His Soft Fur
● XVI ●

I was sitting on the hood of Ty's car in his driveway. I was being baby sat by the pale pink wolf, but in all honesty, I know I could just walk by and nothing would happen.

Brendan doesn't care.

I had someone else's company though, so that's nice.

Candice was here. She's Channing's girlfriend. She moved to the city a year ago, but she's still making it work with Channing. They've been going through a few rough patches, but she's as happy as ever. It might just be her personality or she might just be relieved to be close by again.

"How's the city?" I asked her.

"It's dirty." She said. "It's great." She smiled widely as she looked at me. I don't know what to say to that. "I toured the college, too. I know everyone goes there, but I was hoping to go down south a little." She clasped her hands together. "The campus is much prettier."

"The southern one is harder to get into." I sighed. I know where she was planning to go and I wanted to go there, but it's further away and has a lower acceptance rate.

And I can't just...

"Um..." I didn't know if I should ask my question. "What about Channing?" I asked her anyway.

Her smile seemed to fade, but not a lot.

"It's...I don't know yet." She looked away, a little sad. "I take it you know about all this animal stuff."

"Yeah."

I guess I was almost as sad as she was.

"Channing wants to try, but he has such a hard time visiting me. He says he can barely make it out of town without feeling like he's chained here." She explained.

So he's tried to leave.

And it didn't work.

"I want this to work out. I mean...we had everything planned, then all of this happened." She didn't seem to like it. "The shock on my face when he shifted in front of me." She laughed to herself quietly.

"Oh yeah, he did that." I remembered Brendan told me.

"Mind you we were in a bad argument at the time." She kept laughing. "He told me he didn't want to move with me at the end of the year, and I thought he was breaking up with me. Then all of a sudden there's this animal in front of me."

"Scared you, huh?"

"I screamed my entire face off."

I couldn't help but laugh with her.

"Then he tried to explain everything to me the next day like I wasn't traumatized. I know he has a temper, but that was different."

Candice doesn't seem like the type to scare easily, and if she was laughing about it, she probably did lose it.

She's really sweet and bubbly. The whole, bright blond ball of sunshine and light, not really a southern bell since this isn't the south but people get the picture.

I still don't know how she's been dating Channing since they were in middle school. They're polar opposites.

"I heard what happened with Ty." She looked over to me again. "Between you and me, Channing is not happy about it." She wanted to keep it a secret that she told me.

She's talking about Ty being attached to me. Everyone else thinks it's a curse or something, as if what the Martin brothers are going through isn't a curse already, but I don't think of it like that. Then again, I don't know everything Ty is going through. And it might be more serious, but for right now, I just think of it as him liking me.

"I already know Channing is mad. It's not like Ty has been...following directions lately, so..." And I know it's my fault.

"I didn't know you were...um..." She didn't know how to say it out loud.

She probably doesn't want to offend me.

"...gay?" I whispered back to her.

I hope she doesn't think I have the plague. By the way she blushed and quickly looked away, I know that it isn't really...I don't come out because not everyone is as open as she can be.

"Yeah, I'm not going around telling people that." I had no plans to.

"Ty never struck me as...he just never liked anyone." She said.

"Then he got hit with his feelings so..." I picked at my jeans as I told myself it's not a bad thing that Ty likes me. Everyone needs to get over it.

I think Candice knew I didn't want to have this conversation.

"How's your parents?" She changed the subject.

"My dad lost weight since you left. I think everyone at his job did since your mom isn't there to drop by your baked goods anymore." I laughed to myself.

"You know, everyone has been saying that to me." She laughed with me. "I brought cookies. Take some home with you." She smiled.

I was definitely going to.

That's when I remembered I had to be home. I looked at the time on my phone, then sighed quietly to myself. It's one-thirty. I gave Ty an hour, and he has to take me back to the library so I can go home.

As I thought that, I saw him and his brothers coming up the driveway. I don't know what they did, how they fixed the situation, or what mess they caused, but Channing didn't look pissed off. Or he might be hiding that since Candice is here.

I waited for Ty. He promised an hour and I gave it to him.

I kept my arms over my chest as he came over to me. I didn't have anything to say at the moment and neither did he. I showed him the time on my phone without saying anything. I have to go home.

He said nothing.

That's the first time we haven't gotten along.

