As Mark drove down the driveway, he looked back at the manor through the rear-view mirror. Just like the interior, the house looked like it belonged in the early nineteen-hundreds. Or even the eighteen-hundreds. How a house like that could last for such a long period of time stumped Mark. But he shook his head. That wasn't the point. His main focus was to get the hell out of there and away from that nut house.

        Although he wouldn't admit it, Mark was shaken from the whole event. When he felt that he was a safe distance from the manor, the red-head pulled over to the side of the road and turned off his car. Was what the group actually saying true? Could he be some wolf-man? Impossible! He couldn't believe something like that. He wouldn't believe it. No matter how much the idea seemed plausible.

        Stifling a sigh, Mark pulled the sun visor down and looked himself in the mirror. His hair and clothing were dirty and disheveled. There was no way he could meet his fiancée's parents looking like that! Stepping out of his car, the young man opened the trunk and pulled out his suitcase. He looked around the road before deciding it was safe to undress. It didn't seem like anyone would see him. The road was almost seemed abandoned. Besides, he had already been in front of those people earlier.

        Feeling safe, Mark stripped off his dirty clothes and changed into a pair of clean jeans and a comfy shirt. However, he was curious about something. He made his way to the front of his car and looked it over. He was relieved to see that there no longer seemed to be evidence of his accident. The men must have cleaned it up when they brought his car to their manor. It was a little relieving despite the fact that they had to steal his car for it to get there.

        He took a step back and looked in the side-view mirror, running his hands through his messy hair to try and fix it to some degree. Satisfied that he seemed to be in a better condition, Mark hopped back into his car and decided it would be best to head straight to his fiancée's house without anymore stops.

        The drive hadn't been too long. The road was silent until he pulled onto a main route. He had thought he was lost while on the quiet road, but this boosted his confidence that he wasn't. Mark had found his way through the small town with ease and was now pulling into a gravel driveway. The sound of gravel bouncing off his car pierced his hearing, but he pretended to pay no attention. The sight of the country house made his troubling thoughts fall to the back of his mind. He pulled up next to the house and turned off his car.

        As soon as he closed his car door his fiancée was racing out of the house and throwing herself into his arms. He wrapped his arms around her, feeling completely safe with someone sane.

        “Mark!” She cried as she gazed up at him. The man leaned down to press his lips against hers in a chaste kiss, but Eunhee was frowning. “Where have you been? I was worried sick! You were supposed to be here three days ago!”

        Three days? Had it really been that long? Mark swallowed a lump in his throat as his mind raced to figure out an excuse. Plucking the best one from his thoughts, he blurted out, “Car troubles. I stayed in a hotel while it was being fixed.”

        “The least you could have done was called!” The woman still refused to smile. “My parents don't have the best impression of you right now. But I'm glad you're here now. My parents and I were just going to go out for dinner. It would be best if you joined us. Come on, let's go meet my parents.”

        Mark didn't have much time to react as two older figures emerged from the house. Without even being told, Mark knew they were his fiancée's parents. “You must be Mark,” the woman stated as she walked over to Mark and pulled him into a hug. “I'm Haneul and this is my husband, Kwangjo.”

        “I am,” he answered with an awkward chuckle. “It's nice to meet you. I apologize for being so behind on schedule. I had some car troubles and I couldn't get my cellphone to work.”

        “That's alright. Are you hungry? We were just about to leave.” Despite Eunhee mentioning that her parents impression of him wasn't the best, they still seemed welcoming.

        As Mark nodded in reply, Kwangjo joined his wife and bowed his head in greeting. “We'll take our car,” he said.

        Once in they were in the car, Mark sat comfortably with his fiancée at his side in the back seat. Her parents asked questions here and there all the way until they reached the restaurant. Mark held no objections to the questions. They just asked what he did for a living, how they met, and how he had been the last few days. The first questions were easy, but as soon as they dove into his whereabouts, Mark had some difficulties trying to keep his lie intact. Even as they sat inside the restaurant, the questions continued.

        “So you were safe in the hotel?” Eunhee asked. She sat beside Mark on one side of the table, her hand in his as she rubbed the back of his hand with her thumb.

