The Boy Who Was Erased
Character introduction
Taesha (author)
Hello, this is my first work… It may not be that good but give it a try…
Let's go
Taesha (author)
Let's start with Character introduction
Let's start with the Main characters
Adrian Vale, 19
ADRIAN VALE (MC)
Full Name: Adrian Alexander Vale
Age: 19
University Student
University: Blackwood International University
Major: Psychology, 2nd Year
Has mother, father and aunt
Sibling: None, according to his family
Personality: Curious, stubborn, independent and emotionally sensitive. He hates being lied to and has a habit of investigating things he should probably leave alone.
Hobbies: Reading, photography, late-night walks and music.
Likes: Rain, coffee, old photographs.
Dislikes: Lies, being controlled and crowded places.
Biggest Fear: Losing someone he loves without knowing why.
Little Habit: Taps his fingers against his phone when nervous.
Family: Loves his parents but isn't particularly close to them. Evelyn is the person he trusts most.
Adrian has always believed his life was ordinary. Until a stranger sends him a message asking about a brother he supposedly never had.
Kael Arin ,21
KAEL ARIN (ML)
Full Name: Kael Sebastian Arin
Age: 21
University Student
University: Blackwood International University
Major: Business & Finance, 3rd Year
Has mother, father and brother
Personality: Quiet, intelligent, observant and composed. He rarely reveals what he's thinking and doesn't trust people easily. Despite his cold exterior, he's deeply protective of the people he cares about.
Hobbies: Piano, reading, driving and photography.
Likes: Black coffee, rain, classical music.
Dislikes: Lies, unnecessary attention and losing control.
Biggest Fear: Failing to protect someone he loves.
Little Habit: Goes unusually quiet whenever he's hiding something.
Family: His relationship with his parents is distant. He's close to his brother, although their relationship has become complicated.
About Kael:
Kael knows something about Adrian's forgotten past. He's been keeping that secret for years, believing the truth would destroy Adrian.
Noah Reed
NOAH REED
Age: 19
Adrian's Best Friend
University Student
Major: Media & Communications, 2nd Year
Personality: Funny, talkative, nosy and fiercely loyal. He loves teasing Adrian but becomes serious when his best friend is in trouble.
He knows nothing about Adrian's secret at first, but once he realizes something is wrong, he refuses to leave Adrian alone.
Evelyn Vale
EVELYN VALE
Age: 42
Adrian's Aunt
Art Gallery Owner
Personality: Warm, elegant, patient and protective, with a surprisingly strong side.
Adrian's safest person. Unfortunately, she's also hiding one of the biggest secrets of his life.
Vincent Arin
VINCENT ARIN
Age: 25
Kael's Older Brother
Occupation: Lawyer & Family Business Executive
Personality: Calm, sophisticated, calculating and intimidating without trying.
He knows the truth about Adrian's past and believes some secrets should remain buried.
Elena Vale
ELENA VALE
Age: 41
Adrian's Mother
Occupation: Doctor
Personality: Reserved, strict and protective.
She loves Adrian, but there's one part of his childhood she refuses to talk about.
Richard Vale
RICHARD VALE
Age: 45
Adrian's Father
Occupation: Businessman
Personality: Serious, authoritative and emotionally distant.
He has one strict rule for the entire family:
Never talk about the lake.
Unknown
Unknown
Knows Adrian's childhood, his family secrets and the brother Adrian cannot remember.
Nobody knows the unknown but the unknown knows Adrian and knows exactly what happened at the lake.
These are the characters which are introduced for now.. Others will be introduced when the story goes.
See you in the next chapter
Chap 1
Taesha (author)
Let's start!!
11:47 PM.
The city was drowning in rain.
Adrian Vale sat alone beside his bedroom window, one earphone in, his psychology textbook open in front of him.
He hadn't turned a page in twenty minutes.
His phone was far more interesting.
Noah Reed
[Are you alive?]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Unfortunately.]
Noah Reed
[Wow... Such positivity.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[It's almost midnight.]
Noah Reed
[Exactly! Perfect time to make terrible decisions.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[You're the one who called me at 3 AM last week because you thought someone was following you.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[It was a delivery guy!!!]