“Why do you look like that?” Mom asked me when I walked in the kitchen right at two. Dad was waiting.

He has no reason to be mad. I had the car parked and the keys in the door at one-fifty-nine.

I was a little pale probably because I don't know how to be mad at someone. I don't know how to not talk to someone. I'm not like that. I'm always talking.

But I know Ty and he's not going to talk to me about what happened today. And I have a feeling like he's going to do his best to control me or keep me safe or whatever.

“Did you do something you weren’t supposed to?” Dad asked.

“I slipped on some ice.” I lied.

“You’re mad about that?”

“It hurt.” I said sadly. Mom put her arms around me, hugging me tightly.

One day I just want to ask for relationship advice.

“Don’t make light of pain, Richard.” Mom said.

“This is why he won’t go anywhere.” Dad said.

I plan on leaving but not going far. I want to stay nearby. My dad doesn't want me to stay in the house. He has this dream to move away to somewhere that doesn't snow.

“I believe we raised him well enough to know that he should actually go far away so we can move to the Bahamas. I’m sick of this weather.” Dad complained. He's been saying that for seventeen years.

“Why can’t we go now?” I asked.

“It doesn’t include children.” he said and meant it. I know my dad. Life frustrates him, Conrod frustrates him, and sometimes we do too. I don’t blame him.

“I’m going to bed.” I said quietly as mom rubbed my hair, letting me out of her hold.

“Love you, too, son.” Dad said.

I walked out of the kitchen and was about to go upstairs when something caught my attention outside in the backyard.

There were two people in my backyard.

Honestly, the Martin brothers are bold to just show up at my place and do...whatever they want. I don't know what it was now, but Jackie and Leo were here. I barely talk to them so I don't know what they want, but it must be serious...I mean...they're here, right? I looked back to the kitchen, and heard my parents going on with their conversation.

I walked outside on to the porch. I could ask my question out loud but I didn't want my parents to come over and see them outside in the snow. I'm already supposed to be grounded and I don't need to get in trouble.

Leo waved at me but Jackie didn't.

I walked down the porch steps and walked in the snow over to them. “What are you doing here?” I asked them.

Leo, the youngest, wanted to say something, but he looked at Jackie who was already not happy. There was something that upset him, and he was just about to lose his mind.

"You piss me off." Jackie said angrily, his hands balled up at his side. I don't know what to do with that information. I don't think I did anything wrong. I especially didn't do anything wrong today. Yet, Jackie was still upset.

“Jackie, stop it.” Leo said quietly.

“No, I’m not done.” he snapped at him. “I'm so tired of Ty's obsession with you. There's nothing more annoying than him going on about you all day long. I'm so over it.” he yelled at me.

“Is that why you came here?” I asked. Is he really here to bitch to me about how Ty feels.

I've been dealing with this all day and for some reason it won't stop.

Somehow, all of this is my fault.

“If you thought that I would talk to you nicely, you’ve got another thing coming. I don’t like you like the rest of them do."

"Jackie, I already know that." I told him. "You don't need to be my friend. And you don't have to hurt yourself to be nice to me."

“Because of you, Channing and Ty are fighting, and that has never happened before, not until you started everything."

“I don’t-”

“You have no idea what you’re doing. One day, they’ll just fight each other and it will be your fault.”

I don't think I realized how mad he was until he started shaking. Leo was trying to get him to calm down, but Jackie looked like he might blow up.

I didn't know I made him that mad. I didn’t think someone could hate me so much but I found that person.

“I get that you're all going through something, but yelling at me won’t get you anywhere." I tried to be calm, but deep down, I was getting a little worried that he might change just from his anger. I don't know what to tell him that will make him back off. "I like Ty and I want to be with him-"

He cut me off abruptly as he took a step closer in the snow. “You don’t like him. You’re just interested in what he is.” he said quickly.

“You’re wrong-”

“You’re still lying. If you liked him as much as you say you do, you wouldn’t put him through all that shit. You'd tell him to not fight with his brothers. You'd leave him alone!”

I took a step back when he started getting more upset. The look in his eyes, I knew something was about to happen. He wasn't exactly trying to control it.

His brother tried to step in again. “Jackie, please-”

“Shut up. I’ve had it.” he snapped at his brother. “You will never understand what you’re doing. All this is your fault, and that’s why I hate you.” he said angrily, his eyes going a cold blue.

