Shifter Paradise Cafe

He rose, stepping in front of her, his hand sup in a 'wait' motion. "Please, I'm just-" he asked softly before sighing. "I was only saying that because I was worried that that was what was going on, but your heart is in bad shape right now Kayla. I don't know what you are doing but whatever it is, it isn't good." He reached out and gently pushed her hair out of her face with gentle fingers. "Please stay Kay, don't let my doctorish nature get in the way of us hanging out okay?"

He stepped back so it wasn't seeming like he was making her stay there. He was just worried. WHy would she have lost so much weight sinc etheir alst meeting? It was worrying him far more than he let her know.
 
"I'm not doing anything," Kayla lied. The stress of the situation was really starting to get to her, and her instincts were stirring. All she wanted to do was shift and run out of there - just get away from it all and pretend it wasn't happening. She was so happy that Anthony was back in town.. or was she? Him being here meant facing everything that she thought she had put behind her. All of the feelings and disappointment and the heartbreaking realizations. She wasn't ready for this. Looking down, she shook her head and fought back the trembling need to just let herself half-change.


"It's not you. I just.. I can't be here.." she said shakily, her cheeks slightly flushed as she started feeling lightheaded. The force of holding back the change combined with her overall condition was rapidly wearing her out. She had to get out of this corner she had backed herself into.
 
Something inside him told him that he would either have to make her stay and risk losing her friendship or let her go and risk her never coming back. "Why?" he asked, determining to do both. He would keep her as long as he could, but in the end if she really did want to go she could and he wouldn't stop her. If she gave him good reasons to leave. "Because I'm not going to let you just get away with risking your health? You are far too important to risk yourself like this."

He came up short and looked away. He'd nearly said it. After so many years he had thought maybe the emotions wouldn't be there any more. Obvious it wasn't and he'd almost just confessed to the girl about how important she was to him. Coughing he took a step back. "Left untreated I don't know what will happen to you with the condition you have. I--I don't want to wake up one day and find out that because I wasn't persistent something terrible happened to you."
 
"No, not because of that.." Kayla said, though she trailed off when Anthony's words actually registered in her mind. Did he just say..? No, surely she was imagining things or overthinking them. He was just concerned for her like any doctor would be. They had been best friends years ago and now they were like a couple of awkward people meeting at a class reunion. She missed him so much that she was, apparently, assuming he meant things that there was no way he could. Obviously.


"I really don't feel so good. I should go home before.. um, before I get sick," she said, looking away for a moment as she struggled not to blush. She almost messed up and said something bad! When she looked back up at him, her eyes were a bright yellow - until she blinked, and then they were back to normal.
 
The young man looked up at her and there was sadness there. "You can stay Kayla. We have plenty of room for you to lay down and rest if you do get sick. And I would be able to care for you if you did get sick," he offered weakly. He had to find some way to get her to stay willingly. "You are my friend. I don't want you to stress yourself." However he ended up pausing as he saw the yellow in her gaze before they went back to normal. Blinking a few times he stepped closer, as if about to inspect what he had thought he had just seen before he stopped and sighed and looked up at the young woman before he stepped in and pulled her into a hug. "I'll take you back. If you are getting sick then there is no reason for you to be going about alone. All right?"
 
Unaware of the fact that her control had slipped momentarily, Kayla gave in to the embrace and wrapped her thin arms around Anthony tightly. It was a shame that they couldn't just stay this way. She'd be content for hours, just to stand, maybe put her head against his chest.. Her grip on her thoughts was obviously sliding. She frowned at her own lack of logical thoughts, then looked up at him and nodded a little as her body quivered for just a moment.


"Okay. Just a walk back though. I don't need a doctor hovering over me just so I can nap," she agreed, ignoring the demands of her body as her eyes slowly slipped back to yellow.
 
He smiled a little at her concession and was about to back up until his eyes locked on the yellow eyes that peered up at him. he swallowed and froze, eyes locked with hers as a chill ran up his back. Was he seeing his own eyes reflected in hers? Was he slipping in his control? He checked his control and knew that it wasn't him. "K-Kayla, your eyes," he whispered, reaching up to gently tilt her chin up. "When did they turn yellow? They weren't yellow a few moments ago were they? Do-Do you wear contacts or something?" he asked. There was a part of him that wanted her to deny it, to say that perhaps, just maybe it was something like his own eyes.
 
Kayla tilted her head a fraction as Anthony tensed, not understanding. It wasn't until he whispered to her that the horrible realization set in. She suddenly felt like her stomach had turned to a ball of ice. At first she was unable to respond or react as true panic started to take over, and she let him tilt up her chin as she stared at him. Seconds later, she shook her head and quickly took a few steps back from him. Her eyes changed back to normal and she stepped back more, not looking at him as she scrambled for some sort of excuse.


"Uh.. Maybe you're still tired and seeing things.. You should rest, I'll walk myself home, bye!" she said, then turned and darted out the door. She hopped down the steps and raced down the driveway, thankful that she hadn't worn heels.
 
