Chapter 30
30
Wraith
A fter the social worker left, I headed outside to look for Xander. I didn’t have to go far. He was sitting on the back steps with Thor, his expression guarded when he looked up at me.
“Is she gone?”
I nodded. “Yeah. She’s gone.”
I wanted to ask what made him lash out like that, but I could tell how upset he was about it. It felt like the wrong time.
“Mel wants to take you shopping. Feeling up for it?”
He grimaced and wouldn’t look away from Thor. The last time we brought up buying him new clothes, he got awkward too. I could tell he wanted something new, but he didn’t seem like he wanted to be a burden. What was I supposed to say to get him to believe me when I said I didn’t mind?
We sat in silence for a little while, with me casting for different ways to reassure him and coming up empty. If I was talking to Prez, I’d ask him for advice, but outside of the Mel issue, I was still pissed at him for scaring Xander. The next time we spoke, we’d have words about that .
The back door opened, and Mel poked her head out, tipping her head at us. “Everything okay?”
I was going to nod, but I checked with Xander first. He still looked upset, but it didn’t feel directed at me. When I raised an eyebrow at him, he nodded.
“Yeah, we’re good,” I told her. “What crazy thing are you having us do today?”
She snorted, leaning against the doorframe. “Oh, it’ll be awful. You’ll hate me by the end of it. But that’s for later. This morning is for shopping. We never got a chance yesterday.”
Xander looked up at her, curiosity intermixed with the apprehension on his face. “What are we doing?”
“You’ll see,” she said with a wink. “Come on. Time to get dressed. It takes time to build a new wardrobe.”
It was hard to resist that woman, so we both ended up heading inside to get dressed. I didn’t love shopping and did it sparingly, but Xander needed it and I wasn’t going to let Mel pay for it. Which meant I had to go. I masked my annoyance, pulling on my club jacket. I never went anywhere without it. In the summer, we all had cuts, but it was chilly enough to wear the jacket now.
When Xander came downstairs, he was wearing the sweatshirt I gave him the day before. I studied him with a frown.
“Do you have a jacket?”
He shrugged. “No, but it’s fine. It’s a lot warmer here than it is at home.”
True. It still felt like a good idea to get him a jacket. It stayed pretty nice during the day, but nights could get cold enough to need one.
Mel came downstairs last, her hair all bouncy with curls and her makeup done. She never overdid it with the stuff, which was nice. She looked perfect without it. I’d seen her at the end of long shifts and she still looked beautiful.
“Alright, let’s boogie. I’ve been meaning to pick up some new clothes. This is a fantastic excuse.” She linked arms with Xander, giving Thor a pat on her way out. I already had a chew toy filled with peanut butter to keep him occupied while we were gone, but I didn’t give it to him until we were actually on our way out the door. He wandered off, happy as can be, and we headed out to Melissa’s car. When I made a face, Mel stuck her tongue out at me and laughed when I flipped her off.
It made me hopeful about our relationship. We were still friends. Had been for a long time. But now I didn’t have to pretend I didn’t want more.
“Oh, look! This store is having a sale!”
Xander and I groaned together. We were closing in on hour four of the shopping. Mel seemed to have boundless energy, flitting from store to store without stopping. She didn’t let up with her incessant suggestions until Xander caved and told her what he liked and what he didn’t. Most of the clothes she bought were a little loose because of the malnutrition, but she seemed to know how to shop based on what he’d need after he was a healthier weight. I’d buy him more if he grew out of them, but I think it made him feel better that he wouldn’t immediately need a new wardrobe when he put the weight back on.
Mel looked over her shoulder at us, her grin mischievous. “What? Too much?”
“You’re doing it on purpose,” I griped.
She waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t be such a baby. It’s not that bad. He needs clothes!”
It was Xander who finally got through to her. Mostly because he slumped heavily against my arm and whimpered. “How much longer?”
Her expression softened, and she took a step away from the entryway to the next store. “Alright, alright. Two against one. I get it. How about we stop for lunch? Get some energy back. Then we can get the last of the necessities. Underwear, socks, and shoes. Two stores max.”
Since I knew she could keep up that high energy for hours thanks to her job, I nudged Xander into agreeing. “Say yes, so we can be done.”
He snorted, smirking at me before nodding. “Food first. Please.”
