Free Web NovelChapter 182: Asking My Friends About Princess
I was standing outside by the car, the cool night air biting at my skin while the muffled beat of the music from inside the building thumped against the pavement. Princess was inside the club discussing some kind of issues with Beam, the club manager, because she was heading out and it was Friday night. Usually, Friday nights meant chaos and crowded floors, but she was moving with a focus that didn’t leave room for the usual party atmosphere. I leaned against the cool metal of the door, watching the neon lights flicker and reflect off the windshield.
"Okay, what did you call us for, Faye?" Malo said the moment he, Sasha, and Haley came out of the club. They looked a bit breathless, the scent of expensive drinks and smoke clinging to their clothes as they stepped into the quiet of the parking lot.
I had texted them earlier, my mind was still on Princess and her matured instincts. I couldn’t shake the image of her back in the bathroom, that calm and distant look she kept giving me. It felt like a wall I couldn’t climb over.
"I’m sorry for interrupting your moments in there, but something has been bugging my mind lately and I just can’t stop thinking about it... did something happen to Princess while I was... kidnapped?" I said, staring at my friends, hoping they knew something since they were all together at that time. I searched their faces, looking for a flicker of a secret or a glance they might share behind my back.
"Something happened to Princess... I don’t get your question, Faye?" Haley said. She tilted her head, her brow furrowing as she adjusted her jacket against the breeze.
"What I meant was, did you notice any changes, like maybe Princess not being Princess...?" I said, gesturing with my hand. I tried to find the right words to describe the shift, the way she seemed to have skipped several years of her life in just a couple of weeks.
"Of course Princess was not herself... you were kidnapped by some psychopathic, vengeful wolf for 16 days. None of us were ourselves, we left our home to search for you... everyone was not being themselves..." Haley said. She stepped closer, her voice softening but carrying a weight that made me feel small.
"Do you think Princess will be the same after what she went through... you might have been kidnapped, but she kept on finding ways non-stop trying to bring you back safe... she didn’t even take her meds for days... we were all scared that at some point that Alpha was going to rip out our hearts..." Malo added. He kicked at a loose pebble on the ground, his expression darkening as he remembered those days. The way he talked about her meds made my stomach twist. I hadn’t realized she had gone that far, pushing herself to the edge of a breakdown just to track me down.
As they both talked, I felt down. The guilt started to settle in my chest, heavy and cold. I raised my voice, fucking her off... even I am not the same after the whole kidnapping shit... I shouldn’t have taken it like that... I had been so focused on my own confusion that I forgot she had been through a different kind of hell.
Princess is just not trying to lose me again. The realization hit me like a physical blow. The overprotectiveness, the maturity, the quiet strength it was all a shield. She wasn’t acting like an adult because she wanted to, but because she felt she had to. I just thought there was something she was hiding, but maybe she was not... maybe she was just terrified that if she let her guard down for even a second, the world would snatch me away again.
"Okay guys, thank you very much... also I really appreciate you all leaving town to come find me, I never expected you all there..." I said. I have been wanting to thank them for the rescue and risking their lives for me... It felt strange saying it out loud, but I needed them to know I saw what they did.
"You don’t need to thank me, Faye... you are my best friend. You might not remember, but there was a time when you risked your life to save me... so I don’t mind going into the battlefield or sharing my donuts with you..." Malo said... honestly, I was touched. I don’t remember when I risked my life for him, but I have noticed that Malo never shares his donuts except with me. He gave a small, lopsided smile that actually reached his eyes for once.
"I loved the adventure, even if it turned out to be terrorizing, that was the first time I left town..." Haley said, smiling. She seemed to be trying to lighten the mood, her eyes darting back toward the club where the bass was picking up speed.
"Thank you once again..." I muttered, then my eyes gazed to Sasha, who hasn’t said a word since they walked out. She was standing perfectly still, her gaze fixed on a point somewhere over my shoulder. "What happened to Sasha?" I asked.
"Sasha is on a no-talking mode... she is playing ’I am a robot’ tonight, so she’s on mute... this is a very important test we are meant to submit by Monday morning to Mr. Jake..." Haley quickly said. For a second, I thought Sasha was going to talk before she intervened. Sasha just gave a stiff, mechanical nod, her face a complete mask of indifference.
"Okay, we need to get back to the club... the race will soon begin and I am putting my money for the first time on some number 6..." Malo said as he and Haley dragged Sasha like she was some big Barbie doll. They started heading back toward the entrance, their shadows stretching long across the asphalt.
"The robot’s power is down, needs some charging... by the way, it’s powered by rum and lemon juice..." Haley said, laughing awkwardly... Her laugh echoed off the brick walls of the club before they disappeared through the heavy doors.
"See you on Monday, fresh wolf and your new baby bump..." Malo said as they disappeared into the club arena.
Wow, that was awkward... I stood there for a second, rubbing my arms as the silence returned to the parking lot.
When I turned, I saw Princess. Beside her were two suitcases, sitting neatly on the ground. She had been standing there quietly for some time now, the shadows of the building partially obscuring her face. I felt her presence through the mid-talk with the group, a familiar hum in the back of my mind that told me she was near. She came out from the other side of the building, her footsteps silent. free𝑤ebnovel.com
She dragged the suitcases to the booth and put them inside before closing the door. The sound of the trunk clicking shut was sharp and final.
She has really grown up, because Malo used to carry her luggage for her... he used to do everything for her, but now she was doing it all herself without even asking. Maybe it’s the Alpha puberty or whatever she called it, but seeing her handle everything so easily made me feel even more distant from the girl she used to be.
Now I feel guilty for shouting at my baby. The way she moved, so efficient and quiet, made my heart ache. I walked slowly to her, my boots clicking softly on the ground, then hugged her like a baby. I reached out, wrapping my arms around her waist, though I wasn’t close enough, thanks to the baby bump. It sat between us, a physical reminder of the new lives we were carrying.
"Don’t worry, Pancake, I’m here, okay... I am never leaving you... you won’t lose me again..." I muttered to her. I buried my face in her shoulder, breathing in the familiar scent of her perfume and something that just smelled like home. Princess slowly raised her hand to hug me back, her touch hesitant at first before she pulled me closer.
"I know, and I am never going to let that happen... no one will ever dare to take you away from me... they will have to go through me first..." Princess said. Her voice was low and steady, a vow that vibrated through my chest.
"You can still be overprotective and still be you... just don’t try to change, okay... I love you..."
Fuck, this is not how I wanted to say it, I wanted it to be on a special occasion, not like this...
why the fuck did that come out... The words felt heavy in the air, unplanned but completely true. I felt my face heat up, glad for the darkness of the parking lot.
"I love you more, Cotton." She whispered it against my hair, and for a moment, the tension that had been between us all day seemed to melt away.
We hugged there for a while before entering the car. The interior was warm, the familiar dashboard lights glowing amber in the dark. Before she turned on the engine, she looked at me with a smile, a real one that reached her eyes and made her look like the Princess I knew again.
"Shall we head to Redwood now..."
Yes, that’s right, we are going to Redwood for the weekend. I’m finally going to meet Guru. I leaned back in the seat, watching the club lights fade in the rearview mirror as we pulled away, heading toward whatever was waiting for us in the trees.
