21. Relax

(Just a quick chapter cause It's my bday and Snowman's, and we both decided we wanna go to bed XD Also, Daxxy says hello. He was feeling quite smug for tripping both the dogs earlier.)

Warden had been watching and listening, but he knew that he shouldn't have. He inwardly groaned when the door was slammed in Cerat's face. When the guy turned to face him with a raised eyebrow, Warden pursed his lips, trying to think of a way out of the awkward conversation that was likely about to happen.

"You like him..." Cerat mumbled more to himself than to Warden, though his eyes were locked on his after he finished speaking.

Warden dropped down onto the edge of his bed and shrugged.

"I don't know what the heck is going on, honestly." He replied.

Cerat leaned back against the wall after retrieving the container of spinach Warden hadn't noticed he had before. After he took a few bites, then swallowed, he tossed the empty plastic aside and continued their conversation.

"You do realize that the next time they come, they'll try to file my teeth."

Warden had a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he slowly nodded. There was no way they could get around that next time the man came.

"I don't believe I have to spell this out to the werewolf, but just in case you think I'm going to let that happen now that I'm getting stronger, I won't."

Hearing such words from Cerat wasn't surprising considering how much he'd already changed since he'd started holding down blood, somewhat. Running his fingers through his hair, Warden tugged at the strands for a few moments, until he thought he had a decent idea to present to Cerat.

"Maybe we can get some pain meds this time. That way it won't hurt as much. They have some really good ones... I just have to get approved. I could call them now."

The look on Cerat's face had his words drifting off to near silence as he finished speaking. When the vampire just rolled his eyes, Warden knew that his idea was being dismissed.

Not good. Really not good.

Standing up, Warden stalked into the bathroom and shut the door behind him before turning to Drake, intent on telling the guy that they were in big trouble with Cerat. Or, at least he was. Drake had nothing to do with it in a legal sense. He could get off scotch free, and probably would when everything went down, but Warden was stuck. And Cerat would be dead if he went against what was written in the contract. He had to get his fangs ground.

"Drake, we have a proble-oh my god!"

Whirling around, Warden glared at the door as he felt his face heat up to the point where he began sweating in the humid room. Drake had evidently taken a very fast bath.

"We're out of bodywash... I'll just grab the extra you leave over here on the sink." Drake said, his voice deepening as he got closer. Warden watched him in the mirror, trying to keep his eyes above his waist. Thankfully, the glass was decently fogged up from how hot Drake made the water.

He had to bite his lip to keep from flinching as Drake's wet arm brushed against his right one as he grasped the bottle of bodywash. Instead of going back to the bath, however, Drake got even closer. When his chest pressed up against Warden's back, he felt his wings fidget just beneath his skin. His fight or flight senses were getting close to triggering, but he forced himself to take a deep breath in order to keep himself from overreacting.

"He's not going to let them hurt him anymore... and I don't blame him." Drake said near Warden's ear, making him turn his head so that he could partially see him without pressing his cheek to Drake's lips.

He's too close.

"You look surprised. I'm a werewolf, remember? Or if you prefer, lycan. Either way, I have good hearing and you were just in your room. I heard everything you two said."

Rolling his eyes, Warden returned his glare to the door as he grumbled back. "He's going to get killed. We need to figure out a way to get him to listen to reason. A little pain isn't worth losing his life for."

Instead of replying right away, Drake leaned forward and after giving a rumbling growl, took hold of Warden's left ear with a strong bite. Warden jumped at first, but he couldn't exactly pull away without injuring his ear further. When Drake loosened his grip slightly, Warden gave a quiet sigh and tried to tilt his head away. Unfortunately, his friend refused to release him completely.

"He won't listen to you after we only bit him once. Especially not when so much pain is involved." Drake said, his words slightly slurred because he was still holding onto Warden's ear.

What he said made sense, but he wasn't sure how to deal with the information. He just didn't feel like it was right to bite Cerat again, and for some reason, he didn't want Drake to bite him, either.

I also don't want him biting me right now.

Feeling arms suddenly snake around his middle, Warden blinked out of his thoughts with a gasp. When he was suddenly dragged backward, he began to struggle, trying to shove Drake's arms away.

"You came in here with me. Taunting the big bad wolf." Drake purred.

Worry settled in the pit of his stomach as he was pulled back toward the tub with little effort from Drake. It was unfair how much stronger he was than him. He was used to it, as it had always been that way, but still. He wished that just for one day, he could be the stronger one.

He expected Drake to just shove him into the bath water, and he could tell that the idea wasn't far from his mind when his grip tightened and he started lifting him, but at the last second Drake seemed to change his mind. Instead, Warden was set down for a moment, then suddenly hoisted easily up into Drake's arms. The abrupt action had his wings springing forth from his back, the right one went straight into the water as the other slapped against the tile floor.

"Sorry, Babe. Didn't mean to startle you that much." Drake said, a chuckle to his voice that made Warden scowl.

"Don't call me babe." Warden grumbled.

Drake's left eyebrow rose, then he cocked his head to the side and smirked. "Sweetheart? Love? KFC?"

Warden rolled his eyes as Drake spoke and began to step into the bathtub. His wing was already wet, so he didn't bother fighting the guy, but he wouldn't be taking his pajama pants off.

"Fine, fine. War, then." Drake finally said when Warden still hadn't replied to his nickname choices.

Neither of them spoke until they were settled in the bathtub a few moments later. A bit of water splashed over the edge as they got comfortable, but eventually Warden ended up leaning back against Drake. The werewolf's firm chest didn't make the best pillow, but it wasn't as bad as Warden would have guessed, either. He had moved onto his side, leaving part of his body out of the water. His wings were a lost cause, though, so he didn't bother trying to lift them over the edge. All of the water they'd soaked up would just cause a huge mess as it dripped onto the floor.

"You're going to have to help me dry my wings..." He eventually murmured on a sigh. The water did feel good, and since he was still wearing his pants, it wasn't too much of a contact overload.

He felt gentle fingers begin to run through each soft pinion as Drake seemed to silently contemplate his words. His chest rose and fell in a constant rhythm and Warden found himself counting the beats in his head as he relaxed.

It's a little faster than mine. He noted, remembering that dog heartbeats were indeed faster. It was a bit of a surprise to see it applied to a werewolf, but it did make sense. He was also a lot warmer than normal humans or angels, but Warden was already used to that.

"I'm okay with that. And I know that we need to figure out something for Cerat... but right now, we're going to just lay here in lukewarm water and accept the fact that we both need a break."

Warden wanted to argue that right then definitely wasn't the time for a break, but when he went to open his mouth to retort, firm yet gentle lips were already sealing it shut.

I suppose it could wait... only for a short time, though.

With that thought Warden let his worries go and after hesitantly returning the kiss, nuzzled a little more against Drake's chest before letting his eyes close, promising to open them and return to his hectic life again in just a few moments.