Genius Kid
1550 Words
CALLIE'S POV
Leo was staring at me again.
Not in the way most three-year-olds stared…with that blank, processing look while they tried to understand the world. No, Leo's gaze was sharp, assessing, like he was reading something written on my forehead that I couldn't see.
"Callie," he said from the backseat of Renan's car. "Why do you look at Renan the same way mama looks at Braham?"
I choked on air.
Renan's hands tightened on the steering wheel, his eyes flicking to the rearview mirror.
"I don't..." I started, but Leo interrupted.
"You do. When you think he's not watching, you look at him like you're trying to figure out a puzzle." He tilted his head, those golden-hazel eyes…like Braham's…studying me. "And he looks at you like mama's flowers look at the sun."
Jesus Christ.
"Leo," I said carefully, "that's a very... observant thing to notice."
"I notice lots of things." He swung his legs, hitting the back of my seat rhythmically. "Like how Renan's hands shake a little when you stand too close. And how you smile differently when he tells jokes."
Renan cleared his throat. "Kid, you're three. How do you even..."
"I'm three years and four months old," Leo corrected primly. "Almost three and a half."
"Right. Sorry." Renan glanced at me, and I saw my own shock reflected in his expression.
This wasn't normal. Even for a smart kid, this level of perception was…
"Are you going to marry Callie?" Leo asked suddenly.
Renan nearly drove off the road.
"What?" he sputtered.
"Braham's going to marry mama," Leo said matter-of-factly. "I can tell. He looks at her like she's the only person in the whole world. You look at Callie like that too."
My face was on fire. "Leo, sweetie, that's not really..."
"Do you love her?"
The car went silent.
I didn't dare look at Renan. Couldn't look at him. We'd been dancing around this for months…years, if I was honest…but neither of us had ever said the words.
"That's complicated," Renan finally said, his voice tight.
"Why?" Leo sounded genuinely confused. "You do or you don't, right?"
"It's not that simple when you're older..."
"Why not?"
"Because..." Renan trailed off, clearly struggling. "Because sometimes loving someone means more than just feeling it. It means making sure they feel the same way. Making sure the timing is right."
Leo was quiet for a moment, processing.
"Does Callie love you?"
I was going to die. Right here, in this car, at the hands of a three-year-old with the observational skills of a detective.
"Leo," I said, my voice strangled. "Maybe we should talk about something else."
"But do you?" he pressed.
"I..." I glanced at Renan. His jaw was set, his eyes fixed firmly on the road, but I caught the tension in his shoulders. "Yes. I do."
Renan's head whipped toward me so fast I thought he'd give himself whiplash.
"Eyes on the road!" I yelped.
He jerked his attention back, but his knuckles had gone white on the steering wheel.
"See?" Leo said, sounding satisfied.
The rest of the drive to the park was silent, though the air in the car felt charged with something I couldn't name.
When we finally arrived and got Leo out of his car seat, he immediately grabbed both our hands.
"Come on," he said, pulling us toward the playground. "I want to go on the swings."
We followed, and I was acutely aware of Renan's presence beside me. Of the way his hand occasionally brushed against mine as we walked.
Leo ran ahead to the swings, and Renan and I hung back.
"So," he said quietly. "You love me."
"Apparently."
"How long?"
I sighed. "Does it matter?"
"Yeah." He turned to face me fully. "It does."
"Since the first day," I admitted. "When you offered to drive me from the cathedral."
His expression softened. "Callie..."
"Push me!" Leo called from the swings, interrupting whatever Renan was about to say.
"Saved by the three-year-old," I muttered, walking over to Leo.
I pushed him on the swings while Renan stood nearby, his eyes tracking my every movement. After a while, Leo hopped off and ran to the sandbox, where a few other kids were playing. Renan and I followed, sitting on a nearby bench.
"Can I ask you something?" Renan said after a moment.
"Sure."
"When you found out about us... about what we are... how did you handle it?"
I thought back to that moment. "Honestly? I thought Braham was talking about the social media alpha male thing. Werewolves were supposed to be folklore."
"And now?"
"Now I'm sitting at a park with one." I glanced at him. "It's still surreal sometimes."
