Chapter 5: Restless
I hung out alone in my room for the rest of the day. Due to the heavy medication Everett had given me in the morning, I found myself drifting in and out of a restful and rare sleep until sundown.
Blinking tiredly, I sat up slowly in my comfy bed and stretched out gingerly. I needed to fully wake myself before I surrendered to my heavy eyelids once again. Slipping slowly off the bed, being mindful of my sore torso, I then slipped into the bathroom.
The warm water felt incredible against my stiff muscles as I leaned my forehead against the elegantly tiled shower wall. Breathing in slowly, I let my mind steer away from all of my troublesome thoughts. Sure, I had more than enough to worry about at that moment, but for once I allowed myself a few minutes of blissful ignorance.
Sometime later I shut off the warm water regretfully and then slowly stepped out of the shower. Once wrapped in a fluffy white towel, I took a short look in the mirror and blinked as I realized the dark circles beneath my eyes were no longer so prominent. The sight caused a slight tremor to wrack through me; I frowned, not understanding why the sight gave me chills.
I escaped to the bedroom, banishing the thought from my mind.
Thankfully, the piles of clothes Silvia had left for me earlier in the day caught my eye immediately. Even though I had a few pairs of jeans and t-shirts to my name, Silvia had insisted I’d be given new clothes. I had the odd feeling she was genuinely excited about dressing me up, like a little figurine of entertainment. Raising my eyebrows, I yanked out a pink frilly dress from the bottom of the pile and grimaced.
Ugh, she was definitely enjoying this!
As I left the room and walked down the hall, I tugged on my new outfit nervously. I’d found a pair of plain jeans in Silvia’s dress up pile, but on the other hand, I was also subjected to wearing a figure hugging, silk baby blue blouse. Everything, and I mean everything, in that pile was either girly or incredibly fashionable, which was totally not my typical style.
I quirked my lips into a small smirk as I looked down at the long, banister staircase before me. If I couldn’t at least look like myself, I may as well act it when I could. Looking around me quickly to make sure I wasn’t being watched, I then broke out into a running start for the banister. A wide grin broke across my face as I leaped onto the wooden beam, only rocking my torso slightly, before sliding straight down with reckless speed. I gasped excitedly as my stomach twisted with the familiar sense of thrill. I’ve missed this so much. Nearing the bottom now, I effortlessly threw myself forward and landed softly on the balls of my feet. WICKED! I leaped in the air once and bit my smiling lip; I’ll definitely be doing that again.
“You’re sure perky, Juliet. The Doc must’ve really doped you up, huh?” I spun around hastily to meet Luce’s bright eyes. I really hoped that little display didn’t look suspiciously inhuman.
“Oh hi…Luce.” I prolonged my gesture in order to take a moment to calculate her expression. Is she surprised? Confused? Skeptical? I narrowed my eyes tightly; I couldn’t tell. Either she was good at concealing her emotions, or I was becoming a poor reader.
“What were you, a gymnast in your past life or an acrobat? Hm…I knew you’d been a part of the circus; what teenager wanders around without getting stopped by carnies? Oh wow, this is actually pretty exciting!” Luce bounced up to me and slung one of her freckled arms around my shoulders. “You are so teaching me that move while you’re here, Juliet.” Luce giggled and squeezed my shoulder. Geez, I didn’t even have to make up lies around this girl because she’d done the work for me. I grinned and shrugged; this made my life easier.
“Anytime Luce, it’d be fun.” I laughed softly and patted her arm around me awkwardly. Luce giggled again and ruffled my hair lightly.
“Just don’t tell Hunter for me,” Luce said and smirked wickedly. “Uh, no offence Juliet but you still smell like those gaudy rogues! Love, if I had been at the scene earlier I would’ve slugged them all for harassing you!” An abrupt chortle escaped my lips; she wasn’t picking up a rogue’s scent she was picking up mine.
“I’m sure you would’ve,” I replied smoothly.
* * *
I hate to admit this, but I was sort of beginning to enjoy Luce’s company.
We’d been walking around the pack mansion for about an hour now and I wasn’t even marginally bored. Luce talked about everything under the moon, from how she met Hunter to where she’d grown up. She was an interesting girl and alike me, spunky and bold.
