A/N: Here's today's chapter. The Countdown has finally begun. I hope you enjoy!
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PHANA'S POV
The last five weeks have passed in a blur of classrooms, study groups, and exams. The end of the semester is fast approaching and all of us are scrambling to meet the demands of our increased workloads.
Yo, Ming, Kit, Forth, Beam, and I are all in the same boat. Too much school work and not enough time with our mates. Even our weekends lately have been consumed with studying.
At least all this extra school work has kept my mind off the major event that is now looming before me – Yo's Birthday. It's finally here. Well it's in three days actually. We'll be leaving tomorrow to head back to pack lands to celebrate. On Saturday, Yo's dad is throwing a big party for him and he's invited all the aligned packs in the area to attend. The party is a day early, but we explained it away to Yo as a simple coordination issue and he was fine with it.
Alpha Panitchayasawad will use the party as cover to give the other packs last minute reminders about what to expect and to complete his containment plans for our mating. We've prearranged everything as well as possible and now we can only watch to see how the events all unfold.
It's silly, but I'm nervous. I have no reason to be, but I am. I know how Yo feels about me, he shares his emotions with me all the time, but I'm still nervous. What if he's mad at me for keeping this from him. What if he thinks I'm fine as a boyfriend, but not good enough to be his mate? ARGH! Why am I thinking about this?
The closer his birthday comes the more insecure I get.
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MING'S POV
"P'Pha, please stop fidgeting. Yo is going to know something is strange if you don't calm down."
"N'Ming, you don't understand! You were able to claim your mate when you met him! You didn't have to wait four months!"
My patience is wearing thin and he's starting to get on my nerves. I've asked him five times to calm down. I'm not even sure why he's in my dorm room. I'm trying to be understanding, but the closer we've gotten to Yo's birthday the more Pha is starting to stress and panic.
"Look, I understand your stressing out, but just think about it clearly. You will finally claim your mate in just two short days. Relax, it's smooth sailing from here." I say slapping him on the back. Pha is finally listening to me. He's trying to pull it together. So I continue trying to reassure him, "I'm mean what's the worst thing that could go wrong? It's not like Yo is going to reject you."
Oops, from the look of horror on Pha's face I probably shouldn't have mentioned being rejected. For my comment, I receive a hard slap to the back of my head from Kit, which I probably deserve right then.
"Ai'Pha, don't listen to this jerk. There is no way Yo is going to reject you. We all know he loves you. I mean it's not like we can miss it, he leaks it all over us like sweet, sticky honey every time he looks at you. So, stop already. Ok?"
While Kit and Pha continue talking, I text Forth to confirm him and Beam are picking up Yo from his faculty. They volunteered, so we could have time to take care of any last-minute items that might come up before we leave. Forth confirmed they had him with them and were on their way back to the dorms now.
Glancing around the room, I do a last check to make sure I've packed everything Kit and I would need over the next week. I didn't want to forget anything that might make our lives easier during this ordeal.
Yo thinks we're coming back Sunday evening, but of course that won't be possible. Alpha Panitchayasawad has worked with all our fathers and the school to ensure we're excused from classes until Friday. Best case scenario is we'd be back in lessons on Thursday, but honestly that wasn't likely to happen. Currently we're planning for the six of us to head back to school together on Thursday, but we'd play it by ear.
"P'Pha have you packed everything you need for you and Yo for the trip?"
Pha looks calmer now after talking to Kit, "Yes, I think so. The extra items we'll need I already packed and brought here to mix with everyone else's bags so Yo won't notice. I'll let him pack his last few things like normal when he gets here."
"Alright, well Beam and Forth are on their way back with him, so let's start loading the bags in the car."
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WAYO'S POV
We're heading home tonight and I'm very happy. My birthday is this weekend and my dad is throwing a big party for our friends and allies to attend and celebrate with us. I've been looking forward to it since we started planning about a month ago.
Right now, I'm doing a last-minute walk through my room just to make sure I'm not forgetting anything important I should've packed, then me and Pha will head down to the carpark where Ming, Kit, Beam and Forth are waiting for us.
We're taking two vehicles because Forth is planning on taking Beam home to meet his family. He hadn't gotten a chance to do that yet, since school has been so busy. They'll travel with us until they need to turn off towards Forth's pack lands, then they'll come over tomorrow for the party and stay with us till Sunday.
Once I'm done and sure haven't forgotten anything, Pha carries my bag downstairs and puts it in the car and we all load up and head out.
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About halfway through the drive we pull over at a little restaurant to get dinner. Once we're seated and have ordered we start talking about the party.
"Guys, I'm sooo happy you'll all be there tomorrow. Dad has gone out of his way to plan a huge party."
"We're all looking forward to it, N'Yo." Forth says, "My dad has been telling me about some of the preparations your dad asked him to help with. It sounds like Alpha Panitchayasawad is going all out on this."
After dinner, we load up and get back on the road.
"That was a great meal, I'm stuffed." Ming tells us.
"Well you ate enough for three people! Where do you put it all?" Kit teases.
Ming throws Kit his brightest smile and a wink, "Hey, I need all the extra so I can keep up with you, my Kitty."
Kit smacks his arm while he blushes, "So cheesy, I'm gonna puke!"
Interrupting their flirting, I ask, "When we come back on Sunday can we stop there again? The food was really good."
It suddenly is uncomfortable and quiet in the car. There's a small pause before Ming finally says, "Of course Ai'Yo. We'll stop there when we head back to school."
Everyone is hiding something from me, I know it because I can feel it. Mostly they're all feel sneaky and guilty when I ask questions about our plans, but poor Pha has been a complete mess this last week. His feelings of insecurity and nervousness have been pouring out of him.
I thought it all had to do with my birthday party, but I'm not so sure anymore. Now I just have to decide if it's worth my time to try to find out what it is their hiding or if I should just wait till one of them slips up.
10.17.2017
Edited: 04.01.2018 1:04 pm US CST
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Howling at the Moons
WerewolfYo is a young werewolf who wants nothing more than to experience life. To live, laugh, and love beyond the restrictions he has always known. Will college be his chance to do that? In a world where werewolves exist but are still 'in the closet' so...
