Danny

"Dad's gonna be so pissed," I groan to myself as I come out of the woods and head to my car. I'm way ahead of Bryce and his family. I hope Bryce and Theo work it out tonight, but more importantly, I hope Theo's ok. He was saying some dark stuff just now.

I climb in my blue jeep and head home.

Brenden's Dad would have probably headed home as soon as he could. wolves tend to give parents respectful space when dealing with their kids; something about a pack mentality. So I'll just have to deal with Dad.

I keep going back to what Theo said. "Worthless trash." That's what he called himself.

"Does he really think that about himself? Has he always thought it, or was it Bryce that said it," I think to myself as I pull onto my street? I can only hope that Bryce said it in the heat of a fight, but I'll still have to ask him.

I see Dad standing on the front porch waiting for me. "Fuck," is all I say, and I know he heard me.

As I climb out of the car, I'm hit by a smell I don't get very often. He's nervous...or scared, but why.

I know better than to make eye contact. I drop my head and act like the subordinate wolf I am. He's the alpha of the family, and I disobeyed his orders.

Dad just sighs, "Danny, look up."

I do as ordered.

"I told you not to go into the woods. What were you thinking?" He says quietly and takes a seat on the porch swing. He pats for me to sit. I join him. This is the spot we have all our father-son chats. My brother has a lot of the same memories.

I think for a second. He'll know if I'm lying, so I go for the closest thing to the truth I can manage. "Theo's my friend....and Bryce hurt him, so he ran. I know it wasn't safe, but that's why I told Brenden."

"Theo's....your friend?" He asks in an even tone.

"Yes.....yes. He's my friend," I say back.

"Danny. I'm going to ask you a question, and I need you to just tell me the full truth," he says, and he pats my leg. I nod, and he takes a breath before asking, "are you gay?"

I'm shocked by his honesty at first, but I just nod. "And Theo knows?"

"No....just you and Brenden," I say quietly. "You care that I'm gay?"

Dad just looks at me and then puts his arm around me. It's an awkward fit, seeing as over the summer, I passed him in height. "I don't care if you're gay. Just be safe and happy. I don't like that you're interested in a human....you know our rules."

I nod. We have 5 simple rules to stay safe.

1. Don't kill or eat a human. (It expands our powers and abilities, but it also draws attention, and we have to worry about hunters)

2. Don't shift in front of a human. Unless absolutely required. (It's never been required before).

3. Never bite a human.

4. If you fall for a human and want to reveal our world. You have to tell the alpha first.

5. If you're seen. Report it right away.

"Good. I've only met the kid once....as a human anyway, he seems like a nice kid. He's got some issues based on what he was saying tonight," says Dad cutting into my train of thought.

"I know. He's had a rough life...but he's nice. I don't have to act on my feelings," I say quickly. Theo needs friends and people who care about him more than anything else.

Dad nods and kisses the side of my head. "Well. I love you. Thank you for finally telling me. Mom might've been listening, but I won't tell her. So that's up to you, buddy," he says quietly.

"Thanks, pops. I love you too," I say, and he gets off the swing. He walks into the house and leaves me to my thoughts.
******

It's been almost three weeks since Theo's run into the woods, and outside of studying together for math, we haven't really talked that much. He's secretive and quieter than usual. He and Bryce barely speak to each other. The only person that can get anything out of him is Jackson, and even then, it's one-word answers.

I see him grabbing stuff from his locker before we have history class. I slide up to him and flash him a smile. He rolls his eyes at me, trying to be charming. "Hi, how are you doing today?"

He slams the locker, "fuckin' awful. Bryce is up my ass in a way I don't like." I know I made a face at that. "You know what I mean."

"I...I'd have to take your word on that one, buddy," I say back, trying to be witty. "But at least it's Friday, and we have two classes left."

"Yup, and no football game tonight. Which means Bryce'll be home....unless you two have plans," he says timidly as he pushes his glasses up his nose. He looks so dreamy right now.

I get a brilliant idea, and I take my chance, "you and I should hang out then. We can do ANYTHING."

"Anything?" He says back, and we start heading to the class. I nod. "Then I want to not hang out. You're Bryce's friend. You'll just take his side."

"Nope. Just you and me. Bro time. I won't mention" he who shall not be named" unless you mention him first," I say quickly. "Deal?"

Theo looks like he's fighting a battle in his head right now, but when he finally answers, he says, "deal. Let me text my Uncle, and then we can hang out."

"Awesome. That'll be a lot of fun. You're doing your presentation today, right?" I ask, changing the subject.

He's sending a text, but when he's done, he lights up and starts talking about John Muir, and I just listen as we walk to class.

******
Theo

I feel my phone buzz, and I take a quick look.

Uncle Mason- sounds good. Be home by 10. We have a long drive tomorrow.

I can't control the sigh that comes out.

Tomorrow we have to drive to Olympia to talk to the detectives in my Dad's case. They want to see what else I know....which isn't a lot. Dad was really good about keeping out me of the loop. He may have been a shitty father who sold drugs to make a living, but he didn't want his son following his small business footsteps. So what little I know about the money will probably stay with me.

