Chapter 23

As soon as Scott opened the door, Mitch jumped on him and wrapped his arms and legs around Scott's tall body. Scott took a step back to soften the blow, and try not to fall over. "Jesus." He breathed. Mitch tucked his head into Scott's neck while Scott walked into their room and closed the door behind him. After the door was closed, Scott tried to pry Mitch off of him, but he didn't budge. "Mitchell. I was only gone for like ten minutes." Mitch whimpered. "Did he yell at you? Did you get in trouble for something I did?" Scott stopped trying to push Mitch off of him, deciding he wasn't going to budge. "I need to talk to you about something. I don't want to do it with you clinging to me like a koala bear." Mitch took fistfuls of Scott's shirt into his small hands, and held on tight. "I'm in trouble." Scott sighed. "Listen to me. I'm only going to say this once. Stop jumping to conclusions. Get down. Get ready for bed. We need to talk. You're not in trouble, as long as you tell me what I need to know." Mitch instantly jumped down, but didn't realize Scott was earlier standing so close to the bed. When he tried to land on the floor, he accidentally slipped on the edge of the bed and fell. Scott was there in a heartbeat, picking him up off the floor. "Sorry. I didn't mean to drop you so close to the bed. I didn't even think of it." Scott lifted Mitch up from under his armpits, much like a child. As soon as Mitch's feet hit the floor he was scrambling to take his pants off to get ready for bed. "That's fine, Sir. It's not your fault. I'm sorry I bothered you, I didn't mean to.. To cling. I was just.. I was just worried about you, Sir." Scott's expression softened at that. He watched as Mitch ran around the room to prepare for bed. Scott slowly took his shirt off as he watched Mitch. When Scott was laying down, Mitch knelt on the bed next to him. "Sir, what can I do for you?" Scott sighed and glanced over at him. "I didn't mean to yell at you earlier. And I didn't mean to drop you on the ground. Are you okay?" Mitch put his hands on his bare thighs and nervously pulled his boxers down a little to cover more of his legs. "I'm fine. What did you need to tell me, Sir?" Scott stared at him for a few seconds. "I have to ask you something. And I need you to be completely honest with me. You understand?" Mitch nodded eagerly. "Yes, Alpha." "What did Kevin say about your Mark?" Scott asked, putting an arm under his head to keep his eyes locked with Mitch's. Mitch takes a deep breath, and nervously fidgets with the bottom of his boxers. "Uh.. Well. Um." Scott raised an eyebrow expectantly. "Well?" Mitch shifted around uncomfortably under Scott's demanding gaze. "K-Kevin thinks that you.. He thinks you either have or are slowly becoming.. Um. Kevin said that.. Sir, I don't-" "Jesus, Mitchell. Just spit it out." Scott said finally. Mitch panicked and spoke quickly. "Kevin thinks you're stronger than Avi." Then he covered his mouth with both hands. Scott slowly sat up. "What?" Mitch gulped and shook his head. "I-I didn't mean to say that." "But that's what Kevin said?" Mitch hesitated, and then nodded. "He.. He said that your Mark is deeper than Avi's is.. And it isn't because it's recent. It's because.. He thinks you're becoming more powerful than The Alpha." Scott looked at the door for a while. That's a lot to think about. Mitch continued to fidget around as Scott thought things over. Scott looked back at Mitch, and noticed his discomfort. He took a deep breath, and smiled at how he could smell Mitch's emotions now that he was Marked. Mitch continued to look at his legs while he fumbled his hands around. Scott inhaled again, and gently reached for one of Mitch's hands. "You're not in trouble. I'm not mad. You're tired, I can smell it. We'll just go to bed, and worry about it in the morning." Mitch looked at him and nodded. "Yes, Sir. Thank you." When they were both laying down, Scott wrapped his arms around Mitch's tiny form. Scott breathed in the scent of Mitch's neck. "This is fun. So your foot hurts?" Mitch's only response was pushing his back closer to Scott's front, and Scott tucking his arm tighter to Mitch. Scott then became really concerned. "Hey.. Seriously, are you okay?" Mitch put a hand over Scott's. "I am fine. I'm glad you're excited about knowing how I'm feeling without asking me. Is there anything else you needed to ask me about Kevin?" Scott sighed. "Mitchie. I'm not excited that I don't have to ask you how you're feeling. I'm just glad I'll know if something is wrong. I like to know how you're feeling at all times. I'm not going to be more powerful than Avi. I think.. I think you and I just had so much passion with this Mark.. And it just happened to be deeper, because of that." Mitch waited a second, and then answered uncertainly. "How.. How do you know you're not more powerful than The Alpha? Is He going to be mad when Kirstin tells him what I told you?" Scott kissed the back of Mitch's neck. "You don't need to worry about that. Just go to sleep, darling." And while Mitch fell asleep easily as commanded, Scott was awake for several more hours thinking about the outcome of these conversations.