Rogue: a novella

2

In my whole life, nothing has made me feel like less than a man then being carried by a wolf bigger than me, in front of my mate. It's like I'm so damsel in distress being rescued by Hercules. 

So far, I'm not sure I'm making the best impression.

Thalia leads the way, glancing back at me every now and then as if to reassure herself that I'm still here. Or maybe that's what I hope the looks mean. Either way, I have to stop myself from smiling and looking away like some middle school boy with a crush. 

Especially considering when I look away, it's usually to look at Mac and then the awkwardness settles back in. 

I had tried to convince them that I could walk on my own as long as we weren't running. But I was outvoted because we had to move quickly to get back to their home. 

"We're almost there," Mac grunted as he adjusted his grip, not even looking down at me as he runs, "the quicker we get back, the better," 

I don't ask where home is - and maybe that's from fear of what's to come. I have no idea what I'm about to walk - or be carried - into. Will I be expected or will they know that I have been cast out of my pack and therefore not allowed to stay. 

The worst thought is what that would mean to Thalia. Just like my parents, I won't ask her to come with me, if they even let me live that is. 

I can't uproot her from whatever life she has built. Just watching her and Mac, I know that she is loved and I won't take that from her. But I will give her the choice to choose me. And that means, I need to tell her about me. Not now, where Mac is carrying me like a child, but when we are alone. 

I don't see anything around us as they stop running. However, it was an entire shift that was palpable in them as if we crossed some sort of barrier.

Their walk become more casual, like we are just out for a stroll in the woods. Slowly, the trees being thinning out and through the trees, I can see the start of a small village. 

It's not a very large village, maybe twenty homes in total from a quick glance, that all sit in a semi circle near the mouth of a river. The houses are not the stucco buildings that I am use to, but log cabins, built to withstand the weather. 

Sun glistens off the water and the birds sing in the trees, a musical reminding me that I'm alive. 

Thalia jogs a head to a cabin, opening the door wide for Mac to carry me through. He sets me gently on a couch made of logs and no more cushion to it than the ground. 

"Do you want me to stay, Lia?" Mac says, shaking his arms out and rolling his neck. 

"We'll be okay, thanks Mac," Thalia responds, her eyes shooting me a wink as she heads to the small sink in the corner. 

I watch Mac as he hesitates by the open door. His eyes jumping from me on the couch and Thalia moving around what I now realize is a small kitchen. 

There is something he wants to say, I can tell, but I don't know why he isn't saying it. The man just spent the last couple of hours with his hands under my knees, carrying me through the woods. 

"I know how mates can be in the beginning," he starts, clearing his throat as he turns to face Thalia more, "If you need, Finn stay with Johanna and I for a few days," 

I watch as Thalia freezes, her back straight and her shoulders tense. The silence drags on and slowly, Thalia turns to face Mac. Her wide eyes flick to mine briefly before turning back to him.

I can't read her expression, not yet. One day, I hope to just look at her and know what she is thinking. What goes on in her mind will be just as clear as the thoughts that move through mine. I long for the those silent conversations - no need for the mind link.