Crashing Memories!

After Lucian walks away, Jackson has no choice but to do as he was told. This is the last thing he wants-- to sit in the same room as Aiden, watching him break apart over something neither of them can change.

A heavy silence fills the small space, thick with emotions too painful to voice.

Aiden sits on the edge of the bed, his arms wrapped around himself as if trying to hold his shattering heart together.

Jackson, leaning against the wall, watches him in quiet agony.

This isn't the first time he's seen Aiden hurt over Lucian, but tonight, it feels different. Final.

Jackson is the only person who knows about their relationship, no one else does, and for good reason.

Even if they tried to explain it, no one would understand. No matter which angle it's looked at from, it will always be wrong in the eyes of the pack.

First, they are brothers.

Not by blood though, but in the eyes of the pack, that doesn't matter.

Aiden may have been adopted, but he grew up beside Lucian, raised under the same roof, treated as part of the Alpha's family.

Their bond- one nurtured since childhood, should be brotherly, nothing more.

Second, they are both men.

Same-gender relationships have never been heard of in their pack's history, not even in whispers or old stories.

The mate bond has always been between a male and a female. There was never any space for anything else.

And yet, here they are. Two people who should have never fallen in love.

Jackson rubs a hand over his face. He shouldn't be here. He shouldn't have taken part in this relationship, shouldn't have encouraged it.

But he did.

And now he has to watch it fall apart.

Aiden lets out a broken laugh after a long silence, shaking his head. His voice, when he speaks, is barely above a whisper. "Maybe I should have never let this happen. Maybe I should have just remained a brother to him- a brother that I will always be to him."

His hands clench into fists on his lap. "I should have never gone that extra mile to make him accept what we felt for each other." His voice wavers, thick with regret. "If I hadn't... maybe this moment wouldn't be happening. Maybe he wouldn't be walking away to make someone else his when I have always thought I would be that someone."

Aiden is speaking to himself, but his words cut through Jackson like a blade.

Jackson exhales heavily, forcing himself to respond. "Aiden, you know he loves you as much as you love him."

But Aiden lets out a sharp, bitter laugh and snaps his head up to look at Jackson, eyes blazing. "And that's the problem, Jackson." His voice trembles with anger and heartbreak. "Hah! On the second thought, I don't think he really loves me. Because if he did, he wouldn't have left me here to go to someone else!"

Jackson flinches. He knew Aiden was hurting, but hearing it out loud makes it all too real.

"You know he has to," Jackson tries again, though the words feel hollow, even to himself.

Aiden shakes his head violently, frustration leaking into his voice. "If that's more important to him than me, then maybe he never loved me at all." His breath shudders as he wipes at his eyes angrily. "And if he does... then why won't he just let me go? Why is he making me stay here and suffer, forcing me to watch him be someone else?"

Jackson hesitates, knowing there's no easy answer. "Well, about that…" He sighs, tilting his head back against the wall. "Forget it. You're already in his life completely, Aiden. You're one person he can never watch walk away. So forget it."

Aiden scoffs but doesn't respond. He looks away, staring at the flickering candle on the table, lost in thought.

For a moment, just a moment, he lets himself regret it all. Regret ever loving Lucian. Regret ever thinking they had a chance.

But deep down, he knows the truth.

He could never regret loving him.

What he regrets… is that love was never enough.

And now he can't escape the memories of how they got here, thinking about each one of them...

~

Memories of the past come rushing in like a flood, dragging Aiden back to a time he had long buried beneath years of pain and longing.

He remembers the first time he was brought into the pack house by the late Alpha Noman-- Lucian's father.

The man had found out about him after hearing whispers of rogue wolves who refused to tie themselves to a pack, choosing instead to live hidden among humans.

Their defiance had cost them. They were discovered. Hunted. Killed.

And their only son, a boy too young to fend for himself, had been left behind.

Aiden had been just thirteen when they brought him to the pack house. Too young. Too different. He wasn't human, but he wasn't like the other wolves either.

~

The pack house was bigger than Aiden expected.

Tall wooden walls loomed over him, and the scent of pine, damp earth, and something else, something unfamiliar, filled the air. This wasn't home. He wasn't sure if it ever would be.

Last night, Alpha Noman had spent hours explaining everything-- why he was there, what the pack was, and what would happen next. Even though Aiden knew he was a werewolf, still it wasn't easy.

None of it had prepared him for standing in the grand entrance hall, surrounded by unfamiliar faces.

At the Alpha's command, the pack had gathered. The tension in the air was thick, silent.

Aiden swallowed hard as his gaze swept over the faces before landing on two people standing at the front, a woman with sharp eyes and a boy standing beside her.

Aiden knew immediately. That must be Uncle's son. The one he told me about. (Told to call him that)

The boy didn't acknowledge him.

He stood with his hands tucked in his pockets, his black eyes revealing nothing.

There was something about him- calm, unreadable, and yet… heavy. The way people around him seemed to keep their distance made it clear. He wasn't just anyone.

Lucian.

Aiden had never heard of him before last night, but he could already tell, this wasn't the type of person you easily got along with.

Alpha Noman's voice broke the silence. "This is Aiden."

Aiden felt the weight of countless eyes turning to him.

"He will live among us from now on," the Alpha continued. His tone was firm, leaving no room for question or complaint.

No one reacted.

Except the Luna.

Her expression didn't change, but there was a flicker of something in her gaze- disapproval? Annoyance? Aiden couldn't tell, but whatever it was, it was gone in an instant.

Alpha Noman went on. "He is to be treated as one of our own."

Silence.

Then, the Alpha's gaze shifted to his son. "Lucian."

Lucian tilted his head slightly. It wasn't quite acknowledgment, but it wasn't dismissal either.

"Aiden is still young," Noman continued. "He will need guidance. Show him around. Help him adjust. Be an older brother to him."

Lucian didn't respond.

Didn't nod.

Didn't even blink.

Then, without a word, he turned and walked away.

Aiden hesitated, glancing at Alpha Noman. The man gave him a look that made it clear, this wasn't a request.

So, with a deep breath, Aiden hurried after him.

Lucian walked at an unhurried pace, his hands still in his pockets. He never once looked back, never checked if Aiden was following. But Aiden followed anyway.

They passed through long hallways, the wooden floors creaking slightly under their steps. Aiden stole glances at him, trying to figure him out.

Lucian looked older than sixteen. Not in his face, his features were sharp but youthful.

It was the way he carried himself. He wasn't just any teenager. He was someone who had already seen more than most.

He was someone people feared.

Aiden had noticed it immediately. The way the pack members had looked at him, the way they had kept their distance, it wasn't normal.

Was it respect? Or something else?

They reached the end of the hallway, and Lucian stopped in front of a door. Without a word, he pushed it open and stepped inside.

Aiden hesitated, expecting him to hold the door, to give some kind of signal that he could follow.

But the door shut in his face.

Aiden blinked.

…Okay.

He stared at the closed door for a moment before exhaling and stepping back. He wasn't sure what he expected, but it definitely wasn't that.

So much for getting along.