Chapter 47 - mates?

With the kind of day they both had, Declan wasn't the least bit surprised when Faun slept off as soon as he was done stuffing himself.

It seemed like the haze of his rut had broken, which was expected for his first rut. It was only natural that it would have the shortest time period, it was more or less a preparation for the rest of his ruts to come.

So, after a really big brunch, Faun had cuddled up to him, instead of falling asleep like Declan thought he would.

They ended up spending the rest of the afternoon just cuddling and watching random shows, Faun finally giving in to sleep when the sun started to go down.

Declan stared down at the sleeping hybrid straddling him, a strangely soft look in his slate grey eyes.

What he wanted to do then was take Faun to his room but his rut was over, there was no need for Declan to keep taking care of him.

He had no plans to take advantage of Faun's naivety in that manner.

If their relationship was to take on a new label after this, they would have to draw clear boundaries.

He wanted it but he wanted to be sure Faun did as well.

Declan carefully rose to his feet with Faun in his arms after stalling for as long as possible. He had spent the entire time watching Faun sleep, his show forgotten in the background.

It was quite dark out too, the sun had long set.

He gently tucked a sleeping Faun in, sneaking one last look before leaving.

He was buried under his stuffed toys, breathing deeply to indicate how deeply asleep he was.

Declan hadn't been expecting him to like stuffed toys that much but ever since he got them, Faun started sleeping better. So, naturally he just kept buying more.

Till they filled up his bed and he had to push some over to find a spot to sleep.

Isla must have caught a glimpse of his room and thought that he was the one requesting for the stuffed toys, not knowing it was just Declan who was whipped.

He cleared up the living room, deciding to go on a walk before going to bed.

He was not the one tired out from having a rut, plus he had taken a nap in the morning so he wasn't sleepy.

He was too buzzed out to try falling asleep; hopefully, a long walk in the woods would be the perfect solution to help burn the excess energy thrumming under his skin.

It was cold out but he didn't bother with a jacket, he felt overheated and putting on a jacket would just worsen it.

He made sure to lock the door behind him, glancing at the windows closest to him like he would be able to catch a glimpse of Faun sleeping.

But the curtains were drawn and not to mention, Faun's bedroom was far from the back door of the cottage.

Declan subconsciously lifted his head up. It was the full moon.

His lip twitched at this, a furrow appearing between his brows but he didn't stop, making his way down the backstairs and disappearing into the woods.

His pace increased ever so often, until he was half jogging but the buzzing wouldn't stop.

There was no helping it, he would have to go on a brief run.

Said brief run lasted hours, Declan slipping back into the cottage at well past midnight but at least the buzzing was gone.

He must have gotten a little too excited earlier, that wasn't safe for either of them. He would have to be more careful.

Declan's brain was still alert but his body was tired out from the marathon he had run through the uneven ground of the forest.

His brain easily gave in to the exhaustion of his body and as soon as he dropped on his bed, he fell asleep.

He woke up to the sun right in his face; actually, it was just Faun.

Faun was straddling him, his beautiful green eyes watching him intently from barely an inch away, wild red hair everywhere.

It was why Declan thought the sun was in his face.

As soon as he was lucid enough to process what was going on, Declan cursed under his breath.

This was exactly why he nearly ran into another town the night before; Faun was flirting with danger.

"Oh! You're awake!" Faun blinked, his face going a bright pink at their close proximity but he made no effort to put some distance between them.

Declan raised a brow at him, his eyes full of questions.

Faun's ears were pressed against the side of his face, his eyes darted downwards ever so often as he fiddled with his fingers.

He had done little research with his phone as soon as he woke up and he was beyond pleased at what he had found.

Although he was still slightly mortified that he had asked Declan to help him during his rut. That was only asked of the person you were already mated to or wanted to mate.

"I… I… I…" Faun stalled, getting redder as he tried to get his question out.

Declan patiently waited for him to put himself together.

Amusement danced in his eyes as he placed his hands on Faun's waist, his hands fitting perfectly like they were meant to be there.

He was incredibly curious about what Faun had to say though, he noted that he was acting differently. Usually, if Faun got that red while he was around him, he would quickly try to put some distance between them but this time, he was staying in place.

Faun on the other hand was struggling not to pass out.

Why was he asking Declan? He was human.

He would just end up making a fool of himself.

But he had already come this far, he might as well ask.

"A-Are… Are we mates?"

Declan's eyes went wide, closing it briefly to hide his emotions. Faun probably didn't mean it the way he hoped.

"What?"