Chapter 15
I woke up the next morning groggy and irritable. The rest of the morning didn’t exactly help my mood either. First I rolled over and fell out of bed - good thing my floor is carpeted! Secondly I went to have a shower only to find that my family had used up all of the hot water, but on the plus side they had let me sleep in...
Thirdly someone had eaten my stash of cookies from the cupboard whilst I was in hospital- the nasty buggers! They were my favourites as well! Grumbling, I threw the empty packet into the bin before making myself some toast and settling in front of the tv with a duvet.
Nothing good was on and I was in too bad a mood to watch the romance films on the movie channel. I browsed through the TV recordings before frowling in annoyance. Whilst I'd been in hospital I’d missed the last 4 episodes of my favourite TV show, and no one had recorded them for me. Actually, they'd also deleted my older recordings, replaced by football and CSI. Such wonderful family I have! I sighed and switched the TV onto a random channel and mindlessly watched whatever show was on.
But the worst part of the day had to be when Daniel came round and dragged me out of the house.
I hadn’t exactly been having a great day so far, but when my older brother opened the front door for Daniel and let him in I decided to be positive and thought ‘Hey, at least I can spend the rest of the day with my Mate, and we can just pig out and watch movies’, but no. One look at me curled up on the couch watching an old episode of Vampire Diaries and Daniel ordered me upstairs to change before he marched me out to his car, strapped me in and took off.
When we pulled up in the mall parking lot I thought maybe Daniel was taking me out to get more cookies from my favourite store, but the first thing he did was drag me into a clothes shop that looked far too girly and cute to be real. I mean, seriously, what shop is decorated all pink and lace and has cute bubbly staff to match? I felt like puking and I even fake gagged, but Daniel just smirked at me and with the help of one of the shop assistants he picked out a bunch of clothes and shoes that were - as the assistant said - “super cute and would look so adorable!”. I’m not even kidding.
With a roll of my eyes I tried on every single piece of clothing they passed me and Daniel bought the ones he liked on me most, which surprisingly turned out to be a lot. He did this again in the next twelve – yes, twelve – stores he dragged me into. After the fifth store I was actually dragging my feet and clinging onto doors and benches and signs we walked past so I wouldn't have to go into another cutesy store and try on ridiculously pretty clothes. I tried arguing with Daniel that the clothes would just get ruined the moment I wore them - I'm a very messy person - but he said that didn't matter as he could always buy me knew clothes.
I even thought I’d won around the eighth store, when he sighed and let go of my ankles. We'd been walking through the mall lugging my - or rather, Daniels - shopping bags along with us when I caught sight of a shop called Time Bomb. It looked amazing, all punk and goth and rock, exactly the kind of clothes I'd love to wear but could never afford. I dropped my bags and instantly started walking towards it but Daniel grabbed me around the waist and swung me around, gently pushing me in the direction of the next girly store once I was on my feet.
"I wanna go in Time Bomb!" I said excitedly and tried to rush past him but he picked me up again and quickly scooped up our shopping bags before starting to carry me away. I felt like a little kid, and it was seriously annoying me. What's that saying - if you can't beat them, join them? Something like that I think, but either way, if Daniel was going to treat me like a little kid then I sure as hell was going to act like one! At first I tried yelling at him to put me down, then I tried hitting his back, all to no good. Then I looked over my shoulder and smiled evilly. Just as Daniel walked passed one of the many tall sign posts I grabbed it and clung on for dear life.
"Kennie!" Daniel groaned as he tried to tug me away by my ankles, but I wrapped both my arms tightly around the pole and refused to budge.
"No! I'm sick of all those girly stores! If I go in another one I'm going to die of boredom! Or my brain will turn into mush and fall out of my ears! Please Dan, don't make me goooooo!" I cried, and clung tighter as he gave another strong tug. For another minute he tried without success to make me let go, until he finally gave up and growled out a 'fine!' as he dropped my legs.
With a grin I leant casually against the pole I’d been clinging to and smirked cheekily at Daniel, thinking I'd won, but he stepped closer to me until I was backed against a wall and our chests were touching. Slowly he leant down and rested his hands on my hips as his lips briefly brushed against mine. I arched my back to get closer to him, aching for another kiss, but his lips were against my ear, his breath hot, sending a shiver down my body.
“Baby girl, unless you want me to go all possessive Alpha on your sexy little ass, I suggest you just let me splash out on you, just for today. Then tomorrow .. I’m all yours.” I shivered at his voice that just husky enough, and tried not to moan as he nibbled on my ear then kissed his way along my neck and jaw. His lips hesitated at the corner of my mouth. I could feel his heartbeat speeding up under my splayed fingers on his chest. I turned my head and our lips barely brushed again when I heard someone call my name.
