The O'Harris' weren't the first family I stayed with, however, they were the first to crush my spirit.

Mark and Lizzy O'Harris were a broken couple from the start. They were too different to work, yet neither of them was ready to admit it. Instead, they remained in their loveless excuse for a relationship, silently hating each other and fostering a deep resentment in their hearts. Still, they tried to find ways to make their inevitability doomed relationship last and one of those ways was opening their doors to a child—me.

Mark and Lizzy believed, like many of the misinformed people in the world, that children fixed all issues. The problem was that Lizzy wasn't able to become pregnant so, instead, the parents tried fostering. To an eight-year-old mind, coming from nothing and ending up in a home where everything you could wish for was provided for you seemed like a dream that you never wanted to wake up for. I know I didn't. I did everything in my power to try and convince Mark and Lizzy to adopt me; I was the perfect, angelic child.

But children don't fix everything and throwing a bandage on a broken dam doesn't stop the water from bursting through the cracks. Bringing me into their lives didn't solve their problems, if anything, it created more. Lizzy was the type of person who didn't realize they didn't want to be a mother until it was too late, and Mark was a man married to his job first and his family second. He seemed to believe that money was a good substitute for his presence. Needless to say, the fighting stopped for a few weeks, but resumed soon after.

To many, this would've been a clear-cut sign that the relationship wasn't working and it was time to end it, but Mark and Lizzy weren't most people. Instead, they realized something else—they realized that they had a new victim to blame their failed relationship on: me.

Many believed that if they had an opportunity to gain money easily they'd do it, consequences be damned, but if I had to choose between living with the O'Harris family or having little to no money, I'd choose the latter.

Even now, their screams and fighting are still clear in my mind. Which is why when I heard the sound of arguing, I immediately woke up.

It took me a minute to remember where I was. I'd fallen asleep at Cronan's place, but the blue-eyed man was nowhere in sight. It was only when I caught his voice, coming from behind a closed door that I realized he was arguing with someone, and judging by the other voice, I figured it was Arlo.

The memory of Arlo's expression from yesterday flashed through my mind and I frowned. I was curious to know what they were fighting over, but I didn't want to pry.

Grabbing my phone and shoes, I slipped out of the front door to give them space, making a mental note to check on Cronan later.

Once I was back in my own apartment, I set my shoes down by the door, put my phone on the charger, and headed toward the bathroom to take a shower. I climbed inside and as the water rained down on me, my mind drifted back to Mark and Lizzy.

A small part of me wondered what happened to them after I left. Did they stay together? Did they finally come to terms that their relationship was a sinking ship and divorce? I found the latter to be unlikely. There were some people in this world who refused to see reality no matter how many times it stared them in the face. If I had to take a guess, the two were more than likely still unhappily married to this day. As a child, I hated them, but now, I felt pity more than anything.

I finished showering and dried myself off before heading to my room to get dressed. I pulled on a pair of sweatpants and a plain T-shirt, then took a seat on the bed. I grabbed my phone, scrolled through the notifications I'd missed, and checked my messages.

I made sure to reply to my parents and Nixon's messages first before looking at the rest. There were a few from members of the Silver Night, asking how I'd been since I transferred packs, and a few from friends. What really surprised me though, wasn't the texts from any of them, but the fact that Reuben had texted me when I was in the shower. I was used to being the one who had to initiate the conversation.

Reuben: Are you up for getting breakfast?

...

When I arrived at the restaurant Reuben had sent me, I found him tucked away in the corner with a menu in hand. His eyes were cast downward and it looked as if he didn't have a care in the world. I approached the table and his eyes drifted up to meet mine. I offered him a smile as I took a seat.

"You know, I was surprised when I saw your message," I admitted.

Reuben raised an eyebrow. "Surprised?"

"I didn't expect you to reach out to me. Usually, it's the opposite."

He shrugged. "That's because I don't see the need for unnecessary texts while you love to send a message every five seconds."

"You enjoy my messages though. Come on, admit it."

He rolled his eyes. "Some. I enjoy some of your messages, but the majority I could do without."

I shook my head. "You love them all."

He scoffed but didn't argue.

"What took you so long to answer anyway?" He asked curiously.

"I'd just gotten home and was in the shower."

His brows furrowed. "Just gotten home?"

Right. He didn't know.

"I spent the night at Cronan's."

Reuben's face didn't change immediately or drastically. His mind seemed to go elsewhere when he heard my words.

"Since when were you two that close?"

"We're kind of friends now? I'm not really sure, to be honest. He was upset last night so I went over to cheer him up and ended up falling asleep. When I woke up, Arlo was there so I left." Upon hearing Arlo's name, Reuben let out a low groan and my brows knitted together. "What was that about?"

He shook his head. "It's nothing. They're fighting right now that's all."

I frowned. "Your reaction didn't seem like nothing."

He sighed. "Arlo and I saw you and Cronan out eating not too long ago. He's worried that you and Cronan might have something going on and if he was there before you woke up..."

"He probably saw me sleeping on the couch and got the wrong idea," I finished and I immediately felt bad. "Cronan and I are just friends—if even that! I'm not interested in him, after all, you're my mate."

"Arlo doesn't know that though," Reuben said.

"So tell him that," the words left my mouth before I could stop them.

Reuben frowned. "What?"

"I just mean that if you tell him then he won't worry as much, right? Wouldn't that fix it?"

Reuben stared at me for a moment and said nothing. I could practically see the cogwheels turning in his mind. I wanted to ask what he was thinking about, but before I could, he blinked a few times and glanced back down at his menu.

"Come on," he said. "Let's order."

With that, he had effectively ended the conversation, but I couldn't get rid of the uneasy feeling residing in the pit of my stomach. When I had mentioned telling someone about our bond, he seemed to clam up. Was it because it was Arlo, or was there something more to it? The answer was unclear, but I knew it'd be on my mind for the rest of the day.