Fiend

two. Raphael

 Raphael Sterling

Cooper later convinced me to join him on a night out in the town. I struggled against his persistence and determination every step of the way continually coming up with pack duties as excuses. Cooper saw right through my tightly interweaved bluffs, and was more than insistent to drag me along. Deep down, we were both aware who would win that fight. Cooper would find himself flat on his ass staring up at me.  

“Where are we going?” I demanded growing tired of being in the dark.

“Patience is a virtue,” Cooper smirked knowingly.

I snorted in an indignant response.

“I’m not going to Starbucks again,” I muttered, remembering how awful the place had been. It wasn’t the bitter scent of coffee that rubbed me the wrong way, but rather the constant stream of people walking into the place. Every human seemed just as generic and cookie cutter as the last. I couldn’t stand humans, let alone masses of them that acted as a single unit.

“That was a one time thing!” Cooper defended poorly. If I had showed even the slightest interest in the overcrowded, overpriced place Cooper would already have us there. Despite their stench and lack of authority, Cooper loved to indulge himself with human women. Nadia never bothered to stop him from being a flirtatious fool.

About two years ago before Nadia came into Cooper’s life he would often seek out human companionship because he knew everything they felt was real whereas finding that within a wolf would be a simple forced moment of lust and nothing more. Humans on the other hand were terrible at keeping their emotions at bay even when they were supposed to remain distant.

Cooper had women constantly in and out. When he met Nadia he swore off of them until she witnessed how cruel he was towards the poor girls fawning all over him. Nadia apparently got a sick satisfaction from knowing Cooper could string a full necklace worth of girls along, and he wouldn’t touch a hair on them.

Nadia was Cooper’s, and Cooper was Nadia’s. I belonged to someone at a time too, but then she left me to shiver alone in the cold dark night.

“Where are you taking me?” My wolf forced a growl out. Lately he has been getting harder to control and keep at bay. The lack of affection has the both of us rather unhinged and unruly.

“I’m taking you to meet some girls before you’re steadily mated, my friend,” Cooper grinned like a fool. I swear I could have slapped him right then and there. He wouldn’t even know what hit him until it was too late. I grunted, not feeling entirely pleased with the idea.

Cooper used to indulge in human women, while I had my fair share of she-wolves in and out of my bed. I was repulsed by humans; they reeked of sweat and often times grease and smog. I wasn’t a fan of their self-entitled righteous natures. For all I cared, every human could drop off the face of the planet.

It would be better that way. Wolves wouldn’t have to hide in secrecy and the leeches would eventually die out without anything substantial to feed on.

Cooper and I walked probably a mile around downtown before he settled his pace and began heading towards a dimly lit coffee shop. I snorted; this wasn’t Starbucks, but it was nearly as bad.

That was another thing I never understood the appeal of. Coffee both smelled and tasted bitter, and when I tried to drown the bitterness with cream and sugar I was left with a worse after taste. Cooper eagerly swung the door open, and music was immediately blaring. I readied myself for whatever my Beta had in mind because often times his ideas were a little radical and not for me.

There were people everywhere crammed into a single space lined up against one another while facing a small stage in the far corner. I followed behind Cooper as he greeted everyone, and I simply ignored. I knew this was a waste of time. I should have just stood my ground, and firmly declared no. Cooper wasn’t in any position to command me around.