World's Best Protagonist [BL]

The second I stepped out of Claude’s Sanctum, I barely had time to brace myself before I was ambushed.

"Jade!"

A blur of movement, like a shadow moved quickly, and the next thing I felt was quite a hard impact.

I let out a choked ’oof’ as Allen crashed into me, his arms wrapping tightly around my torso like an industrial-grade vice. His grip was almost suffocating, but I could hear the tremble in his breath and the unspoken relief laced in his touch.

"Thank God," Allen muttered against my shoulder. I bit my lip as I looked up above. I actually forgot to thank God.

Allen’s voice cut through my prayer.

"Do you have any idea how—?"

Claude cleared his throat, loudly.

I felt Allen tense slightly but refused to let go. Allen, how what? Don’t say how worried you are that you almost jumped back into the vortex to find me.

Because, honestly, I don’t know what to say or how to react. But what kind of stupid would resort to that anyway?

My gaze flickered to Claude, and for a split second, his expression changed—something unreadable flashed in his eyes before he looked away, a scowl settling back on his face.

I raised my eyebrows.

He’s back to his cranky attitude again. Sometimes, I wonder if he’s a miracle baby. Old people say they inherit the mood swings of their menopausal mother while they’re in their wombs, hence that attitude.

Allen finally moved away. I tapped his shoulder, reassuring him that I was fine. After that, chaos erupted. Intrigued voices bombarded me like I was some celebrity surrounded by paparazzi. The only difference is that the paparazzi were more good-looking than me.

"Jade, what the hell happened?" Terrius demanded, his cold eyes unusually brimming with concern, curiosity, and relief.

Normally, he would just wait for someone to fire his questions and listen to the answers quietly in the corner.

"How’d you vanish? How’d you get back? And why did this happen?" Terrius added. He’s really becoming more and more talkative now.

Another pretty face was shoved in my line of sight, almost blinding me with his shining, shimmering, golden locks.

"Were you hurt, Jade? Any wounds? Did something touch you?!" Etienne frantically circled me like an overprotective mother hen, his hands hovering over my arms, checking for injuries. His face was pale, eyes darting over me like I’d just crawled out of a battlefield.

"I swear you were just walking beside me! How did you disappear?! Do you know how scared we were for you?!"

"Geez, Etienne, I appreciate the concern, but I’m fine—"

"Our captain almost jumped back in the disappearing vortex!"

I almost choked on my words. He did what?! My head hastily spun in the captain’s direction, but the guy was already walking back inside his house. Before he slammed the door in our faces though, I noticed the tip of his ears were red.

Okay...that made me feel some sort of...ugh, what is this feeling? I feel a tiny bit disoriented since that just doesn’t make sense. Symptoms of hallucination.

Really, Jade. Why is it so hard for you to accept Claude’s display of concern and the tiniest bit of work-related affection?

"Jade!" Etienne shouted at me again, chipping me away from my thoughts.

I blinked. Gawked at him like a kid pretending to listen properly. But then, his brows only knitted even closer as he asked again.

"Are you really okay? You seem distracted! Let me check you—"

"Etienne, I’m really okay. I just suddenly wondered if it’s usually like this?" Etienne gave me a confused look. "I mean, does the captain not allow you guys inside? We’re still talking under the door’s shade, you know?"

"If we don’t bomb his yard, we’re welcome inside. But because Noir suggested this, we don’t expect to be received warmly," Lexie answered. She scanned me, and then after securing that I was perfectly fine and healthy, she nodded and tapped Etienne on the back.

"He said he’s fine. Don’t stress yourself too much," she said to Etienne.

"But I—I..." Etienne exhaled sharply. "I should have paid more—" His voice cracked, his hands slightly trembling before he clenched them into fists.

Ah.

Guilt was visible in his eyes. Isn’t he too good for this world? How could he blame himself for something he had no control of?

"...Sorry," I muttered. He looked up, shaking his head. He was about to claim it was his fault again, so I interrupted him before he could even open his mouth. "Something pulled me. It was unexpected and quite thrilling, but you see, aside from disappearing overnight, I am perfectly fine."

"You were gone for three days, Jade," Allen stated. I gaped at him, my ears doubting his words. Allen repeated after seeing my jaw fall out of shock. "You were gone for three days. And we’ve been doing everything to summon the same vortex for the past three days to find you."

I gulped. One by one, I looked at them, and only then did I notice the bags under their eyes. I was never an emotional person, but at that moment, the warmth in my chest exploded, traveled through my eyes and almost made my eyes moist.

It feels good having someone worry about you to that extent. Although this was an unfamiliar feeling, I didn’t dislike it.

"Thank you, guys..." I murmured, giving them a sincere look and smile. However, that smile slightly faltered when I noticed Noir staring at me.

Oh, right. He must be dying to know what happened since he already had an idea where I went. I guess he kept the end of his bargain. He didn’t tell anyone even though they were all losing sleep trying to find me.

I rubbed my nape, feeling a bit guilty for the other five.

Lexie elbowed Terrius aside. "I want a full report. Now." She crossed her arms, her sharp gaze drilling into me like a laser. "You disappeared. Then bam, you’re back. How?"

"And why did it take so long?" Terrius added, his brows furrowed.

Okay, gone was their worry and now replaced by the great curiosity. I scratched the back of my head.

"Er, funny story about that..."

Someone’s presence became stronger behind me, and invisible pebbles of warnings hit my head several times.

I don’t need to look back to know someone’s staring daggers at me, probably watching me beyond the windows.

I sighed. Another problem arose. How am I going to answer them?

My gaze shifted back to Noir.

Unlike the others, he hadn’t rushed in like a panicked lunatic. He stood a little apart from the group, arms crossed, sharp eyes burning into me with curiosity and barely concealed impatience.

He wanted answers. Desperately.

I shot him a knowing look. Later. I’ll tell you later, but at the moment, let me handle this first.

Noir’s fingers twitched—clearly dissatisfied—but he didn’t push it. He’s quite a bit of a mind reader, isn’t he? A part of me hoped that he already spilled the truth to everyone, so I wouldn’t have to choose between lying or not lying to them.

"Well?" Lexie pressed. "Spit it out."

I sighed, throwing up my hands. "Alright, alright. Everyone, take a seat. This is gonna take a while."

Oh, I forgot we’re outside.