Danny gives me an expectant look, and I give him a thumbs up. He cocks his hands in victory, and I smile. He's a sweet guy, not the dumb friendly jock you'd expect from him. He seems to be genuinely nice. That's part of the reason the crush is going on still. I need to like a nice guy for once.

"Ok, class. That's the last presentation for the day," says Mr. Hastings as Abigail Smith takes her seat. She did her project on Ruth Bader Ginsburg, but I wasn't paying attention. "The last of you will go next week, so be prepared." He looks at the clocks, 20 minutes to go. "Ok free time. Be quiet and productive. If you can't do both, then just be quiet."

Danny turns to me right away, "you excited?" He says in a chipper voice. Emma's looking at his back now, and she seems slightly offended by the rebuff.

I can't help but like that he's paying attention to me over her. "I am. What are we gonna do?"

He raises his eyebrows and smiles, "that's a secret...but you'll love it."

Emma taps his shoulder to pull his attention back, and he gives me a half-smile before he turns to her. They seem to get along; I'm 100% sure they've had sex. According to Bryce, he's a bit of a womanizer; last year, he was with a new girl every couple of weeks. However, this year he seems to have calmed down with just Emma being by his side.

I turn back to my SAT prep book. The test isn't for a couple of months, but I need a good score to get into a good school. I need to get away from here the second I can; it's what Uncle Mason needs more than having me around. I don't care if they say they want me around...I know I'm a drain on them all.

I shake my head and look through the prep book. I need to focus.

*******

I see Bryce running towards me as I leave study hall. I can't read his face. I don't know what's about to happen here.

He comes to a stop and brushes his hair off his forehead, "hey....so you're hanging out with Danny?"

"Yup....he planned it. It wasn't my idea," I say quickly and start walking. Feeling defensive.

He moves in front of me with his hands up, "hey. I'm not trying to start a fight. Just checking cause Jackson and I are leaving now. I have a date tonight anyway."

"Ok....then I'm good. You're off the hook to take care of me," I say back.

"Really. Theo. I'm not trying to start a fight. I need you to get over it," he says in an exasperated tone.

I can't control the face I make, but I manage to politely say, "you're right, Bryce. I'm over it now. Good luck on your date."

He just opens his mouth but closes it before making things worse. Then, before he leaves, he quickly says, "Have fun, Theo. Good luck tomorrow."

I turn and walk away. I know I'm only making it worse by antagonizing him like that, but I can't help it. He really hurt me, but he was right, and that hurts more than anything.

When I get to the parking lot, I see Danny standing by his jeep, and he flashes me that perfect smile. "Hey, hey. Did you miss me?" He says with a laugh as he gets in his car.

I nod at him as I do the same. "Of course I missed you. You're the only reason I go to school most days."

He scrunches up his eyebrows for a second, and it's paired with a sweet smile. "Ok. You ready for your surprise?"

"Hit me," I say back. I sound excited, and that's because I'm actually excited for the first time since we did that hike.

"Ok. I'm taking you to the arcade. You told me you liked pinball games last week, and I thought this would be the best bro date," he says and starts the car. The look on his face shows how proud he is at this moment.

He's right. I love pinball. I love arcades and games like that. Back in Seattle, I would go to one close to the fish market. It was always packed with tourists, but that meant the machines were maintained. Dad would kick me out so he could have "business meetings," and I would be gone for hours.

"I'm gonna school you, Danny boy. You better not be a sore loser," I say with a wink. I'm sure he's a sore loser. Most jocks tend to be, but we shall see.

***********
Danny-

Theo is DESTROYING me right now. I know he said he was good, but damn. The only thing I beat him in today was air hockey, and I cheated and used my wolf powers a bit to go faster. He was impressed with my reflexes that let me score, which helped me win.

However, skeeball was a different story. He crushed me. He knocked me out of the park on pinball. He even beat me in the racing games. Theo can't even drive yet, but he can race the streets of Monaco at 170 miles an hour like a pro.

"DAMN IT," I shout as he crosses the finish line in our last race. I come in a full 10 seconds behind him.

"Wanna go again?" He says with a laugh. "I have another free race."

He beat me 5 races in a row. Each time he got to race for free cause he got first place. Meanwhile, I've burned through my quarters. This "date" is getting a little expensive.

"Nah. You're better than me. I have nothing to prove at this point," I say with a groan. I don't mean to, but I hit the steering wheel out of frustration.

He actually giggles at that. "I knew you'd be a bad sport."

I put on an over-the-top offended look, "how dare you. I'm a great sport. You're just winning a lot."

"I've spent a lot of time at arcades when my Dad was "working." So I kind of had the upper hand at everything tonight," he says with a grin. "Except air hockey. I'm impressed you beat me there."

"I had to win at something; otherwise, I'd rip you in half like the poor sport all football players seem to be in your world," I say with a laugh and throw my arm around him. "Ok. You've got all the tickets, so what are you going to get with them?"

