Peas in a Pod
"Alright guys, good session. Next meeting we'll work on improving your form." I waited until most of the wolves had left before I slowly made my way to the back porch.
Trina kept pace with me just in case I needed a little help. I've been back nearly a week and most of the Wolf's Bane was out of my system but I still wasn't quite up to par when it came to physical ability. I was forced into a strict non-demonstration teaching style. When we reached the porch I leaned heavily on the railing while Trina grabbed us a couple of water bottles. "How are you doing?" she asked as she tossed me one.
"Better," I answered cracking open the lid. "Did you hear that Jason's delayed his and Lily's return to Fire Light yet again?"
She nodded and joined me at the railing. "He doesn't want to leave while you're still injured."
I grimaced. "I'm fine. Jason knows that with Justin here he and Lily ought to be back home. He's waiting for our situation to resolve itself."
She cocked her head to the side. "Our situation?"
I nodded. "Grant and Tyler. He knows that if we decided to be with our mates we won't return to Fire Light. Grant is an Alpha so he can't abandon his pack whereas Jason could find a new Beta. If I stay here there's no chance that Tyler would be willing to leave."
"And neither would I," she said. "He's waiting to see if we go home or not."
I looked out at the backyard. Justin was currently working with another group that was due to finish soon. "I can't imagine leaving Fire Light permanently," I said gazing out at the field. "It's been my home for so long, through so much..."
Justin called an end to his session and join Tree and me. "You two look ever so thoughtful," he commented grabbing his own water.
I raised and dropped on shoulder in a half shrug. "That happens when you think. Though I suppose you wouldn't know about that."
"Ha, ha," he said sarcastically. "Very cute."
I flashed him a toothy smile before pushing myself away from the rail. "Come on Tree. Next session is about to started." People had already started showing up. It didn't take them too long to realize on time actually meant show up early. I spotted a familiar red head who I hadn't seen much of since my return and made my way too her. "Hey Alex."
There was a moment's hesitation before her half-hearted reply. "Hi Kate."
My brows furrowed. "Are you alright, Alex?"
She shrugged and then something behind me caught her eye. I knew that look. I've had that look. It was not a good look. It was the look of someone who would give anything not to see the person they're seeing. I turned to follow her gaze but the only person there was Justin.
How queer. I knew Justin didn't know Alex, he'd have told me after all he'd seen her picture in my room. But that look on his face. Justin must've seen something on my face. He had to have known I'd figure it out. Who is better than me when it comes to seeing the signs? "This is what Trina meant to tell me," I said and he flinched. "We made a pact, Justin. The three of us made a pact." Years ago Tree, Justin and I swore we'd never keep a secret from each other, not when it was something big.
"Kate I know, I just needed some time-"
"You broke it," I said coldly. He started towards me. "Don't."
"Kate, she rejected me," Justin said desperate.
I gave him a hard look. "I figured that out already, thanks. Or have you forgotten I of all people know how to recognize the signs. Now it you don't mind I have work to do and I won't have you acting as a distraction. Leave."
He gave me a tortured look followed by one to Alex before leaving.
"Kate," Alex said. "Let me-"
"Your decisions are your own," I cut her off. "You don't need to explain them to me."
"Okay," she said in a small voice as she turned to leave.
"But Alex," I said caused her to turn back to me. "If you feel the need to explain yourself to someone maybe that's a sign that you need to reevaluate your decisions."
She raised an eyebrow. "I never thought you of all people would be the champion of mates belonging together. Not after what Grant did to you."
"Some mates are actually meant to be together," I said thinking not of Jason and Lily, but rather I thought of Grant's mother and Jace. Maybe if it weren't for Holden Jace would be some happy blue-collared family man. "And well, maybe if things had been different, maybe if Grant and I didn't know each other or even given each other a chance as mates, well then maybe we'd be together and maybe we'd be happy with each other."
"Or maybe nothing would be different," she said in an icy tone I'd never heard from her before. "Maybe you'd still be the same cold and alone person you are now!"
I felt an unexpected wave of loathing towards the woman who'd once bee as close to me as Trina is now. "Perhaps that's how it seems to you. Maybe I do seem cold because I'm not the girl who wore her heart on her sleeve anymore. I won't argue you that point, believe what you will. However there is one thing you will not be deceived on: I am not alone. My bonds here to this pack were weak and so very easily broken but I dare you to find one among my current pack that I'd not willing risk my life for."
My words seemed to surprise her. "Why?"
I softened. Whatever we are now, friends, enemies, we once used to be sisters. "Because they are more than a pack to me. They're family. Just like what we used to be."
"Until you abandoned your family," she said coldly. "I've missed you for over seven years, but I can't say I blame Tyler for being angry at you."
I sighed. "The person I was would have agreed with you."
"And now?" she questioned curiously.
"Life is too short to let angry keep you from the people you care about," I answered. "Jason, my Alpha, forced me to come back here. The person I was when I left would have hated him but that's not me anymore. I know now just how precious life is and I don't want to spend mine being angry at the people I care about."
"Don't expect everyone to take that philosophy," she commented still a little sour.
I sighed. "I don't and I didn't stop you to lecture you. I just... At least talk to Justin once before you write him off. You might be surprised at how well you two would go together."
I left her to limp to the front of the group. Trina stood there waiting. "I wanted to tell you," she said instantly. "When you first woke up, I wanted to tell you but-"
"I know," I cut her off. "Justin was the one who should have told me."
