I slammed the doors shut before he could say a word to me and ran/limped towards Justin who still was sitting in a chair. My whole face was red as I clambered into the chair and basically almost shoved Justin out of the way as I tried to hide behind him, shaking.
Julian was laughing on the floor, rolling around while Justin was cussing him out, using some of the cuss words we had made up when we were younger.
The doors swung open causing both to shut up and look at them. "Where is she?" he asked. There was no trace of anger in his voice, only concern and worry.
However, that didn't stop me from curling more behind Justin, and my heart to start to beat faster and quake with fear.
He is not him, I scolded myself. He won't hurt me. However, I couldn't stop myself from shaking. I squeezed my eyes tighter shut and clutched my head to keep it safe. He is not him. He won't hurt me.
"Behind me, Alpha," Justin said. His voice was leveled, and I could hear this underlying anger in it. "Would you like me to move?"
"Please," Xavier said. He came more into the room as Justin got up to move out of his way.
Justin placed a comforting hand on my shoulder, ignoring my flinch and leaned forward until I could feel his breath on my ear. "He is not him," he said, his voice soft and echoing what I was telling myself. "He will not hurt you." He squeezed my shoulder and moved with Xavier taking his spot.
My whole body grew tenser as his scent filled my nose. My breathing became a little labored, and I had to will myself to stay put.
He is not him. He will not hurt me.
Xavier reached out to touch me, only to reel back when I flinched away from him.
"I am sorry," I said, feeling him being slightly hurt. "He... ah... he used to beat me when I saw him half naked or when he came out of the bathroom..."
"Son of a bitch," Julian said. There was a door opening and slamming shut as he left the room.
"I... am going to take him out for a run before he destroys the bathroom..." Justin said. 'Contact me if you need anything.' He opened the bathroom door, pulled a complaining Julian by his ear out of it, and left the room leaving me alone with Xavier.
Xavier hesitated and reached out to touch me. His touch was warm and gentle as he pulled me out of the seat and onto the couch, where he sat down.
Hesitantly, he moved his hand through my hair as my body stopped shaking and my heartbeat became normal. He didn't say a word as I got my breathing under control and waited until I moved slightly so that I could see him.
His black hair was plastered against his scalp, and I had the sudden urge to move my fingers through it. His piercing blue eyes stared into mine, his eyes filled with concern and worry.
I, hesitantly, looked down, breaking eye contact with him and noticed that he was half naked, his chest bare while his other half was covered with shorts.
"Don't," he said, his voice soft and begging. He clutched me tighter to him when I was about to move. "Don't move, please."
I took a deep breath and nodded my head. "Ok," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I won't move."
Xavier cleared his throat. "Are... you scared of me?" he asked, causing me to shake my head.
"Then, look up at me, please," he said, his voice soft. "Don't hide your face from me."
I did what he had said and looked up at him. I was honestly surprised that he was ok with me looking him head-on, being that he was an Alpha, a very powerful Alpha at that.
"I will not hurt you," he said, softly. He, hesitantly, pushed a strand of my hair back behind my ear, his touch warm. "Not after the pain that I had..."
I closed my eyes and leaned my face into his hand. "It wasn't that bad, not the worse I had been through," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. I opened my eyes to stare at him, hoping that he would understand that I was ok. "And, you did give us a comfortable bed to sleep in."
"A comfortable bed," Xavier said. "I gave you a comfortable bed for the three of you."
"And then you gave us bunkbed and a cot. The cot was rather comfortable." More comfortable than the floor, I added, silently. "And then all of this..." I gestured around the room. "It's... a lot."
Xavier shook his head. "It's not," he said. "Not what y-"
I placed my hand over his mouth, stopping him from talking. A blush appeared on my face as I took my hand away, leaving the Alpha Male in shock. "You saved my son's life," I said, still not talking loudly. "And, in the end, that decision saved mine as well."
He hesitated but nodded his head. He didn't say a word as he stared at me with eyes that were filled with emotion, and one such emotion was contempt as if he was fine with my presence and I wasn't intruding in his life.
I hesitated with a burning question that was on the top of my mind. "Will... you get mad if I go into your room?" I asked, slowly. I tore my gaze from his and looked at my hands. "At night?"
"No, why?" he asked.
"You are warm, and I feel like I can get... a good night's sleep with you." I hesitated and licked my lips. "I... get nightmares, some of them wake me up, and I scream bloody murder."
"And, they don't bother you when I am holding you, correct?"
I hesitated but nodded my head. "Correct."
"Then, you may come into my room to sleep," he said, causing me to look up at him. He nodded his head, answering my unasked question. "I will keep you safe."
I offered him a smile and nodded my head. "Thank you," I whispered. "Thank you for all the help that you have given me and my little family."