-Oliver-

I couldn't sleep that night. Jack and his threat was keeping me awake. So, when the morning came, I was so tired I felt physically sick, but I still got out of bed before everyone else, so I could use the only shower our room had.

I tried to be quiet, so I wouldn't wake up the other boys, since they still had almost an hour left before they would need to wake up for breakfast. Gecko, the small boy I was closest to. Ron, a ten-year-old with a loud, demanding nature. Tim, a nine-year-old who was the exact opposite of Ron. Keegan, also nine years old, who had the wildest fantasies. Huck, eleven, who was like me in a way that he could remember his parents, but instead of being abandoned, he lost his entire family, his parents and two older brothers, in a car crash.

Could Jack hurt them if I didn't obey him?

The way Tilly and Arch spoke about Jaden's parents... It sounded a lot like mafia or something. Jack spoke about war between their two gangs, so was his family just like Jaden's?

What on earth had I gotten myself into? These two gangs, mafias or whatever, had a thick aura of secrecy about them, and yes, I wasn't too interested in the things going on outside our orphanage, but I had never heard much about them, nor did I know anyone who knew more about them.

And I was now in the middle of their sons' quarrels. During the night I had decided to proceed with caution. If I managed to keep Jack happy, I could buy some time and decide what to do. There was also a slim chance Jack would forget about me. Anything could happen now, so I needed to keep my cool and wait to see what the day would bring. That was basically all I could do really. I couldn't afford making the wrong decision, because I had no idea about the consequences. If it was just me who would get beat up, even badly, it would be fine, but if something happened to the kids I shared my home with...

I was, after all, the oldest. These kids considered me their big brother. My job was to keep an eye on them, and the staff didn't even need to ask me to do it. This was the closest thing I had to a family.

I felt a bit braver after that. I washed myself, got dressed in my worn-down black hoodie and blue jeans, grabbed my school bag and sneaked out of the room. The hallway was dimly lit, but I could see my way towards the stairs. I passed by four doors, all of them leading to shared rooms just like mine, but I couldn't hear anything. Everyone was still asleep.

But when I arrived at first floor, I was immediately greeted by two staff members, Mrs. Hudson and Miss Washington.

"Happy birthday, Oliver!" Miss Washington said with a wide smile, giving me a hug the moment I was within her arm's reach. "Do you feel older?"

"Yes," I said, meaning every letter of it. I did feel older, much, much older.

"Why are you up so early on your birthday?" Mrs. Hudson asked with a motherly tone.

"I wanted to take a shower before everyone else," I told her as an explanation.

"I see," she nodded. "Are you hungry? I'm sure Stella can make a special breakfast just for you!"

I tried to smile, and I guess I succeeded, since after telling me to go see Stella in the kitchen, they both continued their way, chatting cheerily with hushed voices.

Stella, our cook, did make me a special breakfast, but I couldn't enjoy it. It was like I had lost my ability to taste. And occasionally, hear.

"Ollie? Is everything all right?" Stella asked, when I failed to hear what she was saying.

"Oh, yes, I'm still half-asleep I guess," I hurried to say.

"You did wake up early. But on the bright side, you can sleep in as late as you want tomorrow," she said, and continued cooking.

"Yeah, great," I said, faking a smile.

If I was alive tomorrow.

Mrs. Hudson took me to school. She left me close to the gates, waved, and continued driving. I didn't hurry to look at the school – I was starting to feel nauseous. Well, maybe not nauseous but... I couldn't put my finger on it. It was like my entire body was itching all over, but it wasn't an itch either. I was restless, that was for sure. Restless and anxious.

With a heavy sigh, I started walking through the snowy yard, and this time I made damn sure I wasn't going to run into anyone, when I stepped in. I was so early that the building was still quite empty – thank God. I continued my way deeper into the building, trying to keep an eye out for Jack or Jaden. I really didn't want to see either of them, for obvious reasons.

But I didn't have such luck.

"Hey, rat."

I flinched hard and turned around, only to see Jack's grinning face. How did I not notice him following me?! He grabbed me by my arm before I could even register what was going on, and dragged me to a smaller hallway that crossed the biggest one. There, at the end of it, he tossed me against the wall, and brushed his brown hair out of his face.

