It takes a few minutes more time to the infirmary because of your slow walking. Your thigh is still hurting even with the painkillers in your system. Yoojin and Jongdae are patience enough to follow your pace and not to rush you.

The infirmary is also a big and nice cottage house with a lot of rooms here and there. Yoojin leads you to the room where your three classmates are residing. First thing you noticed is a big pale pink vase by the corner with purple flowers in it. Then there are four beds and three of them are occupied. You see Doyoung already sitting up on his bed and looking as confused as ever.

His eyes widened at the three of you as soon as you guys entered. “Yo-you guys! Oh God! You guys are still alive! Thank god” his eyes start to brim with tears. The soft-hearted girl Yoojin is, she goes towards him, leaning forward to his bed to give him a hug. “Don’t cry! Of course we’re still alive”

Jongdae walks over to the only window in the room, watching Doyoung and Yoojin, while you awkwardly stand there in the center between the beds. Both Jaehyun’s and Eunha’s heart monitor shows their heartbeat, steady and normal. They’re still sleeping. A sense of relief comes to you seeing how your friends are still alive and not getting eaten. Now you hope that Minjung, Taeyong, Mirae and Kevin are to be found soon.

You still don’t know how to tell Ms. Jung when she knows all of you are still alive and just staying in the forest when you meet with her. What you are sure of is that all of you have to keep this werewolves’ village a secret. As much as it’s tempting to tell people about the existence of mythical creatures, their secrecy for their safety is also vital.

“Where have you three been? Did they save you too?”

You snap back from your trance when Doyoung starts to speak. Feeling a bit unsteady with your leg, you go to sit at the edge of his bed at the other side. Yoojin sat at the other side, nodding at him. “How long have you been awake?” you ask him. Seeing how he’s confused and still in panic, he must have just woken up.

“Maybe like an hour ago?” he replies, wiping his cheeks. He had stopped crying. “I woke up, saw Jaehyun and Eunha with me. I know this is not a hospital. The structure of this house is weird” he looks at the cottage walls before he looks back at you and Yoojin. “Then a nurse came inside to check on me. She said their hunt team found us unconscious last night. My left hand is sprained and I had concussion on the head, that’s all she said to me”

“What do you remember from yesterday? Where did you go after we split up?” you hear Yoojin ask before you could.

Doyoung blinks before he tries to rack his memories. “I don’t know where we went actually. We just ran for our lives. There’s a black wolf chasing us. I ended up with Jaehyun and Eunha. Jaehyun lost the phone too somewhere while we’re running” he starts, eyes blinking and looking at his sheet. “There’s one more wolf comes chasing us after we split up. That wolf chased Mirae, Minjung and Kevin before they went elsewhere that I couldn’t see them. The black one chased me, Jaehyun and Eunha. The last thing I remembered is we hid in a cave, we fell down on some dark steep hole we didn’t see inside the cave then I went off. Maybe the fall hit my head” he finished his story, his hand touching the bandage covering his head. Jongdae had found a glass and filled it with water to give to Doyoung.

After hydrated himself and stopped shaking, Doyoung asked about the three of you. So you and Yoojin, mostly Yoojin, tell the story of your part of the group to him after the whole split up. How we got chased by two wolves, you being almost mauled by one that had clawed your thigh and to the part where Baekhyun, Chanyeol and Sehun saved you three.

Doyoung’s eyes seem to be wide throughout the story. “So, you mean to tell me that twilight crap is real? Like men changing into wolves and then changing back is real?” he wonders. You’re amused by how he can even ask that kind of question first after Yoojin finished telling the story.

The girl happily nodded her head, “Yup. They got after changing too” You sputter on your saliva and coughing after hearing that, looking at her like ‘you didn’t just say that’. Jongdae patted your back and gave you water, his face chuckling at you. Doyoung snort at Yoojin’s words. The girl turns pink in the face after she realizes what she just said.