GO after her! Don't let her flee! his inner voice yelled at him but he hesitated. He wanted to stop her and take in what he had seen. There had been panic, fear, all the things he might have felt had she seen him with his own eyes changing shades. He followed her to the door and watched her race away. The muscles in his legs bunched and he found himself leaping down after her, using his slightly heightened abilities to keep up with her, though he didn't really catch up to her. "Kayla wait! Wait we need to talk! Please you don't have to run." he called after her before he cursed and tripped. He tumbled forward until he laid there, body limp as he lay there.
 
Just as she was almost to the road, Kayla heard Anthony call out and then a thud. She didn't want to turn back. There was no way she could! He'd catch her and find out and then she'd be off to some government lab or something! Or maybe it'd be worse. Maybe he'd just kill her himself. Wait, Anthony wouldn't.. would he? She hesitated, then turned and looked back, seeing him sprawled out on the ground. Her logical side said that he was fine, it was a minor fall, and she should flee while she was able. She would have.. but her emotional side wouldn't allow her to just walk away from him laying there.


"Anthony?" she asked tentatively, walking back to him slowly and scooting down to gently shake his shoulder while her instincts screamed that it was a mistake.
 
The man remained lip for the first few shakes before he grabbed her wrist and leaped at her, pinning her to the ground , his entire right side of his face already starting to bruise from his fall. His own dark eyes flashed green-gold before it settled on the new color, staring down at her as he held her there. "You-You change," he said, slightly out of breath out of both shock and, strangely, relief. "It wasn't my imagination was it Kay? It wasn't me finally waking up in some odd dream where you can shift--change? Tell me Kayla. Tell me I am not dreaming."
 
Kayla yelped and squealed as she was grabbed, having no chance to scramble backward or even try to keep him pinned instead before she was forced onto her back. She squirmed in an attempt to escape, then froze. His eyes. Her jaw dropped slightly and she stared, her own eyes unconsciously slipping to the bright yellow in response. His accusations only stunned her further, and she was silent for a long moment before piecing together a reply.


"Y-You.. You aren't dreaming, Anthony.." she stuttered, her voice barely above a whisper. "Am I?"
 
Anthony opened his mouth to answer before there were a squeal of breaks and a woman's voice yelled out at him to get off the woman and to get his sorry rump away before she called the cops. He flinched and blinked, his eyes flashing back to normal before he slowly got up and put on a very kind smile before turning to the woman and holding up a hand. "You don't have to worry. We were just playing a game ma'am. Right Kayla?" he asked, turning to offer his hand to Kayla, urging her not to run this time with his eyes.
 
"Mrs. Roberts.." Kayla grumbled, taking Anthony's hand and standing before turning to face the woman with a cheerful smile. "I'm fine, just messing around! See you at the diner tomorrow!" she called out. The woman came in every single day. No doubt Kayla would get a scolding for being so immature in public tomorrow. She shook her head a little and turned to Anthony, unsure what to do or even say.
 
The young doctor smile over at the woman and then led Kayla back the way they had come at a swift walk, intent on getting her back inside so that they could--Could what? Something in him clicked as he pushed open the door to his house. They both could shift. Or they could at least change eye colors. He motioned for her to enter ahead of him and raised an eyebrow. "We, I think, have a lot to talk about, in a lot of things," he said softly with a small laugh.
 
Kayla really didn't have a choice at this point. If she tried to run, Mrs. Roberts would go straight to the police station and have Anthony arrested for absolutely nothing. Oddly enough, she didn't have as much of an objection anymore. He was the same as she was.. right? Isn't that what they just found out? She was so in shock that she could hardly believe it. The walk to his door was silent, and she only hesitated for a second before stepping inside.


"I think that's a really large understatement.." she said, turning to face him with a bit of a smile. "Where do we start?"
 
Anthony smiled and closed the door behind him before leaning back against that and reached up to push his hair out of his eyes, smiling back at her. "So you can change, how long? Since you were born or... or was there a chance you only learned recently?" he asked, wanting to know just how long he'd been ignorant about something that could have made him happy the whole time. If that was the case he was going to start feeling very inadequate. After all he'd missed out on so many things that could have told him she was like them. And if so he wouldn't feel quite right about his skills to see his kind. Or maybe he had wanted her to be normal and accept him as he was so much that he ignored the things that could have told him.
 
"Since I was born.. That's why I never stayed out very late with you guys on the weekends. My mom was worried that I'd drink or something and lose control," Kayla admitted, shrugging a little and tilting her head. "How about you? I had no idea.." she said, shaking her head slowly. If she had only known.. Would things be different now? Would she have dared to speak up about her desires? No, probably not. After all, she still couldn't do it now.
 
"Same here. My family has the ability and it seems to have passed to me as well," he explained before blinking a few times. "that's why you never went to all of the dances right? Gosh, I always thought it was just because you weren't interested." He laughed a little and shook his head. "That explains a few things about your blood. AT least the lower sugar. I have extremely low blood sugar as well, as does the rest of my family." He pushed himself up and moved away from the door towards the kitchen. "Come, I need a drink that will refresh your sugars."
 
"Why do you think I didn't want you to test it?" Kayla quipped, shaking her head and following him to the kitchen. She took a seat on the stool by the counter again, watching him curiously. "So.. you said your family. Does that mean your parents shift too? I only got it on my dad's side. That's why he traveled so much. Being in one place bothered him, so the trucking job was good for him."
 
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