Jay let out a shaky breath as she closed the solid wooden door behind her. Leaning her head against it, she squeezed her eyes shut, replaying her grandpa's words on a loop. Alpha? As Jay thought of it more, she realized her grandpa must be desperate if he considered her trustworthy to lead his pack once he was gone.
Pushing herself from where she rested against the door, Jay made her way further into the home of the Bohannan siblings, unsure of how she would break the news to them. There was no right way to introduce the idea to them. Jay would have to do it fast, like ripping off a bandaid. Even then, Jay knew better. She had grown accustomed to living in her formulated routine, and not worrying about who saw her drinking blood was a bonus. Dragging a hand down her face, Jay realized she needed a plan to ensure both her worlds didn't come crashing down on her.
"Anyone home?" Jay called out into the house as she made her way into the living room. She softly smiled when she noticed Raegan lounging on one of the sofas, reading a book Jay couldn't see the title to.
"Hey there," Raegan said, placing her book in her lap. "How did things go with your family?"
Jay could see Raegan's concern clear as day, but she didn't have the energy to replay her grandpa's words more than once. "I have to tell you something, but I need to find the other two before I do that."
Raegan nodded in understanding. "Kieran is in the garage, and I'm pretty sure Brennan is helping him."
Smiling in thanks, Jay made her way to the garage door, cracking her knuckles nervously as the door came into view. Jay opened the door and saw Kieran hunched over the engine of one of his cars while Brennan stood underneath in an open pit.
"Oil change?" Jay asked, eyeing the two vampires.
Kieran nodded as he straightened, wiping his hands on a dirty shop rag. "Basic maintenance. I made Brennan crawl underneath to grease the U-Joints. My back is getting too old nowadays." Kieran's voice was full of humour as Brennan scoffed.
"You keep talking like that, and I'll over-grease these fittings." The sound of the grease gun going off made Jay chuckle.
With narrowed eyes, Kieran turned toward Brennan as he crawled up from the cement pit. "Besides, I volunteered." Brennan patted his pants, knocking off the dirt clinging to the material. "How did everything go?" Brennan asked, standing before Jay.
Jay's eyes wandered over his dirty shirt as he wiped his hands on a rag. Once her eyes landed on his face, she couldn't help but smile once she saw the mud clinging to his face and hair.
"You should've left the car sit for a little bit before crawling underneath it," Jay giggled as she wiped his face with her thumb. "Now you're all muddy."
Brennan shrugged but didn't move her hand away. "I can always shower."
Kieran stood beside his brother, facing Jay as he gave her a pointed look. "You never answered the question."
Biting her lip, she turned away from their unwavering gazes that seemed to drill into the side of her face the more she avoided the question.
"Why don't you guys finish up and shower first? I want to tell everyone all at once." Jay offered a smile as she stared into their eyes with hope.
Kieran gave her a curt nod as Brennan tilted his head with a questioning gaze. Turning around, Jay made her way into the house and sat peacefully on the couch beside Raegan. She watched the two brothers round the corner, diverting her gaze once she saw them look over at her. They quickly made their way upstairs.
"Are you okay?" Reagan questioned.
Nodding, Jay softly smiled at her. "It's nothing bad, but I want to tell everyone at once."
"How did the rest of your evening go last night?" Jay changed the subject, smirking as Reagan smiled softly.
"I went to Zander's place," Reagan waved a hand in the air as she turned her face away. Jay noticed a tinge of pink on Reagan's cheeks and couldn't help but laugh.
"You two are cute." Jay's laughter continued. "How long has that been going on?"
Reagan dragged a hand down her face, humming as she thought of an answer. "Years upon years, but nothing has been made official."
Jay's eyes widened. "Yah yah, don't give me that look," Reagan said. "He likes to travel, and I've been living in this house for centuries. I don't ever want to give it up. So we see each other whenever he's back in town."
"Are you... happy with this arrangement?" Jay cautiously asked.
