Word Count: 2425

~Evoni

I'm still flushed with embarrassment when I return back to the house.

Most of the mess created by the police has been cleared, although arguably, the place is in more chaos than before.

No one here has any concept about where anything of mine goes, and considering Rhenn and Maric appear to have been in charge of clean up, items have probably ended up in places they'll never leave from again.

At least the mess has been cleared off the living room floor, giving Rhenn space to dance wildly to a pop song playing from an old speaker, dressed entirely in my clothing.

She grins as me as I come in, gaping at her.

"I hope you don't mind, Evoni!" She twirls, hair wet from a shower. "I love all these clothes."

She's wearing an old school leavers t-shirt and my high school uniform skirt that I've well and truly grown out of. Over top, she's pulled on my bright blue prom dress—I only went thanks to Rowan—and on her head, she's wears a costume crown Rowan's niece gave me, except she wears it like a headband, the fake crystal diadem pointed up at the ceiling.

I smother a giggle behind my hand. "You can have them, if you like."

"I'm not sure what use the sparkles have out in the woods," Maric mutters, massaging his temples as he glares at the faded pink speaker blasting Rhianna.

He's seated on my couch. On either side of him are piles of nonsense that they clearly couldn't decide where it would naturally go in a house—an empty vase, a shoe rack, my microwave and Cherry's cat tower.

"Don't be a downer, Alpha," I tell him, dumping my bag of pharmacy stuff on the coffee table, which is covered in dried flowers that must have come from the vase.

I turn the speaker off, sensing Maric might be on the verge of an aneurism. Rhenn continues dancing, my entire jewellery box on her wrists and around her neck jingling as she moves.

Archie suddenly enters through the door behind us, several boxes of pizza in his hand.

My stomach immediately growls at the familiar smell. If there is anything I missed out in the forest, it's pizza.

"Hungry, anyone?" Archie asks, setting the boxes down on my small tiny room table, which has sustained a crack through the centre thanks to the polices ill treatment.

Rhenn looms closer as Archie flips the lid open to reveal a pepperoni pizza.

"What is this stuff?" Rhenn asks cautiously, staring at it like she might a rodent that has crawled into our tent.

"It's great, just try it." Archie takes a slice for himself, sitting down.

We all join him at the table, spreading all the boxes open so everyone can make their individual choices. Rhenn chooses a plain cheese slice, taking a tentative bite.

"Oh my Goddess...this is amazing," she gushes. "I wish I were a human."

"Well, we also have taxes and politics, so don't envy us too much," I mutter.

Maric takes a bit himself, nodding. "I will admit, it's not bad."

I smile, tickled by the sight of this massive Alpha dwarfing the pizza slice in his hand. It is such a human act that I can almost imagine him living like this, if he chose to.

I know he never would, though. He was born to lead his pack in the forest.

"See. Us humans aren't so bad," I say.

He looks over me, something in his eyes shifting. "Some aren't."

I swallow thickly, focusing back on my dinner. There is still so much to prove to Maric before he trusts me enough to let me go, to deem me one of his few 'worthy humans.'

"What else can I do that is human like?" Rhenn asks.

"I would turn the TV on, but I don't think you're ready for that yet," I say. Maric already struggled enough with music.

Rhenn speaks over a mouthful of food. "What's a TV?"

I exchange a look with Archie, who seems to be enjoying the freshness at which Rhenn is experiencing the world. Everything is new and bright and fun for her.

"Don't worry about it, Rhenn." He glances at me, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Should we show them porn—"

"Archie!" I scold, widening my eyes.

He claps his hands together joyfully. "I'm joking."

Considering werewolves are the antithesis of prude, I doubt they would be very shocked by it. Especially considering what happens on full moon nights. Yet, I still feel inclined to shield Rhenn's precious eyes from such a sight.

"I don't get it." She looks between us with a furrowed brow, upset that she is being excluded from an inside joke.

"Good, Archie is just trying to be funny," I say, shaking my head at the other human at the table.

