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Micah stood in front of the mirror, staring at himself without a smile. Esmeralda patted his chest.

“I see your parents in you. I see that damn Armani too,” she chuckled as she examined the suit. “That young fool had to go and kick the bucket before I could kill him for getting into another fight.”

Micah had lost a few pounds from going three days without eating. His eyes were red and puffy and his face looked more angular. He just stared at the mirror before turning to me.

It broke my heart to see him look so hopeless, as if he had lost all desire to go on. Esmeralda told me to keep an eye on him while she went over to her house. She warned me to not get into any fights too.

Micah sighed as she left and sat down on the bed. He hadn’t gone to his room since we got back three days ago; he only stayed in Armani’s. Armani’s scent was still there, so it comforted him, but it was going to fade away eventually.

“How are you feeling?” I asked.

He closed his eyes and sighed. “I don’t want to live anymore… but I don’t want to die either. If I die, we all lose.”

That sounded familiar. Armani had said something like that before. It was heart-breaking to hear him say that he didn’t want to live.

“I want you to live, Micah,” I said, cupping his face in my hands. “And so does Esmeralda. Armani would want you to keep living your life too.”

“He told me that he wanted to see me grow up and become a lawyer,” Micah croaked as a tear slid down his cheek. His face contorted in anger. “But he just left me like this! How can I become a lawyer when there is no justice in the world?”

“There is justice, Micah,” I answered with a sigh. “Sometimes bad things happen to good people.”

“Why?” he cried. “Armani didn’t ask to be born an Omega. But that’s why he… he…” Micah couldn’t bring himself to say the words. “He was just twenty-four! In ten years I lost both my parents and my brother!”

“Bad things don’t discriminate. They happen unexpectedly to anyone, even to good people too. It’s just the cycle of life. But no matter what, the good you do will always be remembered in someone’s heart.” I paused. “What do you think Armani would say if he was here right now?”

“Make sure you smile at my funeral. And don’t you dare bury me underground where I can’t see the sky.”

I smiled with a nod of agreement. “That does sound like something Armani would say.”

“He would say, ‘I love my little brother more than my own life’,” Esmeralda added, coming back into the room. She wore all black with a black shawl over her head. “I know that, because it’s something he told me before. Now are we just going to sit around talking about the good old days?” she asked impatiently. “Don’t keep your brother waiting.”

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The funeral service was short and to the point. A lot of tears were shed. Micah got to view his brother’s body one last time before the cremation. Armani’s face was peaceful and he wore a slight smile.

“He got to meet up with your parents first,” Esmeralda said, dabbing at her eyes. “They probably weren’t expecting him so soon. They should just send him back.”

A few Omegas turned up. It was a pleasant surprise becsuse I didn’t expect them to be there after those Betas had threatened them not to come. I kept looking back for Ashton, but he never showed up. I spotted someone like Jun outside, but he was gone as soon as I saw him and I wondered if I had imagined it.

After the cremation, Armani’s ashes were placed into an urn painted with a cloud filled sky and three birds. His name was written at the top of it in gold cursive letters. The urn was well made and I was grateful to Esmeralda who had gone out of her way to prepare it. I hoped that she would keep the money Ashton had refunded to her.

Micah wore a small, sad smile all throughout the funeral and then when he got home, he placed the urn on a table by a window.

He looked exhausted. Both mentally and physically. It was a lot for a young boy or even anyone to go through.

“You should get some rest, human girl,” Esmeralda suggested as she sat on the edge of Micah’s bed. “I’ll stay with him tonight.”

“I can stay too,” I offered, but she shook her head. “You’ve done enough. Come back tomorrow if you want, but I’m sure your parents are wondering where you are.”

“I’ve already explained to them where I am,” I protested.

“I’m saying this for his sake,” she pressed. “Let him spend a night without you. He shouldn’t get too attached to having you by his side all the time.”

I sighed and decided to leave Micah in her hands. I texted Ashton as I drove to his house. The past three days had been an absolute rollercoaster of emotions. Callie was shooting a scene in another state and couldn’t come to the funeral while Melissa and Trey were still on their university tour overseas. It would have been nice if they could have come, but their situations were totally understandable.

Ashton’s house felt so strangely huge compared to Micah’s. The house was eerily quiet. It still felt weird just walking in without ringing the doorbell, but Ashton didn’t want me announcing to his dad that I was there every time I came over.

I texted him again, but he didn’t reply. I frowned. Was he even at home? He hadn’t come to the funeral either. I tried calling him, but it just went straight to voicemail. That was weird.

I considered going up to his room, but I was in no mood to see his father. I couldn’t afford to argue with him either, or someone would end up getting hurt and I didn’t want that.

I turned to leave when the doors opened and CaVaughn came in. His chest was bare which meant he'd probably just finished training. I quickly averted my eyes from the toned six pack on display.

“Hey,” I waved at him

He nodded at me and headed to the kitchen. I trailed behind him. Maybe he knew where Ashton was.

