The Run To Quinn

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QUINN
I PULLED AT MY hair in anger, rolling my eyes to the back of my head. I stood up from the dinner table, everyone looking at me like I had grown an extra head. It was a special dinner and I ruined it. Classic Quinn move.

"You don't get it, mom!" I yelled, walking to my old bedroom and slamming the door like a classical high school teenager.

I had in fact graduated from the Pack school three years ago, but sometimes, deep in my soul, I was still 18.

My mom barged through the door and came in, standing in the doorway with her manicured hands on her hips.

"Quinneth Macy West you get your ass back in that dining room now." She scolded, pointing to the hallway. "I don't care if you're 21, you are at my house and I swear to God you will not disrespect me and my guests. Now go apologize for how you behaved." Her face fell ten shades deeper into the red spectrum, her green eyes deeper and darker.

I hadn't seen her this angry since I snuck out when I was sixteen. And that felt like forever ago. I mean, it practically was. But I knew how those green eyes could burn into your soul. I was lucky I inherited them.

I turned in a circle, taking a steadying breath. "Mom. They're asking me questions I don't want to answer." I replied calmly, stretching my fingers in and out of a clenched fist.

The people in question were the Alpha and Luna of my pack. They were on their rounds again this month, visiting families and the pack house for lunch, breakfast, or dinner depending on your scheduled time with them.

It was routine. They wanted to know if you found your mate, what needed to be done to the pack, if there were any laws or newly passed ideas you wanted to talk about. At the end of the day it was great. I prided the couple in their loyalty and open-minds.

But it was when they expected me to answer some of those questions that I wanted to scream.

When I didn't budge my mom grabbed my shoulder and led me to the old, creaky, bed and sat me down.

She sat down next to me, wiping her hands on her dark jeans. "Honey, what's going on?" She asked quietly, her anger melting away when she realized why I was angry. "They were just asking you about your brother."

I shrugged. "I don't know. It wasn't just them asking about Reston that made me mad. They were asking me questions like he had done something wrong. He hadn't done anything wrong, it was me. What do they mean do I trust my brother? Of course I trust him. I trust that I fucked up."

Mom put her hands on my cheek. "Quinn." She chuckled angrily, groaning. "They have to ask that. Honey, he signed up to be a pack warrior. They're just making sure he's—"

"Not gunna betray us all?" I blinked back and realized how stupid I sounded. I buried my head in my hands. "And they were asking about whether or not I wanted to leave and..." I trailed off, massaging my temples. I did. I knew I did. I wanted to get out of here so every memory could slide away from me like water off a duck's back.

Mom rubbed my back, sighing lightly. "Do you want to leave the pack?" She didn't seem upset at all, and I think we both knew what I wanted.

I shrugged and slid closer to her. "No. Yes. I don't know. I grew up here. I just... I feel like I need something more, ya know? More than I can get here." I admitted, pulling my hands away from my face and resting them in my lap.

I played with my fingers, cracking my knuckles and fiddling with the ring on my left hand. It was a gift from my grandmother, written in her will that I was to have should she die. It was blessed. When I shifted, it disappeared and returned when I came back to my human form. I never took it off.