Benjamin

I'm in heaven.

After the most wonderful date I've ever had, Teddy dropped me off at home as I swooned the whole way back.

Not only did he treat me to the most delicious meal ever, we continued our date in the bedroom and let's just say we both left very pleased.

We kissed good night at my doorstep and he went home. I practically skipped to my bedroom. I'm so happy.

The next morning, I greeted my family at the dining room who noticed my great mood.

"I take it the date went well." - Mom smiled at me.

"Well? Mom, he hired a personal chef to cook us a meal. It went great!" - I replied with an enthusiastic grin.

"What?" - Sasha gasped in shock.

"Exactly." - I replied, grinning wide.

"I didn't know Teddy was loaded!" - She was baffled at the news.

"His grandfather owns the land where the mall is located, so he collects rent checks. He's not rich, but also not poor." - Dad stated in his serene tone.

"Damn, dad! You're so knowledgeable!" - I'm surprised he knows that.

"Son, I'm the Alpha. I have to be knowledgeable. At least as far as my pack is concerned." - He replied with a serious expression.

"Anyway, I'm so impressed by him. I genuinely didn't expect he'd go to this much trouble for a date." - I commented, perplexed.

"That's because you're worth it, son." - Mom told me, sweetly.

I really lucked out in the parents department. They're so encouraging it's amazing to see, especially for a queer kid. We do not always get supportive parents.

Lex's parents are also supportive of him, though his father would much rather have a warrior type for a son.

For my taste, I'd prefer brains over brawn any time. But he doesn't treat him differently because of it.

I so wanted to talk to my best friend and brag about my date. Damn it.

"Thanks, mom. I really appreciate it." - I said with a shy tone.

"Man, it's gonna suck when you get mated away from him!" - Sasha commented, causing me to grimace at the thought.

"I know..." - I mumbled, disappointed.

"Honestly, I'd take him to be my mate in a heartbeat." - I said, knowing all too well it's very unlikely he is the one.

"Be glad for the time you have together, son." - Dad spoke in a heart warming tone.

"I am, dad." - I sighed, pensive.

I really am. For whatever it's worth, I'm here to make the most of our relationship.

After breakfast, I kept pacing inside my room anxiously wanting to talk to Lex. We haven't spoken since Friday night and I hate that.

We never had a serious fight until those damn rogues came into our lives and now suddenly we fought twice already because of them?

Damn! I hate that. I really do. I need my best friend.

I decided to change my clothes, take my car and drive to his house. He's just gonna have to see me and work things out.

I can't have him mad at me. I just can't.

Within ten minutes, I'm at his doorstep. His mom opened the door, greeting me with a pleasant smile.

She offered me something to drink, which I politely declined. His dad was in the living room watching TV. I also greeted him.

"He's in his room. He's been sulking since Friday." - She told me with a knowing glance.

At this point, she can tell we had a falling out because of his brooding mood. I thanked her and went upstairs.

I opened the door and he immediately barked at me.

"I don't wanna see you!" - He spoke with an almost violent disposition.

"Too bad, bitch! Because I'm not gonna leave until we talk things out." - I declared, entering the room to face his fury.

"Why do you have to be so prejudiced against rogues? I get that they killed your brother. I'm not making light of the situation. But those boys have done nothing to you. You can't judge every single rogue because your brother fought one and died." - He snapped at me, causing an ugly scowl to appear on my face.

"He didn't fight one and died. He fought three." - I rebuked, angrily.

"He was reckless! He shouldn't have fought them in the first place! There are literally 150 warriors who get paid just to do this job!" - He argued in a raised tone.

Now, I'm really angry.

"You fucking bitch! Are you seriously judging my brother? You? It's easy for you to say when you couldn't fight your way out of a sale, let alone to protect your life!" - I'm shouting in a feral tone.

"Thank Goddess for that! That's why I'm alive and he's dead! At least I know my limitations. I'm not an arrogant bastard picking fights to prove my superiority. Guess what? We're not any different than them!" - He jabbed, also yelling.

I'm in tears already. This isn't what I came here for. I just looked at him, baffled at the words being spilled from his mouth.

"I can't believe you just said that! Who are you?" - I'm devastated.

"Someone who thinks people should be judged on their actions, not species." - He stated, visibly shaking.

Though not nearly enough as I am right now.

"I guess it's good to know where you stand. I'm sorry to barge in on your Sunday." - I speak and move to leave his room.

Lex hushes to the door, stopping my exit.

