Something doesn't feel right.
I just have this gnawing feeling in the pit of my stomach. I can't quite place it, maybe I ate something weird? Hmm... Pfft, I'm a werewolf, never mind.
The sound of the car door closing brings me out of my thoughts. I look over to see Roni sitting in the driver's seat of her black Jeep, giving me a funny look.
"What's that look for?" I ask her, taking the cup of coffee she's handing out to me. We always stop for coffee before school, it's a part of our morning ritual.
"Are you sure you're alright? I know everything with Kai is stressing you out but try not to worry too much about that right now. There isn't anything we can do at the moment. I told you I would talk to him, so be patient, yeah?" She tells me after taking a sip of her own coffee, pity evident in her tone.
"I know, Roni. I'm okay as I can be, I guess..." I start, setting my cup of coffee down in one of the many cupholders in Roni's Jeep, "When are you planning on talking to Kai anyway?"
"Well, I was thinking of speaking to him today, but with everything that happened yesterday I thought it may be a good idea to give him a bit of a break. Maybe tomorrow? I'm not too sure but I do think that today is too soon." She explains.
"Yeah, you're right. That is probably for the best. Poor kid, I want to know what he went through, but I think it'll be a while before he tells me." I tell her with a pout on my face.
"Patience, Renny! Patience is key." She says with wink, her tone changing to one that is playful. Leave it to Roni to always lighten the mood of any serious conversation. It's one of my favorite things about her, she always makes me laugh.
We both chuckle a bit at her silliness and continue the drive to school.
~
Walking through the halls of Cherrywood High, I notice the all too familiar scent of cherry blossoms. Sharply snapping my head in the direction of the source, I catch a glimpse of Kai looking uneasy, quickly backing up the stairs with an unreadable expression on his face. Is he avoiding me? I wonder to myself as I continue to my first bell. I'm following what Roni said, I don't want to overwhelm the poor boy more than I already have.
Continuing my way to first period, I notice the feeling in my stomach is still prominent, if not worse. Sigh...
School goes by painfully slow. The classes are boring, I spend lunch with Roni in the cafeteria instead of the library, where I want to be, and being away from Kai for so long is really taking its toll on me. I just want to be near him every second of the day, every day, so I know he is safe at all times! Is that too much to ask?
Making my way to the locker room to get ready for lacrosse practice at the end of the day, practice is every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, I notice just how strong that horrid feeling in my stomach has gotten in a matter of seconds. Something isn't right.
I decide to take a quick round through the school, just to ease my mind and my wolf, he's been restless since this morning. Lacrosse doesn't start for another hour, so I don't need to worry about being late.
I begin my trek through the long, now empty, school hallways trying to place what has me feeling not so great. I'm walking near the front office when I smell it. The blood of my mate.
I book it to where the source of the smell is coming from, leading me to the abandoned side of the school. Turning the corner, I see someone laying on the ground, clutching their stomach and panting heavily. I sniff the air, realizing the person on the ground is Kai.
"Shit...fuck...damnit!" I curse under my breath, rushing over to where Kai is laying, crouching down in front of him. Damn, his lip is busted pretty bad. I think to myself as I watch Kai slowly open his beautiful emerald eyes.
"Tr...Trenton?" He barely gets out before he's unconscious.
I feel the sting in my eyes from unshed tears as I gently pick him up, putting his arms around my neck and supporting him with my arms under his bum. The contact between him and I causing the mate tingles to set off, sending what feels like an electric current throughout my body, but now isn't the time to appreciate how that feels. I rush to the nurse's office in hopes of her being there. I know everyone is likely gone unless they have outside of school activities, so I'm hoping I can catch Ms. Miller before she leaves.
On the run to the nurse's office, Kai's consciousness continues coming in and out. He seems too out of it to be scared of me, though. I don't know if that's a good thing or not...
Finally, after running for what felt like hours, I get to the nurse's office. I shove through the door, causing it to slam against the wall and scare Ms. Miller, who's sitting behind her desk. Once she sees Kai in my arms, she jumps up and ushers me to set him on the bed.
I gently set a now somewhat conscious Kai down onto the bed and go to stand behind him, shocked to see he refuses to let go of my hand. I don't even remember him grabbing my hand.
"Oh, my goddess! What happened, Kai?" She frantically questions, her features showcasing her scared and concerned expression.
