BRYCE

A high top flew across the room, slamming into my face, and flopped to the floor beside me. My eyes fluttered open, and I tried to focus on who threw the shoe, thinking it was probably Sebastian, but my eyes landed on Noah with his signature grin, and his hoodie flipped over his head.

"What the fuck, Noah?" I snarled, wiping my cheeks with a deep groan. "What are you doing here in my house?"

Noah grinned wide and cocky. It irritated me. "Tu casa es mi casa, mate." He said, leaning against the wall. In the opposite corner, James groaned, and my eyes dragged to him.

"I still can't get over the fact he speaks fluent Spanish." He shrugged, his hoodie tossed over his head as well. I grunted, pulling a pillow over my face.

"Get the fuck out of my house," I muttered to the two of them—specifically Noah.

"No, can do, bro, " Noah slapped my toes. "You're stuck with us on this beautiful hump day." I hurled the pillow at Noah and sat up fast, in a dizzying haze. Noah dodged the cushion as expected.

"First, never say hump day again. Second, my father has the day off, and if he sees you with me, Noah, we'll have to explain everything to him." I lazily rubbed my eyes and grimaced when I saw Noah chuckle.

"You mean Dex? Yeah, I may or may not have pretended to be you?" My brother was such a cocky dick. "Seriously though, when will you tell him about me?" He smiled brighter, faking my American accent like someone flicked a switch.

I deflated against the pillows. James stood in the background with a poker face, observing the two of us.

"Son of a bitch, Noah, " I roared. Noah puffed air while James wandered out of the room.

"Sam wants to see you after school, " he said. I rolled my eyes and pulled from the sheets.

"Because Dad was so excited to see me when he first met me." Noah raised an eyebrow.

"James and I will wait outside," Noah walked to the doorway. Whatever, dude.

"My dad and my life are here," I growled in a pity party.

"You know what? You're right, but you better hurry if you're coming with us, which you are." Noah slammed the door, and I slipped off my T-shirt, nearly ripping the fabric out of hostility. Geez. Who knew having a twin was so annoying?

∆∆∆

NOAH

James opened his locker next to mine and pulled out his books. Claire and Shawn walked up on either side of James and Noah, smiling.

"Hey Bryce, Noah." Claire sounded chipper that morning. She scrunched her nose excitedly, eyes flickering to James, and melted against her locker.

"Hello to the girl whose name I sadly don't remember." Noah scoffed. Claire laughed nervously and smiled brighter.

"It's okay. I'm Claire." She reintroduced herself to my disgruntled twin before tapping her fist into James's biceps.

"Hey, James." She spoke. James looked up at her, smiling, and shut his locker.

"Hey, Claire."

Mark walked by, briefly locking his eyes with mine before landing on James. My heart thundered in my chest, and I tried to keep my composure. James grunted profoundly and looked away.

"Who's that?" Shawn asked.

"Someone you don't need to know about, " James growled. Shawn raised his hands in the air to surrender.

"Okay, I assume you two are enemies so I will leave it." Shawn shrugged.

Noah shut his locker. "Yeah, I wouldn't stress about it, mate." I took a mental note, closed my locker, and we walked off.

∆∆∆

NOAH

Bryce and James stood side-by-side, staring at two ropes hanging from the gymnasium's ceiling. Mark, on the other side of the room, glared at James with contempt. James' fists clenched in anger as his eyes glanced over Sebastian, who was laughing and talking to his friends, seemingly oblivious to everything happening around him. I felt an intense hatred for Sebastian rising inside me; he seemed worse than Mark.

Madison, Easton, and Dylan stood off to the opposite corner, almost like they didn't want to be too close. A wave of guilt washed over me, knowing that these were my cousins, and yet we couldn't be completely honest with them about our powers. My father had been too stubborn to tell them, so I had no choice but to keep this secret from everyone, including my family members. It felt wrong having to hide such a vital part of who I was.

Coach Daniel blew his whistle, grabbing his students' attention, looking suitable for his mid-forties.

"You see that rope? All of you will climb it today," the coach instructed.

I cracked my knuckles and sighed. "Piece of cake." Claire and Shawn showed up beside me, smiling and stretching their calves.

"How high do you think that is?" Shawn asked.

"Probably a good twenty feet to the ceiling?" I shrugged. Shawn's face flushed white.

