2

Michael

“Mike,” my mom’s wheelchair hummed toward me as I poured a glass of juice. “I need to talk to you.”

“Yeah?” I tossed the carton back into the fridge.

“I heard about something today. MAD. It’s for people with chronic, painful conditions. People like me,” she said.

We all knew Mom wasn’t going to get better, but hearing her say it out loud felt like a punch to the gut.

“What’s MAD?” Johnny asked before I could find my voice.

“Medically Assisted Death. It’s legal here. The hospital could help me... finish things. It’s expensive, but we can afford it,” Mom said calmly.

The blood drained from my face. Bran pulled off his headphones and turned toward us, his expression sharpening.

“Medically assisted what?” he asked.

“Death,” Mom finished carefully, her eyes searching ours.

Her doctor had hinted at "end-of-life options" months ago before I’d snarled him into silence. I knew the level of pain she lived with every day, but the thought of her choosing to leave was unbearable. It was personal. She had lost her mobility because she fell to save me. She was in that chair because of my life.

“No the fuck not. You are not dying,” Johnny snapped, his voice rough.

“Who told you about this?” I asked, crossing my arms. A low growl rumbled deep in my throat.

“Maxine. The girl from next door,” Mom said.

“The girl who moved in a week ago is telling our mother to die?” Brandon scoffed, his eyes flashing with a predatory light.

I clenched my jaw, trying to keep my temper from shattering the glass in my hand. Johnny was already halfway to the door, his shoulders tense.

“Get back here, Jonathan! If any of you hurt Maxine, I will wheel myself upstairs and fall off my chair,” Mom threatened. “I like her. She’s my friend.”

“Your friend wouldn’t tell you to kill yourself, Mom,” I gritted out.

“She understands me. She’s the only person who has actually listened in forever.”

“I’ll die before I let you do this,” I said, already mentally breaking Maxine’s limbs for putting these thoughts in my mother’s head.

“If you don't let me have this choice, I’ll give up my immortality,” she said.

My heart skipped. For a Lycan, giving up the "gift" means we die like humans, young, at a hundred if we are lucky.

“Yeah, forty years from now. Good luck,” I told her, walking away before I did something I'd regret.

The Principal paced her office, her sighs echoing against the mahogany walls. She was clearly exhausted by us, which was fair.

“This is your fourth strike in one week, and the term has just begun,” she snapped. “Max, your mother told me you’re dealing with personal struggles, but I cannot let this slide again.”

“It wasn't my fault!” Max burst out, tears streaming down her face. She looked like a complete mess, crying like a privileged freak with her fancy shoes and accent. “These assholes won't leave me alone.”

“Language, Miss Holmes,” the Principal scolded. “The four of you have been at each other’s throats since day one. I have already called your parents.”

“Principal—” Johnny started, flashing that charming smile that usually worked on everyone.

“Nothing from you, Mr. Glass,” Principal Myrold shut him down instantly.

“Four consecutive Saturday detentions. No sports, no phones, no excuses. You’ll clean the gym, organize the library, and learn to coexist. One more incident and you're suspended. If you push me further, all four of you will be expelled.”

Principal Myrold glared at me. I could tell she thought my lack of control was because my wolf had just recently awakened. She was a Lycan, too—an elder. She didn't blame the annoying human, she blamed us for not being "above" the provocation.

“What happened to your eye, Max?” she asked suddenly.

My stomach dropped. Before Max could answer, I leaned in and whispered, “She doesn’t know about your pathetic attempt to swing a bat at us. Tell her about the ball, and I'll tell her you attacked us with a weapon.”

I was bluffing. She’d probably get a week's suspension, but if the school board found out I’d intentionally hit a female student in the face with a football, my spot on the team and my reputation would be in serious danger.

The Principal returned from a brief phone call, looking at Maxine, who was still trembling from her post-sob tremors. She was such a baby, putting on an act to make us look like monsters.

“Well?” the Principal demanded.

“I missed a step and fell down the stairs,” Maxine lied smoothly.

I sighed in relief, irritated that I’m grateful to her for lying.

Principal Myrold hummed, clearly not believing a word of it. “If any of you boys bother Max again, there will be serious consequences.”

She emphasized those last words. As a Lycan, when she made a threat, it was backed by power. We were supposed to blend in, to keep the secret of shifters safe from the humans. Causing a scene at Millicent Ray was the opposite of blending in.

“Leave. All of you. Maxine, see the nurse for that eye.”

Maxine ignored her, brushing past me as she bolted for the door. Her sweet scent hit me like a physical blow, making my stomach churn in a confusing way.

Gross.

We stepped out into the hallway just as Maxine disappeared around the corner.

“Did you really do that to her eye?” Johnny asked as soon as we were out of earshot.

“It was an accident,” I snapped.

“She’s human, Mike. You could have blinded her,” he argued, his voice low.

“And she just attacked us with a freaking bat!”

“She can’t heal like we can. It’s not the same,” Johnny countered.

“Shut up, both of you,” Brandon interrupted, looking at his phone. “Wait until we get home and Mom finds out what we’ve been doing to her 'new friend'.”

I rolled my eyes, but a knot of dread formed in my chest. Mom was going to be livid.

“Leave her alone. It’s enough,” Johnny added.

“Excuse you?” Bran joked, nudging Johnny. “You pointed a knife at her throat the first time we met her. Why the change of heart? Is it because she smells like juicy peaches and wet lilies?”

“You know she didn’t mean what she said to mom maliciously but we still have the right to be angry and we have done enough to her,” Johnny scoffed and headed for the parking lot, but as they bickered, all I could see was the red in Maxine’s eye and the disappointed look I knew was waiting for me at home.