by Moxie North
What color they are is irrelevant. We’re wasting time, again, on frivolous things. Both Professor Clark and Professor Minkey have agreed to attend. I’ve spoken with Campus police and they will be there with an information table, along with the sexual assault crisis line. They will be handing out cards and have counselors attending. That’s what matters, Sara. We also need to find out if we can get any sponsorship for food, beverages and the like.”
“Oh, I have information on that.” Krissy, a new member and bright-eyed freshman was practically bouncing in her seat. “I got Starbucks to provide catering coffee. Top Pot is dropping off donuts, and Crystal Springs is dropping off water dispensers so we can refill our reusable bottles and avoid waste. I’m totally against plastic water bottles, that’s why I always bring my stainless bottle wherever I go.”
Quinn held back the eye roll that was pending and smiled at the young woman. She was eager and excited, even discussing a topic as serious as they were. “Thank you, Krissy. That is very helpful.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m chairing this meeting. I really think we should decide on poster board color.”
Quinn wanted to beat her notepad against her head. She was all for supporting groups that made a difference and that worked for a better world. But she seemed to spend most of her time in these meeting thinking about how she would have done it if she were in charge. Yet, she was never in charge. Quinn was amazing at hindsight and figuring how to do things better. Still, she wasn’t one to volunteer to take the lead. Knowing your own limits was something her mother had also drilled into her. Take on too much and you will never get rid of the responsibility. Which must be how her mom had gotten out of parenting most of the time. Quinn had been the only eight-year-old she knew that could navigate the city bus system on her own.
Sheer panic would steal over her when she thought of taking on anything other than what she already did. If she was being honest, it was more about that chance that she could fail and let people down that kept her hand in her lap when someone asked for anyone willing to lead. She’d volunteer all day long. Need someone to hang fliers? She was your girl. Getting petitions signed while standing in the rain? You betcha. Actually taking on a project by herself? No thanks.
She glanced out the window and watched the rain trickle down from the gray sky. She loved living in Seattle, the smell of the Puget Sound, the salt air that would sneak between the scents of the city. The always green trees and bushes that kept everything lush except for the grass that only browned during a drought. It was like you could feel things growing around you all the time. Even if that thing was mold. Mold had rights too.
Growing up in Eastern Washington, there were fewer trees and more farm fields. Her mother had raised her to plan on getting out of Yakima. It wasn’t that it was a bad place to live, but her mom wanted her to experience what the world had to offer and to do that, she had to get an education. So she worked hard, and when that wasn’t enough, she worked harder. She volunteered, joined every afterschool activity that didn’t include kicking or hitting a ball, and she made good grades.
Quinn had managed to cobble together enough grants and scholarship money to cover her schooling. What didn’t get covered she worked for. Early on it was work study and a part-time job. Now she had a small amount of student debt but had a plan to pay it off.
Her first year in Seattle had been a revelation; it was like her soul had come home. She had never lived so close to the water, and now she knew she could never live far from it again; it fed her and gave her the motivation to seek out a more complete connection to the world around her.
Hence joining the Wiccan group in first year. Now she had her own way of connecting to the universe. Harmony teased her about her shrine, but mostly it was things that she’d found and loved. A rock from the shore of Golden Gardens Park. A piece of smooth wood that she’d picked up the first time she hiked Wallace Falls. There was a big maple leaf that had plopped on her head when she was walking downtown one day.
A man walking towards her had smiled when she paused and tilted her head up to see what had fallen on her. She felt around on her head and pulled down the leaf. For some reason, the handsome man had actually blushed when he passed by her. It was probably because of the goofy grin she had been sporting. Other little tidbits also had a home there. Bracelets made of macaroni and drawings from children she’d babysat. All things that meant more than money to her.
But connecting also meant action. That was why she was here, listening to an asinine debate over paper. It was for the greater good and sometimes that meant sacrificing your own needs for others.
She was only half listening to the meeting, waiting for something to actually get resolved so she could start paying attention again. Instead, she was watching a lone figure walking across the commons. He was tall, and hunched over against the rain. Not an uncommon sight as most people didn’t carry umbrellas. It was a Seattle oddity that confounded visitors to the area.
Suddenly wishing she was out in the weather with the man slogging through the puddles, the group finally agreed on white placards with black lettering. After all of that, they went with white. She should have known.
The group adjourned and Quinn hung around to see if anyone wanted to talk. She remembered being new and joining clubs like this not only because they did good, but you were desperate for human contact. The water girl hung back and Quinn chatted with her about the event and being new at school. Seattle-ites liked to indulge in the city scene; it was a badge of honor to know what was happening and whether or not your attendance or lack thereof would be detrimental to your school career.
Quinn used to be into all of that. She knew the clubs, the bands, and the random raves that were hallmarks of youth culture. This past year Quinn had found the whole scene to be exhausting. She was going to graduate with her degree in Social Work and had been taking any classes she could for her master’s degree while prepping her thesis so she could get her degree in record time.
