Compromises

Who: Kavin and Charlotte
When: 3rd period
Where: MSHS

This was a very new thing to Charlotte, but she'd told Gabe she would talk to Kavin, and she had every intention to. She wasn't used to feeling so protective, and so angry about it. School probably wasn't a good place for this, but she wanted to get it out of the way. The first shot she got in gym, she approached Kavin. "Can we talk?"

He raised a brow at the girl when she asked him that. Then a flood of 'shit it's probably about Gabe' went through his brain. He knew that they were friends. Knew that he hadn't gotten a reply from Gabe that morning when he texted him. He had to assume that he was still pissed. And if he was pissed and told Charlotte, chances are she was pissed. Fuck. I thought we just fixed this. He sighed. "Go ahead, chew me out. I apologized already. And I'm sorry I pissed him off and I'm sorry I came at him like I did, I just... I was trying to help and I just fucking suck at it." He kept his voice calm as he motioned for her to come with him to a less in the middle of everyone kind of place in the gym.

Charlotte's fists clenched at her sides. Okay, so much for being civil about. "Yeah, you do, and you're supposed to know better. He could have killed you. So I'll make this really easy for you: leave Gabe alone, or I out you. What you are and what you do." She could have said a hell of a lot more, but it would have been kicking a dead horse. Odds were good with what she'd just said he wouldn't pay attention to anything else anyway.

"He could have killed me? He could kill someone else, Charlotte." he told her, forcing his voice to stay calm. He wanted to argue back because she was threatening him, but at the same time, he knew he deserved it. "I didn't go over there to piss him off, he started arguing with me and I was trying to get him to trust me and then it just got out of hand and I tried to get it back under control and I've apologized and... don't threaten me okay? I really don't want to fight with you. Don't want to fight with him and honestly, I'm pretty sure you don't have to out me. Gabe'll do it. If he's already telling everyone we fought then... he doesn't trust me anyway, why should I trust him?"

"We're not fighting, I'm threatening you. I have no desire to argue this out, that's simply the way it is." Charlotte said, matter-of-factly. "I am well-informed, well-connected, and well past my limit of pissed off." The last two words were said through grit teeth, and her first ever curse word! It felt... surprisingly good. "If you hurt him again? Make him feel like a monster again? Make him feel threatened again? I will ruin you, and I will ruin your father. I am taking care of Gabe, so back. Off."

Kavin just stared at her. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Do you have any clue how much shit I've been through the last few days?" he asked her. "I was trying to help him." he told her, swallowing and shaking his head as he brushed his hair away from his face. He wanted to punch something. Punch a wall, punch something. "Don't bring my dad into this. As far as I'm concerned, Gabe doesn't ever have to talk to me again if that's what makes him feel better. I wanted to help. I wanted to do something. I wanted to make things better and all I ended up doing was fucking up everything and now my life hands in the balance, not my dad's. So if you wanna ruin me, go ahead, shout at the top of your lungs about it. Tell everyone I'm a hunter. It doesn't matter anymore. I quit. I don't want to do it anymore. It's not worth it. It's not worth losing my friends over. It's not worth you being pissed at me. It's not... it's not worth it. The only reason I even told him was because I wanted him to understand that they're everywhere. They're all over. People like me... like you. Everywhere. Not all of them only off the bad shit. I'd never hurt someone who didn't deserve it. Not on purpose. And I'm sorry I hurt Gabe. I really am. I'm sorry I couldn't save Chrissy, even if she was a fucking bitch and I'm sorry that you feel like you have to threaten me instead of just talking to me. I'll leave him alone. You can tell him that. And you can tell him that I'm not hunting anymore. I should go. Class ya know."

Charlotte didn't particularly want to let him go, she wanted to scream at him that his argument fall apart with the simple addition of perspective, but she'd said what she'd needed to say. She probably shouldn't have brought his dad into this, but she hadn't figured her first time threatening somebody would actually go smoothly. "I'm sorry too. That at this rate, you'll probably die before understanding perspective. I really hope that works out for you. But as long as we're agreed on Gabe, that's all I needed." She wasn't sure if he'd want to say anything else or not, so she simply took a step back.

He didn't turn just yet. "Charlotte. I understand perspective just fine. I know that I fucked up. I know that Gabe has every right to be pissed at me. I know that you have every right to be pissed at me. Okay? I get it. I'm not fucking crazy okay? I know that I was begging for trouble going over there without thinking first. Talking to him the way I did. Making him think that I thought these... horrible things about him... I just... I'm sorry. I can't say it any different than that. But what I did, doesn't give you the right to bring my family into the equation. You wanna get me killed, fine, tell everyone I'm a hunter. You and Gabe won't have to worry about me anymore because first tell of it and someone that doesn't like hunters hears? I'm good as dead. Just don't put my dad in that position. He hasn't done anything to you. Or to Gabe. Your problem's with me." Still his voice was surprisingly calm and soft spoken. Half of him wanting to scream, the other half wanting to run and hide.

Charlotte gave a single nod. "Understood. Just don't give me reason to get you killed." She was really terrified of the idea of actually having to out him, but it was the worse threat she could think of. And hopefully that would be that. Threatening people was really freaking uncomfortable. But it had helped her anger a lot.

"You won't have a reason." he told her, shaking his head. "Just tell Gabe that if he still needs a cage - and he really should have one - I'm still willing to get the stuff without anyone knowing an even put in the labor to build it. He doesn't have to take my help. But it's there. And for what it's worth, I'll still watch out for him. If I get word of a hunter on his heels... I'll take care of it. And let him know that I don't just hunt fucking everything. I know he probably thinks that but there's more to it than that." he sighed. "And please make sure he keeps his mouth shut about the hunter stuff... Please?"

Oh, the anger was back. Charlotte grit her teeth and tried to force it away. "Gabe will have everything he needs. By the end of this week he will have a werewolf-tested, veterinarian-approved cage, and he's on his way to learning all he can. He's taken care of. You don't have to worry about Gabe and his mouth, you need to worry about mine. But I will tell him." For his peace of mind, not yours.

"Alright." he said simply. "I just don't want him to tell someone when I have every intention of butting my ass out of his life completely. I think I've had enough. Dead chicks and werewolves and arguments aren't my forte. I'd like to not have anymore blood on my hands, especially my own. I'm not going to sign my own death warrant. I just don't want him to sign it for me, okay?"

"He'll keep his mouth shut if you and your friends can do the same." she replied, simply. She couldn't not say it if he was going to harp. She very nearly said more, but it would have gone straight into nit-picky and nasty territory, so she managed to keep it safely buttoned back.

"He won't tell anyone." Kavin told her. "I'll make sure of it, alright. Tell Gabe he doesn't have to worry about him. He'll keep his mouth shut."

Charlotte nodded. "So will Gabe." And yet she was well-aware of the fact that she might not actually be able to pull that one off - Gabe and even the word 'secret' didn't really belong in the same sentence together, unless it surrounded 'can't keep a'. Her only saving grace was that she could explain to Gabe that telling people he knew a hunter would attract bad attention. And she would have bet money that he probably told Claire already. ...Yeah, she was going to have to talk to him.

The days after the full moon just seemed to be getting worse and worse. Guilt and confusion and anger and annoyance and so many other emotions ran through Kavin that he was pretty sure if he didn't get the fuck away from school and soon, he might explode or shoot himself in the fucking face. One of the two. "I'm still sorry." he told her. "So tell him that too, would you?" He didn't give her time to respond to his words, no matter how honest they were. She could tell Gabe if she wanted, or not if she so chose, but right now, Kavin wanted to get away from the conversation, the threats, the drama. He wanted to get away from everything.