I’d noticed more than once that Xander was really polite for a kid his age. Skylar’s older kids were only a little younger than him, but they didn’t always remember to say please or thank you. I didn’t mind, they showed their appreciation in other ways, but it did make me wonder what, other than Jorge not liking kids, made the stupid bastard kick the kid out. He hadn’t caused trouble since he showed up, and the only fight we had was when I was asking how he got here. That was mostly my fault for not communicating better. Why would someone send him away?
“Onward to food then,” she said dramatically, linking arms with Xander again. All three of us were loaded down with bags, but he didn’t seem to mind. He liked her, which was good because if I had my way, she’d be around a while. She was right, it was too early for her to move in with me, but I didn't think it’d take that long. We didn’t have to get to know each other because we’d known each other for years. A couple of months to see if we could handle a relationship and then I’d be asking her to move in. Why wait when I already knew she was the one?
We bypassed the food court since I wanted Xander to eat healthier than that. I knew most kids his age loved fast food, and I didn’t have anything against it. Later, though. When he wasn’t so malnourished.
“Why are people looking at us like that?” he murmured, shrinking in on himself. I hadn’t noticed anyone looking at us until he mentioned it, but now that I was paying attention, we were getting a lot of dirty looks. Or more specifically, I was.
“They’re looking at me, not you.”
He lifted his head to give me a confused look. “What? Why?”
I sighed heavily, annoyed, but not at him. This shit was old hat for me and I got so used to it, I didn’t even notice anymore. I forgot that I needed to warn him about it.
“People in town assume our club is dangerous. If we’re wearing our club logo, they automatically think we’re here to cause trouble. It’s got nothing to do with you.”
Maybe. They could think I was responsible for his injuries. The bruises were starting to fade, but they were still easily visible. Since he was with me and they assumed I was dangerous, they probably assumed I was the one who hurt him.
That pissed me off. Just the thought of putting my hands on Xander made me sick to my stomach. I would rather chop off my own arms than hurt him. I glared at everyone who stared at us, sending a few scurrying away in fear.
“That’s not helping,” Mel said, poking me in the ribs. “Just ignore them. We know who you are. That’s all that should matter.”
I grunted to acknowledge her, and when she threaded her fingers with mine, I settled a little. I hated the way the town saw us, but there wasn’t anything I could do about it. Mel was right, it was better to ignore it.
The restaurant Mel dragged us to was a little Japanese place on the far end of the mall. It wasn’t crowded, which was nice, since even I was feeling a little hungry at that point. They seated us right away and handed out menus, the waiter bouncing on his toes as he happily explained the specials.
“I’ll give you guys a minute to look over the menu and be back with your drinks,” he said before wandering off.
Xander was practically hiding behind his menu. I assumed it was because of the way people were looking at us before and I felt bad about it. I should’ve thought to warn him.
“Would you rather eat at home?” I didn’t want people upsetting him and ruining his appetite. It was more important to me that he ate than us finishing this endless shopping excursion.
Xander looked up, surprised. “What? No. Why?”
Mel seemed to agree because she frowned at me. “Don’t let them get to you, Mattias. They’re misinformed and they’ll get over it.”
It never usually bothered me, but I didn't have anyone to look out for before except for myself. Xander was just a kid. I didn’t want him dragged down with club issues or isolated because he was related to me. But there was nothing I could do about that now, and I didn’t want to ruin their lunches. I let it go, since they both seemed to be fine with it.
“So, Xander. What’s your favorite subject in school?” Mel asked jovially.
He winced, frowning at his menu. “I’m not… great with school.”
“Neither was I,” I said as I took a sip of my water.
He looked surprised, whipping his head up. “Really?”
I nodded. “There was too much shit going on at home for me to be able to focus on studying. Pretty sure the only reason I passed high school was because I was basically living with Mel and Wyatt at that point. The less I went home, the more I felt like I could breathe and think about something other than– ”
“Excuse me,” a rough voice interrupted. “We’ve received reports of a possible domestic abuse victim.”
Xander blanched and shrank in his seat.
“Officer, I don’t think you understand–” Mel began.
“I’m going to need you to calm down, ma’am. My first priority is to get the boy somewhere safe. Son, I’m going to need you to come with me.”