The Divide

Chapter 5

A pang of nervousness hit me as I struck Thorn's front door with the back of my paw. I knew that he wasn't too keen on having visitors, and that I was already on thin ice with him. It was a necessary visit, however. I quickly suppressed my nervous ticks, and gathered my confidence, as I heard Thorn patter over to the door.

"Thomas?" questioned Thorn as he cracked the door open. "What are you doing here?"

I took a tentative step forward and replied, "My apologies for disturbing you, Thorn. There's just a few things I'd like to talk to you about...in private."

Thorn reared his head curiously and furrowed his brows. With a sympathetic nod, he opened the door widely, and motioned for me to enter his home. "Come inside. Let me get you something to drink, and we can speak in confidence," he said comfortingly.

"You know where to go, right?" Thorn asked, as he closed the door behind me.

I nodded, "Of course. This place hasn't changed at all."

Thorn let out a chuckle. "Alright then. Let me grab a couple of beers. You can head into the living room."

I did as I was told, while Thorn veered towards the kitchen. With a slow pace, I made my way down the wide hallway in front of me until I reached Thorn's living room. The room was kept extremely clean, which surprised me because Thorn lived alone. Most of his furniture was white, which always made me a little cautious. I never wanted to get any strands of fur on Thorn's perfect white couch. There was a bookshelf on the farthest wall, which filled with stories and textbooks of all kinds. Out of curiosity I strode over to the shelf and looked more closely at the titles of the books.

"I remember you used to read those books like they were going to be gone the next day," Thorn said as he walked into the living room.

I turned to see Thorn with a beer in each of his paws. He was beckoning me back towards the middle of the room and holding a can out for me to grab. I quickly maneuvered around the couch and grabbed a beer from Thorn's paws. Then, I placed myself on the other side of Thorn's coffee table and rested as carefully as I could on his couch.

"I haven't seen those books in a while," I muttered. "It brings back memories."

"You haven't dropped by my place in a while," added Thorn. "You know, you're always welcome to stop by. Your room is exactly how you left it."

"Messy?" I questioned with a chuckle.

"No, your room was fine," he chuckled. He then sighed and looked down at the coffee table in front of him. With a raised eyebrow, he said, "You know...you didn't have to leave."

"I know," I replied sternly. "I just--"

"I'm not your dad...I get it...but I knew him well, and he trusted me to make sure that you had the tools to become a self-reliant adult."

"And you did your job..."

"Of course, I did! I just...I figured that I was more than just your caretaker. I had hoped to be like...a father to you. I mean...hell...it's not like I was asking you to call me your dad or anything. I was just hoping for more of a bond between us. Lately, it's been like you don't even want to have anything to do with me."

I scratched the fur on the top of my head and let out an uncomfortable sigh. "I'm sorry, Thorn. You know that I'm grateful for everything you've done for me. I guess it's just that I don't want the other wolves to assume anything."