"You okay, Shawn?" Bryce asked him sincerely. Without moving his eyes from the rope, Shawn gulped down pride and answered, my caring brother.

"I'm super, " he said anxiously-pun unintended. I chuckled, and Shawn swallowed deeply again.

"You'll be fine. You'll have us break your fall." I patted Shawn's back for support, miscalculating my strength, and Shawn stumbled forward in the coach's path. Whoops.

"Shawn, would you like to go first?" Coach asked him. Shawn picked himself off the ground and stumbled back in line.

"I don't want to," he mumbled and got quiet. Suddenly, James stepped forward.

"I'll go." James stood tall. Once a hero, always a bloody hero. James walked onto a wide safety mat under the ropes and shut his eyes, grounding himself briefly before grabbing the thick cord. He looked up, and before the coach could start his stopwatch, he scaled the rope fast to the top.

"Atta' boy," the coach yelled. "Who is this kid? That's a record." James let his hands slip from the rope and drop from the sky to the mat below him.

"That was fun, " James boasted with a big grin, pulling himself off the mat. I rolled my eyes.

The coach blew his whistle again, looking at Mark. "You're next, kid." He motioned towards Mark, who grinned and stepped confidently onto the mat. James shuffled back to us, the invisible misfits in the middle of the food chain. We knew my father wouldn't allow us to play sports, as he was determined to keep his children safe.

I felt my stomach clench as Mark glanced at Bryce before sizing him up with an arrogant smirk. Bryce's face lit up like a Christmas tree, and my mind reeled. Was it true? Did he have feelings for Mark? I had never seen him react to someone that way before, even for girls. What could this mean for us? For me? I felt a mix of emotions course through me: jealousy, confusion, fear. Was Mark an enemy or a potential friend? Could I trust him? One thing was sure–no matter what happened next, things would never be.

∆∆∆

BRYCE

Sam looked me up and down with crossed arms, watching me with his eyes. "How long did Noah know about you?" He asked.

Noah got comfy in the cushions on the other side of the couch while James divided the two of us. My uncle Matthew sucked on a beer at the other end of the dusty, squared-off couch. I was all too familiar with drinking because of Thomas and my dad. Derek and Grace stood behind the sofa, glaring at each other.

"Pretty much forever, " Noah answered for me. It was common for him to act as if he was reading my mind, which was possible.

I huffed. "I don't feel comfortable doing this," I confessed, walking into the foyer, but Noah followed me. Typical for him, too. Noah stopped me before I reached the door.

"Hey, Bryce. Please don't leave. You're my brother. I'm sorry it took so long. I promise it's worth it, mate."

I pivoted to face my brother. "Except it's not. Alexander and Max are plotting something terrible, and I'm just getting to meet Dad. I'm adopted, Noah. ADOPTED." Noah huffed, taking hold of my shoulders.

"It doesn't mean we're still not family. Look, if it helps, we can explain everything to Dex. I'm sure he'll understand." Noah looked me in the eye. "Please?"

I took a long breath. "Not now." I stuffed my hands in my hoodie pockets and sighed.

"Why?" Noah asked me, discomforted.

"I don't trust them," I admitted, gesturing into the living room. It was the truth, not that I trusted Max or Alex more than them.

"You trust Max and Alexander more?" Noah asked as if rereading my mind. I smiled at him.

"No, I trust you. You're my ride or die?"

Noah's eyebrows pulled together in confusion. "I'm your what?"

"My ride or die? You know, the person I would die for?"

"Whatever you say, Hollywood," Noah grumbled. Then he smiled back-what a jerk.

The doorbell rang, and Noah turned his head to the door. "Should I get that?" Noah yelled into the living room. I rolled my eyes and walked to the door.

"Idiot, " I muttered.

My hand curled around the knob and swung open the door. I stared frozen at my uncle in the doorway, red high-top running shoes, a pair of basketball shorts, and a hooded tank top with the Los Angeles police logo on the front. It was an outfit I was all too familiar with in my household. My eyes widened, and Sam wandered into the hallway before I could make out any words.

"Aye, Henry," Sam beamed at his brother standing in the doorway. It was a bit late to back out now. My uncle, also known as Thomas' boss, Henry Knight, was in my family's house. Was it a coincidence? I should have figured it out because Henry had the same last name as my father. They resembled each other somehow; even though my dad somehow had brown eyes and Henry had blue, he was undoubtedly my uncle.