MasukWHAT WE CAN'T CHOOSE"Oh," that was all Blake said. And then silence lingered between the two boys. Blake's smile had disappeared completely now, replaced with an expression Ethan couldn't quite decipher. It was different from the look of disgust and anger he usually held. It was… surprise.For a long moment, neither of them moved. Ethan, already regretting speaking his thoughts out loud, turned to the pulsing floor as his face burned. He could practically feel his heart trying to punch its way out of his heart. He had finally spoken his mind and now Blake was staring at him like he was some alien. The music downstairs continued to play regardless of what was transpiring in the room, while the wind rattled the window beside them. Somewhere outside, someone shouted before a chorus of laughter followed.Ethan lowered his eyes. “I…” he muttered, rubbing the back of his neck, "...just… just forget I said anything–" “Why?" The question caused him to stop short. He looked back up t
THE EYES THAT WATCH 2"Yeah. We found him behind the building."Ryan's expression tightened as he looked at the officer."Someone escaped?"The officer gave a slow nod, his face still carrying the tension of what they had discovered."Looks like it."For a moment, nobody spoke.James turned his attention toward the back hallway, staring into the darkness beyond the entrance. Something about the entire place felt wrong. It wasn't the feeling of a simple robbery gone bad. It wasn't the desperate chaos of someone breaking in because they needed money.This was different.Everything about the scene felt deliberate.The damage. The bodies. The way everything had been left behind.This wasn't the work of someone who lost control.This was organized.Controlled.The kind of violence carried out by people who knew exactly what they were doing and had done it before.James stepped into the hallway, his eyes scanning every detail.The walls were stained with blood and dirt. The floor was covere
THE EYES THAT WATCH 2 “You say you found the body outside the building?" James asked as he walked through the door leading to the back. "Yeah, we found him in the alley behind the building,” the officer answered as he read from his notes. A rat squeaked behind him and he flinched. “Fucking derelict place." Ryan's expression tightened as he looked at the moss covered walls. "The person got out and was killed?” he asked as he turned to the officer. “Yeah," the officer answered as he stepped over a molding rug. “It appears so." For another minute, nobody said a word. James took his time to study the hallway as they walked. From the bullet holes on the walls, to the tangy smell that settled in the air–something about the entire place felt really wrong. This didn't just look like a simple robbery fine bad, or the desperate chaos of someone breaking in because they needed money. It was entirely different. From the damage, to the bodies, to the way the money in the register had be
CHAPTER 56 THE EYES THAT WATCH The first thing commissioner James Hyatt caught when he stepped out of the car was the smell. Blinking lights flashed across the streets in red and blue as policemen rushed here and there around the crime scene. A few feet away, blocking the entrance of the derelict drugstore was the yellow crime tape. But the commissioner paid no attention to any of that. All he locked on to was that smell. The rain had saturated the cracked asphalt while the cold, damp concrete had been impregnated by the city's wet trash stench that lingered after the drizzle. However, beneath those smells, there was one so sharp that it didn't seem to fit there. Blood. The drugstore stood at the end of the deserted street as though it was the last remaining vestige of the past times. The shattered windows once covered with posters and magazine covers now reflected the flashing light from the police cars surrounding the building. The policemen moved around the area–a few
CONFESS OUR LOVE "I did, Jake," Gina croaked. “I did trust you." Those words barely slipped from her mouth when Jake's expression turned hard. "Then why didn't you tell me?" The question caught her off-guard because she had asked herself the same thing a million times. Again and again she wondered… Why hadn't she told him? Why did she let him find out this way? Gina swallowed hard, unable to look at him. She didn't know what else to say. And she wasn't going to lie to him anymore. "Why didn't you tell me?" Jake asked again as he walked toward her. "Tell me.” "I had to," she said weakly. Jake's frown deepened. "What?" "It's my mother," Gina finally revealed. "My mother is sick." Her voice died down and her expression seemed to tell him everything. "Oh," Jake mumbled, the anger in his eyes faded slowly. His whole attitude changed in a heartbeat. "Your mum is sick?" "She's in the hospital,” Gina answered, her head still facing the ground. “My mom has been undergoing
THE THINGS WE HIDE Neither of them moved for a few seconds. Jake sat on the floor, holding onto the rim of the bin with one hand. His head was lowered and breathing was irregular, as he felt Gina's gaze on him. The rest of the hallway was oblivious to what was happening there. Laughter could be heard in the background, the music coming from downstairs shook through the walls, the vibrations reaching their feet. Someone ran by them, shouting about drinking games on the lower floor. The party was still going on and people kept on having fun. But between the two of them, something was different. Like all that noise wasn't reaching them anymore. Finally, Gina took the initiative. "Jake..." The moment she mentioned his name, Jake's eyes shifted away from hers. "I'm fine," he said quickly. Gina observed him for a moment before giving a soft sigh. "You're literally sitting on the floor next to a trash can." "I said I'm fine," he said with a sharpness in his voice.
LEFTOVERSThe class buzzed with almost instantly. The moment Dr. Keller said they should pick their partners, the sound of chairs scraping across the floor echoed across the room as students began turning toward “Calm down," Dr. Keller shouted over the noise, slamming his palm against the desk. “G
THE TASTE OF REGRETThe house carried the strong smell of beer–one that Ethan knew too well. It mixed with the faint scent of cigarette smoke clinging to the couch cushions and curtains, welcoming him as he opened the door. Coughing, he pushed through the ash cloud as he prayed his brother was alr
KISS ME LIKE YOU HATE MECoach Daniels' sharp whistle rang out, echoing across the empty court. The sound of squeaking shoes and quickened breath filled the space as everyone huddled at a corner. “Alright, y’all pair up,” Coach Daniels shouted in a thick southern accent, as he grabbed a basketball
DREAMS, DESKS AND DIRTY THOUGHTSHis hands were everywhere and his kisses were like fire, burning with passion. Blake ran his hands over Ethan's body before pushing him hard, pinning him against the locker. The cold, metal surface bit at Ethan's skin through his shirt but he didn't mind it. He wan







