Undead (Alisa Rose #1)[COMPLETED]

-Fourteen-

Kade and I sat side by side on the cold stone steps of the corridor, our shoulders just barely brushing. The sun had set hours ago, leaving the school eerily quiet, with only the occasional creak or gust of wind breaking the silence. There was something calming about sitting here with him, even with the weight of everything hanging over us. But that calm was fleeting.

"I heard the Elders are coming to Iloilo," Kade said, his voice low, almost as if he was afraid of the words.

I stiffened immediately, the mention of the Elders sending a chill down my spine. I turned to look at him, his face half in shadow but his expression clear—concern, mixed with something else. Hesitation, maybe.

"When?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady, though inside, I was anything but.

"Before Nutrition Month," he replied, his fingers tracing absent circles on the stone step. "They're going to be at one of the finest hotels in the city. I overheard some of the higher-ups talking about it. Something about... plans they have."

I clenched my fists, feeling a sharp spike of tension flood my body. The Elders. Of course. They always had "plans," and those plans never ended well for people like me. Dhampirs. Half-breeds. Abominations, according to them.

My throat tightened as I remembered the last time I'd heard about the Elders' interest in me. It was like a distant echo of every rejection I'd faced from my human family in Manila. They hadn't been cruel, exactly, but they hadn't wanted anything to do with me either. I was always too much—too strange, too different. Something they couldn't understand, and worse, didn't want to.

"I guess they've finally decided to see what kind of freakshow I am in person," I muttered bitterly, glaring at the floor.

Kade's hand stilled, and he glanced at me with concern. "Alisa, you're not—"

"I know what I am," I interrupted sharply, cutting him off before he could finish the sentence. The bitterness in my voice surprised even me, but I couldn't help it. I was sick of pretending everything was fine. "The Elders hate what I am. They always have. And now, they're coming here, to Iloilo, to make sure I know it."

The weight of it all pressed down on me, squeezing my chest. The Elders' disgust, their judgment, felt so much like the way my relatives in Manila used to look at me—like I was something to be tolerated at best, avoided at worst. It was as if my existence itself was a stain on their perfect world.

"I hate them," I whispered, the words slipping out before I could stop them. "I hate that they get to decide who's worthy, who's... human enough."

Kade stayed silent for a moment, his expression pained. He didn't need to say anything. He understood. He always had.

"Do you remember when we were younger?" he asked, his voice soft, pulling me out of my thoughts. "Back when we used to talk about what we'd be when we grew up. You always said you'd be stronger than them, that you'd prove them all wrong."

I smiled faintly, though the bitterness still lingered. "Yeah. I was a little more optimistic back then."

Kade shifted closer, his knee brushing against mine. "You still are strong, Alisa. Stronger than any of them know. The Elders don't get to decide your worth. They don't know you like I do."

His words were kind, but they didn't completely erase the tight knot of anxiety twisting in my stomach. The Elders were dangerous. Their disdain for Dhampirs wasn't just prejudice—it was lethal. And now, knowing they were coming here, so close, made me feel more vulnerable than I wanted to admit.

"I just... I don't want to deal with them," I admitted quietly. "Not after everything else."

Kade reached out, hesitating for a moment before placing his hand on top of mine. His touch was warm, grounding, a reminder that I wasn't alone in this. "We'll figure it out, together. Whatever they have planned, we'll face it."

I nodded, grateful for his presence, but still unable to shake the gnawing fear that the Elders' arrival would only make everything worse.

"They're not just here for show, are they?" I asked, a hint of dread creeping into my voice.

Kade's lips pressed into a thin line, confirming my suspicion without needing to say a word. Of course they weren't. The Elders never did anything without a reason, and if they were coming to Iloilo, it wasn't just to observe.

"They know about me," I whispered. "They've always known."

"They do," Kade said quietly, his voice almost a murmur. "But it doesn't change who you are. Remember that."

I wished it were that simple.

As the silence between us grew, I couldn't help but think of my family back in Manila. They'd washed their hands of me long ago, pretending like I didn't exist because it was easier than facing the truth. And now, it seemed like the Elders wanted to do the same—wipe away the reminder of what they considered an abomination.

I sighed deeply, leaning back against the wall and closing my eyes. "I just wish... for once... I didn't have to prove myself to anyone."

Kade squeezed my hand gently. "You don't have to prove yourself to me."

I opened my eyes and met his gaze, his familiar face offering a quiet kind of comfort I hadn't realized I needed. "Thanks," I whispered, my voice soft.

For a moment, we just sat there in silence, the tension from our earlier conversation still lingering but softened by the understanding between us. I wasn't sure what the Elders' arrival would bring, but at least I wasn't facing it alone.

That was something, at least.