Rebellion

3

Clementine

Cole was right. Over half the students here are in their pajamas. There's not many since it's Sunday morning, but there are enough to notice.

And they're all staring at us.

Cole glances up when he sees how uncomfortable I am. His frown turns into a snarl and they all look away. Now that the truth of why I left UCLA is out, it won't be long before most everyone at Appalachia knows. Gossip travels like wildfire no matter where you are I guess. I'm going to have to get used it it. I know I came here to escape my past, but it seems my past doesn't agree.

"Do you want to leave?" Cole looks ready to snap someone in half.

"No. I'm hungry, you're hungry and the food here is the best in town. People are going to stare, Cole. There's nothing we can do about that except ignore it. When the newness wears off, things will go back to normal."

"That's not acceptable."

"I know, but what can we really do?"

"I can beat their asses."

"You can't beat down everyone because then you'll have no friends left. Now, explain this law you and your dad were talking about, the one forcing you to lose your pack."

He looks away and I reach out to grab his hand. It's so much bigger than mine, but again, instead of fear, all I feel is comfort. I'm not afraid of him. Strange, considering I was raped by three guys who are all shifters. Has to be the mate bond thingy.

"Hey, no secrets okay? You said it yourself, I grew up outside the pack and I need to understand this."

He sighs. "It's not a secret, I just don't want you to blame yourself for this and I'm afraid talking about it is going to make you do that."

I wait him out.

"In our world, if you take a mate outside of your species, then you and your mate become an outcast, a shifter without a pack. I lose everyone except for my mate. It's the way its been since the beginning of time."

"That's stupid."

"It is," he agrees. "It's what happened when your father married your mother. His family was high up in the pack hierarchy, but as soon as he took a Fae to be his mate, he was shunned."

I'm not sure how to respond to that. Why would anyone want any part of a society that would do that because of who you love? But I suppose the LGBTQ community would understand this better than most. They're constantly under fire because of who they love. It's heartbreaking.

"Is it just the wolves or is it all shifters?"

"I think there's some of this in all shifter societies, but its more prominent among the wolves. Over time, most of the other species have drifted away from shunning their pack mates, but the wolves hold onto that like a vice. Its sad and complete bullshit."

"Why hasn't anyone done anything about it?"

"Because the packs are controlled by the old guard. Shifters live longer than humans and because of that, the old way of thinking is still very much prevalent among our laws."

"But couldn't your dad..."

"No, my dad won't change the law. Too many would try to overthrow him. He's holding onto his power by a sliver. He asked me to take over but I don't want that. I've seen what it did to him over the years, trying to be everything to everyone. That's not me. I just want to live my life and be happy."

"But will you really be happy, Cole? Will you not start to resent me for costing you everything? Will you end up hating me?"

"No, sweetheart. There's not a fiber of my being that will ever hate you." He reaches over and cups my face with one hand, his thumb brushing my lower lip softly. "You're mine and I'm yours. That's all that matters."