“Tore through a lot of good t shirts,” I remembered forlornly. At that time I didn’t want anything to do with being a shifter or the supernatural world. I just wanted to be normal.
And here I was now, being treated by a vampire after being hit by my girlfriend’s car- definitely far from normal.
“Still, there has to be a way I can make it up to you,” Benji insisted, “Should I go see Sophia? See if there’s anything she needs?”
“No!” I said, a little too forcefully, “She’d probably start screaming at the sight of you. I think it’s better if you keep your distance from her for a while.”
“You’re probably right,” he agreed, his head hanging low again. Just then, Ma came back into the room with coffee in her hand. Benji visibly shrunk when he saw her and Milo led him from the room with his hand still on his shoulder.
“Why does Benji look like he might defecate in his pants at the sight of you?” I asked, as she pulled the chair closer to the bed.
“He had a little disciplinary hearing with me.” She waved her hand dismissively. “It was about time someone scared some sense into that boy. He’s been too negligent with his responsibilities.” I laughed as delicately as I could without upsetting my injuries and she eyed me up and down. “Cain said you should be healed by morning. Are you still in a lot pain?”
“Less than I deserve.”
“Don’t say that self-loathing crap in front of me, Noah Sebastian, I won’t stand for it. Sophia is going to be fine. Things might have turned out a lot worse for her if you hadn’t stopped her, did you ever think of that?”
“No.” I winced at the idea of what those “worse” outcomes might have been.
“Well you should. You should also consider using a telephone before reaching the conclusion of throwing yourself in front of a car.”
“She wouldn’t have picked up, Ma. You should have seen her eyes. She looked right through me. She was so terrified.”
“She probably still is! I can only imagine how she’s feeling. This could have gone a lot smoother if you had just told her the truth.”
“I wouldn’t even know how to begin to say it,” I admitted.
“Well luckily for you, I’m here,” she said, placing her coffee down on the side table, “and together we are going to come up with a plan of how to tell her.”
Chapter Sixteen
Sophia
I guess all it took was a near-death experience for my Dad to start acting like my father and not a stranger. Since the morning he drove me home from the private hospital, he had spent almost every hour by my side. He had even gone as far as to take two days off of work, which was unprecedented.
At first I was grateful for all the attention, but it got old pretty quickly. I had a lot of things I needed to think through, and it was difficult to do with him hovering over me.
“Dad,” I complained at the start of the third day of his homecare. He had brought me breakfast in bed, which was nice until I realized it meant he thought I was too weak to go downstairs. “Please, go to work. I’m fine. Dr. Cain told you I just had to take it easy, not be bedridden for the rest of my life. I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”
“I don’t know how much I trust that Dr. Cain.” His mouth twisted in worry. “He was too pale. A doctor should know the importance of getting a healthy amount of sun.”
I laughed. “Regardless of his skin’s pigmentation, he is a trained medical professional. I feel great. Really. I’m sure you have a lot of work to get back to.” He looked down at his cell phone in his hand and I knew what I had said was true.
“You’ll be okay?” He looked up and searched my eyes. I gave him my most convincing smile.
“Absolutely. I’ll call you if anything changes.” He kissed my forehead and left to get ready for work, and finally I was alone with my thoughts.
I took a deep breath and moved the breakfast tray to the side of me so that I could get out of bed. I winced at the soreness of my muscles, but the pain was bearable. Delicately, I changed out of my pajamas into comfy leggings and a loose white V-neck t-shirt.
Sitting at my desk, I opened up my laptop and pulled up a search engine. I paused, finding I wasn’t sure exactly what to look up. What search terms could pull up an answer to something that seemed entirely too impossible to explain? I found I couldn’t even bring myself to type the words I was thinking, because they were too ridiculous to admit to. Plus, I was positive the terms would only bring up websites about fairytales and mythology.
Frustrated, I rubbed my eyes and tried to focus on the chronology of events that took place. One- Through some inexplicable phenomenon, young, charismatic, and humorously immature Benji became so angry that he turned into a wolf. Two- I was in a car accident, thanks to dangerously blind emotional driving. Three- Noah, that same day, was hurt too.
I winced as the thought hit me that perhaps it was Benji who hurt Noah. The last thing I saw over my shoulder before sprinting from the house was Noah running at Benji head-on. Had he hurt himself trying to protect me?
I shut my laptop, needing a definite break from the shiver that occurred every time the image of Benji was brought to mind. Maybe I wasn’t ready to think everything through, after all. Leaving my room, I followed my father down the stairs to wish him a good day at work. I could tell he was still hesitant about going so I did my best to stand up straight and appear healthy and comfortable.
When the door shut behind him, I took a steadying breath and walked over to the kitchen to pour myself a cup of coffee. Perhaps I should have gone for decaffeinated tea on account of my already active nerves, but I had a headache budding that only coffee and ibuprofen could soothe.
I stood by the window as I took my pills and looked out onto the street. It was an unusually bright day, one that would be perfect for some James Allen in the park. Unfortunately, I didn’t think my body was capable of a bike ride, even if it was to just go down the street.
