*****

I didn’t know why exactly, but… I kept thinking about the whole True Order vibe. It was like… It was like Simon’s words had ignited a spark in my head, and as the time went by, it grew into a flame. I simply couldn’t stop thinking about it.

And I definitely couldn’t stop being drawn to the two newest guys. Zach and Benny. I’d learned their names very fast since… Well… I followed them a little. I also listened closely to what they were saying every time I was close enough to hear them. I didn’t really get any True Order vibes from them, though…

I so wanted to ask them about it, but if Simon was wrong, and these two hated True Order like the rest of them… I didn’t want to become an outcast… I just wanted to talk to someone about my thoughts… I couldn’t talk to the True Order haters, so what did I have left?

I didn’t know why I wanted to talk about it. It wasn’t like I could change anything. I was just a homeless fifteen-year-old. But… I don’t know… Maybe it was better if I forgot all about it and focused on surviving and taking care of Alex.

One night, I was coming back from Lorenzo’s after a successful runner gig with my pockets full of breadsticks and five-dollar bills. I was feeling great and happy, especially because we didn’t really need anything at that moment. We could put the entire twenty bucks into our savings now!

It was quite late, and most of the city was heading to bed, so it was quiet and dark when I skipped through the street leading home. I reached the small alley that led to our hut village, but I spotted the two new guys down the street, talking and laughing with a few other dudes I’d never seen before. I stopped next to the corner and listened carefully, but I couldn’t hear what they were saying.

I hesitated, but that flame in my head was burning hotter now. I felt almost… possessed. I still couldn’t tell why it bothered me so much… Or maybe I did… My father always spoke of them as heroes… So… Would he be proud if I tried to do something? I’d heard rumors… I knew they were recruiting…

What if I could help them to save this country?

But… Maybe I just needed to go home and protect Alex… He’d been alone for a few hours already, so I needed to go check up on him. I also needed to take the breadsticks to him. He loved them… They were the highlight of his day.

I was just about to continue walking home when one of the guys, Zach, turned around and immediately spotted me. I froze to stare back at him. He frowned, but I guess he chose not to bother with me since he turned his back on me. I quickly fled the scene. My heart raced a little in embarrassment as I hurried back home… I tried to forget all about it, but…

That flame kept growing…

What if I could actually help…?

I couldn’t stop thinking about it. The days went by, and as I lay in my tiny bed at nights, I had fantastic dreams about how I would end this war. In some dreams, I had superpowers and a list of targets who stood in the way of peace. In others, I saw myself as a rebel leader, honorable and powerful, and my large army marched to the governor’s manor in the name of True Order, demanding her to step down and appoint me as the new governor. And I dreamed of a peaceful life, where Alex and I had a huge house and so much money we would never run out of it. My brother was safe, and his condition was gone. I had the largest bed money could buy. We had so much food…

What if I could help…?

I… I ended up following Zach one night. I was supposed to go to Lorenzo’s, but Zach was leaving at the same time. So… somehow… I followed him instead. The sun was already setting, and Lorenzo was going to close his shop in an hour, so I didn’t really have time to follow Zach around, but I didn’t really care at that moment. We had enough money left from my last runner gig, so I didn’t actually need more right now. It was the perfect opportunity, anyway. Alex thought I’d be running for Lorenzo, so I had an hour or two to spare before he’d start getting worried.

I just wanted to see where he was going.

I kept my distance from him as I followed him through the streets and a couple of small parks. Twice, I nearly lost him because I was so far away, but I didn’t dare to go any closer so his alpha wouldn’t sense me. My own alpha was a little concerned about this late-night walk, and it couldn’t understand why I was following this stranger, so it was staying alert. I appreciated that, especially after a while, when I started doubting myself and feeling more and more insecure. This was stupid… I should’ve gone to see Lorenzo. I was just wasting my time.

I still followed, since turning back now felt like a bigger waste of my time.

We were quite far away from home when he walked around a corner up ahead, entering a street that was lined up with cheap apartments. My alpha was alert the entire time when I approached that corner, but soon, it couldn’t sense the guy anymore. I was careful when I stepped behind it, but sure enough, I couldn’t see Zach anymore. I still kept walking, keeping my pace slow, but as I passed by the first few buildings, I understood he must’ve entered one of them. I couldn’t see him anywhere, and my alpha couldn’t sense him.

I stopped and let out a deep sigh. Waste of time…

What did I expect…? He was probably meeting up with a friend or something.

At that very moment, a door opened behind me, and I sprung around while my alpha alerted me. It was Zach! And he was staring right at me when he exited the building!

“Why are you following me?” he asked, his voice a little hostile.

“I… I… I don’t… know…?” I stammered.

“Acting like a fool, huh?” he spat at me and took a few steps closer. “You’ve been watching me for days. What the fuck is that all about?”

He was getting mad at me… I cursed myself…

“I…”

“You better start talking,” he growled as he kept approaching me.

I couldn’t outrun him… He’d beat me up if I didn’t talk. I wasn’t good at lying, especially in a sudden, threatening situation like this…!

