That's not the truth and you fucking know it,the nagging voice in my head said.
I hated when the voice was right.
* * *
After some rest,we headed back out to the mountain path. This time I guided Quinn onto the easier one. No way in hell was I going to let him get injured again because of me. Two days ago I would've thought I was insane worrying over an alpha. But two days ago, I didn't know Quinn.
It was too late to back out of this ridiculous plan. I'd really fucking stepped in it now. First I lied to Quinn about knowing Mistral. I almost wished he hadn't believed me. What the fuck was I thinking? Then I lied to him about being able to shift, too. I should've just come out and told him the truth, but my own pride choked me. Admitting weakness to an alpha was unacceptable.
So now I was stuck not only in my shift, but with the shitty decisions I'd made, too.
I flew low above Quinn's head, not wanting to drift far away from him. Quinn clearly favored one leg. My gut twisted in sympathy. The pain was still bothering him.
I banked lower and asked, "How's your paw?"
"Better now that it's not being stabbed," Quinn replied. He grinned, showing off a foxy smile full of teeth.
I grunted in acknowledgement. But that was only a mild relief. If Quinn shifted to human form, the pain would only be in his hand and he didn't need that to walk. Since he refused to shift, he was walking around on all four paws, aggravating the injury further. Every time he limped it felt like an arrow to my chest.
I flew down in front of him and landed on the ground. "You need to shift. Now."
Quinn sat down, slowly curling his fluffy tail around his paws. "Why?"
"You're limping. Shift into human form so you can walk on two feet and let your hand heal."
Why was he resisting? If he had half a brain—and I knew by now that he wasn't actually stupid—then he'd do just that.
But Quinn decided to surprise me once again.
"That's okay," he said mildly. "I'll stay in this form."
"But that doesn't make sense!" I snapped.
Quinn regarded me for a long moment. "I already told you I don't want you to feel lonely, remember? If I'm in human form, you'll be in animal form by yourself."
I was one second away from opening my beak to tell him I literally couldn't shift. I caught myself just in time.
Then again, how long was I going to keep up this useless lie? Wouldn't it be easier just to tell Quinn the truth? My pride lodged in my throat. It turned my tongue heavy as lead. But pride wasn't going to grant my freedom. Trusting Quinn was.
I exhaled deeply. My heartbeat was thick and uncomfortable. I despised admitting weakness almost as much as I hatedbeingweak. After mustering a massive mental effort, I forced the words out.
"I... can't."
"I know," Quinn said gently.
My feathers rose. "What do you mean you know?"
Quinn shrugged. "Just a hunch. You don't seem entirely comfortable in finch form and you've had plenty of opportunities to change back. Doesn't make sense otherwise why you wouldn't, right?"
A wave of hot shame flooded over me. I'd been keeping the truth from Quinn when he alreadyknew?
"Well, now I feel like a fucking idiot," I mumbled.
Quinn's lopsided smile took the edge off my embarrassment. "Don't worry about it. Shit happens."
How could he be so calm about this? Where was the arrogant, holier-than-thou alpha attitude he was supposed to have? I was an omega stuck in my animal form. It was humiliating. At least, it should've been. Quinn's weird reaction had me all confused. He didn't radiate condescension like the Society alphas. What was going on in his head?
"Does it have anything to do with that leg band?" Quinn asked, gesturing to it.
