Tip of the Tongue [BoyxBoy - Complete - CMS Bk. 1]

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

The second Ren locked eyes with the large beast, he felt a shock, like something was pushing him from behind. He lost his footing, stumbling forward.

Its eyes were like Ashton's. Deep dark red that went on forever. They were the color of blood. They sucked Ren in, trancing him with just one look. He forced himself to pull away from the feeling. The addiction was already rising up. He didn't know what was so appealing about the strange sensation, but it was all he could think about.

It bared its teeth, lips quivering as another loud growl came from its throat.

Time slowed. It was all but a moment when Ren first saw the beast, but it could have been an hour for all he knew. The thing that had controlled his body had the same effect on him. This thing, it was similar in a way he couldn't quite place.

He turned on his heel and ran in the opposite direction. He hadn't thought about Ashton or where he was going. He could only think about the girl's face, her body almost ripped apart, and how they just found her murderer. Or the thing that had killed her.

The ground flew past as he ran at full speed.

For a brief moment, he thought he was a goner. A vivid scene played out in his head. The Hound flew onto him and ripped him open. His guts painted the forest floor. It hadn't happened yet, but he was just racing against the inevitable.

Ashton grabbed his wrist. He jerked back, almost stumbling over his feet. There wasn't enough time to think about what Ashton was doing. Ren followed him, meeting his red eyes in the dark. They looked so close to the Hounds that Ren's heart leaped in fear. But Ashton was focused. His hand tightened around Ren's wrist, leading him toward the direction Ashton had gone to get the gas. They were running at the same time. The rush of it set Ren's skin on fire.

Everything was a blur but an explicit array of images at the same time. Ren's eyes were everywhere yet he couldn't describe one detail besides the press of Ashton's fingertips to the inside of his wrist, right on his pulse, and the growls echoing in the dark forest behind them.

His feet were on fire by the time they reached the point where Ashton had left him. Ashton raced past the point and onto a path. But the path was overgrown with large trees that seemed to stretch on for miles upward. Ren didn't have the time to crane his neck to see where they ended. Ashton was faster than him. He pulled Ren along after him, not minding that Ren was stumbling over every single pile of leaves and fallen branch. His shins ached from how many times they collided with some foreign object.

Ashton's hand burned into his wrist. He took a deep breath, heart skipping as he turned to look over his shoulder. The red eyes peeked out from between the dark trees. The shadows split through the beast, turning its already large body into an infinity of flesh and fur. His eyes widened as it slid through the brush, kicking up leaves and dirt. The dark ate it up until he couldn't tell which was the Hound's body and which was the shadows. Everything became a blur of terrifying images that turned his legs into jelly.

He tripped. Ashton fell down with him. They were a tangle of limbs. A beat, a faded second that knocked the air from his lungs, was all it took for the Hound to catch up. Ren cried out as a large paw smacked down on his lower back. The searing pain was a knife slicing through him. He gritted his teeth. He turned over, hands held up to cover his face. The Hound snapped its jaws at him, snarling and dripping saliva over him. He gagged at the smell of rotten breath.

He kicked his legs out. Each hit jolted through him. It was not enough to get it off him. Ashton flung his entire body onto its back.

"Your knife!" He yelled. It took Ren a second too long to snap into focus.