Claws // Colby Brock

💫 61 💫

☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎☯︎

I couldn't help it. With everything on my mind, I was avoiding Colby.

It started when he eventually came downstairs last of the group by almost four whole hours, and naturally he came over to sit with me. I'd made up some sudden excuse to have to run off.

Then he came to find me for training. I watched it all go down from the sidelines, shuffling every time he tried to wrap me up like he always did when neither of us were fighting.

I'd yet to be asked what was wrong, but I could tell Colby knew something was up. The most recent circumstance, when he offered no more than his hand on the couch, I instead pulled my phone from my pocket like I hadn't even seen it and his head had turned to me. He'd watched me for a short while, just staring while everyone else was distracted. I couldn't even find anything to look at and ended up lightly crossing my arms on my lap with my phone still in one hand and my shirt in the other.

It was only a matter of time until he snapped — I knew that then and I still knew it. Escaping upstairs wasn't gonna do me any favours. If anything, I'd screwed myself.

With my back to the bedroom door, I didn't notice him until he slammed it loudly, which probably alerted everybody downstairs as well as me. I spun around in surprise, meeting his eyes for only a second before beginning to turn again. But he didn't let me. His hands wrapped carefully around mine, his eyes burning down at me.

"The fuck's wrong with you?" he snapped, brows furrowed. I wasn't going to get away with avoiding him. Not today, not ever again.

Ashamed, I glanced up to meet his gaze and muttered, "I've got a lot on my mind."

"We all do. It's no excuse." He slid his hands around my waist instead, pulling me entirely to his chest without hesitation or a care in the world. I felt the warmth of his emotions from having me this close, even when he was angry. "What's going on? You're not gonna keep disrespecting me like that."

"I'm just... under a lot of pressure," I murmured in embarrassment. It felt silly, all of it. "I'm sorry for avoiding you, it's hard to sort out my own thoughts when you're around."

Pouting, I tried my luck with puppy eyes, but he wasn't falling for it just yet. He wanted to know exactly what was bothering me so badly, which I supposed I'd have to tell him. Perhaps I'd get lucky and he'd say no for me, as it appeared my mind had changed.

"Tell me," he demanded, his voice softening just barely.

I sighed. "Cassie caught me early in the evening today... and she brought something up that I've been ignoring for a while."

"Which is?"

"The feeding situation. Specifically, that everyone else will be at full strength aside from you because I don't want you to bite me." My eyes had found the floor again now as I tried hard not to completely crumble under the pressure his own stare was putting on me. I felt the need to tell the complete truth. "She was pushing me to let you do it so you don't get hurt if we face anyone like Paula."

"What?"

Colby's deadly snarl immediately caught my attention. He let go of me so fast I barely had time to catch his wrist before he could run off and kill Cassie for her prying. Although he stood still, he was looking at the door ready to zip out the first chance he got. I made it my duty to never give him that chance.

"Colby, she's thinking of me, too. If something happens to you, it will affect me. Putting aside my own feelings, the mate bond will wreck me and it may just be both of us falling in battle. She has a point... I just never wanted to admit it before."