She Doesn't Cry Anymore

Chapter 11

It took about an hour for Gale to patch up my hands, and when he was finished I fell asleep in his warm, muscular arms, among the strong aroma of alcohol and blood.

Later the next day, my hands had fully healed thanks to my wolf-healing. My hands still felt stiff but I could move them, with effort. I had mostly stayed in bed for the day, one of the boys occasionally bringing me some tea, or just checking in.

I hadn't seen Tom since the incident, and a small bundle of worry began to build in the pit of my stomach. What if I had seriously hurt him. To be honest... I probably had. But it was Tom. He would be fine. Keep telling yourself that Niara.

I swung my legs out from the covers, pushing up from the bed. My whole body was stiff, making my walk look more like a penguin, so I sort of waddled to my wardrobe, grabbing some disco leggings and a creamy white, baggy baseball top. I grabbed my biker boots, and left the house. The sun felt like a warm blanket on my skin, instantly making my grotty body liven with energy. I fished the car keys out of my pocket, clicking the unlock button and seeing the friendly flash of the headlights and 'chu-chink' of the black mini opening.

It was only an hours drive to the clearing. I parked just outside the forest, and followed the almost indecipherable path towards the large, grassy glade that Tom's pack would almost always hang out. Sure enough, the chatter of voices and scent of wet dog surrounded the atmosphere around me. Figures emerged out of the distance, groups of teens chatting, even some swimming in the springs that had somehow appeared in the space of when I last visited to now.

Climbing up onto a rock, I scanned the unfamiliar faces for Tom, to no avail. I sighed in frustration, jumping down from the rock and turning to leave. A large, most likely male, hand on my arm stopped me. I froze, tensing. His touch burned my skin, but I wasn't going to show any pain to this stranger. I jerked my arm out of his grip, turning on my heel, readying to attack. My eyes were met with the reddish iris' of Tom's eyes.

"Tom!" I flung my arms around him, feeling his chest quake with laughter. "Where have you been?" I glared, pulling away.

He furrowed his eyebrows, as if contemplating whether to give me a full explanation or just a vague, annoying answer.

Of course, he chose the vague option.

"Out." I began to protest but was cut off, "Wanna go for a swim?" Tom asked, pulling his shirt off and making his way to the springs.

Realizing I wasn't following, he turned, a questioning expression wore on his face.

"Two reasons," I stated. "A) There is no way I am accepting that answer from you, and B) I don't have any swim gear."

He frowned, ran a hand through his hair, before finally coming to a conclusion to what ever he was thinking.

"Undies!" He shouted, throwing his arms up and running to the springs, jumping into a double somersault, and plunging into the clear water.

I sighed as I pulled off my leggings and top, glad I was only wearing a simple black set of bra and pants. I skipped to the springs, feeling most of the pack's gaze burning into my skull. I sat on the edge of the rock, dipping my feet and calves in and moving them around. Suddenly a burning grip pulled my under the surface, my shout cut off into a blubber. I thrashed about in the water, pushing away the intruder. Surfacing again, and gasping for air, I heard Tom's chuckle.

"Don't ever do that again!" I screamed, attempting to force away the smile that was threatening my lips. I brought my hands back, forcing a wave of water to smash into his face. He blinked a couple of times, before grinning and grabbing my waist, flinging me up high, and catching me just above the water. I steadied my breathing, just as he dropped me into the water. I dove into the clear blue, swimming by his feet and grabbing his ankle, yanking hard. His body fell as I surfaced, smiling at my wonderful victory.

I figured he was just trying to distract me from what was painfully obvious. Tom wasn't his usual self. Something had happened that had changed him. It was just a matter if time till I found out.

***

We had stayed in the water till my fingers and toes became wrinkly. I climbed out, laying down in the emerald green grass. It was soft to my skin, the sweltering heat of the sun covering my body, drying my tanned skin within minutes. I sighed, my body hadn't felt so relaxed in days.

Tom lay down next to me, tucking his arms behind his head. I closed my eyes, the image of the pure blue sky imprinted in the backs of my eyelids. 

"You can't hide forever." The words left my mouth a whisper, but was filled with demand and meaning.

He shifted, it was clear I had struck a nerve. Unsurprisingly, he covered it up with his cocky persona. "What makes you think I'm hiding?"

I leaned up, running my hands down my soothed legs. "Please don't play with me." My voice was powerful.

He didn't answer for a few seconds, and I glanced over, expecting to see an either smirking, or reserved Tom. Instead, Tom had seemed to be replaced by a bulk of a man. He resembled vaguely of Tom, expect being even taller - bearing in mind Tom was very tall - and muscles even more pronounced. He also had this dark, almost aurora, around him,  his eyes now black, with a hint of red. He was breathing heavily, and his fangs and talons appeared. This wasn't Tom. This was a monster.

I jumped up, instinctively grabbing my baggy tee. If this was going to end in a fight I needed to cover myself up a little more. Tom's breathing was heavy, his chest rising and falling rapidly. 

His muscles tensed considerably, just as he lunged for me. I dodged to the left, his claws grazing my back lightly, thankfully not cutting my skin. I ducked down, kicking out hard so my booted foot connected with his leg, bringing his body down. His growl rumbled the ground around me. I looked up, just as he grabbed my shoulders and shoved me back. I readied myself to hit people, but realized ,as I flew through the air, that in my shock, everyone had turned and run. A wave of anger washed over me. They had abandoned me in a time if need! Who cares if he's their Alpha? 

I hit the floor hard, needles of pain piercing my back and butt. Opening my eyes, everything was tinted red. I growled jumping onto my feet, before flipping over him and grabbing his shoulders, using my body weight to unbalance him, pushing his back to the ground. As soon as he landed he was up, and had a clear shot to my neck. Which he took. His large hand clamped around my neck, instantly closing off my windpipe. My mind was blurring, causing me to struggle with a solution. Of course, there was always this... My leg flung up with such force I was sure it could break a brick wall. It hit his crotch area, his whimper clearly audible. His grip on me released, and I dropped to the ground, running underneath is legs - an advantage of being shorter - quickly jumping onto his back and gripping his neck with my arm. His claws dug into the skin of my arm, piercing it instantly, causing beads of crimson to splatter down my arm. I screamed, adrenaline and pain rushing through my veins. He finally tore me off, but I poked his neck, and to my relief he dropped down paralyzed.

Pressure points - I knew all of them.