Don't Touch Me

Nora Pov

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I groaned when sunlight disturbed my sleep and squirmed, feeling intense pain in my head. Normally, the pain caused by the potion and wolfsbane became manageable after I regained consciousness, but this time, my head was throbbing unbearably.

"Ahh," I whimpered and sat up straight. My eyes flew open as panic settled inside me. I had overslept, and Georgia would definitely use it as an excuse to hurt me again.

“She’s awake.” Someone’s voice jolted me from my thoughts. I looked to my side, only to find two strangers sitting at a distance, watching me. Their faces were covered by black masks.

"Who are you?" I asked, then looked around, only to realize I wasn't in my dark room but somewhere in the middle of the forest. 

Sweat covered my body as anxiety gripped my soul. 

“What am I doing here?” I asked another question and touched the back of my head and whined in pain. "It's hurting."

"That woman hit you pretty badly. It took my friend a long time to bandage all your wounds." The one who had announced I was awake spoke while his friend silently stared at me... I narrowed my eyes.

“A woman?” I murmured, frowning slightly. Then the memories of last night came rushing back, and my expression stiffened in realization.

A month ago, I still had a family, a home, and people I trusted. Now my parents were gone, my uncle had betrayed me, my own pack tormented me, someone tried to kill me, and now I had ended up with two strangers.

Could my life fall any lower than this?

‘My parents.’ Pain twisted inside my chest at the thought of them, yet part of me still refused to believe they were truly gone. I hadn’t cried since that night, and I refused to. Not until I took revenge for their deaths.

"It took you two days to get conscious. I thought you died, but my friend believed in his knowledge of herbs, and it worked." The outspoken stranger continued blubbering. It was his words that got my attention.

I was unconscious for two days, and they saved me. That's hard to believe.

"Why?" I asked.

"Huh?"

"Why did you both save me? What are your intentions?" I asked, not beating around the bush.

"Wow... We saved you, and you're doubting us. Someone said it was right, there is no point in doing deeds in this generation," he grunted, clearly taking offense because of my words, as if I cared.

"So you're saying you and your friend saved me out of humanity," I scoffed and looked at his friend, who was staring at me silently. The moment my eyes noticed how red his eyes were, something shifted inside me.

It was like he was in pain as much as I was. 

"I told you to let her die. People here are devils," the outspoken one complained to his friend.

"You just admit you wanted me dead," I smirked. He opened his mouth to defend himself, but not a word came out.

"It's enough," his friend said in a stern tone.

“How are you feeling?” His direct question caught me off guard.

"Why do you care? Didn't you hear how ungrateful she is?" His outspoken friend grunted.

"Daniel." His one glare was enough for the stupid to shut his mouth. He turned his head towards me.

"If it gives you happiness, then let me tell you I am in intense pain," I answered when I noticed he was waiting for my answer.

"Your wounds will heal soon with proper medication," he said and looked at Daniel. "Drop her near our pack border."

"I don't think it's a good idea, Nash... What if she—" Before Daniel could finish, my savior stopped him.

"Do as I say." 

"Nash," I whispered his name. It's an unfamiliar name. He turned towards me, and his eyes softened as they met mine. “We can’t change what happened… You have to accept everything and try to heal from it,” he said in a soft tone filled with empathy. 

I scoffed at his words and turned my face away.

“I know it’s easier said than done, but we have no choice except to accept what life throws at us,” he said quietly before standing up and offering me his hand.

I stared at his hand for a moment before ignoring it and rising to my feet on my own.

We were both looking into each other's eyes. There was something in his blue eyes that was captivating, and he held an alpha demeanor around him, which made it clear that when he spoke, everyone listened.

I shook my head at him and opened my mouth to refuse to go to his pack when I felt a strange pain in my body.

"Ahh," I whimpered, holding his arm to steady myself.

"What happened?" he asked, looking at me with concern. I looked at him. 

Suddenly, it became hard to breathe. Sweat trickled down my skin as I pressed a trembling hand against my chest, struggling against the suffocating pain.

My vision blurred dangerously, and dizziness overwhelmed me. Just as my knees threatened to give out, he tightened his grip on my hand and wrapped an arm around my waist, keeping me from collapsing onto the ground.

“Maybe everything that happened triggered your wolf… you’re transitioning.” His words snatched the ground beneath me. I looked at him, widening my eyes. “My wolf? How? I thought the immense amount of wolfsbane in my system would prevent me from ever getting one… then how is this possible?”

"It's good your wolf is taking over. Your wounds will heal," he said, as if it were normal.

Well, it wasn’t a big deal for werewolves—but for me, it was. After whatever happened, it was magical, and above that, this was the first time I was transitioning into a wolf, and I didn’t know a single thing about it.

