His Soft Fur

Ty wasn’t in school on Friday. He might’ve been sick again. I expected to see a white wolf walking around but I didn’t.

It was getting dark outside by the time I got home. When it got later, a snow storm began. The wind was howling against the house as it snowed harder. There was a weather alert that rang on my phone, and soon after, my parents called to tell me they will be home later if not, tomorrow morning when everything is clear.

I sighed.

I sat by myself in the living room, waiting for the power to go out so I could light the candles I had set around the house. I already ate and I had food stored in the pantry for me to have later just in case the power did go out.

When I got up to get something to eat again, there was a knock on the door. I thought it was the wind at first, but my gut told me to go to the door, so I did.

I expected Ty to be here. I was almost excited to let him in, at least I won't be alone.

But when I opened the door, it wasn’t him. Cina was here.

It was cold outside, so in one second, I thought about closing the door so he couldn’t get in but that would be rude of me.

“What are you doing here?” I asked as he let himself inside. I wasn’t going to stop him and put him back outside. He’s lucky there’s a snow storm.

I forced the door closed, and zipped up my jacket because I felt the cold air.

While I shivered, he was taking off his jacket like he wasn't cold. “I just want to talk.” he said calmly, but he didn’t sound so friendly.

“Is my body going to end up under the snow?” I asked.

“Why would I kill you?” He turned to me, not sure why I asked that question. He made it seem like I was crazy. “Why?”

“Why are you getting offended that I’m calling you out on your terrible behavior towards me?” I crossed my arms over my chest. He didn’t like that I talked back.

When he took a step forward, I took one back.

I don’t like Cina. I don’t want him here. I don’t want to be alone with him.

“Fine.” He turned away again, and went to sit in the living room couch. I followed behind him quickly to tell him to go home.

“What do you-” the power went out. It made me stop and sigh.

This is exactly what I need, to be trapped in a snow storm with no power, with Cina, someone who's good at harassing me. I took the lighter and began lighting candles on the coffee table and on the shelves. It was still dark, but it was better than nothing. I stayed quiet and so did Cina.

“Go home.” I finally told him.

“I will, after I say what I want to say.” He was stubborn.

“If it’s something mean, I’ll kick you out.” I said, holding the lighter up because I will use it if I need to.

“Relax-”

“Cina, I don’t like you.” I came right out with it. “You’ve been an asshole to me and I barely know you.” I don’t like how he gets into my personal space.

He patted a spot on the couch next to him because he wanted me to sit down. And I definitely didn’t want to. I can stand and listen.

“Sit.” He said when I didn’t.

I mashed my lips together angrily but I did sit down next to him. There were plenty of other seats, but I sat next to him because he told me to.

I hadn’t realized it was already getting cold until I sat next to him. I was fine though because I have a jacket on.

“What do you want to talk about?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.

“What you’re doing, and how its wrong,” he said calmly. I was about to move away to tell him what I do isn’t his concern but I felt his arm around my shoulders and he kept me in place. “It’s for your own good.” He said it like he knew.

And I wanted to get away, but he was holding on to me and I couldn’t move. That didn’t stop me from giving him a piece of my mind.

“What’s wrong with you, Cina? What are you going to tell me? That I shouldn’t like Ty because we’re different or he could hurt me?”

I don’t need that speech.

“I don’t care what you think.” I said.

That was more for myself. I don’t want to care what he thinks. I don’t want to be considerate. I don’t care if he doesn’t like that I want to hang out with Ty.

“You done?” He asked.

I shoved against him.

“I would never tell you who you want to be with is wrong.” he said. “Except being with one of us is.”

“Why?” I demanded.

“If you haven’t noticed, Ty isn’t the most stable.” He said slowly, thinking about how to put it. “He doesn’t have as much control as he should.”

“We all know that already.” I said.

“Well I’ve seen what can happen when someone is at the wrong place at the wrong time.” Cina said, and I think that was the most genuine statement. “No one wants to get hurt or hurt someone but it happens.”

He went quiet, and I figured something happened. One of them hurt someone.

“Who did it?” I wanted to know who made him paranoid.

He took a breath.

“I was the first to change...and I...I didn’t know what was happening, and my mom knew how to help, but she was standing too close and I...”

I stayed quiet and didn’t move. He’s paranoid because he hurt his mom. And I know he didn’t mean to, but it just happened. I began to feel bad. Cina just doesn’t want anyone else to get hurt.

“I’m sorry.” I said quietly.

We sat in silence for a moment. I hadn’t realized how touchy this subject was for him until he was silent. This is why he’s so adamant about keeping me away. There doesn’t need to be another incident.

