At some point, Mark's hand slipped from her arm to her hand, making Yesol feel a new kind of warmth that started from the tingle in her fingertips and made it's way down to her toes. He didn't look back at her as it guided her with him, and all she can do was stare at his back, admiring the way his shoulders stretched and his hair fell along the back of his neck.
She knew it may be sinful for her to think about much of a man he looked like when he was her student, but she just couldn't help herself.
He wasn't just her student.
That in itself was heart wrenching for her.
It seemed like they walked a pretty far distance before the trees finally began to clear, slowly opening up into a clearing. "I didn't even know the forest went this far out." She joked, glancing anxiously around all of the trees.
Any sane person would've been nervous to have someone she just met lead her into the woods, but she figured she was already past insanity. And she had never trusted anyone more in her life.
At the other end of the clearing sat a grayish-blue house, maybe three stories. It was simple, she noted, with no outdoor decor and plain white curtains dressing the windows. A porch wrapped around the entire width of the house. Although it wasn't extravagant, it was still very pleasing to the eyes.
"Where exactly are we?" She finally couldn't keep her questions back, and they all began to pour out of her, her curiosity taking control of her actions. "Why is there a house like this in the woods?"
Mark continued to slowly lead her toward the house, letting go of her hand once they cleared the tree line and the worry of her getting lost was gone. "It's my house."
"Why do you live in the woods?" She frowned when his touch disappeared, but ignored the cold that set over the surface of her skin. "Do you live alone?"
"No."
"What exact-"
The words caught in her throat, her unfinished questioning coming out as a yelp when he suddenly stopped and turned to her, too fast for her to react and causing her to bump into his chest. She blushed and she stepped away quickly, her gaze moving to her feet.
"Hold off on the questions, please? I'm going to explain some things, but I can't do it all at once. It'll be easier for both of us if you don't."
Yesol looked up at him and gave him a firm nod, grinning a little guiltily. "Sorry."
Mark chuckled at her response, finding it very cute and endearing. He didn't say anything else as he turned around and continue toward the house, hearing her steps faintly behind him, trying her best to keep up.
When they reach the house, nerves started to flutter in her stomach at the prospect of learning at least a fraction of the truth. She knew he was nervous too, with the way he took a deep breath before opening the front door, holding it for her to pass through first before following suit.
"No one overwhelm her, she doesn't know anything yet."
She furrowed her brows when he spoke, frowning as she looked around the empty room. No one was anywhere to be seen, not even a sound to be heard. She bit her lip as she took in her surroundings. The inside of the house was just as plain as the outside, save for a bit of clutter on the table in the living room, to the right of the foyer they stood in. To the left was a door she could just peek inside enough of to see a kitchen, and beyond on that, a hallway to which the whereabouts were unknown. And before her sat a large staircase, the old age of it clear from the faded stain on the wooden steps.
Her eyes followed the length of each step until she reached the top, her breath catching in her throat when she met the eyes of perhaps one of the most handsome men she had ever seen. His expression was serious, he even looked intimidating, despite his beautiful features. His hair was slicked back lazily behind his ears, silver with just a hint of lavender when the light hit it at a certain angle.
To say she was in awe would be a massive understatement.
Mark coughed next to her, gaining her attention and she blushed, snapping her head away from the beautiful man. She could hear the snickers from the boy beside at her embarrassment, and she wanted so badly to glare at him if it weren't for her feeling too humiliated.
Another thing she found herself to hate in that moment - It seemed like she was the child and Mark the elder. It was a little infuriating, to say the least.
"They'll stay out until I tell them. It's okay."
Yesol returned her eyes to the silver-haired man to find him walking down the stairs, his surprisingly deep voice a startling contrast to his soft features. When he reached them, he gave her warm smile and slight bow of the head, to which she returned hesitantly, unable to look away once again.
The blond next to her cleared his throat, earning a chuckle from the mystery man. "This is Taeyong. And Taeyong, this is..."
His voice trailed off as he gave Yesol an odd expression, one that she was able to read quite easily. He wasn't sure what to call her, given her status over him. So she took it upon herself to make her own introduction.
"Yesol."
Taeyong smiled at her once more before turning to Mark. "What exactly does she know so far?"
Mark was about to tell him that she didn't know anything as of yet, but Yesol cut him off, stepping in and catching him a little off guard.
"I know that fate somehow has something to do with this."
Her words made Mark's heart warm quite a bit, a proud and pleased feeling in his chest. It was cheesy, but he liked it very much.
Even Taeyong was pleasantly surprised by her answer. "Yes, fate has a very big role in all of this."
"What do you mean by that, though?" She found herself asking.
"I can explain a lot of things to you, Yesol, but I feel Mark should do most of that. You are his mate after all."
