Six

“Tomlinson…” Cobie echoes. “The Erik I met a few days ago and the one in your house… he’s Erik Tomlinson?  And you’re his brother?”

“I just said that.” Gabriel replies, looking away from the road to briefly glance at Cobie. “Do I have to repeat what I just said a few seconds ago?”

“No, I heard you. It’s just… not the answer I wanted to hear from you.” Cobie replies honestly. He looks away from the window, allowing his gaze to fall to his hands. His contact lens were itching him and like always he ignores it.

“I heard you say you hate wolves. Am I close enough to you for me to know the reason why?”

Cobie looks away from his eyes, willing the memories back to the back of his mind. Remembering those months years ago was the last thing he wanted to do. The pain still felt raw. He absentmindedly raises his left hand to his eye. He remembers the blood leaking out of his eyes, remembered the pain he had felt when the man had used the knife to-

“Are you okay?”

Cobie frowns when he hears the voice. He wasn’t there, so why was he hearing his voice. Why was he hearing Erik’s voice? He opens his eyes and everywhere was dark. He blinks repeatedly but his vision still remained dark, almost like he was stuck in a fog. Everything was dark, the skies were pitch black and he felt alone. His heart began jackrabbiting, he wasn’t sure what the next step was.

“Stuart Little…”

The fog clears and right in front of him is a street light. Cobie rubs at his eyes harder, he lets his hands fall back to their place and blinks slowly. Silently praying to the gods for help. The next time he opens his eyes, he was back in the car and Gabriel was hovering over him with a scared look in his eyes. Soft hands with perfectly manicured nails were cupping his face.

“Cobie? Are you okay?”

Cobie blinks one more time. He lets out a sigh and leans forward, softly batting Gabriel’s hands away from his face. Now that he was all together, he notices they were parked on the side of the road. He looks away from the road to Gabriel who was still looking at him with worry.

“I’m fine, I promise.”

Gabriel shakes his head. “No, I think you need to see a doctor or something. You look pale and you were shaking violently a few minutes ago. Was it because of what I said?”

Cobie looks at Gabriel and does something he hasn’t done in a while. He reaches out to him. He places his hand on Gabriel’s own which were resting on the cup holder. He softly strokes Gabriel’s hand and looks him in the eye as he speaks.

“Yes, it is something you said but I’m okay. I swear.”

Gabriel blinks repeatedly and Cobie fears that the man was pushing back tears. Was this man who didn’t know him well about to cry for him?

“Okay. Thank you.” Gabriel tells Cobie sincerely. “You will tell me why later though, right?”

I wish, Cobie thinks half –heartedly. But instead he nods. “I will.”

Gabriel pulls himself together and puts his seatbelt back on and so does Cobie. As the car pulls away, Gabriel puts on the radio and Jon Bellion’s Carry Your Throne came on much to the joy of the two men. For half of the drive, Cobie thinks about his memory. He knows what had happened that day but why did he hear Erik’s voice in his head, not once but twice? Why was he always having conflicted feeling when it comes to Erik. Sometimes he feels like punching Erik in the face till his nose was disfigured but sometimes he feels like dragging Erik by the waistband of his pants. The frustrating thing is he has only met Erik twice. The first time was a few days ago and the second time was a few minutes ago.

“Your brother…” Cobie starts. The words just flew out of his mouth without his consent. It’s just there are a few things he needs to know. He has to set his mind in order. He hates having his heart think one thing and for his mind, another.

“What about him?”

“What exactly is his deal?”

Gabriel looks at him and grins, he focuses his attention on parking his car. Cobie looks at him in confusion before realising they were in a parking lot. He gets down from the car just as Gabriel does so. In front of them was a huge shopping mall with people strolling into it and people coming out of it. Tons of cars were parked around but Cobie notices they were parked close enough for the walk to the entrance to be short.

