You were pretty sure this wasn’t going to work, but any alternative seemed just as stupid.

Clipboard in hand along with a fake syllabus you’d spent all last night making, you marched up to the front desk of the museum. Well, not really “marched”. You were trying to give off the impression that you were a nervous, harmless college student, so it was more like a slow shuffle up to the woman who held the key to your target.

“Excuse me?” you said quietly. You kept your gaze down, only flicking it up for a second or so to look at the museum worker.

She smiled at you. “Yes, how can I help you?”

You cleared your throat. “I’m, uh, I’m supposed to be doing this project on ancient Greek pottery for class and our professor is giving us extra credit if we use the examples that were supposed to be on display here, but I guess they’ve been taken down?” Thank you, overly helpful museum bulletin for that nice piece of information. “I didn’t realize that when I started my paper and I’m already falling behind in this class and I just – I really need – do you think-” You putting on the fully blown desperation act. If you kept going the snot and tears would be flowing soon enough.

Sympathy was written clear as day all over the secretary’s face. “Oh, dear. Give me a moment and let me see if the curator is here. I’m sure we can let you see the vases for a few minutes.”

“Thank you,” you hiccuped. Scurrying out of her seat, the secretary left the main lobby and disappeared into another part of the museum.

Now along, you quickly surveyed her desk. The keycard you were searching for was lying conspicuously right next to the mouse for the taking. But you had to leave it there. Snatching it right now would be too obvious. However….

As nonchalantly as you could, you knocked over the display of pencils that were resting in a mug with the museum’s logo printed on the smooth surface. Just as you were hoping, it clattered onto the desk, spilling the pencils everywhere.

Keeping up appearances for the camera, you hurried to the other side, clumsily trying to put them all back in the cup. While one hand was occupied with the mess, the other was working on opening the drawers as sneakily as possible.

Bingo.

Three extra keycards were lying there in the drawer, just waiting to be taken. You pocketed one and then closed the drawer before putting the mug back and rounding the desk once more. Phase One: complete.

A minute or so later, the secretary was back, along with the curator of the museum. She was a kind looking woman, in her fifties or so. You almost felt a little bad for lying and taking from her. Almost.

Guilt was certainly an emotion that followed you around lately. Its point of origin was one that you didn’t want to think about. Going into that part of your mind… it was too dangerous. A fog would begin to take over your thoughts and you didn’t know up from down, wrong from right. Everything grayed together with no visible way of separating it again. It was best to stay out of that mindset as much as you could.

“I’m told that you’re supposed to be doing a project on Greek pottery?” the curator asked.

You nodded, holding out your clipboard for her to see. “It’s a pretty big paper. I need to do well on it if I want to pass the class. It’s not my major, but-”

“That’s alright, dear,” the curator smiled at you. “Just follow me.” Without really waiting to see if you were behind her, the curator led you straight to the back door that you’d seen the alpha slip into before. Maybe you didn’t need the keycard after all.

Sliding her own keycard that was clipped to her jacket’s lapel, the curator opened that forbidden door and motioned for you to go inside.

The left side of the long hallway was dotted with doors also locked up tight, but instead of just being able to swipe the card again, each door was secured by a keypad that required the right number sequence to enter.

Crap.

To make matters even more difficult, the curator covered the keypad so you wouldn’t accidentally see the code she was typing in. Not that it would help you at all. Each door probably had its own sequence. And you didn’t need to get to the pottery. You needed another door that held something even more valuable.

In the room you didn’t really need to enter were rows and rows of faded, cracked pottery safely guarded behind thick glass that was padlocked shut. On the table in the middle was a two-hundred-plus catalog explaining each piece’s history.

“I’ll let you spend some time in here,” she said. “You may take pictures, but, please, don’t use your flash, and let me know if you have any questions.”

“Thank you so much!” you smiled. “You’re a life saver!”

