Sixteen

He was swimming in darkness, and while it wasn’t anything new or unusual, it left him ill. There was something he was forgetting, something prodding him to awaken, to boldy react. Sluggishly, Kris’s eyes peeled open, the world around him a blur, his vision blotched with fuzzy shapes and odd colors.

Blinking furiously, he struggled to restore some clarity, a mobile figure illuminating his dim environment. As the images stabilized and took on familiar forms, Kris realized he was in a white room – headquarters- and Luhan had been the brightly lit figure attending to him, changing his bandages.
Despite the fact that he regained consciousness, he wasn’t sure how to proceed, his scattered knowledge further complicating the matter.

Noticing the big lug had come back to reality, Luhan collected the old, stained cloths and bandages, grinning like the fiend he was. His milky-white arms propped themselves along the bed, cupping his smooth features, his irises twinkling at his weakened leader. “You are the definition of a dog.” Luhan teased, wringing forth the moment Kris held Chaerin close, his person . “If your actions were any indications, I’d say you were a player. Weren’t you supposed to buy her dinner first?”

Kris groaned, brushed off his friend’s remarks – the last thing he needed was to be mocked in his current situation. However, it reminded him that he lost consciousness prior to securing Chaerin's total safety. It suddenly made sense why his conscience brutally nagged him. “Where is she? What has become of her?”

The glowing imp smiled tightly. “Our brothers have already decided her fate, Kris.”

“That was foolish of you to word it so. Must you always be so dramatic?” Lay chided as he joined his older brother. Luhan’s words had Kris recklessly bolting from the room, the swathes stretching and tearing as he ran. Lay was quite concerned for his leader, his body had not yet fully recovered from the battle, and he surely ripped open fresh wounds.

Cheeky grin plastered permanently onto his face, Luhan replied, “What can I say? It’s in my nature.” Leaning against the recliner, he asked, “Are you jealous? I mean, even Xiumin is a little envious. Hell, I won’t deny how struck with green I am.”

Softly, Lay sighed, crossed his arms. “It’s just, Kris has never let his guard down in front of us, in front of me. I’m the closest to him, and he has stubbornly refused to show any weakness with me. He’s shouldered everything by himself.” He nervously tugged at his brown curl. “How could she get him so riled? So raw? For Christ’s sakes, after all the history we have, how can I not be upset?”

It seemed smiling was all Luhan could do; it usually solved the problems presented to him. Alas, his smile could not prevent the imminent trouble, much less resolve petty issues. “Perhaps, it proves that our distant leader does have a heart, that he is more than just a beast.”

-Flashback-

Jaws unhinged, they stared awestruck at a fellow brother nuzzling a human girl. The proximity and brewing intimacy had them unnerved and uncomfortable. Animosity spiked in the wolves that bluntly disliked humans, and to personally witness a fellow brother coddle one fleshy brat did not help them reign in their anger.

Eyelids sagging, Kris instinctively rested his forehead against Chaerin’s, his grip on her person tightening. Slipping into a daze, he leaned towards her ear, and whispered her name, his breath tickling her neck. She shivered and next thing she knew he fell into her, his lean build smacked up against her small form, his head taking refuge on her chest. His weight almost proved too much, her body threatening to topple, until his boys stepped in and pulled him off.

Words escaped Chaerin as they hauled him away, her hand unconsciously extending in his direction, desperate to return him to her hold. Kai glared at her actions, a canine displayed to still her selfish desires. The half of boys she had not been exposed to emanated a vibe that demanded outright she ‘back the off’, their beady eyes observing her, any wrong move on her part resulting in a swift death.

Or, so they led her to believe.

Retracting her unwelcomed hand, she looked on bemusedly, curiously. Tao and Lay continued the process of carrying their leader, meanwhile Suho joined Chaerin, addressed her shortly.

“Thank you for all that you have done, truly. But it ends today.” His splitting words were unsurprising, his soft tone of voice drilling a needle into her heart. “Do yourself a favor and stay away from our business. We’re already forgiving of the fact that you are still existing with this knowledge. Our brothers have acknowledged that you are to be trusted in at least keeping this secret. I, however, will draw the line there. We will no longer interfere in your affairs, therefore, it would be wise to avoid ours.”

