Here you go, my lovely readers. As I promised in the last author's note, when this short story reached 1,000 reads, I would make the next chaper as long as I could make it! And it did. So here it is! Here is the super long chapter that I promised that I would write.
I am such a bad student. Lmfao. I had work today and when I got home I went straight for the computer to write out this chapter.
Now, after I post this chapter, I'm going back to study as for one of my exam is nearing the corner. I'll post up again after my exam on Thursday, ya'll if I get the time to after school.
I have a dentists appointment Wednesday and I have a Lab :( sucks to suck. I wouldn't have time to update then, because literally after my classes end, I have to rush over to the dentist to get my fillings done :( POOP. okay, maybe I should stop typing now and let you guys get on with the chappy.
Read, comment, vote, follow, maybe? (:
Let me know what you think of this chapter. It's pretty creep and intense if you ask me....
Chapter 9: Between Raising Hell and Amazing Grace
We're all a little weird.
And life's a little weird.
And when we find that someone
whose weirdness is compatible
with ours, we join up with them
and fall in mutual weirdness
and we call that love.
*****
Second warning? What, is it three strikes and then you’re out? I ran my fingers through the big man’s writing over and over again before I heard my name being called out. “Nikki? Are you feeling alright?” I think that was Mrs. Chollenar’s voice.
I glanced up at the voice and I saw that it was Mrs. Chollenar. She had a worried expression on her face, as well as weird glances toward my way from the students in the room. “May I please be excused? I’m not feeling well right now. I had the stomach flu last night and I thought I was well enough to go to school today. May I go to the nurse, please?”
“That would be fine, Nikki. Please, have someone escort you to the nurse’s office.” She paused. “Nina? You know the passageways of the school since you’re a cheerleader. Please show Nikki the way to the office. Thank you.”
“But Mrs. Chollenar --” Nina tried.
“No butts, Nina. If you want to pass my class, consider this as a piece of extra credit you’ll receive.” Mrs. Chollenar bit back. Nina nodded as he got up her seat and made her way towards me. She grabbed my backpack and the bouquet of flowers and nodded towards the door.
Nina and I walked in silence to the nurse’s office before she stopped me right before I went to grab the doorknob. “You're the girl who Eric is infatuated with, aren't you?”
Her question caught me off guard. I just looked at her and didn't answer her. So she spoke up again. "You know, whenever Eric has a fling going on, he gets bored after a while. He will just keep on using you, like he kept using me and all of his past conquests. So don't get your hopes up that he will stay and stick around."
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Nina.” I told her, hoping she would stop talking about it.
“But I think that you do. I saw how he looked at you when he was kissing me. Even though he was kissing me, he was thinking that it was you. Couldn’t you see it?”
“Oh.” Was all I could say. All I saw that day when I witnessed Eric and Nina making out was that he looked angry. He looked angry at Jack and I who were walking together to the gymnasium.
She looked at me with all seriousness in the face, and there was no glint in her eyes that told me otherwise. "Watch your back, Nikki. I heard what happened between you two when you guys were fighting in lab the other day. Started off sweet and then he was a douche bag? That's how is he. And he will never change."
"Thanks, Nina. I'll keep that in mind." She put her lips into a tight line, opened the door for me, and handed off the flowers and my backpack to the nurse's assistant.
"Oh and Nikki?” She said as she turned around.
“Yeah?”
“Tell Eric that he owes me an apology for breaking my nose. Even though it healed right back in a few seconds, it still hurt like a bitch.”
I chuckled as she had on a smile after she said bitch. “I will!”
”See ya later." She waved to me.
"Bye." Maybe Jack was being over the top when he said that Nina was the craziest she-wolf. She seemed totally fine the entire time she was talking to me. She didn’t even make it seem like she hated me. I think she knew that I was Eric’s mate, but I couldn’t be one hundred percent sure.
