Each time I heard that, it drove me to be better. To make that man proud, even if I hated him. He is the only family I have. The only blood relation to me in this world.
When I was a kid, I would wish my mother would come back every day. I just want to know her. To have her love me the way I loved her. I may not have known her, but I felt love for the woman who gave birth to me.
As I got older, I still wanted her to come back, but not for the same reasons. At first, I wanted to know why she would leave me. Why wasn’t I good enough for her. But when the beatings started, I wanted her to come back and take me with her. Now, though, I never want to see her.
I learnt a long time ago that blood may be thicker than water, but your true family is the one you make. I made my family with my best friends. They were the only ones that mattered.
Until Serena.
She quickly dug her way under my skin without even trying. I never believed in love, but I am starting to fall in love with her. It’s like a cancer that is slowly spreading through my body, infecting every cell. A cancer that I never want to cut out. I want it to consume everything until it kills me.
That may not be a healthy way to look at love, but that is how I feel. Love is messy and dangerous. It can hurt you, kill you. Take over everything until there is nothing left.
I want to infect her the way she is infecting me. I want to consume every inch of her until the only thing her heart beats for is me.And my brothers, I guess.
The three of us have never really discussed what is happening between us and her. I have wanted to talk to them about it for a while, but there has never been a good enough time for that conversation. I guess we just let things happen organically, and in the end accept her decision on everything.
Unless that decision leads to Dante. That is never going to happen. Over my dead body. I will chain her in my basement before that shit could happen.
I have seen how my brothers look at her. How they care for her. How much they have changed since she came into the picture.
Odin smiles more. He has always been the one to wear a smile, but it was a mask. Covering the dirty truths of his past. Serena makes him genuinely smile.
Zeus has been a shell of a person since his accident. He lost himself, retreating into a dark place. He gave up feeling… anything. Serena slowly brings him out of that place, making him smile and feel again.
I think I am the biggest change. I hated the world. Always angry. Only had one goal in mind, and I didn’t care if I hurt anyone to get it. People were expendable to me. They meant nothing. Tools to use to get me what I wanted. But then a pretty, blonde girl came to town and showed me there is more to the world than the MC. That love is possible for someone like me. To open my world and heart to more.
She is a miracle worker without even trying.
The three of us are sitting in my room, playing video games and drinking beer. Zeus and Odin yell at each other as they play some shooting game. I never understood why they like this game. We have enough of that in the real world, so why play a game where the whole point is to kill? Whatever makes them happy, I guess.
Checking my phone for the dozenth time since we got home, hoping to see a text from her. I hate knowing she is out with our enemy. He may not be the one who shot her that night, but without knowing who the real stalker is, I don’t trust him. Dante Lupo is the definition of a demon. He is heartless, cruel, and bloodthirsty.
People could say the same of me.
“Dude. She is fine.” Odin says. His eyes never leave the screen as he aims the gun and fires.
“Odin is right. If there was a problem, she would call or text us. We may not trust Dante, but we can trust her.” Zeus pipes up.
They are right. I trust Serena to reach out if anything is wrong. And as much as I hate to admit it, if he really does care about her, Dante wouldn’t let anything happen to her.
That doesn’t stop the worry I feel. My grip tightens around my phone. I can practically hear the screen cracking. Tossing it on the bed, I get to my feet and start pacing. Forward fifteen steps, turn around, and another fifteen steps. Back and forth while I contemplate my next move.
Odin and Zeus give each other a knowing look, worry lining their faces. I let out a sigh. Never have I been a man who worries or feels out of control. This is new. I don’t like it. I took it upon myself to be responsible for Serena’s safety, and I can’t guarantee it right now. If something else happened to her, I don’t know how I would react.
“Just send her a text.” Odin sighs.
I don’t need to be told twice. I picked my phone back up and sent her a quick text.
Me: Just checking in, angel.
Please text me back.
That was probably the most desperate I have ever been in my life, but I feel a little better. I stare at the phone for a while, watching the minutes tick by with no answer.
I groan as my phone starts to ring. Of course, the last person I want to speak to is calling me. Dad. I let it ring a few times, hoping he would just hang up. After the fifth ring, I answer.
“Come to the clubhouse.” My dad says and then hangs up.
