Garroth's POV:

    Was Blaze actually smiling? For once? When he did, I actually couldn't help but feel that he looked better with a smile on. I would never tell him that since I still really deep down couldn't stand that guy. I'm just glad we decided to start over. Maybe I could see a friendlier side of him. Or at least some sign of any personality.
It was dark out and my eyes felt droopy. Yet, my mind was running. I would be asleep in Scaleswind by now or probably writing drafts for my article. I also thought about how long it would take my parents to find out about my kidnapping. I really hope if I ever get out of here that my parents wouldn't lock me up themselves. I was interrupted from my thoughts by Blaze.

"H-Hey, um, do you want to sleep in a actually bed tonight? Or do you like couches?" He said, awkwardly. "I think the bed is more comfortable if you ask me."

I sighed and said;

"I'll try the bed."

He nodded and stood up. He looked back down to me and let out his hand. I took it slowly. He lead back upstairs and opened the door to his bedroom. He walked over to his dresser and pulled out a pair of pajamas.

"Here," He said. "I don't know when Aaron is going to give your belongings back but, for now, you can borrow these." I took them and started to go off to the bathroom. "Wait. Stay here."

"W-What?" I stuttered.

"Just stay here and change," He says, a little timidly.

I blushed nervously and said; "Maybe I'll skip-"

"Garroth, it's fine. I-I won't look."

He turned around the opposite direction towards the window. I took a shaky breath and started to change into the pjs he had given me. I looked up every five seconds just to make sure he wasn't looking. I sighed once I was done and said;

"You can look now."

He turned around and nodded. He took out his pjs and motioned for me to turn around. I did and heard him get changed. Once the sound of clothes rustling go away, I turned around. He thankfully was dressed. He wore a red and black pajama set. A black top and red bottoms to be exact. He went over to his mirror above his dresser and tied up his hair in a bun. I stood there a little nervous to even move a inch.

"You can get in bed you know?" He said in soft but a little tense voice.

I looked over to the giant bed I had seen before. I gulped and walked over to it. I hesitated but, pulled up the white covers to slip under them. I took the left side while he took the right. What I mean by taking the left side of the bed was that I was on the far left side. Like, possibly the edge. I was so uncomfortable. Knowing that he was right next to me. We kept our backs towards each other, not daring to look.

"I'm gonna turn off the light," He says. "You okay?"

"Y-Yep," I stuttered again.

I heard him sigh and soon, all light left the room. I tried to close my eyes and drift to sleep like I easily did before on the couch but, I found it more difficult. I felt stiff and my breathing was unsteady. I tossed and turned yet, nothing worked. It felt like hours of just tossing and turning until my eyes finally went completely dark.

•••

I woke up the next morning to light shining into the room. I pushed myself up, still exhausted.

"How much did I sleep last night?", I thought to myself. I looked over to see Blaze not in bed next to me. I sat up completely and stretched before getting out of bed. I didn't bother putting on my normal clothes before walking downstairs. I smelled food from the kitchen and I immediately was drawn to it. I hadn't ate since yesterday morning at this point and my stomach was growling. I walked into the kitchen to see Blaze preparing breakfast in a pot over a fire. He saw me and said;

"Good morning," He said, standing up a bit taller. "How did you sleep?"

"Good," I lied. "How about you?"

"Good," He said. I wondered if he lied about that. "I'm making oatmeal. Do you want some?"

"S-Sure," I say. "Thank y-you."

He took out two bowls and poured some in. Once he had them in his hands, he looked at me and motioned for me to sit down at the table. I did and he placed my bowl in front of me. He also gave me a spoon and sat down across from me. He started to eat as I took a bite myself. I wouldn't say he was the best cook in the world but, it was good oatmeal. I wasn't complaining. I continued to eat until Blaze asked;

"What's your favorite food?"

I looked up at him in confusion. I mean, it was a good question to start a conversation I guess. But, I mean it was out of the blue.

"Um...I mean, I like fruit and vegetables a lot so, anything with that," I answered. "What about you?"

"I like spicy foods, I guess," He says, shrugging.

Okay, Garroth, spark a conversation. Your Mom is a chef so...

"My mother makes an awesome sweet and spicy soup," I say, shyly. "I can try to make it for you sometime if you'd like?"

"R-Really? Um, sure. I'm interested in trying it," He says, looking up at me. Is it weird that I noticed his ears perk up and his eyes sparkle a bit? I think it was. "What else did your mom make?"

"A lot of interesting things," I say, actually starting to enjoy the conversation. "She's a chef at my hometown so, she gets a lot of recipes from all over the country."

"That's cool," He says, a soft smile on his face. "What did your other family members do? I know your a journalist so, I'm intrigued."

"Well, my father is a banker as well as my brother, Zane," I say, smiling a bit. "My other brother Vylad is a small photographer for the newspaper I work for. So he goes to different events and stuff like that."

"Wow, your family sounds really interesting," Blaze says, smiling. "My family was a bit...boring compared to your's."

"What did they do?"

"My Mom is the bookstore keeper in the town," He says. I expected him to say more but, he didn't. I wanted to ask about his father but, I didn't want to really get him into something he might not want to talk about. Instead I said; "I didn't expect that. Especially from a guy from you."