Regan pondered her answer for a few seconds, tapping her finger on the leather sofa. "I'm happy." Regan nodded. "I don't see myself living elsewhere; I couldn't fathom it. This is my home and my family. But there's always that tug on my heart whenever I see him."
"Maybe one day he'll get bored of seeing the world and want to settle down," Jay offered, trying to share a hopeful outcome.
"Maybe," Reagan smiled.
Kieran rounded the corner, coming into view. Jay's eyes roamed over the vampire, enjoying the sight of him freshly showered. His hair was damp, and droplets fell on the neckline of his black t-shirt. Then came Brennan, in a pair of grey sweatpants and a white t-shirt. He was in the middle of towel-drying his hair as he followed behind Kieran.
Licking her lips, she turned her gaze away from the two of them only to look into the eyes of Reagan, who was smirking devilishly. Immediately, Jay's face heated up. Caught drooling over the two vampires, all Jay wanted to do was bury herself alive.
Brennan sat in the armchair beside Jay, discarding his towel on the armrest while Kieran poured a few drinks into cups, handing them out to everyone.
"Thank you," Jay said as she clutched the glass in her hand, swirling the amber liquid around in the crystal-like glass. Kieran sat in the armchair opposite Brennan, closer to Reagan, and as everyone took a sip of their drinks, she realized they were waiting expectantly for Jay to start the conversation. Jay let out a heavy breath, feeling the burn of her drink escape her throat as she stared down at the swirling glass. "My grandpa wants to train me to take over his pack."
Silence.
Jay's ears rang as she waited for someone to say something, even make a noise, but everyone remained still as if frozen in time.
Peering through her lashes, Kieran rested his head on his fists, tightly clutching his glass as if it would fall from his grasp. Reagan looked shocked, her eyes wide with questions zooming through her head. Brennan looked out of it as he furrowed his brow. He was the first to make a move, finishing his glass in one swig and setting it on the wooden table beside him.
"You just shifted," Brennan exclaimed, pointing out the obvious.
Jay nodded her head. "I know. He said he doesn't have much time left and wants to prepare me as it is my birthright."
"You're actually considering this?" Jay looked over to Kieran was still in the same position.
"I want to help him."
"Pups start their training the moment they come out of their mother's womb," Brennan said. "You've only known about this world for a month, and you think you can be an Alpha?"
Hiding her hurt from them, Jay spoke in an even tone. "I don't think I can be an Alpha right at this moment, but I'm sure with the proper training and help, I can do what my grandpa asks of me."
"So, you're going to live with the pack?" Reagan asks softly.
Jay nodded her head in reply.
"How will you hide your other life?" Kieran asks, glaring at an object behind her.
Jay leaned back in her seat, taking a sip of her drink. "I'm worried about that too." She needed blood to survive, and stocking up the fridge with blood bags for everyone to see would result in questions she wouldn't want to answer. "My grandpa knows what I am, so I'm sure he'll have a plan."
"Wait," Kieran furrows his brows together, leaning forward in his seat. "Your grandpa knows what you are, and he's okay with you taking over his pack?"
Nodding her head, Jay watched as Kieran's furrowed brow deepened. "I guess he's open-minded," Jay shrugged. "He knows about you guys," Jay gestured to the three of them, "And he said it's fine if I ever want to visit."
"Your grandpa is senile," Kieran scoffed.
Brennan glared at Kieran before turning to Jay. "What he means is that no oldtimer Alpha has been okay with vampires. Werewolves and vampires are two completely different species—we've always been hateful of each other."
Shrugging, Jay took another sip of her drink. "You should've seen him. He was genuinely grateful you guys helped me through this." A random thought popped into her head. "Even my dad, who is a hunter, warmed up to you guys. Hell, he married into a werewolf family. Nothing seems impossible when you think of it that way."
"When will you be leaving?" Reagan asked.
Jay thought for a moment, unsure of her answer. "I'm not sure," Jay replied, tapping her nail against her glass. "School starts on the third of January, so sometime between then?"
The four of them sat in silence for a few moments. Jay was unsure if she should say something or not. Thankfully, she didn't have to.
