Chapter 4

JAX: 

Being an extraordinary being in a world filled with ordinary beings, I've managed to be careful in the last five years since I've been here. It wasn't a permanent thing but then I had my priorities set right. 

So if someone told me that a mistake from one night could almost ruin everything for me, I would not believe it. But then it did and now I might have to account for it. 

Manuel looked like he wanted to punch through something. The look on his face said it all that he was not liking what I told him. 

"So you marked her unintentionally?" he sounded surprisingly calm for the reaction he was exhibiting. 

I run a hand through my hair nervously. "I had no idea what I was doing. One minute I was trying to get down with her, the next my fangs are out and I have bitten into her neck. I don't understand how it all happened," 

I was getting tensed so I walk away from his presence back to the spot I was in before. But going back there wasn't helping matters as the hypersensitive noise of the activities in the city was contributing to my stress. 

"This could jeopardize everything, Jax. Everything." Manuel stated. 

"It's not my fault it all went wrong. I wanted to live life a little," slowly I turned back around. "You told me to live life a little," I accuse him. 

"Because you were letting the pressure of being the next Alpha get to you," then he walks over to me, stopping only about two to three steps away. "I only wanted you to relax your mind a bit. I didn't expect you to get a human marked." 

"You're not helping." 

He holds both hands up. "I'm sorry." he apologizes before putting his hands down. "Do you have a plan to curb the situation before the Alpha and the whole pack finds out about what you did?" 

"She could die from the poisoning," I say, mostly to myself. 

Manuel was quick to counter my statement: "Or she could as well turn," he declares. "Let's just finish her off and forget this ever happened. It's better that way before a new bond is felt by the rest of the pack members." 

"We won't be doing that, no. I already put her in harm's way with the mistake I made. I don't want to make it worse for her." 

"You think it won't be worse for her when the Alpha finds out she's an unnatural bred? He would have her head as soon he does find out." 

"Which is why I need you to watch her for the time being. It usually takes days so if you see she's about to turn, then you can do what you need to do." 

He shakes his head in disagreement. "I don't think that's a good idea, Jax. You're about to expose yourself and it could as well lead to your exile." 

I wasn't getting the encouragement I needed to know that I was not doing things wrong. I will put myself in his shoes, though. It's the same reaction I would exhibit if it was the case. 

"Just do this for me. I'm sure you'll be able to handle this the best way you can." I tell him. 

He sort of reflects on it first before agreeing to it. It made me feel more relaxed knowing that he was going to do as requested. 

Seeing that I have managed to reach a compromise with him, I tell him, "I will be heading back to the packhouse tonight. But I should be back in the next two days," 

"The Alpha summoned you, didn't he?" 

I nod once. "He did." 

***** 

ROZETA: 

A splitting headache woke me up from my sleep. It was worse than any hangover that I have ever suffered in my existence and I groan from how bad it was. 

"Lay back down!" I hear that order from above as I try to sit up to get my head in proper shape. I haven't even gotten a proper vision of my environment but I could easily recognize the voice to be Lauryn's. 

"Why?" I wearily mutter while feeling the force of her hands hindering me from sitting upright. 

"You're not okay enough to sit up," was her response. 

I do not resist until I am finally back down on the bed that I was sure I was. The continuous beeping sound and the strong smell of antiseptic lead me to ask, "Where am I?" 

"Where do you think?" Lauryn asks in return. "You're in a hospital." 

"What happened?" 

"I found you unconscious in your bedroom. I think you tripped but your hit your head so bad." 

"That bad?" 

"Well luckily it didn't affect your brain," she says, sounding a bit nonchalant. I didn't need anyone to tell me that she was displeased. For one I interrupted her weekend routine of working on her new clothing collection. 

"Sorry I put you through this stress," I tell her. 

"Well, if you had listened to my advice on not getting wasted, I'm sure this won't be happening. I already told you the hangover was going to kick in anytime," 

I didn't want to argue with her about me not getting wasted. It would only lengthen the conversation and I have no strength for that. 

I raise my hand to my head to realize there was a bandage wrapped around it. I take my hand off the thick cotton material almost as soon as that because a new round of headache hits me. 

"Is it still Saturday?" I have to ask because it would feel so wrong if I spent more than a day in the hospital. 

"Yeah, except it's evening already. But I won't be letting you go to work on Monday. The doctor said you had to rest." 

I couldn't say anything. Couldn't even nod. The fact that my weekend was turning out to be crap was enough to make me devastated. 

That was when I recall the very thing that caused me to suffer the accident in the first place. I put my hand to feel around the swollen part but to my surprise, I felt nothing. 

"The hickey... Is it still there?" I ask Lauryn, shifting my focus to her as she seemed to be immersed in her phone while she was seated on a chair beside the bed I was on. 

She takes her eyes off the phone and up to me to check my neck. A brief stare at it and she says, "No, it's gone." 

"It's gone?" My eyes almost bulge in surprise. 

"Yeah," she affirms, looking away from me, "Guess it wasn't as serious as it looked." 

I wanted to say something but I withheld myself from doing that. I didn't want to make it seem weirder than it is. But I was finding it hard to believe that it was indeed gone. 

"You still have to tell me how it got to your neck in the first place," Lauryn says while my mind has already traveled to another dimension. 

I continued feeling around the spot where the hickey should be and subconsciously I say to her, "Yeah."