Wereball Serie - Along Came A Mate

When the next day I headed for breakfast, I found all my roommates already immersed in their sacred morning routines. Makena was there too, dressed in a short skirt and a glittery tank top. The old makeup from the night before slightly disfigured her beautiful features. With Kenyan parents, she was only ten years old when her family moved to the USA. We met her at the university.

At the time, Tiziano, Amaia, and I were looking for an extra roommate for our apartment. Although the girl was a few years older, friendship blossomed from the first moment.

“Good morning, Mak!” I chirped, poking her hips.

“Ssssh! Why are you yelling?”

Lab rat by day and party animal by night, we all wondered when Makena found time to sleep. Lachlan insisted that the girl did not sleep at all, instead taking one of those weird drugs her department produced.

Letting out a laugh, I hugged her. Her flawless ebony skin glistened under all the glitter she loved to apply whenever she went out.

“Our queen here had a busy night!” Tiziano handed me a cappuccino, freshly made from our coffee machine.

One of the many gifts from Uncle Andrew. He was the youngest of my mother’s four siblings and the only one who had moved from Scotland to the United States when my mother finally accepted her position as Luna alongside dad.

I thanked Tiziano, placing a kiss on his freshly shaven cheek while he was busy eating an almond croissant.

It was only a Wednesday, though that certainly did not stop Makena from hanging out with her gang of wild friends, a group studying pharmacy and radiology. These disciplines were considered the dumb little brothers of medicine, and doctors loved to make jokes about these easy subjects.

“It was fun. We ended up at this party.” Makena shrugged as she bit into her croissant.

“Any new conquests?” Amaia asked without taking her eyes off her antique computer.

“A random guy from a business school of another pack. I just got back from his house.” The subtle smirk told us everything.

“Which pack?” Tiziano pursed his lips. Being a huge wereball fanatic, his competitive side emerged.

Makena huffed, averting her eyes. “DD,” she admitted under Tiziano’s overcritical gaze.

DD was short of Dark Diamond. According to legends, you could not utter DD’s full name unless you wished to bring bad luck upon your entire wereball team.

Sleeping with a Dark Diamond’s pack member would be akin to committing high treason.

I sighed, shaking my head at that nonsense.

“Come on, don’t think about it anymore, Mak.” Tiziano patted her on the shoulder. “Everyone makes mistakes!”

Makena rolled her eyes and was about to add a sarcastic comment but Tiziano continued his lecture.

“Have you been sad or pessimistic lately? Negative emotions in your heart can increase the brain’s ability to make bad decisions! Never forget that, baby, and you’ll never make such mistakes again.” As usual, Tiziano pulled out a quote about his favorite organ.

“Okay loves, I’m going to class. I’ve got an early one!” I called to my roommates and stroked Plutos’ soft fur. My parents owned the apartment, as not many agencies would accept pets, especially like mine. I grabbed my takeaway cup, one more for my brother, and shoved a croissant in my mouth.

“See you tonight!” Tiziano shouted from the kitchen, while Makena handed me my bag. As I passed by my brother’s apartment, the one just below ours, I knocked once with my knee as all my hands were occupied.

“I’m coming!” I heard his hoarse voice among several deep voices and male chuckles. He lived with his wereball mates, all from our pack. Our doors were always open for each other, though ours was the Doctor’s House and theirs was the Lair.

“Morning Ivy.” Gaius opened the door in his boxers and sleepy face. Son of the Gamma of our pack, Lachlan’s best friend, and madly in love with Makena.

“How are the roommates?” Obviously the first question was about her, in a twisted sort of way. I smiled under my breath, shaking my head.

From dating for a few months to a brutal breakup, the relationship now consisted of constantly hurting each other and taking revenge. There was a pattern: Makena showing up with her latest conquest and Gaius punching the poor victim. Then Gaius arriving with his date in front of everyone and Makena crying in her room when no one could hear her. The sheer force of their stubbornness could move objects.

The two had a peculiar relationship. Some of us even plotted them to be mates, although the two denied it fervently.

Though we lived in relative modern times, mates were still a big deal in our culture, but no one was in a hurry to find their other half. Nowadays, werewolves did not really meet their mates in their teens as it used to be in the past.

“They are all well! Some are busy studying; others have just returned from a night out,” I said vaguely, mirroring his vague question. “The usual.” I shrugged as his eyes narrowed in suspicion. He absently rubbed his chest with a pained expression. Before I could add something else, a voice interrupted me.

“Hey, sis.” Lachlan joined us, his red hair still dripping from the shower.

My twin had taken over the Scottish side of the family, inheriting its curly red hair, freckles, pale skin, and eyes as blue as the Highlands’s sky.

Everyone had addressed him by different nicknames over the years.

His footballing and best-known epithet was The Highlander.

I, on the other hand, had only inherited blue eyes from the land of Lochness, as I was otherwise a miniature of my father, with hazel hair and tanned skin.

We fell into routine and ate breakfast on our way to university, something we had grown fond of as our schedules constantly clashed.

“You have your volunteering job today, do you?” he asked after shoving his croissant into his mouth, finishing it in two bites.

“I do.”

Twice a week, I volunteered at the children’s hospital. Children with various illnesses, from terminal to treatment-dependent ones, were kept there. A lot of help was needed. Ever since our little brother, Ian, was born with a rare form of brain tumor, one of my greatest passions had been saving unfortunate children born with incurable diseases, trying to give good news to their families or improve their quality of short life.

“I’ll pick you up,” he promised with a smile, kissing my cheek.

As we passed, several werewolves students waved at us or stopped for a chat. Being the Alpha twins gave us unwanted popularity, especially Lachlan as the Alpha to be and the captain of the wereball team.

Oblivious to the eyes of the she-wolves who almost drooled when they notice his athletic frame and warrior-like figure, my twin solely focused on our conversation.

“I may go to Side Bar with the guys if I manage to fit a couple of hours of anatomy between my classes and volunteering.”

He winced at my words, then shook his head with a light smile. “We could go altogether,” I added hopefully.

“Alright! I’ll bring my crew.”

Landing in the world together, growing up together, and doing everything together, Lachlan and I had a bond beyond powerful. Sometimes we understood each other with a simple look, communicating without words.

I always believed that a sibling was the best gift parents could give to a child. And, as Uncle Andrew used to say, we began breathing holding hands.