Introspect [The Mating Games #3]

WENDELL ZERONE

He had believed that there was something strange going on with Troy before, but now he was completely sure of it. The man had stood next to him for at least fifteen minutes now but not once had he turned his head to glance at him. Instead, he kept his head low and his hands in his pockets, though Wendell was sure that he had his ears peeled for all the different conversations going on around him; including the one that Wendell was currently engaged in with his sister, Rain.

Wendell kept a polite smile on his face and bobbed his head up and down at all the right moments as Rain continued speaking, currently re-telling her joy at having received an invitation to her first Mating Games. While the story was rather comical to say the least, he surprisingly found it difficult to concentrate.

But then again, how could he concentrate with silent assassin stood beside him. With the strange, unsettling way that this wolf was making him feel, for all Wendell knew, Troy could very well be an assassin.

But then he also knew that more than anything, he was deflecting from having to address the real situation at hand. Just thinking about it made him gulp.

“I know you guys met briefly before but Wendell,” Rain called out to him in a cheerful voice, one which he was able to hear the literal grin in her voice. “But this is my older brother. He’ll be taking over the Beta role from my father once he returns from the Mating Games with his mate.”

“You’re the future Beta of the Blood Rose pack?” Wendell turned to question the man stood next to him, the surprise evident on his face.

“Yes, that would be me,” Troy chuckled, finally lifting his head to meet Wendell’s eyes.

But in that moment, Wendell really wished he hadn’t.

Even with the presence of his wolf numbed severely, so much so that it almost felt like he didn’t even have a wolf, there was no denying the attraction between them. Staring into the dark brown pools that were just a shade darker than his hair, Wendell found himself getting lost in the deep pools. Similar to his sister, his features were sharp, but more masculine than the cat-like feature that Rain displayed. At about the same height as him, Wendell neither needed to look up or down to address him.

They were both the eldest born in a long line of Beta wolves – albeit Wendell was slightly elevated due to the simplest fact that he was Royal and Troy was not. With what seemed to only be a few years between them, they were in a similar age group and judging by the conflicted look on his face, Wendell couldn’t help but think that Troy was going through many similar things as him right now.

Regardless of all of that, especially on paper, Wendell couldn’t help but feel like they couldn’t be further apart even if one was stood at the North pole and the other at the South.

Despite the way he felt, there was no denying the electric energy between them. And to think that they had only spoken nothing more than a few words to each other.

How Rain and the others didn’t pick up on it, Wendell had no idea.

He barely felt like he could breathe with all of this going on around him. Even more so as Troy was still staring at him, an inquisitive expression on his face with his head cock slightly to the side.

“And you’re Royal Beta Wendell?” Troy asked, clearly trying to keep the conversation going.

“Yes, but not yet,” he said before clarifying. “My dad is still the Royal Beta.”

“And you’ll be taking over once you meet your mate?”

Wendell nodded his head in confirmation.

“Do you think you’ve met your mate yet?” he asked curiously.

“I thought I did,” Wendell said and without realising it, he glanced over Troy’s shoulder to spare a glance at Rain. The moment Troy followed his line of vision and the moment he spotted Wendell staring at his sister, he immediately regretted it. “But I’m not sure anymore.”

“You’re not sure,” his voice trailed off as he returned his attention back to the front, a very thoughtful, conflicted expression on his face.

“What about you? Do you think that you’ve met your mate yet?” Wendell asked, desperate to take the attention off him in hopes of immediately forgetting what had just happened.

“Yes,” Troy confirmed with a nod, not the least bit hesitant as he answered. “But I don’t think my mate realises what we are.”

“You sound like you’re really sure that you’ve met your mate,” Wendell hummed thoughtfully, his lips curling down slightly at the corners, not quite sure how he felt about Troy having met his mate already. There was also the feeling of this mate that he was referring to being him that he couldn’t quite shake.

“I’m very certain,” he chuckled, but the sound was very far from light or airy. “But I wouldn’t worry as this is only the second day of the Mating Games.”

“I like your positivity and you’re right. This is only the second day,” he smiled, though it didn’t quite reach his ears as there was still an air of uncertainty that surrounded them. “There’s still plenty of time for all of that.”

“Not to mention that the scent masking spray probably isn’t helping the situation any,” Troy added, his lips stretching out in what appeared to be a small, awkward smile.

Wendell returned his awkward smile and nodded, not sure what else to say. What could he say when he couldn’t focus on anything other than the way this man – a total stranger – made him feel?

It was only when Ethan returned with a large group of wolves all eager to mingle and possibly hand their remaining ribbons to that their brief conversation came to an end. However, it only came to an end around them because in Wendell’s mind, he was replaying the conversation over and over again.