He shrugs, and we head over to the ticket counting machine. "828 tickets. Not bad," he says with a laugh. "I want that," he points to a stuffed wolf.

The arcade worker, a girl from our school, gives us a weird look, and I know Theo picked up on it. You can't miss my arm falling to the side. Then he points to a dinosaur eraser. She hands it to him and then gives it to me and loudly says, "for you, good sir. Thanks for being a good straight bro for me."

As we walk out, I whisper a quiet, "I'm sorry," to him.

He waves me off, "don't worry. My Dad beat the Shit out of me for being gay. I know the world isn't always a good place, and you don't need that drama. What did I say? you look annoyed."

I slammed to a stop as soon as he said it. My ears are ringing from my heartbeat. I shake my head. "It's not you. I just hate that your Dad did that to you. My Mom's Dad was abusive too, and it really messed her up for a long time."

He comes closer and strangely gives me a smile. "It's sweet you wanna be protective. I'm sure you're Mom got the help she needed overtime, right?"

I nod, "lots of therapy and stuff. Plus, Dad's super protective of her, so she feels safe. Thank you for the eraser. I'll treasure it forever."

"Good. Otherwise, I want him back. He and wolfie can be buddies," he says and shows me the wolf toy.

"Is that your favorite animal?" I ask. I'd love for it to be. Fuck I want to kiss him right now.

He shakes his head, "nope. The giraffe.....I didn't tell anyone else this, so I'll deny it if you say anything." I nod my head and wave for him to continue. "When I had my Bryce-induced meltdown a couple of weeks ago, I ran into a pack of wolves." I feign shock, and he continues. "I know. I thought I was gonna die, but they were super chill. One of them licked my face. He was all black and so beautiful."

I can't help the butterflies I feel in my stomach right now. I can't help the feeling in my pants either.

"Anyways. They saved me from being an idiot," he says quietly.

"You're not an idiot. And you brought him up, so I'll say this, Bryce feels terrible for what he said. He didn't tell me what it was, but I know him," I say as we walk to the car.

He's quiet for a beat before he speaks," I know, but he was right. My parents treated me like trash. Like I'm worthless, and I don't know how to let people take care of me....cause I'm broken." The last part comes out with a cracking voice.

I stop and pull him close. "You're not broken. You were hurt and abused, and you're healing. You need to be kind to yourself and tell Bryce how you feel." He looks like he might cry, so I hug him. He put his trembling arms around me and holds me close. "My mom says the same stuff sometimes. So I kind of get it. Bryce doesn't. His parents have never made him experience that stuff, and that's good, but he needs to know he hurt you, ok."

Theo pulls back and whips a tear off his beautiful face. "You're right. I want Bryce to like me, and I want him in my life."

I nod, "ok, good. Let's get some food, and I'll get you home. I think tonight was really the break you needed."

"I agree," he says back and just smiles at me as we walk to a burger place I like.

*******
Theo

I unlock the front door and head into the house.

My house.

My home.

I need to think of it like that.

This is where I live.

Uncle Mason isn't in the kitchen, so he thankfully didn't wait up for me. He must trust Danny.

I walk up the stairs quietly; Jackson's room hugs this wall so any loud noise could wake him up. Mandy's up cause I can see the light through the door.

I'm not surprised. She's a night owl. Bryce's door is ajar, so he probably just got home too.

I take a deep breath and knock on his door.

He opens it quickly, and his face falls when he sees it's me, "hey. I thought you were Dad."

"Nope, just me. How was your Date?" I ask, trying to break the ice a bit.

"It was good. What do you want?" He says back in a curt tone. He's not in the mood.

"Ok. Straight to the point," I say with a laugh and push my glasses up my nose. "I'm sorry for how I acted today at school."

He seems surprised, "thanks."

"I'm also sorry for how I've acted the last couple of weeks, but I want you to know you really hurt me," I say back. He starts to speak, but I cut him off. "Please. Let me finish. I don't like that my parents treated me like Shit. I hate it. I wanted to have a normal family like you, but I didn't. So you treating me like I'm a human throws me for a loop sometimes."

"I'm sorry I said all that. You deserved better than me treating you like a problem," he says, but he's not making eye contact, just looking at his feet.

"I forgive you," I say back. "I'm glad your date went well. I've got to get to bed, but maybe we can talk about it when I get back tomorrow. We can compare it to my bro date with Danny."

He chuckles softly at that, "I'd enjoy that for sure. I'm sorry about these last couple of weeks. We were both mad and too stubborn to admit we were hurt. I hope it goes well tomorrow, Theo."

I reach out and pull him into a hug. "Me too."

He tightens the exchange, "I'm happy you're here. You're a good guy."

I break the hug first, "thanks, Bryce. Sweet dreams."

He returns the saying, and I head to my room. I put my wolf on my window so he can "protect" me at night. I crawl into bed after I change, and I'm out within 30 seconds.

My last thoughts were about Danny and how much he helped me tonight. "He's a great guy."