BriarI watch Quinn storm into the living room and put his shoes on and panic begins to grip me. Surely, he wasn't serious about that whole killing thing?"Quinn, what are you doing?" I ask, walking up to him with my arms crossed in front of me. I don't want to make him angry; he's already upset enough as it is, but I can't watch him make any stupid decisions either."I'm going to his house." He says firmly, shoving his keys in his pocket. My concern ratchets up a few notches and I stand between him and the door."No, baby. That's not a good idea." I say and he narrows his eyes at me."Why?" He asks. He stands to his full height and I never realized how intimidating he can be when he does that."His father is a judge." I say gently, taking a step towards him. I cup both of his cheeks in my hands and his eyes soften slightly. "If you do anything he won't hesitate to press charges. I can't lose you too." I say, choking on a sob.Quinn sighs heavily, letting out a frustrated growl. He gr
QuinnI rushed us to the vet, ignoring the pain in my hand because, well, it was fucking worth it. The look on that smug bastard's face when I broke his nose was priceless. Even if the feel of the bone breaking against my hand was cringey.Briar reaches for me and I hold her hand firmly, grateful that she seems to understand that sometimes touching her is the easiest way for me to communicate. I have too many feelings swirling around in me to say them out loud.We reach the office and we're through the door in the next moment. The receptionist seemed to be expecting us because she said the vet would be out soon. I started pacing again, but tried to stop since I know it's my anxious habit and I hate the way Briar sits all curled in on herself while I do that. But when I turn to her she gives me a knowing smile.She gets me.The doctor comes out and she stands next to me, holding my hand while we wait for answers."He's gonna be fine." The doctor says and we both let out a breath of rel
QuinnI rushed us to the vet, ignoring the pain in my hand because, well, it was fucking worth it. The look on that smug bastard's face when I broke his nose was priceless. Even if the feel of the bone breaking against my hand was cringey.Briar reaches for me and I hold her hand firmly, grateful that she seems to understand that sometimes touching her is the easiest way for me to communicate. I have too many feelings swirling around in me to say them out loud.We reach the office and we're through the door in the next moment. The receptionist seemed to be expecting us because she said the vet would be out soon. I started pacing again, but tried to stop since I know it's my anxious habit and I hate the way Briar sits all curled in on herself while I do that. But when I turn to her she gives me a knowing smile.She gets me.The doctor comes out and she stands next to me, holding my hand while we wait for answers."He's gonna be fine." The doctor says and we both let out a breath of rel
12 Years Later...HankI lift my heavy eyelids and take a deep breath, watching the flames in the fireplace as their warmth permeates my fur. Laying on my bed in front of the fireplace is my favorite place to be.Except in bed between Mom and Dad.I hear the patter of feet rushing through the house, but I'm too tired to lift my head. I can tell it's Stella though.My oldest pup.She comes into the living room and smiles when she sees me. My tail begins to thump in joy as she kneels beside me, pressing her forehead to mine like she always does.She's the goodest girl.I lick her cheek and her sweet laughter rings through the room. She runs her little hand along my body, feeling my fur. She gets a worried look on her face and I don't like it so I whine a little."Mom!" She calls out and a few moments later Mom comes in the room."Yeah, Stel?" She asks and Stella looks back down at me."Hank looks tired, Mom." She says and Mom comes over to kneel by me too. My tail thumps some more as sh
BriarI stand in the front yard and take a deep breath of the warm, summer air as I take a small break from unloading boxes from the truck. I look around our new street and the cute little house we were lucky to snatch up. It's only a few minutes from campus, but still far away enough not to hear the obnoxious frat parties that plagued my sleep nearly every night for the last two years.Being a junior in college, I was tired of living in the dorm rooms, fighting for a washing machine, sharing a shower or worrying about drunk guys wandering into the wrong room at night. So me, along with my two best friends, Izzy and Sadie, decided to rent a small house together. Technically it's only a two bedroom, but the basement was decent enough that Izzy didn't mind turning it into her room. She's an art major, so she got creative with it."Where you want this, babe?" Brad, my boyfriend shouts, pulling me from my musings."In the living room please. Thanks!" I shout back with a smile. I groan a l
QuinnI watch as my new neighbor walks away, with that meathead's arm draped across her like he owns her. The thought irritates me. The girl is pretty, gorgeous even. Long brown hair, expressive green eyes, a cute button nose and the kind of smile that makes you feel like you're sipping on hot chocolate in front of a roaring fire while it snows outside. Hank instantly fell for her and there's no other endorsement that I need. He's an excellent judge of character.Which is why he didn't like the guy.Brad.The fuck kind of name is Brad?I have no idea what she's doing with a neanderthal like that, but if she is with him she definitely isn't the kind of girl I would date. I have nothing in common with a guy like that.We walk in front of Briar's house when another car pulls up with a couple more girls. I learn they live in the house with Briar and they seem nice enough. The smaller one, Izzy, is a little too chatty for my liking. She's got that kind of personality that I can't stand. I