“It’d be wrong of me to say that everything is okay.” Cina said. “And it would be worse if I turned a blind eye.”

“He won’t...hurt me.” I wanted to be sure.

“Keep telling yourself that.” He wasn’t.

“Ty said he wanted to figure himself out.” I said. “If you know he’s struggling, why don’t you help him?” I asked.

“He doesn’t need help. He needs time.”

“How long?”

“No amount of time would make it safe for you.” He said quietly.

I feel bad for Cina, I do, but it won’t change my mind. I was interested in Ty, I want to be his friend, maybe even more than friends. And I don’t want to leave him alone while he’s struggling to get things together. I want to help him. I want to be there for him.

Cina doesn’t like that but it won’t change anything.

“Why can’t you just let it go and pretend all this wasn’t happening?” he asked.

“I’m not crazy.”

He was the first one to make it seem like I was crazy. I know I’m not. I know what I saw, and it was rude of him to make it seem like I was lying. But I had to think about how serious he thought this was. No one should know what they were. “No one would ever believe you.” he said.

“I wouldn’t tell anyone.” I said and moved to face him. He’s so worried that I’ll talk, or get hurt.

Why does he want to be so reclusive for?

“Ty doesn’t even like me that much.” I said to him as I moved my hair back. “And it’s not like I’m going to jump in to a relationship with him because he told me he had things to figure out first.”

“So stay away.” It seemed like a logical solution to him.

“I want to help.”

“You don’t know anything-”

“I don’t have to know anything to be a friend.” I said to him.

“That’s definitely not what you’re trying to be.” He said. I wanted to know how he knows. “You smell just like him.” He whispered because of my shock.

“Y-yeah cause-”

“You don’t have to lie to me. I already know what’s going on.” The way he sounded was sly. And I know that look on his face.

My face was getting hot, and it’s because he put me on the spot. I don’t like that Cina caught on, if there was anything to catch on to. What’s worse is that I think he has something different in mind. Cina is terrible. I need to wash all of my clothes.

“Well, it’s been fun, sweetheart-”

“Gabriel.” I corrected him quickly, still flustered.

“I’ll see you again soon.” He said as he got up from the couch.

“You’re going out in this weather?”

“How do you think I got here?” He turned back to look at me. Right. I take back my question.

If he wants to go out in a storm, then that’s on him and I won’t say anything. I caught myself about to tell him to be careful. I kept my lips tightly shut.

It was dark so I didn’t exactly get to see the expression on his face. But he paused for a second, just looking at me. It would’ve made me uncomfortable before, but knowing what I know, I wasn’t that bothered. At least I think I wasn’t.

He turned away before I could ask what his problem was.

He was out the door after that.

So now I was alone in the house. There was no power and it was getting cold. I had a few blankets on the couch so I sat there quietly by myself.

I didn’t talk to Ty today. Would he get mad if I called him. I could tell him that his brother came to threaten me but it wasn’t really an issue. I wonder what he would say to that.

I was surprised he picked up the phone on the first ring.

“How are you?” I asked when he muttered a hello through the phone.

“It’s just another fever.” He said quietly.

“You’re still fighting it?”

“It gets worse and worse the more I fight it.”

One day, he’s going to have to. The physical strain is hurting him. I could hear it in his voice. He sounded like he was in pain, and I bet his face would show that too.

“Cina was just here.” I said quietly. Ty immediately apologized on his behalf. “He told me everything that happened.” I said.

“Oh.”

“How’s your mom?”

“She’s recovering fine.” He said. “She had a few gash marks across her body, but they healed. She still wakes up every morning to make Cina breakfast to make him feel better about it, but he’s suffering on the inside.”

I can’t imagine what it’s like for Cina considering what happened. I’m sure everyone and his mother knows that it was an accident.

“She was actually excited. She called all her friends to tell them she has eight wolf children.”

“You get it from her side?”

“Yeah, it’s her side of the family that’s nuts.” He sighed.

It’s crazy that he and his brothers turn into wolves. He doesn’t seem to like it much, and I know that based on how he makes his facial expressions about it. This time, I heard it in his voice. He didn’t ask for any of this. Now he has to live with it. I didn’t want to upset him.

“I don’t know if I’m right, but I think Cina might’ve been flirting.”

“He probably was.” Ty did not hesitate to say that. “He usually starts out with some sad story so you feel bad about him, then he uses that to make a move.”

“You use that, too?”

“Wouldn’t even try it.” He made up his mind about it without thinking about it.

