Rayne was exhausted.
Walking through the forest on dead feet and catching their dinner proved to be taxing, so she demanded that they get a room at one of the wolf lodges nearby so that she could recuperate. Jarrah quickly tried to decline and insisted on moving forward, but she didn't wait for his answer when the next lodge came into view. She simply spun on her heel and marched over to the front door. It was late and she needed to rest for at least a night on an actual bed.
Jarrah angrily mumbled under his breath behind her, but she ignored him and swung the door to the lodge open. The cool breeze of air-conditioned pinewood pushed through her nostrils, along with the familiar scent of other people like her. She could only see one other wolf in sight at the front desk, but she knew there were others lingering in bedrooms and banquet halls. And by the look of the parking lot out front, they might even be a full house for the night.
An older woman with red-rimmed glasses, onyx waterfalls of pretty hair, and almond-shaped eyes full of pretty walnuts was standing patiently behind the counter ahead of them. She caught sight of Rayne making her way towards her, and by the subtle sniff she did, she knew exactly who she was, as the neighboring pack's alpha's daughter. She bowed respectfully, a common custom among the wolves everywhere.
"Welcome," she greeted. Rayne didn't hide the relief she felt at seeing a friendly face and being talked to like a normal person for once, without an ounce of annoyance or hatred.
Rayne, as much as she hated to admit it, was desperately homesick. Now that she was staying at a hotel, she could call her parents and Ronan to give them a quick update and see what was happening at home. She missed Ronan's annoying jokes, her brother's hot headed protection, her mother's meals, and her father's long hugs. She hadn't been without them for long, but Jarrah was making her want to go back home to it all more than anything.
How do you think Jarrah feels? After being kidnapped away from his family?
Rayne's stomach turned guilty at the thought. She forced a smile for the woman whose name tag read Monica and asked for two separate rooms of any size because there was no damn way she was going to sleep in the same room as that asshole. Not after the hell she had already endured with him.
Monica glanced over Rayne's shoulder and quickly took note of the silent brute standing somewhere behind her. "I see. Let me see what we have that's available. We have a lot of . . . displaced guests for the night, but I'm sure we can find something."
Refuges.
Rayne sighed softly at the thought. The war was getting closer and closer for not only her pack, but for the packs that were left. For the displaced members who were lucky enough to have fled with their lives. If her and Jarrah didn't get the elixir, they'd surely be done for.
And that was if the elixir even existed. They must call it 'The Lost Elixir' for a reason, right?
She didn't know. She was too drained to think and desperately needed a comfortable bed for a few hours before they returned to the forest. They've put a lot of distance between themselves and her pack, but they still had some ways to go. And the lodge surely provided enough resources for them that they could spare a night.
That was, until, Monica opened her mouth and gave her the worst news she could have thought of. And then her entire mood soured.
"I'm so sorry, alpha," Monica said, guiltily. Rayne was too anxious to correct her mistaken title. "But we only have one bedroom left for the night and all that's available is one king size bed. We have many families here, and they've all taken up the rooms with two beds."
"Do you at least have a spare cot?" Rayne asked, not even bothering to hide the hopefulness in her tone.
Monica looked back at the empty room behind her, but Rayne already knew the answer. There was nothing they could do for the two of them unless they took the room with the king-size bed. And seeing as how she was too tired to argue or overthink about sharing a small space with Jarrah, she agreed to the room. Monica apologized again and was quick to hand over their room key and the instructions for dinner if they choose to dine in the lodge. Rayne nodded stiffly, thanked Monica, and walked right over to the elevator with Mr. Grump in tow.
She didn't turn to speak to him until they were both riding up to the third floor.
"I'm sure you already heard, but they only had one room and—"
"I heard," Jarrah interrupted lowly, his gaze trained on the old elevator doors that creaked and groaned with movement.
"And you don't mind?" Rayne pressed.
"No, we slept in the forest near each other. Why should being in a room matter?"
She shrugged. "I was just wondering if you'd be uncomfortable, is all. If anything, I'm disappointed that it's done no such thing."
