4

My mind is running wild with all sorts of unholy ideas, while I’m being dragged like a ragdoll with no will on my own, trying to keep up with Alex’s rapid steps. We step out on the crowded balcony, packed with classmates from school. There’s not a single seating left unoccupied and the hot tub is to the brim filled with laughing people. I try to shake my head to rid my mind of my dirty thoughts and transform them to more innocent ones. For example, did I remember to unplug the phone charger this morning? And do I need to buy new socks yet? I don’t need to buy new panties; I already bought some last month… I wonder if Alex would like the new ones I bought?

Gah! Stop it, Sam! Get your head straight! Alex is only here because he wants to use you to make Jessica jealous, he barely even knows you. I try to reminisce the few encounters we’ve actually had in secondary school, and they aren’t that many. Supernatural beings tend to socialize closest with their respective types and even though all supernaturals in Solhall and Espborg have good relationships, we are no exception to the standard. The only times I could remember us recently interacting directly during these two years, were often just the occasional “thanks” when holding up a door at school or something like that. He’d always present that wry smile and sparkling deep blue eyes and I’d always act all awkward and uncool, like a teenage girl meeting her crush. Which, I might add, is a perfect legitimate way to act considering that’s exactly what I was; a teenage girl meeting her crush.

Alex finally halts, and I realize we´re outside on some cliffs next to Jessica’s family’s boat house in front of the sea. In contrast to the rowdy party, it’s very calm and peaceful out here. Gentle waves ripple against the shore and the air is salty and crisp. Alex, who seems to have read my mind, turns to me and says,

“Finally, some peace and quiet”. We stay quiet for a moment, and he looks at me for a few seconds, studying my face. Why isn’t he saying something, anything? I feel awkward and I can barely keep eye contact with him, I feel scrutinized and even though I am fully clothed, I have an intense feeling of being naked. My face heats up under his gaze and I sense a rising tingling in my body, the source radiating from the sensation in my hand. I avert my eyes from his.

“You know, you can let go of my hand now”. I try to gently wrench my hand out of his, but he doesn’t let me go. He places his free hand under my chin and lifts up my face, so that I have to look into his eyes. I become acutely aware that we are standing very close, and it feels like the world is coming to a halt. He tilts his head, as to try to investigate something and leans into the side of my face, inhales deeply (is he trying to smell me?), then leans back. I can see his pupils are dilated and he looks very intense. He says,

“Your eyes are very pretty, I’ve always known that. But I have never noticed they´re in fact a dark shade of turquoise. I’ve always believed they were dark blue.”

I suppress a laugh; “Does that like work on anyone?”, I ask playfully. Good, it feels like the air in my lungs returned and the intense air around us is lifted immediately. He lets me go, somewhat embarrassedly, and looks a little hurt.

“Aw come on, I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. Thank you, that was a very nice thing to say about my eyes”, I said playfully. “So, tell me, why’d you drag me out here? To get Jessica jealous and make her come running back for you?”

“No, I actually thought I’d try and save you from her little prank. I overheard her “persuade” Hannah to manipulate the bottle’s spin. If you can call threatening to break Hannah´s arm persuasion. I knew she’d probably set you up to something unpleasant, so here I am!”

“Ah, so you’re my very own knight in shining armour”, I said amused. Alex bows unduly and replies overly gallantry;

“Of course, what type of knight would I be if I left the fair princess to fend for herself when in distress?”

I let out a laugh at his silliness.

“How very noble of you! …But tell me, why would you even care? It’s not the first time she does something like this to anyone.”

“I don’t know, really. I don’t like how she sometimes treat others”.

Sometimes? More like “usually”. Alex notices my dry look at his comment and adds;

“Yes, well… I know you probably thinks she’s a pain in the ass all the time, but in the company of her friends and family, she’s not that bad.”

“Not that bad? Wow, yeah, you’ve convinced me she’s a real sweetheart”, I laugh. “I don’t really understand though. I mean, you are together, right?”

He nods. Damn it. I don’t know why I had hopes he’d say no, I already knew they were an item. And I mean, it’s not like I’m a shoo-in anyway.

“Then why does she accept to kiss other guys in spin the bottle? And you obviously ain’t no saint either”, I said while poking him accusingly in the shoulder, as I remember his lousy pick-up line just a minute ago.