“Kennie?” I closed my eyes for a second and felt myself go pale. Please don’t let that be who I think it is. Please don’t let it be him...
Daniel shortly growled but stepped backwards as I looked to the side to see Matty standing there holding some girls hand, both of them gawking at me. I swallowed the lump in my throat and pushed Daniel back a bit further but I still grabbed his hand for comfort. He squeezed my hand gently and stepped up beside me.
“This is Kennie?” The girl said incredulously, and for a moment I was sure she’d heard horrid things about me from Matty, but then she suddenly grinned and rushed forwards and hugged me tight. Awkwardly I wrapped my arms around her and returned her hug quickly before she pulled back. Her bright blue eyes twinkled as she grinned at me happily and I smiled back despite the jealousy surging in my stomach.
“I’ve heard so much about you! Matty's right, you're totally gorgeous!” she cried excitedly. I blinked in shock. Matty had talked to her about me? I felt my hopes rising but after a momnet I mentally squashed them and swallowed my heart down from my throat. Of course he told her about me, I’m one of his best mates, that’s all. Naive little me getting my hopes up.
Matty took his Mate’s hand to pull her back next to him and she looked up at him lovingly. I had to fight the urge to cry. She was beautiful. Her hair was long, white blonde and perfectly straight, just as I always wish my hair would look; her eyes the bright aqua blue I always envy; her face heart-shaped and soft; her smile genuine; her body slim but curved, and that perfect height. Standing next to Matty they looked like fallen angels – she was the beautiful light angel, and he was the dark sexy one.
I turned my gaze to Matty and wished I hadn’t. Gods, he looked so handsome and strong in a plain white t-shirt, dark-wash jeans, his old converse and his beaten up leather jacket. I gulped as my eyes hungrily ate him up before resting on his eyes.
One of the good things about being friends with someone as long as Matthew and I is that I can tell what he was thinking even without words. The way he looked at me, the subtle changes as expressions crossed his face - pity, sadness, worry, anger, loss, love, disgust, longing. I could see it all and I hated it. I quickly looked away from him to his mate who was still staring up at him expectantly.
“Yeah,” He said eventually, “This is Kennie.” I spared a glance at him and saw he was still staring at me with longing and sadness in his bold, dark eyes. I swallowed and looked away again, this time to Daniel who was glaring fiercely at Matty and holding me tightly to his chest, my back flush against him. Huh, I hadn't even felt myself move. “And this is her Mate, Daniel. Our future Alpha” Matty added, almost as an after thought. Mattys Mate’s eyes widened in surprise then it faded under her excitement. She’s like an adorable little puppy!
“Hi I’m Kristen, Matty’s Mate!” She smiled largely and held out her free hand to Daniel, her other hand still holding Matty’s. I wanted to bite her hand off and tear that beautiful blonde hair of hers off her head. Filthy mutt needs to stay away from my Matty. Wait, what? What am I thinking? Oh gods, I really need to get a grip! I mentally shook myself then tilted my head back and looked up at Daniel. He glared at Kristen’s hand for a moment then glanced down at me, his sky blue eyes softening.
Go on. Shake her hand. I gestured with my eyes and said to him through the mind link. He sighed and rolled his eyes, but he reached out and quickly shook her hand before wrapping his arms back around my waist.
“Pleasure to meet you.” He said to her politely. I smiled up at him and softly pecked his cheek. He smiled down at me and softly but lingeringly kissed my lips before pulling back. My eyes fluttered back open and I hadn’t realized they’d closed. I couldn't stop my eyes from flitting over to Matty, probably expecting a calm facade, but I felt a surge of what I can almost call relief to see his jaw and fists clenched tight, glaring at Daniel as if he wanted to punch his lights out. Matty’s mate – Kristen I’m sure she said her name was – looked from Matty, to me, to Daniel, then back again, looking as if she had just realized she was missing something here, but she didn't look like she wanted to get involved.
After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence I broke the moment by my stomach rumbling loudly. People around us turned to stare at me and I blushed as Daniel, Kristen, Matty and I laughed loudly, the tension suddenly gone. Phew, saved by the food monster!
After we calmed down I rushed forwards and gave first Kristen then Matty a big hug. It might have been wishful thinking but I was sure Matty’s arms lingered around me a few seconds or so longer than usual, but maybe that was just ebcause he hasn't seen me in a while. Reluctantly I stepped back with another little laugh and held Daniels hand, shocked back to reality as the electric shocks ran up my arm. I forced a little smile on my lips and hoped it didn’t look fake.
