Heavenly Poison

Damien Gray

“Lukey boy!” Sebastian called the small pup.

The husky came running to him, wagging his tail, and looking excited with the attention.

I grinned at Sebastian, just as I had been doing every single time he called out to Luke.

It was late at night, and Sebastian hadn’t stopped fussing about the puppy he’d adopted a few hours ago.

As much as I tried, I couldn’t go to bed. I was too amused by Sebastian and the pup.

“Luke is gonna be fuming once he gets a load of Luke,” I said, chuckling at my own words.

“I should make Luke give Luke a load on his front yard,” Sebastian said, as he tickled the puppy’s tummy.

Emilia had left a few hours ago. I didn’t have to be a mind reader to guess what she was thinking. The scowl had remained in her face the entire time she was here, after Sebastian and Luke had arrived.

“We should go to bed,” Sebastian said, making no attempt to move.

“We should,” I agreed. Despite my words, I also remained lying down on the couch.

I woke up feeling something strange touching my hands.

I cracked one eye open just enough to see Luke licking my hand, which was almost touching the ground. I hadn’t noticed I’d fallen asleep on the couch.

“You tired?” Sebastian asked, as he walked down the stairs.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” I asked him.

The first thing I did after getting up from the couch was stretch. That couch was not meant for sleeping, and it was too small for me.

Despite how late we’d gone to sleep last night, Sebastian hardly looked tired.

“You fell asleep on the couch. I figured you needed more rest,” he shrugged as he walked toward the kitchen.

Luke made his way after Sebastian. I saw the grin on Seb’s face right after he caught sight of Luke.

“Don’t bring Emilia around the house today,” Sebastian told me on the drive to school.

I cocked an eyebrow, but didn’t question him about it.

“We’re spying on the Wolves,” he continued.

“What?” I asked, feeling a frown pull on my face.

“We are, so find a way to get rid of her. I don’t want her stalking you if we’re going to be on her territory.”

“Why? If we want to know anything, we could just ask Emilia,” I told him.

“You could, not me. And you can’t ask anything that includes her pack or her father.”

“Why not?” I asked out of mere curiosity or probably just to torment myself even more.

“Emilia hasn’t been too forthcoming about her pack or the Alpha. Since she isn’t saying anything, we need to find out on our own.”

I closed my eyes, and felt myself slump in the seat. Now was probably a very good time to tell Sebastian of all the invitations I’d received from Emilia about meeting the Alpha.

Sebastian would probably get mad that I had turned them all down, even when Emilia kept insisting.

“Don’t be too bummed about it. We’re just flying over their lands, scoping it out, and maybe finding where Emilia lives,” Sebastian added, with a shrug.

Getting to school didn’t exactly seem like it would brighten my mood.

I was already irritated with Sebastian’s idea. I didn’t want to be in Mountain Peak territory. I didn’t want to risk them finding us, and I didn’t want Emilia to have another chance at telling me she was a Werewolf.

“Hey Sebastian,” one of the regular girls that hung around Seb, Tania I think her name was, greeted.

“Damien,” she said to me.

I nodded at her, and began walking ahead.

“Tania, I missed you babe,” Sebastian said, as he embraced Tania.

She giggled, seeming all too happy with the attention. She had just arrived at school and had parked right next to us.

“Don’t make any plans after school!” Sebastian reminded me.

I spotted Emilia in her table soon after. She was surrounded by the usual shifter group, Luke and all his friends included.

As soon as I got to Emilia’s table, I nodded towards the front entrance of the school.

“Let’s go,” I said.

The rest of her pack didn’t seem to appreciate my tone, because some of the growled at me. I smirked at them.

“Dogs,” I said under my breath, knowing they would hear me.

It was risky on my part, considering I knew what they were. I simply wasn’t in the mood to keep up with appearances.

Emilia quickly stood up from her spot and came to my side. She was frowning, either at me or at the shifters from her pack who were glaring at me.

“Are you okay?” Emilia asked, even though it seemed like she wanted to say something else.

