New Genna City

The Explanation

If you were honest with yourself, though... you were having a hard time not just leaping into his arms.

"Hi," he says, coming to a stop by the table. "Thanks for agreeing to meet me here." You look up at his tiny, hopeful smile and sigh quietly.

"I figured it was important for you to text me out of the blue like you did," you say flatly, and he winces.

"Yeah, well, it's a bit hard to kind of lead into anything... the way things ended." He sighs, glancing away. Your heart twists at his pained expression, and you soften a little.

"Would you like to sit down? You're giving me a crick in my neck." Rogan looks at you in surprise, eyes wide, and you barely try to hide your smile behind your coffee cup. 

It was something you used to say to him a lot when you were together; a little playful jab at how much bigger he was than you, being an orc and all.

He chuckles. "Alright, I will," he says, scooting a chair out across from you. As always, it creaked a bit under his weight, but held him. You sip your coffee silently as he flags down the waitress and orders tea for himself.

The nostalgia of the moment was overwhelming, and you had to focus a bit on why you were here.

"So..." you finally prompt, breaking the silence, and he jumps guiltily.

"Oh, right. The... thing."

Rogan clasps his hands and leans on his elbows as he takes a deep breath. To your surprise, you see little ripples on the surface of your coffee; was he shaking? The rest of the world melts away as you focus on him as he tries to prepare himself. As the light of the day slips below the horizon, he takes a few deep breaths before looking up into your eyes. You're startled when you notice that they're a different color: bright yellow.

"Do you remember that trip I took right around the time you got your promotion at work? A few months before we broke up?" He waits until you nod before continuing. "It was supposed to just be an ordinary family visit, but on my last day there, something went wrong. Really wrong." He pauses as the waitress brings his drink, thanking her briefly before she leaves again. He lowers his voice, forcing you to lean in close. "On that last day, I was out taking a walk on the clan reserve when I was attacked by... by a werewolf. I got infected, and... that's why I was disappearing so much afterward. I should have told you, but..." he trails off, and glances away.

You stare at him a long moment before leaning back in your chair, a dubious grin spreading across your face as you cross your arms.

"Really? A werewolf? Is this a joke?" You shake your head, your anger rising as the grin slips away. "I was under the impression that orcs can't be infected with lycanthropy, ever. I'm fairly certain of that fact, actually, and now also in the fact that you're clearly full of shit." 

You stand and pull some money out of your pocket, tossing it on the table. "I came here to listen to you because I thought you were seriously going to tell me why it was you were being so damn secretive, and instead you want to tell me some fairy tale about how you're a werewolf now?"

Rogan stares at you, eyes wide. "I swear I'm not lying–"

"Sure you're not," you say, tears rising along with your voice. "If you weren't going to actually tell me why you became so distant, then WHAT THE HELL DID YOU EVEN TEXT ME FOR?!" You storm past him, dodging his hand as he reaches for you, and leave the cafe, furiously wiping your eyes as the tears fall.

You were stupid, so stupid to think that he'd actually come to make things up with you, to actually explain himself. Why had you been so hopeful, anyway? Was it just the nostalgia of the moment? Or had you been hoping for some revelation that would make it all better? Either way, this was bullshit, and you were going home. The thoughts in your head are so loud that you barely notice anything around you, just trying to get away from... everything.