"Wait... you're transitioning for the first time?" he asked, noticing my expression. Just like mine, his eyes widened when I nodded.

“Arghh,” I cried, hiding my face in his chest as immense pain tore through my body.

"Let her come out ... Don't restrain her." I looked at him bewildered. “You don’t know a single thing about transitioning,” he sighed, making me sit on the ground. 

He caressed my hair lovingly, looking at me with affection. Despite the pain, it soothed my anxious soul… His touch was calming me.

“This pain will be over. You need to let your wolf take charge. Don’t restrain her by trying to hold yourself,” he instructed me, wiping the sweat from my forehead. "Now get on all fours."

"It's hurting," I sobbed, feeling like I would die with this pain. In the past, I had endured the pain caused by wolfsbane and the potion, but this pain was a thousand times worse.

"Do as I say." I nodded and followed his instructions. Soon my wolf took over, and my transformation started taking place.

"Ahhh!" I screamed as all my bones started cracking.

“It’s okay… this pain will be over,” Nash whispered in my ear before moving back and giving me space. My bones cracked and my screams of pain filled the entire forest. It was becoming unbearable, and I almost gave up—until everything suddenly went silent and the pain started fading away.

"Wow," I heard his voice when I finally completed my transition.

"She had a golden wolf," Daniel gasped. Everything felt like a dream. 

My vision and hearing became a thousand times sharper. I closed my eyes and heard the sound of the running water.

"Let's go there." My eyes shot up when I heard my wolf's voice in my head. The next thing I knew, we were running towards the lake.

After a long run, my wolf stopped near the water and looked at her reflection with a smile. I could feel she was in intense pain and fighting to stay in control.

I knew it wasn’t easy for her. The potion was making it difficult for her to remain in her wolf form.

"You look beautiful," I whispered and took a step back in fear when I saw a wolf come and stand near mine, looking at our water mirror image. Soon, that wolf stepped back and morphed into a human.

"Nash," I called him in surprise, after I saw him standing beside me.

“Ask her name, Nora,” he guided me to start communicating with my wolf, but before I could do that, she growled loudly.

“Her wolf is angry at her,” Daniel said, looking in our direction.

"And that's not good news. She could kill her," Nash replied, looking at me with concern. His words and expression confused me—until a sharp pain tore through my body, accompanied by my wolf’s angry growls.

I cried and screamed in agony as my wolf growled inside me, making my head feel like it was about to explode.

"You need to calm yourself," I heard Nash's voice. He was talking to my wolf, who growled at him in response.

"I don't know the reason behind your anger, but give her a chance to explain herself before punishing her… It's not fair to punish someone without giving them a chance to explain themself." He said softly and took a step closer to us. 

My wolf glared at him until he placed his hand on her back and gently caressed her coat.

Suddenly, everything went silent, and she calmed down. She licked Nash’s face like a loyal wolf, as if moments ago she hadn’t wanted to harm him or kill me.

"Go through her memories and then decide whether she’s guilty or not," Nash whispered lovingly into her ear. She nodded and gave me control back, something I wasn’t prepared for. 

Before my na*ed body could fall to the ground, he caught me in his arms. Tears rolled down my cheeks.

"It's okay... I've got you," he said, rubbing my arm... I pushed him away and wiped my tears. In the past month, I learned one thing: never show your weak side to anyone. The person you trust the most will not think twice before using it against you.

I clutched my hair frustratingly and looked at the sky, hating the power above that was giving me punishment without telling me my mistake.

'Why? Why is this happening to me?' I asked the Moon Goddess. “Can anything get worse than this? My wolf hates me and wants to kill me.” I screamed.

"It's not true," I turned and looked at Nash. 

"What?" I growled.

“She doesn’t hate you. I’m sure it’s a misunderstanding. Golden wolves don’t lose their calm easily, and if they do, there’s always a big reason behind it.” I looked at him with teary eyes and blinked hard, refusing to let the tears fall.

After a moment, I took a deep breath and looked back at Nash. That’s when I noticed he was fully dressed—unlike me... Even his face was covered by a mask. 

“When did you put your clothes on?” I asked, feeling my cheeks burning with embarrassment. I turned my face away.

It’s common for werewolves to be na*ed after transitioning, but this was my first time, and it made me feel terrible. All I wanted to do was hide myself. I wrapped one arm around my upper body and kept the other between my legs and sat down. He noticed my discomfort and stepped away to remove his shirt.

“I have a royal wolf, which is why I returned to the same form after the transition. In short, my clothes and mask were intact even after my wolf took over," he explained while making me wear his shirt. 