Oh Yoojin…

She clears , “Now we know how happy Eunha and Minjung are that the legendary wolves are real” she says, changing the topic and looking at Eunha’s bed. “Too bad we all have to experience the painful way” she adds afterwards, making you and Doyoung grimacing. Jongdae looks neutral, helping you to put the glass away. “We’re unlucky to meet the bad ones first. We should be meeting with the good ones like Baekhyun’s pack” she adds. You listen, while feeling the painkiller slowly running out its drug. The pain is gradually coming back to you.

“How do you think Ms. Jung will react when she sees us?” Doyoung wonders at us after Yoojin tells him that our homeroom teacher had made a search party for you guys. The three of you shrug.

“Probably happy? Relieved? She must be mad and panicking about us right now. How did she even tell our parents” Yoojin wondered, glancing at all of you. “I don’t know if I want to message my parents that I’m still alive. Because that means I have to tell them about all of this too” she continues.

“We have to plan something to say, create some story, if we want to keep this whole thing a secret” Doyoung said after a minute, looking both confused and baffled. “We do have to keep this a secret, right?”

Jongdae is the one who nods first before you. “We can’t let people know about them. They’ve been hiding their identities all these years. Some of them are centuries old. I don’t want to know what people would do if the whole existence of werewolves or mythical creatures are actually real being released to the public”

“They might hunt or experiment on them” Yoojin adds, the three of you miraculously nod at the same time, agreeing with her. Apparently Doyoung has the same understanding as you.

The three of you decided to wait for Eunha and Jaehyun to wake up as well as your other four group mates to be here before you can come out with something believable to tell to Ms. Jung and the whole people that is searching for you guys. “Wait, what if people already found Tae, Minjung, Mirae and Kevin? They could’ve told them” Doyoung asked after a nurse came to deliver food to him. He looks happy seeing food and starts eating, faster than you can blink. He must be hungry.

“Well, if that happens, there are two options they would come up with. One is that they believed them. Might upgrade the search for the rest of us and send in troops in animal killing or something. Two is they wouldn’t believe it because we’re still kids and just send them to the hospital. People will think them mental or making some stories up” Jongdae said. That was the most words you had ever heard from him.

The three of you pondered on what Jongdae had said. Before you all heard a groan. Simultaneously, heads turn towards Jaehyun’s bed where he wakes up. On the other hand, Yoojin notice Eunha’s fingers twitching, which she brightly exclaimed to you three. Now you feel more relieved that they have woken up.

Jongdae helps Jaehyun sit up on his bed while Yoojin helps Eunha because the girl won’t allow you to move with that injured leg of yours. Doyoung smiles widely at his friends. “Man, Jaehyun, you’re awake! God, are you guys really that attached to the hip? You two lovebirds even wake up at the same time”

“Shut up” Says Jaehyun back to the loud Doyoung, he’s holding his head. “God, my head hurts. What happened?”

Eunha groans then looking around cluelessly at the whole room and at all of you. “What happened?”

And so the story telling begins again. You keep quiet this time, just letting Yoojin, Doyoung and occasionally Jongdae telling them about it. The pain in your leg becomes more prominent that you wince quietly to yourself before trying to walk out the room to ask for some painkillers. Yoojin seems to be busy and excited in telling the story that she didn’t notice you walk out of the room. Jongdae sees you, looking like he wants to help but you wave a dismissive hand at him.

Once you’re out of the room, you begin to limp a bit as you head towards the counter or somewhere where there are nurses that you can ask for. Luckily, a nurse saw you limping in the hallway. You smile at her, “Hi, can I have some painkillers? I have a wound on my leg. The pain has come back now” you say to her, grimacing slightly. The nurse gladly nodded with “Be right back. While waiting, you can sit at the seating area” before she leaves you.

Seeing the couches a few meters away, you gladly choose to go there when a hand suddenly coming and steadying you the second you took a step forward. It’s Baekhyun.

“God, you scared me” you exclaim, a hand on your chest as you take a deep breath. Where did he even come from? He popped out of nowhere. He has his eyebrows furrowing together, worriedly looking at you. His hands on your arm and your waist — too close for your liking. But his warmth makes you quiet down. God, he’s like a blanket. You just want to snuggle up with him.

