Endless Evolution: Being Op With My Broken Affinity!-Chapter 36: Mistake

Chapter Three

Two Worlds

Ryan’s POV

"What do you mean we are out of bombs?!"

My father shouted angrily, making veins pop out at the side of his neck.

I wiped the last trace of Elara’s shy smile from my mind and focused on the chaos in front of me. School was over. Now I was back in my real world...the world of blood and loyalty.

The Terminator Mafia’s meeting room smelled of gun oil and fear. Ludacris, our family assistant, was pale. Ribs, our analyst, couldn’t stop trembling . Father’s hands twitched, ready to grab a weapon.

I wasn’t Ryan Blackwood, the school’s bad boy anymore. This was Ray...heir to the Terminators.

I knew apologizing wouldn’t do me any good. My father didn’t like apologies. I had to come up with something else or I would walk out of here with more than a broken bone. I tried not to wince thinking about the last time.

"Father, our suppliers had a problem but we are working on it. In the meantime, I have ordered more guards on the perimeters and a severe message has been sent to the Volkovs."

Father stopped pacing. He turned to look at me.

"A message? What kind of message?"

"The kind they won’t forget, sir."

He looked at me for a long moment, then he nodded slowly. "Good. You’re learning."

Ludacris finally let out a breath he had been holding. Ribs wiped his forehead with a handkerchief.

I tried as much as possible to keep my face blank... although after all these years I was already used to it.

Before I had very little time to enjoy my freedom before I took over the family business properly.

I begged to go to school so I can be among my age mates for a while ... I felt myself sinking into the darkness, becoming the monster everyone expected me to be.

Until a little rabbit decided to bravely enter the wolf’s den.

For some reason I just couldn’t stop thinking about her. The way she sat next to me without asking permission. The way she talked back to me in class like I was just a normal guy.

The way her eyes widened when I grabbed her wrist, but she didn’t scream or cry like the others would have.

She was different.

And I know this pull is dangerous but fuck it.

"Ray, are you listening?"

My father’s voice snapped me back to reality.

"Yes, sir."

"I want you at the docks tonight. Ten o’clock. The Volkovs need to understand what happens when they try to mess with our shipments."

My stomach tightened. I knew what "understand" meant. Blood. Screams. And more dead bodies.

"I’ll be there."

"Good. Bring Marcus with you. We’ll make an example of one of their men. I want you to ask the questions this time."

My jaw clenched. Questioning meant torture. It meant looking a man in the eyes while you broke him piece by piece until he begged for death.

"Understood."

"Then shoot him yourself. It’s time you stopped acting like a little child and started acting like my heir."

The words hit me like a punch to the gut, but I didn’t let it show. I just nodded.

"Yes, Father."

"Dismissed."

As soon as I walked into the hallway, I saw Marcus leaning against the wall. He was my bodyguard, but more importantly, he was my best friend. The only perosn who knew me inside out.

"Rough meeting?" Marcus asked, falling into step beside me.

"When are they ever easy?"

We walked in silence until we reached my room. I shut the door behind us and loosened my tie. The expensive fabric felt like a noose around my neck.

"I need you to find everything you can on someone," I said, tossing my jacket onto the bed.

Marcus raised an eyebrow. "Who?"

"A girl from school. Elara Hayes."

"Why?" His voice was curious.

"Just do it, dumbass."

Marcus studied me for a moment, then smirked. "You like her."

"I don’t like anyone."

"Sure you don’t. That’s why you want a full background check on a random girl."

I shot him a warning glare. "Can you do it or not?"

"Already on it." He pulled out his phone and started typing. "Give me a few hours. I’ll have everything...address, family, financial records, social media, the works."

"Good."

Marcus paused at the door. "Be careful, man. Your father finds out you’re interested in some girl, he’ll lose his mind."

"I know."

"And if the Volkovs find out..."

"I know, Marcus. Just get me the information."

He left without another word.

In a few hours, I would be at the docks. I would question a man, and torture him for information, and then put a bullet in his head. My father would watch, making sure I didn’t hesitate, and didn’t show weakness.

That was my real life. That was who I was supposed to be.

But when I closed my eyes, all I could see was Elara’s face.

My phone buzzed. A reminder about tonight’s meeting.

I grabbed my jacket and headed for the door. Time to become the monster again.

I met Marcus in the garage. He handed me a file.

"That was fast," I said.

