CHAPTER 9: Curious

Darius strutted to the seat across from the golden-blonde woman, gracefully drinking her tea. 

He sat down and beckoned to one of the waitresses. The blonde woman looked at him, her expression carrying a mild interest. 

"What would you like, sir?" The waitress asked cordially. 

"I would say a beautiful smile, but that's already given by you, so just a coffee." 

"Umm. A-alright sir. Right away." 

After the waitress bashfully retreated to the safety of the kitchen, his eyes shifted to the woman across from him. 

"Of course." She uttered, rolling her eyes at him. She took a bite of her cheesecake. She offered him some, and he took it. 

He laid his arm on the table and rested his chin on it. "It's a surprise you wanted to meet in such a public place, Kelsi." 

Kelsi leaned back in her seat and folded her arms. Pouting her lips a bit. "Well, apart from the reason that I wanted to get you away from your bitch, I actually have some news." 

"That's uncalled for. Cara's not that bad." He defended her, though weakly. Taking offense for her mate's sake. 

She scoffed. "I'm being literal here. That girl doesn't have fangs on her like I do." She bit her bottom, red lipstick-covered lips, showing her white, unnaturally sharp fangs. "She's basically a defenseless little puppy." 

He chuckled. "I can't really disagree with you on that. She's too nice for my liking. She's the kind of person who doesn't want trouble. Besides, your teeth are unnatural." 

She knowingly ignored his quip and clucked her tongue. She rolled her eyes again. "Then why didn't you just choose me? Why her? I'm also hot and an alpha." 

"It's my parents' order. I can't disobey them." 

She sighed; her tone carried a hint of annoyance and was a tad scornful. "Parents this, parents that. Can't believe you're still subservient to them like some little brat." 

"It's because they're still my parents. Try it sometime, broaden your experience a bit." 

"I don't ride that way." 

"You should." 

"Whatever. Besides, you actually prefer the other one to her, right?" 

"I don't know what you're talking about." He smiled and was clearly being sarcastic. 

"Don't bullshit me." 

He chuckled and just shrugged. 

The waitress then brought out his coffee. "Thanks, hun." He winked and flashed her a smile. And the maid visibly blushed again. 

After she left, he threw a smirk and raised his eyebrows at Kelsi, who just shook her head. 

"Such an easy woman. Well, you're actually very good at that." 

Although confidence was clearly seeping out of him, he just shrugged his shoulders. "That's just me in nature. Anyway, we've wasted enough time on pointless drivel. What was the news you mentioned before?" 

"Ah, that, I almost forgot. Well, I'd rather forget, but yeah. About that, we were being suppressed." 

"Suppressed?" 

She nodded. "There's no noise, no reports, nada." 

"Yeah, I noticed that. Maybe your boy is messing up." 

She took another bite of the cheesecake and chuckled. "Darling, my boy would never mess up. I think we're being suppressed intentionally. Maybe it has something to do with that old man." 

"You think so? What do you suggest we should do?" 

She leaned forward, smirked, and narrowed her eyes. She scooped up another spoonful of cheesecake and held it to him, saying, "Ramp it up." 

He smiled and took it. "I guess chasing around some and getting a few scratches is tame. It's up to you though, but I suggest you don't make it severe. I don't want that." 

She returned to her seat and crossed her arms again. "Fine." 

"Good, let's lay low for a while. The old man's snooping, and we can't have that." He drank the coffee. "This is really good." 

"Eww." 

He chuckled. "Lay low, Kelsi." 

Kelsi leaned back, crossed her legs, and took her glass of tea. She swung it around playfully. "Sure babe." 

Bricklynn leaned her shoulder on the train's door, looking at the moving scenery outside the glass as the cargo cranked up speed. 

Months had passed since she left her hometown of Woodland Valley to go study out of town. She felt like spreading her wings and getting out of her comfort zone would do her good in the long run. A lot of her old classmates planned to go out of town for college anyway, so she just followed suit. 

The majority of them avoided Haiborn Oak even if it was just nearby their town, only a few hours away, as they knew that lycans were rampant there. As usual, they are either scared, hate them, or even don't want to associate with them altogether. 

And to be honest, she kind of felt the same. 

After a few hours, she arrived, and as the smell of the usual scent of the woody bark from trees graced her nose, it gave her a wave of nostalgia, even if she didn't leave that long. 

She wanted to spend her semester break at home, as she missed it. She's just that kind of person who's very sentimental and gets attached easily. 

As she walked through the door of their house, her father welcomed her with the warmest of hugs and smiles. "Ah, my little girl is back." 

Being squished between her father's burly arms, she mumbled. "Yes, dad, I'm back." Barely audible. 

They parted, and her father pinched her cheek and said, "You've grown to be such a beautiful woman, Bricks." 

She laughed at her father's exaggerated remark. "Yes, I've grown so much in just a few months." Sarcasm filled every word she let out. 

She looked around and noticed that her mother was nowhere to be seen. She's not surprised. "Where's mom?" She asked, despite knowing the answer already. 

"The usual." 

"Right." 

Sensing the heavy atmosphere between them, her father changed the topic to a lighthearted one. "Well, come and eat with your old man, for old time's sake." 

She grinned at her father's effort to brighten her mood. He's always the expert when it comes to that. "Alright, dad. You're not that old; you're not even balding yet." She joked, knowing that her father is sensitive when it comes to male pattern baldness. 

"My girl, don't joke around. Even if I reached my 90s, my hair would never leave and migrate anywhere other than the top of my head." Her father said while gesturing his heap of hair. 

She laughed. "Alright, it won't." 

She felt that it had been such a long time since she laughed like this. Even if she's pretty disappointed that her mother is not present as usual, she's glad that her father could fill that empty hole just fine. 

