Theo

I groan out in frustration. I'm so exhausted.

My phone says it's 5:04 am. I should just get ready for school.

It doesn't matter as I've been awake for hours. It's been a couple weeks of living in quiet suburbia, and I'm not used to it. I grew up in the heart of Seattle....loud, dirty, and full of screaming homeless people. Plus, Dad's business meant he had people coming and going at all hours.

Here it's quiet, clean, and the homeless guy I saw downtown was polite.

My bed's too soft...Dad took my mattress two years ago when he passed out and pissed all over his one night. So he bought me a sleeping bag to make up for it.

Uncle Mason was shocked by that one; he was shocked by a lot things in that apartment. Of course, the mold, cockroaches, and used needles didn't help either.

I know I'm safer here, but I still can't sleep. I miss the mess. I miss the guys in Seattle, not all of them, but the attention was nice. The joys of being damaged goods with daddy issues helped draw in guys that were probably not healthy for me. I've met some gay guys here in the Gender And Sexuality club, but those kids Are innocent and kind. I don't want to ruin them. My issues need to be contained.

I'm being a judgmental asshole for sure. Some of the guys are hot and dumb or smart and average-looking. I just need to give them a chance. Anyone would be better than my ex.

"I need to give them all a chance," I say to myself and roll out of bed. I realize how slutty that sounds, but a guy's got needs for sure.

I head to the bathroom for my quick morning shower; Jackson and Bryce shower at night, so I don't really need to fight them for space, which is nice.

I need to give them a chance too, my cousins have really been trying to include me in stuff, but I keep turning them down.

I hop in the shower and start to clean up for another long day of school.

I also make a to-do list for myself.

1. Make plans to hang out outside of the house.

2. Make plans to hang out with Jackson or Bryce.

3. Find a cheap white noise machine and get uncle Mason to buy it.

When I'm done with my shower, I dry off, change into my clothes for the day, and head downstairs.

"Morning," I say with a yawn.

My Aunt and Uncle look at me with confused faces. "What are you doing up, champ?" Asks Uncle Mason.

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I'd get started," I say back and grab a banana. That's when I notice he isn't in his uniform. "Don't you work today?"

He shakes his head, " Theo. It's Saturday."

"Fuck.....really?" I ask, hoping he's lying.

They both nod, but Aunt Tasha speaks first, "you ok sweetheart."

"No," I say honestly. "I can't sleep. It's too quiet here. Plus, That bed's too soft."

"Well, you're not sleeping on the floor. Download a white noise app on your phone, and we can go to the store this weekend for a real one," says Uncle Mason with a smile.

"Ok...I'm sorry," I say out of habit.

"Don't say sorry if you didn't do anything wrong," says Aunt Tasha. "Go back upstairs and rest a bit more. We'll come get you when breakfast's ready."

I head back upstairs and crawl into bed. The app I downloaded has a city sounds setting, so I turn it on.

I lay there listening to sirens and cars driving by, and I start to drift off.

The last thing I think before I fall asleep is that at least I got one of my to-do list items taken care of.

*******
Danny

I have nothing to do today. My chores are done, my homework is mostly done, but I'm bored.

Mom and Dad went to Eugene for the weekend, leaving me alone. Most high schoolers would throw a party if they had the house to themselves, but when your Dad can transform into a wolf and smell everything, you try to avoid dumb mistakes like that.

I pull out my phone and text my best bros.

Bro Chat

Me- hey. What's the plan today. I'm bored.

Brenden- same. Let's go for a hike or something.

Me- brilliant. Bryce????

Bryce- Meet at my place in 30?

Me- done

I toss my phone and hop in the shower. The joys of our little coastal town are the forests around us. Bryce's house and mine back upright to the woods. It's a 10-minute drive to his house or a 30-minute walk; the forest is full of paths so you can explore for days.

It's part of the reason our pack settled here 100 plus years ago. The woods offer us a safe place to run around in our other form, but today Brenden and I will enjoy the woods as humans.

"I wonder if Theo would want to come," I think to myself as I wash up. It's dumb to shower before I go on a hike, but I like to shower. It helps me think.

Once I'm done, I give myself a quick once over; six-pack? Check. Biceps that could put a bear to shame? Check. The unending need to make out with Bryce's cousin? Check.

I pull on a pair of track pants and a hoodie and head out the door. It's October which means winter is coming, but fall is holding on strong. The leaves have mostly turned, but the snow is still just on the peaks in the distance.

As I pull up to Bryce's house, I see Brenden doing the same thing. It's creepy how he and I time this stuff sometimes.

"Sup," I say and give him a fist bump.

"Just excited for this," he says with a grin. Brenden loves the woods more than most of our kind. He loves it in every season and in either form. He dreams of being a park ranger.

"It should be fun. Maybe we can crash here tonight. I hate being home alone," I admit. "Not great alpha material, I guess."

"Probably not, but that means you like us, so I guess that's good," he says and pulls out his phone. Probably texting Bryce.

As we get to the door, I'm proven right. "Hey hey," says Bryce with a grin. "Come on in. Mom made breakfast burritos."

"Mmmmmm, burritos," I say in my best Homer Simpson voice.

He laughs, and we walk into their kitchen. The Collins family is gathered around their kitchen island, making their burritos. Except someone is missing. "Hey, where's Theo?"

Mr. and Mrs. Collins share a look, and I know it means they probably forgot about him. She recovers first, "I'll go wake him up. He was up at 5 this morning thinking it was a school day."