"Told you I’m good. Everything’s in there. Addresses, school records, even her mother’s work schedule."

I flipped through the pages. She is a scholarship student, raised by a single mother in a poor neighborhood. No father in the picture, no wonder she had claws.

"Destroy this," I told Marcus, handing the file back. "All of it. Wipe it from the system."

"What? Why?"

"Just do it."

Marcus looked confused but nodded. "Okay, man. Whatever you say."

We got into the car. The drive to the docks was quiet. Marcus drove while I stared out the window, watching the city change from bright lights to dark alleys.

My phone buzzed again. This time it was a text from one of the guys at school.

Party this Friday. You coming?

I thought about the invitation I’d given Elara. Would she show up? Would she really come to my party?

Probably not. Girls like her didn’t go to parties with guys like me. They stayed home, studied hard, and avoided trouble.

Smart girl.

We arrived at the docks. The smell of salt water hit my nose. A group of scary looking men stood near a warehouse, their faces were hard and cold. My father was already there, smoking a cigar.

"You’re late," he said.

"Traffic."

He grunted and pointed to a man tied to a chair inside the warehouse. His face was already bloody, his clothes torn.

"That’s Dmitri. He works for the Volkovs. He knows where they’re hiding our shipment. Make him talk."

I walked toward the man slowly, each step feeling like I was sinking deeper into darkness. This was who I was. This was my legacy.

But somewhere in the back of my mind, I could still hear Elara’s laugh from Chemistry class. I could still see her smile.

And for just a second, I wished I was back there. Sitting next to her. Making stupid jokes. Being normal.

But that second passed quickly.

I picked up the tool my father handed me and looked at Dmitri.

"Let’s talk," I said quietly.

The man spat blood at my feet. "I’m not telling you anything."

I nodded slowly. "You will."

And then I became the monster they needed me to be.

Chapter Four

Bruises and Butterfly Plasters

Elara’s POV

I walked out of the cab, already feeling like going back home.

The driver gave me a weird look when I handed him the crumpled bills ... probably wondering how a girl like me got into a big shot school like this.

I had almost walked past the school entrance when I saw Ryan.

He was leaning against the gatepost like he owned the place. Which, knowing his family’s money, he probably did.

He held a cup of coffee in one hand , and the sun just seemed to follow him. I hate to admit it, but he looked unfairly good ... like a freaking sex god that shouldnt exist among us pathetic humans.

Except he did exist. And he was right there.

A few girls stood close to him, obviously trying to get his attention. But he looked completely bored, like they were just part of the scenery. He took another lazy sip of his coffee, staring at nothing in particular.

Then, for some weird reason, he looked up.

And his eyes immediately found mine.

My feet almost stopped moving. Everything else sort of... faded?

He smiled slowly at me.

I looked away quickly and practically speed-walked past him, nearly walking into a girl with a Prada bag.

"Watch it!" she snapped.

"Sorry," I muttered, not stopping.

-----

Chemistry class was just about to start when I walked into the class.

The teacher gave me a warning look as I sat down .

A few minutes later, the door opened and Ryan walked in looking very relaxed.

And of course ... of course ... he dropped into the seat right next to me.

The teacher started talking about covalent bonds or something. Honestly, I wasn’t really listening. I was too busy noticing the way Ryan smelled .. like expensive cologne and Cedar, maybe? Or was that just my imagination running wild?

I also noticed His knuckles were completely messed up. They looked dark purple with bruises, and angry red cuts, some of them were still fresh and raw-looking. Like he’d punched something hard.

What the hell happened to him?

I looked at it as my brain tried to come up with different explanations. Sports? No, this wasn’t a sports injury. A fight? Maybe. But who fights hard enough to do that kind of damage?

Ryan caught me looking at him.

I turned my eyes back to my notebook, feeling my face heat up. It was none of my business.

I tried to focus on what the teacher was saying ... but my mind kept wandering back to those bruises.

Then something landed on my desk with a soft thud.

It was a folded piece of paper.

I opened the paper carefully , trying to be as quiet as possible .

Will you come to the party? I want you to.

His handwriting was actually kind of nice and it looked neat, it was nothing like the messy scrawl I expected from a guy like him.

Was he serious right now?

I grabbed my pen, thinking about just ignoring him, but curiosity got the better of me.

Why would I come? Because of you?

I folded it back up , passing the note back without looking at him.

A minute passed before he replied.

Yes. And let me concentrate.

