Tinsel, Teasing, and A Trip Back Home 2
I rubbed my palms together before holding them to my face. The thrill rushed through me, bubbling up like a spark catching fire. I would see them pretty soon too.
I was going home to my parents, to my mom, to my dad, to Becca, and the rest of Springville.
A tightening sensation pulled at the tips of my fingers as my body slowly began to run cold. The rest of Springville? My hands dropped to my sides. To Higan, my mate who had rejected me?
My gaze fell to the ground as my body ran colder. I had somehow forgotten about a huge chunk of my life in Springville. The bullying, the rejection, the ostracizing.
What would happen when I returned? I proposed that my parents let me stay the rest of the school term at home and my mom agreed but what about college after? Summer break? I would still be in town, under The rule of Higan Sinclair as the Alpha.
“Harlyn love?“ Tyler shook me lightly by the shoulder, his voice dipping light with concern.
I blinked quickly, forcing a smile. “Sorry, I just got lost in thought.”
“What a silly place to get lost in,” he remarked with a hum before walking away.
I peered at Ethan whose eyes were already planted on me. My heart thumped at the curious glint in his eyes and how good he looked with his hair pushed back to highlight his beautiful face.
He fully climbed down the stairs as he held my gaze. “Walk with me.” he inclined his head toward the hallway.
I hesitated for a fraction. Our last interaction still played in the back of my mind. I didn't think I could handle hearing more from him. But I couldn't refuse him either so I nodded. “Sure.”
I followed behind him leaving the others behind to go about the rest of their day. The hum of Khalid complaining about taking down the decorations grew muted as we stepped into the quieter hall and the warmth of the lights dimmed against the cool air.
Ethan slowed his steps as he inserted his hands in his pockets. He then turned to face me. I swallowed down my nerves, holding my arm to my body.
“You're worrying,” he suddenly uttered. Right, he could still 'perceive' my mind.
I sighed, wrapping my arms tighter around myself. “It’s just, going back means facing everything again.”
“The pack?” he squinted his eyes.
“The pack. My old life.” My fingers toyed with the edge of my sweater. “Higan.”
His jaw tensed almost imperceptibly. “And?” his tone dipped lower but I pretended not to notice. It meant nothing, nothing at all. I shifted my gaze to my feet.
“And I don’t know how I feel about it yet.” I exhaled deeply. “I want to see my parents more than anything, but I also know Springville isn’t just them. It’s—” I paused, chewing on my thoughts before finally admitting, “It’s also having to live with people who'd done nothing but reject me and put me down.“
Ethan was quiet for a moment before he shuffled closer to say, “You don't have to live with that though.”
I frowned slightly, glancing up at him. “What do you mean?”
Was he suggesting I stay back with them?
He met my gaze, something flickering in the dark corners of the forest in his eyes. “You’re not the same girl who left. You were never actually the girl they'd assumed you to be.“
A chill prickled at my skin, but it wasn’t from the cold. There was something in his words that settled deep in my chest, something I wasn’t sure how to process. He was right after all.
I was not an omega, I could shift now, and albeit not what anybody could expect, I could be more than just another werewolf. Descended from the original bloodline aside, I could manifest sorcery under my fingerprints.
I swallowed. That was a lot and nothing about it meant I was weak in any way.
“You know I'm right,” Ethan teased with a surprisingly playful tone.
I rolled my eyes with a small smile. “That aside, Did you have to go back yourself to make it safe? You could have just asked for a report of something.”
Ethan snickered, his face brightening up as his eyes smiled with him. “Well, you obviously wanted to go home given you ran that far so I needed to make sure myself that fulfilling that wouldn't cost you anything.”
His words were simple, but they carried weight, and I felt something shift inside me. Was it his guard dropping low enough for him to smile like that? Or the way he said what he said? It made me feel warm, really warm.
I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but all I could think about was how good he looked. So instead, I just nodded, my throat suddenly dry.
Ethan studied me for a moment longer before stepping back, giving me space. “Get some rest. We leave at dawn.”
He stepped past me to leave, his scent grazing my nose gently as it trailed behind him. I nodded again, my heart pounding for reasons I didn’t understand.
I hesitated before exhaling, knowing he could hear me. “Thank you.”
He deserved that much.
His footsteps halted for a minute before finally walking away to disappear out the hallway.
I stood there for a moment, the warmth of the Christmas lights flickering faintly down the corridor, and tried to ignore the way my cheeks felt just a little too warm and my chest, a little too tight.
“Don't get too comfortable,” I muttered to myself, but it did little to quell the warmth.