The Scream
As long as Iris could remember, Nari had always been like this. She was the first to throw herself into the fire, protecting them, attracting a lot of attention to herself so that no one would look at them. In this rotting, gray ghetto, her eyes shone like endless galaxies, and her bright laughter echoed. She was energetic, sincere, and sometimes he thought she was fearless. In a world hostile to omegas, Nari always found something bright and good. With her warmth, she could warm anyone in need. But no one could warm her.
Nari was always by his side. From the moment they were born, they had been together, like brother and sister. She always held his hand tightly. And he thought he would never want to let go of her little palm, that no one else would share her warmth. Then Agatha brought home two more little omegas. The girl constantly whined, and the boy sniffled, wiping his tear-swollen eyes. But he tried to appear brave and strong. Iris didn’t like him at first. Maybe because Nari now had to take care of these two as well. She couldn’t take her eyes off them, especially since she had immediately attached herself to them. She was sickly, thin, pale, and cried endlessly.
When they started living together, a lot changed. At first, Diona began to follow Nari like a little tail, while Leo kept his distance. But over time, he started to interfere in Iris and Nari's daily life. He helped her and Agatha cook, learned to clean and wash clothes. He did what he could, but what Iris never wanted to do. And that irritated the golden-haired boy. Leo did everything poorly and incorrectly. He often broke cups and plates. Almost always spilled water, was embarrassed to touch women's underwear, and didn’t know how to wash the floor, constantly flooding the neighbors below. The elderly woman living there came to scold them almost every week. And Nari was constantly distracted from her work to help that poor soul.
One day, this frustrated Iris so much that he picked up Leo along with a rag and began to explain slowly and in detail where he was messing up. He yelled at him and told him to repeat everything after him, saying he would work with him until he learned. And… it worked. Leo rapidly began to learn only when Iris explained things to him. Agatha couldn’t be happier, and Nari didn’t get distracted from her tasks and trainings anymore.
Over time, Iris noticed more and more that Leo was actually a very diligent boy. Unlike him and Nari, he and his sister lived with their parents. They at least had a childhood. So, now he was learning everything from the very beginning. Leo was very shy and calm. He always had warm hands, a sweet smile, he laughed softly and almost never looked people in the eye. He had soft hair, and the older they got, the more pleasant his voice became.
They grew up. At one moment, Iris realized he felt a jolt of electricity when Leo touched him. When their gazes crossed, his heart started to race, and his thoughts tangled up, and the sharp-tongued Iris felt lost and didn’t know what to say. But Leo’s gaze was always directed away from him…
With each passing year, Nari became increasingly uncontrollable. Trying to divert attention from D, Leo, and Iris himself, she began to provoke the betas in charge more and more. Sometimes, she ran away from the guards, driving Alpha Yomiya mad. She didn’t notice the most important thing. That at the moment when she took the blows on herself, Leo tried with all his might to take her pain upon himself. And from his own helplessness, he suffered even more. In those moments, Iris's heart would tear from his chest. Pain suffocated him, squeezing his ribs like chains that left scars in their wake. And Iris was tired... tired of being the good friend who could do nothing.
From childhood, it was clear that by properly using his calling, he could get anything he wanted even from a beta. His appearance, voice, gaze, even movements. It was as if he was made to seduce. And he decided that this was how he should use his power. To protect those close to him. He understood that by protecting Nari, he was also protecting Leo. And he knew that once they found out what he was doing, they would be against it. They would try to convince him to abandon the idea, try to stop him. Because friends don’t abandon each other. So he decided to become a nobody for them. Even if it meant becoming a villain, if that would allow him to protect them.
And that’s how it all began. At the hospital where they ended up after the fall. The first person he seduced was a nurse who took care of him and Leo. He begged for a separate room for Leo, passing it off as a "desire to spend more time with her." He also arranged for the best medicine and food for him. That was just the beginning. Next came lab technicians, supervisors, and security guards. Every night he received something useful. Something that gave him the opportunity to help Leo and the girls.
The number of those wishing to have him increased. Men, women… they even knew about him in the fourth circle and the outskirts of the third. Alphas were interested in him. And each time he raised his price. And that’s how, one day, he came across Sigma’s spy. The man immediately saw through him, and it didn’t take long to understand what he was selling himself for. He arranged a meeting with Toneri and he gave his word – if Iris spied for him, his friends would be first on the list for rescue when the time for invasion came. He agreed. Now, by selling his body, he received not only material goods but also information.
He was satisfied with everything. They were safe, as long as Nari wasn’t staging another performance. Then Iris would again look for the right supervisor and correct her mistakes. There were nights when he would wake up, drenched in cold sweat. Breathing heavily, he would open the window and try to take deep breaths just to overcome the disgust he felt for himself. He kept convincing himself that all of this was just for the sake of his friends. He had no other options.