The next morning was painfully awkward. Like, 'I'd actually rather be being beaten to dust in training with Mara right now instead of sitting here' levels of awkward.

Lara kept trying to say something, but every time she opened her mouth, she'd stop, think twice, and then go back to her food.

Luke had practically dragged me downstairs for breakfast, even though I would've much preferred hiding in his room until it was time to leave and then maybe never show my face around his mum again. It's not like I really knew what we were doing last night, but I certainly hadn't expected her to barge in on us like that.

Still, somehow, she had the patience to make us breakfast. We were all sitting around the kitchen table, but no one knew quite what to say. Luke and I just poked at our food, occasionally glancing at each other like we were both waiting for someone to put us out of our misery. Unfortunately for us, that moment never came.

Coco was the only one blissfully unaware of the tension in the room. She looked around, clearly wondering why we were all being so strange.

After what felt like a century of painful silence, Luke finally cleared his throat to speak. "This is really good, Mum. Thanks." His attempt to break the tension was met with a soft smile from her.

"And, uh... about last night—" He trailed off, staring down at his plate.

"You don't have to explain," Lara said with a warm, almost amused smile. "I'm happy if you're happy." She glanced at both of us, and I swear our faces turned the exact same shade of red.

Luke, pointlessly, tried to recover. "Nothing happened! Well... not after you barged in, anyway..."

Lara chuckled and rolled her eyes, clearly not phased by her son's poor attempts at nonchalance.

Coco, meanwhile, squinted at me. "Why are you so red, Nate? You look like a tomato."

"It's just... a bit warm in here, that's all," I lied horribly, but she accepted it with a nod and went back to her toast.

Luke jumped out of his seat like it was hot coal, as desperate to run away as I was. "We're gonna head back upstairs until the storm clears." He grabbed my hand, making me drop my half-eaten slice of toast, and swept me out of the kitchen faster than you could say 'breakfast'.

Only when we reached the top of the stairs, Lara's voice echoed up after us. "Keep it PG!" I felt my entire body flush with heat again as Luke groaned.

Once the door to his room was shut securely behind us, closing us off from the outside world, he slid down it with an exaggerated sigh. "Thank God we're out of there," he muttered, burying his face in his hands.

I slumped onto the bed, not really knowing what else to do with myself, feeling like I had just narrowly escaped death by embarrassment. Luke pushed his hands through his sandy-blonde hair, tugging on the strands as he glanced up at me from the floor.

"Luke?" I started, trying to find the right words.

"Yeah?" He perked up a little, looking almost worried about whatever I was going to say.

"What... what are we?"

He blinked and then pulled himself back to his feet, coming over to plonk himself next to me on the bed as he let out another long sigh. "I don't know. This is new to me too." He flopped back and folded his arms under his head, staring at the ceiling like it had all the answers. "I'm supposed to be the guy who... well, you know, sleeps around and breaks hearts. I don't... I never thought about guys like this." He rubbed his face, looking frustrated. "But now? I don't even know."

It wasn't quite the answer I was hoping for, but it made me feel a little better that I wasn't the only one struggling to figure this out. With a sigh, I leaned back to lay down next to him, looking up at that same ceiling as if I too expected the answers to emerge from it like a magical cheat sheet.

"My dad always made me go out with girls—'courting' as he called it—telling me to keep an eye out for a future queen," I said, thinking about how different our experiences were. "But no matter how many girls he introduced me to, how many dates he set me up on, I just... wasn't interested."

Luke slowly sat back up, looking at me, his hand resting gently on mine.

Before either of us could say anything more, Lara's voice cut through the moment, panicked and sharp. "Luke! Nate! You need to come down now!"

We both jumped up immediately, my heart pounding. Something was wrong.

"Mum?!" Luke shouted as he bolted down the stairs, and I was right behind him, sparing not even as second as I bundled down after him.

When I reached the living room, I froze.

There were three large men, dressed all in black and wearing these weird masks. Two of them were holding Lara and Coco, keeping them hostage. Coco was crying, a waterfall of fear streaming down her cheeks, while Lara tried to keep calm. The man standing in the middle looked like he was in charge.

"So, this is the prince?" The leader sneered, his eyes gleaming under his mask.

Luke and I moved in unison, clenching our fists. "Let them go!" we yelled.

The man smirked, clearly enjoying the control he had, eyes buzzing like a madman under his mask. My blood boiled but I knew without having to ask that they were here for me, not them.

