166 A real man

Jaden opened his eyes late in the morning. He couldn't feel his mommy, but there was someone else next to him.

Oddly, he wasn't as displeased by that dark presence. It wasn't cold and threatening, for once.

His body had recovered through the night, and he was like new. Yet, he was exhausted. He didn't want to get up and walk yet.

«Hungry,» he complained with a pout.

His stomach was rumbling, so he didn't have time to remember what had happened the day before. The shadow next to his bed jumped up, appearing at the border of his field of vision. It was Nate.

«How are you?» he asked, analysing his son with a keen eye. «You look all right to me.»

Even though his tone was calm, he had run there as soon as Jaden had said a word. Nate's face was pale, his eyes circled by dark shadows. He had been up for the whole night, apparently.

«I'm hungry,» Jaden repeated, unhappy his energies had to be spent on that. «Very, very hungry!»