The Things We Fear

There was a strange rumbling sound as Marcus was bodily pulled away from his friend. It didn’t matter how much his mind knew Theo would soon open his eyes. Every second the boy lay there unmoving was like an eternity. Every fear playing out before him. Marcus had thought being afraid of the dark (and the shadows) was scary. It was nothing in comparison to having to wait and see if his friend would return to him.

The shadows muttered around the room, but Marcus could barely bring himself to care. Unless they were about to tell him his best friend was already on his way back to the land of the living, they could go and choke for all he cared. The dark. Things in the dark. It seemed so childish now he was having to watch his friend’s dead body for signs of life.

If the monster ever came for him again, Marcus knew what it would use this time, the scene before him. It was stretching into eternity. He wanted to ask why Theo wasn’t awake yet, why he wasn’t responding, but everyone looked calm. Collected. As though this were any other day. It made him want to scream.

“Calm yourself, son, your magic is still volatile and you would not want your friend to wake to find you had caused a problem, or worse been removed whilst he needed you most.” Cassius’ voice was a bucket of ice over the growing flames in Marcus’ chest.

Any situation where Cassius was right was usually a rubbish one, and this time was no different. No matter how tempted he was to lose control, he needed to keep his wits about him. Marcus needed to be here for Theo and having a breakdown - magical or mental, was not going to help anyone. Except maybe Cassius’ plans to get rid of him, and Marcus refused to do anything that might benefit that man.

An arm was pulling him close, away from Cassius. A rumbling growl reverberated through him from the chest he now lent against. Looking up he saw James’ eyes weren’t on Marcus or Cassius, they were faced in the opposite direction. At this distance, it was immediately clear (not to his perfectly human vision) but Marcus could have sworn he saw a finger twitch. It was the vampires moving to circle the body that cemented his hopes.

Pushed behind the large frame of the wolf’s he could no longer see Theo, but he heard him. A growl, or maybe it was a snarl, at such a low pitch Marcus might be forgiven for thinking it was some machinery outside. A freight train or something such like. He could hear the snapping of jaws. Of teeth clanking together. A wild animal with rabies clinking against the bars in its own insanity. Marcus was suddenly grateful he could not see, hearing it was bad enough.

There may have been words, but they were too distorted for Marcus to understand. The image of Theo learning to talk like a child with a missing tooth around new fangs popped into his head and he had to resist chuckling at the idea. Definitely not the time or place to be laughing. Sometimes Marcus wished his mind was not as sarcastic as his tongue, but then he wouldn’t have been him if such things didn’t happen.

Peeking out from behind James, he could see Theo was thrashing in the grips of the other vampires. Honestly, he only needed the flying spittle and he would look exactly like those warning ads for animals with rabies. That all such animals needed to be put down as a danger to themselves and others was not a comforting thought. Theo had to survive this. He needed his best friend.

“You should step outside.”

“I’m not leaving him,” he rebuffed.

“Neither your, nor the wolf’s, presence is helping him. Leave. Return when the boy has more of his faculties about him.”

Marcus was ready to argue some more, but they were in Cassius’ home, and apparently, he held some physical control over the building as suddenly the two were in the bedroom upstairs. Marcus refused to call it his room. Ready to go straight back down, he made for the door, before arms scooped around his waist. It took him a few seconds to realise he was airborne before his body was crashing back onto the mattress.

“What the fuck? That hurt, dude. Why would you do that?” He demanded of the wolf.

“Because your father just moved us, in a matter of moments, further than three covens worth of most witches could manage. You might have a death’s, but forgive me if I have a little more self-interest than to go running towards danger. A newly turned vamp and a pissed of warlock are not on my list of people to willingly engage in.”

Marcus scowled at the other. Seeing the rationality of his points.

“Alright. That’s fair. But you don’t get to make my choices for me,” he said jumping off the bed and moving toward the door again.

The arms around his stomach were more an annoyance than a surprise this time. He made a point of huffing as the other carried him back to the bed. He felt like a misbehaving kitten being put back in the carrier by its mom.

“It’s my choice what I do,” he muttered when James dropped him on the bed again.

“And it’s my responsibility to keep you safe.”

“Since when? Actually, no, don’t answer that if the word Cassius is about to come out of your mouth.”

James looked a little sheepish before straightening himself.

“One of the respected elders of our community gave me the task of ensuring the safety of their charge.”

Marcus was a little surprised when they were younger James had been the sweeter of the two. That level of smartassery reserved solely for him. It almost impressed Marcus.

“And as an individual with a brain and the right to go where I want, you can’t stop me.”

“Maybe not, but this is Cassius’ house, and I’m pretty sure he can.” he pointed to the lock on the door which certainly had not been there earlier.

Stupid magic. Stupid Cassius.

“Theo needs me.”

“Theo needs to come back to himself, and in order to do that, he must feel safe. Not surrounded by the scent of wolf and a blood bag he’ll currently only see as food,” James sighed, before sitting next to him on the bed, “If you don’t want to do it for me or your father, then think of Theo. how distraught would he be if he learned later that he had hurt you, whether it was his fault or not?”

Oh, it was a low blow. Marcus wasn’t sure he liked this new James. The little shit was a little too much like him.

“I wanted noted that I’m sitting here under protest.”