“To me, my brother is like an onion. Only his layers are made three things. Anger, love and care.” Gabriel finally speaks. “He takes care of us, takes care of the town and as his brother, I love him with my very being. He was the one that raised me up, along with the pack.”

“He sounds like a stand up guy.” Cobie says, his tone laced with sarcasm.

“Randall tells me you had an unfortunate meeting.”

“We did but it’s in the past.” Cobie replies.

The mechanical doors opened immediately they were within the right distance. Cobie had to hold himself back from moaning when he’s blasted by col air immediately they walk in. 

“This is my favourite mall in the entire world!” Gabriel cheers when they walk in his hands stretched out above his head.

“Is this the only mall you’ve been to?” Cobie teases, his eyes crinkling by the side as he laughs.

“No, I spent the four months before college touring the world. My brother gave me enough funds and I had the money I had saved.” Gabriel replies, glaring at Cobie as he does so.

Cobie laugh and pokes Gabriel in the side. “I was only joking with you.”

Gabriel huffs and walks away as fast as he can. Cobie laughs and follows him. Playfully poking him in the sides, he bumps his shoulders into Gabriel’s own as he catches up to him.  Gabriel gives him a sour look and just walks into a Levi store. Cobie swears he hasn’t seen so many jeans in his life.

“Aw, don’t be such a sourpuss. I’m very sorry.”

“Say I’m sorry, Gabriel Tomlinson. I will never tease you but only love you.” Gabriel says, turning to look at Cobie with his hands on his hips.

“You’re not serious, are you?” Cobie asks, laughter about to bubble out of his mouth. The question seemed to piss Gabriel off because he turns and walks away. Cobie watches Gabriel walk away with an amused expression on his face.

Knowing Gabriel could hear him, he licks his lips and then speaks. “I’m sorry, Gabriel Tomlinson. I will never tease you but only love you and treat you right.” Cobie says, chuckling to himself as he adds the last four words.

Gabriel stops in his tracks and turns around. His face looked so bright, like a kid on Christmas morning and it seems to Cobie that the added words had an effect. He didn’t even get enough time to brace himself before Gabriel runs towards him and jumps on him, his legs wrapped tight around Cobie’s waist as he hugs him tight.

“You’re an amazing friend.”

“Harsh.” Cobie cries. “What if I wanted to be more? You can’t just stick someone in the friend zone without their permission.”

Gabriel practically flies from Cobie’s hold, making sure to put enough space between the two of them. His cheeks were red and Cobie wants to coo at the awkward way Gabriel was looking at him.

“I didn’t mea- Cobie, I don’t like you that way. You are an amazing guy and I think we’d make great friends.” Gabriel says, avoiding eye contact with Cobie as he spoke.

The mall was loud and they were still in the middle of the mall, with people passing around them. Cobie mentally laughs at his friend. Wow, friend. It’s been long since he’s had one of those. The last friend he had, had called him a freak and proceeded to punch him in the face. The friend before that had tried to pick at his eyes, thinking they were contacts. Now, here he is with a man with a heart larger than life, here he is calling said man a friend. Madness, is repeating the same thing over and over again, expecting different results.

The thing is, sometimes something shifts and the result changes. So maybe this is it for Cobie.

He closes the distance between himself and Gabriel. He takes his hand in his and shifts closer.

“Though you are gorgeous, smart and funny. I don’t like you like that either. I think we’d make great friends too.” Cobie beams at Gabriel. “I was just playing with you.”

“Cobie…” Gabriel whines.

“That was the last time, I promise.”

“Why do I feel like you’re going to say that a lot?” Gabriel smiles at Cobie. He grabs Cobie hand and pulls him.

“Probably because I totally will.”

--

Gabriel shows Cobie around the mall, showed him the place where he gets his favourite fruit milk. After the mall, Gabriel drives around town. He shows Cobie all the cinema houses in Astir, the restaurants and parks.

