An Oddity Among Beasts (BEASTARS)

Regrets

    Alan at least felt a little better knowing Todd forgave him for scratching him, but couldn't help feeling like it was too easy. The goat should've been afraid of him, terrified even! Maybe he was overestimating himself, as he certainly isn't the most intimidating student around. Compared to Bill or Legosi, he was nothing special in terms of strength. Even so, that didn't stop the rumors regarding his wolf-half from floating around.

He didn't want to lose it again, otherwise, it'd end worse than before. It was luck that Todd decided to get in front of Will, but he couldn't be around all the time. Beyond that, Alan didn't feel comfortable being around anyone—save for a few people. He couldn't risk it again, he can't get that worked up again! He felt twisted inside like he couldn't be himself anymore.

He needed to change it.

~~*~~

"So, what's the ball for again?", Todd asked.

"Stress relief.", Alan looked at the small sphere in his hand. "Canines have this...thing, where they like to catch thrown balls and bring them back to where they were. I guess you could say it's for satisfaction."

"Did you do it before?"

"Yeah...it was a long time ago, though.", he sighed as he continued to stare at the ball wistfully.

"Daddy, I got it!"

"Good, now bring it back to your mother! Hurry!"

"Great job! You're so fast!"

He let a small smile cross his face, "It was really fun..."

"You never really mentioned your parents since you enrolled.", Todd pointed out. "What are they like?"

"Well, my mom's a human.", he leaned against the wall. "She was nice, kind. You wouldn't think a human would fall in love with a wolf, but she did. Even now, I don't understand what sparked between them."

"What's your dad like?"

He thought for a moment, "He was...normal. He can be strict sometimes, but it came from a good place. He was pretty protective of me, too. But..."

His eyes sharpened briefly, "We drifted apart."

Todd was about to say something when a new voice chimed in, "Sounds pretty interesting."

They both looked over, and Alan noticeably tensed up.

"What do you want?", he asked spitefully.

The fox held his hands up, "I just wanted to check on you. Things seemed to get hectic after our little scuffle."

    Alan started squeezing the ball in his hand with force. He could feel his blood boiling, a growl threatening to rise in his throat yet he held it back. If Will wasn't following him, he wouldn't have hurt Todd and none of this would be happening. Even with the ball in his hand, it did little to control his anger. Todd looked at him worriedly, glancing back to Will for a few seconds.

"I'm surprised you're still calm, even after what happened.", he said casually. "With how you reacted back then, I thought you'd have turned into a shut-in."

"Bite your tongue.", Alan said through gritted teeth. "If it weren't for Todd, you would've lost an eye. The least you can do is stay as far away from me as possible."