I turned to face the nurse's assistant. "Hi, my name is Nikki Pratt. I asked Mrs. Chollenar permission to come here. I don't feel too well and I was wondering if I could go home."
"Sure thing. Just give me a moment to get the nurse. It'll just be a minute." I nodded my head towards her and sent her a small smile. She was a human.
Moments later, the nurse walked in. I inhaled her scent when she was turned around and she was definitely a werewolf. "Ahh, Miss Pratt." She said, turning around to face me. "Nice to see you again but unfortunate it was under these circumstances. How are you liking living in Kingsman and being in the pack?"
"Pack life is good and I like Kingsman. It's a nice town."
"Glad you like it here." She smiled up at me. "Now, what can I do for you?"
"Do you mind calling Jack Everts in for me? He's my friend."
"Ah, the beta's son?" I nodded. "That wouldn't be a problem. Give me one moment."
Sure enough, not even five minutes later, Jack came bursting through the Nurse's office. "Where is she?" I heard Jack question the poor assistant.
"She's with Jackie." The assistant told him. He didn't even murmur a thanks before I found myself in his arms.
"You okay, Nik? What happened?" I looked over to Jackie before she bowed her head down and left the room for Jack and I to talk.
"Th-th-there's an-an-another n-n-n-note." I said, gripping the little envelope that was still in my hands.
Jack looked down to my trembling hands and looked like he was mind-linking with someone. That someone being Eric. "Eric said he'd be here in a few minutes. How'd you get this letter? This second warning?"
"The class thought that the bouquet of flowers that she was carrying was were for her, but instead they were brought to me, and I thought it was from Eric but when I read the note, it's from my stalker."
“Can I see the note?” he asked me and I nodded and opened my hands for him to grip the small envelope into his fingers.
“They’re not going to harm you, Nikki. We won’t let them.” Jack said, crumbling up the note in his hands.
“Damn right, they aren’t going to hurt you.” Eric’s voice filled the room as he walked in. “Are you okay?” He looked at me. His hands went to cup my face and I leaned into them as they fit my face perfectly.
“Mhhm. I just want it to stop. I just want it all to stop.” I said, with my voice barely up a whisper.
“I know. And I will end this soon. This is stressing you out I can tell. Why didn’t you tell me sooner? I know I was a jerk and an asshole, but if you talked to me about something involving the pack and your safety, I would’ve listened. My dad and I are looking for the crook who’s been trying to get you.” Eric kept rambling and rambling I had to put my hand over his mouth to keep him from going and going.
He stopped talking and I took my hand off his face. “Sorry.” He said sheepishly.
“It’s okay.” Jack coughed. I flashed my eyes towards his and he has a playful look in his eyes.
“Okay, lovebirds. I think it’s time to leave and go back to the house.” Jack said, as he was getting off the bed and up to his feet. He straightened his wrinkly clothes from sitting and came over to give me a knucklehead.
“Jack!” I whined as he laughed and Eric chuckled.
“Love you too, Nik.” Jack said. Eric glared at Jack and it was now my turn to laugh.
“It’s okay, Eric.” I turned to face Jack. “You didn’t tell him?”
Eric raised an eyebrow at his soon to be Beta. “Tell me what..?”
“That Nikki and I are madly in love and we’re going to have babies and get married and live happily ever after and drive off into the sun when we die?” Jack asked, trying to keep in his laughter. I could see that Eric already clenched his hands and started to shake.
“Oh god your face, Eric.” Jack said, bursting out into laughter.
I couldn’t contain my laughter either and I joined in with Jack. “What’s so funny you guys? What, don’t tell me that this is going to be a love triangle.”
“Jack found his mate.” I told Eric. Eric looked to Jack and he nodded his head.
“No way bro! Why didn’t you tell me!” Eric said, slapping his friend on the back.
“I didn’t have time?” Jack said, scratching the back of his neck. Really? That was the best that he could come up with?
