Do you still?

Roman stumbled back a step, his chest constricting with pain like someone had knocked the breath out of him, leaving a gaping hole where his heart should be. "No..." The whimper sounded strange from Roman, a man who so strong you never expected him to break. "No you don't...." He focused on Zach's heart, moving forward to rest his chin on the boys shoulder. Roman inhaled deeply, desperately trying to distinguish any scents of hatred. "Zach... You can't hate me ..." It was a plea in the form of a statement.
Please God, don't hate me

Zach turned around, shaking his head lightly.
"I-I should. I really should hate you." He sighed, pursing his lips as he leaned into Roman's chest.

"Why should you? What reason have I given you other than knocking Trever around? He has done worse." Roman wrapped his arms securely around the boy. "I love you, Zach. And you know what? Maybe you should hate me, maybe I didn't treat you how you needed to be treated, but ill never stop loving you."

Zach looked up at his lover, leaning in slowly to press a kiss to his lips. He wrapped his arms around the mans neck, pressing him even closer.

Romans arms wrapped tight around Zach's waist, holding him close as the kiss stunned his senses. His wolf was howling with joy, and it reflected in their kiss. For weeks Roman had longed for this, at night pacing the halls because it was a he could think about.

Zach stood on his tiptoes wanting to be as close to his lover as possible. He'd never wanted anything more than this moment, he'd missed Roman more than he would ever admit. He poored all of his emotions into this kiss, their tongues mingling until finally, he pulled back.

A desperate whine escaped Roman as Zach's lips left him. The loss was so much more than it seemed to be. It wasnt only a broken kiss, it was Zach pull away from him again, leaving him. "Zach.... Don't go."

"I have to." Zach murmured softly. And with that, he left the room and the house altogether before he could go back like he so desperately wanted to.

Roman could do nothing but watch him go, unable to give chase and hurt Zach more. That didn't stop Roman from making sure the boy was safe though. Every night Roman patrolled, around Jesse's home and more frequently around Zach's.

Tonight, as Roman patrolled Jesse's home, Dylan Jardine happened to be approaching. He had made several attempts at taking Jesse's life and they all had been a failure so far but he knew it would be different tonight.
He hid behind the cover of trees though he knew the wolf circling the home could probably hear him from a mile away. He planned on using his bow and arrow at first, he didn't want to kill this one. But if he caught it like they tended to do sometimes, he wasn't afraid to pull his gun out. He aimed and fired his first arrow, landing it directly in Roman's shoulder.

Roman's neck cracked with how hard he whipped his head up, an inhuman roar tearing its way through the night. His first instinct was to run, recover from the wound and go back, but he couldnt do that with an obvious predator was out on Jesse's land. Instead he turned and set his sights on Dylan.

Dylan knelt and fired again, though he knew it would be harder this time because Roman was focused on him. He aimed lower so it would be more difficult for the man to catch it, sinking another arrow into the man's thigh. He fired several more rapidly, one after another. Some were caught, some missed, but quite a few hit their target, and that was all Dylan needed.
Hearing Roman's howling, Jesse woke and looked out his window, cursing at what he saw. He let out a loud howl, knowing Danny would hear and be there in moments. He didn't want to go out there without backup on the way. Even if Danny was blind, he was still a werewolf. He stepped out of his front door, growling menacingly as his eyes glowed a bright scarlet. Dylan attempted to fire at him as well but Jesse caught each arrow, snapping them easily in his grip.

Danny was right behind Jesse, already in werewolf state as he prepared to defend his pack. It was always serious when one of his pack mates were involved, Danny moved as though he could still see. "Roman!" Danny howled as he heard the skipping in Roman's heartbeat. He was hunched, his bare feet feeling the vibrations in the ground. It was this way he located everyone, barking to Jesse for orders.
Roman had yet to fall, snarling menacingly at Dylan with every swipe of his claws.

"Get Zach!" Jesse ordered Danny. "Get him down here. Now!" His words were spoken in a harsh growl as he looked to his beta. Once Danny was off, he approached Roman, removing the arrows from his body while still dodging the new bullets being aimed at his head.
Jesse snarled as he approached Dylan, showing no fear of the gun aimed at him. In fact, he went right for the gun, snatching it out of the hunter's hands and slashing him across the stomach with his claws.

Danny was kicking up dirt in his haste, his bare feet sliced and jagged by the time he made it to Zach's home. There was no knocking on doors, instead Danny rammed himself through a window, hoping it was Zach's bedroom. "Zach! Oh wow, shit, Zach!"

