His ears shot back in both irritation and because of how loud she had gotten. "The strong don't need help! They help themselves!", he argued, watching the girl fall before him.
Grabbing his mask made him jerk back instinctively, enough so that he bent his leg wrong and fell onto his haunches with a soft whine. But now that he had a better look at her face, staring into her eyes... he could honestly say he felt scared. Not really from the girl herself but from her genuine worry for him. No one in his life, not even his own parents, had cared so much for him. In fact, it seemed that anyone and everyone he meet could care less about him and what could happen to him. But this girl was the first to try so hard to convince him of the good of keeping company, forming bonds, having a support system to fall back on... It was a scary thought. Growing up, he learned quickly that the world held no good people. No one would help, and those that said they would? Only for something on their part. He had learned that too, sadly. Maybe if he had met her way back when he was still so innocent... things might have happened differently. But sadly, that wasn't the case and old habits die hard.
He pulled away from her with an unsure look. "You ... you have had a similar past?" He hadn't missed that part she had said and it clung to him hauntingly. Similar circumstances had befell him in his early days. "So why are you still so ... so ... open to the world!?" His voice was becoming more of a whine at this point. "It has hurt you yet you still have trust to give!? It will get you killed! It doesn't get better, it never did! Person after person, betrayal after betrayal, it was all the same! How did it not change you!?" The anger had been replaced with fear, confusion, and ... even jealously. The way she talked, she had found happiness in this hell. Why couldn't he? That was all he had ever wished for, hoped for, all his life when he was being kicked down into the dirt. But he wouldn't admit it to her. He wouldn't admit he wanted happiness. Learning to live in the fear and anger had hardened him like stone. It was all he knew. To seek a better life now at this point was just not possible. It may even have gone so far to say that he feared being happy. He didn't want it if it was only going to pulled out from under him. And it would. Eventually...
[9]