Otter Creek i hate everything about you

Otter Creek. That was the place where he'd last seen Ramesses. Charles didn't know why he returned here. He'd left the Teekon and his awkward life behind a long time ago. He'd left behind Lotus and Nyra with ease. He missed Lotus, 'cause he wanted to be a good dad, but he knew he wasn't anyway. Besides, Nyra didn't need him at all. Then there'd been the whole war thing, which was just messy and that's when he had ran away.

He didn't remember all of that as well. Not as well as the last encounter with Ramesses. There was something about that man that gave Charles the chills. He knew that it was best for him to stay away, but there was something inside of him that compelled him to return.

Not for Lotus. Not for Nyra. Not for the Saints. Not even for the memories of the wolves he'd lost (he'd buried those deep and far away, and they were only a good reason to stay the fuck away, if anything). Definitely not for his mother.

Charles sniffed around the creek, though he found no sign of the imposing man that had looked at him with lustful eyes. I'm not a freak, I'm not a freak, I'm not a freak — he'd told himself so many times, but his time from the Teekon had taught the coywolf that he was a freak. Incidents like before kept happening again and again. More buried memories and scars added to the list.

It didn't matter, now. All water under the bridge. He continued his search in muted silence while he tried to recall their last conversation, and at the same time tried to repress it. The fuck is wrong with you, fucking idiot, he berated himself, but he kept pressing on all the same.