What It Means To Be Me

Quiet Time

The car ride was something I'd rather put in the back of my mind and lock away forever. First, it took me awhile to actually feel comfortable enough to get into the thing. Ryder had kept telling me I should sit in the front, but I definitely did not want to do that. It would have basically forced me to look out of the window, and that was something I was determined not to do. These things moved faster than I could run. Eventually he let me go in the back, but then he wouldn't move the darn thing unless I put on something called a seat belt. That took a whole lot longer than actually getting inside the car since I fought him on it since I wasn't a fan of being restrained.

The snowstorm was now going full force as we got out of his car and trudged through the snow up to his small house. It looked like it could be nice during the warm season, but right now it was completely covered in thick white snow.

"Here we are," Ryder said as he fished a set of keys from his pocket and proceeded to unlock the door. The moment it swung open, I was hit with a strong dose of his scent.

The forest...

Taking in a deep breath, I quickly stalked inside, eager to look around my new temporary territory. He would probably kick me out after tonight because of my dominant side, but at least I wouldn't be sleeping in the snow during the storm. Not that I wasn't used to it, but it definitely saved energy when I could sleep in a warmer place so I was less tired in the morning.

"Are you hungry, Tanner?" he asked as he slipped past me, but I quickly moved so that I cut him off right before he stepped into the kitchen.

Darn it.

Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself and carefully stepped to the side so he could get through. He'd looked wary when I'd blocked him so suddenly, but at least his posture relaxed back to the way it had been when I stepped out of his way.

"Alright, let's see what I've got for us to eat."

I followed him over to his fridge, but when the door opened, my eyes immediately locked onto the best thing ever created.

"Peanut budder," I shouted right as I reached past him and snatched up the jar. After all the times I'd seen Cole get the stuff out, I knew I had to turn the lid. It took a few tries anyway, but I got it off and tossed it somewhere over my shoulder before digging my hand into the small container. The second I had some on my fingers, they were in my mouth, making me moan as my eyes rolled back.

I love you, peanut budder.

The sound of chuckling snapped me out of my overly excited state to look at Ryder. He was leaning against the counter, one elbow resting on the other arm so he could cover his mouth with a hand. The posture was something Cole often did when he was laughing at me for doing something weird. Usually I didn't find it funny, like when I bit into a bottle of ketchup instead of peanut budder and got it all over my chest and front legs, but he always did that darn pose, trying to hide his laugh, without succeeding. Without really thinking, I stepped forward, closing him in against the corner of the counter between the fridge and the sink, an arm on either side of him gripping the counter. The peanut budder jar was on the floor to be returned to as soon as I handled Ryder.

"Why are you laughing at me?" I asked as I leaned down and into his neck. I wanted to smell his scent again, and since the only rule we had agreed upon was that I would not come into his room at night, he shouldn't be surprised. The gasp I heard come from him when I nuzzled the skin there told me he was, though, which I suppose was okay as long as he didn't try to fight me off. We'd have a problem if he wanted to suddenly try to take control of the situation. I could feel him trying to get in enough air to reply to my question, but I wasn't really sure why he was having trouble to begin with... and I kind of liked the idea that I'd caused it.