by Alicia Banks
Chapter 13
Taylor
“Rose,” Taylor shouted, running after her. He didn’t know why he was going after her. She clearly didn’t care about him.
“Rose!” Taylor shouted, grabbing her hand.
“Leave me alone!” Rose said, turning around. Tears were streaming down her cheeks, and she glared at him angrily.
“You don’t get to do this. You don’t get to reject me, turn me down, and then not even offer an explanation. You don’t get to dance and laugh and pretend like everything is normal, when I am suffering inside. You are my mate. You know how it affects me, even if I don’t want it to!” Taylor said.
“You think I am happy? I am not happy. I have been trying to act cheerful all day because it’s Delma’s birthday, and I didn’t want to ruin it! I have spent all night awake, thinking of how to explain it to you. Explain to you why I reacted that way. Explain what’s wrong!” Rose said, glaring at him.
“Then tell me!” Taylor shouted.
Rose pointed at Penelope and said, “That’s why. Because that’s what you do. That’s what you did. Three years ago. You don’t even remember it!”
Taylor stood there, frozen. He had no idea what Rose meant.
Rose was crying and smiling at him, bitterly.
“Three years ago. The full moon party? I was depressed because my friend Denise had passed away a few months ago. I came to the party and got very drunk. You came up to me, you were completely wasted. Yet, you sat next to me and talked to me. I told you about Denise and you consoled me. I thought you were the nicest guy in the world. You took me home and
I went. You slept with me. I left in the morning to get you breakfast, and when I got back you were gone. I went looking for you, but I couldn’t find you. When I did, you were hanging out with your friends, as always. I went over and greeted you and asked if you wanted to get coffee later. You know what you said? You said, ‘I am sorry, but who are you?’ That’s what you said. That’s all I ever was. Just a random mating,” Rose said, pursing her lips, trying to hold back tears.
“Rose… listen…” Taylor said.
Rose cut him off, pulling her hand away and said, “I was going to tell you and ask you why you did it. I thought you were a good guy, and maybe there was something I didn’t know. I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. Then I come here, and I realise that you are just the same. The same person I thought you were. I am sorry I even let you in.”
She wretched her arm away and ran off.
∞∞∞
It had been two miserable days. Taylor could barely concentrate on anything; Rose was all he could think about. He wanted to talk to her, explain to her, but she had been ignoring him like he was a vampire.
She already had her match, and managed to defeat Brenda in both, the battle and the chess match. She had been the first one to qualify for the semi-finals. Taylor on the other hand, won the battle, but lost the chess match. He managed to qualify only because the judges gave him a higher score for the performance in the battle.
Taylor knew he had to talk to her. He didn’t have much of an explanation, but he still had to do something. Taylor was hanging around the forest, ignoring his friends. He wanted to get drunk and party, but that was what had gotten him into trouble in the first place.
He found Rose sitting alone near the river, playing with a small kitten she had found. Taylor stood there for some time, just watching her. He had always thought he was brave, but now that he stood there, he couldn’t muster the courage to approach her. Also, she had started to become a better fighter and she might just attack Taylor, if she got angry enough.
Taylor was still watching her from the shadows when the kitten slipped from the rock it was playing on and fell in the river.
“Tommy!” Rose shouted, starting to slip off her clothes to jump after it.
Taylor was faster. He whipped off his shirt and jumped straight into the river. The current was strong, and any normal human would have drowned. Thankfully, Taylor was a werewolf. His body was strong enough to fight against the current. He managed to grab the kitten and fought against the current, back towards the shore.
Rose grabbed the kitten instantly, hugging the poor thing to her chest.
Taylor got out, dripping water everywhere. He offered Rose his shirt, which she took and wrapped around the kitten.
Rose didn’t look up and said, “Thank you. For saving him.”
“Rose…” Taylor started to say.
Rose looked up and said, “Why were you standing there?”
“I… well…” Taylor stammered. Rose raised an eyebrow and looked at him. “Well, I wanted to talk,” he finally said.
“About what?” Rose asked, looking back at the kitten.
“About what you said. Three years ago. It’s not much of an explanation. I don’t think there is any other answer than the fact that I am jerk, but I would still like to try,” Taylor said.
Rose was silent, stroking the kitten. Taylor took it as a positive sign and continued. “Please, Rose? Let me explain. I wasn’t just being an asshole who pretended not to know you to get out of the one-night stand. Nor were you that insignificant. So, give me some of your time and let me explain.”
Rose was silent for a while and then she looked up and said, “Alright. I will listen.”
Chapter 14
Rose
Rose stood there, waiting for Taylor to speak. She didn’t know what explanation he was going to offer, but she was willing to give him a chance. She had been thinking about him non-stop the past few days. Maybe it was because he was her mate, and it was blessed with magic by the moon spirit.
“Rose, I know I am an ass. There isn’t much of an explanation. I told you that I grew up surrounded by my own friends. I didn’t have my parents or any elder to guide me. I never had a responsibility or any other purpose than to drink and party. Three years ago, things got out of hand. I started drinking a lot, became an alcoholic. I slept around like anything. Then, I started to black out. I would drink and get extremely drunk, which resulted in me blacking out. I would hang out with my friends and forget all about it when I woke up the next day. That’s what happened that night of the party. I swear. I woke up the next morning and I couldn’t remember. I completely blacked out,” Taylor said.