And he grasped her chin, brought her forward to meet his yellow gaze. “I apologize for the first few incidents my boys caused. It will not happen again, rest assured. You should lie low, we’re not granting you any protection in case that other pack attacks. In fact, if I were you I would be loading this instant.”

She tore away from his grasp, her eyes dancing with rising anger. Among the few that could stand a human, they bowed and the lot retreated. Solely Luhan lingered by her, Xiumin awaiting him up ahead.

Quietly, she whispered his name, “Luhan.” It was all it took for him to envelope her in a bone-crushing hug, tears pricking her eyes in the process. “This is only goodbye for now. How could you ever continue on with your life if you didn’t see this face at least twice a week?” She was tearing up, trying so desperately to laugh. Ah, she was just so done, just so tired.

Why were things spiraling out of control?

Aware of his lies, she lightly hit his chest, her small fist hardly denting his flesh; his eyes always gave him away. “You could try to be convincing, you idiot.”

“I’m sorry, Chaerin.”

“No, I’m sorry.”

“I can take you home.”

One last time.

She could practically hear their sharpened nails dig into the dirt, raking leavings, crunching twigs, accompanied by their gruff breathing as they pursued her. Chaerin was sprinting, a stitch in her side burning, pleading for her to rest, lest she want an upset stomach on her hands, as well as a loss of consciousness.

Huffing, she faced the trespassers, sets of yellow and orange eyes staring straight into her soul, paralyzing her with fear. A scream poured out from her dry throat, the result harsh and painful. Accepting death had finally come for her, she discovered a lone wolf with sharp crimson eyes, and she collapsed to her knees, relieved.

Her heart settled until he decided to bark and lunge for her, his jaws coated in thick blood.

Drenched in sweat, Chaerin sat forward, heaving, clutching her racing heart.

Night flooded the room she was in, and her bleary sight made it difficult to decipher her surroundings; the only solution she could think of was to run out, away from the unknown. Her feet pounded against the hard-wood floor, and her arms smacked against the first door she came across, her hand twisting the knob shakily.

It swung open and stars twinkled merrily at her, lighting her backyard into full view. Exhaling hoarsely, her knees gave out and she rested on the ground. That was right, she made it back home after that awful incident. Luhan returned her safe and sound to where she resided, how could she have forgotten?

Perhaps, it was the prick she felt at the thought of being torn from them that eclipsed the truth. And Kris…

“Ugh,” She moaned, pitched forward. Her thoughts were running freely and chaotically, a resulting headache poisoning her. She huddled against her door, and silently hoped everyone was okay.

A shudder fell down along her back, a sense of foreboding hanging over her head.

Clear nails danced along the binding of a book, a recipe on strawberry smoothies currently entrancing the owner. Chaerin’s school was momentarily off for a week, a signal that the second semester was nearing its completion. It was the final vacation the students could enjoy from here on out; finals would soon be on the rise. She was ousted from school work, exams, and library duties.

Meanwhile, she had found it odd for the library to be on vacation seeing as Mr. Lee was not known for his absences. It was peculiar, but her concentration on crafting a fine, edible smoothie cast aside further focus on the issue.

Remembering she needed a liquid, she checked the contents of her fridge for juice or milk. Her gaze caught the hastily scrawled sticky-note planted onto the freezer door. Bom had left her new phone number and email and a set of times she could be counted on to respond - the girl left campus for a road trip with Siwon.

Chaerin was certain Bom would be almost impossible to reach with the hormones raging between the couple. Sandara remained in town, still scoping the male population, her brother making her goal difficult with his notable intrusions. He did call earlier to invite Chaerin out for drinks, but she declined, her gloomy mood unable to be up to par for beverages.

A few days had only passed since that havoc of a showdown and not a single mutt had shown his face to her. Grunting crudely, she shut her fridge closed, having secured orange juice and fresh strawberries. She expertly diced her strawberries when a loud knock on her door pulled her forth.

Wiping her hands clean of the fruit, she opened her door, a loud gasp emitting from her lips upon meeting her guest’s features. Ren stood regally on her door step, his arms crossed, his mouth shut into a firm line.

The cloth slipped from her fingers.