Which brought him back to Curtis. It must be at least ten a.m. Had he pissed Curtis off? No, wait. He’d mentioned going with his parents to a cabin for some family and dragon time.
Curtis typically stayed cheerful, but sometimes returned from these trips a bit down, when once more, he’d tried and failed to take dragon form. While Elouan understood the need to test one’s limits, why did the poor guy keep torturing himself?
Because his father wanted him to. It was one thing to fail in an isolated warehouse with only Elouan witnessing it; it was another entirely to fail in front of family and who knew who else.
Curtis was a great guy, going to school to improve himself and find a job in a field he loved. Omegas made skilled healers and problem solvers. Betas were more warrior types, while alphas led. The way of the world. Or the dragon world.
The only ones Elouan knew of in Adrakus who couldn’t fly were the extremely old, the very young, or the injured, and he hadn’t known many young. Had there been any human-dragon pairings in the dragon world? As the matter had never concerned Elouan before, he’d never asked. Logic said it had to have happened sometime.
Curtis’s human mother gave birth to a human child. Could half-dragons learn to shift if trained young?
Something else for the “Need to ask Sakaris” list.
Here Elouan was on a Sunday, with a full day of nothing to do. He could spend time looking for his brothers again, except he had a lot of nerve wondering why Curtis tortured himself when he did the same.
Yes, he definitely needed to be kinder to his roommate. When had they last had a bros’ weekend? Gone to a movie, or dinner, or bowling. Curtis didn’t like the motorcycle, so riding in the mountains wasn’t an option, but they’d have to arrange some time soon, just for the two of them. Elouan needed friends, particularly if he wound up living in the human world permanently.
What if Sakaris never came back? Elouan would continue working, maybe move into one of the houses he wanted to renovate, and settle into a mundane human existence with a mundane human mate.
Jules came to mind once again. Would life as a human be so bad? Leon had confessed his true nature to his human spouse. If Elouan and Jules became something more, Elouan would have to confess as well, because he refused to lie or sneak off to indulge in a shift. He hadn’t pushed the limits of maintaining human form yet, but he’d heard stories of dragons who didn’t voluntarily shift, and at some point, their dragon chose the time and place, sometimes with disastrous results.
Not happy thoughts. Best to distract himself.
Curtis always insisted Elouan could use his laptop, so he settled on the couch and booted the computer to peruse the local news channel. The password of “Firebreather” further underscored Curtis’s desire to be fully dragon. An instant message popped up.
I think we found them.
Found who? Well, whoever they were, they weren’t Elouan’s concern. What kind of friend would he be to pry into Curtis’s personal messages when he’d been gifted access to the laptop simply because Elouan hoped not to be in the human world long enough to warrant buying one of his own?
Each step he took to show he might stay created one more tie to this place. No, Elouan couldn’t settle. He needed home. Homeneeded him. Somehow, someway, he’d find his way back, with or without Sakaris’ help.
Another message popped up:Are you there?
Elouan must have activated the messaging app when he turned on the computer. He was about to tell the person Curtis wasn’t there when another message appeared.We’ll check it out and let you know. If it’s true, they must be stopped.
Odd, but then some of Curtis’s friends tended to be.
His own phone chimed with a message:Hey, there!
Elouan gave his phone number to very few people, and he’d added them all to his contacts.
Another line of text appeared:It’s me. Jules. I finally got a cellphone!
Warmth spread throughout Elouan’s chest, and a smile graced his lips. Jules. He added the number to his contacts, adding the picture he’d taken of Jules on the blanket.Welcome to whatever century this is.
LOL.A photo appeared of Jules, eyes crossed, sticking out his tongue.My first selfie!
The guy was a fast learner.Where are you?
I just left the mall.
Lunch?Breakfast, lunch, whatever.
Three little dots appeared on the phone for a long time before the message finally came through.Sure. Where?
The phone’s tiny keypad wasn’t easy to type on. Elouan activated the speech option.Where would you like to go?
Do you like pizza? Please say you like pizza. It would be weird if you didn’t.
