The spelling errors are wild, I'll fix them sometime during the day. Bye!
***
My head turns to him, surprised that he's looking at me. Dilated eyes right into my widened eyes. I thought for sure he'd also be fully allured by the moon.
I guess he's the only one looking away, excluding me.
Butterflies burst in my stomach, and my eyes batter in mini blinks to break the eye contact. I can feel the blood rush to my cheeks. I nibble on my bottom lip, humming as I look back at the moon. "T-thanks, Micah. And... you know, thanks also for bringing me here."
"Gertrude."
Oh, the full name. My stomach clenched at it, but still, I lift my eyes back at his. His are hooded, and yeah sure, like usual, a few strands hang over his forehead in attempt to cover his eyes but, he did also have a haircut day before yesterday so it's a lot shorter than what I'm used to.
"Yes?"
"I heard what you said, to my father."
Oh. Damn. "I—I'm sorry, I was being too bold, wasn't I? I wasn't even trying to be disrespectful... or was it me addressing his name? But it's true, I can't call him uncle—"
"That's not it." He mutters, reaching over and he gently takes my other hand, so now we're facing each other. On my right side is the moon, left side are the other wolves immensely gazing at the moon. "What you said to him, about me."
"Oh." I gulp, grin playfully before shrugging. "I was just... I don't know, he asked—"
"I know. I heard." He smiles at me. "I appreciate everything you said. Really. Bummed that you haven't told me directly, and he was the first one to hear it—"
"Micah." I whisper-hiss at him, looking at the other wolves. "They can literally hear us. Can't we talk about this—"
"They are in a trance." I gape at him, tilting my head. "A willing trance. They can't hear anything outside of what Goddess is saying. None of them can hear us." Curiously, I look around us once again.
For sure, these wolves look like they are in a trance. Some even have their jaw loose and gaped. All of them are solely focused on the moon. So, a trance, like he says.
"Gert." His hand takes hold of my chin and turns my face to his. I can't tell if he's leaning in a bit, or if suddenly, everything looks bigger and more detailed. Like him and his flawless face. "Focus on me, mate. Don't get distracted."
I nod. "Sorry."
He smiles, thumb now lightly grazing against my bottom lip. "I don't know what life would be without you, Gertrude. I can't imagine you not being my mate, or anyone else being my mate for that matter. For a long time, I've felt strongly about you. Ever since I've laid my eyes on you, I knew that Goddess Luna wouldn't be vile as to grace me with you as my mate and not let me be with you."
My heart. My actual heart.
"I can't imagine losing you. With you, I see a bright future."
"Is it not the moon's light?" I tease, and he laughs softly at me despite rolling his eyes. But his eyes glimmer a bit more than usual. "Continue, sorry."
"Not the moon's light, no. An actual future. I know that it was hard to comprehend being the future Luna, and I am willing to hold it off for as long as Goddess Luna will let me. I've pressured you enough, I know, and marking you by force was so stupid of me, and I am so sorry about it, again. I just... Gertrude, I can't lose you, I don't think you understand—"
"I understand, Micah. I do." I squeeze his hand, and with my other, I allow it to linger by his neck.
His skin is quite hot, but I understand. We're out on an autumn night. Of course, naturally, his body would heat up given his nature.
His face, though. Thank Goddess Luna, perhaps, for the light she's providing because quite clearly, I can see his face in detail. His cheeks are flushing up. His eyes are literally rimming with tears. And if I have to pay a second longer attention to his lips, I think I can see it tremble a bit.
My heart aches.
"I get it. I mean, I didn't at first, but everything makes sense now." I smile, to try comfort him. "How you acted towards me, your protectiveness. How you wanted us to progress fast. You did it because you didn't want to lose me, or for me to change my mind or something along the lines. I get it. I never understood the severity of losing a mate and, I guess now I do. I do, and I'm telling you now, you won't lose me. I'm not going anywhere, I promise."
"Don't promise." He mutters. "Don't make promises you can't keep."