BriarI couldn't stop thinking about what Quinn said. I think I may have offended him when I called him a loner, but when he said introvert I started thinking about myself. The way I forced myself out of my shell when I got to college. I made myself talk to people, go to parties, join clubs, even dated guys that I probably wouldn't have before. I started wondering if maybe I had more in common with Quinn than I thought. That maybe I thought I was growing, maturing by doing these things when in reality, I was just forcing myself to be someone I'm not.I fell into a fitful sleep in my unfamiliar sorroundings. I never sleep well on my first night in a new place and Brad wouldn't stay with me, saying he had early morning practice. Not that it would have been any easier with him here. He hogs most of the bed, feels like a fucking furnace and thinks it's sexy to wake me out of a dead sleep for sex.Newsflash fellas: It's not sexy. It's annoying.So when I woke up the next morning with a tex
QuinnHank and I head into the house and I shower, still annoyed with the way that guy treated Briar. I can't stand when guys act like they own a woman. It's a red freaking flag if I've ever seen one. An obvious sign that a man is predisposed to violence. And yet, he called me weird.Fucking weird.How old is that guy? Twelve?I huff at the thought. I've been called worse things in my life and name calling really doesn't bother me, but the way Briar defended me had my shriveled heart warming for her a little. She's a sweet girl, it turns out, and I hate seeing her with a jerk like that. But it's her choice who she dates, so I'm not going to worry about it. I'll just stay away from her, despite how good she looks in tiny little running shorts.Hank and I go a whole week without seeing any of the new 'birds' as my mind has started refering to them. But then Saturday night rolls around and our street is inundated with cars and drunken college students.Fuck me.Loud music blares from the
12 Years Later...HankI lift my heavy eyelids and take a deep breath, watching the flames in the fireplace as their warmth permeates my fur. Laying on my bed in front of the fireplace is my favorite place to be.Except in bed between Mom and Dad.I hear the patter of feet rushing through the house, but I'm too tired to lift my head. I can tell it's Stella though.My oldest pup.She comes into the living room and smiles when she sees me. My tail begins to thump in joy as she kneels beside me, pressing her forehead to mine like she always does.She's the goodest girl.I lick her cheek and her sweet laughter rings through the room. She runs her little hand along my body, feeling my fur. She gets a worried look on her face and I don't like it so I whine a little."Mom!" She calls out and a few moments later Mom comes in the room."Yeah, Stel?" She asks and Stella looks back down at me."Hank looks tired, Mom." She says and Mom comes over to kneel by me too. My tail thumps some more as sh
QuinnI rushed us to the vet, ignoring the pain in my hand because, well, it was fucking worth it. The look on that smug bastard's face when I broke his nose was priceless. Even if the feel of the bone breaking against my hand was cringey.Briar reaches for me and I hold her hand firmly, grateful that she seems to understand that sometimes touching her is the easiest way for me to communicate. I have too many feelings swirling around in me to say them out loud.We reach the office and we're through the door in the next moment. The receptionist seemed to be expecting us because she said the vet would be out soon. I started pacing again, but tried to stop since I know it's my anxious habit and I hate the way Briar sits all curled in on herself while I do that. But when I turn to her she gives me a knowing smile.She gets me.The doctor comes out and she stands next to me, holding my hand while we wait for answers."He's gonna be fine." The doctor says and we both let out a breath of rel
QuinnI rushed us to the vet, ignoring the pain in my hand because, well, it was fucking worth it. The look on that smug bastard's face when I broke his nose was priceless. Even if the feel of the bone breaking against my hand was cringey.Briar reaches for me and I hold her hand firmly, grateful that she seems to understand that sometimes touching her is the easiest way for me to communicate. I have too many feelings swirling around in me to say them out loud.We reach the office and we're through the door in the next moment. The receptionist seemed to be expecting us because she said the vet would be out soon. I started pacing again, but tried to stop since I know it's my anxious habit and I hate the way Briar sits all curled in on herself while I do that. But when I turn to her she gives me a knowing smile.She gets me.The doctor comes out and she stands next to me, holding my hand while we wait for answers."He's gonna be fine." The doctor says and we both let out a breath of rel