You quickly shake your head mentally when that thought comes to you. Feeling heat rush to your face, you look down at the floor and avoid looking at him as he helps you sit at the couch with him beside you. “You know you don’t have to help me. I’m here and if something happens the nurses will help” you muttered, directly at him. He frowns, not quite liking my words. “Why wouldn’t I help? You were limping and I can feel your pain. Of course I’ll go to you. I want to”

You sigh, resting your head at the headrest and glance at him. Seeing how his eyes look down at you, showing his concern and care to you. How you wish he didn’t look at you like this. It seems to be more possible for whatever theory you had in mind. It doesn’t sit well with you even though your insides are weirdly tingling. “Can’t you stop looking at me like that?” you blurt out quietly even though you know he hears you clearly. His gaze stays at you, “No” was his simple answer, firm but gentle.

After what felt like eternity of just gazing into his dark orbs, he brushes off the hair out my face, curling it behind my ear like he does many times before. It seems natural for him to do so. You don't feel like frowning anymore at his gestures. The nurse came, after a few seconds he did that, giving you the pills with a bottle of water. You gulped the pills down your throat, drinking it off with water. Baekhyun’s eyes never left you.

You cleared your throat, standing up from the couch. “I’m gonna go back to the room. All of them had woken up” you inform him, walking to the trash bin to throw the empty bottle. You turn back to Baekhyun, seeing him nod and following you. “I’ll go with you. I have to see them as well,”

You nod, avoiding looking him in the eye. That awkward feeling coming out of your skin now.

“And we found four of friends—“

That grabs your attention. You look at him immediately hearing that. His eyes startled at your sudden attention at him as he continues, “— two of them already went back to your camping site. The searching team found them. A boy and a girl” he says, you don’t know what to think about that.

“Two more my pack found them at the lake. They’re luckily conscious and fine. Some bruises and minor injuries. They’re in that room. We had just brought them there for our healer to check on them” he points to the room across the room where Doyoung and the rest are in. Your eyes wide at that. “They panicked when we first tried to bring them here. But they eventually agreed when we told them the rest of you were here. One of them fainted when my boys carried them here. Probably shock by the speed”

You have to keep in the urge to nod of how true his statement is because you fainted too when Baekhyun carried you. Even if it’s not the exact same reason but still, he was so fast. You can still remember how blurry and windy the ride was before you passed out. “Can we go see them? Is the healer still in there?” you ask him after snapping out of your thoughts.

“I think they’re still in there”

You nod, figuring you should go to them with the others as well. So you walk back to Doyoung’s room with Baekhyun beside you, readying himself if you ever stumble on your two left feet. When you enter the room, all eyes are on you and Baekhyun who is still stuck beside you. Yoojin giving you the wiggly eyes, you glare at her.

Eunha, Jaehyun and Doyoung look at Baekhyun with curious and confused eyes. You decide to sit at the closest bed which is Doyoung’s, sitting at the edge. The boy’s eyes looking back and forth between you and Baekhyun but ended up longer at the older man. “Who’re you—”

“Are you the boss here?” Eunha interrupted him, earning a stink eye from Doyoung. The girl’s eyes are twinkling in curiosity. Well, you can’t blame her. She loves the stories of mythical creatures and when finally it’s true and real, she would be ecstatic. “You’re a werewolf, right?” she adds.

Baekhyun nods his head, going closer to Doyoung’s bed which you knew better that he was just trying to be closer to you. Yoojin, who is sitting at Eunha’s bed, giving you her teasing gaze. You continued to glare at her. “Yes, I am. I’m the chief here, I’m the alpha if you may call it”

Eunha makes a ‘woah’ sound, clearly impressed and excited like a kid sees her favourite sweets. “What color is your wolf? Can I see?”

