Chapter twenty five

Alina steps out of Evan's car and immediately spots Marcus across the street. She sighs and looks at Evan with a disappointed expression.

"Why did you do that?" she snaps.

Without waiting for an answer, she crosses the street toward Marcus, who's standing outside the ice cream shop looking serious.

"What are you doing out here, Marcus? Shouldn't you be at home resting?" she asks.

Marcus glares at her. "Oh, so you think you can hug Evan in my neighborhood just because you thought I'd be in bed?" he retorts, sulking.

"It's not like that," Alina protests. "He was just saying goodbye."

"So, did you have a good time with that jerk?" Marcus questions.

"Let's not talk about Evan. I want to know why you're out here when you should be at home resting," Alina redirects.

"If you must know, the boys took me out for some fresh air and ice cream because I was craving it," Marcus explains.

"The boys? Which boys?" Alina asks.

At that moment, Kenny, Zack, and Joe walk out of the shop, each holding an ice cream cone.

Joe hands Marcus another ice cream. "Hi, Alina. Here, Marcus. Don't drop this one again."

"Yeah, yeah, I won't," Marcus assures him.

"You three can go; don't worry, Alina will take me home," Marcus declares.

"Really, Alina, are you up for the task? You know what a big baby he is," Kenny teases.

Alina smiles. "Yes, I can handle it. You all can go; I'll take him."

"You're not going anywhere with him, Alina," Evan's voice suddenly comes from behind them. "I can't trust you with Marcus. Don't go."

"Evan, I thought you had already left," Alina says, surprised.

"No, I didn't. I can't bear to leave you with him," he says, eyeing Marcus.

Marcus rolls his eyes, tired and irritated.

"You better go, Evan, or you're gonna get hurt," Joe says, boiling with anger.

"Do your worst," Evan says, moving closer to Joe. "I'd like to see you try."

"Joe, leave him," Marcus says. "Alina, is your date not over yet? Why is he acting this way?"

"Evan, please go," she says, irritated.

"Alina, you don't understand. I'm just trying to protect you," Evan pleads.

"Don't worry about me. I don't need your protection."

"Okay, okay. I'll go, but one last thing," Evan says, turning to Marcus. "I know you, Marcus, and I know you're incapable of loving anyone except for her. You know who I'm talking about, right?" Evan taunts Marcus, who's now red with anger.

"Sasha. That's the only person you care about. Leave Alina alone. She doesn't deserve to have you play with her emotions because if you do, I will tear you apart. I will never forgive you," Evan threatens.

Evan looks at Alina one last time.

"Be safe," Evan tells her as he crosses back to his car, gets in, and drives away.

"Don't listen to anything he said," Kenny reassures her. "Marcus isn't like that. We're leaving."

The three friends wave and disappear down the street.

Marcus suddenly brightens up. "It's just you and me now. So, what do we do?"

"I think we better head home. You're not fully recovered," Alina says, looking solemn.

"What's wrong? Is it because of what that jerk said?" Marcus asks, taking a deep breath. "Okay, you need to follow me," he says, grabbing her hand.

"Marcus, leave me alone. We need to head to your house. You're not feeling well," she insists.

"Don't worry, we won't go far. Let's go to the playground. It's near my house," he says.

Reluctantly, Alina follows Marcus to the playground. They sit down on a bench, watching the children play. Slowly, her mood brightens.

"Why are you smiling?" he asks.

"I don't know. But I love watching children play. Maybe because I played a lot when I was a child. I remember my dad pushing me on a swing he built for me in our old town when I was a kid. I always think about how happy I used to be then."

Marcus stands up and stretches his hand toward her. "Well, you said you miss the swing. There's one here."

Alina smiles and takes his hand. Marcus leads her to the swing and begins to push her gently. After a while, they sit back down on the bench, resting in comfortable silence. Finally, Alina breaks the silence.

"Now, will you tell me? Is Evan telling the truth? Are you engaged to Kendra?"

"No, I'm not. It was my dad's idea to engage me to Kendra for his selfish ambition, but it didn't work."

"Why?" Alina asks curiously.

"Well, for one, I don't want to marry her, and two, my mom is against the idea, so the engagement is off," he states firmly.

"So let me ask my own," he says, taking a deep breath. "What did you and Evan talk about?"

"He asked me to be his girlfriend," Alina answers truthfully.

"Well, did you say yes?" Marcus asks, clearly irritated.

"I didn't give him a reply yet."

"Why didn't you answer him? I thought he was the love of your life," he says, annoyed.

Alina laughs, noticing his irritation.

"Why are you laughing?" Marcus inquires.

"Well, because I think you're such a baby," she says, still laughing.

"Well, so why didn't you give him an answer?" he asks impatiently.

"Well, because someone else is confusing me," she says shyly, playfully hitting his shoulder with her hand. He catches her hand and pulls her closer, their faces inches apart.

"Don't choose him, Ali. Don't do it," he pleads.

"Why?" she asks, looking into his eyes.

"Well, because it will hurt me," he says solemnly.

"But why?" she asks, still looking into his eyes. She notices that they change color from blue to golden yellow.

Ali is startled and afraid.

"What's wrong?" Marcus inquires.

"I just saw your eyes change color," she says, her voice shaking.

Marcus smiles. "That's because I'm a wolf. And so are you."

"No, I'm not," she says, trying to stand up. Marcus pulls her down, bringing her face closer to his again.

"I promise you, Ali, I'm not the only one. Even Evan is also a wolf."

"Leave me alone," she says, scared and trying to free herself.

Marcus whispers something in her ear that she cannot understand. Suddenly, she becomes calm.

"What did you do? Why am I no longer afraid?" she asks curiously.

"It's a wolf thing. I spoke to your wolf, and I didn't think it would work since it was bound. I told her to help you calm down so you wouldn't be afraid again," he explains.

"Well, I guess it works, but I'm still not a werewolf," she says stubbornly, sighing. "In fact, let's change the subject. Tell me about you and Evan."

Marcus drops his gaze and releases her from his grip. "What about Evan?"

"Why do you hate Evan so much?" she inquires curiously.

"Because he killed my brother," he says, his voice heavy with anger and sadness.

The weight of his confession hangs in the air, leaving Alina stunned and speechless.