"Soo? Any good news?" he asked with a mean gleam in his eyes.

I had lost my voice. I could only stare up at him. He was so tall! The top of my head didn't even reach his chin! I was shivering, my entire body strengthless, and whatever plans and precautions I had in mind up until this point suddenly seemed ridiculous and pathetic.

This was not an ordinary man. I could feel it with every fiber of my body. His aura was not human. His presence was not human. For a brief moment, I honestly believed in devils and demons. Even the stare of his yellowish-brown eyes had the ability to draw every ounce of defiance out of me. His grin was more than enough to convince me that total obedience was my only option.

"I... I d-didn't he-hear much..." I trembled, and his grip on me grew so tight I feared I would lose an arm.

"Well?" he asked, and his grin was disappearing.

"T-They h-have something–"

He pulled me off the wall just to slam me back against it. "Quit stuttering! It's fucking annoying!"

My whole body felt numb. I was beyond scared, and all I could see was darkness around me. I let my head drop down, so I wouldn't have to look at him. I fell back into that one place in my head where I didn't want to go to.

"They... have... something to do with... vice principal Hanson," I spoke slowly, forcing every word out of my mouth as clearly as I could.

"I knew that already!" he spat at me, and I fought back tears.

"They mentioned a joint... that's probably their... hiding place," I continued. "I didn't... find out where it is."

"You'd better! What else?" Jack hissed at me.

Somewhere in the darkness, I saw a shadow of a big man, and a flash of something flying in my way. "Nothing important..."

He let out a deep hiss, but he let go of me. "You will wait for me after school. At the parking lot. And you will have more to tell me by then, got it?"

I slid down on the floor. "Y-Yes."

He left. I was clutching my shoulder again. It was where I got hit. Back then.

I hid my face behind my hand when my tears finally leaked over.

A few hours later, I was wandering around the hallways, trying to find Jaden and his posse. It had taken me this long to get my mind back together. I couldn't shake the feeling I got from Jack. His inhumane aura. It was... I shivered when I even thought about it. The fear was still there, but at least now I had some kind of control over myself.

I had thirty minutes left before the lunch break was over. I had already checked lunch hall, but Jaden wasn't there. I didn't stay there. I wasn't even hungry, so I continued wandering around. I checked men's restrooms, even loitered around to see if Tilly was in the women's side, but after a few minutes, I moved on.

When I passed by the corridor where the teachers' facilities were, I stopped. I saw vice principal Hanson speaking with principal Woodland. I tried to be as casual as I could when I leaned against a wall, trying to hear what the two men were talking about. It was nothing important, just a boxing match apparently, but I stayed put for a moment longer. I had to admit I was curious about the vice principal. What did he have to do with the Blue Moons? Jack seemed to know about him, because he never showed any kind of interest towards him when I mentioned him.

The two men parted their ways, stepping into their own offices. I took my bag and continued my search for Jaden.

Finally, almost ten minutes later, I saw a glimpse of Arch's back, and when I got closer, I saw Tilly as well. I made my way over to them, and stopped as close as I could without them noticing me. For a moment, they were both silent, and I started to feel anxious. If I didn't find out anything useful today...

"We're going to get take-out today," Tilly suddenly said.

Of course it was about food again...

"Sure," Arch replied without looking at her – he was looking somewhere behind her. "Finally – here he comes..."

By him he meant Jaden. I saw him further down the corridor, walking in our direction. I retreated behind a big, plastic plant, and continued eavesdropping their conversation.

"What took you so long? I'm starving," Tilly groaned when Jaden joined them.

"You really want to know what took me so long in a freaking toilet?" Jaden muttered at her.

"Eww, no."

"Good. Now come on – I'm starving as well," Jaden spoke and started walking, his friends following him.

All of a sudden, the restlessness I had felt throughout the day intensified to the point I could hardly even breath. My stomach was twisting, my skin was itching, and half of my senses shut down. I would have freaked out, but at that same moment, Jaden looked at me.

And... I calmed down. The calmness washed over me like a gentle waterfall, and even though it was absurd, I was suddenly happy. Of all of my senses, only my sight was working, but I could only see him, nothing more. I had never experienced anything like that.

Then, he stopped to stare at me with wide eyes.

He seemed... shocked.