"Heh, I get that a lot," He chuckled, still smiling at me. "We can go see her if you want."

"I would be happy to meet her," I say. Why am I excited about this?

"O-Okay," He said, probably surprised himself. "We can go today if you'd like. I assume you like books so maybe we can grab one for you while we're there."

"That sounds g-good!"

•••

After we finished our meal, Blaze suggested I get ready. I nodded and returned back to the room where I found my outfit from yesterday. Blaze walked in shortly after and saw me pick up my stuff from yesterday.

"Oh, hold on," He said, going to his dresser again. "I can't have you wearing dirty clothes in front of my Mom. She's a bit...picky with appearance."

He pulled out a outfit for me and we did the same thing we did last night. I was still confused why he didn't want me to change in the bathroom because before we left he let me use it. So, he's not embarrassed by it. I wore a white shirt under a dark brown vest with brown pants with a belt. I also put on my tie from yesterday with the turquoise stone on it. Blaze didn't question it. The suit felt a little big on me but, I will take what I can get.
We left the house at around ten which was about the time Blaze said his Mom opened the store. We walked down the one street town which was very different from the city I lived in. Again, I'm not complaining. It really had everything it needed.  A grocery store, a bar, a bank, everything you'd think a town would need. Little werewolf children were playing hoop on the street while adults did their daily shopping or activities.

Soon, we reached the bookstore. A bell chimed as we walked in. A petite woman with the same ruby hair as Blaze with grey strands, popped her head from the counter. Once she caught my eye, she gasped in excitement and smiled so big, I was afraid that she was going to strain her jaw. She rushed over from behind the counter and came over to us. Before she even hugged her son, she hugged me. She squeezed me tightly and put me down. She grabbed my jaw as if to inspect me.

"Tan skin, blonde hair," She muttered as she looked over my face. I noticed that she had pale skin with green eyes. She was probably gorgeous her youth. Not like she isn't gorgeous now but, you get what I mean. "Blue eyes!" She seemed excited about the last part. "Plus freckles as a bonus! Ah, Aaron did amazing picking him out for you Blazey!"

"M-Mom!"

"What?" She exclaimed, placing her hands on her hips. "Can I not be excited that Aaron finally choose someone for you? I thought that you were going to be single forever at this point!"

I held back a laugh at that point. I looked up at Blaze to see annoyance written all over his face. Anyway, back to his mother. Besides her facial appearance, she wore a white top and long brown skirt with a white apron on top. It went with her red hair nicely if I do say so myself. She wore round glasses and her wrinkles were more obvious when she smiled. Then, I noticed she also had the same ears and tail as Blaze.

"What's your name dearie?" She asked.

"G-Garroth," I say, still a little shocked from her energy.

"So nice to meet you," She said. "My name is Cosette and I'm the mother of this red head."

"So I heard," I smiled. "It's a nice store you have here."

"Oh my Irene! And amazing manners! Wow, Aaron definitely gave me the best son-in-law!"

Then, I blushed in embarrassment.

"M-Mom, how about we not talk about that right now. Can you show Garroth around?"

"Sure! Follow me Garroth!"

She took my arm and dragged me along with her through her store.

"Over here you'll find a nice selection of old classics," She says, pointing to the self on the far right. "Then, if you go further down, you'll find your fantasy books next to your action ones..."

She started to just ramble on and on about her favorite books. To be honest, it was nice. I was comforted a bit more knowing that there was someone really enthusiastic here. Not to mention that her bookstore was beautiful. It had a theme of dark oak with green and gold accents on it. Flowers in pots were probably on every surface you could find. What made me the happiest was that there was probably every genre of book you could think about. Back in O'Khasis, they didn't have one sci-fi novel but here there was a whole bookshelf.

"It's all really beautiful Cosette," I say, looking to her with a smile.

"Aw, thank you dear," She said, placing a hand on her chest. "I've had this old thing for the past thirty years and it warms my heart that you say that. Just know you can always borrow a book here whenever you like unless you want to purchase them with a family discount of course."

"That sound lovely," I say. "Just interested, what's your favorite genre?"

"Oh, I would have to say fantasy," She said. "What about you? Did you do any reading at home?"

"I mean, he's a journalist Mom so you should assume so," Blaze stated, leaning against the counter.

"Oh praise Irene! You just keep on getting better and better don't ya!" She exclaimed. She seemed to noticed my shyness and said; "But, you must be confused. Here sweetie." She climbs up the tall ladder and reaches for a book on the top shelf in the fifth bookshelf. It had a red cover and looked older compared to other books in her store. "This should tell you everything you need to know about this place. I know for a fact that my son over there didn't explain that much to you if not at all. If you have any questions, feel free to come in."

"T-Thank you," I say, taking the book from her. "That's very kind of you."

"Of course," She smiled. "Now, you two run along. I'm sure you two have a lot of bonding to do!"

I thanked her again before Blaze and I left. Of course he hugged her before as well, which I found cute. As we walked down the street he said;

"Thank you for being nice to my Mom."

"It's hard not to," I say, looking up to him. "She's a angel really."

He smiled and said;

"I know."

Word Count
2298