The walk over to the healer's hut was quiet, and Brad and I made it with our hands holding, saying hello to the familiar people that we met on the way. Some of them were people I had not had a personal encounter with since I returned, and it was nice to see them and talk. The path to the healer's hut from where Brad and I had stood before was very windy, with lots of flowers and greenery at the sides, and that was what I looked at as we walked, talking Brad's ear off with my excitement. The healer's hut itself was a quiet, serene place tucked away in a corner of the pack territory. As I walked towards it, I felt myself shudder at the memory of my abduction. I had not expected t be triggered by the mere sight of it, but as I passed it, I felt my knees buckle. Brad, knowing how I had been abducted, said nothing. He simply gave my hand a little squeeze and held on, and that made me smile. We stood in front of the healer's hut for a minute, trying to figure out what the next plan of ac
The air outside the healer's hut felt fresher as Brad and I stepped out, the calming scent of the healer's herbs still lingering on my skin. The fresh air was a nice contrast to all the mists and scents and aromas that were in the healer's hut, but my relief did not last long.Her warning about potential danger from someone close to me weighed heavily on my mind, and as we started walking towards the pack farm, I couldn't shake off the unease that had settled inside my chest. Now I felt like instead of solving the problem, she had just amplified it, made things a lot worse by making me more paranoid about all of my friendship."Who do you think Healer Ruby meant by 'beware of friends,' Layla?" Brad asked, his brow furrowing in concern. I remembered just then that he had come to the healer with me, and I felt a lot of relief that he had. "I can't imagine anyone in our pack wishing harm upon you. We've all been through so much together. And the people you call your friends are people yo
The tension between Brad and me hung heavy the air, casting a heavy shadow over every single interaction that we had. It had been two days, and every word he had spoken to me in the past few days hd been a grunt, or a barked out response.One evening, as the sun dipped, I had finally hsd enough, and I decided that there was no harm in seeking advice from my closest confidantes,Kimora, Lee, and Margot.I had sent them all ominous notes to meet me, telling them that er would be gathering in a quiet corner of the pack. As expected, I was the first person there, and when the rest got there, they say down quietly and watched me, waiting for me to speak. I hesitated before pouring out the turmoil in my heart. "There's been a misunderstanding between Brad and me," I confessed, my voice barely above a whisper. "I don't know how to bridge fix things. He's ignoring me and he's angry at me, and it's confusing, but I think I'm angry at him too. It's affecting me very much, and I am afraid it mi
As we walked towards it, the bonfire flickered warmly in the center of the pack's gathering spot, casting dancing shadows on the faces of the pack members who had come together for a night of laughter and each other's company. As Brad and I arrived hand in hand, the sight of familiar faces brought a sense of relaxation to my body, and I unclenched, unaware that I had even been clenching on the first place.Near the bonfire, asides from the usual Kimora, Lee and David, I spotted Erin, Eric, and Remy, the siblings of the outcast pack before we disbanded, their smiles wide and infectious. It had been a while since I had seen them all together, and their presence added to the joyous energy that the bonfire had going on. We approached them, the crackling fire coloring our faces with its golden glow.Erin, the most outspoken of the trio, wasted no time. "Well, well, look who decided to grace us with their presence. It's been ages since you two were out and about together. Are you finally do
Erin's eyes widened with surprise at my casual remark about having a baby, and I couldn't help but laugh at her reaction. "Oh, no, not yet," I clarified, chuckling. "I was just teasing. Brad and I haven't really talked about it seriously. We're still figuring things out, you know?"She let out a relieved sigh, playfully swatting my arm. "You scared me for a moment there! But seriously, you and Brad would make amazing parents one day. I can already imagine your little ones running around the pack grounds, causing mischief. You could be running around too, trying to catch them, and Brad would be the most involved dad ever!"I smiled at her words, touched by the genuine excitement to hear in her voice. "Thank you, Erin. That means a lot. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Right now, we're just enjoying being together and working on our relationship. There's still so much to do in the pack getting married is the least of our worries right now. "With a shared laugh, we bid each other g
The three of us gathered around the breakfast table, the aroma of the food tickling our senses. We had spent enough time looking at each other and the food, and now it was time to eat. The atmosphere in the room was light and filled with the promise of light and easy conversation. As we dug into the meal, conversation flowed naturally, taking away the initial unease of the night.Erin shared stories from her side of the the oavm, her voice animated as she recounted the antics of some of the younger pack members. Her laughter was infectious, and soon enough, we were all laughing together, the drama of the last few days now behind us. The younger pack members were apparently taking well to Margot and Wally's ideas to keep them occupied, and were teasing both of them by calling them boyfriend and girlfriend and sniggering at their back.Brad, ever the peacemaker, kept the mood at the table consistently light with his sharp remarks, making Erin and I laugh until our sides hurt. It felt
Later that night, we found ourselves at the pack grounds, the familiar smells of soil and freshly crushed leaves filling the air. It was time for our scheduled shift, and the pack members were already gathering, the smells of their prepared meals and the noise from their excited chatger charged the air with something I couldn't place. As we stood together, our hands tangled in each other's, I looked over at Brad, his eyes meeting mine with a faint smile. He had not forgotten that this was my first shift after missing two, being stuck in the dungeon at Alpha Dan's pack, and he could sense how tentative I was. Faced with that dilemma, the events of the past days seemed distant now, and I felt a shudder run through my body. I had been so self assured when I had told everyone that I was going g to show up at the shift tonight, but now that I was here, something felt off. With a nod, Brad gave me the go ahead to start the shift, and as though they could sense that it was about to begin,
After Erin settled in, the atmosphere at our home became heavy with an unspoken tension. Brad, usually very talkative and chatty, seemed to struggle with making conversation with Erin. I suspected that it was because he was used to it just being both of us in the house, and now that someone else was in the house with us, he was not used to it. Awkward silences hung in the air, and I could sense that Erin was just as unsure as I was about how to navigate the situation. Throughout that day, the three of us skirted around each other in an awkward silent till the time that my cheeks were too full and I didn't know what to do with myself. I decided to take Erin aside the next afternoon, hoping to clear the air. I wanted to know if she was just as uncomfortable as I was with the silence, and figure out maybe what we could do to fix things. As we stepped into the garden right in front of the pack house, I turned to her with a warm smile, trying to make her less uncomfortable. Her body la