BriarI watch Quinn storm into the living room and put his shoes on and panic begins to grip me. Surely, he wasn't serious about that whole killing thing?"Quinn, what are you doing?" I ask, walking up to him with my arms crossed in front of me. I don't want to make him angry; he's already upset enough as it is, but I can't watch him make any stupid decisions either."I'm going to his house." He says firmly, shoving his keys in his pocket. My concern ratchets up a few notches and I stand between him and the door."No, baby. That's not a good idea." I say and he narrows his eyes at me."Why?" He asks. He stands to his full height and I never realized how intimidating he can be when he does that."His father is a judge." I say gently, taking a step towards him. I cup both of his cheeks in my hands and his eyes soften slightly. "If you do anything he won't hesitate to press charges. I can't lose you too." I say, choking on a sob.Quinn sighs heavily, letting out a frustrated growl. He gr
QuinnBriar and I drive home in an oppressive silence. I'm not really sure what to say or how to reassure her because I'm barely hanging on myself. I always knew I'd have to deal with Hank's death eventually. I just never imagined it would be under these circumstances. He should have years left on his life, he's barely even two years old. He's been my best friend for most of that time and I'm not exactly sure how I would function without him.I look over at Briar after I park the car, her eyes downcast and a worried expression on her face. I let out a little sigh, wishing there was something I could do, something I could say to make her feel better but if she's feeling anything like I am, the only thing that will make this better is having a healthy Hank back at home."Come on, sweetheart. Let's go inside." I say quietly, getting out of the car and rounding it to the other side. I open her door for her and her eyes pop up to mine like she didn't realize we were home already. She takes
BriarI wake up sometime in the middle of the night with a feeling of dread wound tight like a rock in my stomach. It's still pitch dark out and I feel Quinn's arm wrapped around my waist, his even breathing against my back. I readjust in bed and try to relax to go back to sleep, but my body won't calm. I sigh a little and reach out for Hank. He's next to me and I run my fingers through his fur. He lets out a strange, strangled sound that immediately puts me on edge and I bolt up in bed. I've never heard him make a sound like that."Hank?" I say his name, but the only reaction I get is his ear twitching. Concern billows through me and I reach over to flip on the lamp. Quinn stirs behind me, but my focus is on Hank.I look at him and realize he's thrown up on the bed, something else he's never done. Usually my voice or the light turning on would have him bouncing around, but his body is eerily still. I go rigid as I watch him, his breathing coming in unsteady pants."Briar?" Quinn says
BradWhy the fuck did I come back here? I knew Briar was gone with that psychopath and his cujo wannabe dog. It's not like I actually like Sadie. She's eager to please in bed, but she's so fucking annoying. I mostly just like to make Briar jealous. The way she dropped me so easy was fucking bullshit.For a dog.I scoff at the thought as I drink a cup of coffee looking out the front window, just in time to see Briar leaving that psycho's house. I watch with horror as he grabs her and sticks his tongue down her throat. Fucking whore bounced back quick. She's already fucking the guy when she said she cared about me. Fucking liar. The only person Briar has ever cared about is herself.I tighten my hold on the coffee cup and watch her smile at him, the same smile she used to give me when I did something nice. Sure, I didn't get the smile as much lately but I already had her. Once you have a girl you don't have to put in so much work. I mean, when you look like me they all fall at your feet
QuinnI hated sending Briar off to school for the day. I started to seriously consider her idea of us staying at the cabin forever, but I knew that wasn't logical. She has her own dreams, aspirations, things she wants to accomplish, and I don't want to stop her from that. Who knows, with her business degree we could even do something together professionally in the future. She's smart and responsible. I can see her succeeding in whatever it is she chooses to do.With her gone, I feel an unfamiliar new kind of anxiety. Similar to the kind I used to get from being around people for too long. I guess I've gotten used to having her around me, in my space and now it feels wrong for her to be gone. I sigh heavily and dress in running clothes, deciding to take Hank on a run. He didn't get as much exercise as he usually does at the cabin.Even though Briar and I did.I clip his leash and we start to jog when I notice Izzy grabbing mail from their mailbox. I roll my eyes and avoid looking at he
BriarThe next few days passed much too quickly and soon it was time to go home. That didn't mean I was in a hurry though. Oh no. I laid my ass in bed until Quinn started nudging me. I huffed at him and pushed him away, but he just laughed as he ran his hands over my naked body. The cool air hit me in contrast with his warms hands and I shivered a little, scooting closer to him and tucking my face into his neck."We gotta get up and get ready to go, sweetheart." He murmurs, kissing my head and I let out a grunt of protest."No we don't. We can stay here forever. Just the three of us." I say with a pout. His low chuckle makes my body come to life despite the soreness between my legs from all of our activities over the last few days."You have school tomorrow." He reminds me and that just makes me groan louder."I hate school." I pout like a child. He laughs louder and runs his thumb over my bottom lip."Come on. Let's get ready to go." He says and slaps my ass gently. I groan and tilt