienne. You saw her, too. Didn’t you?” His voice is accusing, and I want to hide. I want to deny it, but I could never lie to my brothers. Keeping something from them, yes, I can do that. Case in point. But lying is something completely different.
My eyes finally open, and my vision is slightly blurry as I take in Ares and his glower. He doesn’t look happy, but I didn’t think he would be.
“Y-y-yes.”
He watches me for a moment before he sighs. “This isn’t good. Tarian’s going to find out, and it’s best he finds out from you rather than that lying bitch.” The anger in his tone is warranted. What she did was wrong, but it doesn’t stop the agony in my chest from my stupidity of falling for it. I should’ve known better. Hell, I should’ve been more mature in realizing that I was nothing more than a distraction.
Also, I should’ve realized it was illegal. To be honest, I knew it was, and that’s probably why I didn’t say anything. She didn’t make me do anything I didn’t want to do. But I should’ve known better.
“Listen to me,” Ares says, holding the glass, so I can take another sip of water. The cool liquid eases the burning in my throat, and I lie back, watching my best friend. “There are a lot of things I know Tarian will forgive, but this…” he allows his words to filter into nothing, and I nod. He’s right.
“Ares,” I manage to get out. “I will tell him, I just… I can’t do it right now. My minds all fucked up. Seeing her, it’s weird. You know?”
“What about Rukaiya?” Ares questions, and I can’t help but feel the stabbing pain right to my heart. She’s mine.
“I have to find her,” I tell him earnestly. “She’s mine, Ares. I can’t be without her. I can’t explain it, we haven’t spent that much time together, and even though I’ve only known her for a year, I…”
“Is the god of love really falling?” Ares chuckles. I want to punch him in the face, but right now, there’s pain shooting through my body each time I move.
“You’re an asshole,” I bite out.
He nods, knowingly, as he tells me honestly, “I know, and that’s why we’re friends.” There’s always been a camaraderie between us, an allegiance, and if Tarian were here, I’d feel it, too, because we are brothers. Perhaps not by blood, but by the loyalty that runs through our veins.
“We are. Brothers.”
“Aww, you two make me swoon,” Tarian saunters inside with a joint hanging from his lips. He wouldn’t be able to do that if we were in a hospital. Glancing around, I notice that we’re at the Lancaster mansion.
“Fuck you,” Ares bites out as he rises, pulling the smoke from our friend’s lips and inhaling a lungful before handing it back to Tarian. “Weed is good for healing, you should have some.”
I hold out my hand for a toke on the joint, and Tarian hands it to me. Placing it between my lips, I pull in a deep breath and allow the smoke to fill my chest, and lungs then slowly let it out. The white cloud billows from my lips as I watch it dissipate.
“Tarian,” I finally say. “There’s something I need to talk to you about.”
