This was the first time in a while his brothers and him were in a strange atmosphere.
Not too long ago, Niven decided to come back to his brothers' dorm without letting either of them know. Levi was a little startled and didn't really know if he should send Niven back since he was in a bad mood.
Though Niven simply walked right in without letting Levi say anything. Once he entered their living room, he found Simeon sprayed all over the sofa, messing around a bouquet of flowers.
When Simeon noticed him, he instantly sat straight up and was about to stand when Niven gestured a hand for him to stay. Levi walked over and sat down right next to his twin, placing a leg over the other and patiently waited for Niven to speak.
"I just came to talk, Brother."
Simeon slowly sat back down, highly curious. "What for?"
"I came by earlier as well to apologize for avoiding you two lately, but Levi was preoccupied with Noah's company so I didn't want to bother."
Levi's blank expression shifted immediately. He suddenly felt sick with apprehension, already wanting to stop the conversation.
Simeon looked at his twin. "You had Noah over?"
"Briefly," Levi replied stiffly. "We didn't talk much."
"I should beg to differ." Niven's smile dropped a little. "I actually wanted to talk to you about your conversation with Noah."
"What did you two discuss?" Simeon asked Levi.
He didn't get a response. Instead, Levi had an odd look in his violet eyes. For a second, Simeon thought he looked incredibly fearful, but when he checked again that look wasn't there. He thought he'd seen wrong.
"Simeon?"
The male turned his attention back to Niven. The boy sitting across from them looked unsure about something. Niven was hesitating to continue, but then he gave a small sigh.
"How much do you and Levi love me?"
Simeon was bewildered by that question. He gave Niven a look and responded, "Don't you know already? We've told you before. We'd do anything for you."
From that, Niven grew even more tired than he originally had been for the past two weeks. He couldn't keep his smile up any longer and only stared at his stepbrothers with a look they've never received before.
"How much do you love me?" Niven suddenly repeated. This time, he looked directly at his eldest brother.
"I... don't think we understand. I love you just as much as Simeon-"
"So you'd also change his future just for your own benefit?"
In a second, the twins' faces grew increasingly pale and their hearts almost stopped beating. Simeon felt his blood run cold at Niven's distant voice, finding it hard to allow himself to breathe.
Niven didn't spare them a moment and muttered out, "You love me just as much as Simeon then why don't you also go ahead and try to monopolize him like you two have tried doing with me? Honestly... you two are insane."
Levi was instantly crushed and found himself completely at a loss for words. He began to stutter out any excuse he could think of, yet his voice trailed off due to his mind being occupied with extreme paranoia.
Seeing his brother grow crestfallen and silent, Simeon took it upon himself to fix the situation.
"Niven, you don't know what you're talking about." Simeon forced a smile, but it was strained. "Why would we do something like that? I know we seem overprotective, but we wouldn't do anything to tie you up to ourselves."
"Really?"
"Of course."
Simeon relaxed a little. He could tell the tension in his little brother's voice was dying down.
"You think I'm mistaken, Simeon?"
"Well... the idea sounds crazy, doesn't it?"
Niven's gaze turned even more icy than before, yet the blond kept a small grin. "I see... then I'll be off."
Levi lifted his head and panicked for a second. "W-Wait, where are you going?"
"Away from you two." Niven didn't beat around the bush. "I came here for a small chat with you two, though it seems I won't be getting that since you two keep lying. I'm not that stupid, don't even think you've fooled me."
Niven stood up and slowly fixed his tie without giving his brothers another glance. He didn't really care about Simeon getting up to his feet to prevent the boy from leaving, or how Levi kept trying to make up excuses for Niven to stay.
"There's really nothing else for me to say. I'll just be wasting my time here."
"Niven, please wait. Don't go." Niven avoided Simeon's hand reaching out to him.
"What would we even do if I stayed? Pretend we're brothers again? If that makes you sleep at night then sure, I'll play pretend."
Simeon's fear worsened as he tried reaching out to Niven again. "Don't go. You just started talking to us again. Please, don't leave."
"Then just tell me the truth. Do you love me?"
The twins knew exactly what Niven was talking about and feared that if they confessed, Niven would look at them in complete disgust and would never want to be with them again. If Levi or Simeon lied, he'd just figure it out in an instant and leave them behind. Either way, they were at a dead end with no other way to save themselves.