"Shall we have a movie night?" Reagan asked with a smile.
Brennan perked up at her question, nearly jumping out of his chair with excitement. "I can use my new popcorn machine!"
Jay ghosted a hand over her growing smile, holding back her laughter as she saw the childish side of Brennan she rarely got to see.
"You boys set it up. Jay and I are going to get into fuzzy pyjamas," Reagan said.
Rising from the couch, Jay followed Reagan up the stairs. Reagan opened Jay's bedroom door, and Jay thought nothing of it. She didn't mind if Reagan wanted to borrow a pair of her clothes.
Jay heard the door close behind her as she made her way into her closet in search of some comfy pyjamas to wear. Feeling a tug on her arm, Jay turned around to a serious Reagan.
"How are you feeling about all of this?" Reagan tilted her head, dropping her arm from where she held onto Jay's wrist.
Jay breathed deeply through her nose. "Truthfully, the thought of being the one who people look for to protect them, being the face of the pack, and taking on all of the responsibility that comes with the title of an Alpha scares the hell out of me." Jay squeezed her arms to comfort herself from the growing anxiety creeping along her skin. "I'm scared to let people down, that I won't be enough. I'm an outcast, after all. I don't belong to a pack, and if I take the position of Alpha, I'll be lying to everyone in the pack about who I truly am. No one would trust me after finding out what I am."
Reagan cracked a sympathetic smile. "Your grandpa knows what he's doing, even if it's rushed. He sees your potential to lead his pack once he's gone. That's why he wants to prepare you for when you do step up. I'm sure he's already told you that anyone can challenge you for the position." Regan gave her a questioning gaze, to which Jay nodded in response. "When they do, it's a fight to the death."
Jay knew of this. She hoped it didn't come down to such a thing.
"I hope it doesn't come to that, but it most likely will. That's why you need to be ready when the time comes." Reagan's stare became serious. "You'll do fine. These are new times, ones everyone is unsure of, but you becoming Alpha is the beginning of something no one will see coming."
"I wish I could be normal," Jay laughed away the dryness from her throat. "Human."
Reagan shook her head. "No, you don't," She said with a cheeky smile.
Jay laughed in agreeance, nodding. "You're probably right." Scratching her bicep, Jay breathed a sigh. "I'll miss you guys."
Reagan cracked a smile in response. "I know."
Reagan left, and Jay put on a pair of sweatpants with some fuzzy socks. Straightening out her tank top, Jay left her bedroom to join everyone in the second living room they had in the basement with a giant projector screen on the wall. It was like entering a completely different world when walking into the basement. There was a pool table that when flipped over, became a game table for playing cards, a bar with stools, and one giant sectional couch sitting in front of the projector screen. It looked like a modern living room compared to the one upstairs, which looked outdated and full of antiques they'd collected over the years.
Immediately running toward the sectional, Jay chose the spot in the middle of the couch.
I was here first. I choose first. Jay thought smugly as she wrapped a blanket around her torso, bringing her legs up to her chest as she deemed the middle of the couch perfect since she would get the best view of the screen.
Kieran was next to come down the stairs, holding an armful of pops in his grasp. Kieran placed a Pepsi in her lap as he put the rest of the pops on the coffee table in front of them, plopping beside her with a sigh. He grabbed the remote, glancing at her as the projector started up. "What movie were you thinking of watching?"
Shrugging, Jay cracked the can open, taking a sip of the carbonated drink. "What about horror?"
"I'll see what I can do." Kieran flipped through some movies that both of them agreed looked too corny. Then again, what horror movie didn't come across as generic and unrealistic, to begin with?
Reagan came down next, choosing the part where the couch makes an L shape and wraps herself in a blanket she brought along. "Have you decided on a movie yet?"
Jay shook her head. "We thought maybe horror but haven't found anything yet."
"Horror sounds good to me," Reagan said as she grabbed a can of Dr. Pepper. Crinkling her nose, Jay disagreed with that choice of pop entirely. To her, it reminded her of cough syrup.
