How long would this asshole take?

Hide shoved his hands into his hoodie pockets for warmth as the evening cold nipped his fingertips. He kicked at the sidewalk, pebbles grumbling under his breath.

Matthew can just call him up for BS and ditch him. He was already on his shit list, so why would the fox make it worse for himself?

Just as he was mentally putting the man as his number one in awful person archive, the fox-eared man in that cheap rushed out with a good 6-pack carton under his arms. He was grinning from ear to ear, revealing all his sharp canines.

“Leaving already Tiny? I guess more booze for me,” he said, walking up to Hide, tugging his cap on his head.

“Screw you, Matty,” Hide held his head up with indignation before he gave Matthew's drinks a side glance. “How easy was this shit to steal? Last time I checked, they ramped up their security. Can’t even use the bathroom without some camera in your face.”

“Huh? I bought these,” Matthew walked over across the crosswalk as Hide followed suit looking at Matthew in curious confusion.

Hide scoffed and said, ”Eh? So you’re some law-abiding Fox now? Bullshit. I thought you would have done a little shoplifting. The prices here are actual robbery.”

Matthew gave him an eye-roll, “Yeah, but I’m not risking jail again. I got a job a year ago.”

He did?

Following his old friend they found themselves in that abandoned playground, they used to hang out when they were fresh-faced delinquents. It was too cold nowadays to let kids play on their own. The broken-down equipment and the sharp used, dirty needles littering the ground were more than enough to keep parents far away.

Matthew tossed Hide a drink, a sweet and cheap as hell Appletini. Call him whatever name you want but no way would he chug some bitter ass beer that tastes like piss. Who cares how little cred he got from drinking sissy drinks?

It did not matter anymore.

He was no longer on the streets for that kind of thing.

It was strange…

Ever since that orphanage kicked him out, he never would have thought there would be a point in time again where he would feel so…. Distant from that kind of life.

It scared him somehow more than any of the weird culty crap he and Carole are looking into.

Matthew, being the asshole he was, light a smoke before taking a swig from their fruity drink on the playground. A true ass.

He sat down at the base of the rusty jungle gym. Hide never wanted to be outdone, rolled himself down the old slide to relax at the base.

If either of them got tetanus, they had well earned it.

Now that he thought about it…

When he was in that store with Loukas, it never crossed his mind to shoplift the things he wanted. It never crossed his mind to stuff those fruit snacks into his pocket or have a backup plan when his card got denied. Really, his old backup plans were to rob the place and run.

In fact, all that was on his mind during that trip, the movie, the shopping as much as he preferred to say his reason was for information. What was on his mind was... Loukas.

That guy...

That sweet, naïve mess of a guy.

Damn it, why did he have to be so his type physically?

If they met at some club or something, Hide would be fully ready to invite him for one hell of a ride of his virgin life. Grind and tease that equipment he can tell the young guy was packing. Give the guy a soft drunken kiss to intoxicate them both. One hell of a wild night would be what a nervous guy like that needs.

But… he could not bring himself to do that now…

The guy has better options elsewhere. Loukas was in his early twenties, handsome, well built and probably had some things to get him qualified where ever he goes.

Why would he should he settle for a guy like him?

Matthews pulled his smoke out of his mouth, releasing the putrid gas from his lips and said, “So your non-boyfriend's rich folks are throwing some sort of party?”

“How would you know that Matty?”

He chuckled, “Saw some Ads for hire around the city. Them cheap fuckers are asking for some cheap labour out of our kind.”

Figures

Hide down his first shot of the drink, licking his lips from the sweet taste, “Yeah, you’re right. It's gonna suck massive balls though. I have to wear shit like a damn tie. A Tie of all things Matty! A tie!”

Hide’s hand waved away the wafts of Matthews’ cigarette smokes.

“... Tried water vapours?” the man had the guts to say.

Hide grimaced at the thought, “I’m not gonna be some gay, poser thou. Gay, yes. Poser hell no. If you're gonna smoke and be a dumbass at least not be a pussy about it.”

Hide looked down at Matthew as he normally does and finally asks, “You know a good poison for a lot of people?”

Matthew almost choked on his halfway done smoke as he looked up at Hide with that frustrating concern. As if he was some little kid who did something really awful and needed a talking to. The many reasons Hide could not stand him back in the day.

Yet still... He was happy Matthew shill can hold that look for him.

Matthew scratched the back of his head.

“I… I thought you were no longer with the boss nor his cronies anymore.”

“I’m not,” Hide corrected, “This is more for someone else... Speaking of which. I know some of those losers are in jail right now. So how's the rest of those traitors? Still kicking?”

Matthew seemed somewhat relieved with Hide’s answer, although not by much.

“Dead, dying or in jail,” Matthew took another swig, “Makes sense you know, with boss dead and you gone, they were pretty much headless chickens.”

Hide wished he was there as they got their just desserts. Selling him out was pathetic, and he never thought they would go that low. Maybe blow the real mouthy one's brains out for calling him a dumb goat. Killing that old fuck was doing them all a favor. They were finally free...

Matthew leaned back against the rusty jungle gym bar, no doubt staining his jacket. Not that he cared if it did and said, “Now about your need for poison... why you want that anyway?”

Hide would not spill the full thing to the guy. Either he puts it together himself or he leaves him alone.

So the goat beast-kin said, “A friend of mine’s having some family trouble and they are having some big as hell party soon. Now you can guess the quickest way to deal with a large family of dickheads.”

Matthew's tail curled around his waist as his eyebrows knitted. Hide was half tempted to get up there to see if he was alright.

“Murder? Are you kidding me? My folks kicked me out on the streets and I never thought, Oh well, better start murdering their asses.”

Hide let out a cackling laugh, “Oh, I would.”

