Chapter 8: Archie's Parent & Full Moon

"What were you like as a kid?" He asked, surprising me because it was super random and not something I ever expected him to ask me.

"Uh, I was quiet, shy. I was a closet gay kid that thought he was wrong for how I was feeling, so I kinda just pushed all emotion away until it overcame me,"

"You knew you were gay when you were young?" He asked.

"Yeah, I guess I always kinda knew how I felt, but I suppressed it because of my dad. He would get drunk with his Work buddies sometimes and I remember them calling the gay guys in the office faggots and whatnot, so I didn't come out until we sat in the car after a doctor's appointment and he was having the talk' with me"

"Why'd you come out then?"

I looked up at him as he was invested in my story. "He told me that it was okay to be whatever I was because he knew I wasn't straight by my distaste for girls, except as friends.

He told me that whatever I was feeling, I should let it out, so I did. I started crying and just told him. I could tell he wasn't too

comfortable having that conversation with me, but he did it because he was my dad and he cared about me."

Archie smiles. "I'm glad that you were

able to tell your dad."

"Yeah, it's not the best relationship because he's a masculine man, obviously, and he wanted to have that bond with his son that other fathers get, but he didn't. He didn't understand dance or gymnastics, so he let my mom take care of all that stuff.

The deepest conversation we've ever had

was about this bully that pushed me into the lockers at school after I came out."

"What'd he say?"

"He told me that he loved me and he would protect me if he ever needed to, but he wasn't happy with the man l was becoming because I wasn't masculine like him. I never told my mom about it like him.

I never told my mom about it because l expected him to, but he hid that he told his son that he wasn't happy with who I was."

I watched as Joey's small smile dropped and he sighed, staring down at his hand as he played with his fingers. "I think that that's how my dad would be."

I gave him a sad smile. "Unfortunately, it happens quite often. You just have to learn who you are and once you start to tell people, put your guard up and don't let anything get to you because the only thing that matters is how you feel."

"How'd you do it?" He asked me. "I didn't think about it before I did it, I just did it. I knew that my mom would stick up for me if my father ever did anything bad, so l felt safe."

He nods his head, running a hand through his hair. "My mom would do the same."

"So do it, just get it over with because you have someone who will stand up for you if it gets bad. I know you can do it because you've shown me in the last few days who you truly are and I want you to be proud of yourself for once, l tell him.

He puts his hand on the back of my neck before pulling my lips to his and I realize that this isn't a soft touch, this is rough and this usually means that it'll lead to more. I try to push him away as he sticks his tongue in my mouth and runs his hand through my hair.

I can't find the strength because he is

just so irresistible and he made me

feel alive.

I'm able to push him away because I'm reminded by my sister who's downstairs and the fact that we're in my bedroom where my parents could come home any minute. "Not here."

He nods his head as I catch my breath before getting up and grabbing my bags before making my way back downstairs. When Jasmine hears us on the stairs, she pauses the movie again to look up at us. "Are you leaving?"

"Yeah, I'll text Dad later and tell him that he has to take you to school tomorrow, okay?"

"All right, be careful and keep your pants on," she says and I scoff, glaring at her because if she tells Mom, I will never hear the end of it. We stopped to get some food for later before going back to the apartment to hang out until he had to leave.

Archie and his parents.

My parents and l walk into my room after the pack meeting that we have every month and unfortunately, it was tonight when I could be with Henry instead of here. Every month we have a mandatory meeting about everything that might've happened during the month, whether it's any fights that have happened, new rules that we want to implement, or any rogue sightings seen in camp.

I'm the alpha of the White Water Pack, also one of the medium-sized packs in Virginia. l inherited the position from my dad when I turned 18 a few months ago and ever since then, it's been pretty hectic because rogues have started to come into our camp more since I'm a new alpha and they assume that I don't know what I'm doing.

When I found out that Henry was my mate, there were two emotions; confusion and anger. I was confused because l assumed that my mate would be a girl even though I did have feelings for guys because it's unusual for alphas to have a same-sex mate since we're supposed to carry on to

the next generation.

I was angry because this just meant that I had to tell my dad, which would just end horribly if it played out like expected it to.

He's a very masculine man, having been the alpha for 34 years. He's a great dad, don't get me wrong, he prepared me very well for the position and was always there when I had trouble. l just know that he has this perceived notion that my mate is a girl

because that's what he's always to me.

I'm not saying the Moon Goddess made a mistake with me because she doesn't make too many mistakes. After getting to know the boy that's my mate, I've come to terms with it because he is a good person and we are a good pair from what I've noticed between us. I do like him and I

know we're doing better than we were doing the first day when I made the stupid, impulsive decision to hurt him.