How could he not when he could barely understand exactly what was going on.

Never before had Wendell paid any special attention a person of the same gender, let alone questioned his sexuality. But one glance at Troy and all of that went out of the window.

When it had just been him, Holly and Rain, he had genuinely believed Rain to be his mate. He had even found her attractive but now that Troy was in the picture, it appeared those feelings had migrated over to him instead. Now when he glanced over at Rain, currently in conversation with a group of guys, he didn’t feel much. But when he glanced over at Troy who was merely bobbing his head up and down while a she-wolf talked to him, clearly yapping his ear off, he felt far too much for him to possible understand and vocalise; let alone explain.

Oh, what a time it was to be without his wolf!

Even though he knew he shouldn’t as it was considered rude, especially when done to a stranger, but Wendell just couldn’t help but stare at Troy. And not just because this was the most unconventionally beautiful man that he had ever had the pleasure to lay eyes on.

How could he not when Troy had commandeered his mind from his sister? Although the attraction and connection to Rain had been nothing like this. And definitely not as intense as what he was feeling right now.

In this moment, Wendell found himself cursing the scent masking spray for being so strong. There was no guarantee but if his wolf was present now, then he wouldn’t have had to be alone. At least then, he would be in this message with someone else.

“Wendell,” a quiet, husky voice called out to him; pulling him out of his thoughts.

“Yes?” he blinked in surprise, raising his head to glance at the man that had called out to him in concern.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes,” he answered positively straight away in hopes of deflecting the several pairs of questioning eyes that were now trained on him. “Why do you ask?”

“You look like you have a lot on your mind right now,” Troy stated; crossing him arms over his chest.

“I do have a lot on my mind,” Wendell found himself answering honestly, surprising even himself. “But nothing to worry about.”

“Are you sure?” Troy continued to ask, a mixed expression on his face; one which Wendell couldn’t quite break down.

“Don’t worry, Troy,” Rain chuckled as she dismissed her brother’s worries with a simple wave of her hand. “He’s set to be the Royal Beta. He’s bound to have a lot on his mind.”

“But–” Troy went on to insist but again, was cut off by his sister – something which his brothers often did when they couldn’t get the words out of their mouths soon enough.

“You’re the same so think about how you feel when we keep asking you if you’re okay,” she said, quirking a daring brow at her brother.

At her words, both Troy and Wendell smiled but in his both, they both looked just as comfortable as each other.

Turning his attention to the pressing matter at hand, Wendell slipped his hand in his jacket pocket. When his fingertips grazed the soft material of the lone ribbon that remained there, he exhaled deeply.

Wendell had been contemplating this for quite some time now.

He was down to his last ribbon. Previously he had believed that either Holly or Rain would be his mate but now with this strange and bizarre attraction that he felt toward Rain’s brother, Troy, Wendell had absolutely no idea.

On one hand, he had no way of knowing whether Troy was gay or not. Even if he was, Wendell had no idea whether he was gay or not.

In all actuality, he had never considered himself to be bisexual, let alone gay but now, he felt like his entire world had been turned upside down on its axis. His mind felt like it was constantly spinning and to make things so much worse, the second to last gong sounded aloud and filled the room, indicating that there was less than ten minutes left for him to hand out his last ribbon.

He now had less than ten minutes left to decide whether he wanted to hand Troy his last ribbon or not. Or even more importantly, whether he believed for his mate to be a male – something which he had never considered before.

Both following and fighting his instincts at the same time, Wendell accepted the ribbon. Instead of exchanging it for one of his that a part of him truly wanted to do, he settled for something in the middle.

Except, it wasn’t quite in the middle and definitely something that he would come to regret later. But for now, it was all about finding some sort of balance with all the conflicting instincts that he was feeling.

Reaching into his pocket for his last ribbon, he gulped and pressed the ribbon against Troy’s chest. Not giving the wolf a moment to register what had just happened, let alone accept his ribbon, he took a step back.

Troy was probably trying to be friendly when he pinched the material between his thumb and forefinger, his lips curling up into a smile as he glanced between him and the ribbon. The action was simple and rather pleasant, but Wendell just couldn’t see it that way. Not when he was already so confused with everything going on inside and all around him right now.

As if he wasn’t panicking enough already, Troy opened his mouth to say something.

However, in his current delirious state, Wendell had no intention of sticking around to hear what he had to say. And so, for that reason, he turned around and headed out of the grand hall with his tail tucked between his legs.

-

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Layla Knight

08.06.2021