Jonah followed Alec out of the pack house. The boy was still holding onto the beta's hand as the latter led them out of the pack house and onto the main path. As they walked past cabins, He was curious and wanted to take a look around, but the heavy gazes he felt on him encouraged him to keep his head down.
He could hear them whisper among themselves, but even though his hearing allowed him to, he chose not to listen to what they were saying, knowing it would probably be nothing good. He subconsciously walked closer to Alec and tightened his hold on his hand. If Alec noticed, he didn't say anything.
Soon enough, the space between the cabins built all over the camp began to increase and not long after there was nothing but trees surrounding them. Jonah tentatively raised his head now that they were away from people.
The pair walked further into the forest as the terrain around them seemed to go uphill. At some point, the trees became more spaced out and revealed a small waterfall, curving and twisting between the rocks. There were stalictes which hung from some rocks set higher at the top of the waterfall, and the sun rays bounced off of them which made them gleam. The water looked clear blue, almost a pale green, and the sight overall made Jonah's mouth open slightly in wonder.
"Pretty isn't it?" Jonah didn't answer, and simply continued to stare in awe.
Alec released his hand and motioned towards a rock which was free of snow where they could sit down. He couldn't help but smile when he saw Jonah close his eyes and tip his head back to feel the sun on his face. The warm beams of light were welcome at this time of the year when the cold seemed everywhere.
"Why did you bring me here?" Alec stared at the waterfall with a content smile on his face.
"I thought you'd like it." Jonah couldn't help but be surprised. Although the beta had been nothing but nice, he had briefly thought Alec was bringing him into the woods because the alpha had ordered to kill him. It was hard for him to believe that someone deliberately wanted to make him happy.
"I do like it, it's very beautiful." Alec smiled brighter.
"If you want, I can tell you about how we live. Do you know how wolf packs work?" The boy shook his head. Maybe his wolf had, but Jonah himself had never come across a group of werewolves before. He had only know they existed because the hunters often talked about them.
"We'll start with the basics then. Do you know your secondary gender?" He could already tell by Jonah's expression that he didn't know what he was talking about.
"What's that?"
"A secondary gender is kind of your status in the pack. When you reach maturity, you can either present as an omega, a beta or an alpha. An omega will present by having a heat. The name is kind of self explanatory since they feel really hot and they have the urge to mate. It last for a couple of days and comes back every month. An omega also has the ability to get pregnant even if they are male. Are you still following me?" Jonah nodded slightly, since he was a bit overwhelmed by all this information.
An alpha also go through the same thing, except we call it a rut. However, female alphas do not have the ability to get pregnant. As for betas, they don't have a heat or a rut, but their scent takes a unique tone that is different for each wolf. They are also less affected by hormones, so they help keep a balance in the pack. I'm a beta myself, the beta of the pack actually, and I help Thomas with decisions and make sure everyone is safe and well."
Once he was done speaking, Alec noticed Jonah staring at him with wide eyes and chuckled.
"Don't worry about getting everything right now. You'll understand once you start interacting with the others. I wanted to ask though, did you have your presentation? Because I noticed your scent still has that neutral milk scent that's associated with un-presented pups." The younger thought for a second, but he couldn't recall any event that resembled a heat or a rut, and he shook his head.
"I don't think I did, I never felt anything like you described." Alec hummed.
"And how old are you." A blush settled on Jonah's cheeks as he shrugged.
"It's hard to keep track of the time. I think I may be around 19 or 20 years old." The older man tried to not let his concern show on his face. Pups usually presented around 16-17 years old, and although late bloomers did happen, it was highly unusual. He'd have to ask Moira about it later.
"Well, it's nothing you have to worry about. Right now, you should focus on healing and getting settled in the pack." Jonah could only nod in response. All of this new information of having a mate, secondary genders and pack stuff was making him disoriented. He had no safety nets here, and he felt lost and confused.
Smelling the unease in his scent, Alec leaned forward and gently placed his hand on the boy's thigh. "Hey, it's alright. I know it's a lot to take in, but I'll be with you every step of the way, okay? You're not alone."
The both of them stared at each other briefly before Jonah broke eye contact, feeling a blush grow on his cheeks. Alec couldn't help but smile fondly at his mate. He couldn't thank the moon enough to have found him.
The beta stood up and extended a hand towards Jonah. "Come, it's time for lunch and I'm starving."
In a similar fashion from this morning, the boy took his hand and was guided onto his feet. The pair then made their way out of the clearing to go back to the camp.