“This is my brother’s favourite place in Astir.” Gabriel says as he leads Cobie into Comic Bookstore down at Fifth and Avery. “He’s got the valuables locked in a room at home. He was so excited when he saw the trailer for Justice League but halfway through the movie, he stormed out and practically bashed a car in.” Gabriel laughs as he says this and Cobie looks at him like he just sprouted another head.

“I don’t think I’d like the answer but why did he d-“

“The movie sucked.” Gabriel explains. “He said the trailer was better than the movie. He also the same thing for The Amazing Spiderman 2, the one with Andrew Garfield.”

“Does he see a therapist about it? Hus anger, i mean. It sounds like he’s got a problem.”

“Who’d want to see an Alpha werewolf with a short fuse?” Gabriel asks as they walk around the bookstore, staring at the rows and rows of comics. “He doesn’t really have a problem, he just needs someone to calm him down before he goes hulk smash.” Gabriel says, giving Cobie a pointed look. Cobie shakes his head at his friend, not wanting to read meaning into the look.

“He needs Jehovah.”

“You need Jehovah.” Gabriel throws back.

“I wonder how his partners dealt with his anger issues.” Cobie asks as he pulls out the latest issue of Aquaman. 

“I told you, he doesn’t have anger issues.” Gabriel says, giving Cobie another pointed look. “He’s had a few girlfriends and boyfriends in the past. They weren’t his…one. The one for him, the one for us.”

Cobie stares at his friend as he tries to understand but he still doesn’t get it. He hasn’t really done an in depth study of wolves. He only know what he needs to. They snarl, they growl, they bite, they eat meet, they shift, they have ranks and like dogs, they could be trained.

“From the look on your face, it looks like you don’t understand.” Gabriel says as they walk out of the store. “Since Erik is an Alpha, whoever he marries becomes our Luna, they become our leader too. He has to marry the right person who will make good decisions with him and without, someone who treats us like family, not like an extra baggage that come with Erik. Someone who will fight alongside us, someone who is a friend, a brother to us.”

“That’s quite a lot.” Cobie says as he gets into the car. “I’m sure your pack isn’t that big.”

Gabriel looks at him and giggles. “Oh, you’re going to be in for a treat.”

“Isn’t there a way to find the right person for your brother?”

“In the past, wolves were said to be given people referred to as mates. They were the perfect half. Gender didn’t matter and everyone was paired with the right person so as to avoid suffering at the hands of the wrong person. Our goddess, Serene, didn’t want her creation to walk the earth, lonely.” Gabriel says, sparing a quick glance at Cobie.

“Wow. That sound li-“

“It’s just a legend. There’s no such thing as a mate. There hasn’t been one since The Great Cry.” Gabriel says as he takes a U-Turn.

“I have a lot of questions but I’m going to keep them for another day.” Cobie says and Gabriel laughs.

They take a break from touring and look for a place to eat. Cobie had told Gabriel he was in the mood for spaghetti and meatballs. Gabriel had just given him a thumbs up before increasing the volume of the radio, letting Eminem’s Nowhere Fast play through the speakers. Cobie mouths the words to the songs as Gabriel drives them to a restaurant.

“They serve the second best food here.” Gabriel tells Cobie as he pulls into the parking lot of a restaurant named Morrison’s.

“Why second best?”  Cobie asks as he gets down from the car. He joins Gabriel who was at the front of the car, staring at him like he just dropped from the sky.

“Haven’t you tried the food at Dyce? Never mind that. I know you have but Dyce is the best.” Gabriel tells Cobie who nods, trying to appease his friend. He didn’t want an angry rabbit biting at his heel. He hasn’t tried any food from Morrison’s so Cobie couldn’t make the right judgement. He just nods to appease Gabriel.

Inside Morrison’s was rustic and fantastic. While Dyce was more chic and modern, Morrison’s had a type of eighties feel. The floors and walls were wood, the chairs too. The table was covered by white table clothes with small flower vases at the centre. 

“I hope the food is as nice as this place looks.” Cobie says, as they are directed to a free seat to their right and close to the window. The restaurant wasn’t filled up and it was spaced in such a way that everyone could walk freely without bumping into something or someone’s table.