Not having a car was going to be difficult, particularly once I started working at Wilson’s. They had been very understanding of the situation and told me to take all the time I needed before coming in for my first day. I had only been home for three days yet I was already feeling stir-crazy. It might be hard to lift some boxes for a while, but I didn’t think I’d be calling out of work for much longer.
The sound of a car pulling up took me out of my train of thought and I gasped with joy to see Noah’s rusty green truck pulling into the driveway. He wasn’t answering my texts but he was here? I nearly broke my mug as I dropped it in excitement and I ran to the door, ignoring all the painful protests from my body.
I threw open the front door and froze at the sight of him gingerly getting out of his seat. He was clutching his ribs in pain and looked unsteady on his feet. Finally his striking green eyes snapped up to meet mine and I noticed the dark circles below them.
“Noah,” I said breathily, “Look at you.”
“Look at me?” His voice was hoarse. “Look at you!” I glanced down at the sloppy outfit I was wearing as it dawned on me that I also wasn’t wearing any makeup. I suppose I did look pretty bad. As if he could read my thoughts, he rolled his eyes and shook his head. “I meant the stitches, Sophia Rose. How are you feeling? Are you okay? Are you in pain?”
“I’m fine,” I asserted, betrayed by my eyes that were brimming with tears. I couldn’t stay so far from him any longer. I rushed to him, wrapping my arms around him as we buried our heads in each other’s necks. I held on tightly until the muscles in my body were screaming in agony, and even then I only lessened my grip slightly. He made a quiet choking sound and I jumped back, realizing I had probably caused him a lot more pain than I had to myself.
“I’m sorry! Are you okay? I’m sorry- I didn’t realize,” I started to ramble as he reached out and touched the side of my face. He shook his head quickly and pulled me in for a kiss. I kissed him back eagerly, keeping my hands flat on his chest so as to not cause him any more discomfor
t. His hands moved to the side of my waist where they stayed very still. I realized he was handling me as delicately as I was with him.
When we finally pulled back, I saw he was smiling down at me adoringly.
“Thanks,” he murmured. I smiled in return at his ridiculousness. As if he needed to thank me for kissing him!
“No, thank you,” I responded courteously. He laughed once.
“I missed you.”
“I missed you more.”
“Not possible.”
“Yes, possible.”
“Are you just going to keep repeating everything I say?” he accused me in mock frustration. I raised a shoulder.
“Maybe. I did hit my head pretty hard.” I had meant it as a joke but all humor drained from his face and he looked down at me miserably. “Stop,” I demanded as I touched his face, trying to bring back our nice moment. He shook his head and stepped back.
“I just wanted to be there for you.” I took that to mean he unreasonably felt guilty over the fact that he couldn’t visit me while I was in the hospital.
“You’re here now,” I insisted, taking his hand. “Come on, let’s go inside. We can take turns playing Doctor.”
I followed that comment with a wink, which at least elicited half of smile from him as he allowed me to pull him into the house. We moved slowly to the living room and sat down on the couch, both of us sitting very delicately. I brought my legs up underneath me and placed a pillow in my lap as I waited very patiently for him to begin explaining what had been plaguing my mind for days.
“I don’t suppose we could make out for a bit before we get into this?” he asked, looking hopefully at me out of the corner of his eyes. I threw my head back with laughter.
“Nice try, but I won’t allow you to distract me this time.”
The air between us grew serious as the hopeful smile on his face faded and was replaced with a solemn expression. I held my breath, clinging to the pillow as I waited for the explanation that I had a feeling would change my life forever.
It wasn’t until he opened his mouth to speak that I was struck with the thought that if what I had suspected were true, it would change everything.
➹➹➹
Noah
I didn’t know where to begin. I struggled to find the right words that could convince her that I wasn’t crazy or scary all at once. I supposed the first thing to do was what Ma had suggested, which was gauge her opinion on the matter so far.
“What, um,” I began intelligently, “What do you think of Benji?”
“Benji?” Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. “He’s a good kid. A little annoying sometimes, sure, and he definitely has some issues with anger but-“
“No, Sophie,” I interrupted her and shook my head, frustrated at myself for not wording the question better.
“You mean…what happened with him,” she caught up to my meaning. I nodded seriously and she took a deep breath, nervously tugging at the tassel on the pillow. “I don’t know what to say, Noah, the whole thing happened pretty quickly. One second he was Benji and the next he wasn’t.”
“He was still Benji. It was still him,” I insisted.
“Had that…happened before?” Her voice dropped to barely a whisper. I chewed on my lip and decided the best course of action to just come right out and say it.
“Sophie, do you remember the legends my uncle told you at the campfire? The ones about the people who could turn into wolves?” She looked at me with wide eyes, and I took that to mean that she did. “Those stories were true.”
“Benji is a-” her eyes darted back and forth as she searched for the words-“Werewolf?”
“No.” I tried to hide the disgust in my voice. “Werewolves are rabid, disgusting creatures. On full moons, there’s very little of their humanity left. Shifters are real people who just happen to have the ability to take on an animal form at will. They are still themselves in their other form.” I hoped if I played it off casually it would convince her not to freak out. Her skin paled anyway.