I almost laughed out loud. The audacity of this guy.

Let ME concentrate, I wrote back, pressing my pen a little harder than necessary.

Another note came back almost immediately.

It’ll be fun. And you know you need a little fun.

My face went hot ... because my stupid brain immediately flashed back to what he’d said yesterday. "You look like you need some alcohol and sex in your system."

Who even says that to someone they literally just met?

I crumpled the note shoving it deep into my bag, refusing to give him the satisfaction of a response.

From the corner of my eye, I could see him leaning back in his chair, arms crossed, looking way too pleased with himself.

I rubbed my neck feeling as if someone was looking at me.I turned my head slightly and noticed the blonde girl from the bathroom yesterday. What was her name again? It didn’t matter.

She was sitting three rows back, and if looks could kill, I would already be dead and buried. Her jaw was clenched so tight I thought her teeth might crack. Her perfectly manicured nails were digging into the edge of her desk like she was imagining it was my face.

I rolled my eyes and turned back around.

Seriously, what is wrong with people in this school?

-----

Immediately the bell rang, I shoved my books into my bag standing up to leave.

But then I saw his hand again.

And for some stupid reason, I couldn’t just leave it alone.

I don’t know why I did it. Maybe because despite everything ... despite him being annoying and cocky and way too confident ... I couldn’t stand seeing anyone hurt. Even if that person probably deserved whatever he got.

I pulled a small Hello Kitty plaster from my pencil case. It was one of the silly ones my mom had bought me years ago.

Without thinking too hard about it, I reached over and pressed it gently onto the worst cut on his hand.

Ryan froze completely.

Like, full-on statue mode.

He stared at the bright pink plaster with Hello Kitty’s face smiling up at him, then slowly looked up at me. For the first time since I’d met him, he actually looked surprised.

"I’ll consider it," I said quickly, not quite meeting his eyes. "The party, I mean."

Before he could say anything ,or before I could change my mind or do something even more embarrassing ... I grabbed my bag and practically ran out of the classroom.

My heart was beating way too fast. I could feel his eyes on my back the entire way down the hallway.

What is wrong with me?

——

"Elara!"

Liam Carter called my name jogging toward me

Liam and I went way back. Like, sandbox and juice boxes back. Our moms had been friends since forever, which meant we’d spent most of our childhood being forced to play together while they gossiped over coffee.

Over the years, we’d actually become real friends. He was one of the few normal, non-terrifying things about this whole scholarship situation.

"Hey," I said, waiting for him to catch up.

"Hey." He pushed his glasses back up, slightly out of breath. "You okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?"

"Are you getting close to the delinquent?"

I frowned. "What?"

"Ryan Blackwood." He said the name like it tasted bad. "I saw you two exchanging notes in Chemistry class."

My eyebrows shot up. "Were you watching me?"

His ears turned red. "No! I just... I sit near the door. I happened to see. That’s all."

For a second ... just a second ... he almost sounded jealous. But that was ridiculous. This was Liam. We’d known each other since we were like six.

There was no way.

"Nothing, really," I said with a shrug. "He was just being annoying. As usual."

"Elara." Liam’s voice dropped lower, more serious than I’d heard in a while. "Just be careful, okay? He’s dangerous."

I opened my mouth to argue. To say that Liam was overreacting, that Ryan was probably just some rich kid with an attitude problem and too much time on his hands.

But then I remembered those bruises.

And the way he’d smiled when I asked if he was a monster. "Oh, Elara, I am worse than a monster."

The words came back to me now, and they didn’t sound like a joke anymore.

I closed my mouth and just nodded.

"Okay. I’ll be careful."

Liam’s shoulders relaxed a little. "Good. I just... I don’t want anything bad to happen to you, you know?"

"I know. Thanks, Liam."

"Want to grab lunch?" he asked.

"Sure. I’m starving."

As we walked toward the cafeteria together, my phone buzzed in my pocket.

It was an unknown number.

I pulled it out and stared at the screen.

Friday. 8 PM. Don’t make me come fin

d you.

Ryan.

My stomach did that uncomfortable flip again.

I shoved my phone back in my pocket, trying to ignore it.

"You okay?" Liam asked, glancing at me.

"Yeah. Fine."

But I wasn’t fine.

Because Liam had said Ryan was dangerous. And every instinct I had was screaming at me to stay away.

So why ... Why ... was I actually considering going to that party?