She disappears up the stairs, and Mr. Collins looks at the five of us eating and asks the question he's probably been wanting to know about for a few weeks. "How's he doing?"

Bryce and Jackson are eating, so I take control. "I think he's....doing ok. He's super smart, but he doesn't really talk a lot to us at school."

Bryce swallows, "he doesn't talk to us a lot here either. I don't know how happy he is."

"Well. He's had a rough couple of years. Just keep being supportive, but I'll talk to him about hanging out more," says Mr. Collins. He goes to say more, but Theo walks it with Mrs. Collins. "Hey, sleepyhead. How are you feeling?"

"Soooooo hungry, but I'm not as tired anymore," he says with an adorable smile.

"Good. Now eat your food. What's everyone doing today?" Asks Mr. Collins.

Brenden answers for us, "we're gonna go on a hike in the forest. You know before the snow, and stuff starts up."

"Is your homework done?" Asks Mrs. Collins looking at her boys. Jackson nods, and Bryce gives a so-so handshake.

Theo speaks up, "can I come with you guys? I can help Bryce with his homework after."

"You wanna come with us?" I say, looking at everyone. Maybe he heard us?

"Yeah." he says quickly. "I need to try new stuff and get use to living here."

Mr. Collins can't contain his smile. "In that case, eat up and get out there. Enjoy the day. You two are hitting the books tonight."

Bryce pulls Theo into a side hug. The smile on his face seems natural. He seems happy. It's a good look on him.
*********

"Jesus! These woods are crazy," says Theo with a laugh.

I turn and not so subtly check him out. He's wearing some sexy Nike shorts and a yellow jacket that he borrowed from Bryce.

"It's amazing up here. I love this view," I say and pull him closer. "Look. You can see Washington. The ocean over there. You can even see school."

"I'd come here all the time if I lived here," he says and looks out over the Columbia River.

"I mean....you do live here," I say, and he shrugs and laughs. Brenden, Bryce, and Jackson come up the trail now laughing about something.

"What's so funny?" I ask my bros.

Brenden grins, "just talking about Jackson's terrible date last night."

I turn to him, and he just shakes his head, "her breathe was terrible, and she talked during the entire movie. Won't be doing it again."

Theo shakes his head, but looking at him, I'm hit over the head by how damn handsome he is right now. I really don't get why I'm so hooked. "Theo! Let me take a picture of you and the view. You need to post something new on your Insta." The last picture is of him at some lake in Seattle from July.

He nods and smiles as I take the pictures, "get in there, you two. You're Dad'll love it." I take a bunch of photos of the cousins, and then Brenden and I join them. It's a good day for bros to hang out.

Listening to the guys talk, yell and fool around on the walk back is the highlight of my week. Knowing Theo is gonna help us all with our school work is a close second place.

As we get down the side of the hill that overlooks the city, I catch a whiff of something that I shouldn't and slam to a stop.

Something's out there, and it's close to us.

Brenden comes up next to me and gives me that same look.

The cousins being human, are oblivious to what's happening. "What's up?" Asks Theo.

"I...I thought I heard something out there," I say, and Brenden nods his head, quickly agreeing.

Bryce knows all about us. I think he's figured it out, and he's concerned cause we aren't alone out here.

"Maybe it's Bigfoot," teases Theo and fearlessly walks ahead of us. "Come on. It was probably a deer."

Jackson walks ahead of us, and Bryce hangs back. "That wasn't a deer, was it?"

Brenden and I shake our heads. "not a deer and not one of us," I say quietly. Whoever it is, they aren't part of our pack. I'm not even sure they're like us. Maybe a different kind of shifter; there are dozens of them.

Bryce looks concerned as we start to walk, but I push ahead to lead the group back to his house. Brenden takes the rear.

Whatever it is, I need to get them home safe.

"Are you ok?" Asks Theo making me jump a bit. "Sorry. You're just so deep in thought. You were growling or something."

I'm taller than him, so he has to look up at me, and he has a sweet smile. I nod, "yeah....just wanna get back. In case it wasn't a deer."

He scrunches up his face for a second before he replies. "Big Brave Protector. I'm sure you could take whatever it is. Besides, you just want me to do your math homework. That's really why you're rushing back."

I roll my eyes and pull him into a headlock, "yes. That's why. Do my homework, nerd."

He pushes off with a smile and a laugh before he walks ahead a bit.

"Jesus. He's so adorable," I think to myself. Bryce clears his throat, and I look at him. "What?"

He shakes his head, "nothing."

I'm sure he's picked up on my crush. Brenden picked up on it and asked about it last week. I don't know if Theo's figured out that I like him, but someday.

Whatever was around us is still close cause I can smell it. I'll call Dad when I get to Bryce's house.

******
I could hear and smell the boys from 3 miles away; they weren't trying to be quiet.

Five teenagers. Two are clearly shifters. Wolves if I'm getting the smell right.

I know there's a pack in this area, but I don't care. I'm here to cause chaos and get what I want back.

The taller Wolf clearly has a crush on Teddy. I can smell it whenever the two of them get close. On the other hand, Teddy likes him back, which is interesting...I can use this.

The wolf in the back of the group knows I'm following them; they picked up my scent because I wanted them to.

Teddy seems to just draw shifters to him. It must be his smile and smell. I've missed it, but I'll have him again.