The siblings talked for hours about the most random things, never touching any sore topics. Until mid-conversation, a childish voice yelled out, "Mommmm!"
Neo froze up when he saw a small figure appear in the hologram, hugging his sister tight. It was a boy around six or seven years old with black hair and sparkling blue eyes.
His heart strained as he watched the boy complain about school to Tessa, ignorant of the fact that she was on a call.
"... Teacher said that we should all work together and I was paired with that ugly Bizarro-looking omega!"
"Neo! You can't talk about omegas like that! I hope you didn't say that in front of her." Tessa rebuked the kid.
A single word scratched Neo's heart.
Tessa called the child Neo. That was his name.
"That's not Tyrese…?" The soft confusion in Neo's voice interrupted the mother-son interaction.
"Who's—"
Tessa covered her child's mouth with her palm and looked back at Neo.
"No. This is my baby Neo. I named him after you." The tails of Tessa's eyes were red as though the name carried years of waiting. "He's an alpha." She added.
The concept of the time lost when he was in a comatose state hit Neo now more than ever. The world had really continued to move even as time stopped for him.
"Neo, this is your uncle, Neo. You remember him, don't you?" Tessa removed her palm from the kid's mouth and allowed him to speak.
"You're the Hero of Mars," was the first thing the kid said, reverence filling his young eyes.
Hero of Mars…
Neo thought that it was a very undeserved title. Regardless, he smiled at the child and said, "Hi."
He had never been good with kids. Even little Tyrese, Tessa's first kid, whom he stopped carrying or touching after almost dropping him twice in a row.
"Tyrese is not around at the moment, he went to Gomas to complete his admission process." Tessa said the last half of her sentence with blinding pride in her tone and eyes.
The confusion in Neo's face that followed after those words reminded Tessa that he wouldn't know the meaning because of his missing knowledge.
She braced herself for a complete explanation, but shooed little Neo away first.
Then she faced big Neo and said, "Tyrese manifested as an S-Class Restorer a year ago. It was a big thing, considering… you know, your existence and relation with him. Added to the fact that he's a little genius."
"He was invited to study at Gomas which is usually really hard to get into and graduate from to be a licensed restorer/hunter. Tyrese didn't go through the admission process normally. After you, he's the only one in our family who…"
Tessa didn't complete her sentence. She couldn't bring herself to. They were a normal family.
Neo and Tyrese were the only special ones in the family. The rest were only average—a heavy burden to bear for people related to The Hero of Mars.
While Tessa mulled over sour thoughts, Neo thought of his future.
He was sure that this Gomas was the place that annoying sync partner of his was talking about. An academy for getting a hunter license—that should be his target now.
"I'll call Tyrese and ask him to come home early so you two can talk."
"Is the admission gate to Gomas still open?"
Both Tessa and Neo spoke at the same time again. Neo waved his sister's words off and expected a straight answer to his question from her.
"I don't really know, but I can ask Tyrese for you." Tessa said.
"Oh, don't worry, then." Neo said with a distracted tone, gently refusing the offer.
His thoughts were now centered on getting into Gomas. The conversation between the two siblings became dull. Tessa realized that her brother had other thoughts and it was time to put a pause on their reunion.
They terminated the call on a gentle note.
As soon as the call ended, Bryce knocked lightly before stepping back into the room. It was almost like he had been eavesdropping. But Neo didn't think that way.
"Thank you," he said to Bryce.
The alpha's metallic blue eyes glinted at the appreciation.
"Anything for you," Bryce said in response as he picked up his terminal from the bed. "Your sister is really nice and was among the few people who visited you and believed you'd wake up. I knew Senior would be happy to talk to her."
Neo couldn't help but imagine what it must have been like for his sister and his family all these years, watching him sleep but never opening his eyes.
Neo felt that he was really a bad person, because he only regretted not telling his family about his decision to enter the dungeon and saying goodbye to them.
He didn't regret the act of going to the dungeon itself. After all, duty had always come before family.
"How can a person get into Gomas?" Neo abruptly changed the topic of discussion.
A stroke of confusion flashed on Bryce's features before he promptly answered, "By passing the physical and theoretical exams with the best grades. Then getting high scores on the oral interview which is where most people fail."
Neo wanted to ask if he was eligible to take the exams but Bryce continued speaking.
"But if the person who wants to get into Gomas is Senior, he doesn't need to follow all that process," Bryce whispered in a naughty tone, drawing close to Neo. "You just have to ask me and I'll do it for you."
Their faces were only inches apart and Bryce's angelic features were so up close that the view toyed with Neo's thoughts.
'How could one be so beautiful?' Neo thought. 'Yet utterly insane.'
"Help me get into Gomas." Neo asked Bryce, doing as he said.
A broad smile took over the alpha's lips and suddenly, he pulled Neo in for an impromptu hug. Neo reflexively wanted to shove Bryce away but the latter had already wrapped his arms around him tight with his body of steel.
Bryce's chin brushed the side of Neo's neck, dangerously close to his sensitive glands hidden beneath the skin.
Neo stiffened, the hairs on his body erected in alert.
"Consider it done," Bryce's voice gently caressed Neo's skin. "Know that there's nothing I won't do for you."