Chapter 3

I got to my safe haven and changed out of the gown I wore into casual clothes. The person I took time to dress for was mated to someone else so there was no use in looking pretty.

I sat down on the bare grass, with my knees pulled towards my chest and I cried uncontrollably. From the claiming down to the kissing scene, my heart was breaking into a million uncountable pieces.

All my happiness was gone, and it was replaced by a feeling of emptiness and despair.

My cries increased as my thoughts drifted to the future.

A future without him, my only love. I began to imagine myself attending an event and he won’t be with me. I won’t be able to talk to him about my day or my feelings when I’m down.

“Why? Moon Goddess why?? He was my mate, he was mine. Why did you take him from me?" I screamed at the top of my lungs and my tears poured like a storm without an end.

I just lost a part of myself and I didn’t know how to move on.

I sat there questioning if I would be able to move on or not. I felt numb and empty as I allowed the sadness and heartbreak to completely take over me.

My wolf and I had to cry it out if we wanted to move on.

After minutes of crying my heart out, I stood up, wiped my tears, and began to undress. I shed my clothes leaving them in a pile and felt the cold breeze on my naked skin.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and let nature take over as my transformation began.

My muscles bulged as my bones began to elongate, crack and shift as my body contorted and twisted, preparing for the arrival of my second being.

Fur sprouted from my skin and my face and hair elongated into a snout and my hands and legs became paws.

My senses become heightened as I turn into a being, wild and free, something that couldn’t be hurt or broken.

I emerged from the transformation with Eve, my great white wolf. Her fur was glowing under the moonlight as we stood on all fours and I gazed upon the moon and let out a howl filled with pain, which was what Eve and I felt at that time.

I howled and cried like a wife who had lost her mate in a war.

I let out another cry of pain and release and then I took off into the night, running swiftly into the forests. My primary urge to hunt and eat could not consume me as all I wanted to do was run away and let my sadness leave.

I ran and ran, my paws pounding against the earth and my nostrils filled with the rich smell of prey and soil. Eve decided to eat her pain away and caught the scent of a deer and chased it, moving stealthily through the underbush.

The deer was grazing on some foliage, unaware of the heartbroken predator closing in on it. Without hesitation, I lunged at the deer, tackling it to the ground. It let out a piercing cry as my razor-sharp teeth sank into its neck ending its life.

We began to feast on the deer’s warm flesh, tearing chunks of meat from its body and devouring it ravenously.

We continued to eat till we were filled and left the remnants for other animals. We went to the nearby spring for a refreshing taste of water and continued running as we crossed numerous borders enjoying the feeling of the cold wind on our fur.

After running for an indefinite period, I decided to go to a bar. “Might as well have a few drinks right?” I asked Eve and she gave me a go-ahead. We had to drown our sadness away. I trotted to my nearest changing spot and changed back into my human form and wore some clothes.

I walked into the nearest bar and scanned the room for a place to sit. It was the perfect place to forget and numb the pain I felt in my chest these past hours. Being my first breakup, it was a tough one and I needed something to take the edge off.

After a minute of scanning, I spotted an empty stool at the end of the bar and made my way over to it, and sat down. I flagged the bartender, giving him my order.

“I’ll have a whiskey, neat.” My voice was not audible; it was barely a whisper. My cries and screams had affected my vocal cords.

A wave of sadness suddenly hit me again and I sighed wishing the whiskey would arrive soon. The bartender after noticing my sulky mood quickly poured my drink and slid it across the counter and over to me.

“Hey, you good?” he asked, trying to initiate a conversation but I was in no mood for that so I didn’t reply and fortunately he didn’t press further.

I took a sip feeling the fiery liquid burn its way down my throat. It was exactly what my body needed.

I began to take more sips and then the whiskey had begun to work its magic in my system; dulling the pain. It made me feel a lot better and relieved.

I ordered another and requested for it to be stronger than the first and drank it within seconds. I ordered more and soon, I was lost in a haze of whiskey and memories.

I reminisced on all my times with my ex and the events of this past hour but it didn’t matter anymore. He was gone and I am here drinking myself into oblivion.

As the night went on, I started talking to the people around me, laughing and joking, forgetting my misery.

I felt myself loosen up due to the influence of the whiskey. It gave me the courage to be a little bit wilder and a little bit crazier.