“It’s kind of complicated.”

“Well, by my account, we still have about…”, I look askance at my watch, “…45 minutes before our time is up. We need to kill the time anyway in some way.”

“Can’t we go back to where I compliment your eyes, but this time it actually works instead?”, he teases and arches a suggestive eyebrow.

“As inviting as that sounds,” it really does, I think to myself. “But please. Indulge me. I’m both curious and also very annoying when I want something. I’ll just keep asking. You won’t be able to shut me up unless you tell me the story.”

The flirty look on Alex´s face returns, and before he has an opportunity to say something mischievous, I tilt my head and quickly gives him the most pleading look I can deliver. It’s a look that I know Jonas has never been able to resist, at least. I even convinced him to let me do a cool smoky eye make up on him that I saw on YouTube, thanks to (what I hope is) my cute, innocent face. Plus, he really rocked that look. The bastard didn’t even need false lashes to look totally glamorous. “Pleaaaase?”

He grins at me and finally gives up.

“Who am I to say no to those puppy eyes?”

He takes a seat on the cliff and pats on his side as a que for me to sit next to him. I gingerly take a seat next to him, as I don’t want to ruin my dress I had spent my last money on. I am pleasantly surprised the cliff is still slightly warm from today´s warm weather.

“So, to really explain everything, my and Jessica’s families have been close ever since the old Alpha from North Varger got killed in that rogue attack years back.”

Jessica´s father is the Alpha of Norther Varger pack, and Alex´s father is the Alpha of Great Freke pack. It would be very natural for the packs to be close, especially since the rogue attack Alex mentioned made the entire supernatural community in the twin cities come together to defeat the recurrent rogue attacks at the time. The Sisterhood was at that time often in a deteriorating state and a very fractioned coven due to recurring internal conflicts but has thrived since then, together with the werewolf packs, since the cooperation began.

“Yeah, I’ve heard a bit about it. My godmother Marie was one of the survivors in that attack. She’s not too keen on talking about it, her husband and the coven´s seer was one of the casualties of that evening. Your mother was also killed... It happened around the time of when you were born, right?”, I asked hesitantly. Alex nods and continues;

“Yes. It happened during a twin towns’ council meeting of the Great Freke, Northern Varger and the Sisterhood when I was about 3 months old. My mother Agnes and my fathers’ Beta Thomas were at the council meeting, on behalf of Great Freke. My father was urgently called in the last minute to the southern part of the city border to deal with - what we now know was a diversion to keep our fighters occupied - a rogue attack. From Northern Varger was Alpha Oscar and Luna Camilla and the present-day Alpha Henri present. He was the Beta back then, and also the younger brother of the old Alpha Oscar. And, as you well know, the High Priestess - your Godmother Marie -, her husband John and the seer Linda was there, representing the Sisterhood. All parties suffered irreparable damage, with only Alpha John and High Priestess Marie as the sole survivors. Marie barely made it out alive and Henri suffered the effects on having copious amounts of wolfsbane in his blood for months afterwards.”

“Yes, Marie still has those huge scars on her throat. She calls them her ‘victorious mutt battle scars.’” I add apologetically; “No offense.”

“None taken.” He sits silent with a puzzled look for a moment, pondering something. “You know what’s the strange part is? I’ve been wondering about this for some time now, but the seer must have known, right at the moment when she delivered the prophecy, that she was probably about to die when uttering the words.”

I frown as I’m thinking. “You mean the prophecy was that specific?”

The council meeting is usually held semi-annually, but this specific one was an extraordinary meeting, planned to address the increasing rogue attacks. It was general knowledge that the prophecy told that night was important and held information about the cities´ futures. But outside the werewolf community few knew about it’s exact wording, myself included.

“Yes. Which brings me to mine and Jessica´s relationship status. The entirety of the prophecy goes as follows…” He clears his throat and starts to recite:

Twain from Alpha lineage

One originates from one twin, the other its sister

One born this year’s fall, the other this year’s spring

One born a leader, the other transcendent

True mates unite

Balance is reached

True mates divided

Balance is lost

The enemy now sits at the table

Waiting to strike

“So, she knew there would probably be an altercation after her prophecy…” I said slowly.

