“Okay, I think you’re getting the hang of it,” Natasha said, “I think maybe we should try forcing him out now.”
My gut twisted and I squeezed Wyatt’s hand tightly, “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” I asked nervously.
She nodded, “You’re getting very experienced at fighting so I trust you to keep him restrained if anything should happen,” she said, “And I trust Wyatt to work his hardest to pull him back if something goes wrong.”
“It’ll be fine,” Wyatt assured me, “But you might want to stand over there,” he pointed a few feet away from him.
I took a breath and squeezed his hand one more time before Natasha and I retreated several steps, our feet crunching on the snow of her backyard.
Natasha was giving Wyatt instructions on how to force Caleb out while I watched him intensely; my body slightly crouched, ready to react at a moment’s notice.
“You can’t fight it,” Natasha said gently, “You have to relax and give in to him.”
I could see Wyatt was struggling to keep relaxed, and it was no wonder. Wyatt had always tried to suppress Caleb, refusing to give in, fighting for control of his body. It was unnatural for him to have to do the opposite and let Caleb take over. It went against his protective nature.
We watched him struggle for several minutes before Natasha let him take a breather. I stepped forward to him carefully as he slumped to the floor with a sigh.
“Wyatt,” I said gently as I sat down next to him, a hand on his shoulder.
He sighed, “I’m sorry. I just keep thinking what if he does something? What if he hurts you or Natasha? It would be all my fault.”
“Hey,” I frowned, cradling his face in my hands. His eyes slipped shut and I kissed his forehead, “You can do this. Nothing bad is going to happen. Natasha and I won’t let him do anything. I promise.”
“You can’t promise that,” he shook his head, covering my hands with his before he pulled them from his face and entwined our fingers together.
“Yes I can,” I said, meeting his gaze steadily, “I swear I won’t let anything happen.”
He stayed silent.
“Come on, you have to learn to do this,” I said gently, “This will help.”
“I know it will but I just…I can’t do it. I can’t let him take over intentionally like that,” he said, his face pulled back in a grimace.
I leaned my forehead against his and we both closed our eyes, “Yes, you can,” I breathed, “I know you can. And everything will turn out right. It always does.”
“You’re not usually this optimistic,” he remarked dryly.
“I’m being realistic.”
“I…I suppose I can try again,” he said finally and I pulled away to grin at him. He stood and helped me to my feet before he kissed my temple and gave me a light push away from him. I took my place beside Natasha again as Wyatt sat down in the snow, eyes closed as he breathed deeply.
“That’s it, nice and calm,” Natasha said gently.
I saw his hands twitch and my breath caught slightly before it continued with its normal rhythm. We continued to watch in silence as Wyatt sat there, the winter wind ruffling his brown hair. After a moment I saw his hands tighten into fists and I let out a slow breath that I made sure was loud enough for him to hear.
I saw him falter for a moment before he took a breath and relaxed again. A moment later his body tensed again before he relaxed again. I didn’t know what was going on inside Wyatt’s head, but I was sure what ever it was wasn’t too pleasant.
