MATE AND HIS LOVER 9

#4 Something on your mind?

It's that kind of early in the morning where the sky is lit up like the dark blank screen a phone powers on to. Only a logo is missing.

Nate starts to unbutton his shirt, and breathes in the scent of the dewy forest. He feels calm in this moment.

The past few days, for Nate, it's been a struggle between his body and mind.

Her scent is everywhere in his house. It lingers even after he leaves, and so does his desire.

So he's out earlier than he needs to be for his training. His friend, Frank, refused to come with him when Nate tried to wake him up.

Nate rotates his neck and arms and starts attuning his senses to the forest he'll be running through. His ears pick up the faint commotion of the few nocturnal animals who still haven't retired to their homes yet.

Nate closes his eyes, to get ready to transform.

But instead of the feeling of his muscles, his mind brings up the image of Daisy's face to focus on. Nate opens his eyes and runs his hand through his hair.

This is becoming an addiction to him — thinking about her. If he doesn't give his mind something urgent enough to do, it likes to chase after her like a dog after a bone.

"Screw it," Nate says, and abandons his regimen of taking a moment to collect his thoughts before the transformation, and just lets his wolf rip through his human form.

Post transformation, the large black wolf shakes its fur to rid of the dampness it picked up from the air. Using his muzzle, Nate grabs the small bag with the clothes he put in before changing.

Then he starts to run.

Over the moss patches, under the fallen branches, and around the trunks, Nate wends through the woods.

It's not about his speed or agility, rather it's about warming up his body for the real task ahead of him.

When he reaches the destination, he changes back to his human form and puts on his clothes, and looks up at the landscape that once used to terrify him when he was a child.

Stories of conquering this topography used to be the stuff of legends when Nate was a kid.

Now, it's just another training he needs to do.

The Pelican Drop is at the very end of the Northside forest. It's a precarious formation of boulders stacked to the sky. Quick to cut through flesh and quicker to fall apart, climbing these sharp-edged rocks to the top is a yardstick for the speed and strength of the werewolves.

Because of the kind of mortal peril it offers, only the advanced climbers are allowed to give it a try, and only a handful among them are even capable of making it to the top every time.

"The stronger you are, the faster you climb. And the faster you climb, farther you'll go," Ross once told Nate when Nate was only a little boy and had just been taken under the wing of Ross.

As one of the prominent trainers in the pack, Ross was used to dealing with juvenile brats with too much energy and too little brain, and Nate definitely took the cake.

However, the more Nate defied, the more potential Ross saw in him.

Nate's uncle, Castino, also a good friend of Ross, eventually convinced Ross to oversee Nate's training towards a potential Alphahood.

Ross now waits for Nate at the summit of the Pelican Drop that's blanketed with the early morning pale blue glow.

A few seconds later, Nate grabs the top stone and pulls himself up from the cliff to the land. Sweating and panting, he looks at Ross standing before him.

"Fifty three seconds," Ross says after clocking the orange stopwatch in his hand. "We shave off a couple more tomorrow."

Nate nods while regaining his breath. "Yeah, I can do that."

"But today was really good. Keep it up."

Ross' words put a smile on Nate's face. He stands up, and dusts off his hands.

The mentor and his favorite pupil start walking away from the cliff.

Ross says, "Your concentration today was the best it has ever been, but something about you seems a little off. Is there something on your mind?"

Nate breathes out into the moist coldness of the forest. "Nothing like that," he carefully says without looking at Ross.

"Well, you know, I'm here. Whenever you need," Ross says, after a soft tap to Nate's shoulder.

Nate's chest briefly feels heavy. Lying is a trait he detests in others and finds to be possessed by only the cowards. In the unlikely event, if he even were to lie, Nate wouldn't want to lie to Ross.

However, Daisy is a secret Nate wants to keep even from Castino and Ross, the two men whose opinions Nate holds high above everything.

Whether it's because they might disapprove of Daisy, or accept her as she is, he's not sure what is it exactly he doesn't want to hear from them.

To hide his present guilt, Nate smiles a little and replies to Ross. "I know, Ross. Thank you."

When they reach the main road, Nate and Ross separate. Nate jogs his way back to his home, and by the time he reached his place, the sun has fully come out.

Nate sees Frank's car pull out from the front of the house.

Frank notices Nate and stops and lowers his window.

Nate asks, "Where are you headed this early in the morning?"

"Lily needs a hand prepping for the fundraiser. It's still not too late you know, wanna come?"

"I'll pass."

"It'll score you some points."

"With the wrong crowd. I don't need their support," Nate firmly says.

Frank raises his hand. "Alright. As you see fit. By the way, your mate makes the best goddamn french toasts I've ever had, man. You gotta try them. I'm taking some for Lily." 

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