“You had a royal wolf?” I asked in disbelief, and in response, he hummed and wiped the sweat from my forehead with his handkerchief, then made me stand holding my arm. I looked at his hand, then at him.

“Who are you?” I asked, locking my gaze with his ocean-deep eyes, searching for even the faintest sign of deception beneath his kind and helpful facade.

He took a few steps back, maintaining a little distance between us.

“You should first talk to your wolf and ask her why she’s mad at you,” he said. I nodded, but the way he avoided talking about himself made me even more wary of him.

‘What is it in him that makes him so attractive? Is he my fated mate?’ I wondered, staring at the man who was helping me or pretending to do so even when my own people ditched me.

"No, he is not our mate." My heart skipped a beat when I heard my wolf respond. It will take time to get used to it.

I gulped and nodded before looking back at Nash, who was silently observing my every move. My heart missed a beat at the intensity of his gaze. 

I turned my face away.

"Why are you mad at me?" I asked my wolf, focusing on the important thing. 

"I thought you took wolfsbane just when I was born and you keep taking them to prevent me from appearing.” She bowed her head. “I thought the Moon Goddess gave me a human like you who doesn't even want me."

I shook my head and tightened my fist, trying to stay calm after hearing her accusation.

"No, it's a misunderstanding. I didn't take wolfsbane. Our enemies gave it to me forcefully."

"I know I went through your memories... No wonder our transition was so painful and why it was difficult for me to remain in my wolf form. I even doubt whether I’ll be able to morph again in the future,” she whimpered in pain.

I pressed my lips together, not knowing how to comfort her.

"I'm sorry, you went through so much, and I reacted that way," my wolf apologised and whimpered in pain. 

She emerged even when the chances were low, but I knew the potion and the immense amount of wolfsbane in my blood were causing her unbearable pain while draining her energy and strength, weakening her.

“It seems like everything is resolved between you and your wolf now,” Nash's voice brought my attention back to him. His voice was soothing, always stirring something inside me and I hated it.

"Yeah."

"What is her name?" He asked and looked behind me, staring at something or someone while talking to me.

I scrunched my eyebrows and turned to see what he was looking at but found no one.

"My name is Daisy," my wolf said. I looked back at Nash.

"Daisy," I replied to his question.

"Such a beautiful name," Nash complimented Daisy, making her blush. I didn't reply, nor did I smile at his compliment.

He moved closer and tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. 

I shoved his hand away and growled, taking a few steps back.

"Don't you dare to touch me without permission," I hissed. He didn't say a word but kept looking behind then turned his face towards me. Suddenly, the softness in his eyes disappeared, replaced by a stern coldness at my outburst.

“Did you really think helping me gave you the right to touch me or make me fall into your lap?” I asked coldly.

"I didn't intend to make you uncomfortable," he said and raised his hand in the air to show he meant no harm. I scoffed and shook my head.

He turned and looked at his friend, Daniel, who nodded. I don’t know why, but I had a feeling that things were not as simple as they looked. These people are not helping me out of generosity.

“You’re feeling like this because of the betrayal of your pack members, but not everyone is cruel, Nora,” Daisy said in a soft tone. I didn’t reply and kept watching Nash. Not to mention, he was still hiding his face from me like a coward.

“No… I can’t put her life at risk,” Nash growled at Daniel, startling me at his sudden reaction. He turned his head towards me.

"What happened?" I asked. My heart pounded in my chest when I noticed the way Daniel was glaring at me. I gulped and stood up.

"Nothing." Nash snarled and stood up. I quickly stepped away from him in fear. He raised an eyebrow at my action. 

"Nash—" Before his friend could say something, Nash shook his head.

“No… she is of no use… It’s better if we send her away, Danial.” He said sternly. My eyes shot up when I heard what they were planning to do. 

"You're not thinking rationally," Denial grunted. Nash turned towards him. They both started arguing, forgetting I was still standing there.

“Why are you standing like a statue? Didn’t you hear what they’re planning to do with us?” Daisy’s voice dragged me back to reality; otherwise, fear would have completely paralysed me.

"Huh?" I frowned.

"Run, idiot... He just said that he wanted to send us away, which means away from this earth. He is planning to murder us, Nora." She panicked, snatching the ground from beneath my feet. My eyes widened when I realised what was happening. I quickly stepped away from Nash.

"Run!" Daisy growled. I picked up speed and ran as fast as I could, but destiny wasn't in my favour from the start. Nash noticed my absence and started chasing me. I hid behind a tree and closed my eyes, taking deep breaths.

“You really thought you could run away from me, little dove?” My eyes shot up when I heard Nash's voice, only to find him standing in front of me. He growled, sending shivers down my spine. The way his eyes were glaring at me was enough to tell me that my end was not far.