"Where are the others?" Jackson says, turning his head side to side.
"It's two in the afternoon. People are busy," I say, throwing into my mouth a few more popcorns.
"Except the Alpha," Jackson says, looking at me.
"Hey, making sure the movies screened here are good enough for our culture's improvement is also a part of my Alpha duties. Unlike you, I don't ignore the entertainment division of my pack obligations," I tell him.
"Titanic is what's going to improve your pack's culture?" He says, pointing at the screen that's showing the movie in our packland's one and only cinema hall.
"This is so people understand you gotta stay with your mate until you drown in ice cold water," I say.
"Nobody would've had to die if they had stayed apart," Jackson says.
"Jacky, at least pretend you're enjoying the world's most romantic movie with your mate. And don't you critic the Titanic."
My phone rings. "Ugh. Why isn't there a single place with poor signal in my land?" I say, picking it up.
I hear deep breaths from the other side, instantly making me anxious. "Hello," I say. I hear only the breathing. No one speaks. "Hello?" I repeat. I flip close my phone, ending the call. I look around the theater to make sure there's no one else.
"Who was that?" Jackson says.
"Wrong number."
After a moment, I get another call. Same number. I take it. No one speaks. Just breathing. "I gotta take it outside. I'll be back in a sec," I say to Jackson and head for the exit. Outside, I say into the phone, "Who the fuck is this? You know whose number you called you asshole?"
No reply. I don't like this. Could it be...? I immediately end the call and hit callback.
When I hear a faint ringtone, my blood turns cold. The prick is nearby. I run out of the theater, and towards the ringing sound. But the ringing ends as soon as I reach the street.
There's no one else around. It's usually empty outside in our pack during afternoons. I go to the ice cream shop at the side and ask its owner, "You saw anyone here?".
"No. I only saw you and your friend enter the cinema before. No one else came. Oh, was that Yarvey's Alpha?" He eagerly asks.
"Yeah," I say, looking around, "He loves Titanic."
I leave the shop and head back into the theater. Jackson comes out of the hall.
"What are you doing?" I say.
"I was gonna look for you," he says.
"I was gone only for a second," I say, grabbing his arm and dragging him back into the hall. "Patience, Jacky. You need to learn patience."
"Who was the call from?"
"My secret boyfriend," I say and we take our seats.
"Would have loved to say hi and give him my condolences," he says.
"Another time," I say, distractedly. Was someone following me?
"Why not watch this with your imaginary boyfriend then?" he says.
"He's not as hot as you."
"What's that got to do with this?"
I lean into him. "Don't you feel anything? Just us two in the dark cinema, alone," I seductively whisper.
"Now that I think about it," he says, looking at me, "it does seem kinda boring."
I give up and sink down into my seat. What kind of impenetrable material my mate is made of?
After the movie, I drag him around food stalls for snacks. Although I hardly made any progress with him, it's just as I thought — I love hanging out with him.
It's great to see his face and hear his voice.
In the evening, I ask him to leave for his place. "You?" He says. "I'm gonna drop by the lake to check on the trap. We left it there in case yet another croc showed up."
"I'll come with you," he says.
"For someone who won't give into me, you sure like to follow me around. Is it because you're worried that wolf is gonna attack me?" I say.
"I'm not worried. But since we still remain bonded, it would be inconvenient for me if you died."
Fair enough.
End of chapter