“So noted,” James said, dropping back onto the mattress and lying horizontally across it.

As tempted as he was to lie back and join him, Marcus valiantly resisted. His friend was suffering. This was not the time to be lying down next to his crush. He had to almost claw away any thoughts that centred around the fact that technically he had James on his bed. Those thoughts were not a safe territory to stray into.

“You might as well relax. You heard the old guy, it could take hours for Theo to come back to himself.”

When Marcus didn’t respond, the wolf started poking him in his side, causing him to jump.

“Hey. Stop that.”

“Then stop sitting like a statue.”

“I’m freaking out, okay? Just leave me to it.”

Marcus heard the boy mutter something in return, but without heightened hearing, it was lost on him. He could feel James’ eyes boring into his back, challenging him to look around, but Marcus kept his vision solely on the door, hoping he wouldn’t miss the moment the lock disappeared and he could run downstairs to Theo.

“You never told me you were a witch.”

“Really?” Marcus heaved, throwing a quick look over his shoulder, “Now? You want to do this now?”

He felt the bed move slightly which he assumed was the other shrugging.

“Not much else to do. Unless you had something more interesting in mind?”

Marcus decided any innuendo that sentence may have carried was entirely wishful thinking on his part. It would be safest that way.

“My best friend could still die. I think the only thing that I want to do currently is focus on him.”

“Would he have still been your best friend though, if you’d told my alpha you already knew about the supernatural?”

“Yes,” Marcus snapped back. “Theo isn’t some replacement for you or anyone else. Regardless of what happened back then, I like to think we would have still found each other either way.”

“You sound like some soppy romcom,” there was definitely bitterness in his voice.

“Despite what the rumour mill likes to say, Theo and I are just friends. He’s as straight as they come.”

“Do you love him?”

“Yes.”

He heard the sharp intake of breath before continuing. Maybe he wanted to fuck with the wolf, just a little.

“He’s my family, my brother. Of course, I love him. But I’m not in love with him, which is what I assume you mean?” He was still staring at the door. Hoping it would open to spare him from this conversation.

“People talk,” he heard the other gruff out.

“Yes, I’ve heard the most delightful rumours about you and how you’re following in your brother’s footsteps when it comes to racking up bodies. Now whether that means as bed partners of murder victims, I’m not sure, but the people do so love to talk.”

He could only imagine the laughter in the eyes behind him, but he heard the scoff. James shifted in the bed and rolled onto his side so James’ body was facing Marcus. Marcus remained in the same position, still sitting on the edge of the bed. Still staring down the door. He didn’t dare look at the other. Afraid he would be sucked into James’ orbit.

“Why did you never say anything,” it sounded so childlike, so vulnerable, Marcus had to look at him.

“I was in shock, James. I was a kid. I might have known some of the supernatural was real, but what I knew wasn’t good. Then suddenly you’re shifting in front of me and I’m told to never approach you or your family again.”

It was Marcus’ turn to give a big hefting sigh.

“I suppose I convinced myself it wouldn’t make any difference. You’d all rejected me. It hurt and I think a small part of me hated you.”

He ignored the pitiful whine that broke from James’ throat.

“I felt like my world had been torn in two and you were carrying on without me. I imagine it’s what adults go through in a divorce. You got to keep all the friends, and you all chucked me to the wayside. Plus, I didn’t want to be a witch. You know some of the issues I have with Cassius. I wasn’t about to share my secrets and pains with a bunch of people who treat me like trash.

“There was some other bad stuff that happened during that time,” stuff he had no intention of sharing with the other.

His dad and Cassius would be the only ones to ever remember that dark time, and the magic needed to hide it. Maybe now Theo was in the know he might share it with him, but beyond them, there was no one else he would trust to keep his secrets. And Cassius only knew because he had to.

“We didn’t mean to hurt you,” it was spoken so softly, Marcus nearly missed it.

“Maybe not, I’m not sure what else you could have expected to happen, but I accepted it a long time ago. I won’t pretend to understand why you suddenly feel the need to be near me now that you know I have magic, and I’m not going to lie and say I don’t miss you, but I also don’t think I’m ready to forgive you. Theo’s my priority right now. Everything else will have to wait.”

“I wasn’t you know.”

“Wasn’t what?”

“You said I was okay. Back then. I wasn’t. It felt like someone had ripped off my left arm and taken shreds of my heart with it.”

“As poetic as that sounds,” the sarcasm defence mechanism was back in full force, “and as glad I am to know I wasn’t the only one suffering, it doesn’t matter right now. Maybe in a couple of weeks, we can talk about this properly–”

“Please,” the other pleaded.

“-But right now, we have a new vampire to help out, a murderous, fear-eating creature on the loose and my father forcing me to learn magic. Just,” he hesitated, “just don’t stay close if you’re going to fuck off again. I can handle living without you.”

Again, he ignored the pitiful noise the wolf made at the statement.

“I can, but I won’t let you back in to take more of me with you when you leave. Theo might not have been your replacement, but he’s shown me how real friends stick together through thick and thin, and I won’t accept any half-assed bull.”

“Damn straight you won’t!” A familiar voice came from the other side of the door.

Marcus was ripping the wood open and flinging himself through the doorway before he could think. Barrelling directly into the body on the other side. If anyone heard any sobs of relief, they were entirely from Theo.