Rose was slowly getting more and more furious. He blacked out? That’s his explanation? Taylor seemed to sense what she was feeling because he started to stammer.
“Rose, listen. I have changed. I know I am wrong. I have always known that it was wrong. I am not proud of what I have done. I am not happy with who I am! But what am I supposed to do? I have nothing else to do. What do I have to live for?” Taylor said, his eyes were watery, and Rose could tell he was about to cry.
Rose felt her heart start to melt and she nodded at him. “Okay. I forgive you.”
Taylor nodded back, sighing. “Thank you. I understand why you wouldn’t want to be with a mate like me. No one wants to marry a man who never really grew up. You want someone responsible, someone you can trust to help you raise a family. I know that’s not me.”
He started to walk off, but Rose stopped him. “Taylor. Listen… you are a good guy…”
Taylor cut her off and said, “Don’t, Rose. You were right about me. I have always been confident and arrogant and cocky, but I have never been proud of myself. I have always boasted about my looks and my strength and my charm, but the truth is that I have never really achieved anything in my life. I thought that what I had was enough, but I just never thought of these things, you know? I never thought about what I have really done in my life. Or if I really have something to be proud of and boast about.”
Rose didn’t reply. She didn’t know what to say. She had never seen Taylor like this, so vulnerable and open.
“You have something to be proud of. You wanted to be a warrior and you have done everything in your power to become one. You had a purpose. A goal. You have done everything to achieve it, regardles
s of how everyone discouraged you. You have done well, Rose,” Taylor said, giving her a soft smile. He then took a deep breath and started to walk away.
Rose reached forward and grabbed his arm, stopping him. “Don’t go. I am not that great either. I know I have been acting all high and mighty, but I have been prejudiced against you for so long. I should have given you a chance to explain or found out about you before I said so many things. You are not a bad guy, Taylor.”
Rose pulled him towards the edge of the bank and made him sit down. She sat next to him and said, “I saw you, struggling with your life, three years ago. I knew about your blackouts and your drunk habits. There were so many times that I saw you hurling in a corner somewhere and I ignored you. That night we slept together, you told me that you didn’t know who you were. You said that you had nothing to live for. That when you thought of the next day, you had nothing to look forward to.”
Taylor was still looking down, quiet. Rose grabbed his hand in hers, making him look up at her in surprise. “You asked me to help you. You were showing all the signs of depression and I ignored it. Even when you said that you didn’t know me, in front of your friends, I had an idea what might have happened. But I was so hurt and offended, that I didn’t want to believe it. I wish that I had talked to you, at least asked you for an explanation. We could have had this discussion three years ago.”
Taylor was silent, staring towards the sky. “I want to change. I really do. Drinking and partying and sleeping is fun, but I want something to live for. I want to achieve something, do something. I want to make a difference. I just don’t know how to,” he whispered.
Rose sighed and said, “I know.”
“Teaching you how to fight gave me purpose. I had something to look forward to the next day. I think that’s why I started to think about myself more deeply. As a teenager, I had the best time of my life, but now, as I get older, there is this empty void. I want to be better,” Taylor said.
Rose squeezed his hand and said, “I don’t know about being your mate, Taylor. I am still confused as hell about it. But I know I want to be your friend. And I am here for you. No matter what.”
“Thank you,” Taylor said, giving her a soft smile.
Chapter 15
Rose
Rose made it to the semi-final of the championships. Defeating Brenda in the match of chess had been easy. Rose had been studying chess strategies since she was little. Beating Brenda in the match of strength however, too every bit of skill Rose had.
Out of the eight people who qualified for the quarter final, four succeeded. Rose, Harry, Jacob, and Taylor were the proud semi-finalists. To say that everyone was extremely surprised at Rose’s success was an understatement. She was easiest the smallest and the weakest of the lot, but she had stood her ground and won.
There was almost a week between the quarter finals and semi-finals. Taylor resumed training Rose once again, and even though most of their time was spent training, they had become closer to each other.
Taylor was slowly starting to get better; he had stopped drinking almost completely. It was not easy for him; his friends drank recklessly and often pressured him to do so. The change in lifestyle was exceedingly difficult for him and he struggled with it, but Rose knew that he had it in him to succeed.
She helped him out as best as she could, and she supported him when he caved. Rose knew until she did something about the root of the problem, things would not get better. Even though Taylor was busy these days, Rose knew that once the competition was over, it would be back to the old ways.
He would have nothing to do, no purpose. He would have nothing to strive for and would fall back in his old lifestyle of partying. Rose had thought long and hard about what to do, and finally she had an idea. She didn’t know if she could go through with it, but she was going to try her best.
Rose had just finished getting ready for the semi-finals when Delma dropped by.
“You ready?” Delma asked, excited.
“Of course, I am ready,” Rose said sarcastically, rolling her eyes.
“Really?” Delma asked, raising an eyebrow.
“No! I am nervous wreck! I barely slept last night,” Rose said.
