POV: Jay
My eyes fluttered open slowly.
Ceiling.
My ceiling.
I blinked twice, confused for a second before memory slammed back into me.
Nathan.
The candy.
DreamDrop.
I shot up in bed.
"That idiot…" I muttered. "I'll deal with him later."
My head still felt slightly heavy, but my body had regained its strength. Three hours. He really timed it perfectly. I swung my legs off the bed and stood up.
Hex.
The name alone tightened my chest.
I rushed downstairs, skipping two steps at a time.
When I reached the living room, I froze.
Only Angelo, Aries, Aunty Gemma, Trisha, Jeana, and Andy were there.
That was wrong.
Very wrong.
"Where's everyone else?" I demanded, scanning their faces.
They exchanged glances.
No one answered immediately.
My heartbeat sped up.
"Where. Are. They."
Before anyone could respond, I turned sharply toward Trisha.
"And why are you here?" My voice dropped colder. "Shouldn't you be out looking for your son?"
Trisha stiffened.
The air grew tense.
Before anyone could speak—
The front door opened.
Every head turned at once.
Footsteps.
Then I saw them.
Keifer. Aries. Section E boys.
And in front—
Hex.
The moment he saw me, his face changed. The anger, the exhaustion, the pain—it all melted into relief.
"Jay!" he cried.
He ran straight toward me.
I didn't even think.
I opened my arms.
He crashed into me, wrapping his arms tightly around my neck, burying his face against me like he'd been holding himself together for too long.
I hugged him back instantly.
"You're here…" I whispered.
He's warm. He's safe. He's alive.
I pulled back slightly and held his face, inspecting him carefully.
"No… no…" I murmured.
There was a red handprint on his cheek.
Clear.
Anger exploded inside me.
"Who hit you?" My voice was dangerously calm.
Hex clenched his jaw. "Who else? It was Nathan."
I turned sharply.
Nathan stood near Hannah, eyes wide.
"Hey! Not me!" he blurted quickly. "He's talking about his father—Nathan Navarro! Not Nathan Reyes!"
I blinked once.
"Oh."
Then I turned back to Hex.
"How did he kidnap you? And why did you run away?"
Hex didn't answer immediately.
Instead, his gaze slowly shifted.
Toward Trisha.
Cold.
Angry.
The entire room followed his stare.
Trisha stiffened.
Hex leaned closer to me and whispered in my ear, his voice low and shaking with fury.
"She found out I'm Night Byte. She wanted to use my skills to help her family get richer. And then she planned to hand me over to Nathan Navarro."
My blood went ice cold.
Slowly, very slowly, I pulled away from him.
Then I turned.
And walked toward Trisha.
Each step felt heavy.
Controlled.
Deliberate.
She opened her mouth. "Jayjay, I—"
My hand moved before she could finish.
SLAP.
The sound echoed through the room.
Everyone gasped.
"Jayjay!" Angelo and Jeana exclaimed at the same time.
I didn't look away from Trisha.
"What kind of mother are you?" My voice shook—not from fear—but from rage. "You came for him. You pretended to care. You took him away from me. And for what? To use him? To sell his talent? To treat him like a tool?"
Tears welled in her eyes.
"He's your son! Not your investment! Not your shortcut to money! How could you just come for him when you abandoned him before? How could you think you had the right?"
The room was silent.
Trisha suddenly rushed toward Hex.
"Charles!" she cried, wrapping her arms around him tightly. "Please! Come back. Do you know how worried I was? I couldn't sleep—"
Hex's body went rigid.
"Let go of me."
She held tighter.
"Please, baby—"
"I SAID LET GO!"
He shoved her away hard enough that she stumbled back.
His eyes were red—not from tears—but from fury.
"Don't call me that."
Everyone froze.
"You abandoned me," Hex continued, voice trembling with anger. "You left me. You didn't care where I went. You didn't care who I was with. And now suddenly you're worried?"
Trisha shook her head desperately. "I was trying to protect you—"
"Protect me?" he laughed bitterly. "By planning to use me? By handing me over to my father?"
Her face drained of color.
"I heard you," Hex continued. "That morning.
I followed you home. You said I'd be useful. That I could help you. That I'd make things easier."
Silence crushed the room.
"You don't get to pretend now," he said coldly. "You're not my mother. A mother doesn't abandon her child and then come back when he becomes valuable."
Tears streamed down her face.
"You don't get to come back when I'm valuable," Hex said coldly. "You don't get to play mother now."
Angelo stepped forward, voice firm.
"That's enough. You should leave before things get worse."
Trisha looked around, broken, desperate—but no one defended her.
Slowly, she turned and walked toward the door.
The sound of it closing felt final.
The room remained quiet for a moment.
Then I stepped forward and pulled Hex into my arms again.
This time he didn't hesitate.
He hugged me tightly.
And for once—
He let himself lean on me.
I rested my chin gently on his head.
"You're safe," I whispered.
And no one will ever touch you again.
End of Chapter.