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...
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I couldn't remember the last time I had a conversation with Judas that wasn't shrouded in awkwardness. It wasn't his fault, though. Our parents were never close, so we weren't as a result. A lot of my friends around the pack thought I hated Judas, but it was nothing like that. He was more like a background character in my life, if anything; someone I knew of, but never truly knew.
That's why it was awkward getting up the next morning and seeing him in Reed's house. Especially after the whole tackling situation yesterday.
I didn't make myself known immediately. I lingered back and watched the way both Reed and Judas' eyes seemed to light up and how they smiled at one another. A twinge of jealousy formed inside of me.
"You want to be friends with Judas?" I could remember Mom asking, followed by an incredulous scoff as if the desire was utterly ridiculous. It was a small comment, but it stuck with me. As a kid, I'd internalized it, thinking maybe there was something inherently wrong with Judas that my parents knew about but I didn't.
But standing there now, watching the genuine warmth between Reed and Judas, I felt conflicted. That sense of jealousy was irrational, I knew it, but I couldn't help the feeling of being on the outside looking in.
Finally, I decided to make my presence known. I cleared my throat and stepped into the kitchen. "Morning," I said, trying to sound casual.
Both Reed and Judas turned to look at me, and for a moment, whereas Reed's eyes seemed to shine brighter with excitement, Judas' dimmed with uncertainty. "Morning," they replied in unison.
Reed gave me a quick nod. "Coffee?"
"Yeah, thanks," I replied, moving to sit at the kitchen table. Judas was already seated, and for a second, our eyes met.
It was strange seeing how the shy kid from my childhood grew into a strong leader. I'd heard stories of Judas over the years, but it was different seeing him in person. The once lanky teen's body was replaced with lean, but muscular build which I was sure had to be the result of years of training with Uncle Jordan.
He also appeared much more confident than he used to be. When we were younger, Judas always seemed to be afraid of shifting since his wolf was "difficult to control" as Aunt Lydia put it. Judging by his actions yesterday, that wasn't a problem anymore, but there still seemed to be a hint of wildness in his eyes.
"How have you been?" Judas asked, watching me with an expression I couldn't quite pinpoint. "Is Oakland treating you well?"
"Oakwood," I corrected. "And I've been fine. The town treats me well."
"I still don't know why out of all the places you could've gone, you went there. You could've gone to a big city or a town with a larger werewolf population—"
"I didn't want to go somewhere like that," I cut Reed off. "I wanted to go somewhere that was quiet and not so crowded. It also helped that Oakwood was close to you."