Rayne swore she thought the corners of his lips twitched when the elevator creaked itself open. He waited for her to exit first and then the both of them searched for 314, which didn't take very long, thankfully. On their walk over, she had to tune out the cries she could hear from the other side of some of the rooms and cringed into her chest. It was no secret that she was an Empath, and hearing their tears only made her want to envelop herself into a comforting blanket and sleep off her exhaustion.
She couldn't protect the world; no matter how hard she wanted to.
Jarrah must have been able to hear it too, because when he was waiting for her to enter the keycard, he was anxiously shifting from foot to foot. His eyebrows were furrowed as he kept his gaze on the ground, jaw locked.
The room wasn't big, but it was comfortable enough that they wouldn't suffocate by their unfortunate proximity for the night. There was a clean bathroom, an older flat screen tv on a dresser, a window to look out of behind some outdated blue curtains, a table with a rolling chair, and a large king-size bed that'll put more than enough room between them. Rayne removed her backpack from her shoulder and pulled out a pair of sweats for the both of them, curtesy of the pack's hidden wear behind trees, and two t-shirts that would be comfortable enough to change in.
She didn't even ask if Jarrah wanted to shower first. She walked right over to the bathroom, closed the door behind her, and turned on the water as fast as she could. The thought of the hot water roaming down her tense muscles sounded all too pleasing to her, and much to her relief, she wasn't disappointed.
Rayne scrubbed at her skin with rose scented soap, soaked water into her curls, and used some of the cheap shampoo and conditioner for her hair. She left half of the substance in each bottle because she knew Jarrah had a lot of hair too if he wanted to wash it, then climbed out of the shower to put her fresh clothes on. She didn't need a lot of time; just enough to feel even remotely like herself again.
They still had to go to dinner downstairs together, but she didn't care that she'd be walking down in sweats and a simple t-shirt. It's not like they were at a beauty pageant, for crying out loud.
When Rayne finally stepped out of the steamed room, she noted a quiet Jarrah sitting in the rolling chair and staring up at the moonlight. Much to her confusion, a part of her wondered what he was thinking about staring up at the light so intently. Wolves loved the moon, did the Fae like it too?
Did it remind him of home just like it did her?
The guilt came again, much stronger than before. It came in a wave that pulled her out to sea on a tide that wasn't her fault . . . and yet, she still felt responsible for it.
Before she could ask about the moon, Jarrah stood from his seat with his clothes bunched in his hand and barely spared her a passing glance when he went into the bathroom. The sound of the door closing pulled her out of her trance and she flopped onto her back, sighing out a breath of tired air. The warmth of the covers pulled her in like a warm hug, and temporarily comforted her enough to imagine that she was home, in her own bed, at her own little house instead of trying to prove herself in a place she'd never been. Instead of meeting her doom in a place full of vampires who wanted nothing more than to see her dead.
Rayne really needed to stop carrying so much of the world on her shoulders.
If only she knew how.
*****
Dinner in the lodge was very . . . interesting, to say the least. As interesting as a dinner with bewildered wolves and a Fae King could get.
The moment they left their room after they both showered and got changed, they felt eyes on the two of them. Everyone seemed to be out for dinner, gathering what they needed for their family and hanging around tables, the lounge, or bringing it back to their rooms. Some had scars, scrapes, dirt, or small wounds that didn't need immediate attention, and others were just fine. But collectively, they seemed to have trouble wrapping their heads around a wolf walking around with the Fae; the king of them, to be exact. They could sense the royalty by the very presence he gives off, and by default, they knew Rayne was an upcoming alpha of another pack. So to them, seeing these two together just seemed bewildering and suspicious.
Their long, distrustful looks and twisted lips towards Jarrah made Rayne visibly uncomfortable as she'd shift from foot to foot when waiting in line with their plates ready. A few times, she'd catch their gazes and non-verbally demand them to say something to her with just the narrowing of her eyes and the furrowing of her eyebrows. Instead of taking the challenge, they'd look away instead, deciding not to argue with an alpha in front of everyone.
