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2. Rain

As for Jordan… I guess females would fawn over him. I mean, who wouldn’t want to be with a strong, tall, blonde guy as a mate? Too bad his brain is the size of a pea.

I might be the only one in the pack that hates Jordan with a passion. Ever since I can remember, Jordan has bullied me. It was nothing serious, but it still made me hate him. I do try to hide my feelings from him. Not sure how he would react if he ever learned how many nights I spent dreaming he would slip on ice and break his neck. Impossible, I know, since werewolves have two sides—a human side and an animal side. Thanks to this, were-creatures are harder to kill.

Jordan dips his head and says something into Ruth’s ear. She turns her head, and she almost kisses him, but he jerks away from her. I am sure everyone in the pack knows that Ruth is irremediably in love with Jordan or… with the idea of being the pack’s future Luna. She turned nineteen four months ago. So when she realized she wasn’t Jordan’s soulmate, she had a meltdown -since Jordan would only settle for the one meant for him, his soulmate. He is yet to find her. In the past year, he has become a little impatient since he is twenty-two, and the pack is pressuring him to find her. I might hate him, but I still don’t want to be in his shoes. The constant nagging of ‘have you found her yet?’ would drive me crazy.

Safia, my wolf, sends me an image of Jordan with a redhead female next to him—caramelized apples above her head—and I mentally arch an eyebrow at her. I am not like most people, as I suffer from prosopagnosia or face blindness. I can’t see faces. They are a blur to me, so being a werewolf is a blessing. I can tell by scent and smell who is who and how they are feeling. Safia is also… different. The animal side of a werewolf is able to talk to the human side, but Safia has no voice, so she sends me images when she wants to tell me something. Over time we created our own way of talking, and now, we communicate without any problems. Oranges are used for Jordan; lavender for Ruth; gray clouds for when someone is upset; thunderbolts when she wants to let me know someone is furious; while rainbows are for happiness.

Ruth tries to make another move on Jordan, but he pushes her away. Safia lets me know Jordan is angry. I roll my eyes.

Up until Ruth turned nineteen—the age when werewolves are considered adults and can feel their soulmates—Jordan was into Ruth, and I might have caught them having sex once or twice. I pretended not to see and continued with what I was doing. Ruth was more than happy to let everyone know Jordan was interested in her. The day she turned nineteen, and Jordan knew they were not fated, he turned his attention to another female. Although, since she was in love with another pack member, Jordan backed off. Since then, he has been single. Not that I care.

Safia insists on the image of Jordan and the redhead female, which I assume is me since my scent is of caramel and apples. For a few months now, she started being obsessed with Titan, Jordan’s wolf.

’You do know how much I hate Jordan, don’t you? And I doubt he would be entertained by the idea of me being around him. The few times that happened, he ended up creating more work for me,’ I tell Safia.

If he doesn’t kick the bucket of water I use for cleaning the floors, he will find other ways to antagonize me. He will probably call me names or, if he is in a very bad mood, even push me or make me trip.

Safia whines. Being a lone wolf inside a pack is difficult. When it is a full moon, we usually run alone while the rest of the pack runs together. I prefer it, anyway, because I would probably look constantly over my shoulder if I had one of the pack members run next to me, wondering if I would get attacked.

’One day, we will find the one meant for us. Our soulmate. We will never be alone then. When the full moon rises above the forest, we will run next to our soulmate,’ I say, trying to console Safia. Of the two of us, she is the one who suffers the most from the lack of friendship and companions. I am more than happy not to talk to anyone from the pack, for days in a row.

Werewolves are not meant to be alone. That is why many rogues go mad after years of solitude. Some of them band together and form packs that, while not accepted by the Council of the Elders, will keep them sane.

Safia tries to explain to me that Titan is not only a good wolf, but he would also love to run with us. Gag me! Not that I have something against Titan. But Jordan would probably kill me before running with me.

I put the sketchbook in my backpack and climb down, wanting to go into my room and sleep. Jordan’s birthday is in two days, and that means more work for me. Unmated females from other packs are expected to come and parade themselves in front of Jordan, to see if any of them are his soulmate. While I feel bad for Titan, I hope Jordan never finds his soulmate.

To get to my room, which is in the Packhouse, I have to pass by the bonfires. I hope no one pays me any attention. Please, please, please….

“If it is not the mongrel,” someone says.

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