The curator waved your compliment off, but seemed extremely pleased to be praised. She left you alone as promised without another word. Your lips snapped back into their normal neutral state.

Now what?

You still didn’t know which door you needed to get through and now you had another obstacle standing in your way. You were going to need outside help again.

Shoving the clipboard into your bag, you turned the handle and propped the door open with your bag so you didn’t accidentally lock yourself out. Technology was definitely not your strong suit, but even you could tell that hacking this dinosaur of a keypad wasn’t going to be easy. You pulled out your phone, taking a few pictures of the pad from different angles and sending them off to Carter before dialing his number.

“You sure are racking up the favors now, aren’t you?” was his greeting.

“Shut up,” you hissed. “I’ve hit another snag, that’s all. I’m pretty sure the book is behind a lock like the one I sent you. But I don’t have a way of getting the code.”

“Did you look to see which numbers are faded?” Carter asked snarkily.

You mimicked him quietly before replying, “From what I can see, none of them are faded enough to give me even an inkling of what the combination could be.”

“Welp, you’re SOL.”

“Excuse me?”

“That’s an older basic model,” he explained. “No port for maintenance, so no hacking it from there. It doesn’t work wirelessly from what I can see, so you can’t get in that way either.”

“Fan-freaking-tastic,” you growled through clenched teeth. “I might as well just break the door down.”

“Now that doesn’t sound very subtle.”

Before you could retort, the sound of the main door’s keypad beeping reached your ears. You hung up with Carter without even saying goodbye and rushed back into the room, shoving the door closed. But it wasn’t the curator coming to check up on you.

Two male voices passed by your door, making your ears perk up.

“I don’t know. I just don’t think there’s any more in the book about them that we don’t already know, Junmyeon.” At the sound of Luhan’s voice, your heart lept in your chest and it wasn’t out of nervousness. You pressed a hand over it as if to try and calm or quiet it down. Such a simple thing like hearing his voice shouldn’t be making you react like this. The thick gray fog was starting to cloud your mind again and you almost missed the vital information about to be passed in front of you.

“I know. But there might be something about hunters in there that we missed.” A heavy sigh came after that comment. “I’ve never heard of them actually sending someone undercover before. They’ve always preferred to just attack in numbers. I don’t know how to fight this.”

So, they knew about you. Well, at least partially. . Now you were going to have to be even more careful. You felt like a sitting duck. You couldn’t go home with your tail between your legs just because the wolves started sniffing around. Johnny would never let you hear the end of it, even if your parents said it was okay to put personal safety first. No, you had to stay and see this through.

At least, that’s what you told yourself was keeping you here.

When you heard another door open, you decided that was your time to leave. Checking to make sure the hallway was clear, you quietly made your way out back into the main lobby. You nodded to the secretary, who waved goodbye to you, completely unaware that you were walking out with one of her precious keycards.

As soon as you were out on the front steps, however, a hand grabbed your wrist. Whirling around, you tried to break the hold, but your heel lost balance on the edge of the first step, nearly sending you backwards until Luhan caught you around your waist.

“Whoa, there!” he chuckled as he steadied the two of you out.

Now your mind was really messed up. Standing there, slightly leaned back while Luhan hovered over you with his arm around you was making you feel… somehow calm and in hyper drive at the same time. The instinct to fight and get away from the supernatural wolf was being beaten by something else that couldn’t be named. A shimmer in Luhan’s eyes brought you back to your senses, pushing him away.

“Don’t you know better than to just randomly grab people?” you snapped.

“I’m sorry.” But there wasn’t really any apologetic evidence in his face. He was looking at you with a soft expression that had never been sent your way before. You didn’t like it.

“Did you need something?” You crossed your arms. Your gut reaction whenever he was around was to put up a titanium wall that couldn’t be stormed through. What could possible happen if you didn’t was an experience you weren’t sure you could live through.

“I-” He stopped. “Just checking on you. Since you left rather quickly last week.”

