#2 When the Moon Turns Red

Evie

I never thought I would see the wolf, Russell, again. I never thought it was even a possibility. Walking into that office and staring into his cold eyes was the single most horrifying thing I’ve done since staring into the eyes of his wolf the day he sliced me apart.

I couldn’t stand to be in the same building as him. Noah wanted me to wait on the Alpha floor for him, but I couldn’t. I shoved passed Sawyer and went straight for the exit.

“Evie! Where are you going?” Sawyer called after me as I ran out the door.

“I can’t stay here, Sawyer, I need to leave.” I told him.

“What are you going to do? Walk?” Sawyer asked as I stomped down the steps and away from the packhouse.

“If I have to.” I answered. I didn’t care if I didn’t have a car, I needed to get out of here. I heard Sawyer sigh behind me and then he was walking beside me,

“Let me drive you.” He said, grabbing my elbow and stirring me towards the parking garage. I agreed reluctantly.

“Noah isn’t going to like this.” Sawyer said as he drove us towards my apartment.

“Well he’s going to have to get over it.” I mumbled. Sawyer sighed,

“You’re not quite getting how this mate bond thing works, are you?” He chuckled.

“I understand it, Sawyer, but Noah is going to have to understand that I’m still human. It can’t be all about meeting his needs all the time.” I snapped. I knew it wasn’t fair to accuse Noah of being selfish; he was the furthest thing from it. Sawyer was just pressing my buttons and testing my patience. He pressed his lips together and, thankfully, remained silent for the rest of the drive.

We pulled into my driveway and I practically threw myself out of the car. Sawyer started to get out of the car too, but I yelled at him to go home,

“I’m fine, Sawyer. I don’t need a babysitter.” Sawyer grumbled,

“I should stay. You might not be safe, Evie.”

“I’m fine. Leave.” I grumbled before slamming my front door in Sawyer’s face. I had the sinking feeling that Sawyer wasn’t going to go anywhere. At this point, I didn’t really care as long as he wasn’t inside my house stalking me.

I paced around the living room and kitchen, lost in thought. I felt uneasy and exposed. Logically, staying with Noah would have probably been the smarter move. I would have been safer there and more protected. But, I couldn’t stand to be anywhere near Russell. After a while, there was a knock at my door. I sighed, knowing exactly who it was.

I opened the door and revealed a very concerned and angry looking Noah. I leaned against the door frame, blocking Noah’s ability to enter my apartment.

“I’m fine, Noah.” I grumbled.

“You scared me to death, Everleigh.” Noah was struggling to keep his composure.

“I needed to get out of there.” I said.

“You’re not safe here.” He argued.

“I’m perfectly fine here. This is my home.” I argued, crossing my arms over my small frame.

“No, you’re not, not if I’m not here.” Noah snapped. I thought back to when Noah was first explaining to me what the mate bond was. He said that he felt possessive of my safety, that the only safe place was with him. I sighed, trying to be respectful of his needs,

“Sawyer came with me and I’m pretty positive he didn’t leave.” I said, raising my eyebrow at him accusingly. He said nothing.

“That’s what I thought. You can leave Sawyer outside if that makes you feel better, but I need some time.” I told him.

“I’m not comfortable with this, Evie.” Noah’s voice was frustrated and tense, more so than I’ve ever heard it before.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not comfortable with any of this right now. I need some time to myself to think. I don’t feel safe at the packhouse with you.” I confessed and immediately regretted it. Noah’s face contorted like I had just punched him in the stomach, he stumbled backwards from the impact of my words.

“You don’t feel safe with me?” Noah whimpered. I rubbed my arms, trying to combat the chill that fell between us.

“I don’t feel safe, period. Noah, it’s not you, I just need a minute.” I said again. I wasn’t upset with Noah, but I wasn’t used to being surrounded by people all the time. I needed to be by myself to process my emotions and thoughts. Noah’s face was so full of pain that I nearly crumbled.

“Sawyer will stay outside to make sure that you’re safe.” Noah mumbled, stepping away from the door.

“Okay.” I said, feeling defeated.

“Evie, I’m here if you need anything.” He said before dropping his head and walking away from me.

I sighed and shut the door, pressing my back against it and closing my eyes. I hated myself for hurting Noah. It felt like he was taking my heart with him as he walked away. I grumbled and threw myself down on the couch, this was all becoming too much. I smashed my face into the couch pillow and let out a muffled scream in frustration.

Eventually, I fell asleep on the couch, too exhausted to worry anymore. I spent the entire weekend as an emotional mess. I paced the apartment, watched Sawyer and the other wolves who took his spot out my window, and talked angrily to myself. I couldn’t bring myself to call Noah and I knew that was probably killing him. I wasn’t sure what I was hoping to gain out of my weekend of sulking, but when Monday came around I knew I hadn’t accomplished it.

I drug myself to campus, completely drained. I had bags under my eyes that I didn’t even bother to try and cover up. My hair was up in a wet, messy bun after my early morning shower. I had on a baggy T-shirt and joggers. Sawyer followed me to campus from a distance and I ignored him.

I came out of the Fine Arts building after my first class and ran straight into Molly. I groaned, stepping back and walking around her. Molly quickly followed after me,

“Are you okay?” Molly asked.

“No.” I answered simply.

“Neither is Noah.” Molly replied. I looked at her sideways, trying to decide if I imagined the smugness in her voice.

“What do you want, Molly?” I snapped.

“You’re both miserable, why are you doing this to yourself?” She asked.

“You wouldn’t understand.” I said, walking quickly to my next class.

“Why? Because I’m not human.” I stopped abruptly and faced Molly,

“Yes, Molly, because you’re not human. You can pretend that you know what I’m going through all you want, but, the reality is, you don’t. None of you do. I’m completely alone in this. When I say that I need a minute, I’m not joking. Just leave me alone.” I spoke harshly to Molly and shoved passed her. I knew Sawyer was lurking around somewhere and he could comfort his sister.

I sat in my second class in a sour mood. I mindlessly flipped through the book we were discussing in the English Literature seminar, feeling guilty about how I spoke to Molly. She was just trying to help and I let my frustrations get the best of me. By the time the class wrapped up, I had convinced myself that I would text Molly on my way to my last class and ask her to meet me for lunch so I could apologize.

I stepped out of the English building and was immediately surrounded by chaos. Students were running around the campus, screaming, while the campus police and professors were ushering them away from the courtyard. I was frozen in place, glued to the scene in front of me.