"Did you hear that?" My voice destroyed my own mood and cursed my tongue from my upcoming sexual movements. "There's someone in the house," I whispered and forbade her to follow me. "Stay here," I ordered. Hazel's face was decent and attentive. "Lock the door, don't do anything until I come back." Her hands were shaking like violent earthquakes. Her voice measured the temperature of her silent fears, abruptly.

"Maybe it's the wind..." Hazel assured. "Hawk? What are you doing? Why are you holding a gun right now?" Her questions perpetuated my emotions to a different world. Hazel was asking too many questions.

"Stay here, Hazel..." I insisted. "I'll come back. I promise." I kissed her small forehead and closed the door after me.

My feet calculated each and every step, actively. I began to descend the stairs one by one and noticed that the kitchen lights were on. Someone was definitely in the house. I tiptoed from my original place to my final destination. My heart started to melt inside my chest as soon as my eyes laid on that imbecile that was examining a bunch of papers in front of him on the counter.

First of all, what are you doing here, Jack? It's three o'clock in the morning. Second of all, how did you get in? Do you even have a key to the house? Am I missing something? Jack, you're my brother and all but you can't just interrupt me when I'm about to get some from my baby girl. How am I supposed to have my own privacy when you're always around?

Damn, Jack.

"Jack?" I let out a deep sigh. "You scared me. I thought someone broke into the house." My tone refreshed his attention from a small distance. "What are you doing here?" I asked, jokingly.

"I didn't mean to scare you." He admitted, truthfully. "I thought you were sleeping but we need to deal with this situation first." His words clapped the seriousness in his tone. "Take a look."

"Jack, I'm really tired." I refused. "Do you know what time it is right now? Go to bed." I suggested, impatiently. "We can do that in the morning."

"Hawk, I don't think you understand." He exclaimed. "I might have a lead on Christian Hills." He reminded me of the prophecy letter. "We need to find out about the secret letter. You need to help me, I can't do this alone, Hawk. We need to stick together." He tried to convince me to stay by his side.

"Jack?" I shook my head side to side. "I was just about to make love to Hazel until you showed up and ruined everything." I played my melody of regrets in his ears. "It's your fault." I blamed him.

"I'm so sorry, Bro." He apologized. "The prophecy is real and you need to find out about your future. You need to know what's going to happen when you turn twenty-one. There's a reason why our mother wanted you dead before your twenty-first birthday. I don't even know who my father is. I want to find out about my past." He made some steps towards me. "Don't you want that also?" He placed me in a difficult situation. It was hard to decline his tempting offer.

"There are so many things I want to know, Jack." I started. "Examples!" I gestured. "Why do we have so many scars on our body? How did we get them? How can I hide them? Why didn't you tell me that we were brothers? Why now?" My questions tormented his mind with a felony of confusions. "What's going to happen in the future? Are we going to kill innocent people?"

"Hawk, I'm really sorry for keeping so many secrets from you but you have to understand that our mother forbade me to tell you the truth. She told me that it was for your own good. I didn't want to break Mother's heart. I loved her and you hated her for leaving you behind." He patted my back. "We need to find that letter as soon as possible. Hazel might be in danger and your baby can be a threat to this world. Who's going to protect them when I'm gone?" His words were sharp and selfish.

"What do you mean?"My eyebrows disagreed with his words. "When you're gone? What is that supposed to mean? Jack, what are you saying right now?"

"Is Hazel sleeping?" He ignored my questions, purposely. "I think you should go check on her and tell her that it was just me in the kitchen." He forced a smile. The pain in his face masked his attitude. "We'll talk in the morning." He sniffled silently and tried to hide the tears from me by facing his opposite direction.

"Why are you trying to change the subject, Jack?" I noticed his tears. "Why are you crying, man? What's going on?" I grabbed him by the shirt and tried my best not to let my emotions get the best of me. "This is not fair, brother. Tell me what's bothering you. Don't do this to me."

"There are so many things you don't know, Hawk." He chuckled, painfully. "My days are numbered, Bro." Tears fell down his face, continuously as he tried to wipe them away. "Look..." A magical number appeared on his wrist.

"Twenty four?" I examined his wrist, attentively. "Why are you showing me this?"

"Your birthday is in twenty-four days."He sighed, negatively.

"Okay?" I was still confused. I was still in the dark, trying to figure it out.