“I’m fine,” you reassured him a little curtly. “But I have to go.”

He nodded. “I’ll see you later.” Shoulders drooping, he turned and headed back inside the museum. Your foot took a step towards him involuntarily before you could stop yourself. You blinked.

What were you doing? Get out of there!

Forcing yourself to turn back around, you flitted down the steps and to the bus stop where you could get away from the area as fast as possible. You ignored the rattling of the window as you pressed your forehead up against the cool glass. Understanding was starting to come to you, thought you still couldn’t fully explain it. There was just something about that boy – that wolf – that was stirring up your stomach and making your heart flutter. You felt calmer after looking into those dravite eyes. Like the world and time themselves were no longer moving and you didn’t have to worry about what was coming next because you at least had that moment.

But you did have to worry. The wolves now knew that there was a hunter under their noses, learning about them. You didn’t know if they knew that you were trying to get to their closely guarded secret. The one you now knew for sure was kept in the museum. And maybe that could still give you the advantage. Would you be able to carry out your mission and get away without blowing your cover?

Did you even want to succeed anymore?

The idea of letting everyone back home down was just adding to your stress. Some would be quick to label you a coward. Others would just shrug and say they knew it would be a failure from the beginning. Most believed that the straightforward approach was best. Ambush the pack and take them out. None of this sneaking around and playing games for those people like Johnny, who couldn’t care less about the book and its secrets.

Maybe the reason they preferred it that way was because then they could stay disconnected. They didn’t see them interact on a daily basis or watch them laugh and do basic human things. Was that what was going on with you? Were you becoming like John Smith or Sam Worthington’s character in Avatar? Were you simply becoming sympathetic to the wolves?

That didn’t explain the way Luhan plagued your mind or invaded your dreams. Nothing did. Except…

Once – when you were fifteen or so – your parents brought in another hunter to train you in archery. His name was Darien, a few years older than you, maybe in his early twenties or so, you couldn’t remember. He had dark blue eyes framed by jet black hair that made his features even more striking. With a tall stature and a body that he took great care of, it was no wonder that the other girls were jealous of your one-on-one tutoring. But none of that was the reason that you soon fell head over heels for him. It was how he handled the bow, how quick he could be, the best at combining speed and accuracy while maintaining grace in every movement. There was an elegance to the way he shot the arrows. Soon, your eyes started inserting a glow around his whole person every time you stared at him.

Looking back, you were utter humiliated at how upset you were when you found out he was already engaged to someone else, like you ever actually stood a chance. You were a kid, he was a grown adult. But you were convinced that you were in love him. Typical teenager angst.

That was the one and only time in your life that you’d ever felt those kinds of emotions towards someone and therefore that was all you had to compare with whatever it was that Luhan was doing to you.

But there was no comparison. Not really. The two incidents felt isolated, on completely different planets. With Darien, it was more of an adoration. No matter how hard you racked your brain, trying to figure it out, you couldn’t understand what the underlining definition of your emotions towards Luhan was.

Now back at your apartment after riding the bus around and around for a few hours, you found yourself standing in front of the bulletin board, contemplating where you should go from here. Part of you honestly just wanted to rip the whole thing down, tear it to shreds and run away.

No. You couldn’t do that. So, instead, you did the next best thing.

You took the board off the wall and stuffed it into your closet before swinging the door closed. You needed a drink.

Before leaving you changed into a more bar appropriate outfit, getting out of the innocent college student gear of a hoodie and jeans. Sliding your arms into your favorite jean jacket, you locked up behind you and began to walk towards the business district where a majority of the bars were located to give easy access to the university population.

You passed by the first few bars you came across, deciding that they were too full from your view through the windows. Being around crowds of careless drunks was not what you were wanting at the moment. Not that you would protest possibly throwing a punch at a drunk frat boy who thought he could invade your personal space because he worked out.