"Mate?" The word made something settle in the bottom of her stomach, gears already turning and clicking into place in her head. "I've heard of that before..."
"You have?" Mark's eyebrows furrowed as he moved to stand beside Taeyong to face her better.
She nodded her eyes meeting his dark ones as she remembered. "My Grandmother used to tell me stories when I was younger. She told me everyone has a mate, whether they know it or not, even if they never meet them."
Taeyong nodded, following along with her words closely. "Right, and did she explain to you what a mate is?"
Yesol paused, heart rate feeling as though it doubled when she held Mark's anxious gaze with her own. She knew exactly what it meant, and it scared her immensely to admit it. But, she knew deep down it wasn't something she could deny, either.
"Soulmates."
I'm soulmates with a student who's at least three years younger than me, if not four and I've lost my mind. She thinks to herself, too far gone at this point.
She wanted to take a step back already.
"I'm your mate."
It wasn't a question, but Mark nodded anyway, taking a step closer to her and grabbing her hand in his, those warm tingles crawling over the surface of her skin again. "And I'm yours."
As much as his words made her feel things she wondered if they were humanly possible, she just couldn't stop the nagging that had played in her mind from the moment everything started.
"How old are you?"
Mark look taken aback by her question, the fear of it weighing down on him since day one. He knew it would become a problem, it was foolish to think otherwise.
"I turned eighteen last August."
Three years, then. Almost exactly.
Yesol bit her lip, nodding, glancing away from Mark for a moment to think.
"I really hope him being younger doesn't make you reject him. Rejection for us basically means death, so before you-"
"I'm not rejecting anyone." She cut Taeyong's words off, but instead of taking offense to it, both he and Mark visibly relaxed. "Look, it's a lot to take in okay?"
Taeyong nodded, raising his hands in defence. "I know, and you're taking everything so well. But, I think there's one more thing you need to see before we stop explaining things for the time being and allow you time to go home and rest, and to think for yourself."
"I can handle one more thing." She said tentatively, noticing the quick change in Mark's demeanor when Taeyong gave him a look.
"Do you have any idea what we are, yet?"
The answer was yes, but Yesol couldn't bring herself to say it outloud. Taeyong, seeming to have intuition enough to guess that gave her an encouraging smile.
"We'll have to step back outside for a moment. I think it's best to have Mark show you."
"Show me what...?"
Instead of answering her he motioned toward the door, placing a warm hand on her shoulder and guiding her back onto the porch. Mark followed quietly behind them, and she could tell he was growing increasingly anxious with every passing moment.
Her question was once again ignored as Mark stepped down the stairs into the grass. Yesol moved to make her way toward him, but Taeyong stopped her, shaking his head. "It's okay to scream if you feel the need to. But do not, and I mean absolutely do not, make any sudden movements until a few moments after he's finished."
"Finished doing what?" She was starting to get a bit hysterical, worry consuming her. Mark began to undress and her caught in her throat as she turned to look away, flustered. "What exactly are you doing? Why are you stripping?"
The silver haired male chuckled beside, allowing her the freedom to turn away long enough for Mark to dress down to his boxers. "Trust me, it'll be less painful for him if he's wearing as little as possible. Less struggle."
Yesol furrowed her eyebrows as she tentatively looked back at the blond haired boy. She was still incredibly embarrassed to to witness him wearing so little, but she kept her eyes locked with his as he stood there, equally as flushed. The need to comfort him filled her suddenly, and she pushed passed the anxiety to give him an encouraging smile.
"We tend to be a little feral for a few seconds afterward, so please heed my advice and stay close, alright? Otherwise you'll end up even more scared."
Even when the deep ache in her stomach formed, she was done questioning things and just watched carefully. She wanted so badly to look away, but she knew that she couldn't. And Mark's eyes held hers strongly, holding it and giving both of them the courage to continue.
She had a feeling what she was about to see, but there was no preparing for what did take place before her, live and in person.
Mark's dark eyes flashed a deep shade of electric blue before turning a honey gold, his face contorting in what she knew had to be some kind of pain. The first snap of his bone was the hardest for her to bare, and she flinched at the sound of it breaking. It continued, every single of his limbs breaking and reforming.
In reality, it was less than a minute, but if felt like an hour watching him. And when the sound of bones cracking finally stopped, a low growl taking it's place momentarily until silence filled the air around them, the only sound in her ears being the furious pounding of her heart.
Everything clicked into place as she met Mark's eyes again, the golden hue contrasting his normal dark brown. Where the blond boy should have stood, in his place was a wolf, twice the size of a normal hound, his sandy brunette fur shifting slightly from the breeze.
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I'm about to update all the way up to chapter nine tonight! So look forward to that~