“Eunha, you can’t just ask someone like that. He doesn’t even know you. It’s rude” Doyoung chimes in, giving a disapproving look. Eunha scoffs, “I was just asking. He can say no too”

“Then you’ll sulk”

“Nonsence, I won’t”

“Eunha-ah, be quiet” Jaehyun says, quieting his girlfriend up before giving a look of ‘you too’ at Doyoung. He looks back at Baekhyun, “Sorry for that, sir. Are you the one that help them too?” he asks, pointed to you, Yoojin and Jongdae. When Baekhyun nods, Jaehyun quickly gives a bow. “Thank you, sir. We don’t know what to do when we’re chased by them. Can you find the rest of us? We had split up, sir. There’s four of us more. Taeyong, Kevin, Mirae and Minjung”

Your heart swells at how Jaehyun asks Baekhyun. How he was worried about you guys to be found, safe and sound. Now you notice how scared and awfully worried he is, when he should be the one to bring all of you back to the camping site on time. You know Jaehyun is not the all-best-responsible-leader of your class but he does try his best to be. You stare at Baekhyun, waiting for him to answer the anxious boy.

He smiles at all of you, “Don’t worry, kid. We found two of them. I’m not sure which one from the names but they’re in the room across from you—” That took their attention. “—And the other two already brought back to the camping site, your teacher’s search team had found them and brought them to a hospital” he explains, earning various looks from the lot of you. Most have wide eyes.

“Hyung, what did they say? Do you know? Did they say about wolves? Did they believe them?” questions coming out from Jongdae’s mouth. He had changed from standing to sitting on Jaehyun’s bed a while ago. Doyoung and Yoojin also seem concern about it like Jongdae while Jaehyun seems confused again but there is relief in his eyes when he hears it. His heavy shoulders seem to be lighter as he leans on his bed’s headrest. Eunha is just confused and blurred about their expressions.

Baekhyun’s eyes are unreadable when you look at it. “My boys said they did. They talked about big wolves the size of a mammoth chasing them and wanting to eat them” Doyoung’s eyes widened. “But your friends are too tired and traumatized. They were immediately sent to the hospital. I’m not sure whether the officer who led the team believed them or not but the forest’s compound staff already knew about the legend stories so they told the officer. The last time I heard from my boys was that they wanted to hold a search team to find the wolves but the forest’s compound refused”

You’re wondering what is happening to your friends, Ms. Jung, and all that involved with this whole situation on the other side. If there is a search team and they went beyond the fence and went into sector three, then they would find this village.

Baekhyun seems to know what your thoughts are when he gazes at you. “Don’t worry. If they do come here, we just tell them we’re just ordinary village tribe that lived here for generations. They won’t do anything and if they do, we just have to use the law on them. This forest is our territory, it’s under me and my family” he calmly explained it to you, his eyes are readable again. Amusement, care, worry, respect and fondness. How you can read him through his eyes is beyond you. Also, he has a little smirk on him.

You blink and look away from his eyes, suddenly feeling that all the eyes are on you. And they are. Yoojin is smiling teasingly again which you gladly ignore.

After the whole search team situation and the whole secrecy of werewolves’ identity resolve, Jongdae, Doyoung and Yoojin seem to relax more. Doyoung seems to care a lot more about this whole thing that it surprised you. You wondered about it to him when the rest were talking to Baekhyun about the village and some wolves related things. Jaehyun had sat next to Eunha. “Hey, even though I don’t believe them before but I’m not that dumb to let it out when I know now. It’s their secret, not mine” he gives you the eye. “And I admit it’s rather cool though. The whole mythical legend vibe. Can’t believe Eunha and Minjung are right after all this time. I thought they were just some useless blabbering” he adds. You can’t help but to snort. “Hey, Seoyeon-ah”

You hum, seeing him asking you but not looking at you. “What?”

“Do you have something with that Baekhyun guy? He just can’t seem to not look at you, you know” with what he said, you glance at Baekhyun and true he’s looking at you a second before turning back to Eunha to answer her question. You turn back to Doyoung and he’s looking at you with raise brows. “Did you already know him before this whole thing or he’s just into you that fast at first sight?”

You give him your glare. Before you can even say something, Jongdae appeared, sitting on the bed on the other side. “Yeah, what’s the story Seoyeon-ah” and suddenly turning into a gossiper. He has a teasing grin like Doyoung. You don’t know whether you prefer the old Jongdae or this new Jongdae. “You’re being chippier since you came here” you comment.