Her professors had been encouraging her accelerated studies. Quinn knew she was going into a field that had bad hours, bad pay, and often brought heartache. But she knew that it was something she was meant to do. She would take a hundred bad days if she had a good one where she could make a difference.
With her already busy schedule and plans for even more intense work in the upcoming year, she needed to keep her job. That meant she would have to manage her time better than she already was. She needed to make clear times to study and work on her thesis. But social work didn’t have schedules. At least not ones that were reliable. She’d found a group of girls that were going to go in on a house in Ballard to rent. She would have to still share a room with someone, but the rent would be cheap enough and she didn’t really plan on being there too often.
She’d contacted a number of agencies and they were desperate for fresh meat. Social work had a high turnover rate and the demands of the job wore people down quickly. Quinn had been in contact with a local agency for a few years. Keeping in touch with the director and letting them know that she was committed to working with them after school. They offered her part-time work to start with once she had her degree. She would start doing home visits for potential foster parents to ease herself into the field. Interviewing people that were excited and incredibly brave to delve into helping children. It wasn’t hard to make sure that the potential foster home met the requirements, but she also had to get a feel for the space a scared, displaced child might be coming to.
Quinn had lived with that fear most of her young life. She knew at a young age that if anyone found out she was being left alone that they could come and take her away. Her mother wasn’t just trying to scare her, but impress on her that they had to work together to make sure they could stay together. Her mom didn’t want her to be left at home. That wasn’t how she saw raising her daughter. But life throws you curveballs and you have to adjust.
They’d made it through, survived, and stayed together. Quinn knew
that social work wasn’t always about breaking up families. It was sometimes about making them stronger. Providing parents with help and resources available to those that needed it to make sure their families could stay together. It was why she wanted to get into the profession. To make a difference to those that needed a helping hand.
Maybe in a year or two she could think about dating. Find a nice, malleable man that wasn’t a Neanderthal to have occasional sex with and maybe catch a movie together. Other than that, she was happy on her own, with her friends, without the complications of a relationship. She had plans for the future and she wasn’t going to let some muscle bound jock wearing too much cologne distract her from her goals.
Chapter 5
Rain made it through his first few days of the new semester with no more bumps in the road. He’d spent the weekend in full prep mode. He felt he had a firm grip on his classes, they were just extensions of things he’d already learned and knew. All except the one that is. It was Wednesday, dreaded Wednesday. He had been trying to play it off like it was no big deal, that it was just another class. But the truth was, he was completely out of his comfort zone. He knew he was going to be walking into that classroom and odds were pretty good, he’d be the only guy there. There was also almost a guarantee that no one was going to want him there.
Fin hadn’t let up on the jokes about his class. He kept coming back to his room to find gifts on his bed. A bottle of nail polish one day, a box of tampons the next. This morning there had been a curling iron heating in the bathroom. Fin was being a dick. Rain wasn’t even sure he was signed up for classes this semester. For all he knew, Fin was majoring in partying.
After turning off the curling iron, he got ready for class, and then made a stop next door. He knocked on the door and it swung open.
“Rain! So nice to see your handsome face this morning.”
“Hey, Ashley. Do you guys need a new curling iron? Or a backup one? I have come into possession of one and clearly don’t need it.”
“Ohh, a Beachwaver, that’s like a hundred and thirty bucks. You sure?”
Leave it to Fin to buy an expensive curling iron as a joke. “Yeah, use it in good health,” he said, handing it over.
“You want a cup of coffee or something?” the pretty girl asked.
“Sorry, I’m off to class. Thanks though, maybe some other time.”
The girl looked crestfallen. It wasn’t the first time Rain had seen that look. He’d spent the last three years being the gentleman, the guy friend to any number of girls that were looking for more from him. But the truth was, he wasn’t interested. Not even a little bit. Some time ago he had realized how much his bear and he needed their one true mate and saw no reason to play the field.
He didn’t blame other shifters that sowed their oats. There was literally an animal inside them that wanted out sexually. The clans used to come together years ago to see if shifters could find their mates within the clan groups. They called it The Run. Now as most families knew each other and had ensured there were no fated mates between families, they kept doing the runs just as reunions. The young ones still treated The Run for a chance to hook up, and those looking for some casual fun with no obligations could find a willing partner in the woods to spend some quality time with.
Rain never had the urge to find someone that way. He’d run along with his friends. Shifting and chasing through the woods was exhilarating, but the closest he’d come was a few heavy make out sessions. Not that it was common knowledge, but only Fin and Angel knew that he was still a virgin. He wasn’t afraid of sex or worried that he didn’t want it. He was a healthy young man and sex was pretty much all he thought about. But he and his bear were willing to wait. They knew that when they found their mate that it would be worth it. It didn’t mean he didn’t hope like hell he didn’t have to wait for the next forty years like some of his uncles and cousins. Forty plus years of celibacy didn’t sound like much fun.