“Okay, okay. Continue your chit chat later, I want to go home.” I told them as they nodded their heads.
I went to get my backpack before Eric could grab them and said, “I’ll carry it. And I’ll throw the flowers away, not like you would want them in the first place.”
“Thanks.” I smiled. He seems to be changing… but what Nina said…
“No problem.”
We were in the car about ten minutes later. We had to go to Jack’s locker first to get his stuff and then we were on our way. It was a silent drive as I was in the passenger seat with Jack in the back before Eric spoke up. “Why do you smell like Nina sprayed herself all over you?”
“She walked me to the nurse’s office. I didn’t know where to go, and Mrs. Chollenar told her to walk me there.” I told him, my head facing the window as I watched the people, the trees, and the cars whip by.
“Did she..say anything?” Eric asked a little hesitantly. Jack kicked my seat lightly and I looked at him through the mirror and saw him smirking. I smirked back at him.
“She told me to watch my back.” I told him, looking at Jack again. He looked like he wanted to start laughing.
“Oh?” Eric gulped out. He knows that I know he is the biggest player and the biggest douche bag on the face of the planet. Why is he freaking out now?
“Remember how I told you he has changed his feelings toward you?” Jack’s voice entered my mind.
“Yeah.”
“See what I mean now?”
“Oh I see it alright. Nina came up to me and told me that he would just get tired of me and then he would move onto his next conquest.”
“Do you think he will do that?”
“No. I don’t think so. I mean, the way he looks at me now is a whole lot different than before he marked me. Before he looked like he was fighting with his emotions and now he looks like he really wants to be with me. But I don’t know for sure, you know?”
“Yeah, I get what you mean.”
“Answer mate! Answer mate! He looks like he’s about to burst out into a waterfall of nervousness.” My wolf pleaded with me.
“How come you come at inconvenient times? Or at times where you only want to come out and say something? You come when you tell me to hide, you tell me who my mate was, you tell me to go comfort and follow our mate when he was being mean to us.”
“I don’t feel like coming out unless it’s really needed. Call me a lazy wolf, I am.” My wolf laughed in my head.
“Yep. She told me to watch out for you, specifically.” I answered Eric, after toying with him for quite a while.
“Me?” he paused. “Why me?”
“Oh becauseeeee…”
“Because…?”
“Because I know how you can be. I obviously saw it firsthand. And she told me to yell at you for breaking her nose.” I chuckled at the end.
“Listen, Nicole..”
“You don’t have to explain yourself. I get it.” I cut him off. I didn’t want to hear all the excuses that he was planning on telling me.
It went completely dead silent right after that. We all had a comfortable silence as the music was playing softly in the background. By the time we pulled into the driveway of the packhouse, Eric spoke up. “We’re here.”
I opened the door and met Nat who was standing in the doorway with Liam in her arms. “Hi baby Li! How are you today!” I said, grabbing him and pulling him into my arms. He smiled up at me and buried his face in between my neck. He grabbed for my ear and I pulled him tighter to my body. “I missed you you bugface!” I said, kissing his forehead.
“Nikki, are you alright?” Nat asked me, as she motioned for me to walk inside the house. “Why are the three of you guys home so early? I heard you guys pulling in.”
“Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little shaken up, you know? First last night with the first warning, and now this morning with the second warning. It’s just a handful at the moment.”
“Second warning? What happened?”
I told her what happened this morning and she looked like she wanted to murder the guy who has been after me all this time. “It’s okay, Nat. You can relax.”
“I can’t relax when someone’s planning your kidnapping! Did you want to talk about what happened last night?” Nat said, taking a seat down in the family room. I sat with Liam in the bean bag chair and he slept in my arms.
“My parents talked to me.” I told her. She looked shocked but let me continue on. “They looked so real, Nat. I thought that they were really there with me. They told me that I am the Moon Goddess’s daughter and that I have special powers that no one else has and the reason why my stalker is after me, is because I’m some sort of pawn in their plan to be the strongest Alpha/Pack out there.”
