Chapter 25
Ajori
Istood outside Kyrin’s door for a second, hand hovering, and heart still racing from everything that had just happened.
My first instinct was to go find Lainey—tell her, scream, cry, laugh… all of it—but something in me said no. Kyrin deserved to hear it first.
This was about him.
I knocked lightly, then pushed the door open.
Kyrin was stretched across the bed, controller in hand, completely locked into his game like the world outside that screen didn’t exist.
“Bruh, move!” he snapped at the TV. “Why would you—man, you trash!”
I blinked, watching him for a second.
“Kyrin,” I called softly.
“Hold on—hold on—hold on—” he mumbled, leaning forward as if his life depended on whatever was happening on that screen.
Two seconds later…
“Let’s go!” Kyrin shouted, throwing his head back. “Told you don’t play with me!”
I shook my head, a small smile breaking through. “Are you done being a professional gamer, or can I talk to you?”
He glanced over at me, grinning. “You see that, though, sis? That was clean.”
“Kyrin.”
“Aight, aight,” he said, pausing the game and tossing the controller to the side. “What’s up, sis?”
I stepped further into the room, closing the door behind me. And just like that, the smile on my face faded, because now it was real… now I had to say it.
His expression shifted as he sat up a little straighter, concern flickering in his eyes.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice quavering slightly.
“Nothing’s wrong,” I replied quickly, perhaps too quickly, feeling the weight of my words hang in the air.
He eyed me dubiously. “Jo…”
I exhaled slowly, the air feeling heavy in my lungs as I walked closer to the edge of the bed. My hands fidgeted with the hem of my shirt before I forced them to still. They needed to stay steady, now more than ever.
“I just… I need to talk to you about something serious,” I finally managed.
“Okay…” he replied, his tone cautious, as if he sensed the gravity of the moment.
I sat down on the edge of the bed, turning to face him.
For a second, I just looked at him, taking him in. For so long, I had been looking at him and seeing a whirlwind of fear, the relentless ticking of a clock counting down the moments we had left, and everything I could potentially lose. But right then, all I saw was my little brother, waiting and trusting.
“A doctor here found you a heart,” I said, my voice trembling with the weight of the news.
Silence enveloped us. It felt like the room itself paused, bracing for what was next.
Kyrin blinked erratically at me. “What?”