"Don't try to be a bad boy now. I know you're bluffing."

"Am I Matty?"

"Yes you are," Matthew rolled his eyes. "Nice joke, I give you 3/10 for originality."

Hide stuck out his tongue, "Meh, you suck."

Hide did not want to say what he found out about the abuse Loukas went through. The files, what his mother had been doing to him. All recorded, all filed. Documents, he got from their database. Medical notes. All on record.

When they want Loukas to suffer, they let him suffer. Either through inactivation or participation.

What for?

Bull shit...

The one person he trusted used him as an emotional toilet. If Hide was as impulsive as he was 3 years ago, he would have set this house ablaze. Places like these are disgusting and are better off gone.

Yet he said none of this to his old friend. That truth of Asbjorn belongs to Loukas and him alone. Thus he shall share none of it. Hide would let Matthew see him as an impulsive asshole with imagined redeemable qualities.

Because that was what Hide was. If Matthew could hate him, Hide would have little holding him back.

He had to do the same thing with Loukas...

He can not stay in Ildens

Matthew threw his now useless cigarette butt on the ground and said, “What does that guy think of that plan?”

Odd question.

“He’ll hate my guts. Told me to get the fuck out of here and threw my ass on the streets,” Hide laughed at the imagined scenario as if it was the funniest thing on the planet.

That’s how it should be. Supposed to be.

Loved?

Care for?

Loukas was better off without him right now.

Hide tilted his head to Matthew with half his bottle of Appletini empty whilst he had barely touched his own. Matthew looked up at him with disgust.

As it should be.

He hated him.

As he should…

Carly despite herself liked him. Loukas..... may like him a bit more... He hated feeling like this.

He had to leave, away from people who care for him despite what he had done. Convinced a once innocent man to bloody his own hands and get a girl with so much potential to destroy it by getting involved.

They somehow don’t hate him for this and now…

He’s getting scared to let go. He wants to cling on and never think or look back again.

Matthew got up, interrupting his musings.

“No, I don’t have any poison,” he wiped the back of his pants as Hide waggled the mostly full bottle of alcohol from above.

“Still keeping this foxy boy,” he chirped, “You came here just to say hi right?”

Matthew simply shook his head, “Mostly to see one last thing before I get the hell out of here… Guess I was wrong.”

Just as Hide was about to enjoy Matthew calling him a dick and an asshole.

He felt warm arms around him, he was taken aback and to make matters worse he heard.

"You got worse at lying, I still want out of here... with you."

Hide froze.

The world felt both confusing and painful.

His chest hurt.

His eyes burned

"I'm... sorry Matthew... I'm so sorry," was all he could say back.

Sorry... sorry for how he treated the person willing to stick by.

Sorry for even now trying to ditch him

Sorry for being himself as he was even now running away from the only other guy on the planet who cares for him.

He was pathetic... and hates it.

Matthew slowly let him go to reveal two tickets.

Two tickets to a place far offshore... far away from Ildens.

“The 1st train leaves in a week. Spent years saving up for this,”

Hide stared at the tickets before slipping out, “Why me?”

“I always planned to ask you,” was Matthew’s reply, “I just wanted to get one beast-kin out of this hellhole, and I thought maybe try my old friend. After the first train… that would be it. We take separate paths.”

He… he still cared

He actually did it...

He can leave...

On those nights when that was pissed at them for whatever reason that day, they would sit on the rooftops and make a long list of things they wanted to do. From pranking this person, getting money, job prospects, and hooking up with whoever, Matthew stayed out of the last topic cus he did not have much to add.

Out of all of their conversations, the most ridiculous thing Matthew proposed was a trip out of here.

It seemed like a pipe dream at the time. Their money was all blood money, and the majority of it went to Boss. They were beast-kin, thus jobs were difficult to come by. Hide had many of his official papers probably burnt along and Matthew was a teen runaway, so his papers were non-existent.

Hide had a feeling Matthew got those tickets from not so legal means.

He could leave.

After all these years….

“So you're coming…”

Hide would have yes immediately years ago.

"Yes, Matty," was what he wanted to say and grabbed that ticket. Probably on the train's first stop, he would... run away from Matthew leaving him on his own. It's for his own good and once again, Hide would be on his own. He would be free and not have to worry anyone, care about anyone nor ruin other people.

Why was he hesitating?

No, this was enough he has to leave. He would skip town without a second look back. Without another word, he is already feeling the pain at the thought of leaving. Loukas would hate him, and that would be good. See him as a low life. Which he was.

Just as he was about to accept, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

Matthew tilted his head in confusion at the sudden call.

“Huh? You got a job?” the fox man asked in confusion

Hide looked at the number. It was that Lucky girl. “Sorta,” he replied as he checked the message as it said, “H plz c0me over 2 The church plz. Carly!”

Seeing Carole’s name and the hurried manner it was written in, he shoved his phone back into his pocket and said to Matthew, “Yeah, some shit went down and they want me back. Sorry, gotta run Matty.”

"Huh? b-but Hide the tickets," Matthew said.

"If I come to the station tomorrow morning then take that as my yes. If not... go on without me."

"Damn it what have you gotten into?"

"My usual BS...Also Matthew...Thank you."

Matthew's eyes were solemn and as Hide turned around to run in the direction of the manor, he simply heard.

"Yeah... Goodbye Hide. Glad you found something."

As rapidly as he could, he rushed back to the manor as fast as his legs could carry him.

Something happened with Carole, whatever it was.

But despite his concerns, he had to keep mentally telling himself he would leave as soon as he’s done helping her.

What was Matthew talking about?

Found something?

He would leave and never look back.

He does not want to hurt.

He does not want to feel anything.

And so he ran.