Noah Reed
[He looked suspicious.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[He was carrying pizza...]
Noah Reed
[Exactly. Suspiciously delicious.]
Adrian smiled despite himself.
Noah had a strange talent for making everything feel normal.
He was about to put his phone down when another notification appeared.
Unknown Number.
Unknown
[Do you remember your brother?]
Adrian's smile disappeared.
He stared at the message.
Once, twice.
Then he checked the number.
No name, no profile picture.
Nothing.
Adrian Vale, 19
[Wrong number.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[I don't have a brother.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Then why are you asking?]
Unknown
[Because that's what they told you...]
Adrian sat up. The rain suddenly seemed louder.
He didn't like this. Not because the stranger had mentioned a brother. But because something about the message felt familiar.
Adrian Vale, 19
[Who are you?]
Unknown
[Someone who remembers him.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Remember who?]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Stop texting me!!]
Unknown
[You really don't remember the lake?]
Adrian's fingers froze above the keyboard.
The lake. For a second, something flashed through his mind, Water. A child's laughter.
A hand gripping his and a voice: Don't let go.
Adrian Vale, 19
[I've never been to a lake.]
Unknown
[That's another lie they told you.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Who is "they"??]
Adrian's stomach twisted. He wanted to laugh. He wanted to block the number. He wanted to throw his phone across the room. Instead, he typed one more question.
Adrian Vale, 19
[What's my brother's name?]
The typing indicator appeared.
Disappeared.
Appeared again.
Then the answer came.
Unknown
[... You tell me.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[What the hell does that mean?]
Unknown
[You knew him better than anyone]
Adrian Vale, 19
[I said I don't have a brother!]
Adrian Vale, 19
[You used to say that when you were scared.]
Adrian stopped breathing for a moment.
Nobody knew that.
Not Noah.
Not his friends.
Nobody.
Suddenly his phone began ringing.
MOM
Adrian Vale, 19
*Adrian hesitated before answering.* 📲 Mom?
Adrian Vale, 19
in my room.
Elena Vale
📲Are you alone?
Elena Vale
has anyone contacted you tonight?
Adrian looked at the unknown number.
His mother's voice had changed.
It wasn't anger.It wasn't suspicion.
It was fear.
Elena Vale
📲 Just answer me.
Elena Vale
📲Don't ask questions about your childhood.
Adrian Vale, 19
📲Mom, what are you talking about?
Elena Vale
📲 Just promise me!
Adrian Vale, 19
📲Did I have a brother?
Silence. Longer this time.
Adrian heard his mother breathe on the other end.
Once... Twice...
Then...
Elena Vale
📲 Where did you hear that?
Adrian Vale, 19
📲 I asked you a question.
Elena Vale
📲 Adrian, listen to me carefully.
Elena Vale
📲 Stay away from the lake.
Adrian Vale, 19
📲 What lake?
Adrian Vale, 19
📲 Mom? Mom?!
Adrian stared at the screen. His hands were shaking now. He didn't understand what was happening. He didn't understand why his mother was afraid. And he definitely didn't understand why the word lake had suddenly become a memory he couldn't quite reach. His phone vibrated again.
Adrian Vale, 19
[Who are you?!]
Unknown
[Someone who tried to save him.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Where is he?]
Unknown
[ Ask Kael Arin.]
Adrian's eyes widened.
Kael !! Kael Arin!!
The third-year student he'd spoken to only a handful of times.The guy who always seemed to know when Adrian was looking at him.The guy who had once told him, completely out of nowhere...
Kael Arin ,21
💭You should stop digging into things that don't concern you.
Adrian had laughed at the time.
Now he couldn't.He opened his contacts.
KAEL ARIN.
His thumb hovered over the name. Before he could press it, a new message appeared.
Kael Arin ,21
[Don't ask me about your brother.]
Adrian's heart dropped.
He hadn't messaged Kael.
He hadn't even opened their chat.
Adrian Vale, 19
[How do you know??]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Kael? How do you know what I'm talking about?]
Three dots appeared...Disappeared...
Appeared again.
Then finally...
Kael Arin ,21
[Because I was there.]
Kael Arin ,21
[...The lake.]
