Introspect [The Mating Games #3]

WENDELL ZERONE

He woke up the next morning without the will to get out of bed. How could he have the will to get out of bed when he had hardly slept a wink the night before?

When did you turn out to be so lazy? his wolf asked in a small, quiet voice still laced with sleep.

I don’t know what you’re talking about. You sound very much asleep yourself.

At least I’m not laying around in bed feeling sorry for myself.

That’s because your bed isn’t nearly as comfortable as mine, Wendell snorted as he moved over to lay on his back, getting even more comfortable. And I don’t feel sorry for myself.

You know I can read your thoughts, right?

Yes, Wendell confirmed, allowing his eyes to droop shut even though he hadn’t slept a wink the whole night. Then you should definitely know that I don’t feel sorry for myself.

Yes, but you’re definitely feeling a lot of things right now.

And you aren’t?

I think you’re jumping ahead of yourself, his wolf stated in a quiet murmur.

What do you mean?

I don’t understand why you’re panicking so early when nothing has been confirmed yet.

I know the scent masking spray was in effect but surely you must have felt something.

I didn’t feel the mate bond, if that’s what you’re asking, his wolf said. But I think that’s the whole point.

So, you didn’t feel anything? Wendell asked, his lips tugging down into a small frown as the question played on his mind. In the moment, with Troy standing right in front of him, he had felt an overwhelming number of things. And all without the mate bond, too. Surely that meant that his wolf must have felt something. If not, then what did that mean for all of that which he was feeling?

I wasn’t present for any of it but I know what you were feeling.

And?

I’m still not convinced that we’re gay, his wolf said without an ounce of judgement in his tone. I just think that you’re confused.

That sounds like something a parent in denial would say to their evidently gay child, Wendell snorted. The next thing that you’re going to tell me is that this is just a phase.

Very funny, his wolf replied dryly.

I’ve never looked at a man the way that I looked at Troy yesterday.

Yes, I know, the beast chuckled. I may have been numb but I was very present all throughout it. Including all the times that you were drooling over him.

I was not drooling, Wendell was quick to deny but he was sure it just didn’t have the intended purpose. Instead, quite the opposite.

Regardless, it appears that we’re at an impasse right now.

An impasse? he asked, opening his eyes to stare up at the ceiling.

Yes, his wolf confirmed like the little smart ass that he believed himself to be. It means that we’ve come to a roadblock; deadlock.

I know what an impasse means, Wendell replied shortly, not the least bit appreciative of any jokes right now. Even if they were light-hearted and of good nature.

Well, that’s good. I won’t have to explain it then, his wolf chuckled, ignoring the sour mood that his human counterpart was in. You clearly thing that Troy is your mate but I don’t think so.

Then how do you explain what I felt yesterday? Wendell countered, a certain amount of expectance in his tone.

I think you’re just confused.

Please don’t tell me you’re homophobic, Wendell groaned as he reached a hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose in frustration, but more so panic.

Wendell already felt like he was going through an identity crisis. The last thing he needed was for his wolf to be going through one, too. If they were going to stay sane all throughout this ordeal, then one of them needed to have their head screwed on tight.

Not to mention that Wendell wouldn’t be able to stand and allow his wolf to be homophobic just because he believed himself not to be gay even though all the signs were there. Well, the signs weren’t there as he had never looked at another male that way, but there was this evident attraction to Troy that he just couldn’t explain.

How was one expected to explain something that didn’t feel real in the first place?

I’m not homophobic, his wolf was quick to deny, clearly not a fan of the derogatory term. But I just don’t want to jump the gun too early, you know? We’re not even sure if Troy is actually our mate. If he does indeed turn out to be our mate, then we can start thinking over all of these questions but for now, I don’t think there’s any point in giving ourselves a headache.

You have a point there, Wendell murmured after a few moments, unable to pinpoint a flaw in his wolf’s logic.

Of course, I do. Now get out of bed, you lazy mutt!

Says the mutt, he chuckled. When his wolf made a show of turning his nose up and trotting away with his wolfish head held high, his chuckles were quick to turn into full-blown laughter.

