53: Why me?

I felt sore and my entire body ached from staying out too long as I stretched like a jungle cat and squealed.

Rex's eyes were fixed on me, he looks satisfied as he smiled knowingly.

"Tired?" He asked affirmatively, bending his head towards my direction with a mysterious line of smile appearing on his face.

"Really" I stated softly, standing up gradually from the couch that has been carrying my tired self.

"I would need change of clothe" I mentioned and yawned, raising my hand upwards slowly to indicate how long the yawning was while my other hand covered my mouth.

"You seem tired to go home yourself, what if.." he sounded tenderly while I interrupted his kind gesture and headed for the door.

"I would be fine, thanks" my voice came out firm and brief but still yet, grateful.

My bones ached alittle which I can manage but I wanted time to myself to think about what had happen, giving an excuse to go home.

"I shouldn't be over protective but I just don't feel okay letting you go" He said.

A brief silence and he looked at me with a half smile.

"I trust you will be fine"

Rex walked up to me and gave me a squashing hug that might have done harm to my ribs if he wasn't in his human form.

"Take care dear, looking forward to see you again" he whispered and kissed my eyelids before letting me go.

I flashed him a faint smile and dashed out of the cottage without turning around to see his sad longing face, which I imagine would be by the partially closed door.

On getting to my room, I noticed the door was slightly ajar as fear gripped me, but I shook it off immediately.

The door wasn't hard to open with a very little effort of my finger tip on it, my eyes caught Rowena's figure standing few meters away from my bed as she backed the door's direction.

"You were not back home yesterday young lady" Rowena's voice sounded scolding, she didn't move from her position as she spoke to me.

Sudden feeling of fear jolted me from inside but my ego helped suppressed it to the root.

"I'm sorry mom, I would be back home early next time before curfew" I pleaded sarcastically, promising what won't be fulfilled.

I could feel the upsoar rage boiling in her as she turned around more slower than I had imagined she would after hearing that.

She had her cold dagger stare at me but my unserious mood made me waved it off with a smirk, while the corner end of my lips bounce slowly in threat of bursting out into laughter.

"Where is Alice, you know you had a short time to do so" her voice came out in raw frustration, her face paving space for a frown.

"I needed to rest plus, I don't want to escape again" my voice echoed unnecessarily as my hand swung my hair with it finger tips to offend her the more.

I glanced at her and scoffed when I saw her rolled her eyes hard. Hard that I saw just the white parts before she locked gaze with me.

Her facial expressions showed she wanted to say something else, to nag but she didn't.

Good for her.

"This new decision of yours has to be about Rex, isn't it?" Her little voice growled breathlessly at me and I shrugged, smiling sheepishly.

There was nothing to be afraid of anymore, Rex and I are into each other and I just can't help but rub it off in anyone's face.... mostly Derek and Rowena.

I chuckled and took more steps into the room to find Derek sitting on my reading chair with his hot gaze fixed at the mirror.

My heart skipped and almost exploded and the whole of my body shook physically at the sight of Derek's raging face.

His jawline was clearly tightened and the muscles around it dance repeatedly like there was a battle going on in himself.

The smirk on my face was instantly replaced with a scared cat face, my eyes widened about falling off it socket as I stood stiffly watching him.

He suddenly got up and walked pass me in slightly haste, like he was charged with something and my heart sank down my stomach.

" You little thing, you were sneaking Elena out behind me...to see..!" He growled angrily as he choked her with his big palm against her neck. "You want to get her out this place for yourself? "

I couldn't feel my legs anymore and my head was spinning while I watch the scene in great terror.

Rowena had visible veins on her forehead as she struggled to catch her breath, forcing his hand off her neck while she choked on but refused to look weak.

" Let me be it I would jump back into your precious girl Elena!" She yelled revealing her fangs and her eyes was becoming bloodshot red from the strangling.

Derek released her in hearing this and swiftly turned towards me and I took few slow steps backwards, while I gasp as sweat broke on my skin all over my body.

" You are beginning to do too much for people who don't care for you, and you know what? you won't still be the one!" She protested, Her voice sounding meaningful as she glared at me in silence.

Derek still unable to calm his nerves down, breathed heavily as he silently kept his gaze on her.

"It's a testimony that your precious Elena had sex with Rex when you were away!" She blurted out to my surprise and I felt a drop of sweat falling to my feet from my jawline.

That wasn't how I would have told Derek.

My eyes met Derek's scary ones and I shook my head in disproval to what she just said as I took more shaky slow steps backwards, using my hand to find the wall behind me.

I was close to scream as soon as I noticed Derek charging towards me in pure rage and disbelief, but his visible jealous had blinded him to see his love Rowena crying angrily by the door.

He half shifted as he took more aggressive stumps on the ground which made me shook every seconds, my powers failed me this time cause I was too scared to do magic.

There was a sudden flash of Rex's image in my head, the night he almost killed Derek...he was HALF SHIFTED. He has never done this before, only Rex!

A flash of Rex's half-shifted form – a terrifying blend of man and wolf, his eyes blazing red with barely contained fury – seared itself into my memory; I'd never witnessed such raw power before.

I know that has always been their angry pace, I couldn't have made him so angry, had I?

Derek appeared to be divided into both human and wolf in two equal halves and his eyes shone red just like every other Alpha when angry...Alice told me about that.

Derek got hold of me and bit me on my shoulder close to my neck while his claws pierced through my back skin, sending a sharp pain to my head.

This didn't just happened?!

The world exploded in pain. One minute, Derek's face was a mask of furious disbelief, the next, searing agony ripped through my shoulder. His teeth—sharp, impossibly sharp—tore into me, and a wave of nausea hit me as I tasted the metallic tang of my own blood.

A scream tore from my throat, cut short by a crushing pressure in my chest. Everything swam, the edges of the room blurring into a dizzying mess of red and black. The initial, sharp pain morphed into a deeper, all-consuming ache that spread through my limbs, leaving me weak and trembling.

Terror seized me, cold and absolute.

'I can't be a werewolf! Please I don't want to be like him. A monster'

It wasn't just the pain, though that was unbearable. It was the sheer, gut-wrenching fear of the unknown. What was happening to me? Was this it? Was I dying? A fleeting image of Rex, his face etched with worry, flickered in my mind, a tiny spark of warmth in the encroaching darkness.

I wanted to reach for him, to call his name, but my body wouldn't respond.

My last thought, a desperate, silent question, was a simple, agonizing why?

The question hung unanswered, swallowed by the darkness that was closing in, pulling me under, into the silent, terrifying void.