I'm a bit taken back, so my lips gape before they move wordlessly. I sigh, squeezing his hand again. "I'm not. I promise—"
"Gertrude—"
"I'm promising you. I won't leave you, Micah. I'm with you for life, no matter what. Okay? I mean it. I'm your mate. For life, Micah. I'm not going anywhere, and I'm saying this in front of your Goddess Luna." I chuckle, nudging my head at the moon.
He smiles, breathlessly chuckles as he spares a long glance at the moon himself. That's when I see it; the tear I didn't see before, lingering down to his chin. The trail is left behind on the cheek that wasn't facing the moon. It literally hurts my heart; I don't even know what to do to assure him, but I get it.
The idea of losing me kills him and I'm literally standing before him.
"I'm going to be the future Luna. And... I'll lead the pack with you, as humanly possible. I'll show them how to make a well-done steak because a bleeding steak is not steak." I joke, and Micah grins as he turns back to look at me. "And maybe they know the way of the humans, but I'll teach them more. I don't know. And... we'll have our own pack house where they can roam about as they please. And we'll have little wolf-human babies. Two."
"I was thinking seven." He lowly admits, sniffing a bit.
I pout, shaking my head. "I don't think I can physically do that. So, let's stick to something appropriate for my vagina, if I have natural birth. And we'll give them cool names. And I'll teach them my ways and you'll teach them your ways. And you'll be an amazing father to them, I'm sure, because they'll see how much you lo— care for me. They'll see me from your point of view, and they'll know that what you feel for me is honest, because I have so many flaws and still you choose to... to... like me. A lot."
My heart is pounding, that much I'm sure he can hear.
Still, I can't help the stinging at the back of my eyes when I see Micah literally press his eyes shut, with more tears falling from his lashes. I'm taken back by it, I can't even tell if they are tears of joy. I think I even hear a whimper.
"Micah." I pull him in for a hug, tightening my hood on him and squeeze my eyes shut. His very own arms tighten around me. So tight I almost find it hard to breath, and I'm only about an inch or two from being completely off my feet.
His face is against my neck, the side where his mark is, and the hem of my hoodie isn't between his face and the skin of my neck. I feel the tears, his heated face.
"Y-you've never told me this before, Imani." He mutters hoarsely against my neck.
Once again, I am taken back by his words. I try to pull away, because confusion takes over me, but he doesn't let up not even an inch. "Micah."
"Promise me you won't leave me again."
"I already did."
"Again." He whispers, loosening his hood a bit. "I just want to hear it again. Reassure me I won't lose you, again."
I'm quiet at first. My body reacts though; I rub his back in comfort with a sigh before hugging him tightly. "I promise Micah, I won't leave you. In this universe and the next, in this reality and the next. Even if we're frogs in another world, or... roaches? Or praying mantises. I won't leave you. I'll always be with you."
"Female praying mantis usually eat their mate after sex, so unless you're planning to kill me—" I laugh at him, and I guess it warms me to hear him laugh back softly. "I suggest you use another creature."
"Okay, okay... in another world where we are pandas. Or you're a panda and I'm a human still. Or even if I'm the panda and you're the human. I won't leave you, Micah. I swear on my life." I now whisper. "This is for life. Until I take my last breath. I promise you. I swear it, mate."
He hums, pulling away with a smile and a mess of a face, yet still he looks so attractive. He licks his lips, wet and rimming red eyes dart from one eye, to my lips, to the other eyes. "I thought you'd never call me that."
"Yeah well, I never thought I'd be here, telling a wolf that I'm never leaving him. I last remember I tried running from you."
The both of us laugh. I pull on the sleeves of my hoodie and wipe his cheeks. He humbly closes his eyes and lets me do just that. When I'm done, I move his hair from his forehead and tuck a few behind his ear. I then pull his face closer, pressing one peck on his left cheek and one peck on his right cheek. A small grows on my face simply because of his beautiful face, but I instantly frown at him.
"You called me Imani."
"I know."
"I've never told you about that name."
His eyes open, and his eyelashes bat against the top of his cheeks for a bit. He sniffs and nods slowly. "I know."
"So... how do you know about it? No one calls me Imani."