"Sorry to disappoint you," he said dryly. "But this is very real."
We sat in comfortable silence for a moment, watching Leo play.
"Excuse me?"
We both looked up to see a woman standing in front of us, smiling warmly.
"Sorry to interrupt," she said. "I just had to say, you two make such a beautiful couple. And your son is absolutely adorable."
My brain short-circuited.
"Oh, we're not..." I started.
"Thank you," Renan said smoothly, cutting me off.
The woman beamed. "Well, you're very lucky." She waved and walked away.
I stared at Renan. "Why didn't you correct her?"
"Because Leo heard," he said quietly, nodding toward the sandbox.
I looked over. Leo was watching us with those too-intelligent eyes, a small smile on his face. When he caught my eye, he went back to playing like nothing had happened.
"He didn't say anything," I murmured.
"Exactly."
His hand found mine on the bench, our fingers intertwining.
"Does it bother you?" he asked. "People thinking we're a family?"
Did it? The idea of people thinking Leo was ours, that we were together…
"No," I said honestly. "It doesn't."
"Good," he said softly.
After about an hour, Leo came running back over, slightly sweaty and covered in sand.
"I'm hungry," he announced.
"What do you want to eat?" I asked.
"Ice cream!"
"Real food first, then ice cream," Renan said.
Leo considered this. "Okay."
We headed to lunch, and by the time we got back to the car afterward, Leo had fallen asleep in his car seat, an ice cream stain on his shirt and a content smile on his face.
But just before he'd dozed off, something strange had happened.
"Renan?" Leo had said suddenly.
"Yeah, kid?"
"What does 'manifesting' mean?"
Renan and I exchanged glances.
"Where did you hear that word?" I asked carefully.
"I heard Braham say it this morning. He was talking to someone, but I couldn't see anyone there."
My stomach dropped.
"What exactly did he say?" Renan's voice had gone very careful.
"He said I was manifesting early. That it was too early." Leo tilted his head. "What does that mean?"
Renan was quiet for a long moment. Then, so quietly I almost didn't hear him, he said, "It means you're special, Lionel. There's a lot to learn about you."
"I heard that."
We both froze.
"What?" Renan said.
"I heard you," Leo repeated calmly. "Just now. Even though you whispered."
"Leo," I said slowly, "we're in a moving car. There's no way you should have been able to..."
"But I did." He looked between us. "Is that bad?"
Renan pulled over, turning around to face Leo.
"No," he said firmly. "It's not bad. It's just... special."
"Like how you and Braham are special?"
Another loaded silence.
"Yeah," Renan said finally. "Like that."
Leo nodded, apparently satisfied, and within minutes, he was asleep.
By the time we got back to Braham's estate, Renan carried Leo inside while I followed, my mind still reeling.
Millie appeared at the top of the stairs as we entered, and I froze.
Something was different.
She looked... softer, somehow. Her hair was mussed, her clothes rumpled, and there was a glow to her skin that hadn't been there this morning.
And when Braham appeared behind her, his hand possessively on her lower back, I knew exactly what had changed.
"How was the park?" Millie asked, coming down the stairs.
"Interesting," I said meaningfully, catching her eye.
She had the grace to blush.
Renan carried Leo past us toward the guest room. "He's out cold."
"I'll put him down," Millie said, following Renan.
Which left me alone with Braham.
"So," I said casually. "You two seem... close."
Braham's expression didn't change, but I caught the slight tightening around his eyes. "Callie..."
"I'm happy for you," I interrupted. "Both of you. You deserve this."
He studied me for a moment, then nodded. "Thank you."
"Just... don't hurt her. She's been through enough."
"I won't," he said, and the conviction in his voice left no room for doubt.
"Good." I smiled slightly. "Because if you do, you'll have me to answer to."
Millie came back down the stairs alone, and Braham immediately moved to her side, his hand finding hers naturally.
Yeah. Something had definitely shifted.
And as I watched them together…the way he looked at her, the way she leaned into him…I felt a pang of something that might have been longing.
Not because I wanted Braham. But because I wanted what they had.
I glanced back toward where Renan had disappeared with Leo.
Maybe I already did.
- Writer