"Your birthday is coming up soon. Forgive me but I'm not going to witness your happiness on that day. I hate myself for hiding the truth from you but you were going to find out about it anyway." He confused me with his words. "Two Hulions, from the same womb, can't make it to the human world. We're half brothers and our mother was a Hulion. She committed a sin by sleeping with a lion and there were consequences." Tears graduated his face with terrors. "When you turn twenty-one, I'll lose my life." He hugged me, tightly. "The prophecy is real and I know where the letter is."

"Fuck the prophecy," I yelled as I pushed him away from me to calm myself down. "Fuck everything, man! You're not going anywhere. You're staying by my side until the end. That's final." I flew my fingers through my hair, impatiently. "Fuck the prophecy man! F-- F-- Fuck the pro- pro-prophecy." I stammered, angrily. "Come here, Bro." I wrapped my hands around him and covered him with a brotherly hug. "I love you, Brother and I promise that we're going to fight through this."

"There's a solution but..." I let go of him. "But you're not going to like it."

"Anything... Anything..." I insisted. "I'll do anything to keep you around. What's the solution?" My question made him uncomfortable. "Please tell me, Jack. I'm ready for the bad consequences."

"Hazel..." He swallowed his saliva, slowly. "Hazel is the solution."

"What about Hazel?" My mind translated bad thoughts inside my brain. "Leave Hazel out of this. She's innocent."

"Hawk..." He replied, gently. "The only solution is to choose between me and Hazel. Two seeds can create a beautiful disaster." He explained. "If you want to save my life, Hazel has to die in my place. That's the only solution."

"Jack? Are you playing with me right now?" My broken voice yelled, in pain. "If you are, this is not funny, man!" Tears swam upon my face. "Please, stop playing with me."

.

"I wish it was just a joke." He replied, sadly. "But I'm telling you the dirty truth." He handed me his chain. "Take this for protection. You'll need it."

"I don't need protection." I refused. "I can take care of my own self." My tone was far from happiness. "I don't want your chain, Jack. Keep it."

"I tried to find another solution but I failed." He admitted. "I don't know what to do, Hawk." We shared a hug. "I'm scared and I don't want to leave you alone in this selfish world. I don't want to die alone. I don't want my life to end this way, Bro." His words broke my heart. I was dying inside and I just didn't know what to do next. "Please, help me."

Of course, Brother. I will prevent this curse.

"I will..." I assured, rapidly. "I will find a better solution."

"Thank you so much." His hand gripped tightly onto my body. "I love you brother. I don't want to leave you. I still want us to play in the forest. I want us to eat ice cream on a summer night. I want us to skip school together and talk about girls. Hawk, I promise I'll be a better brother, a better best friend. I'll protect you from now on, I'll make sure that I teach you how to control your power. You'll be proud of me. You'll see..." He took a deep breath. "I have so many things in mind. We need to spend more time together. We need to go to the beach and play with the sand just like the old days. Before I die, I'll prepare the best birthday ever. You'll love your surprise."

"Stop talking like that." His words got under my skin. "You're scaring me..."

"You can go to bed." He tapped my back and grabbed the papers on the counter. "We'll talk in the morning..." He forced a smile. "I love you, Brother. We'll find a better solution. I promise."

"I love you, too," I replied, sadly. "Be safe."

As soon as I locked the door behind him, Hazel crossed her arms and gave me the 'Are you serious' look. Her eyes judged my thoughts silently. She really was acting really strange and I was really not in the mood to listen to her.

Hazel was the type to listen to you and reverse your words to make her world a better place.

"Why do you look so sad?" She questioned, unexpectedly. "Are you okay?"

"I am." I swallowed my saliva and punched a lie to her face. "I'm tired, Hazel. I need to sleep." I climbed the stairs and headed straight to the bedroom.

She followed me.

"Please, tell me what's going on?" She insisted. "You're not okay and it's obvious."

"Hazel, there's something I need to tell you," I stated. "It's important."

"I have something to tell you too." She smiled. "But you can go first." She offered, respectfully.

"No, you go first." I insisted. "I can wait..." My tone was honest and sincere. I wanted her to feel special and I didn't want her to think that I didn't care.

She talks a lot. Trust me, I get tired all the time.

"Cassidy is pregnant." A laugh screamed from her throat. "Can you believe that?"

"Oh," I said, vaguely. "I'm happy for her."

"You should be..." She sat on my lap, caressed my face and gave me a quick pop kiss. "Guess what? Jack, your brother, is the father." Her words splashed in my ears like a volcano.

"Wait, what?" My heart stopped. "Jack is the father?"

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