~Sean~

I watch Owen storm around the kitchen, rifling through the fridge and cabinets for all of two minutes before I have to stop him.

"Owen, stop. What is going on with you?"

"Did you not see her out there?" He seethed.

I fight against the need to roll my eyes. Of course, that's what's bothering him. Why am I not surprised? Sang's the only other person who's ever managed to ruffle his feathers the way I do. Suppressing a sigh, I lean back against the kitchen table.

"What I saw, was her renewing her relationship with one of our brothers." He scoffs. "Isn't this what you wanted?"

"What I want seems to be of no importance to her."

Alright, that's enough. I have never seen Owen Blackbourne pout like a child, and after I bring him out of this funk, I'm going to burn it out of my memory.

"Owen Cornelius Blackbourne!"

"You know that's not my middle name," he interrupts.

"Irrelevant. Now you listen to me, and you listen good. I don't know what your deal is with Sang, and why you seem so hell bent at keeping her at arm's length, but snap the hell out of it!"

His breath leaves him in a visible exhale as he drops against the counter, unable to hold himself up any longer. "I can't do it, Sean," he says lowly. "I can't be the man she needs me to be."

"What on earth are you talking about? We don't have time for guessing games, Owen, we have to feed the children."

"I can't be what she needs. The other day when we spoke in her room, she told me why things between her and the others were flourishing while things between us were stagnant. She doesn't need my approval anymore, Sean."

"Well of course she doesn't. She's been without it for five years."

"No, you don't get it." He removes his glasses, laying them on the counter behind him as he pinches his eyes shut, his hands rubbing over his face roughly. "She doesn't need me anymore. The only thing I can offer her is my leadership, and control and she doesn't need it anymore."

"Newsflash, Owen, she doesn't need any of us anymore. But she still wants us."

"And that's where you're wrong my friend. She doesn't want me."

"Oh for the love of pie, would you get your head out of your behind and listen to yourself! You're moping around here like a sullen teenager with his first heartbreak. I have never heard Sang say that she doesn't want you. Does she need you, no, of course not. She doesn't need any of us. Something she adamantly reminded us multiple times when we first got here. But over time, she's warmed up to us, and she will warm up to you if you quit acting like you're too good to need her!"

Owen wouldn't make eye contact with me, which meant he still wasn't listening. Alright, time to pull out the big guns.

"Owen, look at me." He did, albeit reluctantly. "You are a smart, strong, and capable leader. I don't know where any of us would be without you and that strict control you keep such a tight leash on. With how everything's been these past five years, we've needed that, and I will forever be grateful for your leadership. But Sang doesn't need a leader. She needs a man who's strong and capable enough to protect and support both her and those kids. She needs a loving father for the twins, and she needs a rock when the stress of being a young mother gets to be too much. She doesn't need Owen Blackbourne, team lead extraordinaire. She needs Owen Blackbourne, the man."

"Well if we're being honest, I don't need the man either." We both whip our heads to the kitchen entrance where Sang's leaning against the archway. My mouth drops open in shock, but before I can say anything, she continues. "I don't need any of you. But I do still want you, all of you. But I refuse to just fall back into the role that I played when we were together before. I'm not that girl anymore, and I never will be. If you can't accept that, that's not my problem. All I ask is that you keep your actions consistent with the kids."

"Sang." Her name is a soft plea on my lips. "You can't possibly mean that."

Her expression never wavers. "I absolutely mean it. I love you, and I will always love you but it isn't just about me anymore. I have the twins to think about, and they will always come first for me. I don't need anything past them. I can't need any of you, needing you hurts too much. I can get over a want. So yeah, I want you. And when you're gone back to your families after this whole Volto mess is cleared up, I'll still want you. But I'll get over it. The hurt will only be temporary this time. You can't hurt me anymore. I won't give you that power."

Without waiting for a word from either of us, she turns and exits the kitchen, bypasses the boys in the living room, and walks out of sight down the hallway. Owen and I walk back into the living room in silence. The twins are gone, along with Silas and Nathan. Kota and North are still on the couch they shared with Sang, staring down the hallway where she disappeared. Luke and Gabriel have taken our seats on the loveseat, with Victor now leaning against the armrest.

"You idiots forgot the kitchen has no walls." I can't even muster the energy to glare at Gabriel for calling us idiots. He's right.

"One of us will take three steps forward with her for someone else to knock us ten steps back." North argues. "When are we going to get it together?"

"How can we if we're not all on the same page?" Luke butts in. "She doesn't need us. We know she doesn't need us, and I get why. Hell, even I wouldn't want to need us. But she does want us, and if we don't get on the same page with making her believe that we want her, that we need her back, then you guys may as well give up now because I'm not going anywhere."

Now that I've dropped into Sang's original place on the couch, I'm too far to hit Luke myself. Thankfully, Gabe and Victor have the same thought as they slap him on the back of the head. He flinches as both hits connect and leans forward to rub the spot.

"I was just saying," he grumbles. "None of you can seem to make up your mind when it comes to her. I wanted to make it clear that even if it doesn't work out with all of us, I'm staying here."

"Even if that means leaving the team?" Owen's face is unreadable as he waits for Luke to answer.

"Even if it means leaving the Academy," Luke replies solemnly. "You guys are my brothers, and if you ever need me, I'm only a phone call away. But I'm not leaving Sang again. And I'm not leaving those twins."

We're all silent in the wake of Luke's confession. He's always been the more jovial one of the group, the prankster. Nothing about what he just said is a joke. He's absolutely serious. He's ready to leave the Academy.

After a few more moments in silence, Owen pulls out his phone, texting as he speaks to the rest of us. "We need Silas and Nathan in here for a vote."

"What exactly are we voting on?" Kota asks, pushing his glasses back up his nose.

"On whether or not we stay in the Academy."

Silas and Nathan walk into a tense silence a few minutes later. Owen doesn't beat around the bush and gets straight to the point, asking, "All those in favor of leaving the Academy and permanently relocating to stay with Sang and the twins?"

With no surprise, each of the boys open their mouths and respond, "I am willing and I will obey." Owen and I lock eyes, the indecision in his practically begging me to tell him that at the very least, he and I are still a team. "I'm sorry, Owen. But I am willing, and I will obey."

Faster than I ever thought possible, Owen steels his gaze, masking his emotions as he lets out a slow breath of air. "Well then, I suppose we should wrap up this Volto case as soon as possible. Once we're through, I'll put our resignation as a team into the Academy."

"And what about individually?" Kota questions.

"I'll no longer be your team lead," Owen shrugs, the most casual motion I've seen from him since he barged into the kitchen earlier. "You're all grown men. I'm sure you can figure it out on your own. If you'll excuse me."

Without another word, he turns and leaves the apartment, leaving the rest of us to wonder what the hell just happened.