Everyone's Mate (BoyxBoy)

Chapter 29

With my throat clenched and my heart making a fist in my chest, I stormed into my room and swiftly closed the door, leaning against it and breathing hard. My mind was racing a mile a minute. I expected things to get worse – but not this bad, and not... Not her.

I had gotten the news just moments before. It was safe to say I had avoided Riordan like the plague for the past week – his room being right down the hall from mine made that even harder, but I made it work. Danika attempted to trap us in the same room many times, but I was efficient at dodging her as well. I'd meant what I said; I wasn't going to drag Riordan down with me, as he had been hurt enough.

Sudden emotion flooded me. I slowly walked to my bed and sat down on it, fisting my hands in the soft and unkempt sheets. It was late afternoon outside, and the dull orange sunset was filtering through my curtains, making patterns on the floor.

Thinking it over, I realized my life was one big funnel into a toilet bowl. From my parents to my tortured childhood, and finally like a slow train wreck into my inability to handle my own curse. I reached up, about to touch Rio's bond mark – but hesitated. It was aching, needing him...but I refused to give in. I couldn't just waltz into people's lives and destroy them anymore. It would be better if I just moved to Iceland and started a life off in the mountains, herding sheep.

"Aaron?" Danika's soft, dulled voice came from my door. I suddenly knew she knew – but for how long? How long had she tried to keep it from me?

I glared hard at the white paint of it, daring her to come in. "Go away," I ground out, a harsh bite to my tone.

There was a pause. "Aaron...Aaron, I'm sorry."

"No you're not," I laughed. "If you were sorry, you would let me go."

She entered then, her face a mask of worry. "You know I can't do that. You know only Riordan can."

I sneered, turning away. Silence erupted, and my ears rung. I put my head in my hands and stared at the floor, at the shadow of a tree billowing outside with the breeze. I could hear distant barking, and a wind chime of sorts somewhere outside.

I felt the mattress dip beside me.

"She's dying," I forced out. "She's dying – she's going to die. She's alone. She's..." My voice caught on my tears.

An arm wrapped around me and despite how world-weary and angry I had been before, that pretense collapsed as I fell into myself. I let her hold me, her calming hands rubbing my back soothingly.

"I need to be there," I looked up and met her eyes, begging her to understand. "She's...she has been there since the beginning. She was my first friend and she accepted me through everything." A tear escaped and trailed down my cheek. I angrily wiped it away and finished, "I can't let her die alone."

"I..." She looked into my pleading eyes, sighing, as if a great battle had just been fought inside her. "I can't."

"You can't or you won't?"

"Both." She rebutted, her voice remaining gentle, all-knowing, and it pissed me off. "You know what's out there – what's at stake. I...I know how hard this must be for you."

"Do you?" I bit out.

She got up suddenly, her eyes cold. "Letting you go could get you killed or worse." She hissed. "The truth of the matter is – you're everyone's weak spot. You can't change that, whether you like it or not. They would use that and manipulate that and before you know it, people get hurt – more people die."