"Son'ava bitch," Liam hissed in the passenger seat. "I can't believe he refused. I mean,...I--I can't believe it."


"Steve McLauren is one of the most stubborn men you're ever gonna meet in your life, Liam," Patrick sighed, with his hands on the steering wheel and eyes on the road.

The meeting had ended an hour ago with the Mayor refusing to take Liam's advice on cancelling the July fourth festivities for this year; a decision that,for some reason, had Chief Kent and officer Donovan smiling in victory.

Now, Liam and his team were being escorted to thier hotel, and Liam couldn't just hide his agitation about the whole situation. Even from that back seat, Claire could see how uneasy he had become.


"You don't understand Patrick," Liam groaned. "People are gonna die." Patrick glanced at him with a smirk and was slightly surprised that Liam thought he didn't know that.


Claire could see the urgency in Liam's gestures and it scared her. He was relaxed when he first came into town, but now he knew what they were dealing with, he suddenly knew the entire situation, and it scared Claire shitless.



"Ten people in two weeks?," Tate sighed with disbelief. "Jesus."

"How the hell Did you not tell me this?," Liam snapped at Patrick beside him.

"I-I didn't think it was important," Patrick shrugged as he stuttered.

"You didn't thi-", Liam hissed as he shook his head and clenched his jaw. His boiling blood wouldn't even let him finish his sentence.

Claire felt she had to say something, but she didn't know what to say. The whole thing was confusing. She didn't know whether she should be scared, angry or just agitated. She stole a glance at Liam in the front seat. The man was obviously worried. She knew he was, because ever since the meeting ended an hour ago with the Mayor refusing to consider his suggestion to cancel the display and concert, he had not smiled, not once.


She spun to face Tate beside her; he was concentrating on his laptop as always. She saw he was typing something, but she didn't know what, and then, her curiosity kicked in.


"What are you writing?," the question flew out of her mouth.

Tate shut his head up to her and adjusted his glasses with a shy smirk on his face. "Oh-Um-", he shrugged. "It's nothing really, just a journal...kinda.....a book really. A journal in from of a book."

Claire nodded and smiled without realising it as she studied the young man beside her. She thought his clumsiness and uneasiness was cute. There was something about him; his timidity, uncertainty and shyness. It was cute.


She caught sight of his blue hoodie with a white t-shirt in it, which he wore on top black jeans and white and blue all star sneakers. "How old are you?", another question that flew out of her mouth involuntarily.



Tate raised his wide eyes at her. "Um-eh- Twenty-five."


Claire's brows furrowed. "Shouldn't you be in school?."



"I am in school actually," Tate smiled as he gestured towards Liam in the front seat. "Doctorate."


Claire's eyes widened when she heard what the boy had said. "What?," she leaned in and whispered.


Her reaction made Tate look down and chuckle. He thought he would be used to the shock on people's face by now whenever he told them that.

"You're chasing your PhD at Twenty-four?", she let out a heavy whisper. "Oh my god that's.....that's amazing."


"Thanks", Tate chuckled with his face turning red.

"Your parents must be proud," Claire said.

"Well, They are....kinda," Tate uttered.


With the smile still on her face, she kept studying boy, and she realised that from what he had told her, Slshe could make out what his life in the past would have been like. He probably could have been bullied a few times in high school, thrown against his locker, kicked off the football team or called a nerd because he was too hooked on his books and studies. She could definitely relate.

One look at him and Claire could definitely make out the fact that he probably hasn't had a girlfriend in his life before. Her smile grew wider as she froze when she realised she almost spun back to look at Jelani again.

"He doesn't like people staring at him". She shifted her gaze to Liam in the front seat and immediately remembered what he had called Jelani.

"His Brother."

She looked in Tate's direction again and caught the boy with a packet of gummy bears candy by his side.

"Hey, psst," Claire called.

Tate raised his gaze to her again. "Yeah?."

"Is-Um-," she whispered and then jotted her thumb in the direction of Jelani. "Is he really-Um- Liam's brother?"

Tate's eyes flew to Jelani in the back seat and then back to Claire as a smile began to grow on his face. "Ofcourse not," he chuckled.


Claire raised her brow and nodded. "I didn't think so," he sighed.

"They've known each other since they were kids though," Tate said. "They were inseparable as kids".



"Wow", Claire uttered as she gave Tate a look that made him realise she wanted to hear more. Tate glanced in Liam's direction, looked back at Jelani who was staring out his window as always and then he leaned towards Claire.



"Jelani saved his life when they were teens." Tate whispered.


Claire's brows furrowed. Tate had gotten her attention now and he saw good reason to keep talking.

"Liam's was father managed a wildlife conservation area in Tanzania and so the entire family moved down from England to be with him; Liam and his mother." Tate stole a glance at the front seat and made sure Liam and Patrick were still oblivious to what they were discussing, before he went on. "One day, Liam and his mum were playing with the dogs outside while his father was away and a male lion wandered into the area."

Tate watched as Claire's eyes widened before she slowly lifted her palms to her mouth and whispered a... "Oh my God."

Tate gave a wry smile and nodded. "Liam's mother wasn't so lucky, but Liam was." Tate paused and slowly spun to look at Jelani. "....because a teenager from a near by village had saved his life and killed the beast."



Claire's jaw stayed open in awe at what she was hearing. Claire slowly spun round and glanced at Jelani, not caring if he would freak out or not ,but he didn't see her

She spun and faced Tate with a look on her face that was a mixture of confusion and curiosity.

"How do you know all this," she asked.



Tate gave her a Smug and then relaxed back on his chair. "I know everything," Tate uttered with a playful growl as he circled his palm infront of him pretending there was a magic crystal ball before him.

Claire tried hard not to laugh at the boy's playfulness, so she gave out a chuckle. She kept staring at the boy as he pulled out another palm-full of gummy-bears candy and threw them in his mouth.


He stopped chewing as he shot his eyes to the side, and Claire was aware he knew she was watching him and it made him feel very uncomfortable and shy.


He looked so cute when he was nervous. She held herself from grabbing the young boy and giving him a hug.


"Gummy bears?", The boy said, as he held out a palm full of gummy bears with a wide grin on his face. Claire smiled at him as she watched him for a while. With his geeky, childlike demeanour, his black-brown hair falling to his face, and the reflections on his glasses, the only person that came to Claire's mind at that moment was Adam, and that gave her a warm feeling.



She reached out and pinched out some of the candy from his palm before she threw her head back as she threw them in her mouth and chewed. She brought her head down again and saw Tate smiling at her, his eyes glittering through his glasses.