To Feel Again [Welcome To Wolf's Peak]

Chapter Seventeen - Adrian

Adrian

Now that we lived together Niko found it harder to hide away from us. Owen didn't push him for answers about his behaviour but I could tell he was worried about him. He had every reason to be worried if I'd picked up the small snippet of conversation I'd overheard him having with a baby correctly. 

"...you'll be a beauty one day. My baby would have been beautiful too, have you seen its other daddy? He's very handsome! Sometimes things happen for a reason, you'll learn that as you get older, but I don't know what the reason was-"

Whatever else he'd been about to say was cut off when Owen had called out to him. I had my growing suspicions of what was wrong. I hoped like hell I was wrong though or we'd all be left brokenhearted. 

Ginny had left to catch the school bus and Owen was still at work for another few hours so I took the opportunity to corner Niko. "Hey, babe." I walked into the bedroom where he was lying on the bed reading something on his tablet.

"Hi," he said eyeing me warily as he placed the tablet on the bedside table.

We'd had to replace Owen's old bed with something bigger. In our rush to move in none of us had realized how difficult it would be for three grown men to sleep comfortably in it. After the third time one of us had rolled over and fallen to the floor we'd gone bed shopping. We'd spared no expense on the frame and the mattress.

I climbed onto the bed and sat beside beside him. "What's going on?" I asked cutting to the chase. I wished Owen could be here but he'd just try to talk me out of a confrontation and that was exactly what Niko needed to force him to open up, a confrontation.

"Not much, I'm just reading a book. I feel tired so I thought I'd read before taking a nap." Niko sat up with his back to the headboard.

"You haven't been sleeping properly lately." It wasn't a question, I knew he slept fitfully most nights. I ran the pad of my thumb over the dark circle beneath one of his eyes.

"I'm still getting used to being in a new house and a new bed." It was a reasonable answer and I might have believed him if there wasn't an underlying sadness in his eyes.

"Maybe," I chose my words carefully. "You haven't been yourself for weeks now though. And I heard you talking to the baby about-"

Niko jumped from the bed his feet hitting the floor hard. "I don't want to talk about this," he yelled cutting me off."

"You might not want to talk but I can tell that whatever is wrong is tearing you apart inside. Talk to me Niko. I'm your mate and I'm here for you no matter what. We're supposed to share things especially when one of us is hurting and I know you're hurting." I rounded the bed to stand in front of him and my palms itched to take hold of him. He was larger than me in weight and height but right now he looked so small as I saw the first cracks begin to appear in the mask he'd been trying to wear.

"I can't talk about it," his voice cracked on the last word and I believed him that it was a case of can't and not won't talk about it.

"I think you need to. If it's what I think then you need to say the words before you can start to heal." I was dreading hearing those words, they'd hit me hard and I knew it but I needed to be strong for Niko.

"I-you already know," he tried to argue but I wouldn't let him.

"You need to say it Niko."

"I was-it didn't-" Niko blew out a frustrated breath. "I can't say it!"

"Say it Niko!" I used a sterner tone of voice this time letting him know that I wasn't going to drop this.

"I was pregnant!" he yelled at the top of his voice. "There! Are you happy now? I was pregnant but it didn't hold." He sobbed the last word.