Sweet Karma [boyxboy]

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four (Adam)

I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.

It felt like a heavy rock weighing me down as I sat in the living room, staring at the television screen, but not quite seeing anything. I hadn't even taken a drink of coffee. It was probably cold by now. I glanced at the clock to see that it was six in the morning. I'd been up all night, I realized miserably, reaching up to rub at my eye. They both felt like they were sinking into my skull and I had a headache in my forehead.

I got up off the sofa and went to the kitchen, putting the cup of coffee in the microwave to heat it up. I leaned on the counter, pinching the bridge of my nose, closing my eyes. As soon as I closed them, I could see Julian lying in his hospital bed, pale and weak. I opened my eyes quickly, giving my head a shake to get rid of the image.

But it still made my heart heavy.

I hated seeing Julian like that. He shouldn't look like that. He should be up and about, making snarky comments and picking fights and getting all excited about how well we played last night. I remembered glancing at him every so often throughout the dance and he was so excited. He was smiling the entire time, fingers flying over the keys on his keyboard like, together, they were one being.

He seemed perfectly fine and then he left to use the bathroom. He wasn't more than just a few feet away. How could I have been so stupid? I should've gone with him. I should've known. Why didn't I go with him? Because I was already pumped about the dance and eager to get back to playing with the guys. Because I was listening to the sounds of people cheering and chattering about us. Because I figured an innocent trip to the bathroom wouldn't do anything. Because I was stupid.

The sound of the microwave beeping made me jump, and I mentally cursed myself, reaching in and taking the mug out.

"You shouldn't drink so much coffee if you're that high strung." I blinked and looked up to see Newell coming into the kitchen. He looked exhausted too, his dark hair a mess from rolling around in bed, his long sleeved shirt that was obviously too big for him slid off his shoulder, his pajama pants dragging across the tiled floor as he made his way to the fridge.

"I'm the type of guy who needs is caffiene before going into public." I responded dryly, then brought the mug to my mouth, taking a deep gulp of rich, bitter coffee. Newell cast me a sideways glance, then opened the fridge casually, taking out a small bag filled with dark red blood.

"You didn't sleep last night, did you?" He asked, bringing the bag to his mouth and biting down. He didn't seem to see a reason for pouring it into a cup like the rest of the family. He just liked drinking straight from the bag.

"My boyfriend's in the hospital. I'm not sleeping until he's back where he belongs." I answered, taking another deep gulp of coffee. I sighed, leaning against the counter, letting the coffee warm me up. Newell climbed up onto a stool, then used it to sit on the edge of the new island counter that replaced the old one that Julian destroyed with his telekinetic abilities.

"I'm sure he's fine," Newell replied, licking blood from his lips, "It's actually not shocking that this would happen during the first time he's bitten. Most of us experience at a younger age. Of course, I'm sure you're referring to the fact that Zephyra sent someone to do this to him."

"But why," I demanded in irritation, "Why would they randomly send someone out to bite him? It doesn't make any sense. What do they gain by doing this?" Newell licked the leftover blood off the bag before pausing, frowning slowly.

"To be honest? I'm not sure. Maybe to land him in the hospital to traumatize him."

"But why? What if they wanted him to go to the hospital?"