She smiled sadly, "He didn't want to burden you, Kate. He also knows who Alex is to you. He didn't want to come between you two."
I scowled. "I hate when you make sense."
She grinned. "I know."
I rubbed my face, "Can we just talk about something else? Please?"
She nodded, "How is it going with Grant?"
I groaned. "Something not related to mates."
She laughed. "I thought it was going well. You two seemed pretty chummy the past couple days."
"We are not chummy," I argued. "He is following me. You know he's been watching all the sessions I do from the window of his bedroom."
Her eyebrows shot up. "Seriously?"
I nodded and turned to point at his bedroom where Grant peered down at me shamelessly. "There."
"He takes stalking to a new level," Trina muttered. "He's actually managed to be worse than Tyler."
"How is that?" I asked.
She shrugged and pressed her lips into a line. "Better I guess. He isn't so angry all the time but..."
"But?" I pressed. "Tree if he's doing anything to make you uncomfortable-"
She shook her head. "No, no it's nothing like that."
"Then what's wrong?" I asked shooting a glare at a few wolves who'd inched closer to hear us.
"Let's talk later," Trina said looking at the class. "We should get started."
Justin came to my bedroom door that night. "Kate?" he said knocking on the door for the umpteenth time in the past thirty seconds.
I finished changing into sleep clothes before finally opening the door just as he was about to know again. "Yes- hey!" Justin forced himself into my room half shoving me out of the way as he did.
"What did you say to her?" he demanded.
My brow crinkled. "Excuse me?"
"What did you say to her?" he repeated slowly.
"Her who?"
"Alexandra!" he yelled as though I were stupid.
I bite back a growled. "Watch it, Justin. I am still your superior."
He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as he tried to calm his temper. "Alexandra. She came to me in a rage saying that I should at least have to balls to talk to her myself instead of using you to get to her."
Was that really what Alex took from our conversation? "All I said was that she should at least talk to you before she doomed any possible relationship between you two."
He sat on my bed and I wondered for a moment when I became the person my pack mates came to for advice. "What do I do?"
I sat next to him and wrapped my arm around his shoulder. "Why does everyone seem to think I'm the person to ask?" I questioned. "This seems like Lily and Jason territory."
He shrugged. "I think you just understand everything better?"
"What?" I said immediately. "How? I had a mate for all of five minutes! Lily and Jason have been together for years."
He nodded somberly. "Everything comes easy for Lily and Jason. There's never any doubt or thought that they don't work. They're perfect so they can't begin to understand what it's like to not be perfect. You can. You understand how it feel to be rejected, what it's like to not want to be with your mate and vice versa. You know how to be around your mate without being with your mate."
I supposed that makes sense. I put my head on his shoulder only to lift it as Trina entered. "Hi," she said meekly and Justin patted the bed on his other side and she sat down.
"Mate trouble?' I asked.
"How'd you guess?" she grumbled.
I gave her a half smile. "It seems to be the trend with the three of us. What happened?"
"He was talking about the different colleges in the area," she said, "telling me which ones I'd enjoy. He's got this entire plan and I don't even know if I'm staying here."
"At least your mate wants to be with you," Justin said. "Mine want nothing to do with me and she's barely said a word to me. She knows nothing about me."
I felt a sharp stab of pain as my own rejection reared its head. "At least you have that. Mine knew me my whole life and he still rejected me."
Justin wrapped an arm around me to rub my back. "We make a pretty pathetic trio, don't we?"
A laugh bubbled up in my throat. "Yeah, I guess we do." I laid my head down on Justin's shoulder again.
Trina put her head on Justin's other shoulder and we sat like that for a moment. "What are we going to do?" Trina finally asked.
"I don't know," I sighed. "Either we stay with our mates and say goodbye to the pack or stay with the pack and say goodbye to our mates. I don't want to say goodbye to anyone, especially you two."
"Then don't," Justin said.
I lifted me head to look at him. "What do you mean?"
"Let's make a deal," he said looking at me then Trina and back to me. "I don't connect well with many people and I trust even fewer people. I can't imagine my life without you guys and I think it's safe to say the feeling is mutual."
I nodded. I care about Tristan and Jason and Lily but Justin, Trina and I all just... clicked. They were the only ones who knew everything thing that'd happened to me. We kept no secrets between us and we did most things together. Lily often joked about us being thicker than thieves because our bond was thicker than blood.
"So what's the deal?" Trina asked.
"No matter what happens we stay together," Justin said. "Whether that means staying in Silver Moon or returning home to Fire Light we stay together, the three of us."
He held out a hand to each of us. Trina took one almost instantly but I took a couple seconds to think. Could I really ask them to stay here if I chose to remain in Silver Moon with Grant? Did I have any right to do such a thing? More importantly if it didn't work with their mates could I ask them to stay and be in the same pack as them? When Grant rejected me leaving Silver Moon was the only saving grace I had.
Then there was that small selfish voice in my head that didn't care about any of that. The voice said to make the deal, to keep the two of them close regardless of any pain it may cause them.
It was so very tempting. "Are you sure?" I asked. "We could never return to Fire Light, if Alex never rescinds her rejection you could be forced to see her every single day. Are you really ready to do that, to make that deal?"
He nodded with conviction. "Yes. Are you?"
I let out a steady breath and clapped my hand into his. "I guess I am."