RUNT

insecurity

I nudge the door closed with my nose and shift but don’t exit the bathroom. I glance in the mirror and frown. My straight black hair is cut short in the same pixie cut I had as a child. It fluffs up at the top giving me a I just rolled out of bed look. My skin is pale and natural because I so rarely shift during the day. I just barely hit five feet in height and you can see my ribs and hip bones poking out. This wasn’t how pretty girls look, I know that much.

I had seen the way Gabriel had looked at that evil woman, that strange glint in his eye as he stared at her backside. I wasn’t like her, I am plain, ordinary , perhaps less than that. I have no idea about makeup or style, I only know how to hide and how to kill, things that let me survive. I am void of shape from surviving on protein and wild fruits. Dating, friendships, family, caring. I cant really remember having had any of those kinds of things, my life was never about this it was only about seeing tomorrow. My heart squeezes in my chest. I can do this, I have to do this.

I hear the bedroom door open and close and I freeze for a moment. Hoping I haven’t made a huge mistake by trapping myself in the windowless bathroom. I grab Christian’s shirt from the floor and put it on before creeping closer to the door.

“You can come out little one, its just us now..” Christian softly calls out. His voice is deeper than his brothers, more threatening as if every syllable angered him yet I could feel it wasn’t directed to me.

“Our sister and her mate went back to the party for a bit…” Gabriel continues in his musical tone, his voice soothing with a hint of flirtation.

My fingers tremble as I touch the door and I take a deep breath. I am unsure how long I stand there with the cold metal knob pressed in my palm in a sort of daze but eventually I come out of it. I shakily open the door and peek out to see the brothers huddled together whispering. I quietly slide out and along the wall unnoticed, I slip over to the couch and sit down, looking up at the two who still haven't noticed me. 

“…just don’t be you, you are to intense. You might scare her away.” Gabriel scolds his brother. “Just try to once follow my example, I have always been better with the girls.”

“Who cares about other girls?” Christian mumbles as his shoulders slump slightly. “Our mate is the only girl that matters outside of our family.”

“I just don’t want you to get left behind…she belongs to both of us, but you know I am pretty confident in my skills and you are still..”

Christian lets out a low deep growl that causes the walls to shake. I wince at the sound as it contains raw alpha rage but I manage not to flee.

“That’s exactly what I'm talking about…come on man, reign in the temper some. She is never going to come out at this rate.” He gestures across the room to the closed bathroom door. “She isnt going to want us because of you.”

Christian’s body slumps down and he stumbles backwards a few steps and I cant help myself any longer, I hop up from the couch and slip behind him. Gently I press myself into him, my palms against his back and my body pressed firmly against him as I tried to be support for his large form. I cant help but press my nose against his spine and take in his scent. I can hear him gasp as sparks erupt between us while Gabriel continues talking.

“Don’t you know how terrifying you are to others? Jesus man, Luna Sarah almost pissed herself.” Gabriel groans. “and she's the type that likes to be dominated…she could have been fun.”

Christian doesn’t respond to him as I nuzzle myself against him. He shifts around, keeping his eyes on his brother as Gabriel paces. He doesn’t move to stop me as I run my hands down his bare skin but I feel his heart beat quicken.
I wasn’t sure I was ready to face Gabriel after everything I had learned so far but it was mostly because it made me feel insecure. How could I compete with the women before? I don’t know how to be, how to communicate.
I hear Gabriel stop and walk closer.

“Are you okay man? You are awfully red…” Gabriel leans in and takes a sniff. I hear him take a step to circle his brother and I slip the other way. Again and again till I end up pressed into Christian’s chest. I can feel his eyes on me and I freeze.

They are going to reject us. My wolf frets. I can feel it.

Then they will be just like everyone else.

I wince as I let my shoulders droop. I know what's coming so I go to move away from them but strong arms wrap firmly around me. My eyes go wide and I glance up at Christian only to be greeted with the most dazzling smile in the history of smiles. I can feel my cheeks warm as he pulls me flush against his bare chest.

