Chapter 131: …And His Papa.

“Yeah… I understand.”

The moment Ezra heard that, something in his chest loosened.

Not completely, not enough to make everything feel okay again, but enough that he could breathe a little easier.

’He understands…’

Before he could stop himself, Ezra pushed away from the tree. His body moved on its own, stepping out from the shadows, drawn toward the two figures by the lake.

For a brief moment, he felt… lighter.

Relieved.

Even a little grateful.

’Kaelis…’

He didn’t want to admit it, but Kaelis had done something Ezra himself couldn’t do just now. He reached Lior when Ezra couldn’t even take a step forward.

But then Ezra saw them clearly.

Kaelis and Lior, facing each other by the water, the lake reflecting the moonlight behind them.

And Ezra stopped.

His steps halted before he even realized it.

Because something else surfaced.

Something that didn’t belong to this moment.

A memory.

“I… I dreamed of my papa.”

Lior’s voice echoed in his head, clear and small, as it had just been said again.

Ezra’s breath caught.

The conversation came back all at once, every word falling into place in a way that made his chest tighten.

“Your papa?” he had asked back then, careful, quiet.

“Uh huh.” Lior had nodded, serious in that way only he could be. “I couldn’t see his face, but… but I knew. I could tell he was my papa.”

Ezra remembered how he kept his expression steady, how he reached out and stroked Lior’s hair like nothing was wrong.

“And what were you doing with your papa?”

“My head hurts.”

Ezra blinked.

Back in the present, Lior was saying the same thing again, rubbing his head as Kaelis laughed softly beside him.

“With all that crying? Of course, your head would hurt,” Kaelis said.

Ezra’s eyes widened slightly.

’He said that before…’

Lior hummed, thinking hard. “At first, I was alone. It was scary.” His small fingers pressed against his head again. “It was dark, and I couldn’t find you, Maman. And… and my head hurt!”

Ezra felt it again. That tight pull in his chest.

’The same words…’

“Your head hurt?” Ezra had said back then, playing along, hiding the unease creeping up on him.

“Uh huh! I was at… um… big water in the forest, but not the sea, Maman.”

The lake.

It was the same place.

Ezra’s gaze shifted to the water in front of them.

The quiet lake.

The reflection of the moon.

His pulse started to pick up.

“A lake?”

“Yes! A lake!” Lior had said, brightening. “I was sitting there, and I was crying. I was really scared.”

Ezra’s throat went dry.

’…this place.’

It wasn’t just a dream.

It had never been just a dream.

Back by the water, Kaelis stood up and extended a hand to Lior. “Come on. Let’s go look for Ezra. I’m sure he’s sad.”

“I have to say sorry,” Lior said, frowning as he lifted his arms. “Kakay, can you carry me?”

“Really?”

“Uh huh. Carry me.”

“But you said we weren’t friends earlier, and now you want me to carry you?” Kaelis teased lightly.

Ezra barely heard it.

His thoughts were louder now.

’Could it be…?’

He took a step back without realizing it, his eyes fixed on Lior.

’Lior’s gift…’

The pieces were starting to connect, and he didn’t like how easily they did.

The dream.

The lake.

The timing.

’Prophetic…?’

He had already considered it before, when Lior dreamt of being taken the same night it happened.

But this—

This was different.

This was earlier. Days earlier.

Ezra swallowed hard.

’He saw it before it happened…’

And if what Ricardo said was true…

If Lior really used Sunlight Rays without anyone teaching him…

Ezra’s chest tightened again.

’His abilities are awakening…’

Too fast.

Too early.

Not just his blood. Not just one thing.

Everything.

“We can be friends now, just carry me!” Lior insisted, his tone almost playful now.

Kaelis chuckled. “You’re a bully. Fine, alright…” He leaned down and picked Lior up, holding him easily.

Lior laughed, the sound light again. “Yay! A prince is carrying me!”

Kaelis blinked. “You changed your mood fast.”

Ezra watched them.

Really watched them this time.

Lior is smiling again.

Kaelis was holding him like it was nothing.

“Whatever. Let’s just get back to Ezra. He looked so sad, and it’s creepy to see him like that,” Kaelis muttered.

Lior nodded. “Let’s go!”

Ezra didn’t move.

Not yet.

He stayed where he was, half-hidden by the trees, his heart still racing for a completely different reason now.

Ezra watched as they started making their way back to him.

Slow steps at first. Careful, steady.

Lior in Kaelis’ arms, small hands resting against his shoulder, his earlier fear gone just enough for him to speak again.

But Ezra…

Ezra couldn’t move.

He just stood there, staring at them, something cold settling deep in his chest.

’No…’

The thought came out quietly in his head, but it hit harder than anything else that night.

His heart ached. Not the kind that came from fear or anger. This was different. This felt like something slipping out of his hands, something he had tried to hold onto for so long.

’This isn’t…’

Dread crept in, slow and heavy, sinking into his chest and spreading from there.

Because he didn’t expect this.

He didn’t plan for this.

He had always believed he could control it.

That as long as he was careful, as long as he kept distance where it mattered, he could keep things from crossing paths the way they were never supposed to.

He never believed blood ties could be that strong.

Strong enough to pull people toward each other without knowing why.

Strong enough to ignore everything he had done to keep them apart.

And yet—

There they were.

Walking toward him.

Together.

“Oh, Ezra, there you are,” Kaelis called out when he finally spotted him, his voice cutting through the quiet.

Lior’s face brightened immediately.

“Mama—Master!” Lior exclaimed, correcting himself halfway through. “I… I want to say sorry!”

Ezra’s breath caught.

He watched them come closer.

Kaelis was carrying him like it was natural. Like it wasn’t strange. Like it didn’t mean anything.

’No matter what I do…’

Ezra forced his expression to stay steady, even as something inside him twisted.

’He’s drawn to him…’

His throat tightened, but he swallowed it down.

He had to.

“Kaelis,” Ezra said, his voice quieter than he intended. “Prince Kaelis.”

The correction came out automatically.

Like a reminder.

A boundary.

Something he needed to hold onto before everything blurred together.

Because the truth sat heavy in his chest now, clearer than it had ever been.

’No matter what I do…’

He couldn’t stop it.

He couldn’t separate them.

Lior was drawn to his father.

To his papa.

And somehow…

Kaelis was being drawn right back.

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