8
Bear
Ashe's goalwas to return to his family. His "pack."
Of course it was. I kept stupidly thinking that I could change reality through sheer stubbornness. But that was ridiculous and immature. He loved his family and I'm sure they loved him too. That's how families were supposed to be, after all.
The only reason mine was different was because I was broken.
As I returned to the hollow with my jaws full of food for Ashe, I shoved the negative thoughts out of my mind. Cut the crap and stop wallowing. I had shit to do.
Despite the ugly appearance of Ashe's wounds, the last few days brought a definite improvement. His face was brighter, his expression perkier. He no longer had that fatigued look about him and no more dark circles under his eyes. The rest had done him well.
He smiled when he saw me lumber into the hollow.
"Hey, Bear," he called.
I dropped the food in front of him. Ripe red berries tumbled to the floor alongside a robust branch covered in leaves. I sat back on my haunches and shifted to sign. "Found a raspberry bush today. I hope you like those."
"Mm, who doesn't?" Ashe popped one into his mouth. I noticed with a flustered lurch of my stomach that he'd stopped wiping the bear saliva off the food I brought him. Why?
"Wow, these raspberries are great! Where did you find them?" he asked.
"Took a different route through the woods,"I told him."I guess there's parts of the forest even I don't know about."
Ashe tilted his head curiously as he threw a handful of berries into his mouth. I tried not to watch the curve of his throat as he swallowed. "You've lived here a long time, huh?"
"My whole life." I stopped, then shook my head. "Most of it."
Ashe didn't miss my stumble. "Where did you live before? The pack's been here for two generations now and I don't remember anyone mentioning bear shifters."
I shrugged, not wanting to delve any deeper into this topic. Nothing good would come of it. Ashe didn't need to know how pathetic my life was.
"Bear, are you okay?" Ashe asked, leaning in.
"Yes. Why?"
"You're a little quiet."
I snorted. "I'm always quiet. I don't speak, remember?"
"You know what I mean."
I lowered my hands, resting them on my thighs. I didn't know how to respond. I wished we could discuss something else.
Ashe frowned, observing me closely. I suddenly had a vivid, ridiculous fear that he could read my thoughts. That he would find out just how broken I was.
I turned my head, avoiding his intense gaze. Were his eyes always so piercing? I shivered. It was like he could see directly into my soul. It made me feel vulnerable, almost naked.
"Bear," Ashe said slowly. He wasn't letting this go.
I grunted in acknowledgement. I wasn't being rude but I wasn't exactly being polite either.
To my surprise, Ashe put his hand on my shoulder and turned me around to face him. He narrowed his eyes.
"Come on, talk to me—" Ashe winced hard. "Ugh, sorry, that was stupid and rude of me."
His immediate apology took the edge off his comment. More than that, it astonished me that he even apologized at all.