I soft growl behind me alerts me to Gabriel’s presence and I feel his hands on my hips inching up the fabric of the only garment I am wearing. I let out a soft whine as they move me to the couch and set me in the middle seat. Christian sits on my left and Gabriel on my right but neither get close enough to touch me.
The absence of their warmth has me confused, its almost painful. I let out a short whimper and pull my knees to my chest, lowering my head.

“Little one?” Christian purrs. “Are you okay?”

I just grunt noncommittally.

“What is the problem darling? Talk to us.” Gabriel leans in and I can feel his breath on my skin.

“I….” my voice cracks and I feel tears sting my eyes begging to be released. My voice is quiet and if they weren’t alpha wolves they never would have heard my words. “I…d-don’t like it here…”

Christian frowns and I can hear the pain in his voice as he speaks. “Here with us or here in this house?”

I shake a bit and wrap my arms around myself, taking a deep breath I answer. “This house….can I leave?”

Gabriel growls, his wolf not liking that I want to leave but Christian stays quiet, his hands bunching into fists at his side. Neither say a word but they both move closer to me. I feel Christian place his hand on my head and notice he is shaking.

“I…” I lift my head slightly. “I am not allowed in here…”

Gabriel brushes a hand up my arm resting it on my shoulder with a low growl, “What do you mean?”

I shake my head not really knowing how to answer at first but soon the words just tumble out, “I don’t deserve to be inside…” it was what they had told me many times, how the others explained it when outsiders asked. It was the pack excuse. “I need to go before they find me…”

“Deserve to be inside? How does our mate not deserve to be inside?” Gabriel scoffs as his eyes flicker between gold and black.

“Mate?” I look between the two and sigh. “You don’t have to….you know. I'm sorry the moon goddess got this so wrong for you…”

In a flurry of movement I was pressed in between the two, each nuzzling into the crook of my neck and growling in a low possessive manner. I laugh under my breath. “You cant possibly want me…”

I jerk when I feel Christian begin to kiss my neck softly, his fingers curling into my short hair as he does so. The sparks have me nearly melting between them and as Gabriel runs his tongue down my ear I cant help the little moan that escapes me.

“We want you…we will always want you.” Gabriel whispers in a husky voice as he begins to nip at my neck.

I feel Christian run his teeth over my shoulder before he starts concentrating on a single point, lapping and sucking at the skin. My wolf is howling in pleasure but she is also very confused. My thoughts are hazy as the two continue their attack on my neck.

I manage to peer out of my heavily lidded eyes only to be met with two sets of black eyes watching me as if to ask permission. I don’t know why but I find myself giving a slight nod and tilting my head granting better access to my left side, the side that they would mark.

Pain brings me out of my dazed state as Christian's teeth pierce my skin. Fire shoots through my body and I choke down a scream before he pulls his teeth out and licks the wound. The pleasant haze returns ten fold and I feel dizzy as the brothers swap spots. Gabriel pulls me into his lap and kisses the tender flesh for only a moment before he to sinks his teeth in only millimeters away from the first wound. The pain comes in waves as tears roll down my cheeks and a whimper escapes.

Christian rubs my back trying to calm me down as Gabriel releases my skin and licks the wound softly. My body shudders before going limp, suddenly drained of energy.


Gabriel

I can’t help but smile down at the girl as Christian lays her in the freshly made bed. Her cheeks are still adorably pink and her bottom lip was swollen from her holding back screams. Our tiny mate was tough, I have never heard of a quiet marking as the process is supposed to be horribly painful, though I guess I wont know for sure until she marks me.

Christian looks at me with panic in his crimson eyes, his voice was quiet as he spoke. “Did we do the right thing by marking her so soon…I kind of feel like we took advantage of her dazed state…”

I sigh, my inexperienced twin had a point. “Yeah but I just wanted to make sure we can protect her, that we have a way to find her if she runs away…”

“When she runs, you mean. You can feel how anxious she is just being here right?” Christian sits on the bed next to her and lightly brushes his fingers over her cheeks. “All I feel is the need to run…but she is staying because of us…”

I nod and turn to grab some clean clothes, quickly changing. I sit on the bed and watch her breath for a few minutes. “We finally found her…” I mumble to myself. “its taken so long.”

Christian nods and smiles down at her as she curls into his side. “Our search is finally over….she is perfect..”

