New beginnings.
It hadn’t taken Doug long to heal after taking the brunt of his ex-alpha’s rage at his defiance. The damage that had been done had been psychological, and that was tough for him to recover from. It took him two weeks to feel okay to properly rest being on high alert, waiting for Alphonse to come back to finish the job while him and Dominic were still weak. Douglas might have recovered faster, but he couldn’t handle Alphonse on his own. That was evident in the last moments of the fight when Dominic was down and out, and the small werewolf was left starring into the deadened eyes of a killer who had been looking for his excuse to snap his neck. Doug had never felt so much fear in his life in that moment, but he also felt something else that kept him from backing down and fleeing. An overwhelming urge to protect kept him facing the monster, even when the odds were against him - but then luck was his saving grace as police arrived, forcing Alphonse’s hand to leave before he had to take on a whole squad of police force, too.
Douglas was uncharacteristically quiet following the events, still processing. Still not sure what to think, or if he’d made the right choice. His old flip phone started to vibrate incessantly - Charles calling. Charles. Master. Ex-master. He didn’t answer the phone when it started to ring, but he also struggled to get rid of it. His attachment to the man who had raised him complicated things, and he hadn’t begun to even make progress processing that. Nor did he want to. It was easier to stay busy than have a meltdown over the possibilities that hadn’t happened yet. Doug needed to keep himself pre-occupied.
He started working. He was ready and willing to fill in the gaps for Dominic wherever he needed it. It was the least he could do for offering him room and board while they prepared in the event that Alphonse returned. He didn’t want Dominic to be alone at the pub, so it made sense to him to volunteer to help with serving and keeping an eye out for trouble. He’d started to learn drinks, even though he never drank, but it was something new to learn, something for him to dive into and distract himself with. He enjoyed it, he liked to work with his hands more than just his nose, and as soon as he started to learn some tricks off of youtube, he was locked in.
“Hey - how’s your day going?” Doug asked with a pleasant disposition, sliding over a napkin in front of the person who’d just sat at the bar. It was a slow night, which usually meant he had more time for small talk, which he liked. There was still so much that he hadn’t experienced, or discovered having been sheltered his whole life, so getting to talk to new people was exciting. It made him a little anxious still, evident in the stiffness of his shoulders and the way he carried himself - like he was anticipating being in trouble for it. But that would pass with time. “What can I get you to drink tonight?” He followed up to ask.
