Chapter 25
Alec
Ican feel Nathan practically vibrating with anxiety as we leave the clinic. Not that I can blame him.
What the doctor had to say was just as bad as we feared.
There’s no miracle cure for our problem, only solutions that either risk our bond, our health, or both of those things.
She told us to take some time and talk with each other about our options.
Her voice had been calm and professional throughout the entire appointment, but I’m sure I could see a flicker of pity in her eyes whenever she’d look at us.
While I desperately want to get this shitty discussion over with, I know trying to talk to Nath about this right now would be pointless. He’s not in the right place to listen. I’ll bring it up once he’s calmed down.
If he calms down, that is.
He’s ridiculously good at holding onto anxiety, at keeping up a level of panic that shouldn’t be sustainable enough to go on for such a prolonged amount of time.
If it wasn’t so worrying, it would honestly be a little impressive.
I don’t understand how his heart is still functioning given how fast it has been beating for most of his life.
That, and the energy drink addiction should’ve killed him by now.
He’s always been intense with his feelings, good or bad. It’s all or nothing with him. It’s a trait I love when it comes to the positive and worry about when it comes to the negative feelings. Especially the ones about himself.
“You wanna stop anywhere, or just head home?” I ask as we make our way down the street from the clinic. “Babe?”
“I don’t need anything,” Nath finally replies in a monotone voice, his attention clearly elsewhere.
“But do you want something?” I ask, trying to coax him out of his own head.
“Hah!” He chokes on a laugh that’s unusually cold for him, given the amount of warmth typically present. With a sharp kiss to his teeth, he finally turns to meet my gaze. “You know what I want, don’t you? Yeah, because you want her too. You’re just too stubborn to even try.”
“You know we can’t.” I try to reason with him. “It’s too complicated between how we met and the fact she’s clearly got a new alpha.”
“I didn’t see any bites on her neck, and we’re not even volunteering at the clinic anymore. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“She thinks we’re terrifying stalkers with no sense of professional boundaries. We get sued by her or the clinic.” I tick off just a few of the reasons.
He turns forward, face scrunching in a way I know means that he’s trying to think of another argument. He's irritated that I refuse to entertain this delusion any longer.
“Arabella—”
“I don’t think we should talk about Bell here,” I say, cutting Nathan off. If he just wants to talk about her and whether there’s a chance for us or not, rather than going over our actual options, what’s the point of continuing this doomed conversation?
“No. I’m not—I mean, just look!” He roughly grabs my shoulder with one hand and points ahead with the other.
My gaze slowly follows his finger to where he’s pointing up ahead and across the street, finally landing on the omega in question.
Fuck.
Arabella is here.
She’s here, she’s seen us, and she’s walking our way, quick and determined like a woman on a mission.
"So, it looks like she does wanna talk,” Nath says, sounding way too smug.
“Don’t count the freaking chickens yet. She looks kind of mad,” I mutter quietly as she’s getting closer.
“Can we talk?” Arabella asks, or demands, really, given her sharp tone and crossed arms as she comes to a stop right in front of us.
“I wasn’t expecting to run into you here, Bell,” I say, stalling for time.
I need to figure out a way for this conversation not to end with Nath losing his mind to anxiety or depression when she tells us both to fuck off.
“Really? I would’ve thought you both knew exactly where I was,” she says dryly.
She knows.
Fucking fantastic.
“We can talk,” Nath replies, ignoring the blatant dig at our stalkerish behaviour. He’s probably just happy to speak to her regardless of the topic or repercussions that may follow.
“Maybe somewhere less public?” I suggest. This isn’t exactly a conversation I want others listening in on. We’re already catching a few weird looks from passers by.
“You really think that’s a wise idea?” she asks.
Probably not.
“What about somewhere public, but with some more space between us and everyone looking to eavesdrop on strangers' drama?” I counter.
“Fine.” She nods.
“What about the park behind the library? It’s probably not too busy right now. We can talk at one of the benches or something,” Nath offers.
“That works,” she quickly agrees, turning to silently lead the way over there at a brisk pace.
Thankfully, it’s only a quick five-minute walk, so there’s not too long to panic about it. Though, Nath is probably panicking enough for both of us, judging by the stiffness of his shoulders and the way his eyes are fixated on her back like he’s afraid she’ll disappear if he looks away.
Arabella leads us through the park, heading over to the small picnic table that has the most distance from the rest of them. She takes a seat on the bench on the far side, gesturing for us to sit across from her.
We both sit, waiting silently for her to chew us out, for her to yell or just say something, anything, but she simply stares at us for a while.
I can feel the seconds, then minutes, tick by as she quietly watches us, until finally she lets out a deep breath, her eyes drifting down to the wood of the table.
I wish I knew what she was looking for in those minutes of staring and whether she found it or not.
“Well, let’s get the biggest problem out of the way first,” Arabella begins, with a hint of uncertainty buried within her otherwise firm tone.
I grab Nathan’s hand under the table and nod for her to continue, reassured by the tight squeeze he gives me in return.