Alec and Jonah handed up eating at the pack house. Jonah learned that even though the beta had his own cabin, he spent most of his time here. As for Alec, he was shocked to learn his mate always ate in his wolf form, so he had never know what human food tasted like.
"We'll have to change that," Alec said. He made some basic spaghetti for the two of them. When Alec started eating and he saw Jonah seemed to hesitate.
"You can dig in, I promise it's good." The boy found his words to be true when he placed the first bit into his mouth. He had to suppress a moan at the delicious taste, and he practically inhaled the whole plate as he forgot the world around him. He was done before Alec, and he stared mournfully at the empty plate in front of him.
All the while, Alec and sneaked a couple of glances at him as he ate and was thoroughly amused when he saw the face Jonah made.
"Do you want some more?" The boy's head whipped towards him with his eyes hopeful.
"Can I?" Alec chuckled as he went to get the leftovers.
"Of course. Here, hand me your plate."
Another plate of spaghetti later, Jonah's stomach was blissfully full and his eyes were dazed. Alec had been scrolling on his phone while waiting for him to finish, and he smiled up at him from the screen.
"I assume it was good then?" Jonah blushed, feeling embarrassed since he ate so much.
"Yes, it was really good. Thank you."
Now, Alec wanted to go and talk to Moira about what he had learned, but he didn't want to leave Jonah alone. Just as he was about to offer his mate to take a nap, a short woman with equally short black hair entered the kitchen.
"Hey there Alec, I hope you didn't finish all the spaghetti sauce I made yesterday." Alec chuckled nervously and placed a hand on his neck.
"Well, there's about, half of it left I think." While he was talking, the woman picked up the jar and glared at him when she saw there was barely anything left.
"Since there's only a scoop left of it, you should've finished it." She let out a sigh. Watching the interaction, Jonah couldn't help but be guilty since he ate most of it. He got off the barstool and went to stand in front her with his hands clasped.
"D-Don't blame Alec, I'm the one who ate the most. I'm r-really sorry." He cast his eyes down as he waited for her to yell at him or hit him, and he couldn't help but flinch when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
He looked up to see her staring at him with a warm, regretful smile.
"Don't apologize, I was just joking. I'm the one who should be sorry for making you uncomfortable." Just as Jonah was about to protest, the woman continued talking in a brighter tone.
"You must be Jonah, right? I'm Zoe, the luna of the pack." He felt his face become pale. He had almost gotten on the luna's bad side and he only just met her. She must've seen his stricken expression because she began to panic a little.
"Please don't feel bad! It's my fault, I tend to come off too strong sometimes. As the luna it's important for me that my pack mates feel comfortable talking to me, so I don't want you to feel pressured. I hope I can make you feel welcomed in the pack."
Jonah didn't know what to respond. He couldn't help but feel touched at her kind words. Alec, who was there the whole time, chose this moment to speak.
"Since I have to go see Moira, do you think you could stay with Jonah? You could get to know each other more." As much as he liked having Jonah by his side, it was important that that the younger man had other people he could talk to.
Jonah's apprehension to be left alone with Zoe was obvious both in his scent and on his face, and this made Alec feel a bit guilty. He came closer and smiled gently at him.
"I won't be gone long. I promise Zoe is good company, and she'll take good care of you." The reassurance seemed to ease the tension in Jonah's shoulders, and he gave a nod with a tentative smile.
Alec sent another smile his way before leaving. Jonah automatically tensed up and he wrung his hands together as he realizes he's alone with someone he just met.
"Come, I was just about to go help prepare some of the meat."
Alec knocks on the door to the healer's den before entering. Waiting for Moira to come and open had proved to be rather useless, especially when it was for emergencies.
The woman, who seemed to be busy making a salve, looks up from her work and greets him.
"How's Jonah doing?" Alec came to lean against the wall as she continued her task.
"He's doing well, I think. We went to the small creek and I think he enjoyed it," The beta paused before continuing, "He told me he didn't think he went through his presentation, and he's at least 19." Moira frowns in concern.
"This isn't a good sign, 19 years old is considered way too late, even for a late bloomer. Maybe it's because of the trauma he experienced, and not being around other wolves can also affect his wolf's development. I'll have to go ask my former mentor if she has more knowledge on late presentation." She leaned forward and pressed a comforting hand on his forearm when he saw his concerned expression.
"Don't worry Alec, we'll do everything we can to help your mate now. He's in good hands." Alec sighed and brushed a hand through his hair.
"Yeah, I know."