Chapter 21 What we have become: what are we?

Chapter 21 What we have become: what are we?
Kieran Silvermane

Reality started creeping back in after a few more minutes.

It only occurred like a new knowledge to me that we were in the storage room of the mansion’s library. We had come here to study and I had seen a picture on her phone, somehow leading us to this moment. 

I probably would have held back on my emotions once I was away from her, but the weather did us tricky. A storm suddenly started with full rage and it kept us trapped inside alone because even the librarian did not consider informing us when he left. 

We were cold and alone, and I took us to this room. The storage room. And in this room, we made a memory that was etched into our minds.

I was not sure of the exact emotions to feel in all sincerity. I was conflicted between wondering if all these moments had aligned so we could share the moment we just did, or if intentionally our choices had led to it. 

I sighed inwardly because debating it was no good. The most important thing was that I loved it, I enjoyed it and I wanted to live it over and over again. 

It was hard to say why but everything felt different with Elena. And the broken mate bond connection we had once shared could be a reason, yet that part of my brain that adored her even when I had only seen her as my tutor was certain that not knowing her was as good as knowing nothing. 

Back to the actual reality… 

We were in the storage room and the storm was probably still raging outside. 

The fact that we had just—

Elena stirred first, lifting her head to look at me. Her hair was a mess, her lips swollen from kissing, and she’d never looked more beautiful.

“What did we just do?” she whispered as though it just fully occurred to her.

I didn’t have a good answer. My brain was still trying to restart.

“I don’t—” I started.

“How do we define this?” She pulled back slightly, creating space between us even though we were still intimately connected. “What are we, Kieran?”

The question brought a quiet to the place. 

What were we? We weren’t mates, I knew that. 

I had rejected that bond, neither were we dating. We could barely stand being in the same room most days.

But we had just a very intimate moment.

“I don’t know,” I admitted finally.

It was the most honest answer I could give, even if it wasn’t what she wanted to hear.

She looked hurt by that. Then started to pull away completely.

“Elena, wait—”

Before I could finish, a voice came from the darkness. 

“Kieran? Elena? Where are you?”

I knew that voice well. It was Damien, my brother’s

We both froze.

“The power’s back on!” Damien’s voice echoed through the library. “We have all been looking for you and we got news that you had come here. Are you guys still here?”

Elena scrambled off me so fast that she nearly fell. We both grabbed for our clothes in the darkness, frantically pulling them on.

I could hear footsteps approaching closer now. From my sharper instincts, I realized he was  moving through the stacks, and opening rooms.

“Library storage,” I called out, my voice rougher than I  intended. “We’re in here. But the door is locked.”

“Hold on, I will find the key!”

My reason was to intentionally stall him before he would come, trying to open it.

Elena was buttoning her blouse with shaking hands. Her hair was still loose, completely disheveled, and there was no way Damien would not notice that we had shared a moment.

“Your hair,” I said quietly.

She looked at me, then seemed to realize. She quickly gathered it, twisting it back into some semblance of order without the elastic I had removed earlier.

I found her hair tie on the floor, handed it to her. 

“Thank you,” she muttered softly, shaking her head.

The lock clicked and the door swung open. Apparently Damien had still opened it without any initial announcement.

Be stood there, holding a flashlight in his hand, and his face held relief. 

“There you are! We have been worried. The storm knocked out power to half the estate. Dad was starting to worry when neither of you answered your phones and he could not reach you on mindlink.” He turned to me.

“Oh, there was no signal,” I managed. “We had come here to study and we have been stuck in here since the lights went out.”

“And you know the building variety between us right now, there was no way the kind link would work.” I understand, Damien replied shaking his head.

His gaze moved between us. From taking in Elena’s rumpled appearance, to my reckless state and the jacket I was only realizing was still draped over the lantern.

His eyebrows rose slightly.

“Right,” he said slowly. “Well. Power’s back now. You should probably let Dad know you are okay.”

“Yeah.” I stood, trying to appear casual despite how my legs felt unsteady. “We will do that immediately.”

Damien didn’t move from the doorway, which he should. He kept looking at us like he was certain that something had gone on between us.

“Damien,” Elena said, her voice surprisingly steady. “Thank you for finding us.”

“No problem.” He stepped back, giving us room to exit. “Although, I think it’s necessary next time to check the weather before having any sort of arrangements.

It was all over the pack media.”

As if on cue, I and Kieran said it at time, “wow, I had no idea.”

“Wow,” Damien mouthed. “What were you both thinking of all day?”

Noticing that the question was not going  to stop, we filed past him, Elena first, then me. I could feel my brother’s eyes on us the whole way.

The main library was lit again, the emergency lights from earlier  replaced by the normal overhead fluorescents. Everything looked exactly as we had left it and it included the books scattered on our table.

“I should go,” Elena said abruptly. “I should go in with Alpha Marcus. You know, and make sure everything’s okay.”

Elena didn’t look at me. She just headed straight for the exist and I watched her go, my mind still reeling.

“So,” Damien said from behind me.

“So what?”

“I was just going to say—”

“Whatever you were going to say, don’t. Nothing that is in your thoughts happened.

He was quiet for a moment. Then: “You know Dad’s going to ask questions.”

“Okay, I would answer him.”

“Okay.” He shook his head, “if you say so.”

He studied me before muttering a soft, “I should go.”

He left, and I was alone in the library.

I sank into one of the chairs, running my hands through my hair.

What had I just done?

I mean, I knew what I had done but still. I took a deep breath and reached for my bag, wanting to pack up when I saw her bag. 

She had left it while she was running away from me, Damien and the moment. 

And I had to meet her to give her the bag. Great!