11. Gray

11

GRAY

As I sat at the kitchen table, frustration gnawed at me.

The lack of sleep from the previous night made me irritable, but it was the unanswered texts from Spike that truly bothered me.

Why hadn't he responded? I checked my phone again, hoping for a notification, but there was nothing.

If Spike hadn't replied before I left for work, what then? Did that mean I should cancel our upcoming date?

It seemed like a childish reaction, but the thought nagged at me. I wanted to sit Spike down and remind him that couples in a relationship didn't ignore each other like this.

Communication was key, and right now, it felt like we were missing that vital connection.

As I stewed in my frustration, my resolve to give Spike the cold shoulder solidified.

I grabbed my keys, intent on heading to work and distancing myself for a day or two.

But just as I reached for the doorknob, my phone rang, displaying Nitro's name on the screen.

At first, I felt a twinge of disappointment, expecting Spike's name instead. But then, a wave of concern washed over me.

What if Spike was in trouble? I couldn't ignore the call. With a mix of apprehension, I answered right away.

"Nitro? Did something happen to Spike?" was the first question that came out of my mouth.

My heart pounded with worry as Nitro confirmed Spike had indeed faced some trouble.

The fear that gripped me intensified as he described the situation they'd encountered in the woods.

Nitro didn’t go into much detail. He probably thought it was a way of protecting me, but I wished he told me more.

"I need to see him," I blurted out, my concern overriding any other thoughts.

Was I being demanding and pushy? No, I just wanted to find out how Spike was doing.

"I'll take you to him. I'll pick you up in fifteen minutes," Nitro said. "Spike's recuperating at the Ravens' compound, so it's a little hard to get to on your own."

Relief flooded through me at Nitro's offer. I nodded, grateful for his help, and hung up the phone. There was no time to waste.

I hurriedly prepared myself, then called my boss, telling him I was going to take a day off due to personal reasons.

He was unhappy about it, because Fridays were usually busy but I managed to appease him by promising to work an extra shift next week.

Fifteen minutes dragged on like an eternity, but soon enough, Nitro's motorcycle pulled up outside my place.

It was evident Nitro hadn't had much sleep last night; dark shadows lingered under his eyes.

Without wasting a moment, I hopped on, anxious and nervous to see Spike. I even felt a little guilty for being mad at him earlier on.

Nitro revved the engine and we took off. We entered the MC compound, but once inside, Nitro didn’t find a parking spot.

Nitro kept going, veering onto a small dirt road that led deeper into the woods.

I squinted against the sunlight filtering through the trees as we rode deeper into the forest. The morning breeze carried the scent of pine and earth, and birds chirped overhead.

Despite the urgency of the situation, there was a strange serenity to the surroundings.

It was then that Nitro's words sank in – the Raven's compound was hidden deep within the heart of the Moon Burrow woods.

Nitro was right, I would never been able to find this place on my own. It was a good thing he offered to drive me here.

As I dismounted from Nitro's motorcycle, my mind raced with worry for Spike.

Images of him injured and in pain flashed through my mind, each one more vivid and terrifying than the last.

Lost in my anxious thoughts, I barely registered Nitro's reassuring grip on my shoulder.

It wasn't until a raven shifter approached us, and spoke to Nitro, that I snapped back to reality. The raven shifter introduced himself as Julian.

“Gray,” I said, feeling a little slow and foolish.

"Hey, I might've sounded too worried on the phone, but Spike's fine," Nitro told me.

He continued, “Just a few scratches and bites. The healer wanted him to stay one more day, but he keeps insisting he's ready to go and wants to see you."

Relief flooded through me, washing away some of the tension that had been coiled tightly within me.

Spike was okay. That was all that mattered. I followed Nitro and Julian, eager to see Spike and talk to him.

As Julian led us towards the clinic, he chatted casually with me. His words provided a welcome distraction from my racing thoughts about Spike's condition.

"Micah, the healer, is also mated to Greed, another MC member," Julian was telling me.

When we reached the clinic, Julian bid us farewell, leaving Nitro and me.

Nitro strode ahead confidently, as if he knew exactly where he was going. I followed closely behind, my nerves tingling with anticipation.

Inside the clinic, I found Spike lying on one of the beds, his expression irritated and stubborn.

The sight of him shirtless, with bandages covering his front and back, made my heart sink. I couldn't shake off the guilt gnawing at me.

It was my fault he was in this state, my fault he had to endure pain and discomfort. Spike shouldn't have been hurt at all, especially not because of me.

He glanced up as we entered, his expression softening at the sight of me.

"I told you I'm good now," Spike grumbled to the healer, his voice tinged with frustration. “Discharge me.”

"Just stay still and let me finish my examination," a stern voice interrupted. That must be Micah.

I took a seat beside Spike's bed, relief flooding through me at the sight of him relatively unharmed.

Despite his protests, I could see that he was in good hands with Micah.

Finally, Micah and Nitro exited the room, leaving just Spike and me. Spike shifted to make space for me on the bed, and I settled down beside him.