"I've... it's a long story." Now, I squint and tilt my head at him. He nibbles on his bottom lip for a moment before he huffs. "Your father called you that."
"No. My mother called me that before she passed."
"I've only heard your father call you that once. It's when I had a conversation with him after what happened. He called you Imani, said it was your middle name but your mother only ever called you Imani." I gulp, eyes dropping to his top. "I didn't mean to offend you by calling you that."
He went with his mother to speak to my father after the whole imprinting thing? I'm sure my father lost it, or possibly was afraid for his life, and now knows nothing. Or at least, he acts like he knows nothing.
"It's... fine. Just never heard it in a long time."
"I get that." He mutters. "There's something else I wanted to tell you tonight." I nod, and look back into his eyes. "I love you, Gert."
Oh.
"I'm not expecting you to say it back, so don't feel pressured to. I just wanted to tell you before... before tomorrow. I didn't want you to hear it alongside everyone else." I cheekily smile at the flushing of his cheeks once again. He can see I'm amused, so he rolls his eyes. "Stop."
"I didn't even do anything." I laugh at him.
He sighs, smiling at me before he leans in. His eyes close momentarily, eyelashes displaying their length. He sniffs softly, nose now leaning against the side of mine. His hair tickles my own forehead, that I scrunch my face and giggle, and knowingly, he smiles.
Then, he leans in fully and presses his lips against mine. It's soft at first. Very soft. Very light. His one hand climbs right to my neck, by the side of where his mark is, and his thumb hooks under my chin, just so he can tilt my head up higher. It only creates another round of butterflies in my gut to scrape against the lining of my stomach. His other hand already has found it's way under the bottom hem of my hoodie, and rests against the skin of my lower back.
I guess for physical skin-to-skin contact.
Then, his teeth nibble on my bottom lip lightly, but the one rougher bite has me pulling away with a gasp. It does nothing, I guess since it's exactly what he wanted.
Without hesitation, his tongue slips right into my mouth, tasting and moving against my own tongue. There's a battle of sort happening; me and lack of oxygen, and our tongues. The kiss is nice. Very nice, that I'm willing to sacrifice more seconds without breathing properly, just to let this continue.
I hum in delight, but he lets out a groan. That's about the time I pull back for air, of which he lets me. But he doesn't pull back for air; instead, his lips glide right on my chin and under, then to the joint of my jaw. Then, down my neck and I gasp at the lovely sensation.
Flashbacks hit me; of how he used to peck my neck and leave me almost breathless, and of how he's really good at it.
Oh, and he once said it's a wolf thing, so there's that.
He doesn't stop there. Instead, simultaneously, he lightly pulls the hem of my hoodie down just enough for my collarbone to show. Light pecks are placed from my neck to my collarbone, and the wave of pure satisfaction that hits me is unexplainable, when he grazes his lips against his mark.
Not only his lips, but his tongue as well.
He hums softly. "I love you, Gert."
I gasp, both in pleasure and his statement. My useless hands simply hold onto him tightly.
And then, like reality is something we simply forgot about, we hear a wolf howl. It's loud enough for Micah to pull back, place hard pecks on my lips before he pulls away fully when another wolf howls.
With lazy hooded eyes and a drunken state of pleasure, I glance over at the moon, then at the wolves when more and more wolves start howling. Very loudly, might I add.
My eyes widen as I look at Micah. "What's—"
"Tradition. Howling at the moon." He smiles brightly, watching the scenery as well. "They are praising her for another year."
I'm amazed. I mean, it is loud so I wonder if actual humans not too far can hear this. Still, I look at them — I even turn at the ones at the back — and watch how they straighten their backs and lift their heads high, howling loudly into the night. It's a beautiful, magical site.
Almost fictional, but after the breathtaking kiss I just had from this boy, this seems the least fictional.
"Wow." I laugh softly. "Just, wow. Beautiful."
"Very." He says.
This time when I look back at him, his attention is on the moon. I can't decipher the look he gives it... or her. Almost content, almost upset. Almost as if he's just admiring the moon, but also, almost as if he's questioning.
I can't say for sure. But still, I smile and look back at the moon.