(Sex ahead)
(Sean's POV)
Something seemed to change in Kyle after that day. He seemed to smile more, and he seemed to actually want to be a part of our family. There was only one more incident, similar to that day, where he didn't come straight home and he didn't let either Ivann or me know.
Anthony was the only one to get off the bus. When Ivann asked where his brother was, he told him he went over to his otter friend's house. Ivann was so worried and upset about him doing that, without calling first. He told me he wouldn't have had a problem with letting him go hang out with his friend if he would have called and asked first.
Ivann called his phone every five minutes - I even tried calling - but he didn't answer it. Finally, around ten, Ivann got a call, not from Kyle though, but from his otter friend. He apologized for Kyle not picking up his phone, said he was to blame, and that Kyle was safe and that he could spend the night. That got an aggravated growl from Ivann. His otter friend pleaded, saying that he was helping Kyle study for an upcoming test.
"Let me talk to your mother," Ivann demanded. His jaw about hit the floor when he handed over the phone and she spoke. "M-Mrs Rivers, is that you?"
He wasn't the only one that was surprised. We both knew that Mrs. Rivers had a second, older pup - we never really seen much of him though, we mostly just saw Emmery - but we never imagined that he would be Kyle's friend. Mrs. Rivers talked a lot about her older son and, from what she's told us, he was a bright, straight-A, student and very caring young pup. He also did voluntary work and taught cubs how to swim at the pool. I was glad that Kyle had made a friend like Mrs. Rivers' son. To me, he couldn't have picked anyone better.
After a while of talking with Mrs. Rivers, Ivann gave in. "Okay, he can spend the night at your place, but tell him he is grounded and he won't be going anywhere or doing anything for a while when he gets back," he told her. "Tell Emmery that I said hi," he said before he hung up.
"Who would have thought that Kyle would be friends with Mrs. Rivers' older pup?"
"Not me, that's for sure," he answered. "I thought he looked familiar though when Kyle brought him home the first time, but I wasn't sure."
"Yeah, I know. We never really see him. It's always just Emmery and his mother," I pointed out.
"I thought we were done with this," Ivann sighed as he leaned into me.
"He's a teenager, he's going to push boundaries, and he's going to do a lot of things that we thought we were done with, and then, just think, we'll have to go through it all over again with Anthony."
He looked at Anthony, who was sitting on the floor, in front of the couch that we cuddled up on, watching the television. "I don't think he'll be as bad as his brother. He's the good one," he whispered to me.
I chuckled and pulled him in tighter. "They're both good," I told him as I gave him a small kiss.
"Yeah," he agreed, rubbing his nose against mine lightly. "All right, time for bed," he told Anthony as the credits began to run.
"Aww! Can I stay up just for a few more minutes?" Anthony pleaded.
I knew Ivann was going to break and give in as Anthony looked up at him with those big, pouty eyes. Looks like I'm going to have to be the tough parent. "Sorry, buddy, but you're already up past your usual bedtime," I said, saving Ivann. "C'mon, I'll tuck you in tonight and Ivann will read you some more of your book," I told him as I stood up, grabbing Ivann's hand and pulling him up to his paws as well.
"Okay," Anthony agreed, with a little groan, and then he headed for his room, with Ivann and me trailing behind him.
Ivann mouthed "thank you" to me as we stepped into his room and I smiled and mouthed the words "any time" back to him.
