Chapter 58

Maxwell's POV
"What was yesterday about? And don't bother lying, Benson told me everything"
I gritted my teeth to stop myself from snapping out an insult in response to the comment that had just been directed at me, and looked away from Kenneth's knowing gaze. Benson's tongue needed to be cut off, and soon, because the dude could not keep his trap shut. But at least someone was enjoying this, since Kenneth had been bugging me about it from the minute we left the academy. I knew he was having a blast talking about this subject, and I had to take a deep breathe to calm down before I could speak. I knew it was no use acting as though I didn't know what he was talking about, but I wasn't going to let that stop me
"What are you talking about"
My voice remained neutral as I responded, and I mentally applauded myself. I watched Kenneth subtly to try to see his reaction, and from the corner of my eyes, caught him rolling his eye
"You know exactly what I'm talking about, Maw"
And there goes the nickname. Again! I leant against a nearby tree and sighed exasperatedly
"I don't know what's happening, Ken. I hate what she is. Hell, I despise what she is, yet I can't help but feel protective of her. Yesterday was a mistake; I know I shouldn't have done that, especially with me being who I am, but it was a reflex
I ran a hand through my thick hair in frustration. There were a million questions running through my mind at once, all battling for dominance to be the most important, only to be forgotten as soon as another one came along seconds later.
"Do what you think is right Maxwell, I can't help you any more than that."
Kenneth put his hands in his pockets and looked at the now cloudy sky, looking as though his thoughts were drifting off to somewhere else. I was about to pull him back into the conversation, when he suddenly spoke again
"But if what I'm thinking is correct, then don't break her heart. Claudia's been through hell and she doesn't need any more shit, from anyone." He added, looking at me straight
A few minutes passed silently as I thought about what Kenneth had said. Who had put Claudia through hell? And why did Kenneth think I would break her heart, or even be able to? It's not like that kind of emotion crap was anything to do with me. But what if I was able to? And what if I did? These questions all plagued my mind, until Remus noticed my worried face
"You like her, don't you"
A sly smile was plastered on Kenneth's face, and the sing-song quality to his voice when he said those words told me he was enjoying every second of watching me squirm. Damn, he is never going to let me live this down.
"No, of course not! Why would I? That's just s-silly"
I denied, shaking my head furiously. Take a deep breathe, Maxwell! Don't lose your composure!
But, it was too late. Besides, I should know better than to even try lying to Kenneth. He and I had been friends since kindergarten, because both of our parents had been friends for a long time, and had liked pairing us together whenever possible. This meant we had spent a lot of time with each other and couldn't lie to one another successfully very often. But that didn't really matter anyway, since Kenneth knew all of my secrets and I knew all of his
He chuckled, as he had already figured everything out, and turned around.
"Suit yourself. Now come on, you've got someone to travel"
His sing-song voice once again annoyed me, but this time I was calmer and more prepared for his immature behaviour, so simply glared daggers at him.
"Speaking of kindergarten, do you still have the photos from when we were young?"
He asked, a cheesy smirk on his face. Oh, how much I want to slap that smirk off his face. And he bloody well knew it!
"I wanna see you when you were chubby Maxwell. Which, by the way, reminds me of something I've been meaning to ask you for years… what did your parents feed you when you were young? Because let me tell ya, it didn't work out very well for you."
I knew he was making fun of me to get a rise from the laughter that could be seen in his eyes. It made them shine mischievously, causing my younger self to learn in just a few short years that this was the Kenneth to stay away from.
"Didn't I tell you not to read my mind?"
I snapped, trying to change the topic to, well, anything but this. I hope he doesn't ask my mother where the pictures are, I would be doomed! As soon as the thought entered my brain, I wanted to slap myself. I had just walked into such an easy trap again. Kenneth laughed aloud, thoroughly entertained by my stupidity, making me curse under my breath.
"It's not my fault that you don't put your guard up."
One. More. Time. If I heard that tone of voice one more time, I was going to do something I was going to regret. I don't know how we had managed to stay friends for this long, especially at times like this, when all I wanted to do was hurt something. Or just a certain someone would do.
I rolled my eyes to show Kenneth I wasn't impressed by his childishness, and started walking in the direction of the field that I could see Claudia sitting in, under a tree. She had a phone in her hand and was laughing. This sight almost made me want to laugh too, though I was just as content simply watching her laugh from afar. She just looked so happy.
Maxwell! I chided myself. Stop being a stalker! Don't you know that's when the girls run away? Like inAs I continued my internal monologue, I noticed her lips saying the word 'Westley', causing my eyes to grow cold. Westley was doing this on purpose, I just knew it. I don't know what was making me want to keep Claudia all to myself, but it was almost driving me insane thinking of her liking some other guy. I mean, it wasn't like I was a werewolf that had only one mate for my entire lifetime or anything. But whatever it was, it made me want to not only keep her heart safe, but it also gave me this urge to keep her close to me. And even though I didn't know what it was, I was going to listen to it, and gets rid of any competition that stood in my way.
If war was what he wanted, then war was what he was going to get.