Rafael couldn’t sleep. Adrenaline had come, gone, and come again. It was five in the morning, and he had to admit he wouldn’t get any sleep.

He climbed out of bed, hearing Ezekiel snoring beside him. His bare feet padded softly on the carpet as his injuries gave a dull throb. The pain medication the hospital gave him was wearing off. He needed some new ice packs, anyway.

Once the ice was against his ribs, Rafael sat at the table, staring at nothing. He had been in a daze at the hospital, letting Alejandra and Derek take care of everything. Once Rafael had signed in, Derek left to check on the others. Alejandra tried to talk to him, but Rafael said nothing. He didn’t say anything else all evening. Even when they called his mother. He forced Alejandra to say everything. Repeat his deeds, because he was spent. Done. The secret was out, and now it would spread. He couldn’t possibly play in the football game next week. Or even the week after. He’d have to tell the couches why. They’d have to kick him off the team. It was what he deserved.

Everything he’d so carefully worked for would come crashing down. The reputation he always knew was fake burned before his eyes.

Someone sat next to him, giving him a package of frozen peas. Rafael moved a bit, the jolt of pain reminding him of how injured he was. It was Mariana, and he glanced back at the table, accepting the peas.

“It’s easier to wrap around your ribs than the ice pack,” she said. Rafael nodded, saying nothing. “You need to press charges against Nick.”

“No.” It was the first thing he said to anyone since last night.

Mariana frowned. “I’m not sending you to school with that boy in that same building. Not after he did this to you. I need to know you’ll be safe.” Rafael said nothing. He just stared ahead. Mariana ruffled his hair, like she used to as a boy. It jolted him into himself. “Did you get any sleep?”

Again, Rafael shook his head. He knew he was closing in on himself. He knew it was unhealthy. “Mom…” Mariana waited, and Rafael forced himself to look at her. “Have you ever… done something so horrible that… that it feels like you can never possibly be forgiven?”

Mariana’s face broke into a humorous look. “Yes.”

Rafael was genuinely confused. “When?”

The humor practically danced in her eyes. She lifted her hands, her palms toward the ceiling. “Everything, hun. Look at us. Look how long it took me to kick an abusive man out of this house. It’s taken us years to get on our feet, and we’re still not quite there. I’m practically a stranger in my own house. To my own kids. By the time the debts I’ve created will be paid off, both you and Alejandra will be off to college.” That statement caused the humor to leave her face, and she looked out the window, playing with a lock of her hair.

“That’s… that’s completely different,” Rafael said.

Mariana gave him a look. “Really, Rafael? Is it different?”

“It wasn’t your fault. It was dad’s.”

Mariana shook her head. “I see no difference. It was still my choice. A choice I didn’t make for way too long. And in the process, I hurt my children.” Mariana took the ice pack he got from the freezer and placed it on the side of Rafael’s nose, right under his eye. Her face morphed into compassion. “You’re getting a black eye.”

He took the ice pack from her. “I hurt her. I hurt my friend. Destroyed things beyond repair.”

“That’s how it always looks in the beginning. But you’re not a villain. And if you won’t do anything to keep yourself safe from Nick, I’ll schedule an appointment with the school to make sure proper protocols are in place.”

“Mom-”

“This isn’t up for negotiation.” Rafael sighed as Mariana went to get her laptop. “And you’re not going to school until we’ve had this meeting.”

He glanced out the window, feeling sick to his stomach. The fallout was coming, and he wasn’t prepared for it.

He forced himself to have something to eat. Mariana sent off a few emails, and Rafael didn’t have the strength to respond anymore. Mariana got a call from one of her bosses that sounded angry, and Rafael winced, feeling responsible.

Mariana apologized to Rafael, saying she needed to go to work. Rafael understood, and he also somehow knew Mariana would wait until she was alone in the car to cry. And Rafael could not help but feel responsible for that, too.

***

Alejandra woke up, not feeling rested at all. She walked out of her room to see Rafael sitting at the table. As soon as he saw her, he stood up, heading for his room.

“Rafael-”

“I didn’t get any sleep. I’m exhausted.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

He certainly looked exhausted. “Raf-”

“Just let me sleep.”

Alejandra didn’t know what to do other than to let him go. A part of her was terrified of leaving him alone with his thoughts.

She got herself some breakfast, then worked on her homework. Her phone was to the side, ignored. Nick could never text her, and he definitely wouldn’t text her about this. She was kind of glad he wouldn’t. It was easier to be furious at him than with her brother.

It was getting to be mid-morning when she heard a knock on her door. For a moment, she was terrified it was Nick, who’d storm into their house and murder Rafael. It was enough to make her look around the house and make sure the lights were turned off.

Her phone vibrated, and she saw it was from Tyler.

You guys at home?

The relief was enough for Alejandra to notice. She headed toward the door and unlocked it, seeing Tyler there with his phone out. “Hey.” He placed his phone in his pocket. “Is… Rafael here?”

“He’s sleeping. He didn’t get much last night.”

“Yeah, I doubt anybody did.” The weight in his tone was almost as heavy as the bags under his eyes. Alejandra blinked a few times before turning away.

They heard a door open, and Alejandra turned to see her brother appearing at the end of the hall. “Have you figured out how to transfer Ezekiel back to Nick?” Rafael asked.

