Kai Langford - September 2120
Sleeping in should have helped. Instead it left me feeling slow, like my body had overslept its own purpose. I almost never slept in. It surprised me enough that the feeling stuck as I laced up my shoes.
Ethan complained when I finally got out of bed, but all it took as a kiss and he backed down. He's so cute like that.
I decide to go for a run as it usually fixed things.
The sea spreads out below it, calm and unbothered in the distance of the track. The air has cooled overnight and it feels cleaner in my lungs, especially with the light breeze rolling in from the edge. Salt, wind and steady waves. Peaceful in a way that felt earned.
After yesterday, the calm felt strange.
I keep my pace even, letting my thoughts settle into rhythm.
That's when I notice Jack and a few other kids playing football on the grass beside the track. I slow without really meaning to. They are laughing, shouting, tripping over each other in that careless way kids do when nothing else exists.
Then one of them goes for the ball and clips Jack's leg.
Jack goes down and stays there, complaining loudly. I can't hear the words, but I recognise the posture. His shoulders are tight and his jaw is locked. I frown slightly.
Before anyone can help him up, Jack kicks out.
His foot catches the other kid's leg. The kid falls, then everything blurs together. He is on Jack in seconds, throwing a punch. Jack hits back just as fast, then twists and uses the move I'd shown him. The other boy rolls off with a cry.
"You dickhead!" Jack shouts.
He pulls his arm back again, but I am already moving.
I grab his wrist and stop the punch before it lands. My grip is firm but controlled. He jerks against it and spins towards me, anger flashing across his face.
"What do you want!" he snaps.
I pull his arm down and guide him upright, stepping into his space just enough to ground him. He stumbles forward a step.
"What are you doing?" I ask.
My voice stays calm. It always does in situations like this. I'd learned early that raising it never helps.
"He started it!" Jack points at the other boy.
"I was only trying to get the ball!" the kid shouts back.
I rub the bridge of my nose, more tired than angry.
"You shouldn't be fighting," I say, not just to Jack but to all of them. "Friends don't fight."
"He's not my friend," Jack shoots back. "And you beat people up all the time."
I give Jack a light shove, just enough to knock him off balance. He stumbles forward, startled.
"The difference," I say evenly, "is that I do it for self defence and to protect others. That move I showed you isn't for proving a point."
Jack looks down at the grass, jaw tight. In the short time i've been here, I know he hates being corrected. I can see the frustration twisting inside him, looking for somewhere to land.
I turn away before it can turn into something else and offer a hand to the other boy. He takes it, and I help him up, checking quickly for injuries. Nothing serious. Same for Jack except for a small bruise under his eye.
"Go take a break," I say. "All of you."
The group drifts off, muttering, but Jack stays behind.
Jack walks towards the ball, and for a moment I think he's going to pick it up and take it back inside.
Instead, he kicks it away hard.
The ball skids across the grass, spinning fast, heading straight for the edge of the cliff. My foot sweeps out instinctively and the shadows answer before I consciously call them. They surge forward like a held breath finally released, wrapping around the ball mid-air.
It stops just short of the drop.
I draw the shadows back in slowly. They carry the football back towards me as if it weighs nothing. When it lands in my hands, the breeze settles again, as though nothing happened at all.
I turn to Jack, but he's already gone.
Storming off around the corner of the building, shoulders rigid, fists clenched. I let out a slow breath through my nose.
All I wanted was a run. Instead, I feel like a babysitter.
I throw the ball back towards the school and turn towards the track, forcing my legs to move. One step. Then another. But my mind won't stay with the rhythm. It keeps pulling back to the way Jack walked off alone while the other kids went inside together.
Something about it presses against an old, familiar place in my chest.
Maybe because I know what it feels like to think everyone's against you and feel like noone is by your side.
With a quiet sigh, I turn on my heel and head after him.
I find Jack at the swing set, sitting on one of the swings, rocking back and forth slowly. The chains creak softly with each movement.
Of course it's the swings.
I don't know why everyone always ends up here when they're upset. Some unspoken rule of childhood, maybe.
I take the swing beside him, leaving a gap between us. I let it move just a little, enough to settle in. I'm not good at this part. I never have been.
I wish Ethan were here. He'd know how to make this easier.
"That technique," I say quietly after a moment, "isn't a game move. You know that."
Jack nods without looking up.
The wind drifts across the playground, cool and steady. Shadows stretch long across the ground, thin and harmless.
"But," I add, hesitating for half a second, "you did pull it off pretty well."
Jack turns his head slightly. "Really?"
I nod. A small smile slips out before I can stop it. I'm not happy he used it like that, but I can't deny the flicker of pride. He learned it fast.
"Just don't use it on your friends" I say.
"I told you he's not my friend" Jack mutters.
I let out a small, quiet laugh. "Even if you say that… don't you see the people here as your family?"