        “Mhm,” Mark answered with a forced smile. However, he wasn't completely focused. People spoke all around him and trying to concentrate on one conversation was proving to be tough. He picked up bits and pieces of words from not only the table beside them, but tables all around the restaurant. Dishes and cutlery clattered obnoxious in his ear. Not only that, but the smell from the kitchen made it seem as if the food was right in front of him.

        Without even realizing, Mark could feel himself becoming slowly overwhelmed. The trouble didn't stop there as their side dishes were served, saving him from having to explain himself. Although the food provided a temporary relief from conversation topics, the smell hit him like a brick wall. Every scent invaded is senses. Even the perfume the waitress wore wafted towards him whenever she leaned over to place the dishes on the table.

      Coughing at the intense smells, Mark stood up and covered his mouth. “I think I need fresh air.” Before anyone could answer, he rushed outside of the restaurant.

        Relief at last. Once outside, Mark leaned against the wall, breathing in the crisp night air. It felt much better to breathe that in rather than the overwhelming food. “What's gotten into me?” He asked himself as he patted his cheeks. It felt all the more relieving to be away from the noise. Everything felt heightened and he doubted he would be able to return inside. His senses were being bombarded like they never were before and he didn't think he could be able to handle it any longer.

        Just as he was going to call Eunhee and tell her he wasn't feeling well, a man approached him. Not knowing who he was, Mark offered a polite, “Hello.”

        “So you're Jaebeom's new , huh? I heard about you. I could smell you right away. Disgusting.” The stranger spat the word out as if he were some disease. “It would be a shame if his new pup were disappear.”

        Instantly feeling afraid for his well-being, Mark backed up until he hit the wall. The stranger snarled and revealed his sharp canines. Closing his eyes, Mark prepared himself to be attacked. His ears perked as he heard something approaching. He opened his eyes to see the stranger preparing to leap at him, but instead, the man was knocked away by a black shadow. Mark had assumed it was someone joining the stranger in the attack, but this thing seemed to be on his side. For now, anyway. But the red haired male could only stare in shock.

        The stranger skidded sideways as he was barreled into. His attacker was a large black wolf, snarling threateningly. Despite seeming to be outmatched, the stranger never backed down from the fight. Mark couldn't seem to tear his gaze away. The black wolf lunged at the man again, biting down against his shoulder. The man let out a yell, but continued his fight. He managed to get his feet underneath the wolf, gaining enough strength to kick the wolf off of him. The wolf was thrown back and the man was given enough time to run behind the building.

        As soon as the man was gone, Mark turned his gaze to the wolf, wondering if it was okay. It proved to be as it jumped to its feet. The wolf turned to Mark, fixing its piercing gaze on him. At that moment, Mark felt as if his surroundings had completely disappeared. It was just him in the wolf.

       The moment was short-lived as the wolf turned back to see where the man had gone before running after him. Mark barely had time to understand when he was startled as someone tugged on his hand. Turning around, he was surprised to see Jinyoung.

        “Mark! We need to get out of here!” Jinyoung looked nervous. He continued to cast glances at the spot the wolf had disappeared.

        “What?” Mark was utterly confused by everything. “Why?”

        “You're lucky Jackson was watching you otherwise Jinhyuk would have killed you. The other packs know about you. You are not safe. You need to stay with us,” Jinyoung explained.

        Frowning, Mark looked towards the restaurant. “What about them?”

        “Don't worry about them. As long as you're with them they aren't safe. Your safety and their safety lies with us. We're your family now.” Jinyoung was completely serious as he spoke and Mark couldn't help but feel like he agreed. The last thing he wanted was to put Eunhee in danger. For now, he'd go with Jinyoung.

        “Will you explain everything properly if I go?” Mark asked.

        Jinyoung simply nodded in reply before taking Mark's hand and breaking off into a run towards the forest.

        Inside the restaurant, Eunhee began worrying at her fiancée's absence. “I'm going to go check on him.” She excused herself with a polite smile as she headed outside. Not seeing him around, Eunhee opened to call for him.

        “Mar–” She cut herself off as she spotted her fiancée hand-in-hand with a stranger. Together the two were running towards the tree line leaving Eunhee more and more confused.