Rejecting Him Back

6. Bonfire Part One

I ate a lot of ice cream last night, a whole bowl of it. And while I don't regret it, considering it was delicious, I do convince myself to go for a run as soon as I wake up. This way I can burn some of the calories I ingested trying to eat my sadness away.
Besides, it gives my wolf another chance to enjoy the forest.

Ten minutes into it, my heart is beating faster, working the oxygen into my body while I savor the sensation of the wind on my fur. Wolves absolutely love running, it gives us the feeling of freedom that our kind so desperately needs in order to keep sane.
We need these precious little moments of running wild, to balance out the highly structured dynamic that a pack embodies. Without the time to simply be a wolf, we would be in constant conflict with each other, struggling with confined instincts. It's imperative to let the animal inside us loose once in a while. When we don't, we risk losing control of the beast.

The trick to being in control is making sure both parts of our souls are happy and content.

As I challenge myself, testing how much I can elevate my pace, another wolf joins in beside me. He is a male of above-average size, with a fur of a deep grey tone that gets darker towards the tail. He has high alpha energy, which makes my wolf a little nervous since we don't know him. But it's not like I am in unprotected territory, so I let him stay on the same path as me. 

After a few minutes of suspicion and no wrong moves, I relax and start enjoying the race. While I am fast for a wolf, whoever this is may be faster, which brings out the competitive side in me. I wonder how fast Aiden is...no, don't think about him. My wolf pushes herself harder, ignoring the fatigue pressing our legs.

The forest is passing through at high speed, straying leaves brushing our bodies as we move to dodge trees and falling branches. My body is a little behind his, nothing significant but enough to bother me. Shit, he's winning.

It's at least half an hour until we finally stop. I feel very winded but also thoroughly satisfied as I lay down in the soft grass, catching my breath.  The male beside me gives me a lopsided wolf grin, sharing in my appreciation for the race. I get up and signal with my head that I'm going back and he bumps me with his nose in acknowledgment, following after me.

As I reach the spot where I left my clothes, I hide behind a massive tree trunk and shift to my human half. My muscles feel a little sore from the run, but the good kind of sore. I'm finishing getting dressed when I hear the steps of a person approaching.

"Hey," a cute guy with dark features waves at me. "You're pretty fast for a female,"

I smirk. This is my running buddy. "Or you're slow for a male."

He barks a laugh at my comeback. "Maybe"

We both know that's not true. But it's nice that he didn't feel the need to refute it. Shows confidence.

"So... what's your name?" He asks me. "I'm assuming you're a first-year since I haven't seen you before."

"Perhaps you simply didn't notice me."

"Ha-no, I would've noticed you." He winks.

I purposely roll my eyes at his flirty attitude. "I'm Violet."

"It's very nice to meet you, Violet." He reaches out a hand. I'm a second away from shaking it when he adds. "I'm Tyler."

I take a step back immediately and he frowns.

"Tyler? As in Legion's future alpha, Tyler?"

There is no way...

"Is that a problem?" His frown stays on his face, and he lets his hand fall.