That lands.
Jack's face tightens, guilt flashing across it. He turns away again, kicking his feet lightly so the swing starts moving.
"Are you…" he mutters, still not looking at me, "are you going to stop training me now?"
The question pulls something loose inside me.
For a moment, I'm somewhere else. Smaller. Younger. My school uniform is wrinkled and stained, blood speckling the front from my nose...
"Kai, I didn't teach you how to fight so you could fight other kids," Owen says.
"But Uncle" I protest, voice tight, "he started it."
"I thought you wanted to learn to protect Noah," he replies, wiping blood from my face. "Yet here you are, hurting others instead."
The disappointment hits harder than any punishment ever could.
I remember grabbing his wrist when he turns away.
"Are you going to stop training me?" I'd asked, panic sharp in my voice.
Owen had paused. Then smiled.
The memory fades, but the weight of it stays.
"No," I say now, hearing his voice echo through mine. "But if you use what I teach you to hurt instead of protect, then I've failed you. And I don't plan on failing you."
Jack turns to me fully this time. His eyes are wide, glassy, like he's holding something back.
"I won't do it again" he says quickly. "I swear."
I stand and reach over, ruffling his hair before I can think better of it. He scowls and pushes my hand away, trying to hide the tears building up.
"Go apologise," I say.
He opens his mouth, probably to argue. but then the school bell cuts through the air instead. Loud. Sharp. An intruder alarm.
We both turn towards the building.
I pull Jack to his feet. "Go back inside. Now."
He nods and starts moving, then freezes as the sound of an engine roars down the path.
A black pickup truck bursts through the trees, tyres skidding. I step in front of Jack without thinking, arm out. Shadows coil at my feet, already shaping themselves. A sword forms in my hand, solid, black and familiar.
The truck brakes hard and as soon as it does the door opens.
White hair appears, followed by a familiar voice.
"Why are you in the road?" Noah says, already reaching for the bag on the passenger seat. His eyes flick up as if he's calculating distance and timing. "We nearly missed you."
The shadows vanish instantly.
I reach back and pat Jack's shoulder. "It's fine. He's not dangerous."
Jack stares between Noah and me. "Why does he look like you?"
I huff a small laugh. "Because he's my twin."
Noah steps closer. "I'm the older one."
"Okay," I sigh. "You don't have to keep reminding me."
"I'm not. Just stating facts."
The school doors burst open and Ethan comes running out, already out of breath.
"I-" he pants, bending over, "I told them- I saw that it was only- Noah."
That explains the lack of chaos.
"You should work out more," Jack says.
Ethan lifts his head and flips him off without missing a beat.
"Don't you have- somewhere to be?" Ethan says between breaths. "I heard you punched someone."
Jack looks between the three of us, eyes wide.
Then he bolts back inside.
I watch him go, shoulders easing just slightly.
Beside me, Ethan straightens up and leans against my shoulder like it's the most natural thing in the world.
And just like that, the calm feels real again.
I turn my attention back to Noah.
"Where have you been?" I try to keep my tone light and casual. It's been days since I saw him and I was starting to worry.
"Let's say Father's been paying closer attention than usual," Noah says. "So I adjusted accordingly."
The driver's door opens and Finn steps out, lifting a hand in a quick wave before he walks over to us.
"Sup, Kai." Finn leans in, fist already out.
I bump it without thinking. We haven't done that in years. The familiarity catches me off guard, and a small smile slips out before I can stop it.
"Finn," I say, nodding.
He grins and turns to greet Ethan next.
"What do you mean, a closer eye?" I ask, looking back at Noah.
"He doesn't know you're here, does he?" Ethan says as he straightens slightly.
"I doubt it," Finn says easily. "You know what Noah's like. He plans for everything."
I look at my brother.
"We built a tunnel out," Noah says, waving a hand as if he's explaining a minor inconvenience.
I rub my temples... Of course he did.
"A tunnel?" Ethan repeats.
"He says 'we,'" Finn adds, nudging Noah with his shoulder. "But I did most of the digging."
"And who designed it?" Noah replies without missing a beat. "Structural integrity matters. I'd argue that was the more complex task"
"Not for you" Finn and I say at the same time.
Noah scowls, clearly irritated, which only makes Finn laugh. Finn slips an arm around Noah's neck and pulls him in, ruffling his hair. Noah protests, half-hearted and annoyed, but he doesn't really pull away.
They've gotten closer. Closer than they used to be.
I watch them for a second longer than necessary, a quiet thought passing through me. I wonder if Noah even realises how Finn really feels about him. Then again, knowing Noah… probably not.
"So," Ethan says, smiling like he's enjoying the whole scene, "what brings you here today?"
Noah finally manages to push Finn off him and straightens his jacket.
"Oh. That." He reaches into the car and lifts a bag. "I brought supplies."
I exhale softly.
Of course he did.