I didn’t reply. I only grabbed her hand and dragged her away.

“Where are we going?” She asked me on the walk to the main doors.

I could feel the stares not only from her friends, but also from Sebastian and all his groupies.

“Nowhere special,” I replied, and continued on my way.

She was keeping up, looking curious as to where I was taking her.

“The stacks?” Emilia asked, with a smile on her face.

I had taken her back to the stacks in the library, which seemed like the only place where I’d be able to get some peace of mind.

Instead of replying, I wrapped one of my arms around her waist. I placed my other hand behind her neck, and brought her body flush against mine.

She didn’t fight me, not that she ever did.

I crashed my lips against hers, while running my hand on the side of her body with more force than necessary. I was letting go of all my frustrations with her.

She’d be able to take it.

Hell, if any of those Wolves could give me any competition it would probably be her- the Alpha’s daughter.

I felt my thoughts going to darker places, so I tried focusing more on Emilia- kissing her with more urgency.

Emilia surprised me when she pulled away.

Both of us were breathless, so it was probably a good thing. I began trailing kisses over her jaw, before nestling my head in her neck.

She smelled so good. She was wearing something, a fragrance, I couldn’t tell what. But her natural scent, it called to me on so many levels.

Somehow while I was kissing her, she’d inched away from me. I grabbed her hips and pressed her against me, making her yelp.

“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?” Emilia asked.

I stopped my attack on her neck, and pulled away from her.

I stared at her and noticed several emotions crossing over her face. Her eyes had shifted to that darker color again. I had yet to decide which I preferred, the icy bright blue or the black.

In that moment, with how much I wanted her- the black color in her eyes was the one I craved. I knew it meant she wanted me as much as I wanted her.

I leaned in for another kiss. My lips had just grazed hers, when she put her hands on my chest and pushed me away.

“What happened?” She asked me.

“Nothing happened,” I replied, and again tried to go in for a kiss.

“Something must’ve happened. Look at how you’re acting. You’re being…” She didn’t finish her sentence. She let it carry on, making me wonder how exactly I was being.

Wasn’t she the one who always wanted this?

“How am I being?” I asked her.

I completely pulled away from her, and rested my back against the space of wall between both stacks.

“I like this, how you’re being,” Emilia surprised me by saying.

She closed the distance between us, wrapping her arms around my neck. She usually began messing with my hair, and this time was no different.

It was calming me down to have her hands interlaced with my hair, as she nuzzled her nose against my neck.

“It’s just, you’re hardly like this,” she finished.

I hadn’t noticed I’d closed my eyes. I found Emilia staring at me when I opened them.

“We should probably get to class.”

I fixed my pants, and realized maybe a make out session before school wasn’t the best idea. My hair was usually all over the place. I just shook my head, and let my hair settle one way or another.

“C’mon,” I said, putting my hand out for her to take.

Emilia’s eyes were even darker than before. I simply rolled my eyes at her. It was too easy to rile up or turn on a Werewolf.

I was distracted for most of the morning. Sebastian had already called in yesterday saying we’d both had doctor appointments.

The teachers were more than grateful in handing me the work and homework that I’d missed.

Emilia was at the end of the hall waiting for me right after I got out of Math.

“Hey,” she waved when I walked up to her.

I simply took her hand and began walking to the cafeteria.

“You didn’t answer my question in the morning,” Emilia said as I dragged her along.

“Hmm…” I muttered, without turning to face her.

I could see Sebastian walking a few steps ahead of us with Tania by his side.

I had noticed that out of all the girls who usually hung around him, Tania had become a usual. The rest came and went- usually they went.

“Is something bothering you?” Emilia asked.

She pulled on my hand and brought me to a halt. I shouldn’t have been surprised by her strength, but it still shook me up a bit.

“You’re strong,” I said, as I stood in front of her.

People who passed by- stared at us for a moment.

Some girls were saying ‘hello’ and I responded with a nod, which Emilia didn’t seem to appreciate. She kept frowning at anyone who stopped by or who looked for too long.

