Second Chance Mates

-04- 🌹 Shouldn't Be Said Out Loud

^ Picture of Ronnie Vega

"It's probably something that shouldn't be said out loud. Honestly, I thought that I would be dead by now."
~Billie Eilish, 'bury a friend'

~~~

*Ryland's POV*

I groan loudly, pain shooting through my back. The ground is cold and hard beneath me, making the impact feel that much worse.

"Get up," Ronnie commands. "We're not done yet."

"Easy for you to say," I grumble as I try to stand back up. "You're not the one getting your ass kicked."

"You wouldn't be either if you actually tried to fight back."

"I can't," I spit back through clenched teeth. Ronnie reaches her hand out, pulling me back on my feet.

"You can. You just need to focus."

I narrow my eyes at her. She knows exactly why I can't fight back. She knows. And yet, she won't let up on these stupid training exercises. It's not going to work. It hasn't worked for the past five years, and it's not going to work now.

"Don't be a pussy," Ronnie snaps, sending a jolt of irritation through me. "Fight back!" Her fist comes swinging at me. I block her attack with my forearm, making sure to stick with purely defensive actions as Ronnie takes the offensive position. Ronnie groans, throwing her hands in the air. "Come on, Ry! We can't get your adrenaline racing if you refuse to fight back! The training only works if your adrenaline is racing! If you can control yourself while your adrenaline is high, you won't need the collar anymore!"

"This training is shit and you know it," I retort. "If doing these exercises helped, don't you think we would've seen some progress by now? Forget it, I'm done with this useless sparring."

I turn away, marching across the empty field back towards town. The chilling sounds of bones cracking and fabric tearing echo through the air, making me stop dead in my tracks. A low growl is heard behind me, and I slowly turn back around.

My heart pounds in my chest at the sight of the large wolf in front of me. Wind blows through her silky, dark grey fur, and her golden glowing eyes lock on mine. The sight of her is so stunningly beautiful, rendering me speechless. No matter how many times we meet, I'm always blown away by the power and beauty of her aura.

"Valeria," I breathe out. A low rumble resounds in her chest in response. "It's good to see you."

'Veronica thought you might need more motivation,' she informs me through our pack mind link. Her voice is similar to Ronnie's, only huskier. Almost what you would expect a blues singer to sound like.

"So she asked you to come out?" I question, raising an eyebrow.

'I can be very.... persuasive.'

Before I can wrap my mind around that, Valeria lunges at me. I yelp and hit the ground, scrambling in the grassy field. The grey wolf towers over me, snapping her teeth in my face as animalistic growls rip from her muzzle. I push against her, keeping her sharp canines from shredding my face. Panic starts to rise up in my chest, which only makes me panic even more.

Stop.
Please.
No more.
I can't....

Panic reaches its heights, and my body begins to convulse as shock waves are shot through my body. I gasp as the pain jolts down my spine. My hands reach up towards the insidious collar, and I hiss as the contact burns my palms.