Adronitis : Frustration with how long it takes to get to know someone.
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Booker's POV
I step into the house and to my surprise all of the men and women are gathered around the staircase. To my right my sister stands with Heidi and they stare at me as I walk in. Hunter and Rhys push past me and scan the room.
"Where's Jason?" Rhys asks with a large smile.
My thoughts exactly. Where is he?
"You just missed him." Aria responds and points upstairs.
I look at Rhys who nods his head.
"Third door down the hallway on the right." he tells me.
I can hear Hunter behind me asking everyone what is going on as I rush up the stairs. As I get closer I can smell the same deep caramel type smell I picked up on when I first met him. I knock gently, but there is no answer.
What is up with this boy? He's unlike any guy I'd ever met before. I don't know anyone who just doesn't shift. Anxiety claws at my chest as I consider for possibly the first time ever, being rejected by my mate.
I knock again, praying that he answers, but there's nothing.
"Hey, I just want to talk." I murmur into the crack in the door.
I hear Jason shift behind it, but he doesn't answer.
"Please." I ask the door again, but there is still no response.
I sigh and wander down the steps. Something about the way everyone is acting let's me know that this would not be the mate experience I had expected.
"So..." Hunter murmurs.
I chuckle, suddenly finding my situation to be quite funny. A werewolf that doesn't want to be a werewolf. Who would have thought? A man like this actually exists.
"I thought this would go a lot smoother than this."
My mom laughs and pulls me into a hug. I hug her back and she squeezes me tightly. Then Jason's mom puts a hand on my shoulder.
"He just needs a little time." she smiles reassuringly and gives me a half hug.
But how long? It seems like all my friends just found their mates, marked them immediately and fell madly in love in a day. I thought that once I actually found my mate that everything would just fall into place so easily. However, this was the complete opposite of what I expected.
I've always found that I was attracted to boys and girls, so I was completely open to whoever came my way. All I've ever wanted was someone to protect. Someone to love. Now I'm not sure how to treat someone who wants to act like I don't even exist.
"I understand." I nod returning her smile.
"I'm sure you all are tired from your journey. Rhys can show you to your cabins and if you guys would like to meet here at 5:30 for dinner, we're having steak." Alpha Jamison says, taking the attention off of me.
"That sounds great." my father nods graciously and Rhys leads us out the door to a large cabin across from the pack house.
"This is the guest house." Rhy says gesturing to it. "Nicest cabin all throughout here I assure you."
"If it has a bed, I am all set." my father responds with a chuckle as we step inside.
I scan my surroundings. It's a dark wood log cabin. It is open floors similar to the pack house. There is a kitchen on my right and a living room to my left. Through the living room I see a small alcove with a staircase.
"Do you guys need anything else?" Rhys asks kindly.
"No, we are just fine." my mother says with a smile.
He nods. "Okay! See you guys at dinner!"
He bows slightly to my parents and walks out the door. I flop onto the coach with a long sigh. My dad laughs and pats my shoulder.
"He'll come around. They always do." he chuckles and looks towards my mom.
Aria and I groan as he pulls my mom in for a kiss, but I can't help smiling internally. Ever since I was a child I've known I'm one of the luckiest kids in the world. My parents absolutely love each other. They had been complete opposites when they met. My mother wasn't the daughter of an Alpha or a Beta. She was simply a strong headed, stubborn girl. My father, the goofy son of the Alpha, fell absolutely in love with her.
When my mother met him, however, despite knowing he was her mate she didn't want to leave. She had wanted to stay in her pack and feel in charge of her own life. By the end of my father's pack's visit to her own, somehow he convinced her to come with him.
Ever since they've been completely and madly in love.
"You're going to be fine Booker." Aria laughs and sits on the other side of the coach.
She puts her legs across my lap and closes her eyes. I shove her off of me and walk to the stairs. She rolls her eyes and watches me as I turn back around.
"So what happens?" I ask suddenly curious.
My mother raises her eyebrows.
"What do you mean?" she asks with surprise.
"Well I thought if my mate was from another pack then I would just bring them back to our pack, but he's the son of an Alpha. So he would have to be able to be here." I say thoughtfully.
"Booker, you are the next heir to our pack. Rhys or Hunter are the next Alpha here. Jason will have to come with us." my father responds seriously.
I laugh.
"This sucks."
My dad shakes his head. "Go take a walk. Clear your head."
So I walk down the steps and out the door. I watch as a few cubs play hide and seek on the very edge of the woods. I smile as I see a familiar dirty blonde swinging a small red-headed girl into the air. Everything in me urges me to go forward. To try and talk to him. To touch him, even if it is just a tap on the shoulder.
But I force myself to walk in the opposite direction. Once I reach the woods I shift and sprint. My dark fur ruffling from the wind my speed creates. Quickly I come to a large lake and I shift back as I near the water.
"So how was it?" A voice asks behind me.
I turn and lock eyes with my best friend. His brown hair hangs slightly over his eyes and his arms are crossed seriously across his chest.
"I found my mate." I answer sounding drained.
A large smile spreads across his face as he runs to me and gives me a hug.
"About time! You're already nineteen, an old man by now!" he laughs giving me a shove.
I push him back.
"Don't look too excited Gabe. I haven't even marked him yet." I say plopping down on the sand beneath me.
He sits down next to me with eyebrows raised.
"What do you mean you haven't marked him yet?" he questions.
"I think he's gonna reject me." I shrug, attempting to sound indifferent.
"Oh please. Booker, everyone wants you." he says pulling a blunt from his pocket and lighting it. "Boys. Girls. And everyone in between. They all love you."
"Not this one." I respond, taking the blunt from his hand and taking a drag.
He grabs it quickly and puts it back between his lips. A slight sense of calm courses through my veins as I lay on my back in the sand.
"What'd he say?" Gabe asks curiously.
I stare up at the blue, cloudy sky as I answer.
"Nothing really. That's the thing. He's avoiding me at all costs."
"What's his issue? Doesn't think he likes boys or something?" Gabe chuckles and lays back on the sand next to me.
"No. I don't think it's that. His brothers said something about him not wanting to be a werewolf." I sit up suddenly. "Dude. He doesn't even fucking shift."
Gabe's eyes widen as he sits up as well.
"What do you mean he doesn't shift?" he questions.
"Like he won't. He refuses to." I state.
"Whoa. You got a weird one, mate." he breathes out and lays back down.
"Don't get me wrong. He's fucking hot, but what the hell am I gonna do with a mate who doesn't want a mate?" I ask in exasperation.
Gabe takes another hit and stares across the lake thoughtfully. The water calmly streams to our left and every so often a small breeze runs through, causing me to shiver. It's May, but today is one of the colder days
"You wait." he shrugs.
I groan with frustration.
I don't want to wait for Jason. I want him now and I mean right now. He is gorgeous. Bright blue eyes, dirty blonde hair and a perfectly cut jawline. His physique is slightly smaller than mine, but I can tell he is fit.
Every part of me wanted to get to know the man behind the body.
Why does this have to be so hard?