Counting Stars

Chapter 3

Brian watched as the flames engulfed his car, teeth gritted as he eventually circled around the burning wreck to where Dom stood, also watching the flames. The male seemed lost in thought, eyes flicking between the car and where Johnny Tran had been before the shots had been fired, Dom only seeming to stir when Brian cleared his throat and gave him a small nudge. "You okay man?"

The blonde raised a brow at him when the Alpha finally turned to him, a small nod his initial answer as he glanced to the car once more before turning and walking away, leaving Brian to follow after him. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's get out of here."

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After finally giving in and filling Brian in about Tran when the blonde refused to drop the subject, Dom glanced around before moving into a nearby alley, noticing Brian pause in confusion. "Come on, we'll be able to get back quicker this way and avoid anymore lingering cops. Plus, I haven't stretched my legs in a while." Always needing to keep an eye out for everyone and working on the cars took away a lot of his time to go for a run, his wolf having been kept inside for at least two weeks or so.

Without waiting for a response, Dom quickly tugged his shirt off and threw it into the nearby dumpster, crouching to undo his shoes before raising a brow as Brian remained hovering by the alley. "We have spare clothes in the garage, you can grab some. Hurry up."

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The blonde had grudgingly obeyed, having initially planned on calling a cab but oh well. Both men were quick to change, kicking off their now loose jeans and Brian waited silently as Dom gently picked up his necklace, the blonde stretching out his front legs before soon straightening up as he felt the larger wolf brush against his side on his way out of the alley.

Other than a couple of passersby across the street oblivious to their presence, the area was clear as Brian jogged to quickly catch up to Dom, the silverish wolf glancing to him briefly before suddenly taking off, Brian soon speeding up as well as he followed him to his house. Glancing to the window as his ears perked at the loud music inside, he sensed Dom's rising annoyance as the Alpha also looked at the house, growing irritated. With a low, soft bark, Brian let the wolf's instincts guide him to quickly nuzzle Dom's shoulder in farewell before he turned to head back to Harry's place, but a quiet growl from Dom and a nip to his flank stopped him. Turning to look to him with a curious tilt of his head, he watched as Dom jerked his head towards the garage before moving to his side and nudging him up the driveway.

After only the smallest of pauses, Brian changed direction and followed as Dom nudged the ajar door open and went inside, rearing up to put the chain on the table before changing back to his human form. Brian was quick to glance away to give him some privacy as he dressed but not before he was given a chance to admire the well muscled form of the Alpha, his omega side wanting to purr though luckily he kept himself in check. He was shaken from his thoughts when a set of clothes was thrown at him, landing on his head as he heard Dom chuckle when he jumped.

Huffing in reply, he shook the clothes off his head and glanced over to Dom's turned back before shifting and putting the clothes on. Rubbing his jaw in thought, he glanced around the garage again before his gaze darted to Dom. "Thanks man."

The Alpha turned back to him with a teasing quirk of a brow, a small grin still on his face before he moved to clasp Brian's hand and pulled him close for a quick pat on the back. Most likely the only way of a thanks he was going to get for helping Dom out earlier, the blonde thought. "You know you can call me Dom just like everyone else, right? Not anymore of this 'man' crap."

Returning the gesture, Brian stepped back and nodded before following him back outside, the two moving down the driveway in silence before Dom headed up the stairs and Brian wandered off to Harry's place after a quick wave over his shoulder. "See ya Dom."

He hadn't gotten far before he turned around with a slight tilt of his head in curiousity when Dom called to him. "Hey. You wanna drink?"

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A small sigh escaped Dom as he finally sat down, a hand rubbing over his head as he ignored Vince's glare, raising the bottle to his lips to take a couple more sips. Brian was still standing by the stairs and, despite the defiance he had shown towards Vince after Dom had taken the Alpha's drink and offered it to him, he seemed a bit wary as to where to go. Though no surprise since he was in the pack's house surrounded by them, surely his wolf was unsure what to do or maybe even freaking. Who knew. But hopefully that would be settled soon.

The blonde had given a good run for the race, even pulling ahead of Dom, though he never would have won against him, no one ever did. But skill and focus like he had was hard to find and Dom wanted to ensure that skill stayed on his side, as part of the pack even. Would be curious to see what Brian would do once he picked up on the hints. Run or come to him. It would be way too easy to just go and ask him to join, and where is the fun in that?

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Swallowing another mouthful of the beer, Brian glanced between the still agitated Vince and the slouched pack Alpha. It was clear Dom didn't care about the anger rising from Vince after Dom had hinted in front of everyone at Vince's failing as the pack's second in command for not looking for him, instead someone outside of the pack had come to help him.

The other Alpha however soon dipped his head in apology to Dom, straightening up before walking to Brian, his anger redirected as he glared at the blonde. Leon was quick to rise from his chair to stand by Vince, eyes watching his friend warily. "Easy man."

Lowering the beer after another sip, Brian met Vince's glare evenly, keeping his initial response in check against the hostility, not wanting to cause trouble after hopefully earning at least some of Dom's trust. However, Mia soon appeared to break the stand off, asking Brian to get her a drink before the group found Dom pushing through them, bumping Vince's shoulder in warning before he headed up the stairs, though paused and leaned against the railing. Calling Brian's name to pull his attention from the tense situation, the blonde turned to him, waiting as a small grin slowly crept onto Dom's face. "You know, you still owe me a ten second car."