Bookworms and Runways

Chapter 9: Puppies Did Not Make This Better

Isaac stared.

The Pomeranian in his lap yanked on the rope toy, tearing it from his grip.

Still, Isaac stared.

He must have misunderstood what Sean meant. They'd only been together for three weeks, they hardly knew each other. Sean couldn't be imagining a real future together already. It was just one of those passive thoughts, it didn't mean anything. Sean wasn't serious.

Except, as Isaac stared, silent, Sean's eyes went wide and the color drained from his face.

“I was being foolish, forget I said anything." Sean looked away, fidgeting with a rubber bone.

“You…" Isaac didn't know what he wanted to say first. Didn't know what he wanted to ask, or what answer he could handle hearing.

Sharp pain pricked his hand. He jerked in surprise, tearing free from the Pomeranian who'd grown bored of the rope toy.

“Ow!"

“Isaac!" Sean leaned over, reaching for his hand.

The dog had bit around his thumb, and needlepoints of pain stung in the crevice between his thumb and first finger.

“I'm alright," Isaac said, examining the wound. The bite surprised him, but it wouldn't even hurt so much if the dog had been a few centimeters lower, or if Isaac hadn't dragged his hand free. One of the teeth had caught and scraped across his knuckle, and tiny drops of blood trailed down to his wrist.

“Is that blood?" Sean asked, voice shaky.

Isaac hummed, waving over one of the shelter workers watching them.

Sean whimpered, and then his head collided with Isaac's shoulder.

“Wha-hey! Sean?"

“What happened?" the worker asked.

Sean's head rolled off his shoulder and he fell back on the ground.

“Sean?" Isaac twisted around. One of the dogs nosed at Sean's neck, and the Pomeranian jumped onto Sean's stomach. Sean's eyes scrunched together.

“Oh, dear," the worker said. She jumped in to shoo the dogs away and tapped Sean's face. “Mr. Winters? Please wake up."

Isaac pushed a German shepherd aside, raising his bloody hand out of their reach. Georgia ran in with a first aid kit, and as the other worker roused Sean, she cleaned up Isaac's hand and plastered bright zoo-themed Band-Aids around Isaac's thumb.

Groaning, Sean let the worker sit him up and held a hand to the back of his head. “What happened?"

Good question. Isaac glanced down at his hand. “I think you passed out when you saw the blood." It hadn't even been a lot. When his heart rate returned to normal, Isaac would laugh at how little blood it had taken to freak Sean out.

Sean grimaced. “Unfortunate."

“I'm going to call in a paramedic," Georgia said. She cracked a cold pack and handed it to Sean, who wordlessly placed it against his head.

“I don't need one," Sean argued.

“You hit your head, and were unconscious for a few seconds. Not negotiable. If it makes you feel better, its more for liability issues than because I think you actually need it."

Sean didn't argue after that, and when they stood up and he swayed on his feet, Isaac was grateful Georgia was already on the phone.

Arm around Sean's waist, Isaac led him inside the shelter to the reception room and eased him into one of the plastic chairs. He was too restless to sit himself, and choose instead to shift from foot to foot in front of him.

“Sorry. I ruined the best date ever," Sean said.

Isaac shook his head. “I was bleeding first, it's not your fault."

He hummed. “Yeah, but I distracted you with that question. Still my fault."

Right. The question about opening an animal sanctuary together after some fashion show in the fall. Isaac flexed his hand, feeling the Band-aids stretch and pull.

“You don't have to answer," Sean said. “Please forget I brought it up."

“It just surprised me, that's all." Part of him still thought of their fledgling relationship like a dream. It was too good to be true. How could he picture them together a year from now when he expected Sean to call it off any moment?

The worker came in with two bottles of water. “Is there anything I can get for you? Food, blankets, anything?"

“We're alright, thank you," Isaac said.

She nodded. “The paramedic should only be a few more minutes."

“Thanks."

They were left alone again after that.

Sean fiddled with his water bottle. “I don't want things to be weird between us. You're the best thing to happen in my life in a long time."

Alright, Isaac didn't know what he did to fool Sean, but they were going way too deep way too fast. This was a car wreck waiting to happen. “I'm not that amazing."

“Yes, you are."

Isaac shook his head. “I'm really not." He thought of the twenty rejection emails sitting in his inbox, how ninety percent of the contacts in his phone were coworkers, how, even two years later, he couldn't bring himself to visit his own mother at home in case Beck was in the neighborhood.

“Then we match." Sean reached for Isaac's hand. “People like me because of a fluke in genetics. I never would have ended up where I am in a different family. Take away the brand name and fame, there's nothing special left."

Oh god. Isaac wanted to counter that statement with all the wonderful things he'd learned about Sean, which would only prove his point and lead this car wreck of a relationship to disaster that much faster.

Sean squeezed his hand and smiled up at him, that soft smile reserved for quiet moments like this, away from the cameras.

He couldn't do this. If Isaac let himself fall any further, he wouldn't be able to pick up the pieces of his broken heart when this went south.

“I have to go." He ripped his hand free and ran out the door.