Walking to the building that held his hopeful final credit, he saw he was early, too early. Finding a quiet spot under a tree that had a semi-dry spot, he sat down and pulled out his phone.
Pulling up his video chat, he hit the number for his brother Cash. The phone chimed as it rang through.
The screen blacked for a moment then his sister-in-law Cassie popped on screen.
“Rainier! What’s up, dog!”
“Hi Cassie, How’s the fam?”
“Oh my god! Your niece and nephew are little hellions! Tearing ass all over this house. I’ve had Cash put down about a thousand miles of that heavy duty gym mat material on the floors. Little jackasses keep climbing the walls. They eat constantly and think it’s funny as hell to take their diapers off. And this is all when they are in human form. I’d understand if their bears did it, but no, this is all human naughtiness.”
Rain gave a chuckle. His brother and his mate had a tough start to their relationship. Then when Cassie got pregnant, the whole clan had to keep his brother from coming unglued. He was so protective of his mate that he had basically stopped working and tried to watch over her twenty-four seven. Cassie finally had enough because she was not the kind of girl that needed a babysitter and banished his brother back to work.
His niece and nephew, Jett and Axel were adorable, funny as hell, and made Rain want a family of his own. He spoiled them rotten and loved taking them out into the woods around his brother’s house. They would shift and climb a tree, then shift to human and get stuck. It was a constant job to keep them safe, but he loved taking care of them.
“I’m sure you are exaggerating, Cass. My little angels would never do such horrible things. They are perfect cubs and will both be president in the future.”
“It would take a joint presidency to get those to agree on anything. They fight like cats and dogs. Unless they are sleeping, then they are cuddled up to each other for warmth.”
“They are cubs, just think, you are getting two done at once. When does Cash want more?”
“Oh hell no. He can keep his big bear paws to himself. Bad enough giving birth to twins, but doing it at home was lame. I’m jealous of all those drugs and knock out gas you can get at the hospital.”
“Cass, I think knock out gas was only on classic Batman episodes.”
“Whatever, I wanted it. Axel stop chewing on your sister’s hair! His bear licks her hair constantly. She has to get shampooed every day.”
“Bear saliva is good for them, it’s not that gross.”
“Hah! I’ve seen what you bears like to lick. You aren’t fooling anyone. Nasty, dude. Not as bad as the cougars, mind you. Most of you bears are too big to reach down there, thank goodness.”
“Okay, then. On that note, is Cash there?”
“No, honey, he left his phone at home when he went into work today. Abandoning me with the terrible two. I think I’m going to jack them up on sugar before he gets home and then take a bath. Only seems fair.”
“Excellent idea. Have him give me a buzz when he gets back, yeah?”
“Will do, bananaroo!”
Rain ended the call with a smile. He loved his sister-in-law. She was funny, crazy, and an amazing mate for his brother. He met her the first time when she was recovering from a car accident. Rain had never seen a more broken thing in his life. A deflated soul was painful to witness. His brother had brought her back to life and made her whole again. It was the most beautiful thing he’d ever had the privilege to witness.
Watching his brother fight for his mate ensured that Rain wasn’t about to settle for anyone but his true mate. So what if he was a virgin, it didn’t make him any less of a man. He just wanted his first time to be with his mate. For him, knowing that there would never be any other woman in his mind or even his heart would be a blessing.
Checking his phone, he decided he should head towards the lecture hall. He wanted to stake out a seat that would hopefully keep him obscured from too much attention. Also having his back to a wall seemed like a logical idea.
When he walked in, there were only two other people already there. Two girls sitting next to each other, texting on their phones. They glanced up to watch him walk in and their eyebrows rose almost simultaneously.
They didn’t comment, just watched him find his seat not all the way in the back, but close to it, and to the side. The room was set up like a theater, allowing a clear view of the front from every seat. He could see the screens and with his shifter hearing, he didn’t need to worry about missing anything that was said.
The class slowly started to fill in. Some people walking in excited, others with trepidation. And as they scanned the room, their eyes would hit him and the reactions ranged from frowns to smiles of pure sexual interest. He wasn’t just saying that because they looked at him. It was because his senses could pick up all the cues that they found him attractive. If he was a player like Fin, he could use that to his advantage. It was another reason he wasn’t comfortable dating. He felt like he knew what most people would try to keep hidden.
As the class settled in, there was just a quiet murmur of conversation. The door opened and the room went silent as everyone expected the professor to enter into the room. Instead, a young woman walked in. Her hair was black and had hot pink tips that curled up at the bottom. She was wearing a gray t-shirt and a long brown vest that flared around her hips. It covered her ass, and Rain wasn’t embarrassed to admit he was trying to look. Her skinny jeans had holes in each knee and she wore a pair of brown army style boots with the laces barely tied. In her arms were stacks of paperwork.
“Don’t worry, I’m just the TA. Continue your conversations,” she called out as she walked towards the small desk set off to the side. The chatter in the room picked back up. The woman walked to the desk and dropped the paperwork as she turned to scan the room.