After a little while, I forgot about my heartbreak, lost in the blur of the bar and the people around me, especially the hot guy next to me who caught my eye.

Looking at him before our conversation started, you’d think he was an aloof and cold mafia but he was a sociable person, due to the excess alcohol in his system. “Hey there, wanna buy a friend a drink?”

I heard him clearly and hesitated for a moment but something about him drew me in, like iron to a magnet. I quickly signaled to the bartender for another round of drinks.

The drinks arrived and we both took a sip before drowning in silence. I had nothing to say as I was wasted so I stared at the pair of piercing blue eyes staring at me. He decided to break the silence by asking a question.

“So, Hazel, he called me by the color of my eyes, what brings you out to the bar this midnight?" he asked, making me look at the clock and the time read a few minutes past 2 am.

His questions reminded me of my ordeal and I gulped down the glass of whiskey in my glass feeling it burn my insides.

I signaled to the bartender for another glass, before opening my mouth to answer him.

“Just needed to blow off some steam. You know how it is.” I took a sip again before asking, “What about you? What brings you and your escorts here tonight?” I asked, referring to the hefty men who had been watching his every move for the past half an hour.

He sighed when he noticed their presence.

“Well, I needed to get out for a while for some drinks and fresh air. I giggled as I watched the 4 men slowly lose focus.

“I like your friends though. Especially the one with curly hair. He’s cute."

“Yeah, he’s a good guy. So, you have someone you’re seeing or …?” he asked laughing.

Before he could finish his sentence, I quickly cut him off. “Let’s not talk about that. This is a night to let loose and have fun."

He smiled and raised his glass for a cheer and said to me, “I could not agree more. Cheers to that.” Our glasses clinked as we continued talking.

His slurred voice made him look hotter as he talked to me. Over time, I paid less attention to his questions and more to his voice and lips.

The way his lips touched the edge of the glass when he took a sip of his drink. Eve deep down was going crazy, begging to be unleashed but I didn’t let her.

I sometimes allow her to come to the surface to have fun but this time around I didn’t.

My thoughts were wholly consumed by the man in front of me. With eve bugging me, I decided to stand and go for a run.

I stood with my legs swaying. “I think I need to get some…. ahhh” I shrieked.

Someone pushed me and spilled my drink all over. My anger resurfaced as I wanted to strangle the person who bumped into me but I turned back to meet the guy apologizing.

I was about to lash out at him when Hottie; the guy with blue eyes held me, “Let him be Hazel. It was probably a mistake.”

His touch melted my anger and made my heart flutter. I felt blood pump into my cheeks and I quickly masked it under the influence of alcohol.

I turned to him and stared into his blue eyes. It felt like home but it wasn’t mine. A tap on the shoulder distracted me from my thoughts and I turned to see who called me.

It was the guy who spilled my drink when he bumped into me. His face cap shielded his face so I couldn’t see him well and his scent was mixed so I could not decipher who he was.

“I ordered this as an apology for spilling your drink. It was a mistake. I hope you can accept it and my apologies.” He said with a smile.

If I had not met hottie; the guy I was talking to at the bar, a few hours ago, I would have described his face as dreamy when I saw him. face.

He had a pleading look and most of the eyes in the bar were on me. A touch from hottie prompted me to collect the glass and smile, accepting his apology.

He smiled back and left while I retreated to my seat next to hottie.

I stared into his eyes waiting for him to say something. He looked at me with a confused face before smiling, he moved closer and whispered into my ears, “drink up, let’s go out and get some fresh air.”

I smiled sheepishly and gulped down my drink without a second thought. After watching me gulp down the drink, he smiled at me like a proud father before gulping his drink.

He helped me up and we walked outside like a drunk couple walking home.

We walked together with our hands slightly brushing, down the dimly lit street our breath visible in the cold night air.

As we walked, chatted, and laughed, rehashing the highlights of the night.

Unconsciously, I snuggled closer to him for warmth due to the chilly weather. After hours of drinking at the bar, we were walking, our steps unsteady and judgment, clouded.

We stumbled down a dark alleyway, our laughter echoing off the tall brick buildings.

“I had a great time tonight,” I said while embracing his warmth. “Me too,” he replied. We turned into a corner and suddenly heard the sound of footsteps behind us.

We paused and turned around to see a group of werewolves approaching us, growling, with their eyes glowing in the dark.