Jarrah moved closer behind Rayne and the subtle scent of hotel soap wafted into her nostrils at the slight movement. Something warm and familiar flowed through her body at their rather proximity, and she hated that. She hated the way she could feel his wet strands brushing her shoulders as he reached for certain food items with a crinkled nose. She even hated that she noticed his facial expression!
Rayne wasn't so sure if Jarrah noticed the constant staring and gnawing being thrown in his direction because, of course, he never faltered. He never shared his discomfort and still seemed rather quiet overall. She didn't know what he was thinking, but she was almost sure he wasn't at all worried about what others thought of him. If there was one thing that stubborn jerk was good at, it was not letting other people's opinions get to him.
One particular kid was openly gaping at the two of them after they gathered their chicken and rice dishes, and Rayne couldn't help staring right back at him with a 'boo' expression on her face that she inherited from her mother, according to her dad. The kid's eyes widened significantly, and he twisted his face into his mother's leg.
Jarrah snorted beside her and just when she looked up at him with spite again, the fiery gleam in her expression ready to be shot out, she instantly noted the amusement flashing behind his pretty brown eyes. The tips of his lips twitched, threatening to pull up and physically show she humored, but when he caught her curious eye, it stopped. He instead turned around and led the way to an empty table near other wolf families.
Most of the wolves bowed their heads respectfully to Rayne, and while she appreciated the movement, she could care less about wolf societal standards at the moment. Jarrah sat directly across from her and waited for her to get comfortable before they both picked at their food and nibbled on the meat.
The stares were almost too much to bear; but at least the conversations weren't about them.
"People sure don't know how to mind their own business," Rayne said, her voice loud and carrying over to the table next to them. The nosey beings looked away.
Jarrah cocked an eyebrow. "Someone's antsy."
That short phrase in itself almost pissed her off again.
"All these looks don't bother you?" she demanded, taking a harder bite than necessary out of her roll.
"I'm used to them," he shrugged, crinkling his nose at the rice, but taking a bite anyway. "I'm a king."
Rayne furrowed her eyebrows. "But these people aren't looking at you the way your people do."
"Looking is looking. It doesn't matter how they do it, it's all the same to me."
"Hmm. I'll have to remember that," she said, her tone somewhat sarcastic, somewhat playful, as she fought her earlier annoyance. She didn't know what it was, but it was nice to have a decent . . . interaction, she supposed, without their usual banter. Even if it was only for a moment.
"Just don't pay them any mind. They're mostly staring at me, anyway," Jarrah added.
"I'd take the staring over the bowing any day."
"Try stopping people from kneeling. It's much worse," he admitted. There was something misty and distant in the grimace of his lips and the faraway glaze in his eyes. If Rayne could, she would have removed him from his oath because she hated feeling responsible for it. She didn't like the thought of him going into danger without even saying goodbye to his family. And as annoying as he was, she still felt frustratingly guilty.
And she didn't know when she would stop.
The two of them ate the rest of their dinner in a silence that made her eyes itch. There was nothing more to say, and seeing as how that was the most civil conversation either of them have had with each other since they met, it left an awkward hanging in the air. The tension still dripped in natural loathing, but they seemed to be entwined together since everyone else around them had a staring problem. Not to mention they have to share a room and possibly . . . a bed together, so as soon as they were back in the forest, she knew they would go back to their same old routine.
Once they were finished eating their dinner, the both of them awkwardly rose from the table, dumped their dishes in the dirty pile, and made their way back up to the room. The looks from the wolves were still heavy with curiosity and caution, in which it was Jarrah's turn to glare at them and moved his tongue in a warning hiss rather than Rayne's warning growl, and that time a smile tugged at her lips in amusement.
"Now who's antsy?" Rayne smirked, crossing her arms.
"Quiet," he mumbled, but the animosity wasn't there like it was before. They both climbed into the elevator and silently waited to get to their floor and hopped out.
Rayne couldn't put her finger on it, but she had the strangest sensation that something was wrong. She didn't know what, yet, so she pushed it off as just being part of her imagination. They were in a lodge surrounded by her people. There wasn't anything to worry about yet. The real fight was still on its way, so as long as they focused on the mission, they would be joining it soon.