Darn Stupid Brother You Are

(Angel's POV)

I had been trying to talk to Thomas for days.

Every time I got close, he brushed me off or changed the subject like he was avoiding something. It started to feel strange.

I found him in the common room, and he sat alone with his eyes glued to the TV, but I knew he wasn't really watching.

"Thomas," I started, but he barely glanced my way.

"Not now, Angel," he muttered without looking up. His fingers tapped anxiously on the armrest of the couch.

"Then when?" I pressed and stepped closer, refusing to let him slip away this time. "This is important."

He sighed and rubbed his hand over his face. "Look, I don't have time for this."

But I felt it in my gut that he was hiding something, something that could help us. "We need your help," I insisted and lowered my voice so no one else could hear. "You've been here longer than anyone. You know more about this place than we do."

For a second, his expression shifted and something dark crossed his face. Then it was gone, replaced by that same lazy mask.

"Look, Angel, you don't know what you're asking." His voice was low like he was warning me.

"Why won't you help us?" I asked, frustrated. "We're trying to figure out what's happening here. Don't you care about getting out of this place?"

"I do." His voice was cold now. "But you don't know what you're messing with."

The others shuffled into the room-Hendrix, Eddie, Bundah-and Thomas stood up and shoved his hands into his pockets. The casual and lazy way he moved couldn't hide the tension in him.

Then, out of nowhere, he said, "Alright, fine. I'll help you." The words spilled out like they didn't belong to him.

My eyebrows shot up. "What?"

"I'll help you gather proof. About Dr. Joe. About all of this." He waved his hand and gestured to the room, the building, the mess we were all stuck in. "But only if you're serious."

I blinked and felt surprised by the sudden shift. Just moments ago, he was avoiding me. Now he was offering to help?

I nodded slowly. "Of course, I'm serious."

"Good," he said flatly. "We'll talk later."

...

Later after everyone drifted off, I cornered Thomas in the hallway.

"I want to know why," I said and stared him down. "Why now? Why the change of heart?"

Thomas leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "Let's just say I don't want to see anyone else get hurt."

I wasn't buying it. There was more he wasn't saying and I needed to know what it was. "You're being weird, Thomas. What's really going on?"

His eyes flickered toward me and for the first time I saw something uneasy.

"I know what's happening between you and Hendrix," he said quietly and his gaze narrowed.

My heart skipped a beat. "What are you talking about?"

He stepped closer and his voice dropped. "You're not fooling anyone. The way you look at him...it's more than just being his sister."

A chill ran down my spine. "Thomas, you're "

"I'm just saying," he cut me off, "whatever it is, you'd better be careful. Relationships like that don't end well."

There was something in his tone, something bitter and jealous, and I couldn't shake the discomfort that settled in my chest. "What are you trying to say, Thomas?"

He stared at me with eyes that stayed dark and unblinking. "Do you really think he's the best for you? After everything that's happened?"

His words hit me like a slap. I didn't respond and just clenched my fists at my sides to keep my voice steady. "Hendrix is my stepbrother. I care about him. That's it."

Thomas smirked as if he didn't believe a word I was saying. "If you say so."

...

(Hendrix's POV)

I shouldn't have come back.

I shouldn't have seen them.

Angel and Thomas stood too close, talking in hushed voices. His eyes were on her like he knew something.

Something he shouldn't.

I grabbed the bottle of water I came for but I couldn't stay. I couldn't watch them. Not like this.

I headed to the gym as my mind raced. I needed to clear my head. I needed to stop thinking about Angel and how wrong this all was.

How right it felt even though it shouldn't.

I threw myself into the weights and pulled hard against the resistance machine, feeling the burn in my arms. It wasn't enough. I needed more. I needed to drown out the thoughts about Angel, about Thomas, about this messed-up place.

...

Angel walked in. Her footsteps were light but I heard her. I always heard her.

"I talked to Thomas," she said like it was nothing. Like it didn't twist something inside me to hear his name from her lips.

I grunted and pulled the weight harder.

"He's going to help us," she continued softly. "But something about him feels off. I don't know if we can trust him."

