Kings On The Horizon (Vol. 4-6) ✓

259 | Alone Time

     "Then the Revels, have they done anything crazy?"

     "The new Marquis isn't following Crazy 8's ways at all. They actually haven't shown themselves yet, which the Elites are having trouble with. If they don't come to school, we're gonna have to file a report to the association," Gavriil explains, making Max furrow his brows in confusion.

     "I thought they were gonna work with Viktor."

     "Well, you know Viktor. He doesn't really work with anyone. He uses them, like how he tends to do with me," Gavriil answers, and for a split second, Max saw sadness in his eyes.

     Max doesn't really know how Gavriil's relationship with Viktor turned into something similar to dog and master because he never really asked him about it. Viktor makes Gavriil do the dirty work for him, while Gavriil just blindly follows, even though he obviously doesn't like doing them. There's also the fact that the bombs that killed the Stepanov Clan were bombs manufactured by Gavriil's family. Even though it was proven that they weren't directly involved with that incident, could Viktor be using that against Gav so he can continue to tie him on a leash?

     "Babe, can I ask you something?" Max requests, making the atmosphere turn serious.

     "What is this?"

     "Why are you following Viktor?"

     Gavriil expected the question, but he didn't have an immediate answer. He gently touches Max's hair and turns away from him to look at the scenery outside the window. While looking at the city lights, he takes a deep breath and says, "Guilt, probably."

     "Guilt? But your family was never involved in that incident, right?"

     "It's not really about the bombs or the incident," Gavriil clarifies, turning to look at Max again. "I felt guilty for leaving him alone when he needed us the most," Gavriil reveals, which was something Max wasn't expecting at all.

     "You know, when you had that accident that killed Madam Luna, Viktor was actually devastated. It reminded him of the time he lost his family. To be honest, I was surprised. He went crazy when he heard about what happened to you. It was the first time I've seen him like that. When his whole family died, Viktor never cried or showed emotions, but we were always there for him. But with what happened to you, Vi cried for the first time," Gavriil shares, making Max look back at him with shock.

     "Viktor? The Viktor we know? The King of J.S High?" Max asks in disbelief. He never expected Viktor to be affected by his accident like that at all. This was all new to him.

     "That's right. After that accident, we all went to the hospital together, and when we saw you unconscious in that bed, something inside us just...something happened," Gavriil explains further, his expression showing grief and sadness, an expression he seldom sees in him. Max can only imagine what they've gone through during those times.

     "The loud Grey became quiet. The warm Cindy became cold. And Vi, who never wanted us to see him weak, cried. We knew then that something was wrong. Our friendship had to end. It was getting dangerous."

     "And you? What did you feel?" Max asks next, and Gavriil takes a deep breath before reaching out to touch Max's face.

     "I was terrified," Gavriil answers while gently touching Max's cheek. "But Grey wanted us to be strong. He told us we needed to stay together no matter what happens. But then you woke up, and you didn't remember a single thing. Our hope to stay together was shattered. And that's when we decided to split up. Viktor looked like he didn't want to, but we still walked away. I walked away. We thought it was also safer for you not to remember. The last time we saw each other was during Madam Luna's funeral. After that...we enrolled in J.S High. But we were like strangers, and Viktor became completely different."