“So, yea…I don’t really know how but I just felt this instant connection with him. You know, we wolves have this ‘mate’ principal, which is similar to the soul mate theory in human traditions. Basically, the elders of our kind propose that there’s one person out there for you, and when you find them, you’ll just know – it’s an indescribable feeling of completeness.”
No matter how much I liked Luce, she started to sound like a prattling idiot when she talked about mates and the way she fell for Hunter. I’d honestly thought she called Hunter her friend when she first mentioned the word but now, knowing it’s meaning, I could only laugh shortly.
One person? One damn person in the entire world was meant just for you? Give me a break. Sure I believed in love and all that nonsense, heck I knew my parents loved each other; but for two people to be destined to be together? I couldn’t completely believe in something so definite.
“Yea and then Hunter just bit me, or claimed me, and we’ve been together ever since.” I’d been so absorbed in my own thoughts that I’d missed half of what she’d said, well… only half.
“Come again?” I stared at her with my jaw hanging open; Hunter bit her? Chomped down? Jaw closed? I halted mid-step.
“Um…yes? Don’t you know? When werewolves find their mate there’s the whole claim first, do the deed later.” Luce winked and wagged her light eyebrows. I stared at her, completely bewildered because I knew exactly what ‘deed’ she was referring to. I made an sickly face.
“What the hell is a claim?” I swallowed hard and imagined someone’s wolfy fangs sinking into me. What is wrong with these damn pack animals?
“Juliet, I thought you knew about this stuff?” I shook my head quickly before she got a chance to finish her sentence. Luce only smiled and waved her hand absently.
“It’s really no big deal, its just a little love bite claiming a female wolf to a male wolf. Don’t look so put off, it doesn’t even hurt - I swear it on the moon.” I didn’t know why she was telling me that - its not like I’d ever let someone bite me.
“Sure, whatever… never mind,” I mumbled quietly and kicked the shiny floor. I really never wanted to think about that kind of stuff again, it made me feel ten-shades of uncomfortable.
“But anyways…enough about this wolf stuff, and my life,” Luce continued and raised a hand to her rosy cheek. “Have you ever, you know, been in love, or thought about a special guy?” Luce batted her eyelashes at me and I could only stare at her in confusion.
I do not think that I have ever felt remotely in the way that Luce does for Hunter. I wouldn’t know how to even detect such emotions. I mean, I also didn’t have a person like Luce or any girl for that matter, to bring up such an open discussion on the opposite sex. But truthfully, I’ve never thought about any guy in that way… or at least, I didn’t think I did.
Something very troubling occurred in that moment; a picture of Everett’s crooked smile popped into my mind as I thought about what Luce had said. I scowled deeply and rubbed my forehead. What the hell? Everett Tucker? I didn’t even know the guy and much to my embarrassment, he treated me like nothing more than an injured puppy. Arg, he called me a ‘young girl’ this morning! I hadn’t let it show, but that comment absolutely mortified me.
“Hello? Earth to Juliet Rose!” Luce practically sang my name as she waved her hand in front of my blank face.
“Huh, sorry Luce, what were you saying?” I asked ruefully; I was becoming such an oblivious wreck.
“Hm, you look green Juliet…are you feeling alright?” Luce peered at my face and chewed her lip anxiously. I’d decided the answer to her question was a definite no. I really had begun to feel sick as I thought of Everett looking down at me while waving a baby rattle and crooning mawkish.
“Uh, Luce I’m really worn out…would you mind if I went up to my quarters to rest?” I asked numbly as I glued my gaze onto the floor. I didn’t want to give away the unhappiness in my gaze.
“Oh! No, not at all! Go ahead, it’s getting late anyways. I’ll see you sometime tomorrow okay, Juliet?” Luce smiled and squeezed my arm gently. “Thanks for hanging out with me, and I hope you feel better in the morning,” she spoke lightly before she turned on her heal and skipped cheerfully down the hall.
* * *
I was sprawled out on my side as I watched the moon shine dimly through my bedroom window. It was almost 3:00 a.m. and once again, I couldn’t fall asleep on my own. A few times I’d contemplated finishing up my bottle of painkillers to lull me into a medicated sleep but, then again, I didn’t want to explain their immediate disappearance to someone like Everett.