He laughs into his hand, and I can't help but share in the amusement for a moment. It is a funny concept, thinking about how little the werewolf pair know about a world we've grown up in.

I catch Maric's eye as Archie and I's laughter dies down.

He's been observing us, the familiarity we share. Most humans forget about everything that connects them, and it takes being the only ones in a crowd of werewolves to notice it.

He looks down at the half eaten slice in his hand with a frown, before he slowly sets it down. Is he upset by the friendship starting between Archie and I?

"Anyway, the police are searching for Rowan pretty heavily," I bring, deciding the topic of conversation needs to shirt.

"Do you ever think they would come our way?" Maric asks.

"I doubt it, but I can't be sure," I admit.

I don't want to lie to him. Not when Rowan is important to a very wealthy, very influential family in town. They will spare no expense trying to find their son.

"Perhaps his body should float to shore," Archie brings up casually.

"Archie, that's dark..."

"What?" He shrugs at me. "Someone will just assume he drowned."

The thought of digging Rowan's body up, just to cart him all the way back here to be dumped at the beach makes me feel ill. I close the pizza box in front of me, suddenly nauseated by the smell.

"He's an excellent swimmer," I remark. "Plus, I might be blamed, since I've been missing for a time as well."

His parents would be itching to pin this on me. They've never liked me, and since I disappeared first, then returned, they would have all they would need to pursue legal action.

"What happens if they think you do it?" Rhenn asks softly, sensing it's a negative thing.

"I'll be thrown in jail." I shudder, trying not to contemplate what that would mean for me.

So much for my freedom. Being imprisoned at the settlement by Maric would feel like a holiday compared to jail.

Maric frowns. "Jail?"

"Oh...like, I'll be locked away in a secure facility. Forever, probably." I pick at my nails, troubled.

Even without a body, his parents would push the matter. Even if I did get off, it would financially cripple me. Then fleeing to the mainland would be completely out of the question.

"That won't happen," Maric states decidedly.

The firmness of his tone and the surety in his eyes would quell my fears any other day. But about this, he doesn't have much control.

"Then we need to be careful," I state. "They won't find Rowan. They'll assume he ran off or got caught up in something he shouldn't have. It will be fine."

I hope.

Rhenn stands, unsettled by the conversation. She walks to the coffee table, peeling jewellery off her body until my paper bag full of pharmacy goods catches her attention.

"What did you get from town?" She asks.

"Some clothing that will fit Maric, including gloves," I tell her. That's what is sitting at the top of the bag, anyway.

I managed to find a box of second hand clothing on someone's porch that they were intending to give away for free. Mercifully, I found a few items that will do just fine for our trip to the mainland.

"Why do I need gloves?" Maric questions.

I glance down at his hands. "Your markings. They'll draw attention."

They spread all the way from his chest, down his arms and along his hands, stopping at his fingernails. While I think they are beautiful, anyone else would seem them and make a note of them, and it would only take one person to make the link.

"Unfortunately Maric won't fit any of my clothes," Archie admits, plucking at his plain green shirt he wore into town.

"We should have everything we need now." The best we can do is hope luck is on our side.

The sound of Rhenn digging around in the paper bag has me turning in my seat. She pulls out all the clothing, inspecting it closely before she reaches in further.

Before I can stop her, she pulls out the box of condoms I stupidly bought.

She takes in the colourful packaging with wide eyes. "What are these?"

"Nothing!"

She looks at me strangely. "What just happened to your voice?"

I wince, stuffing my head into my hands. Archie laughs, having caught a glimpse of what Rhenn is holding. I can't exactly hide the try nature of what they are from him.

"Who are those for?" Archie asks me.

I lift my head from my hands, pinning him with a sharp glare. His whole face has gone red from amusement, his shoulders shaking as he laughs.

"Nobody," I snap. "Don't you say a word."

He holds his hands up defensively, surrendering.

