Lunaticus

16

I felt two strong arms wind around me. Not tightly. Not enough to hinder with my breathing that was already too rapid and sparse. But he took the hint when I gently grabbed his wrist, and all too soon I felt his warmth pulling away from me.

"I-" I licked my dry lips. "It was- One day, I was alone in the bakery. Mama and Papa weren't home. I- There was a customer. It was the alpha's son. He was so nice. He smiled at me in greeting, talked politely, and even paid extra. I had no idea. None..."

The tears dripped down my cheeks. "We became friends. He would come by, greet me, and we would talk. I never noticed at the time, but he only came by when my parents weren't home."

Slowly, I turned around. Lyell sat at the edge of the bad, biting his lips. He gently pated the space next to him. I didn't deny his kind invitation.

"After he shifted, he started looking for his mate. I knew how males were after- M-my parents had warned me time and time again. I should have stayed away. But I trusted him. He would always hold my hand and say how he couldn't wait for me to shift because he knew I was his mate."

His eyes were iridescent, two shimmery half crescents in the moon. I swallowed, knowing he must be judging me behind his silent façade.

"He probably already knew I wasn't. But I was too stupid, too naïve-"

"You weren't-"

I raised my hand. His lips pressed into a thin line.

"I didn't know. One day, when it was raining outside, he came inside." Disgust choked me when I realized how clearly I remembered that memory, that feeling. "He was all wet. He stripped his shirt off. I covered my eyes. I tried to laugh it off, tried to hint in that I had to work. But it was raining. And he was my friend. It was impolite and rude for me to send him out in the shuttering rain. Oh goddess," I wiped my nose, shaking my head in disbelief.

"We were baking muffins. There was a fresh batch. The oven was in the other room. He-he asked me to go fetch him one, that it was probably better than the rest. I was so stupid I just went along with-with what he said. I went inside and bent down as I tried to pull the batch-the muffins out and he- he just came from behind and the-the next I knew he was forcing my back down with one hand and with the other-"

At this point I was crying too loudly to continue. And I guess I didn't need to complete the story. At that moment Lyell engulfed me in his arms, pulling me out of the bad dreams, out of rotten reality, the dark memories and the numbing outcomes. He cradled me and wiped my eyes and wiped my snot, and when I got the chance to look at his face his eyes were rimmed red. He kept sniffing, letting me cry out all the pain I couldn't reveal, all the scars I couldn't remove and all the hate I reserved in plenty for myself.

I cried and cried and cried, and the moon watched with her silent pitiful eyes, the sole witness to what had ruined me through and through.