After I finished talking, Nat was quiet. She didn’t speak up for a few moments before she her eyes came from a blank expression back to her hazel eyes. “I just mind linked everything you said to Jay. He’s on patrol and looking for people who would know anything about Viktor and the man who’s looking for you.”
“Nat?” I asked. She raised an eyebrow. “My dad mentioned something and didn’t elaborate it on that much. He told me that he said that he had said too much.”
“What’d he say?”
“Do you know anything about a ‘Black Luna’?”
Nat gasped so loud, she clasped her hands over her mouth. “No… it can’t be…”
“Can’t be what?”
“MOOOOOOOMM!!!! ERIC BROKE MY PHONE!” A voice boomed through the house as Amanda walked into the room where Nat and I was seated. “Oh hi, Nikki. I didn’t know you were here. Sorry to interrupt you guys, but mom, seriously, Eric broke my phone.”
“Amanda, you need to be quiet, Liam is sleeping.” Nat shushed her daughter.
Amanda looked to me and looked to Liam sleeping on my chest as her eyebrows furrowed into a straight line. “Eric and you…?” she started before I started to shake my head.
“Liam is my brother.” I told her. And her eyebrows went back to their original spot.
“Oh! I thought that you got pregnant from my baby bro so fast you popped one out so fast. And then I was like, hmm, first time I saw you, you didn’t look pregnant at all, soo…”
“Oh shut up, Manny. You’re so dramatic.” Eric said, coming into the room.
“I’ll stop being so dramatic when you start acting like a real man, Erica.” Amanda cooed at her brother.
“You know I hate that little petty nickname, Manny.”
“And you know I hate that stupid man name you gave me, Erica.”
“I like that name.” I said as I tried to keep my laughter in from these two going at each other’s throats.
“Which one?” They said simultaneously.
“Amanda’s nickname for you, Eric. Erica.” I sported a huge grin on my face as Eric’s face turned into a frown.
“Score! You’re my favorite person now, Nikki!” Amanda said, putting her hand up for a high five, which I enthusiastically returned back.
“Ugh, how long in town are you staying for, Manny.” Eric asked, throwing his hands up to his hair and gripping onto it.
“Just for a week, little bro. Chill out your ball sack. I’m only here to get to know Nikki and to help out with some pack stuff.”
“Pack stuff?” Eric asked.
“Yep.” She said, popping the p. “Mom asked me to go pick out a car and since I can smooth talk my way through anything at the car dealership, I got the best car money could buy for Nikki.”
“For me?” I piped up.
“Mhhm.” Amanda said, chuckling a pair of keys to my side. “Here you go, soon to be sister.”
“Manny!” Eric whined while I turned a bright shade of pink.
“Oh shut your pie hole. You whine too much like a little bitch sometimes.” She then faced me. “The car is in the garage. It’s the only one with a bow on it. Happy early Christmas!”
I got up from the couch and went towards the garage while everyone was following me. I opened the garage door and scanned the room for a car with a bow on it. When I did, I came across the most beautiful car that I’ve ever seen. It was a white Range Rover with a stunning interior.
“Oh, I can’t accept this. This must’ve cost you a fortune. I can’t pay back this much.” I said, holding the keys out for Amanda to take back.
“Don’t be silly, Nikki. Take it. It’s yours.” Amanda said, pushing my hand back towards me.
“Thank you guys, so much.”
-----
Two weeks later…
“Oh my god, Jack. Just go on and talk to her now. It’s been almost three weeks since you found out she was your mate, and you haven’t even got the balls to talk to her yet!” I scolded Jack. We were currently sitting in his car, watching his mate, a girl we don’t know what her name is yet, walking towards the school entrance.
“I can’t. Every time I get too close, I always chicken out and I walk away.” Jack said quickly. I could hear that his heart beat is beating quickly.
