Stubborn and the Mutt

thirty seven | his need

My heart is racing; the pounds of every beat almost steals my ability to hear, the way it's overwhelmingly loud. My breathing is all over the place; it almost feels like there's a lack of oxygen.

I see the mansion. Matter of fact, with my eyes filled to the brim with tears, I can still see how close I am. My tired feet keep running towards what I feel, in the moment, is safety. Still, my sobs can clearly be heard.

I almost fly up those stairs and straight into the back of the house, wiping my face roughly as I spring to the front, where, to which I'm not surprised, I see Julius seated reading a newspaper. His attitude towards my disorientation and being soaked with tears is nonchalant, so it's clear he lacks interest. Still, he raises an eyebrow as he gazes at me over the lining of the newspaper.

"Yo—" I choke a bit but don't let it stop me from saying; "You have to take me home! You have t-to— I need to get out of here, Julius! Please!"

He lowers the newspaper. "I need permission to—"

"You do not need permission!" I yell, marching towards him and, without a second thought, I grab his arm to try pull him up. "Please, Julius! Where's my bag? Get up, let's go!"

He does let me get up, but it stops just there. With his obviously unnatural strength, he takes hold of my own wrist and makes me release my hold on him. "Miss Gertrude, you need to calm down—"

Immediately, I pull away from him and glance around, aimlessly marching here and there. "Where are the keys? I'll drive myself home, I swear it, Julius! I'll walk home!"

So, with every temerity I find after looking at him and realising he won't do as I say, nor is he phased by my outburst, I find not the slightest bit of hesitation to march to the front door. The back of my hand wipes my cheeks and rub my eyes to rid obstructing tears. I quickly grab hold of the door handle and forcefully pull it open, practically sprinting out when freedom calls my name in the distance.

The Range Rover is still parked where it was first parked, and I forcefully try opening any of the doors but, or course, it's locked. Without a second thought, I decide I'll just walk.

Come hell or high water, I won't stay here any longer than needed. My feet almost run down the driveway without hesitation, and I refuse to turn back when I hear Julius basically demanding I stop.

My black ass was never cut out for this.

Then, as though it is meant to play out like this, two big wolves emerge out of nowhere and confidently stride to block off the drive way. No doubt, I can see there's still much space, yet the closer I get, the more on guard they become.

So there I am, sobbing as I shake my head and grip onto the material of my shirt. Tears well up as they snarl at me, perhaps signalling their desire for me to stop and not come closer. I quickly come to realise that the two wolves, peachy-brown in colour, could potentially be Matthew and Andrew, simply because they look exactly alike.

"Mate." My heart sinks.

"Please!" I whisper, taking more steps towards the wolves. "Please just let me go home—"

"Mate."

He's close behind me. Not only can I hear the closeness when he called me that word, but my body tensed up at the familiar feeling of having him be close enough. Then, I feel his hand touch the back of my arm, and instantly, I turn around and raise my hand up almost in surrender, taking a step back.

"I just want to go home. That's all. Julius doesn't want to take me home so I don't mind walking. I just don't want to be here—"

"Listen to me." He frowns a bit. His dilated pupils watch me, surrounded by his blue irises that don't calm me down this time, but spark up more fear in me. His hair is moved back as much as possible away from his face though stubborn strands remain hovering over his eyes. I have to shudder at his height.