Page 39 of Same One
She could hear talking, but she didn’t want to see the guys right after a Change. It felt messed up. “Tabian?” she called.
“Leave the clothes there. We’ll be a minute.”
“Is he okay?”
“I’m fine,” came Bay’s hoarse voice.
His tone sounded pained though. Pinched even.
She jogged down the porch stairs and set the clothes in the yard and then gave them her back and made her way inside, where she paced for the next five minutes. She knew it was five minutes because she checked the clock on the microwave a dozen times.
When the door opened at last, she rounded on them. Tabian held open the door and Bay sauntered in, head hung. Tabian’s blue eyes were the color of ice right now, and his expression was somber.
Tru wrung her hands. “I’m sorry,” she said.
“Not your fault,” Tabian clipped out. But he wasn’t meeting her eyes, and he went directly past her and into the bathroom.
Bay was leaning against the door, holding the sleeve of his right arm.
“Are you okay?”
Bay flashed her an angry glance and then back to the floor.
“I just can’t get it right with you, can I?” she asked. He always burned her. Always stung her.
“Not your fault,” Tabian said as he passed her. He tossed a first aid kit at Bay, and he caught it. “You want to come into a Pack territory and go on the attack, you can doctor yourself. Lesson one.”
Tabian’s right side of his face was covered in blood, and he stayed for a few moments more glaring at Bay before he disappeared back into the bathroom. The water started running.
“Here, I can help,” she said softly.
“No,” Tabian called from the bathroom. “Don’t help him. He wants to act like he’s grown in a fight, he can act grown after.”
Bay lifted the sleeve of the black T-shirt, and Tru gasped. There were two huge gashes across his shoulder and they were deep.
“But they will scar,” she called to Tabian.
“Good. Maybe he will learn his lesson. Start pointless fights, get pointless scars.”
“That is way too harsh,” she griped striding for Bay.
“For humans. It’s fair for us,” Tabian said, and something in his voice stopped her in her tracks.
He was standing in the open doorway of the bathroom. He’s rinsed his face, but the injury to his face was dripping already again.
Tabian looked to Bay, and back. “He’s a young man. You can’t coddle him. He did good in that fight. Let him have it.”
Confused, Tru looked at Bay, and he was staring at Tabian with shock in his expression. “I don’t understand,” she said softly.
“He fought Bridger and he survived it.”
“For ten seconds,” Bay muttered.
“Do you know who Bridger is?” Tabian asked him.
Bay shook his head slightly.
“Ten seconds is good. Trust me.”
