System of a Wolf - 24. Chapter 24

The drive home was one of the longest drives of Varen’s life.

Which didn’t mean much, when most of his driving had happened because Erith had gotten drunk. Not common, but enough that Varen had learned to drive to deal with it.

He still hated it, but Varen knew better than to get rid of the alcohol in the house. Erith would just assume he drank it all in a black out and go buy more. And Varen really didn’t want to explain that every time the other elf got drunk, Varen was left to deal with the consequences.

Pulling into their drive, Varen parked carefully, finally letting the tension drain from his body. He had his own way of relaxing, as long as Lynn wasn’t hovering like she usually did.

The elf stepped out of the car, making sure to lock it behind him. He made his way inside, heading immediately to his phone. Dealing with his own stress could wait. Someone needed to help Blake. Varen didn’t believe for one second that Adam wasn’t fucking with the mage. It was what those people did, making their victims feel just good enough that they wouldn’t complain when the fucking began. And he would not let it happen.

Dialing a number, Varen waited for the neko on the other side to answer.

“Master Ian’s office-”

“Hi, I need to speak with Dr. Marin. It’s an emergency,” Varen interrupted.

“Dr. Marin is in class-”

“He will want to speak to me. Tell him it’s about Blake.”

There was a heavy sigh on the other side of the phone, followed by a quiet ringing. A moment later, the ringing stopped, Dr. Marin’s voice offering a confused greeting.

“Dr. Marin, this is Erith. I just had a conversation with Adam Lenair, who has taken Blake to the aquarium,” Varen said sharply.

“The aquarium? Huh, I didn’t think he’d take him there,” Dr. Marin muttered.

“You knew about this?! Dr. Marin, certainly you know who that man is.”

“He is someone who is trying to make up for a mistake he made,” Dr. Marin said firmly. “It is my belief that Blake has the right to choose his friends. And when a friend ghosts him after kicking him out of their house-”

“I never ghosted him!” Varen protested, feeling a mental kick from Erith.

It was a horrible time to switch, and he prayed Gara understood that. Not that Erith couldn’t slip past the wolf.

Information trickled through, memories from Erith as the other elf drew closer. Varen felt the pressure of co-fronting, and he squeezed his eyes shut as his mouth started moving on its own.

“I left Blake several messages. I must have called him at least ten times, and he never answered,” Erith said, pacing through the house.

He had no idea what Varen had been doing at the aquarium. Erith hadn’t given the elf permission to use the car.

“Oh fuck off-”

“Excuse me?” Dr. Marin said sharply.

Erith’s mouth clamped shut, anxiety bubbling over. This was getting worse. Varen was trying to use his body while he was using it, and things were getting far too complicated.

“I’m sorry, that wasn’t meant for you,” he said quickly through the phone.

Silently, the elf fumed at Varen. One person at a time. The last thing they needed was to freak people out.

“I am in the middle of class right now, Erith. Blake knows how to take care of himself. If Adam took him to the aquarium on a date, that is none of your concern,” Dr. Marin said quietly. “If there is nothing else you have to tell me, then I will be getting back to work.”

“No sir,” Erith replied, properly chastised.

“Then I will be expecting another call from you tonight, and I will make sure Blake answers. If you want closure, you will get it, but I would not expect Blake to come back to you. Mistakes were made, and that is something you will have to work out with him.”

“Yes sir. I will be calling him again tonight,” Erith promised.

“Good. I will talk to you later then. Goodbye Erith.”

The phone went dead with a sense of finality, and silence filled the house as the elf ended his side of the call.

“Gods bless it all!” he snapped suddenly, slamming the phone onto the couch. “What the fuck is going on here?!”

‘Well, you wouldn’t listen to me and go talk to Blake, and now he seems to be enamoured with one of the men who raped him as a kid.’

The elf dropped onto the couch with a loud groan, staring blankly at the TV. He had no idea how things had blown up so fast.

“And you expect me to let you have an entire night to yourself,” Erith scoffed.

Varen was silent in his mind, and that worried Erith.

“Wait… Dr. Marin doesn’t teach on Varya…” he frowned, picking up his phone. “Are you shitting me? Eleven on Ordya?”

It was the longest he’d ever been gone as far as he knew, and the elf was not happy. There was so much he had missed, so much he needed to check on. He was lucky he didn’t have any work today himself.

Grumbling, Erith stood up, moving through the house. He was not about to waste time fuming. Not when he could clean the house and be angry at the same time. The elf was quite an expert at multitasking after all.

It was like entering another world. Blake felt almost weightless in the salt water, and yet he still descended slowly. All around him, fish scattered, colourful scales darting into a coral reef near the bottom of the tank.

“Breathe in.”

He followed the reminder automatically, sucking in a breath of canned oxygen. A splash above him made Blake move forward, making space for Adam as the man sank beside him.

