Escape is Only Temporary [boyxboy]

Chapter VIII

 ~Friday 27th May 2016~

"You have a long lifeline, that's a good sign," Shepherd watched Kai out of the corner of his eye, only half-focusing on the blessing he was completing over the mixture he had made. Kai didn't often help out in the store, however, when he did, Shepherd never left him alone. Kai liked to flirt, no matter who it was that was on the receiving end. If there was a man in the store that he deemed handsome, Kai would do whatever he could to get noticed. And that often ended in tears.

"What is it you want to know about your future?" Kai wore that coy little smile of his, running his fingertips over the man's palm suggestively. Shepherd had stopped trying to coax Kai away from older men, knowing his words were only falling on deaf ears. Physically, emotionally, hormonally, Kai was eighteen. He didn't want to be treated like a nine-year-old whether that was the reality of his age or not. So Shepherd stopped doing so. He still protected his son, he simply adjusted the parameters to suit the boy better.

"I was hoping to find out if I might find love soon," Shepherd rolled his eyes, disliking the way the man was ogling Kai. He wouldn't get involved yet, not until the last minute. Kai could hold his own, and he certainly wasn't stupid. He wasn't going to go home with a man he had just met, he preferred to get to know them first. And, more accurately, get to know their bank details. Somehow, it hadn't been a shocking revelation to Shepherd when Kai told him about his first sugar daddy - now it was entirely normal for the both of them.

"Well..." Kai dropped his eyes down to the man's hand, scrawling down his phone number over the wrist, "it looks like there are definitely some very prominent signs that love might be closer than you think," the man suddenly scrunched up his face, pulling his hand away from Kai and glowering at the boy. Another reason that Shepherd felt so protective over Kai, he didn't have the best common sense. Considering just how much the man had been watching Shepherd before he approached the counter, it was evident to most that Kai wasn't the one he was interested in. Unfortunately, Kai had been too love-struck to notice.

"That'll be thirteen ninety-five," Shepherd stepped in, seeing the wrath rise in Kai's face, knowing that the boy was only going to lose control if he had to continue the transaction with the man. Kai started to pout, draping himself against his mother until Shepherd wrapped an arm around the boy to comfort him. No matter whether Shepherd was entirely unavailable or not, there were still those who took a liking to him. Not many, considering how imposing his appearance could be, but enough to leave Kai resenting him every so often.

"Wasn't really worth that, the kid was pretty vague," Shepherd felt his hackles rise. It was one thing watching Kai get rejected of his own accord, but he wasn't willing to stand there and have someone insult his child to his face. Kai was young, yes, but he had picked up fortune telling quicker than most warlocks his age.

"If you ask vague questions, you receive vague answers. Sometimes the spirits aren't willing to talk, especially about love. You have to find that out yourself, it is all in the terms and conditions in the leaflet," Shepherd motioned to the stack of leaflets on the far side of the counter where Kai had been standing before, "it isn't the fault of Kai if you chose not to read before purchasing," Shepherd had a polite smile plastered over his face as always, however, he knew by the look on the man's face that it wasn't going to last very long, "go check on your brother, baby," Shepherd murmured to Kai, not wishing for his son to see what might unfold next. That was one of the many reasons that Snowden was to stay in the back of the store when he joined Shepherd there. Tempers could run high, and Shepherd didn't want to frighten his children. No matter how much he knew the both of them enjoyed seeing him use his gifts, he did agree with Elora on that part. He didn't want them getting the wrong idea about their abilities, the spirits could anger easily if summoned incorrectly.