“Don’t be a pussy about it, go on and just ask her what her name is!”
“Oh shush! You’re one to talk! You and Eric started off on the wrong foot too and now you’re just becoming friends and you guys have your first day on Friday!”
It was true. Eric and I did start off on the wrong foot, and now I think we’re closer than ever. Ever since that day of the second warning, things have gone right for the both of us. We started to hang out more, we started to talk more, and even had little fights about stupid things here and then, we would make up and it’d be all good again.
We have our first day this Friday and I have to say, I am a little excited for it. I haven’t accepted his apology yet, but I was thinking that if all goes well on Friday, I will accept him as my mate.
About a week ago, Eric told me the words that I’ve been waiting to hear.
“Nikki?” he said my name so softly that if I was a human, I probably wouldn’t have heard him at all.
“Yeah?” I said, looking up from my homework to meet with his beautiful hazel eyes that I’ve grown to love so much. Love? Can I even being to express what that word means?
“I just wanted to let you know that I’m a complete idiot on the face of the planet. I am so stupid for rejecting you. And for saying words that I really didn’t mean.”
“It’s okay.” I told him.
“No it’s not. Because now I feel like my wolf hates me for being so rude and cruel towards you, when you haven’t even done anything bad towards me. I’m such a horrible person to be mated with, but if you would let me, I would be there for you, no matter what. I’m a changed person, I promise.”
I stared at him as he looked at me with so much passion, so much emotion I had to blink and look down before I got lost in them.
“I, Eric Kingsman, accept you, Nicole Pratt, as my mate.” Once those words left his mouth, my body started to tingle. My wolf way already telling me to go on and say the words that makes me accept him, but I couldn’t find the words to do it right then and there.
“Thank you, Eric. I will say those words too, just not yet.”
And of course, my wolf is proud to hear that. She keeps talking to me more and more every day, reminding me how closer we are to Friday and how much closer that he will kiss us. I roll my eyes every time she shoots images to my mind and the hearts that she puts around our faces.
“Are you even listening to me right now, Nik?!”Jack asked me, throwing his hands up in the air.
“Oh, sorry, Jack Jack. Did you say something?”
“YES! As I was saying before you rudely forgot about my well-being over here was that I’m going to go talk to her now! And I have to go now before I chicken out again! She’s alone sitting by the outside of the school doors. Now’s my chance!”
“YEAH! YOU GO JACK JACK!” I cheered him on, as he unhooked his seatbelt and went out of the door.
“Your guys friendship is one weird thing you know that right?” Eric asked from the backseat. I totally forgot that he was there. Oops, my bad.
“We know.” I said with a smile on my face.
Eric and I watched Jack walk up to his mate. She looked confused at first before she had a smile on her face. “Hi, I noticed that you’re sitting alone here and I was wondering if I could keep you company…” Was the last thing I heard before I shut off my hearing to give them privacy. Jack would tell me later anyway.
-----
Friday..
“Nat?” I called out in the kitchen, spotting Nat baking something that smelled delicious.
“Yeah?” she asked in a concentrated mode. She was icing the cupcakes as I came and rounded the corner to see what she was doing.
“Do you think that you can watch Liam for me tonight? Eric and I have our date tonight, if you forgot.”
“Oh, did I forget to tell you?”
“Hmm?”
“Amanda said that she wanted to watch Liam tonight. She wants to spend time with her favorite little baby in the world. Ha, her words not mine. Not that I don’t agree or anything..” Nat trailed as I laughed.
“Thanks. When she coming?” I looked at the clock and it was already 3 o’clock.
“She should be coming any minute now. I told her your date was at 5 so she would come now. You know how she always like to be fashionably late to events.”
“I’M HERE! SORRY I’M SO LATE, I GOT CAUGHT UP IN SOMETHING!” Amanda walked in with bags and bags and bags of toys.
“Oh really? In what? Shopping?” I asked, with my eyebrow raised.
