Sam

Sam woke up to the smell of delicious pancakes. At first he was groggy but soon bits and pieces from last night came back to him. He groaned remembering how he had thrown up in Rick's car. He looked around the room and realized he wasn't in his house. He looked down and saw the oversize clothes, the lingering smell of Rick in his bed. Sam frowned seeing the left side of the bed all haphazard. Was Rick sleeping with him? The prospect made his heart thump hard, sending tingles in the bottom of his spine. Or maybe it was the urge to pee.

Sam went to the bathroom, did his morning business, brushed his teeth with a new brush Rick had left for him by the sink then went out following the smell of the pancakes.

"Good Morning," Rick greeted with a big smile.

"Good Morning," Sam mumbled. "I am sorry for last night." he said biting his lips, not meeting his eyes.

"You don't have to apologize but promise me you won't go back there ever again. What the heck were you doing there anyway?"

Sam looked up not liking his tone. Sam might have made a mistake but it was his life, he could date anyone he wanted. Rick of all people didn't have the right to stop him from doing anything.

"It was a date that went wrong. The dude catfished me." Sam answered as matter of factly, pouring a generous amount of syrup on his pancake.

"Well, that's understandable. Who brings their date of a place like that? Aren't you too young to date?" Rick's question made Sam choke on the food. Sam looked up at him, astonished. Is that what Rick thought of him, that he was too young?

"I am old enough to choose the president of the country. I am sure I can choose a date."

"Yeah, we saw how that went for you," Rick huffed, a frown wrinkling his forehead.

"Stop patronising me. I am not a child. I have been on my own for the last three years, I am sure I can manage." Sam restrained himself from groaning at the sweet taste of the pancakes.

"Can't you find someone your age or something?"

Sam stared at Rick, giving him a deadly glare. Should he tell Rick he loved older men because they reminded him of Rick. Maybe not.

"I don't want to discuss this anymore." Sam ended the conversation by putting the last bit of pancake in his mouth and chewing it.

"Fine." Rick walked out from the other side of the kitchen counter and stood before him. "I won't always be there to rescue you, Sam. You need to learn to fight the danger yourself." Rick's eyes bore down on SAm and he had to gulp down the knot in his throat. This close he could smell fresh soap Rick must have showered with.

"I didn't ask you to take care of me, Rick." Sam said, craning his head to look at him.

"I know. But I am your trainer and as long as you are training under me, you are my responsibility." Rick took his chin and tripped his head up higher. "This is the last time I am tolerating your mistakes. Next time, there will be punishment."

"You won't..." Sam's words died down in his throat as Rick squeezed his cheeks together.

"Try me, Sam." Rick warned. The thick honey in Rick's voice, the warning, the threat was all making Sam hungry. Sam squirmed in his seat, his eyes taking Rick's stubbled jaw, his supple lips and the blue eyes which almost turned oceanic under the sun.

Sam bought his tongue out and licked his lower lip. Rick's eyes traced the movement and slowly let go of him.

"I have clean dried your clothes. Change and go home." Rick turned around and went to his room, leaving Sam achy all over.

***

Sam went home and the first thing he did was delete his account from the dating site. He changed into the new training attire he had bought and went to the training.

"The first rule of self-defence is sensing the danger. Your body has a way of telling you if something is wrong. It's biological, more so for us werewolves. Avoid fights if you can, remove yourself from the situation where you might be in danger, if that doesn't work use the techniques I showed you." Rick's eyes flickered to Sam for a second before going back to the rest of the class.

Each time Sam looked at Rick every cell in his body came alive. Like it was on fire, how was he supposed to ignore this feeling. It was messing with his head and if he continued to feel this way he wouldn't be able to learn a thing. It was when Rick was showing him ways to defend when someone was attacking him, Sam decided to give in. He knew Rick would never be his, not even in a million year but he couldn't live with this gawking need inside his body. He had to do something about it. It can go two ways, either he would be ignored and told to move on and the second he would be thrown from the class. He wished for the former.

As the class came to an end, Sam waited for the students to clear out before he followed Rick to his office. Rick frowned when Sam told him, he needed to talk to him.

"What is it?" Rick asked, irritated as he sat on his chair.

"I need to get this out of my system or I will go insane."

"Just say it!" Rick snapped, going through his computer.

"I like you Rick." Sam blurted out.

"What?" Rick didn't sound surprised, insead he was angry as he pried his eyes away from the computer screen and focussed them on Sam.

"I like you. I have always liked you."

Rick sighed. "Look, I don't know what this bullshit is all about. You think you are the first to say that to me? Honestly, I am fed up with these love confessions from you teenagers. Just go home." Rick dismissed him as if Sam hadn't just served his heart in a platter to Rick.

Sam gritted his teeth angry beyond measure. The way Rick dismissed his advances, not even telling him that he was sorry he couldn reciprocate his feelings, made Sam itch for a reaction.

"So you don't mind if I get hard every time you touch me?" Maybe Sam was pushing it but he needed something. Anything was better than his ignorance.

He saw Rick grit his teeth before he looked up at Sam. "You are eighteen, even a gust of wind can make you hard."

Sam couldn't believe Rick had so little regard to his advances. "Okay then. Thank you for listening to me. See you in the next class." Sam turned around and left his office, closing the door behind him with an extra force.