Silver Lining

~~~~~~☽~~~~~

(Thanks for the wait! We get some drama here;)

Felix's head is buried in his hand when he enters, looking more crestfallen than he had ever seen him.

Chan can only offer up a small sad smile. "Knock, knock."

The omega's head whips up, eyes wide in worry as he frantically points out of the room.

Chan purses his lips but closes the door behind him. "It'll be okay; relax," he says gently, trying to be assuring as he approaches the bed.

Guilt clogs his throat for a moment, seeing that Felix is more concerned about his well being rather than how his own mental health is holding up; with a heavier heart, he swallows it down. "Yeah, I probably shouldn't be here but I wanted to see how you are doing; you're not alone in this, a lot of wolves have faced it. I'm- I'm not scared of more... harsh words."

Felix's shoulders seem to cave more in defeat than relaxation, but not before stubbornly mouthing, 'Not safe.'

"They can't touch me; they know me, they know my pack." He's pretty sure that the strength of Skz isn't something he should necessarily be gloating about right now but the sentences leave his loose lips with the rising of the once unbridled conviction deep in his bones to protect his own, "And I won't let them touch you."

The omega only responds with a noticeably strained and tired smile when he sits down next to him on the bed.

What feels like minutes pass, the alpha blatantly aware now of the sound of people ascending from their beds and beginning the workings of their days, the streets slowly becoming alive with bakers and shopkeepers hoping to get a headstart in preparation for the inevitable waves of folk soon to come. Mornings like these, where the sky was still streaked with purples and pinks like an unfinished blue canvas, Chan used to enjoy walking down the streets and breathing in the crisp air with a bag of rice cakes in hand (Hyun-Aw and her grandmother would always save the last of yesterday's stock for him, already wrapped up and waiting on the counter when they first open shop) and a mellow peacefulness settling over him. In the time of the slowly waking world, within the pleasant quiet of the town and under the soft rays of light from the peeking sun, he felt a sense of belonging. Now, as he looks at the blind-covered window and is only met with the sight of the artificial light of a lamp reflecting off a thin layer of dust-covered brittle plastic, he is reminded that dogs are seen to belong in cages . And the bitterness that accompanies the thought as it passes through his mind catches him a tad off guard, having gone so long without holding such resentment to his canine-less kind, but when he looks back at the sweet individual sitting beside him, staring longing at that same window, he can't quite seem to care.

He could be the kindest, brightest, most angelic individual in existence and if he was half wolf, they'd still all turn on him in a blink of an eye; Felix doesn't deserve to witness such betrayal any longer from the people he once deemed as a significant part of the village being his home .

The alpha is only pulled out of his mental reflection when he notices the silvernette's mouth part in a silent and relatively hopeless 'How?' as he shakes his head with a lost look to his usually optimistic blue orbs. How did it come to this? How could they do this to me? How did they ever find out?

Chan bites his inner cheek. A part of him knows that lying will only make this worse, knows that the truth always seems to catch up at the most inopportune times and will most likely fracture whatever good that the dishonestly may temporarily bring; but, then again, he also knows that if he is ever to get Felix out of this place in a timely manner, it is not the time for such (most likely damaging ) confessions. He can only use the opportunities presented to him if he ever hopes to get the omega to stay on his side. Rather monotonously, he replies, "Unfortunately, I guess the rumors gained traction; but if they are all this superstitious and cold-hearted now, then they never deserved you anyway."