AIDAN

For the next two days, we trained harder than humanly possible. Literally. Every spare minute was devoted to developing any ability we had shown even any amount of possessing. The living room would never be the same. We even took training a step further by buying floor mats to turn the living room into our own fighting arena.

As Mr. Serious suggested, I tried getting control of my monster mode. At first, nothing happened from trying to tap into the power, until I lunged toward Lana. I only managed my volatile persona, rather than transforming. Nadia, thankfully, electrified me until I seized like I had stuck my finger in a light socket. I suggested we save my transformation training until Friday morning.

Nadia lost her mind trying to train her fire against my teleportation. She would have caused serious damage to the house if not for Lana keeping the extinguisher with her at all times. The last thing we covered was my telepathy. I focused on the different rhythms of Nadia and Lana’s brains in order to hear them whether down the street or in another city. Lana and I tested the theory by driving to different cities with successful results.

More than anything, we needed a break. Nadia, Lana, and I agreed we needed to get out of the house and have some fun. Remembering the cocktail party Chris told us about a month ago, we halted training for the night. After rummaging through Lance’s clothes, I managed to find a blue dress shirt only slightly snug, along with a pair of black slacks. The girls slipped into scraps of fabric that stretched into cute cocktail attire. The three of us loaded into Lana’s car since she always did her drop-top sports car justice. We were speeding before we even left the driveway.

Nadia, Lana, and I pulled up to the downtown apartment complex Chris lived in, parking the car on the street. The beautiful high-rise was right in the heart of the Central Business District surrounded by restaurants and hotels. We walked towards the glass doors and dialed the code into the keypad. Once the door unlocked, we proceeded to the elevators at the far end of the lobby.

We rode the elevator to the fifteenth floor as I checked the time on my phone. 10:57, which meant we were about an hour late. The doors chimed open to a dark hallway. The apartments were barely visible, save for small white numbers lit above the peephole. We walked through the hall to Chris’ apartment and knocked. Strangely, I didn't hear any sound.

I leaned forward but jumped back when Chris swung the door open and an ocean of chatter spilled out. "Hey, y'all, thanks for coming late. I'm honored y’all could find the time to squeeze me and my little party in." Chris had lightened his red hair for the party, and judging from his glowing skin, a facial.

Nadia stepped in front of us and placed her hands on her hips. "My mama taught me to never go to a party without bringing something for the host." She smiled and lifted her hands above her head to present herself.

Chris gave her a grin. "Is your mama’s name Miss Jackson?"

I let Lana and Nadia walk ahead while I stayed by Chris. "So, has anyone fallen over the balcony?”

Chris grinned and lifted his chin. “Not yet, but it’s early and I have faith.”

I pointed to Lana and Nadia heading straight for the open bar. “No need to worry. I'm pretty sure I came with assurance for that.” Coming from the same direction, Jackson locked eyes with me. I ground my teeth together and whispered to Chris. "Is there a reason you lied when you told me Jackson wasn't going to be here?"

Chris looked around utterly confounded. “Gosh, I guess I didn't see him come in."

I kept my volume at a panicked whisper. "Chris, I told you I’m not in a place right now to date anyone." I had decided pursuing things with Jackson wouldn't be safe for him with my current danger-prone status. No matter how much I wanted the opposite. Every text, call, or message from Jackson had been reluctantly ignored in the hopes he would lose interest in me.

"No turning back now." Chris pushed me forward, right into Jackson. "Kristian,” Chris yelled turning away from us. “You skinny slut, when did you get here?"

Jackson's hands steadied me from falling.

I readjusted to a comfortable two-foot gap. "Sorry about that."

Jackson laughed and sipped his wine. "Not to worry. Chris has been acting strange all night. He wanted me to text him when I was at the door, but wouldn't look at me when he let me in."

I looked over my shoulder at Chris a few yards away as he tried to covertly watch Jackson and me. “Really? I guess you could say he didn’t see you come in.” Turning back to Jackson, my gaze locked in on his. I couldn't stop staring at the green of his irises. I was cool on my birthday. I had no idea why I was so anxious now.

Jackson moved in closer to me to whisper. "You get more attractive every time I see you."

“Oh, god. I’m salivating again.” An awkward laugh escaped my mouth. "Guess I'm two for two. Boy, you sure know how to boost a guy's self-esteem. You look really fantastic yourself. You're just so clean and shiny." I finished with finger guns. “In what world did that seem like a smooth move?!”

Lana came sprinting towards us, drink practically spilling everywhere. "Jackson, it's so good to see you. How are you?"

Jackson returned her a smile but kept his gaze on me. "I'm doing great. And enjoying the company of your handsome friend here."

Sweat was already forming at my lower back. “Knees about to give out!”

Jackson turned back to Lana and continued. "How are you, besides breathtakingly beautiful?"

She placed one hand on her hip while tilting her head. "I'm doing amazing. The only thing is my head started hurting out of nowhere. Must have something to do with all the thoughts invading my head. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about, right, Aidan?" Lana turned to me with a quick, irritated look.

“Oh. My bad,” I thought to her.

Chris’ black Labrador, Jazz, came strolling up from the hallway. The dog looked like Gypsy, except part beagle, rather than a full lab. I looked at Jazz with contempt. We didn’t get along.

The dog’s head dropped while staring at me. “Aidan. Another foul, insipid human to come convey more debauchery. Even more so, another homosexual. He can add to the ever-mounting immorality infesting my home.”

“Bitch.” The word fell out of my mouth.

The dog let out a huff. “As usual, your mouth is as filthy as ever. My ears cannot bear much more of these inane and idiotic conversations.”