I laughed quietly to myself, and I heard him laugh, too. I hadn’t heard him do that so it made me smile. These past few days have been hard on him so it’s nice to know that something got him to laugh for once.

“Did your power go out?” he asked.

“Yeah, it did. I’m home by myself.”

He didn’t say anything for a second. I thought he wanted to change the subject again so I waited. Then he spoke quietly.

“Do you...want me to come over?” He asked.

“In this weather?”

“It’s up to you-”

“You asked.” I said quickly so he doesn’t put it on me. When he didn’t answer, I figured that he wasn’t going to fight me about it. “I’ll get clothes for you to wear.” I said, basically inviting him over.

It didn’t take him that long to get here. I wasn’t going to watch him get dressed like last time. I put clothes in the basement and kept the door unlocked, so whenever he got here, he could do what he needed to. I stayed curled up on the couch under the many blankets I had. I had blown out a few of the candles so there were only some of them lit around the shelves.

I could read or study, but I didn’t want to.

When Ty came up, he sat on the couch next to me. I could already feel the heat of his body, and I absolutely had to have him under the blanket to keep me warm. I wouldn’t make it through the night if he wasn’t here.

We talked about things, well I talked about things mostly, but he chimed in when he had something to add. He has his interests, and when I get them, he talks more. Then I asked about his family on his mother’s side, and he told me stories about them.

He told me about what his mother would say to him when he and his siblings were younger, the story about wolves who protected their land and their people.

He and his brothers never thought it would be true.

At some point we fell asleep. I don’t remember who fell asleep first. All that happened was that I opened my eyes and he was leaning on me. His body heat was making me sweat. My hair was mashed to my skin, my clothes were also sticking to me. I tried to move but Ty was heavy against me.

“Ty,” I groaned. “You’re making me sweat.” I needed to get him off me.

He muttered something quietly as he began to move off me. He shifted the other way and pulled the blanket over his body. I lifted the blanket as I leaned over on him, my head resting on his shoulder. I kept the blanket up over me but I needed air around my face. It was uncomfortable laying on him this way, but I barely moved.

The heat was on, I assumed the power came back on during the night. The sun was bright outside, and the light was coming in through the window. I bet everything was white from the snow storm. I sighed quietly as I stared up at the high ceiling. I wanted to go back to sleep just like Ty did but now I was wide awake.

My phone was vibrating on the coffee table. I already knew it was my mom. I reached for the phone, but didn’t want to get out from under the blanket. Ty didn’t stir when I stretched to get my phone.

“Morning, Mom.” I muttered quietly.

“How is everything?” She asked me.

“The power came back on so I’m not cold anymore.” I told her.

“I should be home in an hour. I’m bringing breakfast.” she sounded tired, and that’s what happens when she has to stay overnight. Just wait till my dad comes back, he’ll definitely be able to write a book with how many complaints he’ll have.

“Okay, see you soon.” I said quietly.

I moved my phone when she hung up. I didn’t reach the coffee table so it fell on the rug. I got under the blankets again, blocking the light that was bright in the house. I don’t know what I’m going to say if Ty stays here when my mom gets back. I wanted to go back to sleep, but I know I have to get Ty up so he can leave.

“My parents are coming.” I said.

I might’ve been talking to myself, but I hoped he heard me.

He groaned quietly, but that was it. He didn’t move and neither did I. We had time, but Ty definitely had to get out of here, and we both know he wasn’t driving.

“I’m up.” he muttered.

“You should get going.” I said but he didn’t move. I don’t think he’s up. I didn’t try to get him up.

We stayed on the couch a bit longer and I liked it.

It wasn’t till another twenty minutes later that he started to shuffle under the blanket again. When he moved, I had to. We both sat up on the couch slowly, and he moved his arms to stretch a bit.

“Okay, I’ll go.” He said as he got up.

I got up, too. He turned sharply to look at me. I didn’t know what the problem was so I stopped moving. Did he not want me to come down with him to the basement?

“I’ve seen you naked twice, Ty-”

“That’s too many times.” He didn’t like that.

What’s a third time going to do?

I sighed.

“Be careful.” I said.

He still waited for me to go do something else. The plain expression on his face was what made me want to leave. He doesn’t have to stare like that.

He was paranoid enough and I didn’t want to upset him. I just turned away and went to the kitchen. I wasn’t going to follow him down to the basement to see him shift. That should put him at ease.

I distracted myself by trying to find any spoiled food in the fridge. It was only a minute before I heard a wolf howl coming from outside. I paused to go by the window to see the white wolf walking in the snow, going towards the forest.