Pulsing Mark

The taxi soon got her home and she got out to walk the rest of the way to her doorstep. Her heels clicked hurriedly against the pavement as she rushed through the streets, her face still flushed and her hair a mess from the night before. She kept tugging her dress lower, her eyes darting to anyone who passed like they could see right through her, and see what she had done.

By the time she reached the door, it swung open before she could even fish her keys out.

“Where the hell have you been?!” Whitney’s voice rang out, sharp and panicked.

Ruby froze in the doorway, guilt plastered across her face. Whitney stood there barefoot, her hair wild, her robe thrown hastily on. Clearly, she hadn’t slept all night.

“I thought you’d been kidnapped!” Whitney’s voice cracked as she grabbed Ruby’s wrist, pulling her inside. “Wait," she stopped, eyes narrowing as they swept over Ruby’s disheveled look. “Oh my God.” she squealed, grabbing Ruby’s arm before she could protest. “You did it, didn’t you? Don’t even try to deny it, that look on your face says everything.”

Ruby’s cheeks burned hot, caught off guard. “W-what look?”

“The post-sin glow,” Whitney said with a mock gasp, dragging her inside and plopping her down on the couch. "Spill now. Every single detail, I want to hear it all."

Ruby tried to hide behind her hair, tugging her dress lower as her cheeks flamed. “It wasn’t… it wasn’t supposed to happen like that.”

“Not supposed to happen?” Whitney gasped dramatically, flopping beside her and shaking her arm. “Honey, you’ve been holding out on me for years. You disappeared last night with Mister Tall-Dark-and-Dangerous, and now you come home with messy hair, no lipstick left, and walking like your legs might give out. Don’t even try me, Ruby. Start talking.”

Ruby groaned and hid her face in a pillow. “Whit…”

“Oh, don’t ‘Whit’ me.” Whitney pried the pillow away. “Tell me. Was he hot? Like, stupid hot? Was it fast, was it slow, did he talk dirty, was it—” she stopped suddenly, eyes sparkling like a gossiping teenager. “Wait. Did he make you… you know.”

Ruby covered her face again, too embarrassed to answer.

Whitney’s jaw dropped, then she shrieked with delight. “You did! Ruby Mae, you actually got your toes curled! I am so proud of you right now, you have no idea.” She threw her arms around Ruby, hugging her tight before pulling back, eyes gleaming with mischief. “Now start from the beginning, missy. What was his name? Did you exchange numbers? Or was this just some wild one-night fling?”

Ruby froze, her stomach twisting. “I… I don’t know his name."

Whitney’s eyes widened, then she let out a scandalized laugh. “You naughty little vixen! You went full mystery man hookup? Ruby! Who even are you right now?”

Ruby shook her head, mortified. “I don’t know, Whit… I have asked myself the same question.”

Whitney clasped her hands dramatically like a proud parent at graduation. “Well, well, look at you, Ruby. My little innocent finally joined the club.” She grinned wide, eyes glinting with mischief. “Now you actually know what it feels like. No more blushing and hiding whenever girls talk about sex, you can finally join in like a full grown woman.”

Ruby tucked her knees to her chest, unsure if she wanted to laugh or cry. “I… guess so.”

“Guess so?” Whitney scoffed and swatted her shoulder. “Please. You’ve been holding onto that V-card for too long. Now it’s gone, poof, bye-bye, and you survived. Not just survived, honey, you’re glowing.”

Ruby rolled her eyes, though her cheeks burned. “You make it sound like some rite of passage.”

“Because it is,” Whitney teased, leaning closer with a sly smile. “And let me guess… you’re sore, aren’t you?”

Ruby’s face flamed instantly. “Whit!”

Whitney threw her head back laughing. “You totally are! Oh my god, that explains the way you’re sitting. He must’ve been—” she held her hands apart, smirking, “—huge.”

Ruby buried her face in her hands, her voice muffled. “…He was.”

Whitney gasped like she’d won the lottery. “Yes! That’s my girl. First time and you went straight for the stallion.”

Ruby groaned, but deep down she couldn’t deny the truth of it. Everywhere did ache. Her body still throbbed from this morning, and remembering it only made her flush hotter.

Whitney nudged her playfully. “Don’t worry, sore or not, you’ll walk it off. Consider it your welcome package into womanhood.”

Ruby peeked at her through her fingers, half exasperated, half smiling. “…You’re ridiculous.”

“And you’re officially not innocent anymore,” Whitney said proudly, flopping back on the couch. “Cheers to that.”

