Mate Massacres

Chapter 25

They had hugged for a while. Pip wasn't sure how long, but when he opened his eyes, the snow had deepened around them. Without lifting his head from Krey's shoulder, he looked around. The cold seeped through his layers, though Krey was still hot. Pip felt his body heat through his jacket.

"I-I thought you said you weren't a hugger," Pip said in his usual quiet voice. Krey was somehow always able to hear him.

"I'm not," Krey mumbled with his chin resting on the top of Pip's head. "Not usually."

Pip smiled. He felt special, even if he still couldn't fathom why Krey would find him interesting.

Eventually, they pulled away.

Krey still looked more content than Pip had ever seen him. "So, um, d-do you have like- a curfew for the institute?"

Krey discretely sniffed the air. He could only detect Francis's scent nearby, nobody else. "Not really," he said with a shrug. "I'm in charge. I make the rules."

"In charge of what?" Pip asked, zipping his coat closer to his chin. "The p-people or the building?"

Krey watched a snowflake land on Pip's nose. "The people."

Pip glanced around. "Am I allowed to ask about the institute now?"

"What would you like to know?"

Pip softly swung his legs. "Why it's there."

The answer to his question would reveal all. Krey didn't want to spoil their date. "Why do you think it's there?"

Pip puffed out some air as he thought. "I have no idea." He then frowned. "Do you work for the government?"

"Sometimes." Werewolves only worked for the government when the authorities were in deep trouble.

"Are you in the secret service?"

"We're better."

Pip looked Krey up and down, and Krey's coal heart set alight.

"Are you a spy?" Pip asked.

Krey shook his head, amused. "No."

"Why do I have to guess? Are you not allowed to tell me?"

"I can," Krey said, squishing the snow under his feet. "but I don't think you're ready to know."

Pip chuckled nervously. "S-Should I be worried?" he asked as a joke, though, Krey's face had turned serious. His jaw tensed, and his brown eyes looked away towards the woods.

"I'm not sure," he mumbled.

Pip still didn't know much about Krey but liked him enough to share a kiss. The whole point of a first date was to get to know each other. They skipped that bit and dove for the affection.

Pip never thought he'd kiss on a first date. When Krey's lips were so close, and he held him so tenderly, Pip couldn't stop himself. He lost his mind in the kisses they shared. He didn't expect a first kiss to feel so incredible.

"I'm very good at keeping secrets," Pip said, looking at Krey who still watched the horizon. Krey's eyes clouded with thoughts while he chewed the inside of his lip.

"It's not that I'm worried about you oversharing, I'm concerned about how you'll take the news if you found out that I-" Krey stopped himself. He finally connected a gaze with those sparkling blue eyes. "Pippor, there's a reason why nobody goes near the institute, and why the police are scared to look me in the eye, and why wolves are in English woods."

Pip shrank under Krey's intense stare. "Why?" he whispered.

Krey sighed. He doesn't trust me enough. He stood from the bench. "We should go somewhere warm. You look cold."