I woke up feeling like I had been hit by a bus, having stayed up far too late studying. Plus messaging back and forth with Cleo until well into the early hours to check if she was okay after the shock of everything that had gone on for her yesterday. She and I weren't as close as we could be, but I still considered her a good friend, and I hated to think she was struggling. And, I know right now she was struggling a lot. I still felt like I was half asleep as I moved around, and having stepped out of the bathroom in a soft, fluffy towel, a nice hot shower having done nothing to help me, I felt even worse hearing my Dad singing loudly out of tune downstairs. Tone-deaf did not even cover it...“Gabe!” Mum yelled from their bedroom across the landing. I think her poor ears were in pain too from the assault of Dad's singing. “I swear to the moon goddess, shut up! My ears cannot take that noise, especially not before coffee.”I can’t help but smile. She was so right. My Dad is weirdly che
I had finished my coffee as quickly as I could once I noticed the time on the large clock upon the wall within our family kitchen. Making my excuses soon after to head off to college, telling my parents I had to call into the library before class. Unfortunately for me, my Mum knew my schedule quite well, and she was a little surprised I was headed in when my classes were not due to start for another couple of hours.But, I was not about to explain myself to her. I was a grown up… or as close to one as I could be while living in their home…I walked along the busy corridors of the college, keeping my head down, in a desperate bid not to be noticed. I was focused solely on my destination, anticipation filling my body as I walked. I looked forward to this part of my day. And soon enough, I was walking along the corridor where the office was that I needed to be. Thankfully, the corridor I found myself stood upon was relatively quiet, but I stood for a moment until I was the only person th
Having avoided Landon for the rest of the time we were in the hospital, and then hiding out in my Grandparents' home for the rest of the night feeling like my heart was breaking now I had said goodbye to Grandpa. It had to have been one of the worst nights of my life. What did I do to piss off the moon goddess? Losing my Grandpa was bad enough, but on the day I had to process that and say my goodbye, I learned who my fated mate is and learned he in fact doesn’t want me.I think at some point I had cried myself to sleep after many hours of messaging my friends, and curling up in a ball on the bed in pain. I was awoken the following morning to a knock at the door. “C-C, Mum is making food.” Kaleb stuck his head around the door, obviously knocking was worthless if he was going to walk in anyway.I nodded, as I rubbed my eyes, trying to wake myself up. “Okay. Guessing I don’t get a choice?” I asked, and my brother simply grinned in response. He knew what Mum was like as well as I did, and
I had completed the meeting, finalizing the deal as expected, before I headed back to the family home, having been invited to dinner. That was never something I would turn down. Yes, I liked my own space, but cooking for myself was definitely something I couldn’t say was fun. So, needless to say, I missed my Mum's and to some degree my Dad’s cooking.While there, enjoying the bedlam that had been home, I had heard Mum discussing the possibility of heading back to the River Ash Pack. I couldn’t say I was surprised. It was her home pack, and I knew she would want to pay her respects to Uncle Trent. There was already talk of us all going to the funeral, which, again, I had expected, he had been a big part of all of our lives. It was only right we all attended his funeral, said our goodbyes and paid our respects.But for my Mum it was more than that. She wanted to be there for her closest friend, and the family that had been there for her growing up. The family that had treated her like f
I stayed inside the house today. It was suggested we go and make the most of being in pack, enjoy the many places here that we loved, or catch up with Landon. But he was one of the reasons I had chosen to stay safely inside the home of my grandparents. Hiding from the mess my life seemed to have become. I don't think I could face him right now. I knew at some point we would have to face up to this new development, but for this moment, I just wanted to pretend it had never happened... pretend like he didn't exist...Kai and Kaleb had gone to join the training sessions that were ongoing down at the training field as a way to keep themselves busy, and would likely go for a run once that was done. While Mum and Dad were headed to the hospital to meet Grandma and Uncle Grayson, I think they would likely be busy most of the day making funeral arrangements. So, I knew for the near future, at least I would be on my own; and in truth, I didn’t know what to do. I felt empty. Numb.I couldn’t t
The moment Cleo had opened that door it had been so hard not to rush to her. Tell her how sorry I was for acting the way I did. Try to fix things. Because, no matter how she may say things were okay, I had a feeling they weren't. But, my Mum was by my side. I didn't need to be explaining everything to her right now. There was far too much going to add additional complications. And watching Cleo as we walked into the house, I could see all my girl needed was a hug. She was struggling...But, I think, given that she had just lost her Grandpa, that was understandable. They were a close family, and her Grandpa meant a lot to her. Plus, I knew Cleo, she would struggle to see her Mum battle with the grief of losing her Dad too. I just desperately wanted to be there for her. Yet, I could hear Cleo making her excuses to my Mum about what was wrong, and I couldn’t help but wonder if there was something else bothering her. She didn’t seem herself, and while I understood grief affected everyone
I had spent some time with Tatiana, but she had left, finding things difficult knowing the situation we were in. She knew that with me being her fated mate she would be expected, like my mother, to relocate. That was generally the way things were done, but the thought of it seemed to horrify her. The moment she realized that was what would be expected of her, she seemed to withdraw. She avoided my gaze, and the conversation seemed almost awkward. This was not how I had hoped meeting my fated mate would be... And it felt like my dreams were slipping away.Once Tatiana had rushed from the room, I had found my brother and sister with our Uncle, and spent the rest of the day and evening with our family. All catching up. It was wonderful to see them all. I loved our visits here, and always had done, but this time it had been marred by this sense of loss I was feeling. One I simply could not shake, no matter how I tried to process the events of the hours previous.In every other way, Tatia
I sat out in the gardens of our family home, enjoying the small amount of sunshine the day was attempting to offer. A coffee in my hand, and sitting watching the wildlife passing back and forth across the treeline near the end of the garden. I had always loved our large garden of the family home, so well looked after, and so beautiful with all the flowers. Plus, there are so many places to escape to and hide when growing up. The many hours we used to have fun playing hide and seek…Mum and Dad coming looking for us… the squeals of fear and excitement from me and my brother as they found us… I smiled at the fond memories. Back when Mum was still fit and healthy too. That seemed like such a long time ago now. It was difficult to remember her that way when I think of it now. Even though this illness has only been ravaging her body for the last couple of years, it feels like forever. Seeing her body slowly fading…She was having a nap at the moment, allowing me a chance to rest and enjoy