Chapter 34 - Edited Once

Stella (Edited Once)

Our eyes widened at the sight. I just stood there, frozen in the spot while Julian and Cody looked around to see who did it. They ran towards the source of the shooting.It was a sniper’s shot.

Skye bent down to Raymond’s level and checked his pulse. She raised her gaze and shook her head with a blank expression displayed on her face. I did not do anything because I was paralyzed. I forgot how to move my legs. For a second, I forgot how to catch my breath.

′Stella,′ Dianna called, sensing my apprehension.

I blinked rapidly and stared at the bloodied hole in Raymond’s chest. The bullet perforated through his chest, on the left side. The amount of blood that drenched his white shirt did not need Skye to tell me that he was dead. I did not know what to feel.

I looked at Julian who was running back toward us. His face was crunched, and his eyes held fury and confusion. “They got away, whoever they were. They are skilled,” he said.Who were they? Were they a group? One person? Who?

Cody came running from the forest near the school. “No use, Alpha. They are gone,” he reported to his alpha, then stood next to Skye and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

Julian came to my side and hugged me tightly, sensing that I needed some comfort. I buried my face into his chest and sighed loudly. I did not know if it was wrong of me not to cry because I did not feel like I had lost an important person. I felt like I had lost an acquaintance that I had known since the day I was born. I felt nothing, and my heart was blank. I had no emotions towards him. I was not happy to see him dead, but I was not sad either.

Is that wrong?

′You lost him when he raised his hand at you. It’s not wrong to feel that way towards your abuser. He is gone now. No more,′Dianna explained, and I hummed, not wanting to speak.

“Are you okay?” Julian asked while caressing my hair. His touch relaxed me.

I nodded weakly. “Yeah. Let’s just go back home, I feel tired. Can you take care of his body?” I asked in a whisper.

“Of course, love. I’ll have my warriors bury him in the cemetery. Don’t worry,” he assured me with a kiss on my cheek.

Raymond is gone forever.

“Bye Stella, see you tomorrow.” Skye hugged me goodbye and went to Cody. He was waiting for his mate, and I wanted to just be in bed with mine.

After a while of silent driving, we arrived home. “What time is it?” I asked as I sat on his big bed. He looked at his phone and sat next to me.

“11 p.m., are you sleepy?” he asked while looking at my gray eyes. Like he was searching for something.

“No, just tired of today’s eve-” I stopped what I was about to say because I remembered something that slipped my mind completely. “Let me see your arm!” I grabbed it and checked for his injury. I removed the cloth from his arm and inspected it. I did not find anything. His skin was dirty with blood, but the wound was not there. “How?” I asked, overwhelmed, but not shocked. Nothing was normal around here.

He smirked. “Werewolves heal faster than humans, and I have Alpha blood in my veins. I heal faster than a normal werewolf, babe,” he explained, as he wrapped his arms around my small body, and laid back on the bed so we were facing the ceiling. I wrapped my arms around his chest and kissed his jawline. We enjoyed the silence.

“Julian.”

He hummed, waiting for me to speak. “I want to fight,” I blurted out.

He raised his head so he could look at me with his arched eyebrows. Confusion was evident on his face. “What?”

I rolled my eyes. “I want to become stronger, I want to fight so I can protect myself. I felt useless today. I couldn’t do anything,” I said as I played with the hem of his jacket. “You said I could,” I added the waited for his reply.

I waited long.

“Fine, but I’ll be the one to teach you how to fight. No other male will touch you. You areminealone,” he growled in my neck. I chuckled because I was so ticklish.

“And you are mine. Thank you, Julian.” I kissed his cheek when he lifted his head to face me.

“On the cheek? I need more than that to feel the gratitude, love.” His grin grew wider as his face came closer to mine. I shifted nervously and knowingly. I felt my cheeks heat up, but I did not move away. I closed my eyes, waiting for the moment to happen.

“Stella, I love you,” he said, then crashed his lips on mine before I could reply. I kissed him back. The kiss was gentle and soft. It made me lost in his touch. He held me closer, if that was possible, and made me lay on top of him. My hands found their way to his hair and started running through it. He groaned pleasantly, and I moaned softly.

After some time, he noticed my struggle to breathe, so he parted his lips and kissed my nose. “I’ll give you a clean hoodie. You don’t have to go to your room to change,” he suggested, and I nodded. I wanted to take a shower but did not want to upset him.

I waited for him to hand me his hoodie. He went to his wardrobe and searched for one. “Here, wear this, and I’ll go to the bathroom for a minute. You can change; I won’t peak,” he winked and threw it at me with new boxers.

“Thanks.” I stripped down from my dress after he entered the bathroom. I pulled the boxers, then the hoodie, over my head, and his scent hit my nose.

′Delicious, can I bite him?′ Dianna asked.

′ N-no way,′I stuttered. She was a perverted wolf.

′Oh, come on. He marked you, so it’s only fair for me to mark him,′she reasoned.′Besides, you will have to do that sooner or later. Let’s make it sooner.′

I rolled my eyes.′I prefer later, bye Dianna,′ I replied, ignoring her protests. I was not ready.

I sat on the bed and waited for him. I looked at my legs to see that the hoodie covered my thighs well. Minutes later, the bathroom door opened to reveal a half-naked Julian. He only wore sweatpants.

′Damn, those abs!′Dianna commented, and I could not agree more. Maybe I was perverted too.

Julian smirked as if he knew what I was thinking. “Sorry for the wait, let’s sleep. I’m tired,” he said and jumped on his bed while dragging me down with him. After he pulled the covers on us, my eyes felt heavy. “Good night, love,” he said and kissed my forehead, then pulled me closer to him.

"Good night JoJo,” I replied, half asleep.

He sighed. "Not you too," he commented, then darkness took over.