Predator

17.

"It feels weird that this is what holding hands with a girl is like," Ryan looked at his and Neela's hands locked together as he sat in front of his mothers tomb. He felt different, he almost felt human when they touched. "I've held hands with mother, of course. But not with any of the girls I had been with in the past. Even though we were all demons, mother and father still believed that we should court the girl we like. I never had the feelings I have with you for those other girls."

"You don't feel like you're gonna change?" An aghast Neela spoke hesitantly while she kept her focus on their hands locked together. After the last accident, she felt weird with having contact. "No, I don't," Ryan spoke positively. "I feel comforted by it."

Neela finally looked up from their hands that were laced together to see Ryan looking lovingly down at their hands touching. A small smile was playing at the sides of his lips, his lips twitching in excitement. Neela was happy being able to do little things that actual couples did, it almost made their relationship feel normal.

To Neela, Ryan's hand was really warm and soft. It made her stomach erupt with butterflies to know that she was the only one who could make his body warm. The two felt at peace in that time spent together. Ryan was with his mother and the love of his life in the place where he knew that he and his family would end up one day, he couldn't ask for anything better than that.

"I love you," Ryan suddenly spoke, catching himself and Neela off guard. Neela's lips parted slightly, she wanted to say something back, anything, but her voice wavered and failed her. She looked back down at their hands in defeat.

Ryan's hand that still enveloped Neela's own became more secured, but not enough to inflict any discomfort in her. He then lifted their hands and gently guided Neela to slide closer to him, his free hand enclosed the girl by her waist. Still having not looked at Neela, Ryan leaned his head down so he face was his away in the untouched, clear skin of Neela's neck.

Even though he didn't need to, he breathed unevenly, which made goosebumps arise all over Neela's limbs. It tickled her to say the least. Having someone breathe so close to her neck was novel for Neela and made her want to cover her neck and laugh until he stopped; it was ultimately something that she could get used to.

So, he just sat in Ryan's embrace and shook slightly at the tingling feeling she felt in her whole.

~~

It was nighttime when Neela and Ryan finally got home, after the first hour of them being gone, Damien lifted the house of its lockdown.

Damien and the others could notice that Ryan had acted strange when the couple came home. Almost as if he were drunk, which is a sign of marking, but they all knew better; Neela wouldn't be walking if she had been marked.

Neela was bathing while all Ryan could do was just lay in bed and shake. His body felt intensely warm, almost like Neela had contact with him all day and was still touching him.

After some time passed, Ryan then realized what it was that his body yearned after. It was Neela. His body controlled the urges by shaking and sweating so much. Before Neela got out of the bathroom, Ryan basically rocked himself to sleep which he was grateful for, he didn't want Neela to be scared away.

~~

Caleb and Neela weren't in the house when everyone woke up and that was fine. It was their first day's going to school in Romania. Damien pulled a few strings which let the two have the same classes because they're both seniors.

When Ryan woke up, he felt a lot better than what he did the night before. However, he felt lonely from the lack of Neela and Caleb whom both made the most ruckus in the house.

Ryan when downstairs and met with Evan who was without Ethan, which was something new for Ryan to see. The twins were inseparable, they did everything together. "How's the girl? She and I don't talk too much." Evan asked and handed Ryan a packet of blood, the boys all hated feeding in front of Neela, they feared it would make her become uneasy around them all.

"I told her that I love her while we went to visit mother," Ryan recounted the event after puncturing the blood bag with his teeth and taking a generous drink of the thick substance. "There's something I don't get," his finger that was pointed at his older brother twitched, "about you and Ethan."

With a smirk, Evan spoke, "What's that?"

"Why did the both of you reject your mates?" The twins both met their mates at the same time, everyone was happy for a long time. The were all together for about a year, then one day, the twins just rejected their mates. "I couldn't possibly do that to myself and Neela. How could you guys do it?"

"I loved Allie, I still do. However, I love Ethan more. We went through things that only we would understand, we helped each other with our powers, we keep the other floored and normal." Ethan, being an involuntary mute, knew that he would never be able to have a normal relationship. He would never want his own mate to be subjected to a silence that would be everlasting. He could interject himself into peoples' minds and he could read minds as well, but he couldn't be selfish and make her suffer in a completely silent life.

"We talk about it at times, we want to love again but we can't because we already rejected them. I couldn't let my own twin feel the pain that we felt alone, so I endured it with him. We're both better at being incubus', in my opinion. If we act like it's impossible for us to love, then it hurts just a little less."