Bonus Scene

CHANGE THE ENDING

Braun stepped onto the jet for the last time that summer with a strange feeling in his heart. For a long time, he had only cared about himself.

He had taken so much care to lock away all fear and weakness, and the second he truly allowed himself to worry about Isobel—that strong, terrifying, troublesome, damned Sigma of his—the fear came rushing back in.

The break was over, the tour a success—though, of course, the tragic death of Cesar Cooper was something they would all keenly feel—and the album was going to far exceed Orion’s expectations.

But he was still terrified.

Isobel was going back to Ironside. She was more popular than ever, and he could no longer justify all the things they would do to her as they turned her into … well, him . He wanted to go back to only caring about himself, but it was too late. The bell was rung and he couldn’t seem to un-ring it. He was starting to see that second perspective that had always been closed off to him. He started to see it the second she called him dad .

He settled back in his chair, staring up at the ceiling. He had sent his team home and was finally alone.

It felt … strange.

Empty, almost.

A door slid open behind him, and he frowned, leaning out of his chair, his mouth dropping open. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

Annalise Teak was sober, for once. She held up her hands. “Hear me out.”

“What else was I going to do?” he shot back, confused. “What are you doing here, Anna?”

She cringed, and he dragged his hands through his hair. “Sorry—your memories, that’s what she called you.”

“It’s okay.” Annalise sat across from him, levelling him with a serious expression. “I can’t go back there. I can’t go back to my settlement. Either option, I die. They’ll kill me.”

“So naturally, you snuck onto my jet,” he said.

“I’ve heard it’s not even yours.”

He frowned. “I have my own. I needed a bigger one.”

She leaned forward, reaching forward to grab his hands. They had gotten comfortable holding each other’s hands, sleeping beside each other, and confiding in each other. He had seen most of her memories, and she had listened to him talking about all the things he would never have said to anyone. Luckily, she didn’t remember any of it.

“Take me with you,” she begged. “Hire me as an assistant—I’ll wear contacts. Or hire me as a fucking maid, a cook, a cleaner. I don’t care. Just take me with you. When I’m with you, it isn’t so painful.”

His hands felt cold in hers. “I’ve done this before,” he said quietly. “It didn’t end well.”

“So, change the ending,” she whispered.

He frowned at her, a strange sensation rising in his chest. It seemed he hadn’t just rung the bell for Isobel.

“All right,” he gritted out. “We can figure something out.”

Isobel dropped her bag in the entrance foyer, her eyes tracing up the familiar marble staircase as the others spilled into Dorm A behind her.

“Year four,” she said, turning to face her Alphas. “We ready?”

“Please.” Theodore tucked her beneath his arm. “I’m always ready.”

She picked up her bag again, but Theodore wrestled it off her, slinging it over his shoulder as he took the stairs two at a time. She watched the others go up, separating to the bedrooms, until it was just her, Mikel, and Kalen left.

Will you stay with me tonight? Mikel’s voice swept into her mind. His tone sounded like he was delivering an order, but he had definitely attempted to phrase it as a question. She bit back a laugh.

Just to sleep? she asked, because he was taking their budding “relationship” slowly—testing the more emotional aspects to make sure he could provide what she had told him she needed before he moved onto the physical parts. Which she appreciated … but it also made her so attracted to him that she desperately wished he would just skip to the physical parts.

God, you’re a brat . His response rumbled through her mind. Yes, just to sleep. But keep teasing me, and I will absolutely spank you first.

She bit back her smirk, running after the others up the stairs. She found her bag in her room, waiting on her bed, but she ignored it, heading to her desk.

She had to start this year off on the right foot. With a clear goal in mind.

She grabbed a pad of sticky notes from her desk and scrawled a message onto one of them, ripping it from the stack and walking back to her door. She closed it, sticking the note in the centre.

The Gifted are not for sale.

I hope you enjoyed Glisser!

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