After a pleasant afternoon lunch with her father, she immediately wanted to explore their town, as she's curious as to how it has changed in the span of just a few months. 

She walked along the usual pathway that is covered with an array of trees to the city plaza, taking note that everything is still the same, apart from some overgrown trees that covered said pathway. 

There are certainly more people out than she would've expected, but she didn't pay them any mind until she came across some police officers talking to a civilian. She got closer, and she saw that the man and his eyes were wide from, she's guessing, shock. Her hair stood up as they escorted him inside the ambulance, and she saw the full extent of the man's status: the blanket that is wrapped around him has some stain of fresh blood on it, and he's unsteadily walking while the police officers guide him. 

She didn't hear the police interrogation as she was far away, but she did hear from the people conjugating around that it was "one of the attacks that has happened again." 

Attacks? She wondered. Is it… 

Her mind wanders back to what happened at the prom, Isaac, and the question as to why he wanted to keep it a secret between them. 

She proceeded to walk to one of the people talking about the attacks to ask them, but she was stopped in her tracks when she caught something in the distance. Right outside the wall of a closed building, away from the crowd, is a man in dark clothing. He was leaning back against the wall and seemingly scanning the crowd. 

She looked at his profile, and she's not sure but has an inkling that she knew him. 

When he lifted his head, that's when she was certain who it was. 

"Isaac?" 

She changed her direction and went to him instead, but before she could even get close, he noticed her and bolted. She followed him immediately. 

He ran into the nearby grove. Bricklynn followed the rustling as she ran through the woods. She listened intently as twigs and dried leaves were crushed beneath the soles of his combat boots. 

When the noises stopped, she also stopped to listen. 

It's quiet. 

She heard a few noises here and there, but nothing significant. She closed her eyes and focused her ears. Once she did, she heard the footsteps of someone wearing boots, someone creeping up behind her. 

She turned around. 

"Leave!" Muttered by a stiff, deep, and hoarse voice. 

She jumped back. 

What greeted her wasn't the pleasant face of Isaac, or what she considered it to be, but the face of some sort of human with some characteristics of a wolf. He's covered with fur all over his face and body, even though it's obscured; she could tell it by the way his hands looked. 

If she's being straight to the point, this creature is like a werewolf but standing up, has a werewolf face but the human features are also distinct, and has a werewolf aura but is fiercer. This creature is, yes, something that she had never expected to encounter in her entire life. 

It's a lycan. 

"Leave this area now!" He growled. His voice reverberated all over her head, and the chills ran down her back. There's no semblance of friendliness in his voice. 

She was, once again, stunned. Being commanded and acting this way can only mean one thing. 

This creature is an alpha. 

And this creature is… 

As she looked at him, with her tongue biting, her heart in overdrive, and her eyes watery, she could only focus on his eyes. 

Crimson red. A fiery, red rose. Something that she had seen before and was fascinated by. But only this time, the slight softness that those eyes offered before has gone completely. Now, it was more sharp and aggressive-looking than before. 

"I—" she tried to remove the shakiness of her voice. "Isaac?" She muttered. Maintaining her defensive posture. 

Isaac stood back. Repeating. "Leave." In a softer tone. Thinking that he went too far. 

Bricklynn didn't budge. Her breathing is still heavy. 

He sighed and figured that now... Now that she knows what he is, she will leave him alone. Him showing his lycan form to her might have been impulsive, but he wanted to scare her away. Though, now, he was actually regretting it, as he hadn't thought of the consequences that he would face ahead of time. 

This is a dumb move. 

As he walked away, he was grabbed by Bricklynn in the arm. He could feel that her grip wasn't hard, and he could break away easily without exerting any effort. 

But he just lets her "Now that you know what I am, shouldn't you be running away?" He asked her, trying not to sound aggressive. 

He could feel her head shake. He looked at her; she was looking down. 

"I…" she choked on her words and swallowed. "I want t-to be grateful. You helped me so I…" her words, and seemingly her train of thought is jumbled. 

He broke free and faced her. Her lips were thin and her eyes were watery, but her breathing has returned to normal. This is fruitless. 

His passive and friendly approach didn't seem to work, so he circled back. "Leave or else." 

"But I—" 

"You already said your thanks. Leave it at that and scram." 

"No." She firmly stated, getting more and more brave. 

"You know that a lycan like me could rip your head off in a matter of seconds, right?". 

He could see her visibly getting scared, but she wasn't moving from her spot. 

She shook her head defiantly. Her eyebrows narrowed as she looked at him and stood her ground. "No." 

He threw daggers. "What do you mean no? I could do it. Don't test me." 

"You could, but you won't do it. Because if you want to, you could've done so twice: the first time that you saved me and the second time that you lent me your beanie." 

Isaac was taken aback. He knew that saving her that night would backfire on him. And meeting her again at the banquet is another bad idea. 

When did he become so careless? 

Damn it. 

"What the hell do you want then?" He gave up and knew that beating around the bush would result in nothing and would just continue with their game of cat and mouse with her. 

"I... um. I want to help. In whatever way I can. If you need it, that is." 

He does need help. He can't just bring Crystal with him, so maybe this girl, this wolf could help him. 

Curious. Curiousness and fascination are what made her so brazen towards a lycan like him. She was scared, but she was more intrigued, so she stayed no matter how much he threatened her. 

She held her breath, waiting for his reply, even if she had an inkling that he would decline her offer. 

Why did I even try to offer help, not knowing if he needed it? She scolded herself. 

But she was mistaken. Isaac's posture relaxes. "Then…" 

"Yes?" She brightened up. 

"Come with me to Hailborn Oak and act as my girlfriend." 

"Huh?"