Adrian stared at the screen.
Something inside his head cracked open.
Rain.
Cold water.
A boy's hand in his.
A voice screaming his name.
And then... Nothing.
Adrian dropped his phone. His breathing became uneven. For the first time in nineteen years, he realized something terrifying. Maybe his family hadn't forgotten a brother. Maybe they had made him forget.
Across the city, Kael sat alone in the dark, staring at the same conversation. His fingers tightened around his phone. He had spent years hoping Adrian would never remember.
But the moment he had feared had finally arrived.Kael closed his eyes
Kael Arin ,21
I'm sorry, Adrian.
Because there was one thing Kael hadn't told him… Adrian's brother wasn't dead.
And Kael knew exactly where he was.
Taesha (author)
See you in the next chapter
Taesha (author)
Do let me know how it is
Chap 2
Adrian didn't sleep that night.
He tried… Really did.
At 2:18 AM, he told himself he'd put his phone down and forget everything by morning.
At 2:21, he was still staring at Kael's last message.
I was there... The lake.
His brother...Kael.
None of it made sense.
Noah Reed
[You're replying.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[... My ghost is]
Noah Reed
[Damn~ Indeed a fast ghost..]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Go to sleep.!]
Adrian Vale, 19
[....Can't.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Nothing...]
Noah Reed
[You only say "nothing" when something is very much something.]
Adrian stared at the screen.
Noah knew him too well.
It was annoying.
Adrian Vale, 19
[Do you know anything about Kael Arin?]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Just answer!!]
Adrian Vale, 19
[That's not what I meant.]
Adrian Vale, 19
*Sigh* [...Noah]
Noah Reed
[What? You asked what I know.!]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Seriously.?!?!]
Noah Reed
[Fine. He's in third year. Business and Finance. His family's loaded. He's apparently terrifying when he's angry.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Apparently?]
Noah Reed
[I've never seen him angry.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[Anything else?]
Noah Reed
[He doesn't talk much. And girls keep trying to talk to him.]
Noah Reed
[Why are you asking these much??]
Adrian Vale, 19
[I met him yesterday....]
Adrian Vale, 19
[We've spoken before....]
Adrian Vale, 19
[I don't know. A few times.]
Noah Reed
[And you never told me? How can you do that 😩]
Adrian Vale, 19
[It wasn't important.]
Noah Reed
[Apparently it is now!!!]
Adrian Vale, 19
[I'll explain later.]
Noah Reed
[You're worrying me.]
Adrian Vale, 19
[…I'm fine]
Noah Reed
[That's another lie.]
Adrian didn't reply... Because Noah was right.
He wasn't fine.
And he had a horrible feeling that things were about to get much worse.
By the time Adrian reached Blackwood International University, the rain had stopped. The campus was already crowded. Students were rushing between buildings, complaining about assignments and trying to survive another Monday.
Normal….Everyone looked normal.
Adrian envied them.
Noah Reed
Wow..You look...terrible
Adrian Vale, 19
*sigh* I didn't sleep.
Adrian Vale, 19
You weren't here.
Noah Reed
Your face told me.
Adrian Vale, 19
My face needs to mind its business.
Noah Reed
Your face is the only honest thing about you.
Adrian gave him a look.
Noah grinned.
Then his grin slowly disappeared.
Noah Reed
Common!! Don't look now.
Adrian Vale, 19
That's the worst possible way to tell someone not to look.
Noah Reed
Hey, Kael's here!!
Adrian looked anyway. Of course, he did. Kael stood near the library, talking to someone from his class. He looked completely normal, Calm, Unbothered. As if he hadn't told Adrian the night before that he'd been at a lake with him when they were children. As if he hadn't just turned Adrian's entire childhood upside down.
Noah Reed
You know, You were staring.
Adrian Vale, 19
I was... thinking.
Adrian Vale, 19
*look at Noah for a few seconds* About punching you.
Noah Reed
*awkward laugh* There he is!!
Adrian rolled his eyes. He turned away.
Then he heard a familiar voice behind him.
Adrian's stomach dropped. He hated that his body reacted before his brain did.
Adrian Vale, 19
*turned towards him* We need to talk.