Not even Levi's visions predicted this exact moment so the dark haired male was completely clueless on what to do.
But while Levi was adamant on not saying a word, Simeon recalled back to the past and achingly thought of how much he longed for a sliver of a chance to be with this boy. He had grown so spiteful in knowing Arien and Silas received his favor that it made him boil over with envy and hatred.
If Simeon had known things would be like this in the end then he should have never stayed silent all these years, thinking there was a possibility for him and Levi. Now, there was none.
They never had a chance from the beginning.
Aggrieved, Simeon spat out, "I'd die just for you to look at me the way you do to Arien and Silas. It's not... i-it's not fucking fair that Levi and I had to wait for more than a decade for you to love us. We've done everything just for you to even look in our direction!"
Levi grabbed onto Simeon's arm and desperately pulled him back. "Brother, please-"
His twin yanked his arm away and kept on ranting out his grievances nonstop.
"In order to stay with you, we worked hard so Lord Uriel would be satisfied. Yet, we were never enough for him. We were berated by your father, the servants back home wouldn't bat an eye at us being abused, and no one in this hellhole would care if we suddenly fell from the top! Because you were always sick, I've always been afraid of you going out so I tried my best to keep you inside yet you're here. You're here with us and suddenly, it's like you don't even need us anymore since you've got the student council!"
Niven stood unflinching at Simeon yelling. He also took a quick peek at Levi, finding the male completely on the verge of a breakdown.
"We bled for you, we fought to keep your place safe, we took care of you for years—now you don't want us? Fuck, I'd still kill just for you to give me a fraction of your attention!" Simeon finally reached Niven and grasped his shoulders.
Niven jumped a little at being handled roughly. The memory of Agustine and Mirren grabbing him was still vivid so he was somewhat reluctant to let Simeon get near, but he didn't do anything in the end and kept listening.
Simeon surprisingly didn't hold onto him so tightly, but he kept eye contact with the boy and unfortunately felt his voice suddenly breaking.
"Please love us. Please? I-I don't know what else to do to make you love us..."
"Simeon," Levi anxiously called out and held him back. "Don't grab him like that."
Simeon didn't want to let go. He was afraid if he did, Niven wouldn't hesitate to leave. Though there shouldn't be a reason why the blond would even want to stay here for another second.
It was all over for them. Levi didn't know whether or not Noah went and told the boy or if there was another way he found out, but it didn't matter anymore. Niven would still leave.
The two of them were quiet, uneasy at how Niven didn't say anything during the whole ordeal.
Simeon flinched when his little brother forcefully removed his hands away from his shoulders. The Royal recoiled, growing dejected. It wasn't like he expected anything but this to happen, but that didn't mean it hurt Simeon less to know Niven was close to cutting off ties with them.
So when Niven suddenly grabbed both of Simeon's hands, the twins were confused.
"I'm sorry," Niven said softly. "I didn't know you went through a lot because of me... I'm really sorry."
"Brother?"
Niven gazed over at Levi. His eldest brother was stunned to see his cold expression softened just a bit.
"Noah didn't tell me anything if that's what you wanted to know. I overheard some parts of your conversation earlier, so don't blame him. I already know everything, Levi. I just wanted you guys to tell me yourselves."
"If you've come to say you're disgusted then just do it," Levi bitterly said. "Quit making fun of the situation."
"Do I look like I'm laughing, Levi?"
"Then what else do you want from us?" Simeon asked carefully.
They already told him everything he needed to know. It was miracle Niven hadn't run out the moment Simeon began his outburst.
Still, the twins were extremely depressed and were close to breaking down. They didn't know what Niven wanted other than to beg for forgiveness.
"You know I'm with Silas and Arien, right?"
It left an extremely bitter taste in their mouths and a familiar feeling of anger washed over them, yet they didn't do anything but forcefully nod.
"I wasn't interested in starting a relationship with them to be honest. I was only worried my illness would ruin things between us. I would always worry they'd get tired of constantly taking care of a sick person and wouldn't be the slightest bit happy... but that's not gonna happen. They aren't like that, so I decided to give them a chance."
"Why are you telling us this?"
Niven gave Simeon a tired smile. "My alpha and I talked about some things... he said he and Silas were okay with the idea of me having a few more partners. It's because Arien is two years older so he's worried he might be too busy to come see me once he leaves the student council, and Silas worries he's not enough to watch over me."