“I work out. Now tell me what’s wrong,” she said, dismissing my question about her obvious strength.

“Sebastian is over there. I need to talk with him and I’m hungry,” I said.

Again I tried walking towards the cafeteria but Emilia pulled me back.

“I don’t want to sit with them. We can sit with my friends today,” Emilia said.

She was still frowning at something. I wasn’t exactly sure why she was mad, and I wasn’t interested in finding out.

I paid for both my lunch and Emilia’s. Once we had our food, I began making my way outside. It was where Sebastian was.

“Where are you going?” Emilia hissed at me.

I nodded towards the patio outside. Through the windows that went along the back wall of the cafeteria, I could see Sebastian and the girls around the table.

“I thought we were sitting with my friends,” she said.

She held her tray with one hand and grabbed my arm with the other.

The way she spoke- even I had to admit she meant it as an order. For a moment, I wondered what a Wolf from her pack would’ve done after she said that.

Would they follow after her like a lost puppy?

I almost laughed out loud at my own thought, thinking back to Luke, who was probably bored out of his mind alone at the apartment.

“Alright,” I gave in to her.

It hadn’t seemed like she was bargaining either way. She had already started dragging me along to the table at the back.

“Hey guys,” Emilia said when we came up to their table.

The shifters around the table had gone silent as soon as we reached them. They were all openly staring at me.

“Um hey,” one of girls was the first to break the silence.

After that, they all started saying different forms of hellos.

“Damien, you already know Lexi and Jenna,” she pointed at her friends from the diner. I knew who they were, but I hadn’t been too sure about the names.

“Luke, you know him too…” Emilia said, remaining quiet for a moment.

“That’s Trish, Candy, Janice, Evan, George, and Reuben,” she finished introducing the rest of the shifters.

They weren’t the only ones on the school from her pack, I knew that much. I assumed these were the ones she was closest to.

It bothered me when I thought about Luke being part of the shifters close to Emilia. It didn’t exactly help that Sebastian had already told me Luke had a thing for Emilia.

“Hey,” I said, sending a small wave to all of them.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” one of the girls, I think it was Candy, said.

“Yeah, I know,” I agreed.

“You’re agreeing that it’s nice to meet you?” Luke asked, mockingly.

I rolled my eyes at him, although it was what I had implied.

I didn’t really think it was nice meeting any of them. I wasn’t interested in making friends. If I was- I would certainly not seek the friendship of a Werewolf.

“It’s nice to meet all of you,” I cleared up.

I wasn’t really sure if they were able to sense the lie behind my words.

“Except for Luke,” I quickly added.

While some of the girls giggled at my comment- which didn’t seem all that funny- Luke was already looking mad.

“Damien!” Sebastian yelled somewhere behind me.

When I turned back, I noticed he was standing by the doors that led to the back area.

I grinned at him.

“Uh, he’s calling me,” I said to Emilia before getting up.

I hadn’t eaten yet, which was the only thing I was regretting.

“Mind explaining that?” Sebastian asked, as he nodded in Emilia’s direction.

Everyone around the table was all looking at us, Emilia included. She looked annoyed by something.

“Emilia’s idea, a bad one too,” I replied with a shrug.

“Did you eat?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah, did you eat?” Tania said with a teasing tone, as she came to stand beside Sebastian.

There wasn’t an entourage of girls, which made me raise an eyebrow at Sebastian.

“I didn’t get a chance and sitting in that table wasn’t exactly helping my appetite.”

I didn’t know if Emilia and her pets could hear me.

I figured they were listening but I was past caring if any of them got insulted by my comment.

“Let’s go, Tania’s a senior,” Sebastian said, as he put his arm around my shoulders and began dragging me out of the cafeteria.

Tania was on the other side of Sebastian, her arm interlaced in his.

“Tania’s a senior… which means?” I asked, still confused about that.

Sebastian shrugged, like if it should’ve been obvious.

“She can get us out. Well, she can leave and she’s taking us with her,” Sebastian said, as he grinned at her.

