..CHAPTER THREE..

The sound of water falling, birds chirping and fire crackling was what greeted Jongin the moment he started gaining conscious. Groans and moans of discomfort slipped pass his lips, the hard surface beneath him making the dark skinned boy frown in his dazed condition. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open.

“What the…?” Jongin almost shouted as he sat up in alarm, looking at his surrounding in pure fear.

Suddenly, the event from last night came rushing back to him. That sleazy smile, his mother’s shining face as she introduced him to a man triple his age, him slipping out of his village, him running the length of forest in exhalation and coming to face to face with that beast again.

“Where am I?” Jongin mumbled looking at the dark cave he seemed to be placed in. A bright fire was sizzling a few feet away from him, something that suspiciously looked like a chicken was burning amid it. Immediately, Jongin’s empty stomach grumbled in appreciation of the delicious smell drifting toward him, but the fact that he was sitting on a thin rug in an unknown cave brought his attention back to the real problem. Clearly someone saved him last night. He had half a mind to get up and make a run for his life before the vicious wolf finds Jongin, but all his plans came to a skidding stop when an outline of a tall man coming from the mouth of cave stole his attention.

“Oh, you are up,” The tall figure said in acknowledgement of Jongin’s gawking eyes. Jaws dropping, Jongin took in the strong built of a hella fine looking man, hazel eyes, light tone brunet hairs and skin beautifully pale, most probably a few years older than Jongin own ripe 17 years of age. The handsome stranger gave an amuse look to Jongin’s flabbergasted face, before gracefully gliding down to sit beside the young boy, making him to scoot a few inches at uncomfortable closeness. “You keep giving me a scare, pretty boy.”

“Huh?” Jongin let out as an unintelligent baboon.

“Are you alright?” The handsome man inquired seriously, hazel eyes drilling in Jongin’s chocolate ones.

“I am fine,” Jongin squeaked as soon as he found his voice, before quickly looking around himself when embarrassment started climbing on him. “Where are we?”

“The cave behind the waterfall,” The other man supplied easily. “It has a small opening, hard to find due to having waterfall curtaining its entrance.”

“Wow,” Jongin was shocked to learn this piece of news since he had been a frequent of waterfall and never could have dreamed that it hide something like this behind it. “That’s pretty cool. Anyways, thanks for saving me from the wolf.”

The handsome man snorted unexpectedly before saying, “Why would I save you from myself? If anything, I have only been playing a nice guy only because it’s you, pretty boy… the one with alluring smell.”

“What?” Jongin’s head spun at the complicated words slipping pass those thin pink lips. “From yourself? Oh my! Taemin was right! You are a werewolf!”

“The one and only,” the pale man dipped his head in a mocking manner before he turned to look at the chicken in fire. “By the way, I nicked a couple of chickens from a villager… someone named Lami; I reckon… you must be hungry, huh?”

“The Grumpy Lami?” Jongin couldn’t help the chortle that came through his lips despite the fact that he learned the handsome man was none other than the wild wolf Jongin believed was out for his blood. Weirdly enough Jongin felt at rather ease in the tall male’s presence. “But you are a wolf, do you eat chicken?”

“Well, mostly I hunted for wild bunnies or squirrel or something,” the man explained, tossing a smile in Jongin’s direction. “But can’t have my future mate eating something like that, right? So I went for chicken while you were knocked out, pretty boy.”

Jongin has no idea what ‘mate’ meant but it still sent waves of tingle down his spine, coloring his cheeks a pretty shade of pink while he chewed on his bottom lips innocently. Something the other man didn’t noticed as he moved forward to take the chicken out of fire.

“I am Jongin,” the dark skinned boy said, even though he loved the name other called him but introductions seemed necessary.

“Jongin,” The man tested his name delicately before a smirk climbed on his lips. “Jongin, I am Sehun, the werewolf you thought wanted to eat you alive, but let me assure you that won’t happen.”

“H-How did you know?” Jongin stuttered, looking a tab bit embarrass.

“You talk in your sleep,” Sehun deadpanned but his expressions remained as light and fresh as before. “You look cute doing that, I would admit.”

“Oh,” Jongin ducked his head due to humiliation for a moment before peering at Sehun from under his fringes. “But, what are you doing here, Sehun? I mean, why are you living like a wild wolf? You don’t look like a… umm…”

“Homeless orphan?” Sehun suggested helpfully, gaining a nod from Jongin. “It’s funny actually because technically I was running away from you but now here I am… mark glistering on your neck and my wolf prowling at me to devour you as soon as possible.”

“I… I don’t understand,” Jongin said, scratching his head in confusion.

“I ran away from my home,” Sehun said patiently, enjoying the thunderstruck look on Jongin’s face. “My father was forcing me to do something- which technically I ended up doing anyways, mind you- but I don’t like being pressured so I ran away from my home. I initially planned to run through the Forest Heem and direct my paws toward the nearest city but then your alluring scent stopped me… tempting me toward you.”

