Alpha Dragon_Taran

by Kellan Larkin

  “What do you think?” I ask him.

  “I’m not sure what humans see when they view it, but to me, her art speaks to me about freedom. The desire for unfettered, unbounded freedom. But there’s a sadness to it. I like the use of muted color in the negative space. It brings out the feeling of her isolation.”

  I won’t lie, I am very surprised by the depth of analysis of Taran’s perspective. Not that I didn’t think he had that depth, but I honestly didn’t think he had the training for that kind of critical art thinking. It’s insightful, not into the art, but into the man sitting beside me.

  “She’s trying to break the chains she feels she’s bound by in society,” I say with a tilt to my head. “There, in the trees, bold color strokes, like an animal trying to find a way out.”

  A group of school children file into the viewing area and we decide to move on. Several other exhibitions we find we don’t so much agree on. He doesn’t like the commercialization of Terrance Hinterman’s folk art.

  “His recent stuff is so derivative.”

  I disagree, especially since I bought one of his most recent pieces for my fathers’ anniversary. “It’s within that boundary of sameness that his true genius shows through.”

  Taran looks at me like I have three heads. I give him a skeptical eyebrow raise.

  The rest of the exhibitions follow suit. We find we are fifty-fifty in agreement on whether something was genius and inspired, or trite and mundane. Through our discussions, which get a little loud on occasion, I realize Taran is a man of many depths. He challenges me and my preconceived notions.

  He says that I push him to seek deeper meaning.

  As we step into the late afternoon sun, I take a moment to soak up the warmth of the sun. Taran’s arm drapes across my shoulders comfortably.

  We are two opposites coming together to make a whole.

  I feel complete.

  Right after lunch, we decide to walk around the downtown area to see the new sculpture installed in front of the mutually agreed hideous town hall.

  Taran huffs out. “God damn that is a butt ugly building.”

  My stomach makes some queasy loop-de-loops. I breathe through it before looking up at the building. “I can’t help but notice your eloquence from the museum is now gone.”

  “There’s no salvaging this one.” Taran shakes his head. “It’s butt ass ugly.”

  My hand smooths across my abdomen.

  He leads me over to a stone bench in front of the water fountain. “Are you okay?”

  Sitting only makes me feel marginally better. “Not really. I think I ate something that disagreed with me. It’s odd because the deli food at Carl’s usually agrees with me.”

  “Maybe we should head back to your place so you can stretch out for a bit.” Taran presses a kiss to my hair and I’m overwhelmed with a wave of love flowing from him. It makes my stomach feel a little better to have someone so concerned with my health.

  “Yeah, let’s do that. Can we stop by a pharmacy so I can pick something up for my stomach?”

  Taran has his phone out. “Already on it.”

  I spent way more at the pharmacy than I should have. My stomach felt wretched the entire time and I was desperate to try anything to make it stop.

  I leave all the bags on the table when we get in and lurch into the kitchen to get some water.

  Taran walks up behind me and sets a box on the counter. “Are you trying to tell me something?”

  “What?” I look from him to the box. It’s a pregnancy test. “When did you get this?” I ask.

  “Me? It was in the bags you bought from the pharmacy.” Taran thumbs over his shoulder at all the stuff strewn out on the table.

  “I don’t remember buying this.”

  “I didn’t put it in the basket.” Taran picks up the box to look at it thoughtfully. “Use it,” he says suddenly.

  “You mean… now?”

  He hands the box to me. “Yeah. It ended up in your stuff for a reason. It was probably subconscious.”

  I’m reluctant but his nudges towards the bathroom indicate he’s not going to let this go. “What do you have to lose?” he chides.

  He does have a point.

  I think I’m going to be sick. I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing. Seeing the two lines seals the deal. A part of me wants to go out and get another test just to be sure. These tests aren’t one hundred percent accurate, right?

  I stare at the traitorous two lines.

  Something deep inside me knows it’s right. I can certainly go to the doctor in the next few days and get official results but it feels right. The ‘yes, I’m pregnant’ settles over me like a warm shower.

  Taran taps lightly on the door to the bathroom. “Everything okay in there?”

  “Sure,” I croak out. “Come on in.”

  He peeks in the door before he steps in and shuts it. It’s cozy to have us both crammed into my bathroom. Taran sinks to his knees in front of me and gently takes the results out of my hand. “Two. That means positive?”

  My voice gives out and I nod.

  “I’m going to be a father,” he says, and I swear it sounds like Taran’s proud.

  I frown at him.

  “Are you not glad?” Taran waves the test result. “Do you think it’s a false positive? Do we need to go get another one to compare?”

  “No, I don’t.” I snatch the thing from him and toss it into the sink. “Are you glad about this, Taran?”

  “Why not? I love kids. I’m tall and they can sit on my shoulders so they’ll be able to see over everyone’s head.” Taran gathers my hands in his and he kisses the backs of them, one at a time. “Aren’t you glad?”

  “I’m not sure. Yeah, I guess so.”

  “You guess so?”

  “I wasn’t expecting this, Taran. It’s a lot to take in.”