The boy shrugs, “Must be the air here. So?” he’s still smiling that teasing look. Both of them are. You purse your lips at their waiting faces. You really don’t want to tell them your problem. It’s not something you want to tell people, with the exception of Yoojin because she pushed the words out of you. “I don’t have anything to say to you two” you let out to them, giving your firm answer.

Doyoung nudges you by his foot under the covers, “Oh, C’mon. He looks like he’s really into you. He likes you”

“That’s his issue not mine” you retort.

“You’re terrible”

“So what?”

“No wonder you’re always single”

You glare at Doyoung, standing up to hit him. He’s laughing while wincing and trying to block your hits. “Yah, yah, stop hitting me. You’re making him jealous” in between all the hits, he still can joke about it. What’s more embarrassing is that Baekhyun heard all of it.

“Yah, what happened? What’s so funny?” Eunha suddenly joined. You stop hitting Doyoung at once. Jongdae is chuckling at the side. All heads looking at you and Doyoung. Wow, the attention.

“No, nothing’s happened. He’s just being an ” you say and Jaehyun just shakes his head before turning to Eunha. You glance at Baekhyun and maybe you shouldn’t, after noticing the dark look on Baekhyun. Looking at you and Doyoung beside you.

“See, he’s jealous” the audacity of that boy to whisper into your ear, a stupid smile on him. Like he’s enjoying the reactions. You turn to him and now, you realize how close you two are.

Quickly you stand away from the bed, frowning. “Urgh whatever you say, I’m going to find the toilet” and then as swiftly as you can with a wounded thigh, you walk out of the room. As you predicted, Baekhyun walked out of the room as well a few seconds after. You stop walking before he can stop you. You’re in another hallway, empty from people, still trying to find the toilet.

“What?” you turn to him when sensing his presence but startled by how close, like really close he is standing with you. “Ya-yah—“

You shut your mouth when he suddenly hugs you. Any words you wanted to say to him blew out of the window. He’s nozzling his nose in your neck, his arms tightly around your waist. “Yah, Bae-baekhyun-ah” you croaked out, your mind seems to be hazy by the feeling, by the way he’s touching you. Your hands are dumbly touching his shoulders. You feel stupid for reacting like this. “Why are you hugging me. Let go”

“You really do like testing me, aren’t you”

“I’m not testing you. Since when did I testing you—“

“Then why wouldn’t you say yes?” his lips caress the skin on your neck, slowly pressing each kiss from your neck to your jawline, your earlob, your cheek and the side of your lips. Each kiss leaves you breathless. You are speechless. Your body is reacting weirdly to him, you don’t like it but at the same time you don’t have the energy to push him away. When he meets your eyes, nose touching, lips brushing on yours that you feel your insides melting. “I’ve waited”

You blink, breathless. “You said you’re gonna wait, didn’t you”

He groaned out throaty, almost like a growl. “I did but after being close to you like this, I don’t think I can. I don’t think I can wait anymore” he kisses the side of your lips again and lowering down his head to nozzle at your neck again. His hands caressing your back, your hip, everywhere, like he’s marking you. You feel some tight feeling in your stomach, those weird tingles fluttering in it. You’re still breathless and speechless to do anything. You’re not sure what to answer him. “Baekhyun-ah—“

“You know, don’t you?”

“Wh-what?”

“You know why I’m like this. You already know why I want you” he has stopped to look in your eyes again, forehead on yours. His arms are still holding you tightly. You gulp of seeing his eyes. His eyes flashing an intense deep shade of gold. Black flecks twinkling in those golden orbs, staring deeply but gently at you.

“I-I only realized it just after I woke up” you answered honestly, mesmerized by his eyes. “I don’t want to believe it but it seems impossible now from how you’re acting with me”

He frowns, just slightly.