“It was lovely meeting you Kristen! And Matty, it was lovely seeing you again. Call me when you can. We should all meet up again sometime, my treat!” I picked up the bags I’d dropped to the floor, and with one last smile for my best friend and his mate I danced off in the direction of the food section of the mall, Daniel laughingly running after me.
We slid into a booth in my favourite cafe as the waitress brought over our usual. Daniel took my hand in his as he munched away at his cookie and I couldn't help smiling. It was nice, holding hands with Daniel as we devoured our cookies and milkshake, the sparks zinging through my body from my hand. I was in such a good mood that after we finished I emptied our trash into a nearby bin then followed contentedly along as he led me into yet another clothes store. By the time we’d finished in the thirteenth store my whole body was aching and I was so tired I could barely lift my feet.
Seeing my exhaustion Daniel knelt down in front of me and I clambered up onto his back with a soft smile. He grunted as he stood up, the extra weight of me and all my bags obviously a little strain, but when I suggested he should put me back down and I’ll walk he shook his head and strode on. I smiled and kissed the edge of his jaw and he shivered under me. With a contented sigh I rested my cheek between his shoulder blades and breathed in the heavenly and luxurious smell of my Mate.
I think I fell asleep because a few seconds later - or it seemed like a few seconds to me - someone was gently laying me down in my bed. For a few heart aching moments my sleep-muddled mind thought it was Matty, but then the electric tingles and the scent registered and I realized it was Daniel. I watched him silently as he pulled the covers back then lay them gently over me, tucking me in. His eyes flickered up to my face and he smiled at me when he saw I was awake. I smiled back and opened my mouth to say something but he sat down next to me and kissed my hand making me blush slightly.
“It’s okay baby girl, you can go back to sleep.” He whispered to me as he stroked my hair away from my face. He leant down and softly kissed my forehead, his lips lingering for a moment. I suddenly remembered a time about 3 years ago when Matty, Hannah and I had watched a scary movie. Matty and Hannah loved it but I was terrified, so that night Matty tucked me into bed and kissed me on the forehead.
“Go to sleep Angel.” I remember him saying, and I had. Tears pooled up in my eyes and spilt over asI remembered, and I desperately tried to swipe them away before Daniel could see, but of course he knew.
“What’s wrong baby girl?” Daniel asked worriedly, wiping the tears from my cheeks. I silently shook my head and forced a small smile as I looked up at him.
“It’s nothing. I’m just really tired I guess. All that shopping’s exhausted me ...” and it was a half truth. My body was exhausted but my brain seemed to be far from sleep. Like flashbacks, I remembered every reason why I love Matty, every happy memory every beautiful moment, and it replayed over and over in my head like a broken record, mixed up with memories of the night we'd spent together, the jealousy I'd felt today, the way I've always felt safe and loved with Matty. I yawned largely and I heard Daniel’s rich laugh.
“Okay Mackenzie, I’ll let you sleep.” He kissed my forehead again then got up and walked over to my door.
“Don’t forget, tomorrow’s my day” I called sleepily out to him and was rewarded with another soft laugh. Warmth blanketed my heart and I smiled. I love making people laugh, especially my Mate.
“Goodnight Mate. I’ll see you tomorrow. I love you” Daniel said. I know I should say it, he is my Mate after all, but I couldn’t bring myself to say those three little words back to him. After a seconds pause Daniel left quietly, turning off the light and pulling the door almost closed behind him. I swallowed the lump in my throat and rolled over to my right side, my back facing the door. I felt guilty for feeling relieved that he left and I didn’t have to lie to him. If I’m honest I’m not sure I even love him. I know I should, and my wolf definitely does, but I'm not sure if the human side of me does too.
A montage of images of Matty and I that night we'd made love replayed over and over in my head, but then it changed so it was now Matty and Kristen, instead of me. I imagined her moaning his name as he thrust inside her and him growling her name against her throat as he kissed a hot trail of kisses down her body. No no no! That was me, not Kristen! But ... but It will be her. One day anyway. For the second time in as many days I struggled to breathe. I shook my head roughly and clenched my fists in my pillow, choking back sobs as tears splashed from my cheeks.
My Gods - I wondered in annoyance to myself as I curled up tightly in my bed -What's wrong with me?!
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I haven't slept yet, it is now half eight in the morning, and I have literally stayed up all night to write this for you lovely people. Please don't point out any spelling errors, but other than that criticise away :D Constructive criticism is the best, though hate is always fun to read ;)
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