“Yeah, which is weird, right? Why the hell would she show up at the council meeting if she knew the ‘enemy now sits at the table?’”, Alex said questioningly.

“Well, I cannot speak for seer Linda, but I do know seers are a very unpredictable and eccentric type of witch. Most of them are very disconnected to the current world and prefer to live in past and future visions. Many of them additionally believe they shouldn’t interfere with the future that they see; it is pointless, that what shall happen, will happen. Also, didn’t you say the meeting was about the rogue attacks? It is possible that the prophecy was spontaneous. It’s more likely to have a vision then the subjects involved are in close proximity of the seer.”

Alex hums and shrugs his shoulders; “Makes sense, I guess. Anyway, you know the rest. After the prophecy was foretold, my father´s Beta didn’t spare a second as he knew his rouse was soon to be up. He was the one behind the rogue attacks and wanted to take over as Alpha over both Great Freke and Northern Varger. His plan was to take out both packs´ Alphas. He killed Alpha Oscar first, in the back like the treacherous snake that he was. He was only able to do so due to the element of surprise. He also managed to kill Luna Camilla and her unborn baby before his reinforcement of dozens of rogues came to his aid. John was able to kill of a lot of the rogues with the help of my mother and Marie. They were the last one standing. My mother was ultimately killed by Beta John as one last betrayal before Henri and Marie finally managed to take him out together.” He stares out over the waters with a blank look.

I think over what he just told me. I don’t really know what to say. I lost my mother too, but mine did at least not pass from such a violent death.

“…I’m so sorry for the loss of your mother. I know it must’ve been hard on your family to go through such a horrible event.”

He gives me a dejected half-smile and sighs.

“Thanks, but it’s okay. I never met her; I have not really lost anything. I just…never had it to begin with. It’s worse for my father, not only was my mother his mate and Luna, but he also believes he failed to protect her as well that night by not being there and by not being able to see through his Beta´s plan.”

“That’s true. I can only imagine what he feels like, especially since it was his Beta that was the traitor. But you still can mourn a relationship that never came to be with your mother. I know I do sometimes, even though it’s not a very productive thing to do.”

He nods and says,

“Yes, I understand you’ve lost your mother as well.” He gives me a tentative look and takes my hand and squeezes it in his large hand.

I wonder how he knows that? We don’t know each other or hang in the same social circles. Well, to be honest, my “circle” basically only consists of Jonas, making it more of a dot than a circle.

“How did you know that? Have you been spying on me?”, I smile suspiciously and raise one eyebrow inquisitively. He laughs and says,

“It’s my job as future Alpha to know the members of my town. I will be the chosen one to protect everyone within city borders. You are one of those people.”

“Ah, yes. I forgot you´re the knight in shining armour.”, I answer with a smile. I suddenly remember: “…But wait! You didn’t explain the part with you and Jessica.”

“Yeah, you’re right”, he said reluctantly, like this is something he’d rather not talk about. “So, as you probably derived already, the first part of the prophecy is about me and Jessica. Both of us come from an Alpha bloodline. Jessica’s birthday is in May, mine is in September. This year, when we both turn 18, we’ll subsequently actively notice our mate bond. If Beta John had managed to win the fight at the council meeting, nothing would’ve stopped him from murdering both me and Jessica, along with the rest of our families to get what he wanted. What the prophecy warned about.”

“Yes, I’ve gathered as much. But, if you’re mates, how come you’re acting like you aren’t? I’m not a werewolf, but I’m somewhat familiar with the concept of mates. Shouldn’t you be more careful with your relationship since you already know who your mate is?”

Alex sighs and fiddles with one of his shoelaces.

“That’s actually a good question. I and Jessica have been together for about 6 months now. Our fathers felt it was best to cultivate the relationship early on and tried to ship us together already when we were barely teens, making sure we spent as much time together as possible. I wasn’t really ready back then and tried my best to avoid any sort of responsibility by hooking up with as many people as I possibly could.” He allows himself a dry smile. “I guess I felt a little trapped by our approaching mate bond. I don’t know why I felt that way. I guess it is because I knew we are mates, and that somehow put pressure on me that I couldn’t handle. Like I had to feel things I don’t feel yet. Don’t get me wrong, I do love Jessica and have done so for quite some time now since we became a couple, but it has sometimes felt like I had limited options to do what I wanted, when I wanted it. I think knowing she’s my mate at such an early age, instead of finding out like our kind normally do, sort of fucked me up a bit.” He pauses for a few seconds, “…I don’t know it that makes sense at all?”, he adds tentatively. He glances over at me to, what I assume, check whether I think he sounds like a nutcase or not. Which I don’t. I get that the pressure from being the next Alpha is enough as it is. And then added the prophecy and basically the outcome of the entire future of our society, which rest upon his relationship with Jessica. That must be quite hard to tackle when you’re not even 18 years old. I tell him;

“It does make sense. I cannot even imagine what I’d do, or what I would feel in a situation like that.”

