A Hundred Whispers Make a Howl

Chapter 24

"Fuck!"

I close my eyes tight against the expletive, feeling an angry vein pulsing in my forehead. This was the third f-bomb dropped within the last 15 minutes. Needless to say, it was disrupting my concentration, making studying all the more difficult. Trying to keep my tone in check, I turn in my seat at the kitchen table to address the culprit in my living room.

Shay has laid claim the couch. After nearly a week of cohabitating, she's made herself quite at home in my little apartment. At current, she's glaring at the TV screen, white knuckling an x-box controller. For all her supernatural prowess, she sucks at video games.

"Do you mind? Still trying to study here." I remind her with a grumble.

The she-wolf doesn't answer me right away, spending another minute or two frantically button mashing. I wait patiently for her to meet her inevitable end, unable to contain my smirk when she finally rage quits out of the lobby.

"Shite! I'm fuckin' done!"

For a moment Shay looks ready to lob the controller across the living room in a fit, but upon seeing my critically raised eyebrow, she sets it down on the coffee table with an irate huff. Honestly, if I wasn't so stressed over school, watching her break down over loosing at Rainbow Six Siege would be highly amusing.

Shay's pouting now with a furrowed brow, deep scowl, and her arms crossed over her chest like a petulant child. "I can't believe you wasted money on something like this." She growls, avoiding my eyes.

I can't help but chuckle dryly at her expense. "Yeah well, unlike you, I actually have some skill."

Man, if looks could kill, I'd be dead and buried. Shay lobs a pillow at me, her scowl darkening when I manage to catch it. All the combat training has been doing wonders for my reflexes.

"I swear to the Goddess, Nikole, I'm going to lose my mind if we don't get out of this apartment soon."

Honestly, I'm not far off from going completely stir crazy myself. We'd both been cooped up the past few days. I'd been fixated on studying, and Shay had been set on keeping an eye on me, refusing to leave despite my insistence that I was fine. The only break we had from one another was while I was in class, or at work. And even then, Shay insisted on driving me and sticking nearby. To make matters worse, the full moon was tomorrow.

I can feel the tell tale signs of my impending change all throughout my body. I'm restless and edgy. My muscles are tight, and my temperature has been spiking in accordance with my adrenaline. Furthermore, my mood has been labile, and I'm quick to anger. To my credit though, I've become used to dealing with my pre-moon jitters. Typically, I can tamper down the wolf enough to get some work done. Shay, however, hasn't conditioned herself to the same degree. For her, the moon has always been a priority over all else. A cause for celebration. She's never had a reason to hold back.

With a heavy exhale I rub my blood shot eyes, then get up to join my mentor on the couch. " I know, Shay. Trust me, I'm sick of being stuck inside too...But I have to study. My last quiz was a shit storm, and I can't afford any fuck-ups, or I'll lose my scholarships."

Shay bites her lip, looking a tad guilty. "I know." She leans over to rest her head against mine, and I relax into the now familiar energy she emits. "I'm sorry. I know you need to focus...but I feel ready to rip my skin off. With the moon this close, I need to run."

I pat her knee sympathetically, earning a small sigh from the black wolf. She shuffles marginally closer. "Look, I just need to get through tonight. I have two chapters left to read, and an online quiz. Once I finish, I'll be ahead for next week, and we'll have the entire weekend to chase our tails and howl at the moon."