Escape | ✓

34 [part two]

If there was one thing I learned about Arlo in the time I'd known him, it was that appearances meant everything to him. I wasn't quite sure where it stemmed from, but Arlo put a lot of effort into portraying himself as this open, sociable, jubilant person who experienced no problems. It was only after you got past the artificial persona he'd created that you realized deep down, he was drowning—quickly and silently.

His house was a reflection of this. On the surface, the place was neatly constructed and adorned with paintings and tiny items he'd collected over the years, but once you looked further, you realized that there was nothing inside that truly screamed Arlo. There were no pictures, the paintings felt like they were picked with barely any given thought; simply chosen to fill a space and nothing more.

I suspected that was the reason why he never spent time at home. The place lacked life; it felt barren and dead. That was a large part of the reason why I never minded his spontaneous visits. I knew he hated his own house which was why I was surprised when he opened the door.

The state of the home reflected that of its owner. Blankets and pillows littered the ground of the living room, pushed together almost as if forming some kind of cacoon. Items were randomly thrown around rather than being in their normal places. I knew our fight couldn't be the main cause of this.

"What did you want, Reu?" Arlo asked, forcing me to pull my eyes away from the floor and focus on him.

"I wanted to come over and apologize for being an ass when you were only trying to help," I told him. "But, I think the more important thing to do is ask if you're okay."

He didn't respond which only added to my growing worry.

"Arlo?" I called out and he ran his hand through his hair before sighing.

"Honestly, I don't know anymore," he responded quietly. "I'm fighting with you, Cronan and I broke up, and he—"

"He what?" I asked carefully.

"He found his mate, Reu. It hasn't even been that long and he's already able to move on while I just, fuck, I don't know, feel like I'm stuck."

"Are you sure he found his mate or is that just something you've been hearing?"

"I'm sure. I was there when they met. I saw the way Cronan's expression changed when he saw him, Reu."

Not knowing what to say, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders and pulled him into an embrace.

"Maybe you were right. Maybe I should've just stayed away from Cronan, to begin with."

"You don't mean that," I shook my head. "Even if it didn't work out in the end, it's obvious that you two care about each other. If you'd never experienced that then you'd regret it."

"I'm just tired, Reu."

"Trust me, I know the feeling."

A small smile broke out on his face. "How about we head back over to your place and watch a movie or something."

I wanted to agree—until I remembered the damaged condition my home was in.

"We can't. To make a very long story short, I have a...friend staying with me and they broke my TV recently."

Along with the rest of my house.

"You have no friends outside of Oakwood," Arlo retorted.

"Friend isn't really the right word to describe our relationship, but he's staying with me for the time being."

I could tell he wanted to ask more questions, but thankfully he didn't. Instead, he offered me a small smile and said, "Then why don't we go on a run for old time's sake? Just you and me."

I agreed almost immediately. To say I missed spending time with Arlo would be an understatement and though I'd never say it to his face, he was a large reason why I stayed in Oakwood so long.

Arlo and I got ready before heading out. The whole way down, we were laughing and he was cracking jokes like normal. It made me feel good.

We walked out of the apartment and down the street toward the woods.

"I missed you, Reu," Arlo said to me.

"I missed you too, Arlo. I'm sorry," I told him honestly.

Arlo grinned at me. "I'm just glad we made up—"

His words were cut off when he ran straight into someone. I glanced upward and into the man's brown-blue eyes. He had some paper gripped tightly in his hand and stared down at Arlo with an apologetic smile.

"I'm sorry. I should've been watching where I was going, are you okay?"

"It's fine! It wasn't your fault, I wasn't paying attention either," Arlo managed to say, but the hint of red on his cheeks made my eyes narrow slightly in suspicion.

The man shot Arlo a smile and I could see the omega's face darken until he practically looked like a tomato. We watched the man leave and once he was out of earshot, I turned to Arlo with an accusing stare.

"What was that?"

"What was what?" He played dumb. "Come on, I want to get out there before it's too dark."

His hand messed with his sleeve, a clear sign that he was hiding something, but I didn't call him out on it. We continued to walk and I pretended to not notice the way Arlo kept glancing back.

"He's my mate, Reu," he eventually said.

"I know," I responded to the obvious statement.

"He's human."

"...I know."

Human mates were rare as is and the rejection rate was higher which already meant that he'd be trying to win an uphill battle. I expected to see some form of fear or apprehension on Arlo's face, but there was none. His eyes were full of something I hadn't seen before: anticipation.

AN: I finally got around to publishing this! I originally planned for this update to come out the same day as part one, but I rewrote this part like three times because it didn't feel right. It's finally here though!