Alex exhales deeply, like he had been holding his breath in wait for my reply. His shoulders sink down, and he looks more relaxed than just a second ago.

“Thanks. For some reason, it actually feels better to know you don’t think I’m a total jerk.”

“No, not a total jerk. Very close to, but not total.”, I joke, and he lets out a small laugh, saying,

“Ha. Thanks. I guess that’ll do for now… It’s kinda weird I actually told you all of this, you’re the first one I’ve actually shared this with. You are very easy to talk to, it feels like we’ve known each other for ages.” He pauses a second or two. “Anyway, now that I and Jessica are together, both our fathers are very pleased and I’m finally doing my part of what is expected of me. And as we’re both close to our 18-year birthday, I won’t even try to swoon pretty girls like you, and Jessica won’t want to kiss other guys after we feel our mate bond.”

“Too bad. I could get used to being rescued again.”, I joke. My, my, Sam. Since when did I become this bold and flirty, I wonder?

Alex looks at me up and down with twinkling eyes (damn it! I begin to blush again) arches a brow and says, with an increasingly widening grin,

“You know, under that good-girl façade you have there…I bet you would.”

“Oh, stop it you!” I look up at him sideways and give him a demure smile. I guess I shouldn’t start anything I can’t finish. Alex checks his watch and states very factually,

“Well, we still have like 3 minutes left of our hour…Want to use them to as intended?” My stomach flip at his words. Does he mean we should kiss...now? He must just be teasing with me. But why does my body seem to not realize that fact? It feels like my pulse just doubled within milliseconds. Does he notice? Of course, he does. Damn these werewolves, it’s useless to even try to hide my nervousness at his words, since his super hearing will have already registered my thumping heart going haywire. I give his face a quick scan to try to decipher his intensions. I expect him to give me a bantering expression, but finds he has an unexpected serious tone to him. He gives me a coy smile and I am just about to laugh him off when he moves closer to me, so close that we’re now sitting almost cheek to cheek. Is he seriously serious? The relaxed mood has suddenly turned intense, and I hold my breath, waiting for whatever it is he’s planning to do. He reaches out for an escaped strand of hair and tucks it behind my ear, letting the back of his hand continue down to trace the outline of my jaw, resting at my chin. The touch brings a tingling to my face and I can feel goosebumps all the way down to my thighs. He has locked his eyes with mine, and he almost looks inquisitory, like he’s contemplating something. I study his eyes, wondering what he’s thinking about. He puts his thumb on my bottom lip to trace the outline of it, and I know I should pull away from him, but I don’t. The sounds from the commotion at the house has fade away, like someone turned off the volume by a remote control, and the only thing I can hear are my own heartbeats. A thousand butterflies emerge in my stomach when he slowly leans in closer to my face. Instinctively, I lean forward and part my lips slightly. I feel the tips of our noses slightly brush against each other and we’re only a breath away from kissing. A high-pitched yell startles me and I pull out from our kiss, returning instantly to the reality.

“ALEX, my honey-boo! Where are you?! It’s almost midnight.”

Oh, right. Jessica turns 18 at midnight and since she already knows Alex is her mate, she’ll most likely notice the mate bond even though Alex is not 18 yet, given that their mate bond is supposed to be a strong one.

The bewildered look on Alex face betrays he’s temporarily forgotten about the world around us as well as he pulls back from me. He scrambles to his feet while I remain still in my place at the cliff, still a bit stunned by what almost happened. He turns around to head back to the house, but gives me an enigmatic smile over his shoulder,

“Saved by the bell, Princess”, and walks away back to the bustling party, leaving me on the cliffs wondering who he was referring to; me or himself?