cloud

Raiden was sad.

After his parents left, Raiden had locked himself in the bathroom and after what felt like an eternity, he finally came out and sat in the living room with me. He tried to offer me a smile, but anyone with eyes could see that it was fake. Not to mention he was quiet — too quiet.

The scene from earlier plays back in my mind. Raiden was a carbon copy of his mother other than the fact that he was male. They shared the same features and yet they were so different. The moment I entered the house, I had gone to grab a blanket from Raiden's closet, and there they were. Waiting.

From the moment I saw them, I knew we wouldn't get along. They looked at me as if I was below them — as if I was scum beneath their toes. When they started talking to Raiden, it only confirmed my previous thoughts. They spoke to him as if he wasn't their child, but rather a puppet for them to control and after losing that control, they were doing anything to try and get it back.

I glance over at Raiden again, and he lets out a hollow laugh, causing my brows to furrow.

"Aren't you curious?" He questions without turning to me. "Don't you want to know what they were talking about?"

In truth, I was curious, but who am I to interrogate him when I get mad whenever he asks a question about my past?

"You don't have to say anything," I tell him instead.

Silence fills the room and neither of us moves to break it. Gripping the remote, I turn the T.V. up and rest my head against the arm of the couch.

"I did you know," I say quietly.

Raiden turns to me and his brows furrow together. "You what?"

"Come from a pack. I was a part of a pack before I came here."

Raiden stares at me, eyes swimming with an unfamiliar emotion. "Why'd you leave?" He asks before shaking his head. "You don't have to answer that."

Shrugging my shoulders I look up at the ceiling. "I never really...fit in."

Honestly, even if I wasn't kidnapped I probably would've left the pack a long time ago. I often wondered just how different my life could've been if the kidnapping had never happened. Would I have joined a new pack or Lived in the human territory? Both ideas were highly unlikely and didn't sound like me, but it was still interesting to think about.

"I get that," Raiden said with a small smile. "When I was younger, the idea of leaving here was never something I even thought about. But the older I got, the more the idea began to appeal to me — getting away from my family, and all the expectations and actually enjoy my life. When I left home to search for my mate, it was probably one of the most liberating experiences but when I returned home I was reminded of all those back here who expected things from me, all my friends who would be sad if I left and I guess I just gave up on the idea."

Raiden ran his hand through his dark hair and shook his head.

"Somedays, I just think about leaving it all behind. Just packing up, leaving, and never looking back, but there's always some reason—some excuse—for why I can't," he turns and his eyes meet mine. "But if anything good has come out of not leaving, it's that I got to meet you, Cloud. I know that we still don't know each other, but if you're willing to let me, I want to get to know more about you."

A bitter smile forms on my face. "Raiden, I'm so much more fucked up than you even know. Nothing good will come out of you spending more time with me."

"Some already have."

"You just got into an argument with your parents because of me," I remind him.

Raiden shakes his head and his own smile begins to form. "That wasn't because of you. That was always going to happen, it just happened faster than expected."

"Trouble has a bad habit of following me," I warn.

Raiden shrugs his shoulders. "I don't care."

"Raiden—"

Raiden stands up and moves towards me. He takes a seat beside me on the couch and I turn to face him. His face is serious as he stares at me.

"I don't expect you to be some perfect saint, Cloud. Everyone has their demons, but I'm not going to let that scare me away. I don't expect you to suddenly start liking me, or like me at all, but give me a chance to show you that I care."

I stare at him uncertainly. In the short time that I've been here, I can't deny that I've grown accustomed to Raiden's presence. It's easy to be comfortable around him, but if today proved anything it was staying around him could lead to more harm than good.

I open my mouth to reply to Raiden, but the words die in my mouth. If it was anyone else, I wouldn't be hesitating like this.

"Raiden..." I trail off.

"You don't have to give me an answer. Just think about it, okay?" Raiden says with a slight smile. He stands up and stretches before looking down at me. "You didn't really eat anything earlier, I'll make you something."

Raiden doesn't wait for my answer before he makes his way to the kitchen, my eyes follow him for a minute before I turn back toward the T.V. but my attention is no longer focused on the show. Slumping against the couch, I silently sigh to myself and shake my head. My brows furrow and I rest my head in the palms of my hands. I can hear Raiden digging around in the kitchen and fighting the urge to groan.

What the hell was that?