"I'm sorry. I know he's your brother and you loved him. I didn't mean to speak ill of the dead." - He apologized in a calmer tone.

Lex's face turned soft and regretful as he looked up at me. I'm taller than him, but that has never played any factor in our friendship.

Between us never existed rank or fortune. Race or gender. We have always been just like brothers.

Which is why I'm so gutted right now.

"I came here to apologize, actually. I know I shouldn't have said what I said." - I conceded, deeply hurt. Tears are still falling from my face.

"I know. I'm sorry, Ben. I shouldn't have gone off on you like that. I guess I should be more empathetic to your state of mind. I know it's not easy for you to accept them because of your brother. I'm really sorry for that. And for everything I said. Drew didn't deserve to die." - He ranted, remorsefully.

I stepped away from the door and plopped down on his bed, really crying.

This whole argument resurfaced some old wounds I had over Drew's death.

I'm not stupid. I know a lot of people judged my brother for getting into a needless fight with those rogues.

It would be something else entirely if he was attacked and had to defend his life. But that was NOT what happened. He goaded them into a fight. I can't sugar coat the truth just because it doesn't suit me.

And the truth is I hated him for it.

For the longest time, I judged my stupid brother harshly over his arrogance for picking a fight in an unknown territory for no apparent reason other than to boast.

It's already terrible when he bragged about girls he hooked up with, but fighting rogues as if their lives were at our disposal is much worse.

I'm not saying those guys were innocent. And we should defend our territory and our people to the death. No quarrels.

But going out of our land to provoke other werewolves is not our way. And if I had judged my brother for it, obviously everyone else did as well. Lex is not saying anything new.

But it hurts. It hurts so badly. I miss my brother every single day.

I bawled my eyes out in never ending tears. I cried like a baby as if somehow he had died all over again.

I couldn't stop it. Lex lied down on the bed next to me, apologizing for his inappropriate comments.

He knows how much my brother's death hurt me. It still does. I'd give anything to have him back into my life. Or for him to have taken a beating that day, anything instead of a mortal blow.

Anything at all.

It would take almost an hour for me to stop crying. Lex just kept holding me close the entire time, comforting me.

I'm mad at him, yes. He shouldn't hurt me like that or put strangers above our friendship. But maybe that's not what he's doing.

This isn't an us versus them situation.

Not really. I have to acknowledge that. They were wrong to trespass on our territory, sure. But even so, that doesn't warrant any mistreatment from my part.

Plus, am I supposed to send warriors to kill teenagers? Really? For what? No crime has been reported.

It'd be one thing if it had. But Lex is painfully right. I can't judge them on trying to survive. On living their lives the best way they can.

We are not superior to them, though I never really thought this way, fortunately.

"I know I was wrong to say that and I pissed both you and Lisa off needlessly. I do apologize for that." - I speak for the first time after I stopped crying.

I gulped a bottle of water that he kept on his night stand.

"I apologize too. I went too far. I shouldn't have dragged your brother to the mud. He didn't deserve that. I never meant to cause you any pain." - He said with clear remorse.

We hugged it out and I excused myself to go to the bathroom to wash my face.

"So, how was the date with Teddy?" - He asked me in a curious tone and naughty grin.

I smiled at the thought, turning my mood around like sunshine over a cloudy day.

I spent the next hour telling him all about my wonderful date with Teddy, including the gourmet meal and the bedroom activities.

He ate it up both surprised and a tad jealous.

Afterwards, I walked out of his room to return home for lunch. Though not before hearing another uncomfortable truth.

"You still need to apologize to Lisa. And I have the perfect idea for it." - He suggested with a mischievous grin that I knew meant trouble.

Oh boy. Here comes the storm.

I came back home for lunch as scheduled. My family noticed my face and asked me what happened.

"I had a nasty fight with Lex." - I explained, feeling a bit uneasy.

"Again? Didn't you go over there to patch things up?" - Mom asked me, baffled.

"I did, but things took a turn for the worse. This whole business with the rogues is bringing up wounds that I thought were already healed." - I replied in a saddened tone.

I see my parents' faces change at this. They quickly pick up on my meaning. Sasha as well. Their sorrow are visible.

"I understand, son. It's easy to let our pain influence our decision making. When your brother died, I wanted to order a statewide hunt on rogues. But I can't order a mass murder just because I've lost my child. I could order a hunt if his killer had survived, but I saw his corpse." - Dad spoke in a somber tone.

Mom and Sasha looked at him wide-eyed at his last words. Me too.

