Dark Twin Moon - The Awakening

Chapter 33:

For a few moments, everything seemed peaceful. Not even the small animals in the forest seemed afraid of him. For Kayleb, it was an unexpected but welcome change. Kayleb's lycan did not react to the sound of footsteps getting closer. After all, every peace has to be broken, eventually.

A rustling sound could be heard not far away. His lycan barely opened its eyes, but it was enough to double-check that what it saw was correct. Chad, of all people, came towards them without his friends or his backpack. The tall boy looked at him in astonishment, which Kayleb soaked up. It added to his already great pride.

"You're big," Chad stated as if he didn't know what to say.

Kayleb didn't even think about it because he knew Chad wasn't the brightest star in the moon-protected night sky. But he seemed to have a big heart.

Carefully, Kayleb's lycan pushed Chad aside with its large snout in mock anger. His cold nose hit him right in the face. It was almost as big as half the guy's head.

He tried to get away from him, but Kayleb was stronger. After a few minutes, he took the other boy to the forest floor, where he played with him. He sniffed and nibbled on him without breaking his skin. Chad laughed so hard that Kayleb thought he would die laughing and everyone would hear it.

But even this little moment of happiness had to come to an end. At Kayleb's relentless urging, his lycan let Chad go.

When the werewolf finally caught his breath, his laughter subsided, but his bright smile remained on his strong, angular face.

Eventually, Kayleb slowly transformed back into his erelion form.

When Kayleb came back into view, Chad's cheeks were smeared bright pink: naked. Without acknowledging his nakedness, Kayleb held his hand out to the prone Chad, which he grabbed as quickly as possible - if only to avoid looking directly at the other boy's genitals.

"You don't happen to have spare clothes for me?"

His voice was a little quiet, but Chad could understand him well. He quickly disappeared for a brief moment before reappearing with his sports backpack.

"You're lucky football practice is later," Chad told the other boy, smiling like an idiot. "You might have to drive me to my house to get my other clothes, but that should be doable." A cheeky grin appeared on his face.

Kayleb accepted the clothes Chad handed him with a grateful smile. Unlike other times when similar incidents happened, this time, he did not hide behind a tree to put on his clothes.

He was sad about his clothes. He liked them. But unlike people's lives, he could buy new clothes.

"A little too big for you. Maybe you need to train more?"

Kayleb thought he detected a hint of teasing in the taller boy's question. This was only heightened by the mischievous glint in his blue-green eyes - reminding him of a dream he once had about a clear day in a murky swamp.

"You know he's sorry, right?"

Chad's now more concerned voice surprised him. He looked distressed for some reason but didn't elaborate. His usual cheerful demeanor - at least as far as Kayleb knew him - changed to that stressed state. However, he was confused because he thought Chad was a little dense, but that alone suggested a high emotional intelligence.

Chad had unknowingly humbled Kayleb, forcing him to push those thoughts aside and vowing not to assume anything anymore because it obviously doesn't always work.

"If you mean Dal, I already know that. But that doesn't make it better, now does it?" Kayleb asked sarcastically. "He did something terrible. For which he could be severely punished on any of the other twelve continents. He broke my heart before it was even his. How am I supposed to get over this?"

It was evident that Kayleb was deeply troubled by the situation. Suddenly, a small part of the dam he had constructed broke, and tears began to stream down his face.

Before he realized what was happening, two strong arms - almost vibrating with warmth - pulled him into an equally powerful chest. The sudden action took his breath away. Sobs involuntarily escaped his fake strong facade as more and more tears streamed down Kayleb's pink cheeks. He began pounding against the firm chest. Not hard enough to hurt him, just enough to vent some of his anger and frustration.

"I hate that I love him, I hate that I can't stop it, and most of all, I hate that the moon god made me like this!" Kayleb screamed and sobbed, but every heartbreaking word was as clear as the blue sky on a cloudless day.

Suddenly, his legs gave way. But even though Chad didn't fully understand what was happening, he pulled him back up, his arms still wrapped around Kayleb's shaking body.

"A soulmate?" he asked bitterly as he regained his composure. "Really? Who thought that was a good idea?" He stammered into his soulmate's best friend's chest without even thinking about it. "It's really just a curse," he finally murmured.

Chad took everything Kayleb threw at him. He handled it maybe a little too well, almost as if it wasn't his first time.

"You'd be surprised how many people wish this was real for them," Chad whispered quietly to the still-crying guy in his arms, "I'm one of those idiots."

Kayleb realized that Chad was viewing the situation through rose-tinted glasses. He could see that Chad believed it to be the most romantic thing, just as he had done not long ago.

"You will always have someone to love. I would give up everything, even football, to have someone like you: a soulmate!"

As he absorbed these cautious words with a heavy heart, he finally had to admit something he had been trying to avoid: if he didn't give Dal a real chance to correct his mistakes, he feared he wouldn't survive the next full moon. It would take away any chance of a happy day in his life.

"Don't tell him what we talked about," Kayleb asked the other boy gently, a hint of a smile forming on his lips. "I'm going to come to the football field after your practice and talk to him so we can at least be civil until he shows me he's not the asshole I think he is."

Just as Kayleb's words faded away, they were replaced by Chad's laughter, slightly louder than in the brief, peaceful moment they had played together.

"Someone who claims the ball isn't a nice guy," Chad laughed. "It lies in the family, though. You know his father, don't you?" His warm eyes darkened for a second.

"Maybe you can give me back my best friend, the way he was when we were kids. He was such a sweet boy."

A little pain came from Chad's nearly perfect mask of happiness. It broke Kayleb's heart even more that this guy, who was so friendly and welcoming, wasn't treated the way he deserved. It was just one more thing he needed to talk to Dal about.

"We should go back before anyone gets the wrong impression about us. Come on, big guy," Kayleb called over his shoulder after he had already started running. Chad watched him go, confused before a wide, ear-to-ear grin spread across his face as he ran after him.

This could be the start of a normal friendship for Kayleb, different from the ones he had in his hometown that had always felt strange to him. Almost as if someone had their fingers in it.

Just the thought of normality made him curious about his future for the first time in a long time.