Cronan is angry. Angry that after years of waiting, he's mated to the one wolf he never wanted.
Fen is stuck. Stuck in a state of purgatory that he doesn't know how to escape from.
After learning of his mate's crimes, Cronan never expected to see h...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"You finally did it?"
Callie stared at me with a comically large smile on her face as she sat up on her couch to hear me better. I shook my head at her reaction.
"You act as if I won some huge award. I just talked to Arlo."
"To me, it is a big moment!" She retorted. "It means you both finally put your big boy pants on and stopped avoiding each other."
"Okay, one I never avoided Arlo, and two, you're blowing this out of proportion. Just because we had one conversation doesn't mean we're best friends again," I argued.
Callie huffed. "One, you totally were avoiding him. You literally wouldn't go to certain stores out of fear he was there. Two, I know that everything isn't magically perfect between you two, but it's a step in the right direction and that's worth celebrating."
"Everything is worth celebrating to you."
"Well, life's too short not to celebrate the small victories," she said, crossing her arms. "Besides, I know how much this has been weighing on you. You've been a mess."
There was a small bit of truth in her words. It felt good to talk to Arlo—better than I thought. Even though our conversation was short and a little awkward, it felt nice to just be around him again.
"Maybe you're a little right," I conceded, glancing away.
"Of course I am," Callie said with a smug grin. "So, what's the next step? Are you going to see him again?"
"I don't know," I replied honestly. "We said we'd text, maybe meet up as friends. We'll see how it goes."
"Good," Callie said, nodding approvingly. "Just take it one step at a time. And remember, I'm here for you."
"Thanks, Callie," I said, giving her a small smile. "I appreciate it."
"Anytime," she replied, her smile softening. "Now, tell me what's been going on with you. We haven't really talked since you took you-know-who home after he got drunk."
"I'm not going to die if you say his name, Cal," I said. "And there isn't really much to talk about. I took him home and that was it."
"You haven't spoken to him?"
"No."
I felt partially guilty for lying to her, but I figured it was better for now. If Fen was worried about being found to the point where he'd willingly live in a shitty cabin then it was better if fewer people knew he was staying with me. Also, as much as I appreciated Callie, I knew she was bound to ask questions if I told her and I doubted I'd be able to answer them all.
"You seem more calm when talking about him though," she pointed out. "Maybe that's a sign you're getting over him."
Her optimism made me grin slightly. If only that was the case. I was sure she was mistaking my confusion for tranquility. I didn't know what to think about Fen. On one hand, I found him annoying and on the other, I felt pity for him. It was fucked up, but I did.
