Still Breathing

Feels Like Forever

Kacey's POV




I woke up to find Asher awake beside me, gripping my hand in both of his hands. My senses were heightened. I could hear, see, and smell everything. Something was different.




"She's awake!" Asher exclaimed breathlessly, placing a hand on my cheek as everyone crowded around the bed.




"Wh..what happened? I mumbled, feeling a sharp pain in my shoulder. I looked at it, and it was bandaged. They had changed me into a tank top and yoga shorts, probably so they could get to all the cuts and bruises. I felt a little violated knowing that they had changed me, but I knew it was for good purposes.




"You were attacked," Asher said, cringing. "One of them bit you..." he trailed off, and his eyes began to fill with tears.




"What's wrong? What does that mean?" I questioned, not putting things together because I was still drowsy.




Asher pulled me into his lap carefully. "Kacey...you're a werewolf now. You were bitten." I looked up at him with wide eyes and let what he said sink in, shocked. He wrapped his arms around me and let out a soft cry. It hurt me to see him upset like this. "Baby, I'm so sorry. I should have been there protecting you." He looked at me with guilt. "God, I'm never gonna be able to forgive myself. You don't deserve this."




I kissed Asher's cheek. I honestly felt so much different, so much more connected to him. I knew that what we had was real. Like, really, I had never felt so strongly about someone before. "No. It's okay. Our bond got stronger, I can feel it." I mumbled, wiping his tears. "I'm okay."




"No, this isn't okay. It's my fault. Look at yourself. You almost died! Most people don't live after they're bitten. The chemistry in your body changes so much that sometimes your body can't handle the first few hours. I sat here all night trying to wake you up. You threw up a lot, and you wouldn't stop shaking. We had to stitch you up because you were bleeding so much. Do you remember any of it?"




"No. But right now I feel so much better than I did laying in that alley."




"It's because the chemical change is done. Youre internally a wolf now. You recover a lot faster," Asher explained.




"In about 48 hours, you'll be able to start changing, but for now, your instincts and senses are going to kick in," Josh said, looking at me with sympathy for once.




I nodded, wondering what the future held in store. "Can I have something to eat?" I asked, feeling ravenously hungry as I had thrown up all night.




"What do you want? I'll go downstairs and get it from the breakfast buffet," Jake said helpfully.




"Anything," I replied. "I'm so hungry."




Asher chuckled, wiping the remains of his tears from his face.




"Hey, Josh, Cody, let's go downstairs and get something To eat. They might want a moment," Tate said. "Asher, you want anything?"