Oh... oh. Simeon's head buzzed with all sorts of thoughts and he knew he shouldn't be feeling this right now, but he had gotten so desperate for any sort of miracle to happen that he couldn't help himself to just feel so hopeful.
"You w-want us?" Simeon breathed. "Niven, you want-"
"I'm not saying that exactly."
Crestfallen, Levi responded, "Then... why did you bring that up?"
"I've always seen you as my brothers. For me to look at you in a romantic way is strange to me. I'm not so sure if I can do that... but it's not like I can try and make things work as well," Niven hesitantly told. "I know it's probably not what you two want, but I don't want to rush into anything right now. I'm still working stuff out with Arien and Silas, and I have yet to speak with Agustine and Mirren... you know?"
Niven was knocked out of breath when Simeon lunged forward and practically put all of his weight on the boy in right hug. He squeezed him tighter as they stumbled across the ground, trying to gain some balance before they both fell.
Niven was close to pushing Simeon off when he heard the male whisper, "Thank you—God, thank you so much."
He repeated them like a mantra. Eventually, he ended up slurring his words and rambled on how grateful he was for Niven to give them a chance. Simeon heart was close to bursting from the adrenaline, yet he couldn't help but grow even more excited at the news.
Simeon hurriedly pulled away and looked back with a huge grin. "Brother, y-you heard him, right? He said-"
They stopped short at the sight of Levi crouched down, his hands covering his face while his shoulders slightly trembled. The male was lost in his own little world and didn't notice Simeon and Niven growing worried, walking over to check what was wrong.
Levi shakily held a hand up against Simeon's chest to push him away. He gave a small excuse. "I-I'm fine."
"Levi, what's wrong?" Niven reached out to pry off one of his hands.
Levi stubbornly kept his hands on his face a had mumble out another excuse to prevent Niven from seeing his face. Simeon wasn't as gentle as Niven was, softly speaking to Levi to say it was alright. Instead, his twin grabbed both of his wrists and pulled them back.
To Niven's surprise, there were a lot of tears running down Levi's face. Seeing the boy grow baffled, Levi hurriedly looked away and gave Simeon a glare. Though his twin could tell Levi wasn't that mad. There was a look of immense relief and disbelief on his face.
"Wow," Simeon scoffed, still feeling all fuzzy and warm inside. "You're that happy about Niven accepting us?"
Levi looked embarrassed. He sat on the ground with his knees right up against his chest. He then buried his face between his legs, refusing to look up.
His heart couldn't stop pounding against his chest. Levi was incredibly happy and wanted to express how joyful he was... but he was never the type of person to do so. He didn't know how to say it in front of Niven and was scared he'd embarrass himself further.
For the first time, Niven thought Levi looked a little cute like this. Sure, he's thought about it several times before, but that was when they were still children. It was different now.
"I still have another thing to ask, Levi."
Levi grunted, "Hm?"
"Have you two done anything behind my back? I know Mirren forced several students out of the academy because of me, so I want you to also fess up and tell me if you've done anything like that. If you do I won't get angry."
He sniffled at the question. "No... Simeon and I were too busy trying to get with you. We didn't have the time to think of doing stuff like that... though I wouldn't put it past us to do it-"
He stopped when he realized he said too much. Levi instantly shut his mouth and anxiously look up at Niven and Simeon, feeling guilty when he saw his twin's expression twist a little.
Niven grinned. Levi thought it was fine until the boy responded.
"You're creepy... and insane."
Insane?
Levi paled.
"I-I didn't mean it."
"Sure you didn't." Niven got back up from the ground. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."
It didn't really help the twins why Niven was acting so nonchalant at that statement. They felt restless even though they both heard him say he was willing to also give them a chance to be his partners.
Niven saw how concerned they looked and felt a little bad.
"You know I don't mean that, right? Well, it's a little crazy, but I'm not mad. You didn't do anything bad, yeah?"
"No..."
Other than what he did to his pack mates and trying to change his future of course.
"Then hurry up and get up from the ground. I can't exactly hug you."
Slowly, Levi got up and nervously walked over to Niven. He looked at Simeon, waiting to see if it was actually alright to be this close to Niven after admitting how obsessed they were. Simeon gave him a look, wanting him to hurry up.
