Ethan pushed the door open and walked in like he owned the place, a smug look on his face.
"Yo-"
"WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?!"
He froze mid-step and mid-sentence.
His head slowly turned toward the source of the voice, where Mark stood behind the counter.
He looked nothing like himself.
The dark-skinned man's usual composed demeanour was gone, replaced by something raw. His eyes were wide, his jaw tight, his entire posture rigid with tension.
Ethan blinked.
'That's new.'
Mark didn't swear, not ever, which meant when he did, something was very, very wrong.
"I thought you'd died," he continued, his voice dropping slightly, though the intensity didn't fade. "I went to the gate location as soon as it was reported as unusual, but the military blocked everything off. No one would tell me anything."
Ethan's expression shifted slightly.
"I saw the news," Mark went on, his voice tightening. "You stepped out of the gate and then just collapsed."
He paused.
