I Saved the Alpha

12~ You Have Got to Stop Doing That

It was hours before the guys came up, Alex and Kaden supporting an exhausted, sweaty, and shirtless Eric as he walked into the kitchen. It was well into the night, going on 2 am. The only thing keeping me awake right now was my anxiety over this whole thing.

I didn't even hesitate to run over to Eric, who was now seated, and pull him close. I didn't care that he was sweaty, I cared that he was safe.

Eric didn't push me away like he usually did. He wrapped an arm around my waist and buried his head there. My shirt turned damp from the sweat of his hair, but I didn't mind. Dad was there too, wrapping his arms around the both of us.

He had been my rock through all those hours. Seeing as he knew the process and everything that went with it, he wasn't as nervous as I was. He offered to explain it to me, but I turned him down. I didn't want to know what Eric was going through.

Jonah set a glass of water down in front of Eric, and I had to let him go so he could reach it. He guzzled it down and set the glass back on the counter, only for Jonah to refill his glass again. Eric guzzled the second one, too.

"Drink as much water as possible. It's easy to get dehydrated after a shift." Eric only nodded, and Kaden took over refilling his glass.

"Wait a sec," I started, "you fully shifted?" Eric only nodded as he drank. I looked to Jonah, his face did not hold any of the answers I sought.

"We'll talk about it in the morning, right now Eric needs all the rest he can get." Alex and Kaden took that as their que to start helping them up the stairs. Dad followed, leaving me and Jonah alone in the kitchen.

I bit my lip in thought.

Eric had done it. He had fully shifted. But what was he? I assumed his form would be a wolf considering what Dad is, but everyone keeps saying that he isn't one.

I switched sides, my teeth and tongue sliding to the left corner of my bottom lip.

I wonder what he looked like. Was he large, small, or average? What color was he? Did his eyes still glow violet?

Another thought entered my head, and this time I bit my top lip.

How much pain was he in? I had hoped that Jonah would give him something during the transformation, but I didn't exactly know how it all worked. Now I wish Dad had told me about it so I could at least know some-

"You have got to stop doing that." I had been so lost in thought that I hadn't noticed Jonah standing right in front of me. And he was very, very close.

"Doing what?" I asked, teeth moving back to my bottom lip. It only took me looking up at his face to realize what he meant.

His eye were golden, just like they were at the diner. I didn't have a clue what it meant, but I was enraptured by them. The kitchen, the island marble digging into my side, even the chill I felt from the cold, anxiety ridden night, all melted away as we stood there just staring at each other.

He brought a hand up to my chin, and with his thumb he pulled my bottom lip out from under my teeth.

"That." His hand traveled to the side of my cheek caressing it. His forehead touched mine and he took a deep breath. Right now, in this moment, it was only him and me.

In such a short time, this guy has been rude to me, driven me to do absolutely stupid things, and has almost cost me my life by getting stuck in a stupid hunting net.

But. He has also been sweet to me, kind when it mattered, and has just done me the biggest favor that I had no idea how to start repaying.

All in all, I'm glad I met Jonah Lykos.

"All I want to do is kiss you right now."

"What's stopping you?"

"It's not the right time."

He sighed, pulling away, breaking us out of our bubble. He sat where Eric had only minutes before and put his head in his hands.

"What do you mean?" I asked, pulling his hands from his face and taking them in mine. He reluctantly looked at me, as if studying my reaction to what he was about to say next.

"Well, for starters, you're still worried sick about your brother and probably have a million questions, me kissing you might muddle those pretty little thoughts even more. And let's just say... I don't want to screw this up. I'm connected to you, and I don't want you to run away, not from me." My eyebrows scrunched together as his words confused me.

"What do you mean connected?" He only gave me a small smile.

"That's something for another day," he got up off the seat and pulled me up the stairs. Leading me to a room down the extensive hall way, he opened up the door to what I assumed was the guest bedroom.

"I'm the first door on the right from the stairs, let me know if you need anything, ok?" I nodded, not moving an inch into the room. "What's wrong?"

"Is Eric going to be all right?" I asked him the question that had been plaguing me all night.

Jonah tilted my chin up, making me meet his eyes.

"Trust me, he's going to be more than okay. I promise I will answer all of your questions in the morning." He kissed my forehead and then left me to go to his room down the hall. Well, I guess there was nothing left to do but sleep.

And that's exactly what I did. Dreamless sleep.  

I lied. I couldn't sleep.

I rolled over for the tenth time since I had gotten in bed and checked my phone.

4 am.

Great.

I didn't know what else to do. I didn't want to roam around like an idiot and get lost and I wasn't hungry.

And suddenly I had my answer. It was a long shot, but I was desperate.

'Are you awake?'

Almost immediately he answered back.

'You really think I could sleep after that?'

'Well, you did look like shit when you came back up, so yes, I did.'

I could just imagine him shaking his head at me.

'Are you the room right next to Dad's?'

'Yup.'

I didn't get an answer from him for a couple minutes. I knew I didn't need one when the door opened and Eric sluggishly walked in.

This is something we have done since we were little. It started when Mom left, and it just continued until now. If one of us couldn't sleep, we'd crawl into the other's bed. I guess it was our way of not feeling lonely, abandoned, and actually feeling safe for once.

I didn't hesitate to pull open the covers and scoot over. As soon as Eric slid in, he pulled me close to him, tucking my head under his chin.

"I was worried about you, you know." I mumbled into his cloth covered chest. He rubbed my back reassuringly.

"Well, now you don't have to be. I'm fine." I only nodded, closing my eyes.

This time I really did drift off to sleep.