"J-Jake." Kai manages to stutter out, causing the once concerned and fearful expression of Ms. Miller's to form into one of complete and utter rage.
"AGAIN! Ugh, I swear if that principal doesn't do something about that boy soon, I'm going to find him myself and kick his a—"
"Prue." Kai cuts her off. Since when are they on a first name basis? I can't help but wonder while watching the two conversate. And what did she mean by "again"?
"Right, right. Now isn't the time. Okay, take off your shirt." Ms. Miller commands Kai.
Kai slowly releases my hand, attempting to comply to Ms. Miller's demand, but is visibly struggling, and I can't help but notice the look of weary on his pale face. I reach over to help him take off his shirt without any problems, Kai doesn't even flinch. Raising his shirt over his head, Ms. Miller and I are hit with the littering of several bruises left all over Kai's torso. I also take notice of the huge claw mark like scar on Kai's back but choose to keep quiet, even though it is a challenge holding back my wolf's angry growl at the sight of our mate's pain. The sight of Kai's bruises causes Ms. Miller and I to gasp in pure horror and shock, leading Kai to roll his eyes at us.
As Ms. Miller begins to patch up Kai, I grab his hand again causing him to snap his head in my direction. I give him a soft smile and he visibly relaxes. He slowly leans back, resting his back against my chest. He turns his head toward me, leaning his forehead on the side of my neck. He seems to be rather anxious, and my assumption is, because of the mate bond, being near me eases his anxiety. He heaves a sigh of relief as he nuzzles his head further into my neck. He's so cute! I can't help but think as Kai closes his eyes and completely melts into my chest.
"Kai, did Jake also bust your lip? That's unlike him and his goons. He usually avoids your face, doesn't he? I don't really know why, nor do I care, I'm just wondering because this looks to be about a day old, while your other bruises are still fresh." She questions, raising her hand to grab Kai's face to get a better look.
Kai flinches from her touch, causing Ms. Miller to pull her hand back, and once again becomes tense. I can't help but wonder why that is.
"No." He mutters without further explanation. If Jake and his friends didn't bust his lip, who did? I silently wonder as I rub his knuckles with my thumb, trying to ease the tension in his body. He melts into me once more and nuzzles his head even further into my neck.
"Hm." Ms. Miller sighs in defeat, "Alright, well I think it's best you lay down here for a bit before you attempt to walk home. It seems you've hit your head as well. Nothing serious, I just want to make sure you are okay before sending you home. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to have a go at talking to your brick wall of a principal." She scoffs, muttering the last bit under her breath as she leaves, probably in hopes of us not hearing her. As she is about to open the door to leave, she turns her head in our direction, her gaze pointed on me as if she has just noticed my presence. Ms. Miller is also a werewolf, but she isn't apart of any packs around here. She isn't a rogue, though. She is what's considered a lone wolf. Since she is in Cherry Blossom Pack territory, we had the pack's current Beta check her out before allowing her to stay here. Once he deemed her as not a threat, she got a job as the school's nurse and has been here ever since, which has been all of six months. Our Beta tried to get her to join our pack, but she told him she just prefers to be alone and to not have to worry about pack members and such.
"You." She starts, pointing a dainty finger in my direction, "Keep an eye on my Kai, you hear? Make sure he doesn't overexert himself, understand?" She fixes me with her coldest glare. I wasn't planning on leaving him anyway, but her intimidation causes me to furiously nod my head at her with what I hope is a reassuring smile.
She seems satisfied with my answer and walks out of the nurse's office, leaving Kai and I alone. I look down to see Kai completely relaxed against my chest, eyes closed and breathing even.
"Kai? Are you alright?" I whisper, being cautious in case he's already fallen asleep.
"Mmm." He mumbles, making me chuckle a bit at his battle to stay awake. I gently lay him on his back in a comfortable position on the bed, pulling up a chair to the side of it, all without letting go of his hand. I take a seat and set my elbow on the edge of the bed, resting my chin in my free palm to keep an eye on him. He turns over so he is facing me, wincing a bit from the pain of moving, and snuggles my arm closer to him. I resist the urge to coo at him as he pulls my whole forearm flush against his chest and nuzzles his face into the top of my hand, his fingers still tangled with mine.
Not even a full minute later and he's out like a light, snuggling against my arm as if it were a teddy bear. He's going to be the death of me. I can't help but think to myself as I watch the steady rise and fall of his chest and his peaceful expression as he rests.