I hum in agreement. “Of course she is, she was made for us after all.”

“Where are you going?” Christian growls.

“Stay with our mate, keep her safe. I need to know what has happened here and congratulate our sister for us both. I need you to tell her I wont betray her, but I will do what I need to, to get to the bottom of this… if you can convince her to come down for dinner tomorrow we will introduce her and then be on our way home.”

“Do you think they realize we are taking Carl with us?” Christian asks in an amused tone. I know he finds pleasure in the discomfort of those who hurt this girl, because I feel it too.

We exchange grins as I slip my shoes on and stare down at the girl, taking in her lithe form. She was thin but muscular like she didn’t get enough fats in her diet. Her skin was like porcelain that had been painstakingly repaired, only when one looked close enough could the see the surface was littered with scars. She is unlike any woman I have ever wanted before but this is something completely different. She was chosen by the moon goddess for my brother and I, she wasn’t some dime store hussy I could use to ease my tensions. Those women never made my heart stir, never made my wolf purr, but this girl, she did all that and so much more.

“We will settle all of this for her…see if she will talk to you anymore when she wakes. I may link you in a bit so keep it open.” I hurry out of the door knowing if I stay any longer I might never leave. Our precious mate would be safe with Christian, he is a cold blooded killer but I can already see that he treats her like a treasure. I can only hope no one disturbs him because he is liable to kill any intruders right now.

I make my way down the wide hallway trying not to wrinkle my nose at the dark wood paneling and burnt orange paint over the chocolate brown tile. This place was like a bad hunting lodge. After a few flights of stairs and a detour through the kitchen I find my way outside. The party is still going on even with the moon high in the sky above.

I wander for a moment but know I stand out pretty badly as I am a head of silver hair taller than most of the others. Heading to the food I pause in front of the desert and stare for a moment.

I wonder why she steals cake? My wolf suddenly asks.

What?

That boy says they always notice missing cake.. My wolf grumbles at me. Did you really not listen?

He was unimportant, I had better things on my mind.

Like our mate? He laughs. She will love us. You though…you have already betrayed our mate.

I growl. SILENCE!

No. He growls back. It will hurt her, it probably already has. She saw the way you looked at that false Luna.

What do you mean she saw?

She was watching the whole time, foolish human. He roars in irritation.

‘Christian?’ I call through our pack link. My chest aches slightly at the thought. She heard everything my sister said too. My mate was going to hate me. ‘Christian?’

After a moment I get a groggy response. ‘Yeah? What's up?’

‘Do you know if our mate saw what happened with that fake Luna?’

I can feel his panic but he doesn’t answer for a moment. Finally he responds quietly, ‘my wolf says she did…’

Shit!

Told you. She isnt going to trust you. My wolf says cockily.

Yeah, but then she wont trust you either because we are the same person.

Crap. He sighs dejectedly before falling silent.

I feel a hand brush my shoulder and look down to see a busty little red head wearing a low cut red dress trying to get my attention. I fight the need to growl forcing a smile instead. She smells of cheap perfume and I suddenly wonder how the smell ever excited me.

She leans in, her breasts rubbing against my arm. Her voice is slightly nasal when she speaks, “Hi, I am Irene, what's your name?”

“Gabriel.” I lick my lips as I let my eyes wander over her. “Gabriel Grave.”

I see the recognition in her eyes when she hears my name and puffs her chest out more as she presses against me and purrs. This is how I have always believed  women should act but somehow it didn’t feel right.

She isnt our mate. My wolf growls before blocking me again.

I never cared before, why do I care now? Shaking my head for a moment I decide to just go with it. “So Irene, what do you do for Lupus Major?”

“I am Alpha Collins assistant.” She smiles, proud of herself.

“Isnt that great.” I shoot her a charming smile. “How did you get that job?”

Images shoot through my head, I can imagine how. My wolf growls threateningly at me and I shake the thoughts away.

“I can show you.” She smirks and flips her hair. “Lets go talk somewhere alone.”

I nod and silently follow, watching as her hips sway before me. I can feel panic from somewhere after a moment. My eyes dart around for a moment, this isnt a feeling I like but it doesn’t belong to me. My mate is awake and she isnt okay.