"How about this one?" Kieran asked, bumping Jay's arm with his.
"Sure." Both Reagan and Jay said just as Brennan came down the stairs with four tubs of popcorn.
And so their night of movie marathons began. Although Jay enjoyed horror movies, she involuntarily jumped each time there was a jumpscare. Kieran and Brennan teased her relentlessly or tried scaring her when the tension was building up.
They were on the third movie, and Reagan declared she was going to bed, claiming she didn't get enough sleep last night. Jay wiggled her eyebrows at Reagan teasingly, to which Reagan glared at her. Jay knew Reagan spent the night at Zander's place, so she knew only one thing would keep her up from having a proper sleep.
Returning to the movie, Jay watched in anticipation of what was going to happen to the people in the movie. Just as the killer came out, Brennan shoved her arm, making Jay jump twice as high and nearly let out a squeal of terror.
Jay stole a handful of popcorn from Brennan's bowl and shoved her hand at his mouth, mainly getting popcorn everywhere but inside his mouth. Laughing at her handiwork, Jay didn't realize Kieran was getting ready to pour popcorn over her head from behind her, resulting in popcorn getting everywhere.
"I am not cleaning that up!" Jay declared before she grabbed another handful of popcorn and threw it at Kieran.
"Oh really?" Kieran smirked.
Jay jumped up from the couch, standing in front of the projector screen with her popcorn bowl in hand. "Grenade!" She squealed as she threw popcorn at the two males, diving out of the way and behind the couch before making exaggerated sound effects.
Someone grabbed her hips and threw her back on the couch. She tried wiggling away from the two vampires, but they held her down as they shoved popcorn into her mouth. "Gross!" She cried as she spat out the popcorn.
The two of them stopped, and that's when she realized they ran out of ammunition. "Hah!" Jay exclaimed smugly. "Now what?" She goaded them, which she later learned to regret.
Kieran smirked devilishly as he leaned over her legs, tickling her sides. Brennan held down her arms behind her head as she shrieked with laughter. "Please!" She studdered out the word as Kieran's fingers mercilessly dug into her sides. "Stop," Jay laughed, trying to break free of their hold.
"Say uncle, and then we'll stop," Brennan laughed from above her as his one free hand danced over her stomach. Her stomach muscles were screaming in protest as she laughed out the word uncle. The two stopped but only for a second, before continuing their assault.
"Hey!" Jay was in outrage that they didn't stay true to their word. "Liars!" Jay wiggled beneath them, attempting to get free of their grasp, but they overpowered her small form.
The two brothers continued their assault, not paying her words any intention. Brennan laughed deviously, easily holding her two wrists in one hand as the other squeezed her ribs. Kieran pinched her hips, slowly trailing his fingers up to her stomach as she squirmed beneath them. She didn't know how much longer she would be able to take as her laugh became tired and pained. "Okay, okay. Please!" She tried begging. "I'll do anything!" She realized too late what she said as the two males stopped their assault, looking down at her with dark eyes.
"Anything?" Kieran said softly, poking her side as she tried squirming away.
"I mean..." She said breathlessly, her chest rising up and down from the exertion. "Maybe not anything." Her words came out strained as she tried fighting for breath.
"Well, what would you be willing to do?" Brennan asked.
"Almost anything?" Jay tried, unsure of their motives.
The two brothers shared a look as if communicating telepathically. "Let's play a little game." Kieran started, to which Brennan nodded along with.
"What kind of game?" Jay decided to humour the brothers. Anything to get away from their grasp.
"Hide and seek?" Brennan replied.
Jay rolled her eyes at their childishness but decided to agree nonetheless.
"You hide, we seek." Kieran leaned over her legs, getting closer to her face. "If you manage to stay hidden from us for, let's say an hour? Then you win."
"What happens if I get caught?" Jay asked boldly, feeling determined she would win this silly game.
The two brothers smirked in synch, creeping Jay out as she stared up at them. "Then we get to choose your next method of torture."
Word Count : 3140