Even though he knew the over exaggeration was for his benefit, he truly appreciated the gesture.

When he couldn’t stay in bed a moment longer without running the risk of arriving to today’s task late, Wendell forced himself out of bed. He then forced himself into the shower for a quick cold one before he got dressed for the day. As today’s task was the mate roulette, whatever that meant, he didn’t bother with more than a shirt and jeans; opting for the casual look.

Once he was already, he plastered a smile on his face before heading out into the main area of the apartment where everyone was enjoying breakfast around the dining table.

As it was already the third day of the Mating Games, that meant that he was already somewhat familiar with everyone here. However, he wasn’t in the most sociable mood right now.

In fact, he was just moody in general.

The conversation around the table was buzzing as he took a seat at the end. And as moody and unsociable as he was feeling, it appeared that it wasn’t enough to save him.

“You’re from the island, right?” Jack called out to him from the other side of the table.

With a peculiar expression on his face, Wendell nodded.

“What can you tell us about the mate roulette?” he asked, his voice all but demanding that all the attention around the table turn to him.

Wendell, however, couldn’t bring himself to feel indifferent about it. He couldn’t. Not after the more pressing matter which kept playing on his mind.

“Absolutely nothing,” he denied with a simply shake of his head as he reached over for the milk, looking to pour himself a bowl of cereal to get the day started.

“Surely, you must know something,” Liana from the American pack hummed. The inquisitive look on her face matched those of everyone else around the table; all of them watching him intently.

“While I’ve heard of a few tasks before, it’s mainly been the common ones such as the scent masked mixer and the obstacle course. But then that seems to change up every year,” Wendell shrugged, hoping it would be explanation enough as he truly didn’t know much about the Mating Games. And the little that he did know wasn’t applicable this year due to the combination of tasks.

“Well, that sucks,” Victoria from the Irish pack sighed, a deflated air around her.

“Sorry I couldn’t be of more help,” he shrugged but they were all quick to deny his apology as he hadn’t done anything wrong.

“Mate roulette,” Jack tested the word on his tongue, rubbing his chin as he thought hard. “What could that possibly mean?”

“It’s usually a gamble, isn’t it?” Admir from the Albanian pack piped up, offering his two cents. “But why would the Alpha king want us to gamble our mates?”

“For something better, surely.”

“What could be better than a mate?” Wendell found himself asking, just as confused as the seven other wolves around the table.

A series of agreements sounded from around the table; all of them in consensus.

Now that they had started on the topic, they were far too invested to stop. Everyone threw their ideas and interpretations of today’s task into the middle of the table, opening up the floor for opinions. But by the end of it, it felt like they had progressed backward; far more confused than they had started out.

“Before we leave for the palace,” Heather paused to beam at all of them, casually flipping over the cover of her Hex Charm as she turned it on. “There were a few delays this year with the results of the compatibility test, but they’re finally here.”

At her announcement, excited whispers sounded all around the table but as she started reading out the first one, they all fell silent. Instead, they kept their ears peeled for their individual name and score. Wendell did the same. Although he only paid attention to his own.

When Heather finally got around to his name which just happened to the last one on the list, he held his breath and turned his intense gaze to her.

“Wendell Zerone of Beati a Dea, you have scored 92%.”

At that, Wendell smiled. While it wasn’t the highest score to have been achieved today, it was still pretty high and definitely high enough for him to earn his first badge of the Mating Games.

Heather began around the dining table in the same order that she had read off the names and scores from her Hex Charm. When she finally reached Wendell sat at the very end, he accepted his badge gladly.

While Heather returned to the front of the living room so she could continue to address them all, Wendell couldn’t bring himself to look up from his newest accomplishment.

How could he when this little piece gave him the hope that he didn’t even knew he needed?

Gazing down at the badge in his hand – the first badge that he had earned of what he hoped to be his only attendance at the Mating Games – he couldn’t help but imagine who had won the matching badge. The fact that he could picture a certain sharp-features, pale-skinned, dark-haired individual spoke volumes to both him and his wolf.

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Layla Knight

11.06.2021