“Of course, dahling.” She said in a British accent. “Had to get my favorite little baby in the world things to play with! Can’t leave the poor guy hanging.“
“You have like fifty bags in your hands.” I told her, looking at the toys that were waiting to be opened.
“And I also got you a new stroller. The one you have now is ready to deteriorate.”
“How many times do I have to tell you to stop buying me things! I’m already in debt with the car!” I told her.
“And how many times do I have to tell you not to worry about it! It’s not that I have to do it, it’s because I wanttttt to do it! Get that in your head of yours, Nik!” Amanda said, coming over and giving me a knucklehead.
I pursed my lips. “I swear, you and Jack are the same person. I would believe that you two were siblings instead of you and Eric.”
Amanda gasped out loud and looked at me with bug eyes. “Me?! Related to Jack!? That doesn’t even happen! No! I will not let that happen!”
“Exactly what I mean. Ya’ll are both drama queens.” I said, laughing as I walked out of the kitchen to get ready for my date.
-----
“You look absolutely stunning, Nikki.” Eric told me, as I met him at the door.
“Oh piss off, I’m just wearing a nice pair of jeans with a nice shirt a blazer and nice pair of boots. I don’t look stunning.” I told him, as I closed the door behind me.
His arms immediately laced around my waist as he buried his head in my neck. “You smell good. You smell like strawberries. I like it.”
“You don’t look too shabby yourself.” I told him. He kissed the base of my neck as he leaned away to open the door for me. “Where are we going for dinner?”
“Olive Garden.”
“Oh sweet baby Jesus, I love Olive Garden.” I told him, my eyes bulging out of my sockets.
“And that’s why I’m taking you there.” He smiled with a huge grin sporting on his face.
-----
“Eric?” I asked after the waiter took our plates away. We were waiting on dessert to arrive. We had an amazing dinner where the food was amazing and since Eric didn’t finish his food, I gladly did. No shame, no shame on my part at all.
“Yeah?“ he asked, intertwining our hands together.
“I think I’m ready to accept your apology.” I told him. His face lit up like the sun just came out of a rainstorm.
“Meaning?”
“Meaning… that I, Nicole Pratt, accept you, Eric Kingsman, as my mate.” I told him. He quickly left his seat at he went over to mine and he kissed me with such fury.
His arms laced around my back and pulled me closer to him, if that was even possible. The burning sensation in my lips right now was all that I could focus on. And his breath that was fanning down my face. My wolf was in ecstasy right now. I could feel her. I could feel that she was already in love with Eric’s wolf, it was mind-boggling.
“Here’s you dessert, you two love-birds.” Our waiter told us as he arrived and placed our dessert on the table.
Eric and I separated quickly as a blush started to form on my cheeks from embarrassment. Once Eric made it back to his seat, I told the waiter, “Thank you.”
“No problem.” He responded. He pulled out two forks and handed one to me as well to Eric. “Dig in! Hope you enjoy.” He then walked away, leaving the dessert still under the cover.
I went to take off the cover before the stench hit my nose. Blood. I looked to Eric and he had the same expression on his face too. I quickly took the lid off the plate and I was face to face with a two hearts. Both were wolf hearts, I could tell, by the size of them.
Between the hearts was another letter by a familiar handwriting I knew all too well.
To my love, it read. It seems to me that you claim to have found your other half. But I am your other half, remember that. Here is my gift to you. The hearts that were joined as one, but now as two. You know whose they are, you saw it from afar. They are gone now but their bodies still remain. In the cemetery of your last pack, which has been stayed the same. Now this is the third warning, and the first consequence. Maybe you should ask Amanda, where Liam is and up on your defense. Sincerely yours, your Mate.
OKAY SERIOUSLY GUYS I WANNTTTT FEEEEEEBACK PLEEEEEASSEEEE.
that is all i'm asking for :) commenttttt por favores!
don't make me whine like Eric... ;)