Under The Cover of Darkness

-chapter 4-~reconstructing~

The air in the hallway seemed to outmatch my tank top and shorts, and definitely my body as I recovered from my drunken decisions. I walked gingerly down the hall, hands wrapped around my elbows, moving up and down to try and help me forget about the temperature, and towards the lit opening at the end. 

The layout of the pack house was very simple, indeed. The guest wing was just off of the entry way, with the kitchen and common areas in the opposite direction, and the living spaces of the permanent residents on the floors above the ground level. I emerged from the darkened hallway that was the guest wing, distancing myself from my unit's rooms, and crossed the grand entry way. I turned as I walked to look out the front windows, but darkness denied me anything to look at beyond the reach of the front porch lights. To my left, I turned once again to see that the back yard was entirely vacated, with only ghosts of the evening's party still in attendance. 

I stepped into the grips of the bright light that illuminated the large kitchen, and was forced to squint my eyes as the brightness was very harsh on my poor half drunk eyes. 

I shielded my eyes with my left hand so that I could only see the floor, but it didn't matter. I knew this entire house like the back of my hand. I'm not afraid to admit that I've always been the type to midnight snack, so I knew the kitchen with my eyes literally closed. 

I grabbed a cup from the nearest cabinet and walked  towards the fridge with my eyes still down cast, almost reaching it until I heard a gasp. 

Startled, I jumped, "Oh, you scared me!" I exclaimed, the hand that had been shielding my eyes clapped at my chest. My shock, however, was quick to give way to irritation. Drunken, unfiltered irritation. 

'Oh,' I thought, 'this interaction will be something I shall regret tomorrow'. 

My right eyebrow raised and my lip literally curled up in disgust at the couple before me. There he was, my goddess given mate standing before me. His shoulders always did look good in whatever shirt he chose to wear, I could see this clearly as he had his back facing me and his body situated between a pair of legs. This was it, this was everything I'd been anticipating for the past four years, everything that had occupied my thoughts for the last week. It's just like I imagined. 

Everything except for his hands resting on said pair of legs. The girl I'd seen earlier in the back yard was perched on the counter of the island. Her manicured nails left her own chest as she reached down to stop Brighton's hands from going any further up her tanned legs. Her eyes sought mine as she exclaimed, "Hey Danny! Goddess, look at you, you look great!" 

My eyebrows gathered at the center of my forehead as I tried to figure out how I was supposed to know this girl. Her hair was caramel brown and straightened so that it reached her elbows. She wore jean shorts that covered her belly button, but a shirt that showed some of her stomach. Staring at her brown eyes, where were kind of far apart in an adorable sort of way, I saw nothing at all about her appearance which raised any bells in my slow functioning brain. 

I couldn't just say that though. Even drunk-off-her-ass Danny knew 'Do I know you?' would be the way to go only if I wanted to cringe myself out of my pants. No, I opted for the much safer, much more understandable, blame my absence route. 

"I'm sorry, it's been so long. I almost didn't recognize you!" My hand reached up to my scalp as if scratching it would make the memories come out of hiding or something. My face portrayed artificial relief, all counter balanced by the obvious confusion in my eyes. I still had no idea who the hell this girl was. I mean, our pack wasn't even that big! I had only assumed she joined after I'd left. 

She giggled and shifted away from Brighton. The ass still hadn't bothered to acknowledge my presence, but I wasn't too surprised. An ass does what an ass does, I guess.