Ch 20

Kris POV

It took all of my self-restraint not to grab the paper from Jinri’s hands. I didn’t need a paper to tell me what I already knew.

At first, I thought this was some odd case of parallels. She was looking for her long-lost brother, and I had a sister I’d always assumed was dead, but didn’t really know for sure. Hell, my memories before the age of eight were still spotty at best, but I knew for sure that I’d had a sister, and then one day I didn’t. My parents, who had long ago revealed that they weren’t biologically related to me, told me nothing at first. It wasn’t until I was fifteen that they told me everything: my real name, who my parents were, and where they’d found me. I’d always known about the Ulrica – I’d be shifting into wolf form since I was a toddler – but it came as a shock when they told me that they could, too. I’d always tried to hide it from them, which was getting more and more difficult as I got older. But when they told me how they found me, it made sense. I was in my wolf form, hiding in an abandoned building a few houses down from where they’d found my dead mother and father. They had been sent by the council to hide my family away, due to a recent surge in Hadrian attacks, but arrived to find my mother and father dead, and my sister and I missing. They found me, and assumed that they Hadrian had taken my sister and killed her.

Imagine my surprise when years later the Council randomly orders us to keep watch over Yeon Jinri, some random girl, who turns out to be one of the only Tamers left in existence. It was the most frightening and exhilarating experiences of my life when I first saw her. As an Alpha, I was assigned first watch, and as soon as she stepped on campus that first day, I could sense her. She looked, smelled, sounded so familiar, and it was like the wolf in me was going to attack her right there. I was scared because I never noticed her before, yet all of a sudden, she’s everywhere, and I can’t get the feeling out of my body. It only got stronger the day the Hadrian finally attacked her. Since that day, it’s like I never want her out of my sight.

The night I brought her back to her room and she whispered that nickname, I knew it. It was like all the puzzle pieces of my memory were falling into place. I knew then that it couldn’t have been mere coincidence, but I didn’t have any other proof. This was that proof, and it was bittersweet.

“Yah, Kris; you’re starting to freak me out!”

I turned to see Jinri – my sister – getting ready to dial for help, as she stared at me with wide concerned eyes. I blinked once, twice, three times, before turning away again.

“You’re my sister,” I whispered. I could feel her energy shift then, hurling through the same emotional thrill ride I was on.

“You think that’s funny, Kris?” she fumed. I shook my head and motioned towards the paper.

“Li Jiaheng, born November 6th 1990,” I began reciting, much to her surprise. “ID number 901106-1371291. Parents Yeon Dongmin and Li Rinah. Birth weight 7.2 pounds (3.2kilos). Brown eyes, black hair.” Jinri’s hands shook as she fought to mask her shock.

“But your name is Kris,” she managed to squeak out. She looked as if she had seen a ghost.

“It’s the name my adoptive family gave me,” I explained. “Kris Wu Yi Fan. I only knew this after…” I was hesitant to continue. There was so much going on, and Jinri looked like she would faint. I started the car.

“Let’s discuss this at home,” I finally said. She only nodded and slumped back in her seat. “This stays between us for now, okay?”

“Yes Kris,” she agreed, her voice shaking. To be honest, I was surprised at how well she was holding up. She didn’t even know I existed until a couple of weeks ago, when I had known for years. Hell, I was surprised at how well I was holding up. This was so much information I wanted to puke. I had to maintain as much control as I could – I’d lose my in the comfort of my own room, alone.

The car ride was silent, but every now and again, I could feel Jinri’s eyes on me. Sometimes, I glanced back and we met eyes. It wasn’t awkward, just different. When I pulled into driveway of the house, I cut the engine and turned to her. She was staring purposefully out of the window, as if she hadn’t realized we’d already stopped.

“Before we go inside, we should think of something to say to the others,” I suggested. She replied with a wan smile.

“I’m still doubtful myself,” she murmured. “We can just say that there was only enough information to know that he’s alive, but his whereabouts are unknown and that he may be using an alias.”

It was smart. None of the others knew my birth name, and the explanation was vague enough that it sounded ironically official. I gave her my nod of consent and we headed into the house, emotions running high.

Jinri’s POV

Luhan opened the door just as my hand reached for the knob. He looked gravely concerned and hustled me into the house, not sparring Kris a glance.

“Are you okay?” he asked, smoothing away hair that had fallen into my face. His touch was tender, sweet, and momentarily distracted me from the impossible reality I was facing.

“Yeah,” I croaked, failing at trying to remain calm. “I could be better, I guess.” Understatement of the century. Taking advantage of the moment, I wrapped my arms around his waist and drew him into a hug. Just like when he took me stargazing, I felt comfortable and warm, and at peace. I felt another hand begin to rub soothing circles on my back.

“It’ll be okay, Noona,” I heard Sehun say. I wasn’t as close to him as I was Kai or Luhan, but the gesture was so nice I couldn't help but lose a little control on my tears. I stood there silently as the tears came slow at first, but soon turned into a steady flow. Luhan and Sehun just comforted me patiently, despite the fact they had no idea what exactly had happened.

I felt selfish. Kris was going through the same thing, yet he was staying strong and thinking logically. I could faintly hear Suho’s voice as he asked what had happened. Kris smoothly lied with the explanation I had come up with in the car, and disappeared with Suho into the kitchen.

“I think I’m going to go rest,” I told Luhan and Sehun. They wanted to protest, I could tell, but they followed me upstairs anyway. If I hadn’t assured them I would be fine, they would have tucked me into bed themselves. As soon as they were gone, I took a deep breath and pulled out my phone.

To: Taem(a)n

From: JinRinnie

I’ve got questions, and you’ve got answers. Lunch tomorrow?

The text to Taemin was off in an instant, and received an almost instant reply. He would pick me up tomorrow just before noon. Great. Now all there was to do was wait. I started a new text.

To: Giant-nim

From: JinRinnie

This is for real, isn’t it? I guess this saves us the trouble of awkward introductions. Your room is right across the hall…lol.

This whole thing was bittersweet. I wasn’t upset that Kris was apparently my brother; the feeling was hard to descri