Jackson glanced at the dog. “What is it?”

I pulled back into focus. "Nothing. I’m gonna get wine. You want wine?” I grabbed Jackson’s almost empty glass from him. "I'm gonna get you more wine. Come on, Lana. You're good at sniffing out wine." I moved to the kitchen, pushing Lana forward.

Lana scowled at me as we headed away from the crowd. “Okay, first you give me a massive headache with your telepathic panic attack and now you're shoving me around. What the hell is wrong with you?” She heatedly whispered so no one, Jackson especially, would hear us from the next room.

I got right in her face. “I can hear Jazz.”

Lana stepped back. "The dog? What’s he saying?” From the next room, we heard something of a scuffle. Lana and I peered around the corner and saw Jackson drop to his knees to tease Jazz by playfully pulling at the dog’s tail and collar.

Everyone around him continued to laugh even though the bark they heard sounded different to me. “Unhand me you loathsome beast! Mark my words, I will rid this world of your kind and finally be done with the meddlesome plague of humans! My canine brethren and I shall see your demise.”

I shook my head at Lana and moved back into the kitchen. Leaning on the countertop, I heard an extremely high-pitched scream and jumped. “That sounded a little too close.”

Lana looked at me with concern, probably because I was acting like a crazy person. “What is it now?”

I plugged one ear with a finger and raised my voice. “I don’t know, but I feel like I'm losing my mind. You don’t hear that screaming?”

Lana looked around suspiciously. "No. Is it the dog?”

I zoned in on Jazz to check. “-is look to the media for your answer. Society has no respect for your kind. They merely see homosexuals as humorous abominations. A twisted and horrendous form of entertainment. There is quite possi-.”

I breathed out an exhausted sigh. “No, he’s just pissing me off. Don't ask.”

The screaming subsided to sobbing and heavy breathing. A blue glint in my peripheral caught my attention. I looked at Chris’ beta fish, Sparkles. It was casually floating in his bowl next to the stove. “You’ve got to be kidding me.” Still unsure, I leaned closer to the glass.

The squeaky voice shrieked bloody murder. "No! Please don’t! I don’t wanna die! I don’t wanna die! Please! Have mercy! Sanctuary!” My eyes bugged out watching the fish release a bubble and float in place.

Lana bent down to look with me. “It’s the fish isn’t it?”

Chris and Nadia entered the kitchen, interrupting Lana’s question. Chris pointed at me while smirking. “Is someone trying to play hard to get? Because you should be playing easy to catch? That boy is hotter than a cow's ass on branding day.”

I stood back and watched, or rather heard the fish drown everyone else out. “It’s the tall one! He’s gonna eat me! I know he is! I’ve seen him cook my cousins! He’s torturing me by placing me next to where he cremates them! It can't end this way!” The fish just continued floating.

I ran my hands down my face. "If anybody needs me, I'll be getting some fresh air." After exiting the kitchen, I moved through the living room crowd towards the balcony. Stepping outside as the last smoker re-entered the party, I breathed deeply. “What is happening to me? I can't seem to shut any of these abilities off.” Staring at the city skyline, I heard the balcony door sliding open behind me. It may have been rude not to turn around, but I couldn't pull away from the serene view in front of me.

A familiar voice came from behind me. "Now this couldn't be better if I had planned it myself."

I turned around to Jackson’s grin and, yet again, my knees went weak. “Shoot. I forgot about your drink.” I headed for the balcony doors.

Jackson’s gaze followed my every movement before he stuck his arm out to block me from passing. "Aidan, please. You haven't responded to any of my texts, or calls and now you can barely stay near me for longer than a few minutes. Why are you avoiding me? I thought we had a really great night on your birthday." My stomach twisted at the sadness in Jackson’s green eyes. “Please tell me I'm just crazy.”

I took a deep breath, knowing I needed to say something. "Look, Jackson, you're absolutely incredible. We had a wonderful night. And yes, we have an amazing connection." The smile on Jackson’s face told me I was going in the wrong direction. "But I have a lot happening in my life right now. I can’t give us the right amount of attention to start anything and that wouldn't be fair to you." I wanted to give him a chance to respond, but I would lose my nerve if I did. "I'm not saying we can't be friends, but I think it's best if we put a pin in us for now." I tried to move toward the door, again, but Jackson pulled me towards him and used his body to press me against a wall, hidden from the party guests. I tried to push back, but he stood his ground. "What’s happening right now?" I became nervous with every passing second.

"Well, if you didn't try walking away every time you finished a sentence, I wouldn't have to hold you down to get my feelings out." I opened my mouth, but Jackson raised his eyebrows in a warning. "I've lived all over the world. I've been to more countries than I can recall. I've climbed mountains and sailed seas and I've done things few people get to do in their life." Jackson leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. "I've never experienced anyone or anything like you, and I don't want to risk the chance I never will again." Our faces were barely an inch apart. "Let me show you what I mean."

My breathing became heavy and my hands shook as Jackson’s eyes shut and his lips moved towards my own. No. If I kissed him then, I wouldn’t stop. Before our lips touched, I slid from between Jackson and the wall and headed into the party, never once looking back. My head was spinning so fast, that I didn’t realize I walked all the way out of the apartment until Nadia and Lana came following.

Nadia stumbled a bit as she exited. "Aidan, what you did? You break something, again?" She slurred.

Lana was, thankfully, sober. "Is everything okay? We saw Jackson go outside."

I stifled back a sob. “Can we please go? I can't go back in there.”

They pulled me in for a tight hug and we walked down the hallway together. I gave them the full explanation in the car on the way home. Neither tried to reason with me. They knew the truth. Jackson would be safer far from me.