Chapter : Scar On The Wrist

Roo tried to steady his breathing.

The feeling was gone.

But his body still remembered it.

A sharp sting. A phantom ache.

A scar that didn't exist.

Alexander was still watching his wrist—too closely, too intently.

Alec's fingers brushed against Roo's jaw, drawing his attention back. "You're too quiet." His voice was gentle, but the worry underneath it was undeniable.

Ace grunted, his grip iron-tight. "You don't need to think so much, Roo."

Roo swallowed.

How could he not think about it?

Something was wrong.

Something inside him felt… off.

Like his body wasn't his.

Like he was forgetting something important.

The weight of the triplets pressed against him, grounding, protective. Too much.

But he didn't push them away.

Because a part of him—the part that was terrified—didn't want to be alone.

Alexander's voice broke the silence. "Describe it."

Roo's breath hitched.

He knew what Alexander was asking.

But—

How could he explain something he couldn't even see?

His fingers curled into the sheets. "It felt like…"

He hesitated.

The triplets waited, tense, expectant.

Roo exhaled. "Like a scar. On my wrist."

Ace stilled.

Alec frowned. "A scar?"

Roo nodded, hesitant. "I know it sounds crazy, but it felt real. Like it's supposed to be there, but… it's not."

Silence.

And then—

Alexander's fingers brushed over Roo's wrist.

His touch was light, fleeting. But the moment his skin made contact—

A shock ran through Roo's body.

A flash—

Darkness. Shackles.

A voice whispering in his ear.

"You must never forget—"

Roo flinched.

The image shattered.

His breathing was ragged, uneven.

The triplets' eyes darkened.

"What was that?" Alec's voice was sharp, demanding.

Roo clenched his jaw. "I…"

He couldn't say it.

Because he didn't understand it.

But Alexander—

Alexander's gaze was unreadable.

Like he knew.

Like he had already seen.

And that scared Roo more than anything else.

The silence after his words was too loud.

The triplets were tense.

Alec's fingers curled around Roo's hand, grounding, too warm. Ace's arms caged him in, solid, unyielding. Alexander…

Alexander was still watching him.

Watching him like he was unraveling before their eyes.

And maybe he was.

Roo swallowed, his throat dry. "I don't know what it was."

Alec's frown deepened. "What did you see?"

Roo shook his head. "Nothing." A lie. A desperate one. "It was just a feeling. A scar that wasn't there."

Alexander didn't react.

But his golden eyes flickered—just for a second.

Like he knew Roo was lying.

Like he knew exactly what Roo had seen.

Ace let out a low growl, his grip tightening. "Does it hurt now?"

Roo flexed his wrist. The pain was gone.

But the feeling lingered.

Like an itch he couldn't scratch.

"No," he murmured. "It's gone."

Ace grunted, satisfied. But Alec wasn't convinced. His thumb traced slow, deliberate circles over Roo's palm. "You're thinking too much again."

Roo exhaled.

Maybe he was.

Maybe it was nothing.

Maybe—

A flash.

A cold stone floor.

A shackle around his ankle.

A voice—familiar, distant.

"You belong to them now."

Roo gasped.

The triplets reacted instantly.

"Roo!" Alec's voice was sharp.

Ace growled, his grip iron-tight. "What's wrong?"

Roo's vision blurred. His breath came too fast, too uneven.

The memory—was it a memory?—faded.

Gone.

Like it was never there to begin with.

But his heart wouldn't stop racing.

Alexander shifted. "What did you see?"

Roo swallowed. "Nothing."

Alexander's jaw tightened.

Alec and Ace didn't notice.

But Alexander did.

And that scared Roo more than the flashes themselves.

Because it meant something.

And he wasn't sure he wanted to know what.

Roo felt like he was falling.

Not physically—he was perfectly still. Trapped between the triplets' warmth, their hands grounding him, their scent thick in the air.

But inside?

Inside, he was plummeting.

Alec's voice cut through the fog in his mind. "Breathe, Roo."

He did.

A sharp inhale. A slow exhale.

His chest ached.

Ace's arms were too tight, too possessive. "You keep zoning out." His voice was gruff, but there was an edge of worry underneath.

Roo licked his lips. "I'm fine."

It was a lie.

But what else could he say?

That he was seeing things that weren't there?

That a voice had whispered to him from somewhere deep in his mind?

That he wasn't even sure if his own memories belonged to him?

Alexander was still staring.

His golden eyes were sharper than usual—watching Roo like he was searching for something.

Something Roo didn't even understand himself.

And then—Alexander moved.

Slowly.

Deliberately.

His hand reached out, fingertips barely grazing Roo's wrist.

The spot where the invisible scar had burned before.

"Tell me exactly what you felt." His voice was low, dangerous.

Roo shivered.

Alec and Ace tensed.

Because that wasn't a request.

That was a command.

"It felt… real," Roo admitted, voice quieter than he intended. "Like it's supposed to be there. Like—"

He hesitated.

Like I lost something.

Like someone took it from me.

But he didn't say it.

Because if he said it—if he gave those thoughts power—then they would become real.

And he wasn't ready for that.

Ace clicked his tongue, irritated. "It's probably just your heat messing with you."

Alec didn't look convinced. "It's not normal."

Alexander?

He didn't say a word.

But his fingers lingered on Roo's wrist a second too long before pulling away.

His eyes were still unreadable.

But Roo swore he saw something flicker in them.

Something like recognition.

Like Alexander knew exactly what was happening to him.

And he wasn't telling Roo a damn thing.