He grabbed a bottled water and downed it in less than five seconds.

“Are you feeling okay?” I asked tentatively. Ashton had said he'd puked blood a few days ago and that sounded like some serious internal bleeding to me.

“What do you want?” he asked emotionlessly.

“Um… I was looking for Ashton. I can’t reach him on his phone.” I frowned.

“He’s training,” CaVaughn replied. “It’s his punishment.”

“Punishment for what?”

“He went around to the Omegas, telling them to go the funeral if they wanted to. The king didn’t like that. So he’s doing shock training.”

“Sh-shock?” I stuttered. “Please tell me you’re not talking about electricity.”

CaVaughn nodded and my eyes went wide in horror. I was shocked at that. No pun intended.

“He can handle it.”

“That really doesn’t make me feel any better,” I grimaced.

CaVaughn walked around me.

“Are you okay though?” I asked quickly.

“I’ve never been better,” he answered with dry sarcasm.

“Is there anything I can do to help with all of this?”

CaVaughn turned to me with an almost expressionless frown. “That's something you have to think about for yourself.”

I blew a frustrated gust of air upwards. I did think about it, and everything just led back to me accepting Ashton. We’d been together for a few months and I was getting to learn more about him and like him more each day.

I didn’t really have a problem with the soulmate bond anymore. I had reasoned that out. But accepting Ashton meant that I would have to marry him or something like that. And that was a whole different case.

CaVaughn sighed. “Come with me.”

“Where are we going?” I asked as he strode out of the room and up the stairs.

“The king’s back. I can’t let him see you.”

I frowned as we went up to the third floor and into CaVaughn’s room. It was pitch black in there. I stayed quiet while CaVaughn opened the door slightly and listened intently. I couldn’t hear anything.

“For f*cks sake, just leave them out of this!” I heard Ashton shout.

Leave who out of what?

I leaned closer towards the door.

“Elizabeth’s not here!” Ashton yelled. There was a pause. “Her scent is here, which means she was here not too long ago.”

I struggled to hear what the king was saying; he was talking too low for my ears. CaVaughn glanced down at me, but his expression gave nothing away.

“I’m going to mark her when she’s ready,” Ashton growled. I heard loud footsteps coming up the stairs.

“Ashton,” CaVaughn whispered and Ashton shot a glare in our direction.

“What?” he hissed, coming over. Midway he paused and narrowed his eyes. “What are you doing in there?” he groaned.

I guess he was talking to me. CaVaughn opened the door and I slipped out and went over to Ashton. He frowned at CaVaughn who had already shut his door.

“Am I stuck up here?” I asked nervously.

“Yep. Cav did something smart for once,” he muttered, taking me to his room. “If the king had seen you it would have been game over.”

“How was training?” I asked, crossing my arms.

“It was kind of shocking.” He shrugged.

“Ashton, thank you for what you did today.”

“For helping you with those guys? You don’t have to thank me for that.”

“No, not that. I was really happy when those people turned up at the funeral.”

He frowned. “Cav just can’t keep his mouth shut can he. How was it?”

I sat on his lap and cuddled up to him. “Sad, but that’s how most funerals are.”

“I see,” he said. “I’m sorry I let this happen. If I had just double checked-”

“Shh,” I said, quieting him. “It’s not your fault.”

He stared down at the sheets, unconvinced. “I’m really worried I might turn out like him one day,” he grimaced.

“Ashton, you are not your father. You might have similarities, but that’s normal. You have a heart that cares for your kingdom,” I said, placing my hand over his heart. “That makes a world of difference. The king just plays with everyone as if they’re puppets.”

Ashton sighed and I snuggled up to him. “Will you cheer up if I give you a kiss?”

He cracked a smile. “Maybe. We’ll have to see.”

I grinned and kissed him. He deepened the kiss and flipped me over onto the bed. I could feel all his emotions in this kiss. My skin sang where his fingers brushed me. I stared up into his blue eyes and smiled. “Did it work?”

“I think so,” he smirked.

“Good to know.” I slipped out from under him and he frowned. “I’m leaving before you get tempted to do more than just kiss.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” he chuckled. “I really want to.”

“You want to…” I trailed off as my face heated up

“Of course,” he smirked. “Every time you kiss me it sends me into overdrive. It’s like nothing I’ve felt before and I really want to take it further. But I’m not going to pressure you into having sex if you’re not ready.”

“That’s sweet, Ashton,” I smiled. “I didn’t think you were the waiting type.”

“Everything is different with you. It's real. I can take it slow for a while.”

I kissed him again and then stood up before I got tempted to stay longer. “My parents have not seen me in three days. I’m worried they’ll start hallucinating about me.”

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My parents descended on me with crushing hugs when I got home.

“How is your friend doing?” mom asked worriedly

“He’s taking his time to recover,” I sighed. “He is just fourteen.”

“That’s unfortunate,” dad sighed and I nodded.

Micah was pretty young and already so much had been taken from him. I went to sleep that night dreaming about Armani smiling down at Micah from the sky.

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