****

​It had been two weeks since that night, two weeks since she’d dared herself into something she never imagined she would do. Life had gone back to its normal rhythm. The diner was thriving, although two of her employees and a few customers now looked at her strangely. She tried not to think too much about it, reasoning that maybe they could tell what she had done. She tried to convince herself that it was normal; after all, she was a grown woman.

​One evening, Theo, the manager at the diner, approached her with shiny eyes.

​"You need something?" she asked, looking up from the menu she was drafting in her small office.

​"No, I just came to ask if you need anything," he said in his usual jovial manner.

​"If I need something, I'll definitely call you, Theo," Ruby said, not thinking much of it.

​But Theo lingered, smiling at her like he had won a lottery. "Well?" she prompted.

​"Oh, nothing. Just be careful out there," he said in a cryptic tone before sauntering out. For another five minutes, Ruby stared at the empty space where he had been, pondering his words.

At home, Whitney’s endless chatter was one of the things that felt normal. She ignored the stares when she walked past people who naturally doesn't pay her much attention before and tried to forget everything from that night but there's just thing she couldn’t shake, the hickey on her neck.

Every morning when she stood in front of the mirror, brushing her hair or layering on her makeup, her eyes found it, the ridiculous bite mark on her neck. The morning after, she had assumed it was just a rough hickey. Maybe his teeth grazed her skin harder than most. It would fade in a few days. That’s what she told herself. Except it didn’t, it wouldn't stop pulsing, either. Fearing she had some kind of infection or disease, she went to get tested at the hospital, but every single test came back negative.

And two weeks later, the damn thing was still there, faint but unmistakable, almost like a scar etched deep beneath her skin. Even makeup, no matter how carefully she layered it, could only blur it, never fully hide it. Every glimpse reminded her of him, of that night, of the reckless way she had thrown herself into his arms.

And every time Whitney teased her, Ruby forced a laugh, never daring to mention the mark. It wasn’t normal, she knew that much. Hickeys healed, this didn’t.

​Sometimes, in the quiet moments before sleep, she would reach up to touch it, her fingers grazing over the small, raised area. The memory of pain turning into pleasure would wash over her, and she would shiver with desire.

​What had he done to her? And why did a part of her still miss him? She once asked Whitney if it was normal to miss the man just because he was her first. Whitney had then laughed, before asking her to describe what she was feeling. In her description, Ruby carefully left out the part about the mark above her collarbone that pulsed like it was alive. Whitney had then affirmed that her feelings were normal and told her the best way to forget such men was to find someone new. But Ruby wasn't ready for that just yet.

*****

In the other side of town, Ethan had fallen right back into his old habits of charming, drinking, and warming his beds with women whose names he doesn't want to remember. Occasionally, his thoughts drifted back to the girl with the flushed cheeks and wide eyes, the one who had slipped away before he could even know her properly. Ruby. That was all he had. A name and the lingering memory of how good she had felt beneath him.

But he pushed it aside. He always did. If he went searching, if he tracked her down, it would mean he cared, and Ethan didn’t do commitment. He didn’t want the strings, the responsibility, or the mess that came with it.

Then, one morning, he hadn't even settled into his office when Bradley's voice crackled through the pack link.

‘Alpha, I don't know why but some lady here is bearing your scent.’

Ethan stilled mid-step. His scent? Impossible. He hadn’t marked anyone.

‘Don’t waste my time with nonsense,’ he snapped back, severing the link before Bradley could argue.

But the claim gnawed at him.

By afternoon, he had almost forgotten about it when Liam walked into his office without knocking, his eyes alight with something fierce. Jason, Ethan’s beta, was already there, going over rogue reports. The sharpness in Liam’s tone cut through the air like a blade.

“I found the Luna.”

Both Ethan and Jason’s heads snapped up. The room went deadly still.

This wasn’t the moment for jokes, and Liam never used that title lightly.

Ethan leaned forward slowly, his voice low and dangerous. “What did you just say?”

Liam’s lips curved with a look of certainty, not humor. “Why didn't you tell us you marked someone, Alpha?”

​"What nonsense are you talking about?" Ethan asked through clenched teeth.

​"Did you really mark someone without knowing?" Jason asked, looking at Ethan with incredulity. Even he wouldn't make a mistake like that.

​"I don't think I would do such a stupid thing," Ethan replied in annoyance. His mind was already in chaos as he tried to go over every woman he had slept with in the past few days.

​"She's in the Tech department downstairs. I could bring her up?" Liam offered. He had come to the office today and found a retainer waiting for him who practically dragged him to the tech department, saying he needed his confirmation on something. When Liam got there, he immediately picked up Ethan's scent. He thought perhaps the Alpha was downstairs, but instead, it was a pretty human woman in a suit and high heels, bearing his Alpha's mark without any idea what she was wearing.