“It is. I recommend their wild rice and shredded beef.”

Cobie stills when he hears the voice. He wasn’t sure but they were at least far away from Gabriel’s home, so why was Erik here? According to Gabriel, they were almost done with the tour and the plan is to pick-up pizza and then drop Cobie at home. How did Erik even know where they were? Did Gabriel tell him?

Cobie eyes his friend because there’s a ninety five percent chance Gabriel and his brother had communicated telepathically. They were bonded into the same pack for the love of all the gods above.

“Don’t look at me like that. I swear I didn’t tell him where we were.” Gabriel says, viciously. Glancing behind Cobie to glare at his brother.

Cobie hears the drag of a chair, he lets out an annoyed sigh as Erik places the chair beside his and sits down. Cobie picks up his menu and tries to calm down. His heart was beating faster than usual and he has this unexplainable urge to shift closer to Erik, to be close enough to feel his skin. He blinks repeatedly, his hands begin to shake and he has to drop the menu back onto the table.

“Can you please excuse me?” Cobie asks and stands up. He walks back out of the restaurant and goes to where Gabriel had parked his car. He takes a couple of deep breaths to calm down. He’s lost and confused. This feelings he has been getting since aren’t explainable.

The parking lot of Morrison’s was facing the woods, the road wasn’t busy and only the occasional car passed. It was quiet and serene. Everywhere green and clean.

Cobie walks towards the woods and continues walking deep into it. No matter the distance between himself and Erik, he feels like going back. He feels so bad for leaving Gabriel there like that and he’ll apologize when he goes back but for now he needs to clear his head. He needs to understand why he’s feeling like this.

The trees were tall, casting a shaow over Cobie as he keeps walking, only the occasional burst of sunlight flitting through the trees that brightens everything. He lets out another sigh and keeps walking, his legs leading him like they already knew the way he was meant to be going. He looks around him and smiles when he sees what was in front of him. It was a pasture with only one type of flower blooming there but in different colours. It reminded Cobie of himself. He was just one person but his eyes were a lot of colours. Just like this flower.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

Cobie looks away from the flower to where Erik was standing. Somewhere deep within him, he wished Gabriel wasn’t going to run to him. Deep down within him, he wanted Erik to find him and this frustrated Cobie even more. He falls onto the floor and focuses on the flower.

He hears Erik walk close to him and sit beside him, a small space between them. Cobie looks away from the flower to Erik’s face. He wonders if he was the only one feeling this way. He wanted to know but the words wouldn’t come out. So he turns back to the flower.

“They are called Serene’s pets.” Erik says, reaching out to softly touch the petals of a red one.

“They remind me of me.” Cobie says softly.

The small space between them closes as Erik shifts closer. Does he really feel the same way I do? Cobie asks himself. He looks away from the flower and looks at Erik who was already watching him.

“Do you…” Cobie licks his lips, his heart going a mile a minutes as he sees Erik’s eyes follow his tongue. “Are you fee-“ Cobie bites his bottom lip to keep himself from finishing the sentence.

Watching Cobie bite down on his bottom lip  was the breaking point for Erik who closes the distance between them, with a hand around Cobie’s waist, he pulls him into his lap.

Cobie settles onto Erik’s lap, straddling him. His bum was pressed down onto Erik’s groin with his hands on Erik’s shoulder to keep himself steady. Cobie could feel his eyes turn bright pink, he gulps as he watched Erik watch him. Silence falls over them as they stare at each other. It felt Erik’s touch was burning through his cloth and his eyes were hypnotizing him. Cobie couldn’t move, he just wanted to feel Erik. Erik’s hand trails up from Cobie’s waist slowly until it cupped the side of Cobie’s face. Cobie’s gasps, the sound spurred Erik on and he leans down to close the distance between their lips.

“COBIE!! WHERE ARE YOU!!!”