“M-My scent?” Jongin looked flustered, yet the confusion was still swimming in his eyes. “Why did you mark me?”

Sehun locked his eyes with Jongin’s, kept looking at the younger boy until Jongin fidgeted under the scrutiny of pale male. Jongin’s throat went dry and an odd flutter settle in the pit of his stomach, producing an unknown yearn within him.

“Because I can’t have someone take away what rightfully belongs to me,” Sehun’s words held even deeper riddle than earlier and Jongin gave up trying to figure out other’s words in favor to devouring the chicken Sehun gestured for him to eat. “Jongin, why were people of north side welcomed in your village, last night?”

Jongin choked on the chicken he was eating, making Sehun to pat his back in a slightly rough manner.

“Please don’t remind me,” Jongin whined unintentionally. “My mother wishes to marry me off with one of them.”

“What?” Sehun shouted shrilling, eyes popping in shock. “But you are mine.”

A shiver travelled along Jongin’s sensitive skin as he looked at the determined look Sehun’s face supported.

“I did sense danger last night,” Sehun shook his head at himself. “I would have come to you if you haven’t slipped out of village, yesterday night. My wolf knew something was wrong.”

“Umm… okay?” Jongin said while blinking his wide eyes in clear bafflement.

“I would have mated you if you didn’t faint on me last night,” Sehun growled, narrowing his eyes at Jongin’s shivering frame. But suddenly something akin to playful tease slipped in those narrow hazel eyes as Sehun leaned in Jongin’s personal space, making the dark skinned boy to stiffen and drop the delicious chicken piece in his hand, on the dirty floor. Jongin tried leaning back but the cave’s rough wall prevented him from moving backward, thus the younger boy opted to scoot down to partial lay on the floor, which was a very bad move; Jongin realized soon enough. Sehun hovered over him, smirking a rather attractive smile at the quivering boy. “But no worries… I reckon, this time around I won’t act as a werewolf with high morals, dropping you off near your village gate. I wanna bite you Jongin… can I?”

“B-But… d-didn’t y-you al-alread-” Jongin gasped when Sehun dunked down and nip at the sensitive skin under his ear, busting a thousand unknown feelings deep within the young and boy. How those gasps turned to low moans and groans as Sehun’s lips and teeth worked wonders against his jawline was a mystery to Jongin himself. The pants escaping his parted lips, the unfamiliar feeling of warmth dwelling in the pit of his stomach and the unrecognizable pounding of his blood against his inner skin had Jongin twitching in Sehun’s hold.

Abruptly, as soon as all those sensations started, they came to a skidding stop as well. A whine was about to slip out of Jongin’s thick lips but Sehun’s hand clasped on them. The sudden alertness in Sehun’s posture made Jongin realized something was wrong. Once the younger boy came down from his high feelings he was able to faintly hear the sound of two guff voices rumbling at the waterfall outside. On putting all his efforts at listening to those soft voices, Jongin recognized the sleazy one from last night as well, making his eyes to widen as he tried to tell Sehun who exactly was outside… but the way Sehun put a finger against his own lips signally Jongin to hold still, it was rather obvious the werewolf also knew who was outside.

A few rather tense minutes went by with Sehun tense figure leaning over Jongin’s stiff log like body, before the voices started to drift away. Slowly, Sehun descended down until his lips nearly touched the shell of younger boy’s ear, hot breath making Jongin’s brain to short circuit again.

“Northern clan,” Sehun whispered directly in his ear. “But I guess they moved on from here. I can’t mate you right now, with them being in the forest, they might pick on the noises. I think I should drop you off back to your village.”

Jongin could only chew on his bottom lip when Sehun lightly started nuzzling the length of his neck, whispering something about the ‘scent is killing me’. The helpless boy could only nod at the werewolf’s words, thankfully taking the hand Sehun offered once he had got off Jongin. Carefully, watching their path Sehun started leading Jongin toward the secret entrance of the village after the latter confessed he had used that place to slip out last night.

“How did you know about the wooden bars uprooted on that specific place?” Jongin wondered out loud but he kept his voice low in order to avoid attracting unnecessary attention. “I mean-”

“I formed it since the main entrance would have generated quite a hassle if I gave them my true identity,” Sehun reasoned lightly.

“Yes, telling them you are a werewolf would have been troublesome,” Jongin nodded intelligently, only to earn a knuckle and laugh from Sehun.

“That’s not what I meant, silly,” The werewolf said, eyes softly gazing at Jongin.

“Umm… then what?” Jongin dared prod further, pouting at being treated like a child when a few minutes ago Sehun was making him all hot and bothered.

Nevertheless, Sehun kept his silence until they were standing at the desired boundary of the village. Since this specific part of village was mostly bare of any houses or establishment, no sound or commotion could be detected from the other side of the tall wall.