Suddenly, the door to the ward clicked open, and a doctor stepped out.
It's still not too late to change, to become who you once were. You're still waiting for the light to find the best part of yourself again.
"Doctor, how is my boy?" Braylon's voice caught in his throat, and he could barely get the words out. Zaneta gently patted his shoulder, trying to calm him down, at least long enough to hear what the doctor had to say.
"He's stable, but his mental health is fragile. Right now, he needs his father more than anything. Even in his coma, he was mumbling about you. I hope you understand what this means," the doctor said with a sigh.
Braylon fought hard to keep his tears from spilling over. He nodded, trying to hold back his grief, while Zaneta looked on, worried about both him and Alan.
"He should wake up soon. You can discharge him once his fever goes down," the doctor said before walking away.
"I'm sorry, Braylon. I couldn't take care of Alan properly," Zaneta apologized, her voice filled with guilt.
"It's not your fault, Sis. It's all on me. I'm not a good father or a good friend. I'm just… not good enough for anyone," Braylon said, his voice breaking as he spoke. He was already shattered inside, and Zaneta didn't know what to say. All she could do was stay by his side.
They waited for three hours until Alan finally woke up. The moment he saw his dad beside him, he was fine. The little boy's happiness was beyond words. Seeing Braylon there made everything better.
"Sorry, baby. Dad made you suffer," Braylon whispered, a tear rolling down his cheek. Alan's small hands gently wiped it away.
"Dad is the best," Alan said without hesitation, hugging his dad tightly. Zaneta, seeing this, felt a sense of relief. She patted Braylon on the back and quietly left the room, giving them some private time together.
"Dad, I don't want to stay here. I always feel so alone. Can I come with you?" Alan asked, nuzzling into Braylon's neck.
"Okay, okay. You can come with me, but you have to be on your best behavior," Braylon replied with a smile, ruffling Alan's hair before lifting him into his arms.
After handling the discharge paperwork, Braylon took Alan to his office. He noticed that no one had checked on him after he left so suddenly, and it stung a bit. But he knew he couldn't blame them or expect anything different. All that mattered now was that Alan was with him.
IN HIS OFFICE
When Braylon arrived at the office with Alan in his arms, everyone was stunned. Alan was sleeping peacefully, cradled in Braylon's embrace.
"Braylon, where the hell did you—" Alex began to ask but stopped mid-sentence when he saw Alan. Franklyn and Eryx turned to look, and they were equally shocked. They hadn't expected Braylon to bring Alan to the office.
"I'm sorry. He was sick, and I had to rush him to the hospital. I'm sorry if I disrupted any work," Braylon apologized as he gently laid Alan down on the sofa. The others were captivated by the little boy's face—he looked just like Braylon.
Eryx's heart skipped a beat. Alan was adorable, a perfect mirror of his father. Eryx couldn't find the words to say, so he just stared at the sleeping child, completely taken by him. Meanwhile, Braylon explained to Alex what had happened, detailing how Alan had fallen ill and why he needed to bring him to the office.
"It would be great if he were my son too," Eryx found himself thinking, before quickly shaking off the thought. "Damn, what the hell am I thinking? How could that even be possible? Braylon wouldn't… right?" Despite his usual cold demeanor toward Braylon, Eryx couldn't help but care about him.
Alex reached out to feel Alan's forehead; it was still a bit warm. He felt torn, unsure whether to support Braylon or align with Eryx. He was stuck between his two friends.
"Let's get back to work, or are you all planning to continue this useless chit-chat?" Eryx groaned, trying to redirect the situation.
Braylon removed his coat and gently draped it over Alan, who visibly relaxed, feeling more comfortable under the warmth of his dad's coat. In his white shirt and black jeans, Braylon looked strikingly attractive to Eryx. The four years Eryx had spent trying to forget Braylon felt like they were unraveling all over again, just because of his presence.
Everyone had returned to their work, deeply engrossed in their case files. Eryx, however, received an email notification. He hesitated at first, thinking it might be another prank. They had been getting a lot of those recently. But, feeling a nagging curiosity, he decided to open it anyway. He wasn't sure what to expect, but what he found was far from a joke—it was a potential new case.
The email read:
"Hi sir, I'm James Trice, a school teacher at West Falls Village. Two months ago, a girl went missing suddenly. I tried to inform the local police, but something seemed off. The cops and the village as a whole have been ignoring the case ever since they learned about it. It's not just this one incident; around eight children have gone missing over the past four years, but there are no records or files for any of these cases. I found this suspicious, so I decided to reach out to you directly. If you come to our school, I can explain everything in person. Please, brother, help me with this. I'm new to the village—I moved here just five months ago."
Eryx felt a chill run down his spine as he read the email. This wasn't something he could ignore. He knew they might be stepping into something much bigger than they anticipated.
As soon as he read the email, he pulled out the old case file and reviewed it again. The village mentioned was linked to the highway where the last crime had occurred. The motel in question was located on that same highway, leading to West Falls village.
He forwarded the email to the entire team. Franklyn was already overwhelmed with shock. Their job was to solve tough cases that the local police couldn't crack, and now they had a new one on their plate before finishing the current one. Braylon glanced at Eryx with a puzzled expression. As the team leader, Eryx was the one who had to make the final call.
"senior, what should we do now? Are we heading there ourselves?" Franklyn asked. Eryx turned his gaze to Braylon, who had been watching him intently the entire time.
"I'm not the leader here; you should ask the person who came in as the lead," Eryx said, his mocking tone stinging Braylon. Despite the hurt, Braylon cleared his throat and masked his discomfort.
"Regardless of whether this email is a prank or not, we should go and investigate. As detectives, it's our job to verify if the information is accurate or just a joke," Braylon asserted, while Eryx rolled his eyes. He was about to respond to Braylon when a sweet voice interrupted him.
It was Alan, who had just woken up.
"Dad!" Alan whined, and Braylon hurried over to him, pulling him into a warm embrace.
"What's wrong, my little one? Why are you crying? Did I wake you up with all the noise?" Braylon asked, gently ruffling Alan's hair. His tender, caring nature was evident. Eryx, watching from the side, was both amused and moved. Though Braylon was usually quiet and focused on his work, he had always been devoted to Alan, despite his clinginess.
Seeing Braylon's affectionate care for the child, Eryx felt a surge of anger. His ears reddened as he fought the urge to shout at him for abandoning them in the past.