This felt…unexpectedly nice. I shook the thought away, because I should be focusing on Spike.

"I want to apologize for the way I behaved yesterday," Spike began.

I reached out, gently placing a hand on his arm.

"I appreciate that, Spike," I said softly, a warmth spreading through me at his considerate words. "But you don't have to apologize. You were just looking out for me."

"I know, but I hate seeing you worried," he admitted, his thumb stroking the back of my hand gently.

A rush of affection washed over me at his gesture. Despite his injuries, he was still more concerned about my well-being.

It was moments like these that made me grateful for having him in my life.

"I'm fine, really," I reassured him. "And I'm just glad you're okay too."

Spike's lips curled into a tender smile, and for a moment, everything else faded away.

“Nitro told me everything that had happened. You confronted Venom while you were drunk—that wasn’t the smart thing to do,” I said.

I found I couldn’t really be angry at him anymore.

"Yeah, I regret it now. I was just so angry and I got overprotective over you,” Spike admitted.

My heart sank at his words, a knot of fear tightening in my chest. I had never seen Spike like this before, vulnerable and filled with regret.

It made me realize just how much he cared about me.

“It doesn’t matter now. I also understand that things got intense. You and Nitro had to fight off mercenaries in the woods?” I asked tentatively. “Mercenaries… that were after me?”

Knowing that I once again placed Nitro and Spike in harm's way, filled me with an overwhelming sense of remorse.

Spike's gaze softened as he reached up to brush a lock of hair away from my face, his touch gentle and comforting despite how serious our conversation was.

“Nitro was up all night, trying to get Burt, the remaining mercenary to talk. Finally, he cracked and told us Jack Roth hired them,” Spike admitted, his voice heavy with exhaustion. “I’m not sure if Olaf knows.”

The mention of Jack sent a chill down my spine, my mind racing as I processed the implications of his involvement.

It was clear now that Jack would stop at nothing to reclaim me, even if it meant putting others in danger.

“Jack didn’t want to get his own hands dirty, so he hired someone else. This way, we couldn’t directly connect those mercenaries to his pack,” I whispered, my voice barely above a murmur as the weight of the situation settled over me like a suffocating blanket.

Spike wrapped his arms around me, offering silent comfort as I struggled to come to terms with the everything that had happened.

His presence was reassuring, a steady anchor in the storm of my emotions.

"We're in this together, Gray," Spike murmured. "Whatever comes our way, we face it as a team."

I nodded, grateful for his reassurance.

"I just can't help but feel guilty," I confessed, my voice wavering with emotion. "You and Nitro wouldn't have been in this mess if it weren't for me."

Spike squeezed me tighter, his embrace offering solace in the face of my doubts.

"The MC deals with all intruders the same way, Gray," he assured me. “Those mercenaries knew what was coming to them.”

Deep down, I couldn't shake the feeling that Spike was trying to alleviate my guilt, to protect me from shouldering the blame alone.

Wanting to change the topic, I cleared my throat.

“When you stomped off without an explanation last night…” I began.

Wait. Hadn’t we resoled this earlier? My mind seemed to be all over the place.

Knowing Jack hired those mercenaries made me uneasy. Gosh, this situation was getting more and more complicated by the moment and I wasn’t sure what to do next.

"I know, but I shouldn't have left without an explanation,” he admitted. “It won’t happen again.”

I leaned in closer, our faces now mere inches apart.

"Well, you're here now, and that's what matters," I said, my heart racing as I felt the warmth of his breath against my skin.

Spike's eyes flickered with emotion, and before I knew it, our lips met in a tender kiss. I soon forgot about Jack and the mercenaries. All that mattered was us.

I wanted this kiss to go on forever and it did, but reality intervened all too soon, and the sound of Nitro clearing his throat shattered the spell.

Reluctantly, we pulled away, a shared sense of disappointment lingering in the air as Nitro approached with a tray of food.

“I got you a sandwich, soup, and your meds,” Nitro announced, breaking the moment with his practicality. Couldn’t he come at another time?

Spike groaned playfully, lamenting the interruption, while I couldn't help but smile at their banter. Nitro was just as worried as I was, I realized. I pulled away from Spike.

“Mood breaker,” Spike complained.

As Nitro left us to our privacy once more, I settled back into the chair beside the bed, allowing Spike to eat in peace.

I had a feeling Nitro wanted to talk to Spike, but figured he’d give us some space instead.

“Um, so about our date tomorrow, we should probably postpone it,” I began tentatively, feeling a pang of disappointment.

Spike blinked at me. He looked adorable, with sandwich crumbs in his beard and chin.

I searched for a napkin, and finding none, I used my shirt to wipe his mouth.

Spike chuckled, then he caught my fingers and my heart raced as he kissed each digit.

“We can still make it happen, Gray,” he assured me. “I'll be out of here by the end of the day, and our date is still on. Look forward to it.”

“I will,” I promised, relived that despite everything that had happened, there was still a sense of normalcy.