Seeing him still standing there with an unsure look, Niven took the initiative and pulled him in for a hug. He could feel Levi still shaking. It took a while until his eldest brother wrapped his arms around his waist and reciprocated his action, burying his face into the crook of Niven's neck.
"You okay?"
Levi muffled out, "No."
"How come?"
"You're not joking with us?"
He was waited for the time Niven would pull away and laugh at their faces, thinking it was amusing to see them so heartbroken before leaving their dorm room.
His brother retorted, "I'm not joking. I mean it, Levi."
"Okay..."
"You still doubt me?"
"No."
"Then are you alright now?"
Levi repeated, "No."
Simeon scoffed from the side. "Give him a minute, sweetheart. He's too overwhelmed to think clearly."
"And you aren't?"
"Oh, I am. In fact, I'm this close to crying, but Levi beat me to it first. I wouldn't put it past Levi to have snot running down his face as well."
Levi pulled away just for a moment to glare at Simeon.
He sneered, "Piss off."
"Levi, you should also apologize to Mirren and Agustine."
The male looked down at him questioning it. "But... I wasn't the only one-"
"I'll deal with Silas and whoever else got caught up in this situation. You, however, should've known better," Niven stated firmly. "Alright?"
Levi seemed to struggle with the thought of actually facing those two. Simeon didn't exactly understand what was going on since Levi never told anything, but he was glad he wasn't the one getting in trouble.
Eventually, Levi nodded. That was all it took for Niven to completely soften up and let himself be held quietly.
Niven was trapped within Levi's arms for a long time while Simeon kept holding onto to his hands. He didn't exactly mind it since they were always affectionate with him, but that was when he saw them as siblings so it felt a little weird.
Nonetheless, he still liked being held like this by them.
Afterwards, they twins didn't hide their love for Niven any longer. Well, they were always extremely fond of Niven, but they acted more like his partners.
For a while, they fell into a small routine. Niven would always go and find his brothers during lunchtime and after classes were over. The twins were on high whenever they saw Niven make an effort for them. They didn't do anything out of the norm and still acted the same as before, but they were subtle enough to leave behind kisses on top of his head, sometimes his cheek, or on his neck when Simeon gets a little antsy when Niven would leave.
Arien and Silas also knew what was going on with those three. At first, his alpha didn't seem to mind and was a little grateful Niven took up the idea of having more partners, ones that Arien trusted to watch over him if he wasn't always there. Even if he disliked Levi and Simeon.
As for Silas, he also didn't hide his feelings about the Royals. Sometimes, he showed a little aversion whenever Niven brought their names up, yet he was also like their alpha and was glad Niven wouldn't completely be alone.
Everything was going good between the five of them. Or at least on the surface.
Just when the two weeks reached its mark, Niven headed down the hallway toward Remiah's office to get his Luck back.
He thinks he's gotten a little better. His headaches weren't as painful and he was somewhat still nauseous, but his body didn't hurt for long periods of time. He could even use a bit of Magic without the fear of it lashing out.
As for his third ability... he didn't dare to use it. He thought of it as a forbidden power and didn't really like it all that much.
Just when he reached the office, he saw Mirren also coming over from the other end of the hallway. The two of them were surprised to see each other.
Niven hasn't seen Mirren for a while. He did try to reach out and talk to him, but the beastman was stubborn and didn't really make any time for him. The same went for Agustine. He hasn't spent any time with the demon and found out a while back Agustine avoided going to their regular spot for lunch, so the boy was often left alone.
"Baby," Mirren called a little awkwardly. "You... uh, here for your ability?"
"Yes, but I can stay out here until you're done talking with the headmaster."
"It's fine. You can go ahead first, you know I don't really like seeing him."
"How come you're here then?"
Mirren shrugged and opened the door slightly for Niven.
"He called for me. He's been bugging me about something for a while. I can't keep ignoring him."
"Then when I'm done, could I have moment of your time?"
Mirren looked down at him with hesitance.
"I'm not so sure."
"You keep avoiding me... it's really important for us to talk."
Mirren couldn't refute that. It wasn't like Niven was wrong. Although Mirren wasn't comfortable enough to talk to him without feeling remorse, he decided to simply get it over with and finally nodded.
"Sure... let's talk."
"I'll see you then."
Niven gave him one more look before entering Remiah's office to see the man gaze up at the boy.
Niven hoped Mirren wouldn't go back on his word and run off without him noticing.