I stayed silent and focused on the machine. On anything but her.

She moved closer and her voice was a little more insistent. "Hendrix, are you even listening to me?"

I stopped and the weight slipped from my hands and crashed back into place with a loud clang. Angel jumped and her eyes went wide as she flinched.

I cursed under my breath. "Why are you always acting like my mother?"

She stared at me in shock. "What?"

I turned to face her and my breath came fast while my heart pounded. "You're always telling me what to do and worrying about me. Why? Why do you care so much?"

Angel blinked, her face mixed with confusion and hurt. "Because you're my brother, Hendrix. Isn't that enough of a reason?"

I stepped closer and the air between us crackled with something I couldn't control. "I don't want you to just be my sister."

The silence that followed was deafening.

She took a step back, her eyes wide. "What... what are you saying?"

I closed the distance between us and my voice grew low and rough. "You know exactly what I'm saying."

"Stop." She put her hands up and pressed against my chest, trying to push me away. "Hendrix, stop."

But I couldn't. I wouldn't. "You've been on me about everything since we got here and even before. I know you feel it too."

Her breath caught and her eyes darted between mine, searching for something. "We... we can't. We're siblings."

I laughed, bitter and sharp. "Are we?"

Her eyes flickered and her resolve wavered.

"Are we really siblings, Angel?" I asked as I stepped even closer and my voice turned low and dangerous. "Because it sure as hell doesn't feel that way."

She shoved against my chest harder this time and her voice shook. "We need to focus on the plan and get you treated, getting out of here. This-this is insane."

I smirked, but it wasn't humorous. "You're always so serious, Angel. Always focused on everything except what's right in front of you."

She huffed and her face flushed with anger. "Oh, you mean like how you can't stay focused for more than five minutes? One second you're all about the plan and the next, you're drooling over Ava's flat ass."

I couldn't help it and I laughed. "Does it bother you that much, Angel? Ava being around me?"

She glared and pressed her lips into a thin line. "Forget it."

She turned to leave but I grabbed her wrist and pulled her back against the wall. "No, I don't think I will."

She stared up at me and her breath came fast as her chest rose and fell against mine. "Hendrix, let me go."

I leaned in and my voice dropped to a whisper. "I know why it bothers you."

Her face flushed and her eyes flicked to my lips. "Hendrix..."

I cupped her cheek and brushed my thumb over her skin. "It's because you want to be in her place, don't you?"

Her breath hitched and I saw the conflict in her eyes.

Then, before she could say anything, I kissed her.

It was wrong. It was so wrong.

But it felt so right.

Her lips were soft and warm, and for a second, just a second, she kissed me back.

Then she shoved me away hard and her voice broke as she shouted, "Hendrix!"

We both breathed hard and stared at each other like we'd just crossed a line we could never uncross.

She grabbed the bottle of water I'd left on the bench and threw it in my face. "Get a grip, Hendrix. What the hell are you doing?"

Before I could answer, she was gone and stormed out of the room, her footsteps echoing in the silence.

...

(Angel's POV)

I rushed back to the dorm as my heart raced and my mind spun. What the hell just happened?

I didn't even notice Cylan sitting up in bed when I threw myself onto mine and buried my face in the pillows to drown out the chaos in my head. My heart pounded in my chest and my skin burned from where Hendrix touched me. I couldn't believe this.

Why did he kiss me?

Why did I kiss him back?

Cylan shifted in the bed next to me and her voice was cautious. "Angel, you okay?"

I squeezed my eyes shut because I wasn't ready to face anyone, especially not Cylan. "Yeah. Just tired."

"Tired?" She sounded doubtful but thankfully she didn't press. I heard her roll over in her bed and the rustling sheets told me she was giving me space.

But space was the last thing I needed.

My mind replayed the kiss again and I couldn't stop it. His lips on mine, the heat between us, and the way everything else faded into the background. It felt real and wrong and... inevitable.

I groaned and buried my face deeper into the pillows because I wished I could erase the memory. But it was there, like a brand burned into my brain.

What the hell just happened?

And more importantly-what happens now?