“How did he get that way?”
“It runs in the family,” I said gloomily. She chewed on her lip.
“Okay,” she said after a moment.
“’Okay’?” Just like that? “Sophia Rose, I think you are taking this entirely too well.” A ghost of a smile appeared on her lips.
“I kind of saw it in action, so I expected an explanation like that.” She had a point, but even still I could not believe I had just told her I was a shifter and she was taking it all in stride.
“Is that the reason why you’d bail on me sometimes?” she asked, interrupting my thoughts, “Because you had to take care of Benji’s…problem?”
I realized then that she hadn’t gotten my meaning when I said it ran in the family. She thought Benji was the only one of our kind. I sighed and rested my elbows on my knees, a feeling of dread warning me that her understanding reaction was not going to last forever.
“Benji’s not the only shifter,” I said finally. She blew out a burst of air as she ran her hands through her hair with unease.
“Who else?” she asked. Her tone indicated that she wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear the answer. I turned and faced her square on. There was no going back now.
“Me, Sophia Rose, and everyone else you’ve ever met at Wolfblood Ranch. All of us are shifters. We’re a pack.”
She turned away from me and leaned back, hugging the pillow to her chest as she absorbed this knowledge. There was a long moment of silence as I waited for her to work through it. Finally she turned her torso back to me, but her eyes were avoiding mine.
“All along, this was your big secret? You’re a…shifter?” she asked finally. I nodded, unable to speak due to the nervous lump that had formed in my throat. She mirrored my nod and looked down at her fingers. Suddenly, she was on her feet and slowly backing away from me. I jumped up in worry and her hands flew up in defense. “I’m okay! Really. I just, um, I think I need a moment.”
“I know it’s a lot to take in. Take all the time you need,” I said softly. I reached out a hand as I took a step towards her but she took another step back.
“Actually,” she said, smiling weakly, “Do you think you could…go?”
“You want me to leave?” My pulse started racing. This was not going well.
“I know that sounds crazy because you just got here, but I think I just need to be alone right now.” She was still smiling apologetically but it didn’t reach her eyes. I could tell she was hiding her real emotions from me, but I was too scared to call her out on it.
“Okay,” I said, feeling defeated. She followed me as I slowly walked to the door, and it pained me to realize she was keeping her distance. The Arrow struggled to be understanding and give her the space she needed while also craving to touch her to ensure everything would be okay.
I stepped out onto the front step and turned around quickly, fighting to find the right words to say. She didn’t even give me a chance to attempt it.
“I’ll call you,” was all she said before closing the door in my face.
Chapter Seventeen
Sophia
“Earth to Sophia,” a voice said behind me. I turned around to see Mark at the checkout station behind me. He rested his elbows on the conveyor belt and smiled. “It’s only your second day and you’re already bored?”
“No, not at all.” I forced a laugh. “I just get lost in thought sometimes, sorry.”
“I guess it is kind of a slow day.” He looked around the almost empty store thoughtfully. The place was pretty quiet apart from the soft 80s ballad that played from the sound system.
“I don’t mind, actually.” I put my hands in the pockets of my uniform vest and leaned my back against the counter with a shrug. Just then, Akemi came over and hopped up on Mark’s conveyor belt, unwrapping an ice cream bar. Her and Dhruv had gotten into the habit of visiting us on slow days when we were in need of some entertainment.
“Emi, I’m suppose
d to ring that up for you before you eat it,” Mark scolded. She passed him the wrapper with a shrug.
“Ring it up quickly, then.”
“Might as well do mine while you’re at it,” Dhruv said, pulling himself up to sit next to Akemi. He passed Mark an empty fruit bar wrapper and Mark rolled his eyes.
“Security!” He jokingly called. I laughed.
“Do we even have a security guard?”
“Yeah, it’s you,” he joked, “Did you think we hired you to be a regular cashier?”
“You look tough enough,” Dhruv commented around the fruit bar in his mouth. His fingers gestured to the stitches above my brow.
“Are you healing okay?” Akemi straightened her posture with obvious concern.
“I’m fine. Good as new.” Absentmindedly, my fingers moved over the butterfly tape that covered the wound. Truthfully, I didn’t feel new at all. After my talk with Noah it was as if I had been in a collision all over again, barreled over with the unbearable information that my boyfriend occasionally turned into a wolf. How was a girl meant to handle something like that?
“I’m glad you’re okay,” Mark said, pulling me from my thoughts again, “I was worried that without a car you might not be able to start work for a while.”
“The car was roughed up a bit, but it’s being worked on.” My deadline for avoiding Noah was set to whenever the car was ready. I couldn’t very well pick it up without thanking him personally. Because of this, however, instead of counting down the days until my car was back I was practically dreading it. It felt like I had a lot to figure out before then. “In the meantime, I’m doing okay on the bike. Even if I am a little sore.”
“You know,” Mark said as he raised a finger to his lips in thought, “We could always carpool. I don’t think I live that far from you, and I can just ask my mom to give us the same schedule until you get your car back.”
“Really? That’d be great!” I would gladly accept a reprieve from upsetting my bruises.
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