As His World Changed (MxM)

Chapter 24

That evening Atlas wanted to talk to his mate. The things Niel had said to him made him think. Atlas felt as if he made many sacrifices. He had to wait and wait and wait until his mate would be fine enough to be in his presence, let alone be close to him. Never had he thought about the life Niel had left behind.

Maybe he needed to do some research in mated couples where one of them was human, the Alpha thought.

When Atlas entered their shared bedroom he could hear Niel already in the bathroom, readying himself for bed.

The human was not aware of the presence of the Alpha yet. Niel had taken a shower. He didn't feel so well and had hoped a steaming shower would do good to him. After he was done brushing his teeth he made his way over to the bed.

Niel was startled when he saw Atlas sitting on the couch. "I am sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. Did you have a nice shower?"

The teenager slowly nodded his head. "Yeah, I did. Is something wrong?" Niel asked as he got comfortable in bed.

Atlas stood up and followed him. "I... I wanted to talk."

"About?" Niel quirked up a brow.

"I will first get ready for bed, then I will answer."

Niel shook his head. He thought the werewolf was acting strange. Before he wanted to question him further he started to cough. 'Please I don't want to get sick', was all Niel could think of. He was already injured enough in the last couple of weeks. For once he wanted to get on with his life without thinking about his health.

Niel had another coughing fit when Atlas exited the bathroom. "Are you alright Niel?"

"Yeah, yeah, I am fine... I think. So what do you wanna talk about?"

Atlas got in bed as well and moved closer to his mate. To his surprise, Niel didn't move away. Atlas tried his luck again and scooted a bit closer, bodies not touching but almost.

When Niel didn't make a comment about their closeness, the Alpha answered. "What you said last night, about sacrifices you have made... I never truly realized and I am sorry for that. I, honestly, thought I made many sacrifices too because of how our mating process was progressing so slowly and it was hard for me to accept that... I couldn't see what you had given up and left behind. I am sorry."

When Atlas was done speaking a silence fell between the two of them. The only thing that was heard was the few warriors outside changing shifts. Then Niel started to cough again. He cleared his throat when he was done and responded. "I don't know what to say. I guess I am happy you finally got to see what I am going through."

"It's fine, you don't have to say anything at all if you don't want to," Atlas gave a small kiss on Niel's forehead. It was then he noticed his forehead was burning.

"You are burning up. Are you sure that you are alright?"

"I am fine. I just need some rest." The teenager sighed.

Atlas was skeptical but let it rest as he, too, needed some well-deserved rest. They wished each other goodnight and went to sleep.

Early in the next morning, Atlas was woken up by unsettling sounds coming from the bathroom. With one glance to the left, he noticed Niel was gone and that his mate must have been the source of the sounds.

Quickly the Alpha made his way across the bedroom into the bathroom. There he saw Niel hanging above the toilet emptying the insides of his stomach. Atlas snatched a towel from the rack and wet it. "It's alright, I am right here." He soothed his mate while cleaning Niel's face.