Louis was sitting back in his armchair once more, staring hard at Eivind. Dissecting, perhaps, trying to figure out just what it was that made Eivind tick. Part of him wanted to smack the man across the face just out of sheer frustration, but technically Eivind hadn't said anything<i>wrong</i>, and although Louis still couldn't find it within himself to be completely on board with what the other man was saying, he couldn't necessarily punish him for it, either. Whomever this man was, he had declared himself for Blue in a way that didn't come off as childish, thoughtless, or rebellious. To Louis, Eivind simply sounded like a stubborn man who had made up his mind. Not unlike his son. Or himself, really.<br/><br/>Blue's companion had not balked at anything that escaped Louis' mouth. He didn't shy away when Louis mentioned marriage, he didn't stumble for words when Louis challenged him about how expensive Blue was going to be. Eivind didn't even seem to mind when he commented on Blue's fiery and temperamental nature. The man had an answer for everything, but his words weren't laced with smugness and anger, like Blue's. Merely a strange sense of dedication Louis wouldn't have expected from anyone Blue brought home. Blue was lazy unless it involved something<i> he</i>enjoyed, but this Eivind seemed to have no issues committing himself to extra work just to make Blue happy. It was something Louis would have done for Katherine, if she so wished, though she had never asked him for something so taxing. For all of his son's faults, Louis knew that being manipulative wasn't one of them. If Eivind was set on working hard for Blue, Louis was at least sure that it was something he had decided, and not something Blue had convinced him to do. Blue asked for very little, materialistically speaking. He hadn't even asked him to pay for his schooling in the first place; Katherine had seen to that.<br/><br/>Another uncomfortable silence stretched between the four adults as both Louis and Katherine considered Eivind's words. Blue had settled against Eivind, leaning his body into him, wanting desperately to just go back to the hotel and shower endless affection onto Eivind's body. His parents had insulted him multiple times, and the patience Eivind had shown despite these judgmental jabs was remarkable. He had felt his heart stop when Eivind said he was exactly what he had been looking for his entire life... There was some amount of literal intent to it, as they were destined to be mates; but it was still another small, unintentionally romantic sentiment that Blue could tuck away and ruminate on. Eivind had never hidden the fact that he cared about very little in life. But he cared about Blue, and the young human understood in that moment precisely what that meant. Eivind was<i>devoted </i>to him. Only him.<br/><br/>Katherine let out a soft sigh, breaking the quiet they shared, and began to speak. Her words were slow and extremely calculated. "I want to be honest with you, Eivind," she began, brushing some loose strands of blonde hair away from her face. "We missed our son very much. We were terrified that something awful had happened to him. Police couldn't find a single trace of our baby; no one knew anything, no one had seen anything. It was as if he had vanished into thin air. To know that he was safe, with you, is a double edged sword. I'm grateful to you for taking care of my son, and the joy of knowing that he is safe and unharmed soothes all the pain I felt in his absence. But I am devastated to know Blue resented us so intensely that he would stay away of his own accord for so long."<br/><br/>Blue's eyes sank down to his lap as his mother spoke. He was safe, now, but unharmed was certainly not a word he would attribute to himself. Not now. Not ever.<br/><br/>"You seem to me like you truly care for Blue. Maybe you even love him. But I don't want my son leaving again. And I think I can see it on your face, Blue. You have no intentions of staying, do you?"<br/><br/>The son lifted his head and returned his mother's gaze. "No. I came because I wanted to see you, but I am not staying. I'm going home with Eivind."<br/><br/>Katherine nodded and smiled, though the curve of her lips was reflexive and held no joy. She stood up and wrung her hands together as she walked out of the living room and ascended the stairs. Scuffling could be heard at the top of the staircase, but no admonishments followed. Only the sound of a door opening and closing with a definite<i>thud</i>filled the empty space Katherine had left behind her.<br/><br/>"I hope you realize you've broken your mother's heart," Louis said, shaking his head and staring at the tray of snacks Katherine had provided, everything having gone completely untouched.<br/><br/>"I never meant to..." Blue said gently, his voice weak.<br/><br/>"Of course you never meant to, Blue. You never<i>mean </i>to do anything, do you? You never mean to because you never think of anyone beside yourself. You're selfish. You've always been selfish. You've always been very concerned with expressing your feelings, never with paying attention to anyone else's, no?"<br/><br/>"Papa, I--"<br/><br/>"Enough, Blue. Your mother tore her hair out worrying over you, and you were doing nothing other than participating in this ill-advised romance of yours, and you came back to rub that in our faces."<br/><br/>"No, Papa, that's not--"<br/><br/>"Yes. Yes, it is. I suspected this when you told me about your decision to be with other men. You want to deviate from your path, fine. I would have been willing to accept that about you, son. I have accepted many things about you that I would have rather not, but as long as you acted like an adult and took care of your life, I would have learned to accept it. I could have even accepted this man you cling to, as he seems hardworking. A trait you clearly lack. But the way you chose to handle this situation proves to me that you are nothing more than a spoiled, self-centered little boy who does not care about his family. You only care about what you want, just like always. I do not know where we went wrong with you.<br/><br/>"If you want to leave, then leave. I will not stop you. At least this time we will not have to look for you. Know that until you grow up, we do not need you in this house. The family doesn't deserve the pain you bring with your choices."<br/><br/><i>Choices. Choices. Choices. </i>Louis criticized Blue for his choices, but very little of the last few months had been his choice at all. Blue didn't choose to be gay. He didn't choose to be kidnapped by Lofgren, or raped and mutilated by his pack. He didn't choose to almost die or be at the mercy of werewolves. He had only made two choices: to be in the wrong place at the wrong time in Lofgren's territory, and to be with Eivind, though even the latter was somewhat arguable. He hadn't chosen to be Eivind's mate, or even to fall for him, but he did. And he stayed. But he couldn't tell his father all that. He wouldn't have believed him in a million years, and his father would interpret the truth as just another self-serving ploy to get what he wanted. Whatever that was.<br/><br/>He couldn't take it anymore. Blue could feel his heart slowly cracking in his chest and he didn't think he could sit there any longer without screaming. Tears were silently cascading down the young man's pale cheeks. This wasn't how things were supposed to go. He wasn't sure what he was expecting. His father had never supported him. Why would he suddenly start now?<br/><br/>"I'm sorry," Blue whispered, but whether the apology was to his father or to Eivind wasn't clear. The boy stood up but he did not wait for his mate. He walked a quick, panicky stride to the front door and took desperate steps to Eivind's truck. Thankfully, the wolf had left the vehicle unlocked, allowing Blue to climb into the front passenger seat. When he was sitting there, alone, he allowed himself to succumb to the sobs he had been trying to hold back while in front of his father. Even if he had wanted to, he doubted he could've stopped the floodgates in that moment.<br/><br/>All he wanted was to go back to the hotel, or Eivind's cabin, or even the cave out in the middle of nowhere where he and his lover had first mated. It didn't matter where they went. He just wanted to go away.