Having drunk in my mortification, Maric stands, deciding he needs to inspect the item for himself.

He takes it from Rhenn's hand delicately, squinting to read the writing on the front. "What does ribbed for your pleasure mean?"

I slap my hand over my face, wishing I could erase myself from the earth this very moment.

"It's a sex thing," Archie says, grinning at me.

"Archie!" I growl. How could he forsake me like this?

He looks at me with faux innocence. "What? It's true."

Maric rips open the packaging, foiled wrapped condoms spilling out onto the floor all around. Rhenn stoops down to pick one up, putting it in her Alpha's hand like she just picked a flower for him.

"What does this have to do with sex?" Maric questions, confounded.

"Don't look at me, I'm not explaining it to them," Archie says, leaning back in his chair, propping his hands behind his head.

I could explain it away as nothing, but Archie already dug the hole so deep, there is no climbing back out of it.

"It...stops a female getting pregnant by a male," I say quickly. "There you go, lessons over."

Maric and Rhenn look at us like I just admitted humans wait till a child's tenth birthday before we line them up and exterminate them.

"Why would you ever want that?" He asks.
 
"Humans don't have the fertility issues werewolves do," I clarify.

Werewolves have plenty of sex for fun and pleasure. I wonder if they would do so as flippantly if they bred normally, as humans do.

Maybe then they wouldn't make so much fun of me for having these...

"I'm confused." Rhenn thumbs the condom wrapper. "How does this stop someone getting pregnant?"

Archie erupts into more giggles. I struggle to draw in a breath.

"It goes on a cock. Blocks the...you know what, never mind." They're not getting an anatomy lesson out of me today.

Rhenn drops the pile of condoms she accumulated in her palms in disgust. They fall back to the floor like red rose petals, landing at her feet.

Maric doesn't appear as disturbed. His eyes sweep to meet mine, something dark and inexplicable in them.

"Whose cock are these to go on, Evoni?" He asks softly.

I swallow. "No one in particular..."

Rhenn's face falls, misreading my trepidation.

"You're planning on having sex with Archie, aren't you?" Her voice breaks. "That's the only reason you'd need these."

"Rhenn, no—"

"I'm not hungry anymore." She turns on her heels, stalking into my room.

The sound of my door slamming makes me flinch. I hate that I've upset her, and her theory is wrong, anyway. I have no interest in Archie.

Archie looks down at the table, mortified.

It's clear that he knows about Rhenn's infatuation with him, but for whatever reason, he doesn't feel the same way. I want to do something about it, but it feels wrong to meddle, especially when I've come in our everything in the middle of it.

"I'm going to...go for a walk." He stands abruptly, grabbing his coat before he sweeps from the house.

A terrible silence follows in his wake.

Maric returns to the table, taking his seat again. He still holds a condom between his fingers.

"So, Archie then, huh?" There's a hint of warning in his tone.

We might have shared an intimate moment together, but there is nothing between Maric and I. Not when the prophecy looms over us.

So, I won't admit I got these with him in mind. Let him think they are for Archie.

"I guess so." I sigh, deflating in my seat.

"I thought for a moment that it might be for a werewolf." He watches me closely. "If that were the case, you should know a werewolf cannot impregnate a human."

He's testing me.

"Lucky it's not for a werewolf then..." I pluck the condom from his hand, tossing it over my shoulder. "Although, I bet there are cases of it happening. Better safe than sorry, right?"

I never got to that part of the history books, but considering werewolves came from a human mutation, I'm going to assume it's possible.

"Very well," he concedes, the corner of his mouth lifting. "Keep those on you, if you wish."

He gets up, but I remain seated, body suddenly heavy.

He knows exactly who I got those for.

🩶••🩶

If you want more, this story is available 10 chapters ahead on Inkit at all times! Just search for Midika Crane (Sophie) and you'll find this work under the stories tab.

If you would like to read more of my work, check out my novel The Three Alpha King's!

~Midika 💜🐈‍⬛