He was timid when he stopped close to me. He gave me a careful glance, then turned away, his expression turning worried. Probably because I was still only staring at him like something was wrong.

“Hey there, baby boy. You decided to tag along, after all?” I said gently, and he peered at me. “You ready for a little adventure?”

He frowned at my words. It was very subtle, but I saw it. I smiled wider.

“Let’s get you something to eat first,” I said, keeping the door open for him.

He took a careful step past me, then stopped just outside the room to take a look around. His movements were skittish, and I could tell part of him wanted to go hide in his bed, but he chose to be brave.

“Do you remember this place?” I asked.

I doubted it. When he arrived, he never lifted his eyes from the floor. If he had, only the alpha in him had seen it. Now the human in him was wide awake, and mostly in charge of the body – the alpha wouldn’t have bothered with the robe or the slippers.

“The kitchen is this way,” I told him, and headed to the stairs, keeping my pace slow since he was still busy staring at my home. “Do you like what I’ve done with the place? Well, obviously it wasn’t me who did anything. I had a lady friend ages ago who did all the Feng Shui stuff around here. But she got tired of my hairy ass and packed her stuff. We’re still friends, though. We are better as friends.”

We reached the stairs, and I had to stop him to make sure he was watching where he was going before letting him take a single step down. I laughed lightly when his focus was on his footing.

“You look so much better now. And you’ve got some energy now,” I said, admiring the light color on his cheeks and the shine in his eyes.

I stumbled a little on the steps, so I forced myself to watch where I was going, laughing and cursing myself. We got safely on the first floor, but when I headed to the kitchen, the kid stopped to stare out the window into the darkening yard. I came to a halt and watched him in silence, giving him the time he wanted.

He was… Well… He was very nice to look at. Pretty even. In full health and three times bigger, he was going to be gorgeous. I could already tell. I wished I could be there to see it, but… Once we’d find his family… I mean, we were the mafia. There was no reason for me to stay in his life longer than necessary. It would only make his life harder.

There was something heavy in my heart when I thought about it.

“You want to go outside?” I asked to get rid of it.

He glanced at me over his shoulder, then took one more look at the garden behind the windows before making his way to me.

“When you’re feeling strong enough, we can go for a little walk around the garden,” I promised him.

We entered the kitchen, and while I went to raid the fridge, the kid stayed behind to take in the room. He was so curious now. I loved to see that. He didn’t seem scared either. Timid, yes, but not scared. He didn’t really pay much attention to what I was doing, and he barely flinched whenever I accidentally made loud noises. I saw that as a good thing. He stayed relaxed around me.

“Do you want to come pick something for yourself?” I asked once I was able to take my eyes off him.

He slowly turned toward me, confusion in his eyes. I gestured at the fridge, holding it open for him.

“I still don’t know what food you like the most,” I explained when he took a few steps closer.

He gave me a little shrug. My brain immediately malfunctioned.

He…

He replied to me.

That was an actual reply. A silent one, yes, but it still counted as an actual reply! His human side actually communicated with me!

I tried to restart my head because I was just staring at him with a mad grin on my face.

“Is… Is that uh… Is that why you’ve been trying different things?” I asked.

Without giving me another reply, he stepped next to me and peered into the fridge. It was getting quite empty, but he still found a small can of yogurt for himself. He pulled it closer to the shelf, then carefully glanced at me.

“Yeah, yeah, go ahead. It’s all yours,” I told him hurriedly.

Was that another one? Another attempt to communicate with me? It was, right? He asked if he could have it.

I tried so hard not to stare at him like a lunatic, but I really couldn’t help it. His human side was right there, slowly taking full control from his alpha. He must’ve felt safe enough to do so. He must’ve felt comfortable enough with me to come out of his shell.

He’d chosen to trust me.

“You need a fork? No, uh, spoon?” I asked, stammering, trying to get a grip of myself.

He tilted his head at me, frowning lightly. God, the way his thin eyebrows arched over those baby blue eyes… The eyes that studied me so closely, and so close…

“Is… everything all right, baby boy?” I asked quietly, closing the fridge.

He ignored my question and continued watching me. I patiently stayed still and let him figure me out at his own pace. I for sure wasn’t in a hurry to go anywhere. On the contrary. I would’ve stood there until the end of time as long as his eyes were on me…

He leaned a little closer to me, sniffing the air around me as he tried to catch my scent. He found it and breathed it in, studying it. I slowly lowered my head, bowing my neck while bringing my shoulders up. I was completely driven by my alpha’s instincts. It wanted to show the kid we were big and strong. Able to protect him and provide him with anything he needed and wanted.

But when I tried to find his scent, I… couldn’t. I kind of did, but it was really faint and hidden by the scent of my clothes. And I couldn’t detect his pheromones at all.

Maybe because he was so thin… His body was using the little energy it had to keep him alive.

“You’ll feel better soon,” I promised him. “I’ll make sure of that.”

He didn’t really care about my words. He was much more fascinated by my scent. His nose was so very close to my shoulder, only an inch away. I gave him a small smile when his eyes met mine. My alpha was still busy flexing at him, and thankfully, he didn’t show any fear. His alpha could read the messages mine was giving him:

You are safe with me.

And he chose to trust me. He showed it by stepping right in front of me, his nose now tickling my neck as he learned my scent. His breath was warm… I closed my eyes to fully enjoy this younger alpha’s attention. I couldn’t stop my body from twitching every time his touch was extra ticklish, but the kid didn’t mind at all. Nor showed me any mercy. He was too busy trying to figure me out.

“You’re in a curious mood, aren’t you…?” I murmured. “I take it I’m not that scary, after all.”

He snorted lightly, took one more deep breath, then pulled back a little to look me in the eye. The lack of his scent saddened me. I was eager to learn everything about him, and scent… Well, it was the most important thing.

“You should eat now,” I told him in a whisper, then turned around to grab a spoon for him. “You need to grow big and strong.”

He took the spoon and leaned against the counter to open his can. His eyes left me… But I didn’t stop watching him. I tried not to let the sadness overtake me, but failed.

I wouldn’t be in his life long enough to learn his scent.

And that was for the best.