Chapter 151: There was still Something Left
{Elira}
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Rennon’s hand rested gently on my other one.
"You are enough. You always were." His voice was calm and reassuring.
And Zenon, steady as stone, simply said, "You are ours."
My chest heaved as my tears slipped faster. For the first time in years, they weren’t born of shame, but of release.
I let out a shaky laugh between sobs, pressing my palms to my eyes.
"I... I don’t know what to do with this. I’ve dreamed of hearing it, of being told I wasn’t nothing. And now—"
"Now," Rennon said gently, "you let yourself feel it."
I breathed in shakily, and when I looked up, Lennon was smirking, but his eyes were softer than I ha
d ever seen them. "Cry all you want, sweetheart. You’ve earned it. But after this? We are not letting you hide behind that word, ’Omega’ ever again."
I laughed wetly, the sound breaking in my throat, but the tears didn’t stop.
Zenon waited until my breathing steadied before he spoke again. His tone was calm and deliberate.
"Next week, on Sunday, we will take you to her. The witch."
My heart gave a hard thump. "Sunday..."
"You need to be there," Lennon added quickly. "She can’t unblock you without you being present. And she won’t do it unless she has told you everything first."
"What kind of everything?" I asked, voice small but curious.
"The truth," Rennon said simply. "All of it. After that, the choice will be yours."
"Okay..." I nodded, wiping the last of my tears with the heel of my palm, embarrassed at how raw my voice still sounded. But none of them mocked me.
Zenon’s gaze lingered on me for a moment, unreadable as ever, then he spoke. "Do you want anything?"
I shook my head quickly. "No. I don’t want anything for myself. I just... I promised Juniper I would bring her back a protein shake."
Zenon’s eyes flicked toward the counter, then back to me. "Let’s go."
All three of them stood and moved with the kind of ease that made me feel small between them.
I followed after them, my steps lighter now, though my chest still burnt from everything that had been said.
At the counter, I gave the order for Juniper’s shake, but before I could turn away, Lennon nudged my shoulder lightly.
"What about the others? Don’t tell me you’re going to walk in with just one cup and watch them fight over it."
I hesitated, biting my lip. "I... hadn’t thought of that."
It was only Juniper who asked me to get something for her. The others didn’t seem interested.
"Then think now," he teased, nodding toward the menu board.
I exhaled, a smile tugging faintly at my lips despite myself. "Alright."
Maybe I could use this opportunity to extend a love token to my friends for not poking into the reason I was suddenly leaving without any explanation.
I asked the cashier for the menu, scanning it quickly before picking a caramel latte for Cambria, a strawberry slush for Nari, and a simple iced tea for Tamryn.
Rennon adjusted his glasses. "And you? Won’t you take something for yourself?" he asked calmly.
My eyes dropped. I never even thought of including myself because I wasn’t really interested in drinking anything.
But with Rennon’s kind and concerned gaze on me, I reluctantly made my pick. "I suppose a vanilla milkshake wouldn’t hurt."
Zenon gave the order without hesitation, sliding his card across the counter before I could even think to reach for mine.
When the drinks came, neatly packaged in carriers, Lennon scooped up one while Rennon scooped up the other. And together they handed them carefully into my arms once we stepped back outside.
"Thanks," I whispered, clutching the cartons against me.
Lennon gave me a lazy grin, though softer than usual. "Try not to spill. Wouldn’t want to waste all that sweetness."
Rennon only offered a steady and reassuring nod. "Take care of yourself."
I held the drinks a little tighter, giving them one last grateful look before turning back toward the record shop.
"See you," I said softly and then stepped forward to open the door after balancing the drinks with one hand.
The record shop was just as I had left it, humming with soft music and the faint scratch of vinyl being tested on an old player.
My friends were still huddled near the back, Nari bouncing on her heels as she waved an album in Tamryn’s face, Juniper rolling her eyes, and Cambria carefully reading the back cover of something thicker than my entire backpack.
"Finally," Nari said dramatically the second she spotted me. "We thought you had been kidnapped."
"By a barista?" Juniper muttered, though her eyes went straight to the drink carrier in my hands.
I lifted it a little higher. "I wasn’t kidnapped. I was on an errand." I pulled out the protein shake and passed it to Juniper first. "For you."
Her eyes widened, surprise flickering into delight. "You actually got it?"
"I promised, didn’t I?"
She took it, muttering something like thanks, though the small grin curling her lips gave her away.
Next, I handed Cambria her caramel latte. She blinked in surprise, cheeks colouring faintly as she accepted it. "Oh. My. I wasn’t expecting this."
Nari snatched the strawberry slush before I could even start speaking to her.
"Now this is what I call friendship!" she declared with the straw already between her lips.
Tamryn took her iced tea with a simple nod, but the corner of her mouth softened, almost a smile. "This is so thoughtful of you."
I shifted the last cup in the tray—my vanilla milkshake—and set it beside me on the counter, trying not to look guilty about keeping something to myself.
Nari narrowed her eyes instantly, lips curling into a grin. "Aha. Caught red-handed. She does drink sugar after all."
"Nari, is this the first time you are seeing me drink something sweet?" I asked, almost dumbfounded.
Cambria shook her head and said to me, "Don’t listen to her. She failed to find a valid reason to tease you, so she just went head-on with this."
"I swear, Cam, you should just focus on that thick slump in your hands," Nari said as she pulled out her phone to take a selfie with the strawberry shush.
Their laughter bubbled around me, light and teasing, and I let it wash over me while I clutched my milkshake.
---
By the time everyone had taken the first long sip of their drinks, the teasing mellowed into quiet satisfaction.
The record shop’s music drifted over us, something low and mellow, the perfect backdrop for Nari to lean back with her slush and sigh dramatically.
"Alright," she announced, waving her straw like a conductor. "Here’s the plan. Once we finish these, we get lunch. Then—bookstore."
Juniper arched a brow. "Lunch? You just inhaled half that slush like you were starved."
"Brain food," Nari said seriously, tapping her temple. "You think I can browse shelves and argue with Tamryn about titles on an empty stomach?"
Cambria’s lips curved faintly as she blew gently over her latte. "It does make sense. We’ve been walking all morning."