“Do you know who you are going against?” Delma asked.
“No. They are having us pick out chits from a bowl,” Rose said, wringing her hands nervously.
Delma gave her a tight hug and said, “It’s fine. You are ready for this. You have been training all your life for this. Especially the last few days. You have barely done anything else.”
Rose sighed and said, “Thanks, Delma.”
Delma looked at her, a mischievous smile on her face. “By the way, we couldn’t help but notice that you have been training with Taylor a lot. What’s up with that?” she asked.
“Shush!” Rose said, blushing.
“You never officially rejected him in front of the ritual master. As far as I know, you need to say the official words. So, is there going to be a change in your decision?” Delma asked, winking.
“I don’t know,” Rose said. “Maybe? I mean, I have gotten to know him better, and he isn’t that bad. He is actually a rather good guy.”
“Ooh!” Delma said. “You guys kissed yet?”
“No!” Rose said, lying. She quickly changed the subject and said, “We are going to be late. The matches are about to start.”
∞∞∞
Rose was panting, every fibre of her body was on fire. Her body was about to give up, even though she’d barely been fighting for half an hour. It had just been Rose’s luck that her opponent turned out to be Harry. He stood in front of her, barely a hair out of place. He had the upper hand, and he knew it.
He wasn’t even attacking. He just stood there, goading Rose, and when she attacked, he not only dodged her, but managed to land a blow on her instead. Rose was already bleeding, cuts and bruises covering her body. Harry was a ferocious fighter and cruel with his tactics.
Rose knew that she would lose this match, but Taylor had been shouting encouragements at her all this time, and she couldn’t let him down. She jumped at Harry again, keeping her movements controlled, trying to predict where she would land and how Harry would react.
She could see Harry’s ankle twisting and she knew he was going to dodge. Harry jumped as well, twisting sideways to dodge Rose’s attack. Too late, Rose realised he had twisted in such a way that he would have easy access to her stomach. Harry’s claws ripped through her stomach, tearing it open, sending shooting pains throughout her body.
Rose howled in pain, collapsing on the floor. Harry stood in front of her, daring her to get up. Rose felt like she was going to black out, but she knew she couldn’t afford to. She almost didn’t want to get up, but she did. She did because she couldn’t let Taylor down. She got up, her legs trembling, breathing hard.
Harry smirked at her and said, “You won’t win this. Why do you keep getting up? Give up.”
Rose didn’t reply. She barely had the energy to do so. She knew she had to finish this fight soon. She was losing too much blood. She lunged at Harry, who lunged back. For a second, they went head to head, clawing at each other. Rose had just managed to get an upper hand when Harry managed to land a blow. His claws slashed through her flesh once again, tearing her open.
Rose collapsed. She was in so much pain that this time, she didn’t want to get up. Harry wasn’t even bothering with pinning her down. He wanted to defeat Rose so thoroughly that she wouldn’t be able to get up.
“Rose. Don’t give up. I believe in you.” Rose heard Taylor shouting from the audience. She forced her weak body to stand up.
“Rose, don’t forget your dream. Don’t forget how hard you have worked for this,” Taylor shouted.
Harry smirked at her and this time jumped at her. Rose managed to roll out of the way, but he jumped at her again. Rose lunged, and they both went head to head again. They clawed at each other, Rose barely dodging his attacks.
“Hey, Ha
rry. How do you think it makes you look that you have been fighting a weak little girl for so long without defeating her?” Rose said, in a desperate attempt to anger him, so he lost his guard.
Harry snarled and lashed at her, his claws tearing through her skin. Rose fell back, and Harry slowly walked over. “That’s for punching me in front of everyone.” He growled.
He then kicked her, hard. “That’s for humiliating me in front of everyone.” He growled, kicking her once again.
He was taking another step towards her, but at the last moment, Rose twisted. Her legs slashed out, tripping Harry over. Surprised, he fell down, and Rose used that moment to get back on her feet.
“You can’t even keep a weak little girl down,” Rose said, panting. Harry was getting more and more furious at her words. “What must all your friends think? Even if I lose this, they won’t forget that you had such a hard time with a girl half your size.”
Harry growled, attacking Rose with his claws. He was furious, his ego was under attack. Rose continued jumping out of his way, taunting him every time. Slowly, but surely, her plan started to work. Harry started to get angrier and angrier, and as he did, he stopped using his brain. He attacked her ferociously, but he left himself wide open, allowing Rose to land multiple blows.
Then, she finally got the upper hand. Rose remembered that Harry had a severe old injury on his back-left leg. She managed to find her moment and pounced, sinking her teeth into his leg. He howled, as his old injury reignited.
Rose used this moment to jump at him, clawing through his stomach. Harry kicked her off, and they started the dance again. Rose repeated her strategy of taunting him, and slowly started to wear him down. Taylor had started shouting, joined by his friends. He taunted Harry, who couldn’t take the attacks to his ego. He grew angry and more reckless, and Rose slowly started to get the upper hand.
She managed to bite his injured leg once more, and this time she bit down hard enough that his bones broke. Injured, bleeding, and unable to move, Rose pinned him down. It was an impossible victory, but it was still a victory. She won.