What it Means to Have You

Baby Steps

Kine

The meal I'd been given disappeared in only a few minutes, finally sating my hunger. With something in my stomach, I was ready to fall back to sleep but knew I needed to at least take a shower before I did so. Grabbing the clothes Nagol had set next to my plate, I tugged on the pants and then moved back until I was by the counter, tossing them up onto it before taking hold of the edge with both hands. It took a bit of effort to get myself up and balanced on my left foot.

"You can do this. Just need to learn how to walk again," I told myself, clenching my jaw in concentration. Slowly shifting my weight onto my bad foot, I felt myself going off balance, but firm hands were suddenly resting against my waist, stopping my descent.

I gave Nagol a warning growl, but instead of backing away, his fingers gently pressed into my skin, then began pulling me away from the counter. Panic started to set in that I would fall, but he easily held my weight and after a moment, I stopped grumbling and tried to focus on using my bad foot. Thankfully, it didn't hurt anymore, but I was still having a lot of trouble.

"You just need to get used to it until we can get you in for surgery."

Surgery? I didn't have that kind of money. Hell, I doubt I even had access to my account anymore.

"I can't afford such a thing," I told him with as little emotion as I could, even though I felt like many were weighing on my shoulders. Your life's not over if you can't fix your foot. You can learn how to walk again.

"We can save up and pay for it," Nagol answered. Okay, something is up. No stranger would voluntarily take in an injured and aggressive werewolf just for a little help at a restaurant.

Since he wouldn't release my waist, I just turned slightly in order to stare at him over my shoulder. "What's in it for you?"

The expression that took over his features told me that he'd anticipated my question but hadn't come up with a solid answer yet. I gave him a minute, watching him process what he wanted to say. When he seemed to finally figure it out, he gave me a wide smile. "I honestly can't stand werewolves, or canids in general, but... you." He shook his head, making my stomach twist with an emotion I didn't understand. "We—" He tried to continue, but then paused again. I narrowed my eyes on his and a faint red colored his cheeks. "You should go shower."

His answer caught me off guard so much that I didn't even realize he had moved his hands up my arms to grasp my elbows until he had a firm hold on them.

"What are you doing?" I asked, eying his hands with distaste.

"Helping you, even if you don't want it," he responded with that same annoying grin on his face.

Opening my mouth, I intended to tell him exactly that, that I didn't want his help, but he began moving without warning. His step backward ended up pulling me closer due to his hands on my elbows, which in turn had me stumbling. I expected to fall, but his grip tightened on my arms the moment I lost my balance, and easily held me up when I began to drop.

"Sorry, took too big a step to start with. Don't worry, though, I promise I won't let you fall, but this way is probably going to give you results much faster than using the counter and we can just walk to the bathroom."

He was correct about the counter thing, but that didn't mean I wanted him touching me. "I don't want your help," I stated plainly, keeping my eyes on his, even though I knew now wasn't the time to try to challenge him. Instead of getting upset, though, he just widened his smile and took a small step back, forcing me to move toward him.