Bikes & Blood

𝐗𝐗𝐈𝐈.

Amara

"Angel, wake up."

Amara grumbled with displeasure, batting the offending hand that shook her shoulder away, mumbling incoherent protests beneath her breath as she huffed in unveiled disdain. A soft chuckle ghosted across the shell of her ear as she rolled over and pulled Ares closer to her chest. The Malamute oblivious to the nuisance that had awoken her.

"Is that?"

"Yes, Paul."

"Do you think it'll bite me?"

"Are you seriously afraid of a puppy?" She grumbled, begrudgingly opening her eyes as she eyed the two blondes that stood at the edge of the makeshift bed.

"Of course not," Paul stated, plastering a confident smile across his face even as his gaze continued to divert to the sled dog curled into her chest.

"You are, though, aren't you?"

Marko side-eyed Paul, biting his bottom lip with unabashed amusement as he sat down on the bed of blankets and pillows, leaning conspiratorially towards her whilst his honeyed stare remained locked on Paul. "It's one of his minor fears. Like how most people are afraid of the dark."

She frowned, peering up at the dirty blonde, who toyed with the fraying black hem of his Metallica t-shirt with child-like unease. "What happened?"

Paul slowly lifted his azure-blue gaze from the floor, scuffing the toe of his boot across the hardwood floor as his eyes churned with unease. "I got pushed into a bathtub by a dog once."

As Amara processed his response, cautiously turning his words over in her head. She watched the way his eyes flickered with something deeper than the 'minor' fear that he'd spoken of. Something that Amara noted with a gentle nod of her head, choosing to let his words fade to nothing rather than force him to feel obliged to tell her his entire life story.

"Would you like to hold him?" She asked instead, running her fingers across the soft fur of Ares's back. "You don't have to, but I thought it might help ease that fear."

Paul eyed the Alaskan Malamute carefully, worrying his bottom lip between his teeth as he absentmindedly toyed with the assortment of leather, fabric, and silver bracelets around his wrists. A moment or two passed in silence as Amara waited for his answer. A soft hum drifting to her ears as Paul sat down beside her, watching the puppy that slept curled into her chest with guarded irises.

"You're sure?" Marko questioned, leaning forward so that he could peer around Amara's shoulder and look at Paul.

"Like you said, it's one of my minor fears. Might as well get over it now."

"But-"

"It's okay, Marko. I'm okay."

Marko lifted his fingerless-gloved hand to his face, gnawing at the skin of his thumb as he scrutinised Paul carefully; waiting for any signs that the retriever-like blonde was lying. And Amara felt the unmistakable urge to drop her gaze to the sled dog in her lap, feeling as though she was intruding on a moment between the two blondes.

Marko sighed with exaggerated reluctance, nodding his head slowly, like he was reassuring himself. "Okay."

She lifted her gaze unsurely from the assorted blankets on the makeshift bed, shaking Ares softly awake as she held Paul's gaze with her own. "You're sure about this? Because once he's fully awake, he'll want to bombard you with affection."

Paul nodded his head firmly, sucking in a deep breath of air as Ares squirmed in her hold. "I'll be fine."

Arching an eyebrow, Amara turned to face Marko with dark, unsure onyx-brown eyes. "What'd you think?"