In the days leading up to the excursion, Ethan rode on a high of good spirits and fortune.
The rumor about him being friends with a Dhampir was soon overshadowed by another scandal: a basketball player caught cheating on his girlfriend in the gym. After that, Ethan's notoriety dimmed, and fewer tongues wagged when he walked by.
Even though he no longer harbored any romantic feelings for Emily, he spent more time with her. On the other hand, he hardly came across Ben Ryden. The couple of times he had seen him, he and his gang had kept their distance, which was okay with Ethan.
Who knew the secret to a happy life in high school was to lose a crush and avoid a jerk?
Even his mom's negative response to sign the excursion permission slip did not dampen his spirit. It was the night before the deadline to submit the form.
"Mo-om," he whined, coming round the kitchen island to hug her from behind. "It's going to be fun, and everyone will be there. You always told me to make more friends."
She sighed, dropping the wooden spoon on the counter. "I know, hon. But Ryden's boy would also be there with only a few teachers to supervise him. And no one knows where that vampire is hiding. I'm scared for you."
"I promise it'll be safe. We've got a Vanguard escort, and I hear the Gray Oaks school will also have an escort with them. That's a whole lot of warriors. Nothing will happen."
"I'm not sure, Ethan. I think it'll still be best if you stayed at home."
He popped a meatball from her pot into his mouth, huffing frantically as it scalded his tongue. His mom swatted his shoulder as if the pain of a seared mouth was not enough, then shooed him away from her dinner prep.
He grabbed an ice cube from the freezer, placing it on his tongue to draw out the heat and soothe the area.
"It'll be fine, mom." His words were distorted by the obstruction. "Besides, Zyga is coming along to keep an eye on Ben Ryden."
His adopted father, who had agreed to no such thing, turned away from the TV to frown at him.
Please say yes. Please say yes. Please say yes.
He hoped Zyga could read the desperation in his eyes. The tracker glared at him for a moment before giving a quick nod. Ethan heaved a sigh.
His mom narrowed her eyes at him, but after some consideration, she grumbled, "Alright."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
On the day of the excursion, Ethan woke up while the sky was still dark. He closed his eyes, trying to slip back into the world of dreams, but his mind was restless, refusing to calm down. And his heart began to race when he thought of all the fun he was going to have: spending two days away from home, walking through the woods, playing games by the campfire ...
Eventually, he gave up on going back to sleep.
Ethan glanced at the dormant forms on the air mattress next to his bed. Damien hogged the blankets, but Cody spread his limbs all over, pushing him to the bed's edge. He snorted, knowing they would be arguing over who was the worst bedmate come morning.
Grabbing his phone from the nightstand, he opened the calendar app. The full moon starts tomorrow, but they were only spending one night at camp. He would be back just before his heat flushes began.
Ethan tossed the covers off him and padded over to his closet.
After dressing and packing a change of clothes and toiletries, he paused, studying the two moonlit terrors sprawled on the floor.
A wicked grin spread over his face. He walked over, grabbed the edge of the mattress, and lifted it up, depositing the bodies onto the floor none too gently.
"Aaah."
"Umph!" Poor Damien got the worst of it when Cody landed on him.
After bearing the brunt of their pranks for the past few weeks, their yelps were a healing salve to Ethan's soul. He picked up a pillow and thwacked the helpless two entangled in the blankets on the floor. Damien was pinned under Cody, and his groggy brother could not figure out which end of the covering was the exit.
Dedicated to giving the two a well-earned thrashing, the older Reyn did not differentiate between human or Lycan-born with his blows. As a result, Damien got a faceful of the fluffy weapon as often as Cody got hit.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
"Hey! Ow! Hey!" The dark boy raised an arm to protect his head.
"Ah, such sweet music." Ethan, face lit with impish glee, kept up the barrage until he was sure they would not be going back to sleep. Then for good measure, he emptied the glass of water on his nightstand over them.
"You jerk!" Cody called after him as he skipped out of the room, thoroughly satisfied with his morning workout.
Despite his early rise, Ethan had to wait a couple of hours before going to the school, with Zyga giving him the stink-eye the entire time. But the teenager felt little remorse. They arrived there fifteen minutes ahead of the eight o'clock departure.
They climbed on the bus, and Ethan walked further down the aisle while Zyga chose a seat close to the driver's side. He wanted a seat in the back, away from everyone else but changed his mind when he saw that he would have to go through Ben Ryden and his posse to get there. So he settled for a middle seat.
Emily got on soon after, and he waved her over.
"Thanks for saving me a seat," she said, puffing. She pushed a pink duffel bag into the overhead bin and sank into the seat. Ethan did not bother to point out that no one had wanted to sit next to him anyway. "Mom only got home an hour ago. I thought I might not make it."
She paused and had a quick look around to see if anyone was paying attention. Then she leaned in, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Major Bane is in a coma."
"What?"
Emily nodded. "I overheard my mom on the phone. He rejected his mate again. Last night the nurses on duty found him clawing his eyes out. They put him in an induced coma. She doesn't think he'll wake up."
Bond-madness, the ailment afflicting Roger Bane because he went against Luna's wishes. Self-harm was the most notorious among its symptoms. It was what usually accelerated death.
Knowing this, Ethan felt like a tool for disturbing Damien's sleep this morning. With all the excitement at home and his brother's antics, the kid had opened up. Even Mrs. Bane's random sniffling had ceased, and she had settled into a routine in their home. He had forgotten the reason that had brought them to the Reyn house in the first place.
He glanced in Zyga's direction.
Should they go back home? He wondered. No. There's nothing Zyga, nor I can do. Besides, Cody and mom are the best people to console Mrs. Bane and Damien. And they'll need the privacy to grieve.
Ethan settled back in his seat with a heavy sigh.
"I hope they find the strength to get through this," he murmured.
The sad news cast a shadow over them. They exchanged few words as the bus began the journey, both buried in their thoughts.
For the first time in a long while, Ethan thought about his own mate. Once upon a time, he had assumed it would be Emily, but with the delay in his first moon, that possibility shrank. Now he was sure she was not the one.
Inwardly, he was glad circumstances had prevented him from dating her. He would hate to lead her on for years, only to break her heart by accepting another as his mate. On the other hand, if Luna did not deem him worthy to offer him a mate, he might spend the rest of his life alone. Knowing his luck with the deity, the latter had a much higher chance of happening.
He imagined how his life would be without a mate. Zyga had survived it. His adopted father did not appear to have suffered much, so maybe it would not be that bad. Yet Ethan frowned out the window, not liking that possibility.
In any case, getting a mate would be the least of his problems if he never found his wolf. He might be the first werewolf to go through a lifetime of pre-moon flushes.
'Wouldn't Ben just love that!'
A/N
Hi lovelies, thanks for reading.If you loved it don't forget to vote, comment and add to your library.
A word of prayer for Major Bane and the Bane family.
I would love to here your feedback on the story in general and this chapter in particular.
What did you like?
And what didn't you like?
What did you think about the characters: Emily & Ethan?
Next chapter is already being edited. I will post it in a couple of days.
Ciao!