The worry etched in Alejandra’s face. “You should be asleep.”

“It’s not possible, Rafael. I’m sorry.” Tyler took out his phone again. “This situation has gotten messy. I’m thinking we’ll take a three-week break from leveling up characters, anyway. What with con in two weeks, we’ll meet with Neal and we can get more direction about what we’re doing with these characters. We’ll at least have some sort of direction to point them while we’re doing all this leveling. And… we’ve got to spend some time away from each other for now.” Tyler’s gaze lingered on Rafael’s black eye.

Rafael glanced down, and Alejandra was surprised and relieved to see tears in his eyes. If she was being honest, her older brother’s emotionless face had concerned her far more than what he did.

“Waiting… might not be an option,” Rafael said.

Tyler frowned. “What? Why not?”

“I… failed. I failed the save.” Her older brother closed his eyes, then let out a ragged breath. “I’m sorry. I didn’t… Ezekiel. He’s got lycanthropy.”

Alejandra gasped, her hand to her mouth. Ezekiel, a wererat? Their cleric? A highly religious man?

Tyler stared at Rafael, processing what he said. “Lycanthropy? As in… wererat.”

Rafael nodded. There was silence again as Tyler kept staring at Rafael. This was not something they could procrastinate until everyone felt better. From what she understood of lycanthropy, the first change in the moonlight was usually the one that solidified the curse.

“Can it be cured?” Alejandra asked.

Tyler clicked open his phone again, a dazed look on his face. “Um… maybe. As long as the game master wants it to happen. But… I’m not the game master anymore. I’m the messenger.”

“Ezekiel can’t turn into a wererat. That’s a dangerous, evil creature. He’s our cleric. He’s good,” Alejandra said.

Tyler nodded, tapping some things into his phone before wincing. “The next full moon is October fifth.”

The fear caused her chest to tighten. “That’s not long. That’s… what, two and a half weeks away?”

“Eighteen days.” Tyler lowered his phone, rubbing his face. “Right. This is…” He let out a breath. “Does Ezekiel know?”

Rafael shook his head. “I don’t have the heart.”

“Alright, well… I’m…” Tyler motioned over his shoulder, and then froze in that position. This information was rocking all of them. “I’m going to stay in touch,” Tyler finally said. “And soon. Let me…” Tyler groaned, then backed away from the door. “I’ll spend some time thinking about it. See if I can get any information from… from whatever game masters…” He left the phrase hanging, still reeling. Rafael turned away from the door.

“Rafael,” Alejandra said.

He said nothing, simply returning to his room. Tyler was silent as he went to his car. Alejandra rested her head against the edge of the door and closed her eyes. Tyler was right. This entire situation was so messy.

***

Nick turned a corner and saw Alejandra waiting for him at his locker. It was Monday morning, and he knew they needed to have this conversation. He wanted this conversation much sooner, but he was terrified. A little scared of Walt finding the history of his call to her and asking questions. Nick didn’t want to admit to Walt that he’d been dating Alejandra for a week behind his back. But he was more terrified of Alejandra. He almost wanted to call because he didn’t want to see her face.

He would never apologize to Rafael. That son of a bitch deserved every ounce of pain Nick could get in. And he wished he could have given more.

“So…” Alejandra started to say.

Nick could tell on her face what she was going to say. He found his face relaxing into the glare that was always there. “Yeah?”

She played with her fingernails, giving him one long, scrutinous look. “We took it too fast.”

Nick put his locker combination in. “I get it. You’ve got to stick with your brother.”

Alejandra folded her arms, her eyes darkening. “You know, I could have been on your side, too, except you chose to break my brother’s nose. How am I supposed to view that as anything other than the red flag it is?”

Nick rolled his neck around his shoulders before he opened his locker. “You honestly believe he didn’t deserve it.”

“No, Nick. Not that. Never that.” Her voice caught, and Nick did his best to ignore it. “It was an accident what he did.”

“No, it wasn’t.” The familiar flames of anger returned to his face, his voice coming out sharper. “None of what he did to my sister was an accident. I don’t care how drunk he said he got. That’s no excused for what he did.”

She shook her head, tears in her eyes. “Fine, perhaps my wording was wrong, but…” She closed her eyes. “But it was your choice, too. You didn’t have to punch him.”

The flames of anger got to his voice, and his words came out like poison. “Yes, I did.”

She shook her head. “I am sorry that my brother hurt Evelyn. Truly, I am. But if you won’t apologize—” She stopped when Nick rested his hand on the locker. The one with a huge green and yellow bruise on the knuckles. He finished getting the books he needed.

“I’ll never apologize. He deserved it. And more. I won’t pretend to be cordial around him to make you feel better.”

Her eyes darkened. “You can’t possibly—”

“You’ve sent your message. We’re done.” He zipped up his bag. “And if you feel like you need an even cleaner break, know I will punch Rafael again if he ever touches Evelyn. I’ll assume you’ll give him the message, since I really don’t want to see your brother again.” Nick slammed the locker door, aware that the tears in her eyes had fallen. “Goodbye, Alejandra.”

He slung his bag over his shoulder, feeling the glare that was so often on his face. He didn’t know where he was going, he just needed to be away from her. Back to being alone.