My parents and I sat down on my bed since I told them that I needed to talk to them about something and they knew it was serious by the way my hands shook in my lap. My mom, who is a beautiful woman named Lila, reaches over to take my hand. "

Whatever it is, it's okay. Just tell us. Her words gave me courage even with my dad staring at me with curious eyes. I clear my throat, tightening my grip on my mother's hand as I imagine the beautiful smile on Henry when I tell him that I came out to my parents tonight and that's what sealed the

deal that I have to do this. "I found my

mate."

Their eyes widen as smiles come up on their face as the realization sets in at what I had just told them. Dad claps his hand on my back as he gets excited as he imagines what this girl could look like and I can just feel the drop in mood when I tell them the gender.

Mom squeezes my hand in hers as he wraps her free arm around my shoulder. "That's amazing, baby!

Why are you so nervous about it?" I look down at my hand that's fidgeting with a loose string on my jeans and when my silence hits them, their smiles drop, knowing that something was wrong.

They were probably thinking that she was not too attractive or not someone who would be interested in helping me take over the pack. "Uh, it's, um, I don't know how to say this, uh."

Dad stops me by gripping my arm. Archie, what is it? What's wrong with her?".

I laugh, knowing that I was right. I knew they wouldn't even think about the option that there's nothing wrong with her because there is no her Their faces got even more confused at my laugh ugh and I probably looked crazy, laughing at such a serious issue in the werewolf world. "Nothing's wrong with her, Dad."

"What the hell are you laughing about then? What's going on?" He says as he shares a look with my mom, who looks just as confused. I looked over at her for a few seconds, hoping she would understand from just my look because I was too scared to say it. Mom stares at me for a few seconds,

Searching through the options before she realizes how l spit out the word 'her. Her eyes widen and I look away, not wanting to see her reaction, whatever it is. I can hear a small gasp come from my dad as he realizes what's going on or my mom tells him through their bond.

"Archie, look at me," my dad whispers and I slowly look up at him, expecting him to tell me that he's disgusted and that the Moon Goddess has made a huge mistake.

I realize that's not the case when he and my mom both hold one of my hands. I look over at my mom, who squeezes my hand. "It's okay, baby, if you like him, that's all that matters."

I nod my head, having the overwhelming feeling of crying with joy because they're okay with it. I can't even imagine what I would have done if my parents weren't okay with it because they have been my biggest supporters my whole life and have helped me with everything that's ever happened. I look over at my dad, who's now giving me a soft smile just like my mom.

"The Moon Goddess doesn't make mistakes and anyway, this isn't a mistake. There is nothing wrong with it, okay?" He says and I can't hold in the tears anymore because all these years that I've been stressing, it was for nothing "Oh, baby boy, it's okay," Mom says as she pulls me into a hug while she runs her hands through my hair as I try to stop my crying.

"Tell us all about him, my dad says, not helping whatsoever as I continue crying into my mom's shoulder because I'm just so happy at how this turned out.

****************************************

I sat in my office chair behind my desk while Robert sat in front of me in the dark blue chair with his computer in his lap. We had been working on some packing stuff since I don't think the paperwork ever ended. It's been about two and a half months since I came out to my parents and they've been trying so hard for me to bring him over, but I haven't exactly told him about the fact that we're vicious predators.

"It seems like your parents are pretty insistent on you telling Henry soon," my beta says as he continues to type on his computer before writing on the papers that he holds in his hands.

"Oh, yeah, you noticed that?" I asked, distracted from reading about an incident with a rogue that was seen on our ground and attacked one of our young wolves who is, amazingly, okay.

"Just a bit, do you think you'll tell him yet?" He told me, setting his computer on the chair next to him to stretch since we'd been here for about an hour or two just looking at our laptops and papers while having a slight conversation when we read about something that we didn't know had

happened.

"I just don't think he's ready. It's a lot to take in," I tell him as I lean back in my chair to look at him as he shrugs his shoulder.

You can't just lie to him after what happened at the last full moon" he told me, making memories plague my head at what had happened a few weeks ago.

I knew that he had a point because when the full moon hit last time, my wolf was so ready to have Henry that I had to completely ignore him all day. I even left school because I had the biggest hard-on of my life. He was pissed at me, which is understandable because l just told him that I didn't feel okay without telling him that I was leaving.

That's not a good excuse, but I couldn't exactly just say "My wolf wants to make love to you, so I can't be around you so my d**k doesn't freak out in front of the

whole school".

"I know. I'm just scared" I told him, which was the truth. If you had heard the horror stories wolves are told as children about when a mate rejects a wolf, you would be damn scared too.

"You can't change who you are, man," Robert tells me as I run a hand through my hair and I start to get more stressed about the whole situation. I wanted him to know what l was because I do care about him a lot, but I also didn't want to risk everything if I told him too soon.