"I tried to warn you."
"How is that even a kid's movie? Young Nixon would've hated it," Nixon complained as he aggressively shoved food into his mouth.
"It's good to know you haven't changed much from childhood, then," I said.
Nixon paused and stared at me with a narrowed gaze. "You aren't funny."
"I'm sorry," I told him. "But come on, you have to admit that the others were good. Toy Story? Finding Nemo? Lion King? Incredibles?"
"They were alright," he shrugged.
I shook my head. "Tell me what your favorite was then."
Nixon hummed in thought. "I liked Lilo and Stitch." I stared at him for a moment, and he raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Nothing," I said, a smile forming. "That's just so on brand for you."
Nixon's brows furrowed, but I didn't bother to elaborate.
"What about you?" He asked me. "I mean, I know you like all of them, clearly, but what is your favorite?"
The question caught me by surprise. What was my favorite Disney movie? There was a lot to choose from, but if I had to name one...
"Meet the Robinsons," I answered. His brows furrowed, so I added, "We didn't watch it last night since I didn't bring the disk."
"Why didn't you bring it?"
"If I'm not watching these movies, then most of the time they're usually sitting in the hallway closet, but I've watched Meet the Robinsons so many times that it just has a permanent place in my room," I admitted.
The movie will always hold a special place in my heart. Not just because I enjoyed it but also the memories that came with it. The first time I watched the film was the first weekend after Reo came. Mom and Dad had bought it, figuring it would be a good film to show that families came in all shapes and sizes. Reo and I had watched it on our own a multitude of times despite knowing practically every line.
"Tell me about it," Nixon said. "It's your favorite, right? Tell me why you like it."
"You didn't tell me why you liked Lilo and Stitch."
"You didn't ask."
"I'm not going to tell you too much because then you won't watch it— close your mouth because you know I'm right," Nixon rolled his eyes. "But a big theme in the movie is family and belonging. It kind of reminded me of my own family in a way. Then there's a big family filled with many unique people. It just goes to show that families come in all shapes and sizes."
"Is that what you want?"
"What?" My brows furrowed.
"A big family," he elaborated. "Do you want a big family?"
I paused and stared at him. The question wasn't one that I had expected Nixon to ask, at least not now. Was a bug family something I wanted? It was. Reo and I were opposites in that manner. Whereas he was fine with just having his mate and not wanting children, I did. Even though Reo was there for a lot of my childhood, the early memories before he was there still replayed in my mind. My parents did everything to make sure I was happy, but it didn't change the fact that I did long for a sibling who was similar in age to me at some points. With Reo there, it drastically changed.
So I knew I wanted multiple children. How many would depend on my partner, but at least two, whether it be through adoption or other means, never mattered to me.
I didn't say this to Nixon, though. Instead, I smiled and changed the subject. "You and Eli are close, right? How did you meet?"
Nixon's brows knitted together, but he didn't call me out on the abrupt change in subject.
"We met not long after he was adopted and joined the pack. He started following me around, and I couldn't get rid of him."
"You guys seem to be close for him just being some kid you 'couldn't get rid of.'"
Nixon shrugged, but I could see a subtle smile on his face. "He's stuck around me long enough for me to tolerate him. At this point, he's more like the extra brother I never asked for but got stuck with. Not to mention, he is my beta. I have to get along with him somewhat for that to work. I've seen Alphas who constantly fight with their betas, and as a result, their whole pack suffers from it. At some point, you have to know when to put it aside and get shit done. Eli and I are just one of the lucky pairs who are more like brothers than colleagues."
Hearing Nixon talk about Eli reminded me of my pack, specifically the fact that there was still one more vacant space that I couldn't ignore forever. It reminded me of what I originally came back for and why I couldn't stay at the Silver Night. Nixon got up to throw away the remnants of the food he had been eating. I waited for him to come back, and he sat down before meeting my eyes and frowning.
"What's wrong?" He questioned.
"Nothing's wrong. I just want to talk about something important. Is that fine?" Nixon's frown didn't disappear, but he nodded nonetheless. "What are we, Nixon?" I asked him.
"What?"
"What are we?" I repeated. "What is this to you? Clearly, we're past the fuck buddy level, but we haven't actually talked about it, and I need to know before I leave. Is this something important to you?"
Nixon didn't say anything, and I could tell that this was a conversation he wasn't expecting to have.
"Nixon—"
"I think it's pretty obvious how I feel about you. It's not just some fling to me. I'm past just liking you, Tate," he admitted, but his eyes were focused on everything but me.
It was strange seeing the normally confrontational man acting shy.
There was a smile on my face. "So we can both agree that this is something that we want to continue?" Nixon nodded. "You know that means long-distance, right?"
He paused, his brows furrowed, and his frown deepened as if he wasn't expecting to hear that.
"Right?" I repeated, but there was more hesitation and confusion this time.
"That wouldn't work," he said.
"Why not?" I questioned confusedly.
"Werewolves thrive off bonds. Can you really see us making it work when we barely see each other?" He asked with a surprising bite to his tone.
"I can," I said honestly. "Most werewolves don't thrive in long distance because of the mate bond. Their wolves are quite literally bound, and that separation harms them. However, we don't have that issue with there being no bond between us."
The moment the words left my mouth, I could see the shift in Nixon. His jaw was now clenched, and his eyes still had yet to meet mine.
"'No bond between us?'" He repeated, and I immediately frowned.
"You know that's not how I meant it." He fell silent again, and I sighed. "Nixon, talk to me."
My frustration must've shown in my voice because his eyes quickly found mine, and I could see the change in them.
"It's hard enough to get ahold as is when you're gone, Tatum. A few days? Okay, sure, I can deal with that, but this? I don't know; it feels like a recipe for failure."
"Do you have any other ideas? Because no matter what conclusion we reach today isn't going to change the fact that my pack doesn't have the liberty of having two alphas. I can't afford to be gone for extremely long periods of time, Nixon. You know this, I still have things that need my attention back at home. At the end of the day, I still have to go back."
There was no response from the other man. His arms rested on his knees and his gaze dropped to the ground.
"So what? You don't even want to try?" I asked him. "You don't want to give long distance a chance and see if we can make this work? It doesn't mean that we won't ever see each other—the distance between our two packs isn't that bad. Do you really just want to stop this before it even begins?"
I stared at him—waiting for an answer of some sort—some sign to give me a clue of what was happening in his head. It was at times like this when I wished we did have a mate bond or that we were at least in the same pack so I could feel him and get an understanding of what was happening in his head.
I continued to stare expectantly, but a response never came. A frown broke out on my face, and I stood up and walked back upstairs to where my things were.
He never looked up once.