☾ Eden ☽ [discontinued]

Sleeping Beauty

One of the first things they teach you after you find your mate is that distance kills you. Maybe not literally, but it's painful nonetheless.

And one thing's certain, the distance was driving him insane.

Something changed that evening, just a few nights ago, something normally anyone wouldn't have noticed; but he did. There was something about the way she looked at him now, in those few moments they found themselves in the same room, that indicated such a change. In fact, she wouldn't even spare him a glance, quickly scurrying out of the room before anything could happen.

The ache wasn't so bad to begin with, but now it's grown to be so excruciatingly painful that he can't seem to focus on his duties as Alpha. It was as if an invisible force were trying to rip his heart out of his body, causing an unbearable weight on his chest.

He was sitting now, waiting around in the pack house for Asher to return with news on the borders of the territory, but that was the last thing on his mind. He could only focus on what he could only describe to be the millions of little bugs that were crawling around under his skin, trying to break to the surface. He clenched his fists, trying to ignore it as best as he could, but there was just no way this was going to happen.

In his mind, the only logical solution to the problem was to get his mind off of it, which only translated to one thing:

Shift.

But there was the issue of his wolf. There was no telling what he would want to do once he surrendered all control to his animalistic side, but he couldn't seem to find any other options.

Practically sprinting out of the house, he didn't waste any time in shifting, letting his wolf take over to revel in the little break from this torture he's been enduring for so long.

******

I couldn't stop staring. No matter how hard I tried to look away, I just couldn't take my eyes off of him. I watched him seated quietly on the couch, his eyes turned red from crying, occasionally sniffling as he watched a cartoon on TV. I observed the color of his blonde locks, how they dipped a little in the front onto his smooth forehead. I observed the line of his nose as it fell to its soft point, and the rather thin pair of lips that he sported. His face was rounded, due to his age, but other than that, he might as well have been an exact copy of Riker.

And, as I watched Max, Dalia would look at me occasionally with a weary eye, constantly hovering over the small boy as if I were the one who hurt him in all of this chaos.

I couldn't berate her because of the looks, however, because I knew exactly how she felt. This overpowering need to protect those around you, that came around when I found myself mated to an alpha.

"Dalia, can I talk to you?" I found myself asking her before I could stop myself. Her blue eyes strayed away from Max for a moment before she looked back towards him once again. I didn't wait for a reply, instead choosing to stand from my seat and walk out of the room without checking to see if she was following me or not.