“I thought… Maybe you… Someone said you’re one of…”

If Simon was wrong…

“One of what?” he asked, now with more curiosity in his voice and eyes.

“True Order,” I whispered.

That was my best bet. I could lie my way out of this if needed. I just needed to make sure I didn’t get my ass beaten up right then and there. If he got mad, I could pretend I hated True Order, too. But if he was one of them…

He stopped and frowned, his eyes studying me in a whole new way now.

“Where did you hear that?” he asked tentatively.

“Does it matter?” I asked.

I didn’t want to pull Simon into this mess…

He snorted at me, then took another two steps closer. “That’s a very heavy accusation you’re making, kid.”

His attitude was clearly changing now. His hostility was gone. He was getting more and more curious.

“Is it true?” I asked, getting a little more confident now.

“Maybe it is? What are you going to do about it?” he asked, stopping in front of me.

He had to be… True Order hater would’ve gotten really mad with me by now.

“I want to help,” I whispered.

He tilted his head and stared at me in such an intense manner my alpha was getting afraid. This alpha was much bigger than us… Way stronger than us… He was big and tall, and even though he was skinny like the rest of us, he was still in much better shape. But there was no hate or anger in his brown eyes as he studied me…

He snorted again, but in amusement this time, and sprung around to walk away from me. “Go home, kid.”

“What home?” I asked sharply. “The one I lost because omegas couldn’t be happy with the good life we gave them?”

He paused and slowly turned back to me.

And he smiled.

“Go home,” he repeated. “We’ll talk later.”

And he walked away.

I stood there, my heart racing a little, and my alpha feeling really uncomfortable. I watched as Zach vanished back into the building where he came out of. I carefully looked up, but saw no one in the windows. Then I let out a breath and started hurrying back home.

I had to come up with a bullshit reason why I didn’t go see Lorenzo, after all, because I was home way too soon, and without the twenty dollars, so I told Alex I thought I was being followed by shady people, but it turned out they just happened to go the same way. He seemed scared as always when something like that happened, but I told him soothingly that I was freaking out for nothing. He accepted my explanation, but it hurt to see how scared he got, even though I never was in any danger in my fake story.

But I could change that… I could help to end this war… I could help to make our world a safe place, and Alex would never have to be afraid of anything ever again.

I could help True Order win.

I waited patiently for Zach to come talk to me throughout the next day, but he didn’t show up at our hut village until late that night and only hung out with his friends. Alex and I were hanging out with Simon and his friends by the campfire, so there wasn’t really a chance for us to talk, anyway. Simon had become a little suspicious of me, so I tried really hard not to even look in Zach’s direction whenever Simon was around. Somehow… he seemed to know… Did it really take just one uninterested word for him to realize I was on True Order’s side? Or was I just imagining things? At least he wasn’t saying anything about it, and he still acted like nothing had happened. He even still told us his silly stories about dragons without pockets, so maybe I was just paranoid.

I couldn’t really sleep that night, because part of me hoped Zach would come to see me when everyone else was asleep, but that didn’t happen. I spent the next day feeling tired, and stayed mostly in bed, while Alex drew his pictures. He was worried I was getting sick, but I told him it was nothing, that I was just tired.

But then I heard Zach’s laughter somewhere close by. I waited for a bit, then told Alex I needed to use the outhouse, and left. I actually had to use it, but after that, I just walked around, acting like I needed to stretch my legs and trying to avoid everyone. Everyone except for Zach.

He and his friend were hanging out in the middle of the village, where we had our seats and lamps so we could gather and hang out when the weather was bad outside. I slowly walked past him, making sure he could see me heading to the side door. My heart was racing again… I waited and listened and walked so very slowly to the door, then stepped out. My alpha woke up to see what was going on because of how tense I was. I asked it to keep an eye out for me as I continued walking down the alleyway just as slowly as before.

And I waited… All my senses were on the side door behind me. I barely remembered to breathe because of how tense I was getting. I really wished he’d follow me. I was giving us a chance to talk. He had to understand that. He promised he would talk with me…

And the door opened.

I almost sprung around in my excitement to see if it was Zach, but I managed to stay composed in case it was someone else. I took a few more steps towards the street until that someone behind me cleared his throat very pointedly. I breathed out in relief and turned back. It was Zach.

I stopped to wait for him, and he quickly caught up with me. Without saying a word, he pushed me to keep walking, making me feel uneasy. I still followed him, though, and we didn’t go too far. There was a small gap between two buildings that led nowhere, and he pushed me into that little corner, then peered into the alleyway to make sure we were alone.

“So…” he muttered as he turned back to me. “You want to help True Order?”

For a tiny, short moment, I hesitated.

But then I thought about Alex, his condition, fears, and his art… He deserved to have a good, safe, healthy life… He deserved his own art studio and recognition for his talent…

He deserved a home and a life without fear.

I nodded. “Yes.”

He smiled. “Good. Because we need your help. But we can’t talk here. Can you meet me tomorrow?”

I nodded. “Sure.”

“Great.”

I still had my doubts… But I chose to ignore them.