Linked

Chapter 14

Kaileen

I snuggled in with Kyle on his couch as the movie began. When I reached for some popcorn, my hand bumped into Kyle's warm one. Our eyes met, his green orbs sparkling, and he leaned in to give me a gentle kiss. But the thing was, I couldn't feel anything but a nagging sense of guilt. Why did I feel like I was cheating on Kyle? I hadn't done anything wrong, just... comforted Lucas in his time of need.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Kyle questioned. "You've been spacing out for a while."

"N, n, nothing," I stammered. My eyes clouded over with guilt, and Kyle interpreted my look as tiredness.

"Oh, of course. I'm sure you're tired as hell." he smacked himself on the forehead. "Do you want to stay over or are you going back to your room?"

"Thanks, but I think I'm going to my room. I have... some stuff to do." I kissed him on the cheek.

"Yeah, okay. I'll see you tomorrow, then?" he pasted a smile on his face, but I could tell that he was a bit disappointed.

" 'Night, Kaileen." he said, leaning back on his elbows.

" 'Night, Kyle." I replied as I left the warmth of his room.

Tonight I would clean up this mess I was in. Kyle deserved to be loved fully with a whole heart, not with one that was conflicted with other emotions. I set out to explore the dark hallways of Zerron headquarters, looking for Lucas. I wandered around for a long time, going floor by floor. It seemed like I had passed the same corridor, the same aluminum-steel door at least thirty times before someone called out to me.

"Are you looking for Lucas?" It was Claire, the red locks of her hair bouncing gently against her shoulders as she walked towards me. She shoved her hands in the pockets of her sweatpants and tilted her head to the side, looking almost feline. I nodded.

"Do you know where he is?" I asked. Claire looked up thoughtfully at the ceiling.

"I'm afraid he's not here." she answered after a moment of reflection. "No one can find him if he doesn't want to be found."

"Well, why would he not want to be found? It seems like his whole life is about getting attention," I muttered under my breath. Claire, hearing me, grinned.

"That's actually quite true," she mused, then became more serious. "I've seen so many girls at his side... But they never lasted very long, Kaileen. If I were you, I would keep that in mind. Lucas is a person who has been through many things that would cripple most people. If he decides that you're the one, he'll reveal his secrets to you one by one, at his pace. If you don't think you're strong enough to bear that, I'm personally asking you to stay away from him. I don't want him getting hurt again." Sounding slightly melancholic, she melted away into the shadows.

"But I'm not looking for him so that I can be with him!" I called into the dark silence. "In fact, it's quite the opposite..." I trailed off, sensing that no one could hear me except for the dark birds with glinting, intelligent eyes who were watching me noiselessly from the tree branches outside the window.

I kept on searching the halls, but I never found Lucas that night.

Kyle

I wondered what was going on with Kaileen. She had been distanced and deep inside her own head since we had arrived at Zerron. Was it the new surroundings that was making her different? That must be it, I decided. Unless... I clenched my hands into fists, then relaxed them. That Lucas guy was really getting on my nerves. The fact that he was the trainer for Kaileen and the other girls didn't help ease my conscience. He could be doing whatever he wanted with them in the time allotted for 'training'. I sighed, and got up from the bed that I couldn't call mine, not when there was another one back at home, faithfully waiting for its owner to come back. I got dressed and ran a hand through my messy hair. Well, another bright and sunny day to enjoy! I tried to cheer myself up somehow, but I couldn't shake off the conflicted emotions swirling around in my head. Shoving a plain bagel from the kitchen table into my mouth, I strode out of the room to go to our designated meeting place for training. Training wasn't much fun either, because that Jax was almost always a dick. Today was no exception. Jax flirted his mouth off with the girls that we passed, and it had me wondering if Elia was okay with his behavior. After considering it for a while, I decided to let it drop. They would figure it out with each other. Hopefully.

"So guys, today we will be learning to socialise in the normal way we do here." Claire said enthusiastically.

"Yeah, because it'll be so hard for Jax to learn how to do that." I mumbled sarcastically. Jax looked up from the brunette girl he was talking to and gave me a death glare.

"Come on, loosen up and have some fun, man." Jax clapped me on the shoulder, not so hard that it hurt but enough for me to tell the hidden meaning under it. The day went on and on, and I mostly zoned out Claire's quippy voice and Jax' running commentary.

Elia

I knocked on Kaileen's door nervously. She called for me to come in, and I opened the door to see her sitting at the dresser trying to cover up the dark circles under her eyes with makeup. "Hey, Elia!" my best friend grinned. I fiddled with my fingers as I went to perch on the edge of her bed. "What's up? You look... well, anxious." she said as she dabbed on some concealer underneath her eyes.

"What happened to you?" I tried to make small talk.

"Long story. I was up all night, that's all." Kaileen sighed. Then, she put her hands on her hips and looked at me sternly. "So what's your story? Are you being safe with Jax?" she said that last bit jokingly, but I blushed scarlet from the top of my head to the tips of my toes.

"I'm pregnant!" I blurted, then clapped a hand over my mouth. I hadn't meant to say it like that. Kaileen had a disbelieving look on her face, which slowly turned into a smile. At the exact same time, we started to jump up and down, screaming and laughing at the same time.

"I'm so happy for you!" Kaileen yelled, as we flopped down onto her bed breathlessly. For a moment, it was like we had been transported back to the old times where we had just been innocent teenagers dreaming of a happy life. I folded my hands gently on my stomach. It made me overwhelmed with so many emotions when I thought of the living being that was growing inside of me. "Hey, does that mean you're quitting training?" We were slowly returning to normal after the fit of hysterics.

"Yeah, I guess so." I smile at her. "That means it'll be just you, Eria and Lucaaaaas!" I hooted. Kaileen's smile seemed a little forced after that. Had I said something wrong? We laid there for a little while more, floating in the bubble of happiness.