  “It doesn’t surprise me, though.” Taran shifts to sit on the floor and pulls me to straddle his thighs. “Since we’re fated to be together, it makes you more fertile than you’d normally be. Guess this means I’m particularly virile too.” He gives me a cocky grin and I laugh.

  “I guess it does. I’m sorry, Taran. Of course I’m glad. I want kids. I want a family and a family life and children and a dog—”

  “What kind of dog?”

  “I don’t know.” My arms drape over his solid shoulders so my fingers can play with the hair at his nape. “A poodle—”

  “A boxer.”

  “Whatever.” Taran makes it easy to laugh about this. He’s not mad, which eases the pressure on me. I don’t want him to feel trapped by this.

  “So what’s the problem, then?” It’s as if he can read my mind.

  “I mean… I was so set on pursuing a career, trying to build up the gallery, putting my education to good use. I mean, I paid enough for the damn thing. And now, all that’s sort of fluttering to the side as I realize I’m going to have a baby. Your baby.”

  “Mine,” Taran growls and gnaws playfully at my arm. “All mine. But none of the other stuff has to go away. I have the shop I’m trying to build up. So this means we have to find the time to fit it all in, that’s all. With two of us? We can do it easily.”

  I’m not convinced, but his confident enthusiasm soothes my concerns. “The thought of you getting up at 2 AM to change diapers has a certain charm.”

  “Dude, I don’t even go to bed until after two. Not a hardship there.”

  I have no words so I launch at him to kiss him eagerly.

  “Nosko,” he says during a breath. “Bed. Now.”

  The realization hits me like a train, leaving me dizzy. He wants to build a life with me.

  He wants to be with me. Me and the baby.

  I’m going to have a baby!

  9

  Taran

  The best thing about being a business owner is the ability to sleep in if I want. With Nosko snuggled next to me in his bed, I hated getting up to go into the shop. If he hadn’t
kicked me out of the bed, I would still be there.

  He mumbled something about having to be a respectable, responsible father now.

  I told him that it’ll be a cold day in hell if I’m ever respectable, but he did nail me on responsible, which was why I was strolling into the shop.

  None of us are really hurting for money. Regardless of our levels of dedication to the shop, everyone’s there when I stroll in with a carry tray full of coffee and donuts.

  “Now there’s a boss who loves his employees.” Sako is, predictably, out of his chair first to get the chocolate-covered donuts.

  Bronaz looks up from his sketch pad with a frown. It disappears when I hand him his coffee, just like he likes it. “He’s buttering us up. I can tell by the look on his face.”

  “I just want to make sure everyone’s happy.”

  Nyve steps out of the back room at that time, drying his hands. “What does he want?”

  “What does that mean?” I thrust his coffee at him and wave the box in front of him before taking it to the front counter. “Can’t I just be a nice guy and buy coffee?”

  Varos scoffs but he’s right there at the box to claim his coffee and grab a boston creme.

  “You guys hurt my feelings.”

  “Impossible,” Varos says around a huge bite. “You have no feelings.”

  I flip him off with a laugh and grab my blueberry donut to go settle in my chair.

  “No seriously.” Nyve removes the lid to his coffee to blow at it before taking a sip. A dragon who doesn’t like hot things. Go figure. “What’s up? You’re unusually cheerful this morning.”

  “Also, on time,” Varos says.

  “I say every night to close up—”

  “Jesus, Taran, come on.”

  “Fine. Fine.” I kick my feet up and wait until I have their full attention. Bunch of savages can’t appreciate the building of drama. “Nosko and I are having a baby.”

  It grows so quiet it’s eerie.

  “Wow, Taran,” Nyve finally says to break the silence. “I have to say that’s not something we expected.”

  “I know. It’s kind of sudden but we’ve made it fully official that we’re mated.” I am humbled all over again by the immensity of this change in my life.

  Nyve drags me into a headlock until I can struggle to my feet without spilling my coffee. He grabs me in a bear hug. “Congratulations, man. So you finally came to your senses that he’s the one for you, huh?”

  “Thank the gods,” Sako says. “We were so fucking tired of you moping around the shop for Nosko.”

  The words come out more defensive than I like. “I didn’t realize just how much being fated for someone could hurt if you try to deny it. But he’s a great guy, isn’t he?”

  Bronaz slaps me on the arm and gives me a hearty hug. “You deserve happiness, Taran. I knew looking at him he would give you that.”

  “And you’re going to have a baby,” Varos adds. “Well, he’s going to do all the heavy lifting. You just get to spoil them both.”

  “So do you have a name picked out, yet?” Nyve sits on my stool next to me when I settle in my chair again.

  “We just found out last night, so we haven’t gotten that far.”

  “Don’t fool around too long. The five-month gestation will go by fast. Are you guys going to have an official joining ceremony to make it legal?”

  “As soon as we can pull that together.” Nosko and I talked about it last night but we didn’t hit on anything more permanent than yes we would do it. Nosko immediately went into planning mode and I felt a little left out until I distracted him with sex again.

  “We should celebrate extra hard at the launch party night across the street,” Varos says. “You want me to get the word out about you and Nosko?”