And then it happened. Jackie had shifted in a blink of an eye, his clothes tearing. Leo had backed away just as I fell back in the snow. In Jackie's place was a grey wolf, and it was not pleasant with how he growled at me.

This was the first time I was terrified of any of them. I saw the wolf rise up, about to strike me. All I could do was try to shield myself, but it won't help. He'll tear me apart.

“Jackie, no!” Leo screamed.

My heart was beating so hard in my chest that I thought I was going to pass out. There were tears that welded in my eyes as I held my arms up, wanting to shield myself. I won't fight Jackie, I can't. I know he's mad, but there's nothing I could do. Maybe that's why I was so terrified that he was going to hurt me.

But just as quick as I thought he would've tore into me, something came into view, blocking the sunlight from me. I lowered my arms slowly, and saw a black wolf in front of me, shielding me. This wolf was much louder than the grey one, much bigger, too. The wolf stood his ground in front of me and wouldn't let the grey wolf pass to get to me.

Channing was helping me.

Jackie never lied when he said he hated me. Channing waited for Jackie to back down, and when he didn't, Channing made him do it. There was no hesitation when he took a step forward, a warning growl coming from his chest.

Jackie didn't cower, but he was slow to lower himself to show obedience. He had a daring glare in his eyes.

If Channing wasn't here, Jackie would've done something about me.

And Channing saw that so he chased him away. Jackie was quick to run off into the forest when Channing ran towards him.

And that was it...Jackie fled.

The black wolf sat in the snow facing the forest quietly, calm again, but there was this...aura radiating, like he was going to be a watch dog if he had to.

Meanwhile, I could barely breathe. I don't remember when my tears spilled over my face but I was quick to wipe my face with the sleeve of my jacket.

“I am so sorry.” Leo apologized on their behalf as he held his hand out for me to take. I was still stunned by the situation so I didn't recognize the generosity.

It seems like everyone has to apologize for Jackie.

“You don’t have to apologize. I should have stayed quiet.” I said quietly and took his hand so he could help me up.

"He's just not getting any sleep nowadays so he's irritable. And with Ty always imagining about you, Jackie can get a little...annoyed." Leo explained.

I brushed myself off. “I don’t mean to cause any trouble.”

“Don’t let what Jackie said get to you. None of this is your fault." At least he believed me. I would like to believe I didn't do anything. I mean, I wasn't flaunting myself around Ty. "I think it's nice that Ty isn't always by himself now." He said.

“Thank you.” I said, trying to fight the blush that was creeping up on my face. I was a little embarrassed. "Ty...thinks about me?"

"All the time." Leo stressed. "And it's super hard to keep that to himself when we're like, all wolves, cause like, we're in each other's heads so we all know."

I just had a traumatic experience, but I couldn't help but smile to myself a little. Ty thinks about me all the time.

"It must be annoying..."

"Yeah." Leo said.

But he was smiling.

I wanted to make a comment but the black wolf had walked over to us. Well, over to me. Leo had taken a few steps back as the wolf began to circle me slowly, growling lowly. I didn't want to stare but I did.

I know I shouldn't be looking Channing in the eyes but I was.

"He's not mad." Leo laughed.

"You sure?" I wasn't. Leo kept laughing when Channing sat in front of me.

That's when Channing kept quiet and watched me. I stayed perfectly still because I had no idea what was about to happen. I even had my hands up so he knows I won't do anything.

"Gabriel!"

I heard my mom's voice above me. I looked up quickly when she screamed my name. She was clutching on to the wooden frame of the porch, my dad next to her, cursing loudly when he saw the wolf standing there.

"It's okay, Mom." I didn't want her to freak out. "I'm fine." I said to her.

"Hi, Mrs. Wallace!" Leo waved to her.

"Leo Martin?" She squinted. "What are you doing here? Does your mom know you're here?" She asked him.

"Yeah. I needed a book from Gabriel." He lied.

"And you're not scared of...that?" Dad pointed to the wolf that was standing in front of me.

"As long as you don't pet him, he won't bite." Leo smiled widely.

Here I was about to touch Channing, but I just got my warning from Leo. I can't touch the black wolf. He's not friendly.

But I do owe Channing for what he did to me.

If my parents knew I was almost attacked, I would be home schooled from now on.

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