Everett; I couldn’t stop thinking about him. This whole hijacking of my thoughts bugged me so much I felt as if my face would soon be casted into a permanent scowl. Its come to the point where I’m now annoyed with myself, which let me tell you, is a challenging task.
As the hours continued on, I had never wished for sleep more desperately in my entire life.
I wanted this endless flow of thoughts to disappear; I wanted darkness to take me away from this distorted reality.
* * *
I took a deep breath filled with relief as the sun began to rise over the horizon; sleepless nights were incredibly tedious. Jumping out of bed, I strode towards the bathroom quickly. I wanted to get this day going as soon as possible. I’d decided that as long as I kept myself busy, I would stop thinking of Everett and learn to ignore my rising feelings.
It was time to build a bridge and get the hell over it.
* * *
I stood in front of the full-length mirror behind the bathroom door and smirked devilishly. There had been a crisp pair of black jeans I’d tried on today and though they fit incredibly well, I thought they needed an extra touch. At first, the pants were far too structured and prim. Thus, I decided to test my strength and the sharpness of my claws as I tugged and ripped open some textured holes in the knees and lower thighs. Once I was happy with my distressed jeans, I threw on a hunter-green turtleneck that warmed my cold bones and reminded me of the lush greenery of the forest. I felt like myself, which said a lot in this foreign land.
Tugging on a pair of short boots, I quickly slipped out of the room thinking today may shape up to be a better day.
* * *
A thought popped in my mind the moment I descended the mansion staircase; I craved to take a good, long run. The wolf in me wanted nothing more than to rip through the forests at full speed. Also, I knew if I didn’t take a run soon, I’d surely go stir crazy. I decided to allusively slip through the hallways of the mansion, attempting and praying to find a deserted exit.
I hadn’t noticed it before, but I haven’t had the chance to go outside since Everett had brought me to his home.
I narrowed my eyes and gazed around curiously; this place was an absolute maze! Sighing dramatically, I was about to consider breaking a window when I suddenly heard a distant door click open. Bonus! I used my super sensitive hearing to locate the sound immediately, before bolting towards the right direction. I smirked as I skittered through a narrow doorway while almost trampling over a maid holding a high pile of linens in her arms. I couldn’t help it; I was trilled! As soon as my chilled body hit the warmth of the morning’s rays, I almost squealed with childish delight.
* * *
I jogged about halfway to the forests edge when I heard the sound of pounding hooves. Hooves? I froze and whipped my head in the direction of the curious sound.
There, in the middle of a white picket fenced arena was Everett riding the most incredibly powerful horse I’d ever seen. He rides? I stared at him in incredulity; the tough, calculating, muscular alpha I’d been with yesterday rode horses? Although it was a shock, there was something incredibly charming about seeing him this way.
He hadn’t noticed my presence quite yet so, I fleetingly turned and ducked into the large stable just before the arena. Feeling clever, I decided to peek at him from behind a wall of stacked hay.
I am such a creep! Despite my thought, I smiled slightly as I watched him effortlessly lead his horse through different obstacles and every so often, lean forward to pick up speed. I’m sure if you looked up prince charming in the dictionary Everett’s picture would be printed right beside it. NOT, that I think he’s prince charming… but he just exhibits many fairy-tale-like qualities.
I huffed out a breath and pinched myself, attempting to get my mind out of the gutter of foreign feelings. This whole ‘inner war’ thing needed to stop before I drove myself insane. Shaking my head quickly, I peered back through the stack of hay and stiffened. Everett was now off his horse and heading straight toward me with the reins of his horse in hand.
Oh shit!
I looked around wildly for another place to hide, but it looked like I was pretty much trapped in my lowly hideaway. Why did I have to be some stupid, senseless, gawking girl? I whimpered and sunk to the floor, struggling to curl myself in the tiniest ball. Maybe if I stayed super still, he wouldn’t even notice me as he passed. Think small Juliet, think small! I demanded myself, as I crunched my body impeccably tighter; this was killing my ribs.
“Juliet?”
Please let a meteorite fall from the sky and hit me.
Let these hay bills burst into blazing flames.
Or at least have some mass-murderer take me far, far away.
I’d take anything over facing Everett’s endless blue-eyed gaze at that moment.