  I hold up my hand to slow Varos down. Once he gets started, he’s like a steamroller. But I can count on his discretion. “Hold up on that until I can get with Nosko. We just figured this out last night. We need some time to acclimate. So… just between us?”

  Although Varos looks disappointed, he nods that he understands.

  “Is Nosko coming to Annika’s launch tonight?” Nyve strolls to the box to get another donut.

  “He says he has to work late at the gallery. But I promised pictures.”

  “He’ll miss a hell of a party, judging by the social media build up.”

  I am feeling the love at the moment. We’re a motley crew of dragons, pulled together by our shared dragon heritage and our love of tattoos, but I couldn’t have picked a better set of guys to be friends with.

  Annika’s shop is jammed packed with people by the time we roll in. I’m in awe with how many people are here. The place is jumping with loud music, an open bar, and an impressive array of items on display.

  She has some amazing art on the walls, as well as a dizzying array of jewelry for sale. Unlike my shop, which is open and airy, our art the only thing we showcase, hers feels a little cramped and closed in. More intimate, maybe. A collection of eclectic items decorates the surfaces and the walls of every open space in her shop.

  If she’s been in business for as long as it’s rumored, I guess she’d end up collecting a lot of stuff. From what I can tell, she likes traveling too. I can spot all kinds of exotic souvenirs.

  Off to the side, she has a small table set up. The placard announces she’s taking applications for apprentices. Already the box to hold the completed applications is stuffed. Many people are sitting around on her waiting room sofas and even on the floor filling them out.

  I nudge Nyve with my elbow and point. He nods in understanding. His expression matches my mood. It’s not like we haven’t had business to keep us busy, but this whole rock star atmosphere grates on my nerves.

  “I wonder if there’s something to this dropping off the face of the earth for long periods of time to help build buzz,” Nyve shouts in my ear.

  I grouse my agreement and sip deeply on my drink.

  As I promised Nosko, I take a few images of Annika in her element, surrounded by her sycophants and groupies, and a few of the shop itself, and send them to him along with a text.

  wish you were here

  Within minutes, he responds to me.

  me too. I want to see how much she’s improved since I bought the gallery.

  I stop in my tracks when I read his text. He knows about her? She’s been at the gallery before?

  how do you know about her?

  “What?” Nyve asks as he reads over my shoulder.

  “He knows about her,” I say, feeling my anger start to build.

  “Did he lie?”

  “No…”

  “Did you even talk about her shop being here and how you felt about it?”

  My silence gives Nyve his answer and he sighs. “Got to work on that communication, Taran, if your relationship is going to last.” He slaps my shoulder and drifts off into the crowd.

  He’s right, of course. Nyve has a level head on his shoulders but it still irritates me that Nosko knew about her already and didn’t say anything. I would have said something if I knew he knew—

  His response vibrates in my phone.

  ran across some old images of a showing held here before I bought the place.

  Okay, yeah, I’m being a jerk about this. It’s not fair to be angry at Nosko for shit that happens at his gallery.

  I can turn this to my advantage.

  Nosko already knows about her. He can do some digging for me from that angle. With Varos working the other end, I can pull this around and get some valuable intel that will help me craft a strategy to help keep my shop in business.

  Best thing I can do now is watch and listen until I can meet the guys at Treasured Ink for a post gathering debrief.

  It’s way later than I’d like when we get back to the shop. Honestly, I want to go home and crawl into bed with Nosko. This is important, though.

  Sako is drunk and singing happily. Varos’ nose is buried in his phone to scan s
ocial media sites for news on the launch. Bronaz and Nyve talk quietly as I close and lock the shop.

  “That went better than expected.” Bronaz gets comfortable on his stool.

  Nyve crosses his arms and drops into thought. “It was cramped. Like she’s built this little nest or something. I’m not sure where she’s going to stick an apprentice.”

  Sako stops spinning on his stool. “She’s taking on an apprentice?”

  I frown at the youngest dragon. “Seriously?”

  “Ease up, dude, I didn’t say I want to go over there and apply. I’m committed to the shop and I plan to stay here.”

  I’m way too tense about this and scrub at my face.

  “One thing is clear.” Varos puts his phone down to address us. “She has a huge following and with her return, she’s going to be extremely popular. We can use that to our advantage.”

  Nyve nods along with him. “I agree. She’s good, I’ll give you that. But she’s one artist. She won’t be able to see as many people as we do. Her being in the area will draw more people who’ll step in here to see what we can do.”

  That’s my feeling, too, even when I first saw she was coming in to set up shop so close. “It’s not going to do us any good to be rivals for business. I think if we can work with her, send people her way if they want something we can’t handle, it’ll go a long way to building up a rapport with her. If the good will is received, it’ll be given, and she’ll send people over here as well.”

  I turn to Varos. “Keep an eye on her online and let us know if something changes.”

  “Easily done,” Varos says with a grin. “Besides, she’s right across the street.”

  “Cheeky dragon.”

  By the time we’re done, the tension of the night is starting to drain away from me, leaving my body sore from where I clenched my muscles all night. I hurry back to Nosko’s place so I can slip into someone a little more comfortable.

  10

  Nosko