Chapter 101: You didn’t trust me?
Chapter 101: You didn’t trust me?
"Leave it, Kyle, it won’t get cleaned this easily."
Kyle groaned, still rubbing at the bloodstain on the rug. "This is expensive, and I don’t want anyone suspecting me of murder." The body lay in the corner, a plastic bag wrapped around its head to keep the blood from spreading across the floor.
Blake grabbed his brother’s wrist and pulled him up. "No one’s going to suspect you for that, but if you aren’t honest with me now... someone definitely will."
Kyle narrowed his eyes and let the rug drop. "I don’t know what you’re talking about."
"Oh, you have no idea why that man attacked you? Just a regular burglar, then?" Blake said, folding his arms.
Kyle shrugged. "Believe whatever you want." With that, he walked into the bathroom to wash his hands.
Blake removed his glasses and let out a slow breath. He needed to calm down before pushing this any further.
He checked that the door was locked, then pulled a chair into place.
When Kyle came out, Blake gestured toward it. "Sit."
"I’m hungry," Kyle replied. "If you want to talk, do it while I cook."
Blake didn’t argue. He had just gotten back, and it was already late.
Kyle stepped into the kitchen area, which blended into the rest of the small house. He crouched and pulled out a few ingredients from the refrigerator.
Leaning against the wall, Blake asked, "First tell me... are you okay?"
Kyle hummed. "Didn’t I tell you on the call? I’m not injured at all. I was in my room the whole time."
"And they just let you return like that?" Blake pressed.
Kyle frowned. "What do you mean?"
Blake’s voice turned heavy. "Kyle... there’s a reason those people were sent to the hospital, even without being directly attacked. Every single one of them. But you, who were in your room, came out completely fine."
Kyle paused.
Ethan had raised that same question earlier this morning. He had overheard it by accident. Thankfully, Veronica had handled it well.
But now?
"What, did you want to see me injured or something?" he joked, pulling out lettuce and bread.
"Kyle... haah." Blake exhaled sharply. "I’m very disappointed right now. Not in you. In myself."
Kyle stilled.
He set the knife down and turned to face him.
"Alright, now you’re creeping me out. What do you want to ask? Just say it."
Blake didn’t circle around it. He spoke plainly. "Kyle... are you a Nightwalker?"
Kyle stayed silent, but Blake wasn’t finished.
"I had my doubts, but I didn’t want to believe them. When you brought me that miraculous potion, you lied about getting it from Amanda. I couldn’t understand why you’d hide something like that from me. That’s when the first seed of doubt took root."
"Then I looked into it. A few days ago, I found evidence of traces of magic coming from this house. And you didn’t even tell me someone came here to investigate."
Kyle pressed his lips together and said nothing. Normally, he would have told Blake about a CPV officer showing up at his door.
But this time, he hadn’t. The reason was obvious.
Blake continued, "And today, I became certain. When you slammed your head into that guy, your body released Genesis."
"..."
Right. Golden Limb had exposed him again.
Blake straightened and walked toward him.
He placed a hand on Kyle’s shoulder. "I’m disappointed in myself because I wasn’t reliable enough for you to trust with something so significant, Kyle."
Kyle’s chest felt heavy. Blake was hurt, and he had every right to be.
Since childhood, Blake had always been there for him, no matter how stern or sharp-tongued he seemed. He never truly left Kyle’s side, always watching from a distance, always making sure he was safe.
If not for Blake, Kyle would have never been able to leave the Astortia mansion and live on his own.
If there was anyone he should have trusted the most, it was his brother.
But there was a reason Kyle hadn’t shared his secret with him.
"Sit," he said quietly, abandoning the sandwich.
Blake followed without protest and took a seat.
Kyle leaned against the kitchen counter and let out a slow breath.
Lowering his head, he spoke, "There’s a bigger reason why I didn’t tell you. The smaller one is all the chaos around me. It hasn’t been long since I awakened this side of myself, and after that... everything just kept happening. I had to keep attention off me, go on that trip, and deal with one thing after another."
He couldn’t remember the last time he had gone even two days without trouble. Ever since he unlocked Genesis and started receiving those strong gifts from his viewers, his life had been moving at a relentless pace.
"What’s the bigger reason?" Blake pressed, relieved that Kyle was finally opening up. He had already accepted the truth that his brother was a Nightwalker.
"The bigger reason is Father," Kyle said at last. "I don’t want him to find out that I can use magic now."
Blake was taken aback. "But why? Wouldn’t that be the best way to get back at him?"
Kyle shook his head. "I don’t want him to take control of my life again. The moment he finds out I have this ability, he’ll drag me back home and turn me into his puppet. Right now, at least, I have a small chance of resisting him."
Keeping his identity a secret was both his shield and his weakness. As a magician, he still wasn’t strong enough to stand against the Astortia clan.
If this got out, everything would spiral. And his life already had more than enough chaos to deal with.
"Then couldn’t you have trusted me to keep your secret? Did I ever tell Father about Amanda? Did I ever let him know about the mess you caused with those school kids?"
Kyle groaned. "Didn’t I tell you? Everything was happening so fast that I didn’t even get the time to think about it."
"But you were ready to get caught by the authorities?" Blake’s voice rose, sharp enough to cut him off completely.
"I’ve always been looking after you. I never had to worry about whatever mess you cause because you always told me before getting yourself in trouble. This could have cost you your entire life, and you still didn’t tell me?" Blake pressed, forcing Kyle to lower his head.
Blake let out a breath and rubbed the bridge of his nose. A hint of guilt crept in for raising his voice, but the thought of what could have happened to Kyle in this dangerous, unpredictable world made it impossible for him to hold back.
Blake sighed and said, "Sorry for shouting. Let’s start from the beginning."
Kyle raised his hand, "First...make me a healthy meal or I am not hearing another word."
Blake wryly smiled before shaking his head and getting up.
Kyle stepped aside and advanced toward the bed. He was too hungry to think straight.
Rolling his sleeves, Blake entered the kitchen.
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A/N:- Thanks for reading. I don’t know how you view Kyle’s decision but I believe it was reasonable.
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