Kael Arin ,21
I know. Not here.
Kael Arin ,21
Because someone's watching you.
Adrian Vale, 19
Huh!? Who?
Kael Arin ,21
I don't know.
Adrian Vale, 19
Yeah… Convenient.
Kael Arin ,21
Believe whatever you want.
Adrian Vale, 19
I want the truth.
Kael Arin ,21
You can't have it.
Adrian Vale, 19
You don't get to decide that.
Kael looked at him for a moment. Not coldly.
But almost sadly. Adrian wasn't sure which was worse.
Kael Arin ,21
... You should let this go.
Adrian Vale, 19
My mother told me the same thing.
Kael Arin ,21
Then listen to her.
Adrian Vale, 19
She wouldn't even answer when I asked if I had a brother.
Something flickered across Kael's face.It was gone so quickly Adrian almost missed it.
Adrian Vale, 19
You know all these, you were at the lake with me and my brother??
Adrian Vale, 19
Then tell me what happened??
Kael Arin ,21
Because you don't remember for a reason.
Adrian Vale, 19
That's not an answer!
Kael Arin ,21
It's the only one I can give you.
Adrian Vale, 19
*Scoff* You're unbelievable!
Adrian Vale, 19
...
What's his name?
Adrian Vale, 19
I asked what's his name, Kael?
Kael looked down. His jaw tightened. For a second, Adrian thought he wasn't going to answer.
Kael Arin ,21
I can't tell you.
Kael Arin ,21
Because if you remember him...
Kael Arin ,21
You'll remember everything else too.
Adrian didn't know what to say.
Kael sounded genuinely afraid.
Not for himself.
For Adrian.
Adrian Vale, 19
What happened to him?
Kael Arin ,21
I thought he was dead.
Kael Arin ,21
I was ten, Adrian.
Adrian Vale, 19
And now? Where is he?
Kael Arin ,21
Now I know he isn't but where I don't know.
Adrian Vale, 19
You just said you know he isn't dead.
Adrian Vale, 19
Then how can you not know where he is?
Kael Arin ,21
Because things changed.
Adrian let out a frustrated breath. He was getting nowhere. He wanted to yell. Instead, he said the first thing that came to mind.
Adrian Vale, 19
I hate you.
Kael Arin ,21
Huh?! You barely know me.
Kael almost smiled.Then he reached into his jacket.
He handed Adrian a photograph. It was old.
The edges were worn and slightly bent. Adrian looked at it. Two boys stood beside a lake.
One was Kael. The other was...
Adrian Vale, 19
Who took this?
Kael Arin ,21
Your brother.
Adrian Vale, 19
Where is his face?
Adrian turned the photograph slightly. Someone had scratched the face of the third boy out so violently that the paper had nearly torn.
Adrian Vale, 19
Why would someone do this?
Kael Arin ,21
I don't know.
Adrian Vale, 19
You're lying.
Adrian Vale, 19
That's not funny.
Kael Arin ,21
I wasn't joking.
Adrian turned the photograph over.
Three words were written on the back.
Adrian Vale, 19
"Don't trust him."
Adrian Vale, 19
*looked up*
Kael Arin ,21
I don't know.
Adrian Vale, 19
You're really bad at answering questions.
Adrian stared at him. For the first time since this whole thing started, he almost laughed.
Almost. Then he noticed Kael wasn't looking at him anymore. He was looking toward the university gates. A black car was parked across the road. Someone was sitting inside.
Kael Arin ,21
Go home.Now.
Kael Arin ,21
Because that car has been there since you arrived.
Adrian glanced toward the road. The car didn't move. He couldn't see the person inside.
Kael looked back at him.
His voice softened.
Kael Arin ,21
Please, Adrian.
Kael Arin ,21
Just go home.
Adrian didn't understand why that one word bothered him so much."Please."Kael hadn't sounded like he was ordering him around.
He sounded scared. Adrian looked down at the photograph one more time. He didn't notice the black car slowly pulling away. He didn't notice the person inside taking a photograph of him.
And he definitely didn't notice the small handwriting underneath Don't trust him.
"You already did".
Taesha (author)
See you in the next chapter.
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