“I’m not a wolf. I don’t feel that connection like yo—Uhm!” He poundes his mouth on yours, shutting you with a kiss, hard. Your heart is pounding hard in your chest, feeling like it wants to burst out from it. The tingles increase by a mile, spreading to your whole body. Heat rushes to your head, making you lightheaded. You don’t know why or when but you’re already kissing him back, hard and needy as much as him. His hands are roaming on your body, tightly securing you, afraid that you might run away. Your arms link around his shoulder and neck, hands in his hair, gripping them gently as your mouth mould with him.

The kiss is passionate and hard, like something you’ve been waiting for. Your mind is fuzzy, your body is heating and you feel you can’t control your body anymore. The kiss doesn’t seem to stop any time soon but your lungs start burning for air. Baekhyun senses it, breaking your lips with a loud ‘pop’ before attaching your forehead together. You gasp heavily for air, your mind drifting and very lightheaded. You heard his light chuckle. “What did you say about no connection? Did you really not feel anything? Hmm? Really?” he teases, brushing your gasping mouth lightly, leaving sparks on the contact. He pecks you before chuckling again with a light sigh. “God, do you know how long I’ve waited to do that”

He leans away to look in your eyes. His eyes are still shining brightly golden, his eyes smiling brightly, turning into crescents. Your heart starts pacing fast again, Oh God. You blink at him, seeing how adorable he looks when smiling like that. He leans down to peck your mouth again, startling you but calm down right after. He kissed your forehead before looking at you again, mesmerizing you with his gentle gaze again. “You’re my mate, Seoyeon-ah. Even if you’ll push me away. I’ll push back forward to you” he says, curling your hair behind your ear.

“What happens if I say no” you gaze right up to him. Your mind coming back clearer.

His smile falters, “Are you?”

You stare and stare. You want to say ‘yes’ or ‘maybe’ but your mouth won’t let you. A short glimpse of hands pushing you to the ground, shouting at you suddenly flashing in your eyes, momentarily making you freeze. Those images quickly replaced by gentle orbs, warm hands cupping your face. “Hey, what’s wrong? What happened?” Baekhyun’s soft and low voice fills your ears, removing those hideous shouts. His eyes gradually grow worried at you the longer you are quiet. “Seoyeon-ah, what’s wrong. Why are you crying”

That’s when you feel his fingers wiping the tears falling from your eyes — you’re crying. He wraps his arm around you, hugging you, calming you. His warmth covering you like that black blanket. Unknowingly, you smile. You smile and slowly hug him back, nozzling your face at the crook of his neck while he tightens his hold around you.

🌻🌻🌻

Baekhyun was patience and didn’t force you to tell about what had been going through you and let you cry until you’re finished. He wiped the tears from your cheeks, kissing the tears away on each one. The touch sends sparks up to your bones.

The search for the toilet had long been abandoned and you didn't actually want to find it in the first place. You shake yourself better, to stop or prevent any more sadness invading you before anyone of your friends can see the tears.

It was night time, Baekhyun advise for all of you to rest and continue tomorrow. They didn’t argue nor ask what happened between you and Baekhyun and you’re thankful they didn’t ask because you don’t know what to say either. Doyoung, Jaehyun and Eunha stayed in their room while you, Yoojin, Jongdae and Baekhyun went back to his loft.

Yoojin wouldn’t stop glancing at you in worry and nudging you to say something. You only nudge her back lightly with ‘I’m fine’ or ‘I’m ok’ or ‘Nothing’s wrong’ all the while Baekhyun is still walking beside you. The slight brushing between your hands while walking didn’t make it better, leaving body with goosebumps crawling on your skin and your cheeks warmer.

You know your situation with Baekhyun is changing, the air around you two is different. After that kiss, nothing is normal now. After that realization that you are his mate, everything is going to be different. And you’re not sure what to think of it.

Baekhyun’s loft, you just realized, has many rooms. Last night, Jongdae slept in one and Yoojin slept in one as well while you were put inside his own bedroom. Yoojin mentioned that Baekhyun let you on his bed while he slept elsewhere.

“Are you sleeping with him tonight?” she asks when it’s just you girls alone. Jongdae has gone to the guest room, Baekhyun has a quick check or something with Chanyeol, leaving the both of you together. You keep quiet, wondering whether it is wise to sleep so