"Holy shit, Danny!" Zach exclaimed, eyes wide as the boy landed on his bedroom floor. "What are you doing?"

"Im-I just- Roman and hunter! - Oh wow, shit! - You gotta come with me! Roman is hurt!" He could smell the mans blood even now. "Zach please!" Danny was disoriented in his rush, reaching out for Zach only to tumble over the boys night stand.

"Okay, okay! Relax!" Zach stood, taking the boy's hand. "Show me where! Take me!" He helped Danny back out of the window, grip tight on the boy's hand.

Once they were back outside Danny stopped to position Zach on his back. "Hold on, and tell me if we're headed for a tree or anything." And with that he ducked down and took off, running at a pace only a werewolf could muster.

"Shit, Danny!" Zach was quite nervous about this. Roman had done this with him before, but Roman wasn't blind of course.
Meanwhile, Dylan, staggering with his new wounds and lack of a gun, had managed to slash Jesse across the chest with a dagger he kept in his pocket. Of course it didn't take Jesse down but it was enough to make him step back.
And Zach and Danny arrived just in time to see Dylan plunge the same blade into Roman's stomach.
Jesse let out a roar as Dylan ran off, knowing he was outnumbered now. Jesse went after him.
"No!" Zach let out a shriek as he threw himself off of Danny's back running over to Roman as the man slumped over, about to fall when Zach caught him around the waist, holding him upright. "No, no, no... Roman... oh please, be okay..."

"Zach..." His eyes lightened as he recognized his mate. The world was out of focus, and he could feel himself swaying. The only thing keeping him up was Zach, that damn dreadlock boy whos heartbeat had been the downfall of his and Barry's relationship. It had been so uplifting at the time, but then for months he had felt misery, all because Zach had been hurting after a break up with Elvis. But he met the boy and it was over for him. A day didn't go by where Zach didn't occupy his thoughts. Everything he did became for Zach, anything to see the boy smile. Nothing Zach could do would ever make Roman love him any less. The torturing was fine if it made Zach happy, Trever was okay if Zach wanted him around, and Roman had lived with it when Zach had wanted a break. All he could think of in his moments of desperation was how much he loved his mate. Every day when he could roll over and hold Zach was a blessing. All the times Zach smiled at him and sat with him, it made all the loneliness he had felt after the death of his family diminish.
Zach.
Zach.
Zach.
His mate is what made this okay, bleeding out on the forrest floor. Zach was here, and Zach was touching him and that was all that mattered. Zach couldn't hate him. Even though he had said it and it haunted Roman, it couldn't be true.
Roman's eyes focused on Zach, fading blue orbs searching the boy.
"D-do you..." Roman struggled to speak, his throat wet with rising blood. "Do y-you still....?"

Zach got to his knees beside the man, still cradling him in his arms.
"Oh God of course, I do. I do. I do still love you. I do, I do, I do..." He felt his face hot with tears before he'd realized he was crying as he leaned in, his lips pressing to the man's cheek. "I love you more than anything, Roman."

"Home." Roman reached with a bloodied hand to caress Zach's face. If he was going home tonight he wanted it to be with Zach. It had to be with Zach. Roman couldn't take this anymore, a werewolf needs its mate. "Please...." Roman's eyes fell closed, his breathing ragged. The wounds were trying to heal though, struggling as they might.

Zach could only nod tearfully, struggling but successfully lifting his lover, cradling the man in his arms and taking him to his home. All he really wanted to do was sob and hold the man, but he knew he could do something. Knew he could save him somehow. He carried Roman to his workroom and laid him on the table, going through everything he'd learned about wolves from his time with the pack. He remembered something Roman had said about triggering the healing reflex.
"I'm so sorry." He murmured, but he had to do it, if there was even a slight chance it could help. He had watched Roman do the same thing before to Jesse when the man was hurt and wasn't healing. However, Zach was not strong enough to do it with his bare hands so he grabbed a hammer off of the wall, bringing it down hard on Roman's wrist, cringing as he heard the bone snap in two.

Roman's eyes snapped open, a pained roar escaping him as his bone broke. For a moment he was dazed, afraid of another attack and confused when it occured to him Zach had done it. Anither howl escaped him, his fangs bared in agony as he brought the broken appendage up to his chest, cradling it there like a wounded animal. His brain slowly worked in that if was for his own good, but it did nothing to sooth his hurt. Still though he whined for his lover, his jaw aching with how hard his teeth were clenched. Slowly the bone was drawing back together, peice by peice.