"Excuse me?" Benjamin widened his eyes in shock. She'd never seen him look that shocked before. She almost felt pleased that she'd been able to rattle him. He never seemed moved by anything she said.

"I was wondering if there was any way to sever the Synergy bond between..." Selene started to say.

"I heard you the first time." He said dryly. She couldn't tell what he was thinking because Benjamin had long mastered the act of appearing blank even when he was furious.

She could sense some kind of repressed rage but she couldn't be sure because his golden eyes were as impenetrable as steel.

"You've been reading about Synergy all night. I figured you might know something about it or if it's possible." She said not noticing the way Benjamin's breath quickened.

Benjamin didn't reply at once. He observed her face for five whole minutes like he wanted to think before he gave his reply.

"What brought this up?" Benjamin asked slowly.

"I was talking to Edith about Spirit Animals and she mentioned the bond is somewhat similar to Synergy," Selene said.

"That's like comparing a gentle shower to a tornado. They aren't the same thing." He raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow.

It was annoying how guys had the best eyebrows.

"I know. She didn't say they were exactly the same." Selene said impatiently.

"I'm assuming she told you about why animals choose Necromancers? Due to their bond to the spirit realm?" Benjamin asked.

"Yes. She said the animals act as their anchor by taking up a part of their soul." Selene said.

"What about that sounds remotely similar to Synergy? I don't have a part of your soul and you don't have a part of mine. Our souls are connected like Siamese twins. That's not the same thing." Benjamin said in a voice that should have warned Selene about his rising temper.

Selene was more concerned with her own thoughts that she didn't even notice his fury. She was more interested in what she had on her mind. Like most writers, she tended to ignore the feelings of others when she had an idea in her head.

"Perhaps not. But she mentioned it's possible to sever the bond and go separate ways. I was wondering if the same applies to Synergy." Selene said.

"So you'd like to sever the bond between us. Why?" Benjamin asked.

It was then that Selene realized the dangerous tone in his voice. His golden eyes were still unreadable and dark but she noticed his chest was rising and falling more rapidly than usual. His lips looked tight.

"It just seemed to make sense at the time," Selene said warily.

"Did it now? Riddle me this: what else did you and Edith talk about besides bonds?" Benjamin said darkly.

"Just this and that. We didn't really talk about anything in particular." Selene started feeling uncomfortable.

"I'm guessing the topic also ventured towards Laurence." Benjamin's voice shook. He sounded like he was trying to suppress his anger.

"Well, yes. We did date for 3 years. I was..." Selene started.

"You should go back to dating him then. It's obvious you're still bothered about him." Benjamin said coldly.

"I'm not! I care about him as a person that doesn't mean I want to be with him. He did some terrible things to me but so did I." Selene snapped.

Benjamin's eyes flared up in his anger. Selene had seen him angry before but she'd never felt the anger directed towards her. It would have been hot if it wasn't so scary. His golden eyes looked fiery.

"And yet you're here talking about severing the bond of Synergy with me. I gave you a choice, Selene. I asked you to decide if you wanted to be with me. Why did you come to me when you weren't sure?" He said in a dangerously calm voice.

"I never said I wasn't sure!" Selene said angrily.

Benjamin sat quietly for a while. He studied her face with his sharp, angry eyes. It was a bit scary how he was still able to think calmly even when he was that angry. Selene's lips tightened with anger.

"I see what the problem is. You don't mind hooking up with me from time to time but you can't stand the idea of this being anything more than that." Benjamin shook his head at her.

"That's not true," Selene said flushing.

Benjamin knew he'd hit the nail on the head. He rested his chin on his left palm while he kept studying her. Selene felt very uncomfortable by how cold his gaze was.

"You like having fun with me and that's it. I was never anything but a fantasy to you. Like a forbidden fruit that you weren't allowed to eat. You like the idea of me being unattainable but I don't mean anything to you." Benjamin said.

"Don't say that." Selene reached out to hold his hand but he snatched it away in disgust. She gasped in shock. He'd never done that before.

"Why? It's the truth, isn't it? You didn't ask me to tell you more about Rodia and you didn't even ask to know more about your powers or what I could teach you. The fact that the first thing you mentioned was how to sever our bond proves that I've been wasting my time building castles in the air." Benjamin said angrily.

"This isn't my fault! I can't remember anything..." Selene started to say.

"It doesn't matter what you can remember! It never mattered to me! Maybe it should have." Benjamin snapped.

"I don't understand why you're so upset," Selene said, starting to feel hurt.

"You don't understand anything!" Benjamin's low voice was harsh. She flinched like he'd slapped her.

He glared at her from across the table as he tried to even his breathing. It was obvious he was trying to control his emotions. He clenched and unclenched his fist.

"You've never understood anything. Do you know what it's been like for me all these years? Have you ever even thought about how I feel?" Benjamin asked.

"I'm not insensitive. Of course, I have! I liked you for years." Selene frowned.

"What you felt for me was nothing but a simple crush. Perhaps it's the Synergy bond that made you even notice me in the first place. You don't really care about me. Not the way I care about you." He said.

"I care about you. Stop saying that." Selene was starting to feel worried.

"Do you even care how I feel? Have you ever wondered how much it hurt seeing you with Laurence for years? Every time I saw you hug him, it was like I couldn't even breathe. Every time you kissed him, I died inside. Can you imagine the kind of pain I'd felt for three years? Do you even know how strong the bond of Synergy is?" Benjamin's eyes were filled with a mixture of sorrow and anger.

"No. I don't." Selene said blankly.

"Whenever you kiss him, I can tell even if I'm not there. Whenever you share a part of yourself with him, I can feel it even though I don't want to. I could feel your happiness and I was miserable despite how hard I tried to ignore it. I feel everything you do because our souls are connected but you don't feel anything I feel. Can you imagine how I felt when he introduced you to me as his girlfriend?" he snapped.