Remember, these methods are only to be used in self-defense came your mother’s voice in your head.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

The next bar that caught your eye was exactly where you didn’t need to go.

The Moonlight.

You should keep walking. You should not put yourself in any position to be closer to the confusing wolf. You should find another bar on the other side of town and –

You walked inside the bar, hating the fact that, while not empty and secluded, it definitely wasn’t as rowdy as the others you’d nixed. Maybe they weren’t even actually that full. Maybe your brain was self-consciously taking you here. What an idiot.

The next preventative step to avoid disaster would have been to sit at one of the small round tables as far away from the bar as you could get. So, naturally, you sat right down in Luhan’s section of the bar.

“What can I get you?” he asked in the most droll voice when he approached.

“What?” you frowned. “No friendly greeting? Not even a smile?” His unusually gruff demeanor was not what you expected – and you didn’t like it. Great, even more of a reason for that drink.

“From our run-in earlier, I didn’t think you were in a friendly mood,” he replied. “In fact, I’m kind of surprised to see you in here.”

“I’m sorry,” you sighed, looking down at your nails. There wasn’t much to pick at, but you managed to do so anyway. “I shouldn’t have treated you like that. Things are just… very complicated in my head right now.”

There was that smile you’d come to know. “Well, then. I guess you came to the right place to clear it up again.”

You pointed at him in a very un-menacing manner. “That’s the plan. So, can I get a whiskey and coke?”

Luahn made a face. “So boring.”

“I’m not drinking for pleasure.”

Still slightly smiling, Luhan narrowed his eyes at you before expertly flipping a short glass onto the bar, simultaneously filling it with whiskey from the large bottle and coke from the nozzle after adding ice. He slide the full glass over to your side. “There you go. A glass of boring sugar.”

Maybe you were being a little cheeky, you took the glass and gulped down the drink in just a few chugs, dropping it down on the bar with a slight clatter just for emphasis.

Luhan just stared at you. “That was fast.”

You shrugged. “I told you. I wasn’t drinking for pleasure.”

His look of awe slowly transformed into a look of concern. “What’s going on, (y/n)? You don’t seem like the kind of person who normally does this.”

“I….” You laughed. “I honestly don’t know how to describe it.” Because it’s all about you. “I just need to… not think for a little bit.”

“That’s not a healthy coping mechanism,” he pointed out.

“No, but I didn’t necessarily say I was looking for a healthy solution, now did I?” You didn’t think there was one anyway. Sitting here across from him was making it a little better, even if you were still just as confused. Maybe it wasn’t the alcohol that you needed in the end.

You weren’t a consistent drinker and that first glass was already starting to hit you. But when Luhan started filling up it up again, you didn’t protest. You did, however, take this one a little slower.

“Hae In’s going to throw a fit when she finds out you went out without her,” Luhan chuckled after walking away for a minute to help another patron.

“Oh, Innie will live,” you smiled.

Luhan frowned thoughtfully at the nickname. “Why do you call her that?”

You cringed, both from the sting of a particularly strong gulp and the question. “Well, when I was younger, I couldn’t pronounce Hae In very well. Or at all, really. So we came up with Innie as an alternative. It just kind of stuck ever since.”

“It’s cute.”

You pursed your lips. “Cute is not normally a word associated with me.”

Leaning forward, Luhan rested on his elbows, a smoldering gaze blazing in his eyes. “Well, I think you’re very cute.”

Okay. That was… flirty. Now you were blushing. You could actually feel your cheeks and neck burning up. But just as you opened your mouth, another customer called out for Luhan, making him straighten up and leave you alone to do his job. You downed the rest of the drink in a sad attempt to cool yourself down.

Fun fact: alcohol heats you up and now you were practically on fire. The jacket came off to help with the heat, draping it over the back of your chair for safe keeping.