“How are you doing?”

It was so weird hearing his voice through what the aquarium diver called a transducer. All around them came bubbling gurgles and pops, the tank alive with a surprising amount of noises. It was almost overwhelming for Blake, but he had promised himself that he would not freak out in front of Adam, and the mage fought against the noise around him.

Their guide was floating in front of them, hands signing even as he spoke into their ears.

“Stay close, and try not to bump anyone with your hands. We already fed the sharks, so they won’t be too hungry right now.”

Blake realized that as big as the tank was on the outside, on the inside it was much smaller. Sediment lined the bottom, the coral stretching out against a back corner. He could see the far end of the tank, clear glass shining in sunlight. An amphitheater was set around the outside of the tank, perfect for shows, though it was empty at the moment.

“Shark incoming.”

The call startled him back into the present, Blake scanning the area carefully. A shiver ran through him as he spotted the shark swimming toward them.

“Hands out,” their guide said as the shark circled in their direction.

He pushed it aside as it came close, and Blake let out a nervous giggle as the giant fish turned towards the newer visitors.

The mage held out his hands as the shark approached. Cold skin bonked into his hand, and he gave a solid push, directing the shark around him with another laugh.

“You okay Blake?” Adam asked again, and he nodded, his nerves bubbling up in his chest.

He was swimming with a shark. He had just touched a shark. The man couldn’t believe it.

“Watch behind you.”

The warning from Adam filtered through his ears as the mage turned. His hands were too slow to avoid this shark, and Blake sent a burst of energy at the shark, knocking it aside as he dropped low.

“That was a close one,” their guide said. “Don’t let him push you around.”

“Yeah…”

Blake’s eyes followed the shark as it swam away. The fish whipped around suddenly, acting so much like Val that the mage let out a low chuckle. Stubborn. He was going to figure out what these new people were doing in his tank.

“I think he likes us,” Adam laughed as Blake knocked the shark away again.

“You’re new here, he’s curious,” their guide said. “But I think it’s about time we got out.”

“Already?” Blake pouted.

“It’s okay, we can probably do this again sometime,” Adam promised as he swam back toward the ladder.

Blake followed reluctantly, watching the sharks out of the corner of his eye. He felt something brush against his legs, and the man gasped at the sight of a long eel winding between his legs. Shuddering at the sensation, the mage pushed away from the creature, grabbing a rung on the ladder and hoisting himself up.

His ears popped slightly as he emerged from the water. Pulling his legs over the edge of the tank, Blake slid down the other side. He stumbled briefly as his feet hit the wet ground, and strong arms wrapped around him securely, his body melting into Adam’s embrace.

“I got you,” the man murmured, gently pulling Blake’s mask off.

Blake’s legs felt a little wobbly, his body heavy and tired. He shivered as the chill in the air hit all at once.

“We need to get out of our suits. If you two are okay with sharing the locker room, we can all get warm much faster.”

“Couldn’t we just pee in our wetsuits to get warm?” Blake frowned at their guide.

The man chuckled, shaking his head.

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t,” he said. “These are just rentals after all.”

“If you want to do that later, I don’t mind,” Adam murmured in Blake’s ear. “I remember what you told me yesterday, and that wouldn’t scare me off. I promise I’ll take good care of you.”

The mage’s face burned, and he pulled away from the man. It took a moment to get out of his gear, and he started back toward the locker room, Adam following close behind.

The door closed behind them securely, and Blake hurried toward his clothes.

“I smell like fish,” he muttered.

“Is that bad? You can take a bath back at my place if you want,” Adam offered, pulling his suit off his shoulders.

Blake’s eyes travelled over the man’s chiselled body, his face burning as his length hardened in his suit. There was no way Adam couldn’t see him, and the mage squeezed his eyes shut, trying to will his body to listen.

“It’s okay, you know. I’m not going to mate you unless you ask me too,” Adam said gently.

Cracking an eye open, Blake whimpered at the sight of a very naked Adam. He wanted to touch him, but he didn’t want to get in trouble. Touching the man would be bad, but he wanted to. No, he needed to.

Years of therapy had told him that what he felt was wrong, what he wanted was wrong. He should be staying far away from this man. And yet the mage stepped toward Adam, as though he weren’t in control of his own body. A hand reached out, running over that sculpted chest, feeling the man’s body. Adam let out a quiet gasp at his touch, the man’s eyes betraying his shock.

“Adam…”

The name felt weird on his tongue, though the body he was touching felt perfect under his hand. Blake’s hand slipped around as he hugged the man, his other hand clasping across Adam’s lower back as he leaned into the man.

“Adam… can… can you kiss me please?” he breathed.

Lips brushed against his own, just a gentle taste. He pressed forward hungrily, needing the contact, the physicality. Everything Erith couldn’t give him.

“Anything for you Puppy,” Adam murmured, before kissing him again.