“We can leave without needing a senior, no offense Tania. The security around here isn’t exactly tight,” I said, motioning around with my hands.

“Where are you going?” Emilia’s voice came from behind us.

Her voice brought me to a halt. Emilia didn’t look happy, and I could hear her heart beating faster than was normal.

We were already in the main hall. The front doors were just ahead of us.

“I’m taking Damien out to eat. Tania’s treat,” Sebastian replied, grinning playfully at Tania.

I laughed when Tania slapped Sebastian’s chest.

“Screw you,” Tania said, while chuckling at Sebastian’s words.

I was still finding that behavior fairly strange. I would never argue that Sebastian wasn’t nice with a girl. Heck it was how he got so many of them.

I just wasn’t used to him being more playful than necessary. He usually stopped trying to charm them after he took them to bed.

“You left your tray in the table,” Emilia told me, looking at Tania disapprovingly.

That was a new one, considering Tania wasn’t really interested in me.

“It’s alright. Give it to Luke if you want,” I said.

My words made Sebastian burst out laughing.

“I get what you did there. He’s a- so you give him the leftovers,” Sebastian said, his voice full of humor.

“What are you talking about?” Emilia asked, looking slightly nervous.

Shit. I thought to myself.

That comment might’ve been too much.

“I’m leaving. Just throw it away or something,” I told her, hoping to save the slip up so she wouldn’t try to say anything else.

“Can I talk to you for a minute, alone,” she told me, emphasizing the last part.

She gave Sebastian a pointed look, before pulling on my hand.

“I know something’s wrong,” Emilia told me.

We hadn’t walked too far away from Sebastian and Tania. Although Tania wouldn’t be able to hear our conversation, Sebastian would know everything we talked about.

When it came to any Legen gifts, I was yet to catch a break. So far, they had only been screwing me over.

“Nothing’s wrong,” I snapped.

I didn’t mean to snap, but I had had enough with the same thing from her all day.

“You’ve been acting different today,” she continued to press.

“Different? You hardly even know me. How would you know if I’ve been acting different?”

“You’re being more of a jerk than usual,” Emilia muttered.

I stared at her, narrowing my eyes. Instead of making sense to how upset she sounded, I focused on what was easier for me to control.

“You think I’m a jerk?”

“What?” She asked, pretending to be confused.

No doubt she must’ve been pretending because she’d obviously called me a jerk.

“It’s an easy question. Do you think I’m a jerk? Do you need me to repeat it a few more times? I know how untrained some of you can be,” I said with distaste.

I didn’t let her answer. She seemed shocked, maybe even hurt by my words. She was probably faking that as well.

I didn’t waste any more time and simply stalked away from her.

Both Sebastian and Tania grew quiet when I approached them. I couldn’t guess what was running through Sebastian’s mind, but he definitely seemed surprised.

“Hey are you okay?” Tania asked, looking concerned. Apparently that was the question of the day.

“Fuck this,” I said more to myself than either of them.

I began walking ahead, heading for the woods nearby.

“Where are you going?” Sebastian yelled after me.

I didn’t reply. I continued on my way.

I had no idea where I was going. Skipping my afternoon classes wasn’t going to settle in too well with Sebastian, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to make it through them.

I was angry. Why? I wasn’t even sure I could answer that question to myself.

I had been walking, exposing myself mainly. I was walking a lot faster than any human should’ve been able to.

The woods were quiet, expect for the random sound of insects or birds here and there.

I was trying to drown away my thoughts. The more I tried to push them away, the more persistent they were in coming back to me.

A thrill ran through my body when I picked up the speed, and began running instead of simply walking.

Fuck me

Today was not my day.

I closed my eyes, in a useless attempt of hiding myself from the Wolf I had just crashed with. The force of the impact had made me ricochet from his body to the ground.

I had crashed with an oversized black Werewolf. He was six feet tall, probably more. Right now, he was staring down at me, his eyes fixated on mine. He was baring his teeth, looking ready to attack.

There was only one thing running through my mind.

Surely now Sebastian was really going to kill me.