Rogue Spirits

Five

That night, after saying goodbyes to her sisters, Adrianna heads to her new room with a heavy heart, dreading what could await her in there.

The alpha-her mate, Christopher, has left after standing up to take a sudden phonecall. He didn't say anything else after that, and it makes her a bit nervous.

Although he's recognized her as his mate, his sometimes aloof attitude can easily fill her head with doubts.

'I don't know much about mates, but I've seen some abandon their mates because they love other people. After all, the only thing special about mates is the mate pull designed by the Moon Goddess, or so the book stated.' She takes a deep breath. 'But I can't forget that we're possible suspects of a crime we clearly did, but-they seemed so adamant on freeing us! What could make them-'

The door in front of her slides open with a loud crack, snapping her out of her trance just in time for her to jump back a step.

Christopher emerges from his office, looking as startled as she is when he looks up.

"What are you doing here?"

Adrianna furrows then when she realizes she's not in front of her new room. She looks around inconspicuously.

"I thought I was heading to the bedroom." She answers honestly.

His eyes scan her, as if trying to find a lie within her words like he can actually do it.

When his eyes dart behind him, indicating the open door, she becomes panicked and splutters out anything she has.

"I swear! I'm not trying to do anything! I just got lost because the house's too big!"

He releases the quietest chuckle that probably isn't meant to be heard as he quickly cover it up with a cough.

"I believe you. Come on."

However, after taking only several insignificant steps away, he pauses and leaves her to stare on his back.

"Hold on." He mutters before turning back into his office.

He returns a moment after, a folder clutched in his hand as he closes the door and locks it, stuffing the key into his pants.

He nods at her in confirmation and they begin walking. She doesn't fail to notice how he languidly matches her pace. A small part of her brain can't help whispering how sweet it is to her heart who's already aware and beating a tad faster.

"Um..." he spares her a glance before focusing in front of him, "can I do something to help you? Or the pack, maybe? It's not that I'm trying to change your minds of punishing us; it's just that I don't feel good about accepting your-"

Knowing what exactly she's thinking about, he cuts in swiftly, "If it discomforts you, then think of it as something I'm obliged to give to you as your mate."

"But I can't keep accepting anything you give me."

A corner of his lips turns up, "Right. You should be wary of me. Whoever I am, there's still a chance I will poison you-just because I can."

Hearing the unmistakable tone that's manifested inside her sister long since, she can't help but want to berate Heloise for disrespecting the alpha so much that he's adopted her ugly personality. And after all he's done for them, too.

"Heloise is distrustful." Is all she can muster to justify her sister's troublesome nature.

Christopher nods, "I can see that, and I'm not blaming her. It's not something wrong to be cautious of strangers; it's a common lesson and good for survival. You can't trust someone immediately."

Adrianna directs her eyes upward, thanking the Moon Goddess for such a patient and understanding mate.

"How did you learn about yourselves as werewolves?" He inquires, a slim curiosity lacing his voice.

"Books. We used to visit libraries in almost every villages and towns we went to. Well, the ones that tolerate rogues." She tells him. "And most of the time, we-" she clears her throat, feeling blood creeping up her neck.

"You...?" He prods on, glancing at her from the corner of his eye.

"Umm... watched some packs from the trees." She mumbles out.

Hearing that only makes him chuckle, "Heloise's idea, I presume?"

"You're not wrong about it."

They stop in front of their bedroom door and Adrianna feels glad their conversation isn't anything near awkward. He opens the door and lets her enter first before closing the door.

Adrianna pauses and purses her lips before whirling to face him. He looks up after a second.

"Do you have any clothes I can borrow?"

"This is why I gave you gifts." He says, before strolling into his closet.

He comes out with a fading gray T-shirt and a pair of navy sweatpants. She can smell his faint scent, but she quickly leans off when he finishes examining the shirt for holes or something and lifts his head up.

"These are the smallest I can find."

"It's okay," she holds onto them before smiling up at him, "they're good."

He nods and she strides into the bathroom, revelling in the dark luxury. The walls are wallpapered gray and black with white scribbles, creating a beautiful abstract painting. The tiles are dark granite and cold under her feet.

On her left is a counter and a sink on top of it, as well as a wall of mirror. On her right are stationed racks and shelves full of necessities like towels and others. At the upper-left corner is a large shower and across it is the toilet.

She breathes out in awe, 'Neat.'

Christopher ruffles his blond hair, his gray eyes hazy with sleep. He finally sets down the papers on the coffee table and stretches, cracking his bones.

On his bed lies his mate who's long muttered "goodnight" and fallen into a quick and deep slumber.

Curious, he stands up and walks over to her side of the bed where she lies facing him. The peaceful look on her face tugs at his heartstrings, causing him to unconsciously reach out a hand to pet her head. His nimble fingers course through her hair, brushing the strands backwards from her forehead, causing her to let out a small purr of satisfaction.

His eyes narrow in content hearing it, and he leans down to place a kiss upon her forehead at the urge inside of him. But he stops at the small motion out on his balcony. He sees it out of the corner of his eye and only for a brief millisecond, but it's definitely real, not just a figment of his imagination nor a result of his lack of sleep.

His eyes squint as he catches a black figure sitting idly on his balcony's banister, swinging both legs back and forth like a child. Focusing on the long hair outlining the seemingly petite body and the uncanny, bright eyes shining in the dark, he gets an idea of who it might be.

He straightens himself up and presses his lips, contemplating.

He decides to sleep on the couch for the rest of the night, fully knowing the figure will be staying there for the whole night. He also deems it better to avoid her wrecking havoc within his pack and adding more reasons to jail her, rather than giving in to his wolf's urge for a night.