Page 35 of Rules to Love By

“And I’m not trying to. I’m so tired of watching you let everyone take advantage of you. Especially him.”

Marcus bared his teeth in an attempt at a mean grin, though he knew it came off more as the grimace of pain it was. “But everyone does take what they want, Tris. Even Iris, with all her rules, built them around how I was useful to her, didn’t she? And yeah. My life could have been a lot worse without her. But what am I supposed to do now?”

“Make your own rules.”

Marcus shook his head. “That isn’t who I am.”

“I know.” Tris drew his spoon around in the contents of the bowl, frowning at it. “That’s what scares me. You’ll fumble blindly along until someone else—someone like Johnathan—makes shitty decisions for you, and you deserve better.”

“So what am I supposed to do?”

“Maybe…”

Both of them turned to the door leading from the dining area to find Lucky and Kreed standing just inside. It was Lucky who’d spoken.

Kreed stood silent at his back, a hand on his shoulder, looking dour, if not quite angry.

“Maybe what?” Heat crawled up into Marcus’s face. Surely they’d heard his tirade. “Get my shit and get out? Stand on my own two feet?”

Tris made a choked sound in his throat.

Kreed growled, literally rumbling his displeasure right up from his chest.

Lucky just sighed and shook his head. “If I was going to give up on everyone who ever tried to poke me into getting mad, I wouldn’t be much of a shelter for angry teens, would I?” he asked mildly.

“I’m not a teenager.”

“No.”

“So?”

“So nothing. You have time to decide what you want to do. No one is kicking you out. Big life changes, like losing a job, a home, a parent—they all take their toll. So do life changes like finding something new and better. Just because a change is a good change doesn’t make it less stressful. Especially if you’re not used to good things.”

“Iris was good.” Marcus said it. Because he always did. Because she was. She’d saved him from so many unknowns.

“Sounds like she might have been pretty controlling.”

Marcus shrugged.

“Give yourself some time to figure out how to be your own person. Make your own rules.”

Marcus slumped onto a stool. “You should be pissed off at me for making a scene.”

Now Lucky shrugged, stuffed a hand into a back pocket and leaned back on Kreed. “What good would that do either of us? You know you were out of line. You don’t need me to tell you that.”

“I’m sorry.”

“We know,” Kreed said, voice gruff.

“I’ll do better.”

Lucky smiled. “We know.”

Tris rushed around the counter and tossed himself into Marcus’s arms, utter trust that Marcus would catch him.

Which, of course, he did.

“I’m sorry too,” Tris whispered into his neck.

---