Escape is Only Temporary [boyxboy]

Chapter XXXVI

 ~Friday 12th August 2016~

"You sure you don't want anything to eat just yet?" Reece continued to pester Shepherd as he had for the past fifteen minutes, not believing that the man wasn't hungry. He'd already heard his stomach rumble so there was no way that Shepherd could honestly deny his hunger. He knew there was another reason at play.

"I'm fine," Shepherd's speech was muffled from the placement of his head, resting in the crook of Reece's neck. They had been like that all day, just lazing around in bed. Shepherd had an excuse, his leg was still injured, however, Reece didn't. He should have been working around the pack, checking on his family, doing anything. Not that he was complaining. There was nowhere he would rather be than in his nest, with his fiance. Fiance. A smile cracked over Reece's lips at the word, his eyes immediately seeking out the golden band on Shepherd's finger.

The past few days had been some of the best in Reece's entire life. He had gotten his way, allowed to stay by Shepherd's side and cling to the man as much as possible without anyone breathing down his neck. No one dared contradict their alpha's behaviour, not even Shepherd. He had anticipated that the warlock might tell him he was being too clingy, or want to be left alone, however, reality was the opposite. Shepherd was just as happy with Reece by his side as the reverse. It was perfect.

"Did you take your meds?" Reece had memorised the instructions Marina had given for Shepherd before she left the previous day. He made sure to check that Shepherd had taken the right herbs for the pain, and was continuously asking about the healing crystals placed around the house. He wanted Shepherd healthy, he couldn't have his mate unwell. It would weigh on him too heavily.

There were other points of guidance that Reece had to follow from Marina, mostly just staying in contact. Marina wanted constant updates on Shepherd's condition, especially anything to do with his memories. Reece was aware of the ritual she had performed to remove some memories from Shepherd, it had been her only condition that the wolf be aware of what she was doing. Although Shepherd wouldn't tell him what memories he wanted removed, nor what had been done to him in that cave, Reece had been made aware of what Marina was doing.

The rituals might not last forever, that had been her warning. Be it years or centuries, Shepherd was going to start remembering. To begin with, it would be little cracks, fissures in the wall that separated those memories from his reach, but that would be enough. If Shepherd started to remember even the smallest of details before Marina was called to repeat the ritual, he would be more than confused. Marina likened it to elderly humans with memory issues, the confusion brought on anger, so much so that sometimes they wouldn't listen to those that wanted to help them. Reece had promised Marina he would never let that happen to Shepherd. At the first sight of change, he would call her. Overreaction was better than letting Shepherd relive such a nightmare.

"No, can you get them for me?" There were times when Shepherd snapped at Reece for helping too much, in the beginning. He was right, Reece had been babying him in the first few days after he was found. He had been so worried, and so afraid, that it all just bubbled over into misplaced concern. It wasn't until Saturday evening that Shepherd brought it up. He remained calm throughout the conversation, even when Reece would have understood his anger. He appreciated Reece's concern, however, he didn't want to lose his independence. Even when injured, he couldn't bear to lean on anyone else for support.

"Yeah, I'll be a minute," Reece untangled himself from Shepherd carefully, ensuring that he didn't knock the man's leg too much. That was the result of their conversation. Shepherd was trying to ask for more, trying to actually rest for once, rather than just ignoring his own health until it dwindled away to nothing. And Reece wasn't pestering him so much. He wasn't constantly asking if he was in pain, or if he needed anything. They were compromising.