Selene shook her head.

"It felt like you had ripped my heart out of my chest. You both seemed so happy and I felt so disgusting for hating you. I hated him for being able to hug you when you were sad, I hated him for being able to kiss you when I couldn't, I hated him because he had you and I hated you for being happy with someone who wasn't me. I even started to think the whole Synergy bond was in my head till I met your aunt and she could tell immediately. How come everyone can tell we're connected and yet you can't?" Benjamin said harshly.

"It's not my fault I can't remember anything," Selene said in a small voice. She felt so horrible.

"You don't remember because you don't want to. I couldn't even move on or try being with anybody else. I can't be with anybody else apart from you. That's how the Synergy bond works. I can't even try but it was so easy for you to move on." Benjamin said bitterly.

"You didn't tell me you liked me. How was I supposed to know?" Selene asked.

"I didn't tell you because you didn't feel the same way about me! I kept waiting and hoping you'd eventually realize what we had but then you ended up with him. Of all people! I even thought that after we kissed, I would start meaning something to you. I was a fool." Benjamin said.

"You mean a lot to me," Selene said desperately.

"No, Selene. I don't. Do you know how I know?" He asked.

She shook her head, mesmerized by the angry look in his golden eyes.

"Despite everything you've put me through, despite all the pain I'd endured, even though I know being by your side could lead to my death and although I know you don't even care about me, it never crossed my mind to severe the Synergy bond. Not even once. I can lay down my life for you but you won't do the same. You don't fucking care!" Benjamin said bitterly.

Selene felt tears prick her eyes. Everything he'd said felt like a dagger to her chest. She'd never cared about how things affected him. She'd only cared about herself.

"Why did I have to be bonded with you? Why couldn't it have been anyone else? Why do I have to suffer when I didn't even do anything wrong?" His voice dropped. He no longer sounded angry. He just sounded hurt.

"I'm sorry." Selene tried.

"Perhaps we should sever the Synergy bond. Ever since you came into my life, you've turned it upside down. I just want to be happy. I deserve happiness, don't I?" He asked her.

Just then, the front door opened. They both turned their heads towards the door. Edith looked at them with her shrewd eyes. She could sense the tension in the air.

"Please stay away from me. I can't stand being around you right now." He said in a low voice so Edith wouldn't hear. Despite how angry and hurt he was, he didn't want to cause a scene in front of someone else.

He pushed back his chair and walked out of the front door. He didn't slam the door but for some reason, it was even worse.

Selene had to take off her glasses when her tears began to fall. She tried wiping them with the sleeves of her shirt but it didn't really work.

"Here." Edith shoved some tissues her way. She looked uncomfortable with Selene's tears.

Selene dabbed her huge eyes ruefully. She sniffed several times as well. Edith didn't speak until she was sure Selene was calm.

"Don't take most of what he said to heart. I don't think he really means it." Edith said carefully.

"He does and he's right. I've never considered how some of the things I did made him feel." Selene's lower lip quivered again.

"He came off harsher than he probably meant. It happens when you pile things up for too long." Edith said quickly. She didn't want Selene to cry again.

"Pile up?" Selene blinked looking confused.

"Most of the things he said are things he's had to bottle up for years. Unrequited love is bad enough. I can't imagine how unrequited Synergy is." Edith said.

"I feel so guilty." Selene blew her nose.

"If it was Laurence, I'd have said he was doing it to guilt-trip you. Benjamin isn't like that. He probably couldn't take it anymore which was why he lashed out." Edith said.

Selene eyed her new friend thoughtfully.
"I'm surprised you're choosing Benjamin's side over your own brother." She said.

"I told you I'm not bound by petty human bonds and desires. Just because we were birthed by the same parents does not mean I'm blind to his faults. That is one of the many ways my brother and I are different." Edith said.

Selene lost herself in Edith's black-lined eyes. The girl didn't even flinch despite how intense Selene's gaze was.

"What do you mean?" Selene asked.

"I see people for what they are not what they try to be. A close interaction with someone would never make me blind to their weaknesses. I don't expect anybody to be perfect neither am I foolish enough to idolize another by putting them on a pedestal." Edith paused to make sure her words were having the right effect.

Selene was utterly mesmerized by the strange girl. She'd almost stopped crying by then.

"Laurence and most other people aren't the same. They expect their idols to be perfect not knowing that they're also human. They never see beyond the glamour because they're blinded by the image they've created for someone. It doesn't even matter to them if that image is wrong. Laurence sees our mother as a scorned woman left by her husband. I see her for what she is: bitter, weak, selfish, and arrogant. That doesn't mean I despise her." Edith shrugged.

"It doesn't?" Selene asked in shock.

"It doesn't. Regardless of all her flaws, she's the vessel that brought me into existence. The point is, I don't expect anyone to be perfect. Nothing ever is. It's the imperfections that make you who you are." Edith said wisely.

She seemed so wise and shrewd for a 16-year-old. The only other person Selene knew who was that shrewd was Didi whom she met at summer camp. But while Edith was sober and dark, Didi was fun. Most people never realized how shrewd Didi was because she liked to play down her intelligence.

Selene missed Didi at once. She hadn't seen her friend in over 48 hours. Didi would have been the only one who could make her smile when she felt so awful.

"I'm not sure if I can say the same about myself. I mean, I don't think I see people for what they are." Selene sighed.

"You are a Telepather before you are anything else. You see things but you do not understand or interpret them well. When the time is right, you'd be able to." Edith said confidently.

Selene didn't feel so sure.

"What about my aunt? What do you see in her?" Selene asked suddenly.

She almost wasn't sure she wanted to hear the answer to that.

#M.M💀🖤