You stayed for several hours, slowly sipping on another two drinks while talking to Luhan in between other patrons demanding his attention for refills. Though it was ultimately a short amount of time, it just might have been some of the best hours you’d ever spent on this planet. You’d laughed and smiled the whole time, getting to know Luhan on the human level that you never were meant to. But you didn’t care. You liked spending time with him like this. Why had you been so resistant to it in the past?

As the night grew older, you decided it was time to head home. Luhan’s own grin faded when he saw you get up from your seat. When you got to your feet, however, you started to wobble unsteadily and he hopped over the counter, using only one of his hands as a base on the bard before landing in front of you.

“Well, that was impressive,” you giggled. Oh, yeah. You weren’t drunk, per se, since you still had good control over yourself and there was only one Luhan, but you were definitely tipsy.

“Okay, I’m walking you home.” Luhan turned to tell his coworkers but you slapped his chest.

“No, I’m fine.”

He ignored you. “Hey, guys, I’m going to see her home since we’re pretty slow. Just put her tab on me.”

“Okay!” One of the female bartenders yelled back, waving the two of you goodbye.

Luhan waited for you to put on your jacket, snickering at your struggle, and then he escorted you out of the bar with a hand at the small of your back.

The night air felt so good against your skin. You walked in the direction of your apartment with ease, albeit still a little wobbly, just enjoying the quiet. It wasn’t quite closing time yet and so only those wanting to beat the crowds were heading to their cars or calling services to pick them up.

“I think I like you like this,” Luhan suddenly said.

You whipped your head at him, surprised. “Intoxicated?”

“Oh, no!” he laughed at his own slip up. “I just meant… more relaxed. You don’t seem like you’re looking for a way out this time.”

“That’s because I think I might give up looking for a way out,” you admitted.

Luhan stopped in his tracks. “You… what?”

But you didn’t elaborate. You just kept on walking in the direction of home, staring up above. The moon was getting smaller, waning more and more each night until it disappeared again. You hated that. You preferred big and bright, like a flashlight in the sky.

“So, are you going to stay? Here in town?” Luhan tried again.

“Yeah,” you sighed. “For now. While I can.”

The mood was dampening again, but Luhan could be counted on to lighten it up again after walking a couple blocks in silence. “So, did you come to my bar to see me?”

You scoffed, your acting as if that was ridiculous being of terrible quality. “No. Everywhere else was just full of people. I don’t like people.”

“But you like me?” He was giving you a crooked smile.

You shook your head, now walking backwards to face him. “I’m not allowed to like anybody. Especially….” You stopped yourself from exposing what you knew. Good. You weren’t that intoxicated to make that slip.

Luhan raised an eyebrow. “Especially….”

You pulled a dumb category out of the air, telling in a flirty manner, “Especially the unmanly kind.”

His jaw dropped, offended. “And you’re sticking me in that category?”

“Pretty boys aren’t usually manly,” you giggled, even patting his head for good measure.

“Not manly, huh?” Taking you up on your challenge, Luhan scooped you up in his arms, twirling you around while you cried out in joy.

When you were back on your feet, you were more unstable than ever but you couldn’t stop laughing. That’s when you realized that you were right outside your door now.

“This, uh,” you cleared your throat. “This is me.”

Disappointment was all over Luhan’s face now that the journey had ended. “Oh. Okay. Well, I’m glad you made it home safe. Sleep well.”

He turned to leave, but you stopped him by grabbing his sleeve. “Wait.”

Hope now filled his eyes as he stared back at you. This was the ultimate crossroads. You either let him go, staying where you were and reverting back to your previous guarded self or you took the plunge and explored what it was that you were feeling for him. Either way, you knew there was no turning back. You knew exactly what you were doing when the next two words left your mouth.

“Stay. Please.”

Wordlessly, Luhan nodded.

Feeling like you were moving in slow motion, you turned and unlocked the door. You stepped into your apartment with Luhan right behind you. With this seemingly harmless choice, you knew you were committing the ultimate betrayal. But regret was nowhere to be found.