Needless to say the rumours flew thick and fast when I rocked up with the new bad boy. I loved the speed and feeling the wind on the bike so I begged him to pick me up daily. Now that the twins were both soon needing to be taken to school the other parents decided I had enough things to worry about and they were taking me off the roster for taking the peanut gallery to school. The coach caught me between classes to tell me this.
When Adrien returned on Monday with the others they were there when we arrived on Ryker's bike and people were waiting to see what would happen. I raced from the bike, ran full speed at Adrien and jumped in his arms, making sure people had something to talk about I went as far as wrapping my legs around his waist and clung to him like a koala. I grinned at the thought of what the new rumors would be. He caught me and laughed as he spun me around like a little kid. Ryker didn't mind because unlike last week's rumor I wasn't his girlfriend, he was really changing things for me at the school. I proudly walked into the school with both the beautiful guys at my sides and Camille beside Adrien talking a mile a minute.
The twins returned home at the end of the second week and they were hyped. Camille and Bobby were at our place a lot after the twins were introduced to the Alpha. Harry was also introduced because it was clear that they were a package deal, they were trying to convince the Alpha, Adrien or Ben to turn him too but were happy to wait because the extra speed, strength and senses seemed to be transferring to Harry and even me as well, just to a lesser extent than Eddy. It was weird and unusual but not entirely unheard off with siblings. Even dad was changing, he just didn't realise.
The Queen, I preferred to think of her as Ben's mum, was calling me every week to hear about the boys and myself, she was becoming like the mother we'd never really had. I'd met her and her daughter in the city when we went to do our monthly shopping trip, Ben was with us and I found out that Andy was actually Ben's Beta. The quiet and unassuming Andy was a warrior. Anyone male born of Alpha blood grew up with at least one Beta in case they ever had to take over the pack. It explained David and Bobby being Adrien's Betas.
Dad thought that Ryker was my boyfriend and we decided that, as long as dad was happy with that idea, we would leave him thinking just that. He was really enjoying the new influx of people that were now at our place practically every day. Crystal, the luna, had spoken to dad about the helping out and they had decided that the meals would still be made at our house but she brought the cooks and bought the extra ingredients. She actually convinced dad that I would be able to have a bit less responsibility that way and she would be able to help her community in a way she had always wanted. It worked. She also got dad workers, all pack, so strong efficient and hard to wear out with the physical work on the farm. The farms around us were invited to sell their produce through us and it worked well for everyone because the pack now bought from us instead of buying bulk from the city suppliers.
Personally I spend a lot of time with the pack but never went near the pack house and I wasn't supposed to go to the other side of town to shop either. Luke was restricted by his father, the alpha, from coming near me. I was slowly introduced to everyone and anyone that was part of the pack, Adrien saw to that with Camille. They took me to certain shops and businesses or out for dinner or coffee and people would stop by to say hello. It was important for the pack to know me, my brothers went to pack functions now but I couldn't. I didn't think about my supposed mate very much during the days and ignored the awkward changes in conversation that happened most when there was talk of training or warriors. Camille kindly explained that he was a trainer already and the youngest yet fiercest fighter in the pack, it was clear that they were all very proud of him.
Only on the nights before and on the full moon did I think of him more than I absolutely had to, on those nights I dreamt of him. In my dream I would be at a clearing near the base of the mountains with a dark auburn wolf. I knew in my heart and without a doubt that it was him. Some night we would just sit together and I would talk about everything that was happening, content that it was only a dream. Some nights he would be playful and we would chase each other around while I laughed at his crazy antics and some nights.... He would sit at the edge of the tree line and just stare at me.... If I tried to get closer he would growl and appear in a different spot if I came too close, those nights I would ignore him and look at the stars. The first few times that was all we did in my moon induced dreams.
School flew by and my grades didn't drop too drastically due to my new social life. Ryker actually helped me study and kept me focused when Camille stayed over. She did that a lot for the first few weeks and finally got her own space in my closet because she hated going home. I invited her to stay because I knew that indirectly I was the cause of her discomfort. Dad had been worried and had asked Crystal, she told him that the male dominated household was hard on her daughter and our friendship meant a lot. He thought I was having the same issue so she became part of our household, chores and all. Ben spend more time at our place around the full moon when he normally stayed away, it kept the twins in line. When he couldn't stay they went to the pack house with Emily and Shane and the Weres their own age. Thankfully they didn't let it affect their friendship with Dirk, Annie and Rose. The twins were extremely popular already at school. They were also quite notorious with the teachers according to the coach.
Every night the same number would flash on my screen at nine thirty exactly. For my own amusement I had named the number in my contacts 'Çasper', in reference to the little ghost. It was that name or 'Çhucky' but I decided against that because that would be too mean. It would ring same time every night and I would look at the phone until it stopped. It only ever rang out one time, he never re-dialed and only ever rang at that time of night, no fail. I'd answered once, the first time, with a careful 'Hello'.
"Juliette?"
"Who is this?" I'd asked sounding calm while my heart picked up speed and his voice send shivers down my spine.
"I want to see you." He boldly informed me.
"Tell me who you are."
"I am the one that broke the rules for you so that you could have your brother back."
"You mean you are the one that bit an innocent boy, knowing he would heal and quite likely die when the time comes for him to change."
"Is it better to have him in a coma for years, weak, trapped in his mind, with no hope for recovery... or is it better to have him healthy and strong, trained well, alive for years, prepared for a change that could kill him but with the hope that he continues as a healthy pack wolf like so many before him?"
"Tell me who you are." I repeated instead of answering. He was right after all, we now had a living boy and hope.
"I am the strongest warrior this pack has. Only the love for my family keeps me from taking the lead of this pack by force." He replied angrily.
"Why would you even think about doing that?" I asked softly. His father was a good father according to Adrien and Camille, he was a loving husband and a well liked and respected leader.
"The moment I take over the pack nothing will stop me from laying claim to what is rightfully mine."
"And what will that mean?"
"That means I will claim you."
"You don't even know me."
"You are mine... and I do know you. I've seen you and I've been hearing about the human at school for years."
"There are a lot of humans at school."
"There is only one that is friends with our kind."
I hummed in reply and silence stretched before I told him. "You don't know me. I don't know you and you don't even like having me as a mate."
"Who told you?" He asked suddenly angry again.
"Does it change how you feel about humans? How weak we are? How inferior we are to your kind? I don't think it does." I replied trying to remain calm.
"I can change you when I take over."
"Have you considered that I might not want that?" I snapped.
"You will. You will want to because we are mates."
"Because we are mates...that's it? That doesn't mean jack shjit. I still don't even know you..." I replied getting more angry at his attitude.
"Then come and meet me. Find out who I am." He snapped, still clearly angry with me too.
"No."
"Why?" He growled.
"Because I know you don't want who I am. You made that decision without knowing me, based on my humanity.... And I know nothing about you.... I don't know you, what you like or don't like, what you think, anything!... So if we don't ever meet, we will never hurt each other and we'll be able to be who we were meant to be, without being dragged down or broken by a stranger." I hung up then and when he didn't ring back I thought that was it.
I named him in my phone two weeks later. You see every night, when I don't answer, a text comes in straight after. It started with only one word texts, lately it's a whole sentence maybe even two or three. The first one was a just a date. It was a date of birth. The second one said 'Two younger sibling, Adrien and Camille.' By the third I realized what he was doing when the text read Lasagna. Five months, four days today and it's almost nine thirty.... I still don't trust him.
I don't think about him much but he isn't letting me forget that he's there, that I have a mate. He's texting me about himself and I know he's just waiting, like he told me, to be free of the command given by his father and Alpha.
The end
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