"My point with this is though I can certainly relate to your state of mind, Lex is right. We can't let our prejudice color our interactions. People should only be judged on their sins, not of those who came before them." - He spoke wisely.

I sigh at his words, thinking about what is so clearly influenced by my mother. Not saying that he isn't wise, but mom is wiser.

"I know, dad. It's a hard lesson learned." - I noted with some remorse.

"That also doesn't mean I want you hanging out with rogues outside or inside of our territory. But I'm not gonna do or say anything against a bunch of innocent teenagers. At least, not until they actually do something wrong." - Dad was quick to amend with a reprehensible tone.

I held back a giggle at his words.

"It's funny you should say that..." - I breathed out with a sigh.

I explained to my parents Lex's plan for me to apologize for my comments and dad wasn't happy about it. Though mom was surprisingly optimistic. Who knew?

At sunset, I drove Lex and Lisa to the outskirts of the city. I parked my car near the path to the waterfalls.

As you can imagine, it's a long walk to get there. The river is outside of our territory, though close enough to stay within the edge of the city.

The path is thick with vegetation, trees for miles. It's great for a hike or ecotourism. But we townies usually stay clear of it outside of summer. That's when this place is packed with teenagers looking to cool off.

It's not like most of us can afford a pool like the one in Teddy's house. His pool parties are epic, or so I've heard. I've never been invited to one.

"They're here!" - Lex announced as if Lisa and I couldn't smell them too. They're bathing in the river as expected.

"Hi, guys. How is the water?" - Lex asked, his eyes shining at the sight of Tristan like he's seeing a mate.

Lisa, him and I walk down to the river, past the waterfalls. Christian is smiling at Lisa radiantly and the omega is glaring at me.

"Great. You're here. Came to expel us from the river too?" - He jabbed at me in a sour mood.

Lex cleared his throat, glancing at me.

"Actually, I came to apologize." - I declared, much to his - everyone's - surprise.

"Christian, I'm sorry for what I said back at the restaurant. You are worthy of being visited by Lisa and it wasn't my place to speak for her or anyone else." - I continued, staring deep into his eyes.

"I accept your apology. Thank you for saying that. I'd shake your hand but I can't leave the water right now." - He smiled awkwardly and we laughed at his words.

"The water is chilly. But you're welcome to enter if you dare." - Tristan smirked, flirtatiously.

Lex gasped at this.

"You shouldn't challenge me like that. I'll flash Lisa and your friends unabashedly. I'm not ashamed of my body." - Lex spoke, defiantly.

We all blush at this exchange, but Alistair is not happy about it.

"I don't wanna be flashed, thank you." - He interjected, sulking. Lex deflected from his angry stare.

"I was joking." - He defended himself, eyebrows furrowed.

"I don't think he's your fan." - I snickered, looking at Lex.

"Hey, I'm not seeing any mark on his neck." - Lex argued, referencing Tristan's unmated status. That only angered him.

"Just because he's not mated it doesn't mean he's available." - Ali barked, taking Tristan by surprise.

"That's exactly what it means!" - Lex exclaimed, peeved.

"Hi, Lisa. Thanks for coming. And thank you all for bringing up mating. We know what it is now." - Christian spoke, grabbing our attention - especially hers.

"You're welcomed, Chris. Can I call you Chris?" - She said, smiling at the half naked boy. I mean, the half we can see, the water covers the lower bit.

"You can call me anything you want." - He flirted, causing her to giggle.

"I told my parents we were coming and she made me bring you a gift basket. I hope it's alright." - I announced, shocking the three of them.

"Really? Thanks. Of course it's okay." - Tristan replied, smiling politely at me.

"We thank you for the gesture. She sounds like a nice lady." - Ali spoke in a soft tone.

"She's the best. I'm gonna leave it over there, next to your clothes." - I said, walking up to a tree where their clothes are hanging nearby.

"Speaking of clothes, I also came bearing gifts." - Lex announced it, surprising them. He pulled two bathing suits out of his backpack and tossed it to Ali and Chris.

"These are bathing suits. You can wear it in the water. This way you can leave the river and not expose yourselves." - He suggested it, getting wide smiles.

"Thank you, Lex. You're the best!" - Christian said, already in the process of putting it on.

"Where's mine?" - Tristan asked, curious.

"Who says I want you clothed?" - Lex replied, practically begging for it. Tristan's mouth is agape.

Oh boy, I can see an omega fight brewing. For once, I'm glad I'm not in the doghouse anymore.

A|N: Oh it's on!

Ben, what a smile! *swoons*

Love,

Léo.