"Leave them out of this," I said, stepping forward, trying to keep my voice steady despite the fear trembling through it.

"So you remember us?" He tilted his head, his smile only widening. "Boss wants you alive, but I think we can have a bit of fun first, eh?"

Before I could react, two more men appeared from behind me and grabbed my arms. Their leader, the total psychopath, threw a punch and knocked the wind right out of me.

"Nate!" Luke rushed to help, but one of the men hit him in his old wound, and he dropped to his knees, gasping in pain.

"What do we have here?" the leader taunted, gripping Luke's hair as he pulled his head back. "A friend? How cute."

"Leave him alone!" I shouted, pulling against the arms that held me in place, but before I could do anything, a fist slammed into my gut again, doubling me over.

The leader chuckled darkly. "Behave, little prince, or I might just kill them all."

I knew I couldn't fight back—not yet. If I tried anything, I'd put everyone in danger. The men tied both Luke and me up, gagging us as they dragged us toward the kitchen. My mind raced. I had to figure out a way out of this.

Their psychotic leader pulled out his phone and spoke to someone he called 'Boss', but I didn't catch much of their conversation, my head spinning.

When he was done, he lifted me up by my collar and I was sure I was going to receive another sharp punch, but he just laughed and threw me back to the ground before turning to Luke again.

Just then, as he pulled his fist back to strike Luke across the face, a loud, shattering sound filled the room as something smashed through the window. The ropes binding my wrists snapped, and Caladorn flew into my hand.

The leader froze, looking confused for the first time. "What the—"

I didn't give him a chance to finish. Rage surged through me as I charged, imbued with a newfound strength, striking him before he could react. It was a power unlike any I'd ever felt before, as if the sword had taken control of my body as I leapt across the room, blocking blows and landing strikes of my own. The fight was nothing but a blur to me as I took down each of them one by one, my only thought being to protect the people I loved.

When it was finally over and I had control of my body once again, I found myself staring at the blood on my hands. The room was littered with the fallen men who groaned in pain, lying in their own blood.

I dropped my sword and fell to my knees, sitting amongst the destruction. What have I done?

"Nate!" Luke's voice snapped me out of my trance. I hurried to him, untying his hands as he reassured me, "They're alive, Nate. You didn't kill them."

I let out a breath I hadn't noticed I'd been holding when Luke pulled me into a tight hug, rubbing soothing circles into my trembling back. I melted into him, wanting nothing more than to stay there, safely tucked into his arms, for the rest of my life.

The masked man, clutching what remained of his arm, groaned on the floor. "You really are something, little prince," he spat before stumbling to his feet. "But don't worry, you'll see us again soon."

With that, our attackers disappeared as if into thin air.

How had they found me? What did they want now? That was all I could think of even as we untied Coco and Lara, who immediately reached out to make sure Luke and I were okay.

"Thank God you two are alright," Lara breathed as she pulled us close. "Who were they? What did they want?"

I sat back on my heels, picking at the drying blood on my hands as I struggled to meet their eyes, knowing it was all my fault.

"They..." my voice broke as I tried to speak, painful memories all flooding back to the surface, "men in the same masks they wore, killed my mother..."

I felt two small arms wrap around me and finally lifted my head again, resting it on top of hers as I hugged Coco back.

"I'm sorry your mum died," she said, her sympathy and understanding far too genuine for someone as young as her, but for the briefest of moments, the heaviness in my chest eased.

Luke cleared his throat and climbed back to his feet, holding his side as he tried to pretend it didn't hurt, fooling no one. "Looks like the storm's finally starting to clear," he said, diverting the conversation as he glanced toward the window.

I stood and walked over to see for myself. He was right—the rain had lightened, and the rumble of thunder had long since faded. It almost felt like a new beginning after the chaos.

"I should call my aunt," I muttered, pulling out my phone. "She'll know what to do."

Luke nodded in agreement. "We'll head back to the dorm once Nate's finished on the phone," he said, knowing it was the best decision for all of us.

Coco immediately wrapped her arms around him, reluctant to let him go.

As I stepped out of the room to dial my aunt's number, I couldn't help but think about everything that had happened. The storm outside might've been easing, but it felt like the storm inside me was just beginning.

What do they want from Nate? Why are they still after him? What is their goal? Thanks for reading and don't forget to vote!