Chapter 55

When I cracked my eyes open, I was in the white room that had become familiar over the past few weeks. It had been silent the past few nights, with the exception of the venture I went on with Ginger.

As I looked around the room, I realized something was different. Instead of the completely white room I was used to, there was some grass up ahead. In the middle of the grass patch, I saw Shadow lying down on the ground.

I walked over to her and sat cross-legged in front of her. “Hey, where have you been?”

Shadow lifted her head. “I’ve been sleeping.”

“Why haven’t I heard from you the past few days?” I knew Moon would be affected by Jori’s rejection, but I hadn’t imagined it affecting Shadow.

She blinked at me a few times and then let out a long yawn. “I don’t have control here, and I’m most powerful on a full moon. I haven’t been ignoring you. I was just hibernating in a sense.”

I reached forward and scratched behind her ears. What she said made a lot of sense. I had never spoken to Shadow in this place until Moon came along, and my powers started to develop. It had only been through mind communication or when I shifted into her wolf form.

“Have you seen Moon around? Is she okay?” I hoped she knew her whereabouts. I needed to help fix things with her. I could only imagine how upset she was with me about not choosing Jori, and it made my stomach twist into knots.

“She hasn’t been doing great. She won’t talk to me. I don’t think she likes me very much. She’s over there if you want to talk to her.” Shadow gestured with her nose in the direction where I would find Moon.

I scratched behind her ears a few more times before standing up. “Thank you for your help. We are going to have to prepare for a battle with Theron soon, and I’m going to need your help. Be prepared.”

Shadow nodded, and I started walking in the direction of Moon. The grass started shifting from the bright green surrounding Shadow to a yellowish-brown as I kept walking. It looked like it was dying, and my heart ached. As I kept walking, I saw a gray tree with black burn marks all over it. It had no resemblance of life to it. I felt a pull to it, and I instantly knew that’s where Moon was.

As I approached, I saw Moon’s white body sitting on a branch above me. She was resting with her eyes closed, but as I got closer, she cracked her eyes open. When she saw me, she closed her eyes again.

“Oh, it’s you.” Her voice was monotone.

My chest ached, seeing the clear despair she was in. “Moon. How are you?” It felt like a silly question, but I didn’t know what else to say.

“What do you think?”

I frowned. I didn’t know how to fix this, but I had to try. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause you so much pain.”

This seemed to get Moon’s attention. She opened her eyes again. “Why are you sorry?”

I hesitated answering. I didn’t understand why she would ask me that. “Because of me, you lost your soulmate.”

Moon scoffed in response. “No, it’s not your fault. Our soulmate wasn’t kind. He was pushy, and he even hurt you. What kind of soulmate is that? I don’t care if he was destined for us. That’s not acceptable behavior.”

I stared at Moon, not believing what I was hearing. I thought she had disappeared because she blamed me for Jori rejecting us. “But it’s my fault for wanting Mark. I can understand him being upset.”

Moon stood up and stretched her back. She then walked on the branch so she was standing right next to me. “Adira, you fell for Mark because he was kind. He fought for you and he was caring. Even I can’t deny that.”

“So you’re not mad at me? That’s not why you’ve been ignoring me?” My heart was pounding, waiting for her response.

“Of course not. I’ve been upset, and I just haven’t had the energy to reach out to you. A soulmate is supposed to be someone who loves you and protects you no matter what. The way he grabbed you and hurt you… that was more painful than anything. It was a betrayal of trust, and that’s a lingering pain that doesn’t just go away.” Moon jumped down from the branch and landed on my shoulder.

She was lighter than I expected, and her body was warm. She purred and rubbed her face against mine.

I felt a weight lifting off my shoulders, even as Moon stood there. “I’m sorry Jori wasn’t what you wanted or needed him to be.”

“I’m sorry to you as well. You have dealt with so much rejection. You didn’t deserve the way he treated you.” Moon licked my cheek.

I reached up and stroked her head. “You know, I’m sure Mark would love you. I don’t know if there’s a way for you two to ever meet, but I don’t doubt he would love you. I know it might not be the same.”

Moon purred in response. “Of course he would love me. I see the way he looks at you. That man is head over heels for you. He loves every part of you, and I’m part of you. I hope I can meet him one day.”

“I will try to make that happen.”

We stood there in silence for a few moments, and I felt the bond with Moon growing stronger. The grass around us started turning green again. It wasn’t as bright as the grass around Shadow, but it was no longer dead. Life was coming back to it again.

“Hey Moon,” I said, breaking the silence.

“Yes?”

“I’m going to need your help to defeat Theron. I don’t know what I’m doing, but I found someone who is willing to train me. I’m going to need you if we have any hope of defeating him once and for all,” I said.

“Ah yes, the old lady. I like her.” Moon jumped off my shoulder and sat in front of me. “I’m ready to help.” She flicked her tail, looking up at me.

I smiled, feeling better about the training. “Perfect. And if you need anything, let me know. I know emotional pain isn’t something that just goes away.”

Moon’s eyes brightened. “No, but you’ve helped a lot already. Now it’s my turn to help you.”

–

I woke up from the light peaking through the window. It was still early, and the sun was just barely rising over the horizon. A smile pulled at my lips as I felt the warmth of Mark’s body wrapped around mine. His arm was still wrapped around my waist. I lay in bed just a little longer, taking in his scent.

That was the most restful night of sleep I had had in several nights, and I wasn’t ready to break the spell quite yet. I snuggled into Mark’s body, pulling his arm around me a little tighter. He responded, nuzzling his face into my neck. The hair on the back of my neck raised, and I felt my cheeks flushing, thinking about his body pressed against mine.

Last night things almost progressed to the next stage. I wanted it. My body wanted it. I knew he did too. But I had to focus on the next steps and training. It took every ounce of willpower to stop things, but I didn’t want to let my desire take over when I knew I was going to have a long day today. I wasn’t sure how much longer I would be able to push it off though. Every part of my body wanted it. Every touch of his sent a fire burning through me. Ever since I knew I wanted to spend my life with him, I couldn’t get it off my mind.

My heart fluttered at the thought, and I knew I had to get up before I started making bad decisions. I started pulling Mark’s arm off me, but he resisted, pulling me in closer to him.

“Uh-uh,” he muttered. “You’re not going anywhere.”

I twisted my body so I was facing him. “I have to get ready for training today. I don’t want Ginger to get upset with me before we have even started.” I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.

“What if I want you more?” Mark asked, finally opening his eyes.

I quickly pecked his lips and then tried to wiggle out of Mark’s arms. He responded by tickling me. I screamed with laughter, squirming away from him.

“Mark!” I couldn’t stop laughing as his fingers tickled my sides.

“You’re mine,” Mark laughed back. He stopped tickling me and pulled me back into him.

I stopped struggling and gave him a pointed look. “Mark, I have to go.”

“But I don’t want you to.” He curled out his bottom l*p and pouted at me.

I wiped my finger on his bottom l*p. “I don’t want to leave either, but I have to. What will it take for you to let me go?”

Mark hummed for a moment, thinking about his terms. “Three k****s.”

“Fine,” I agreed, still smiling.

Mark bent down, lifting my shirt a little. His kissed my stomach, making me squeal again.

“One,” he said.

He shifted and kissed my neck, making me giggle.

“Two.”

His eyes met mine, and then he planted his lips on mine. He lingered on my lips, moving slowly and sensually. His tongue brushed against mine, and I easily gave into him. I melted from his touch, and my entire body tingled.

Finally, Mark pulled away, smiling at me.

“Three,” I whispered, completely out of breath. I had zero desire to get out of bed now.

Mark leaned in and kissed my forehead. “Come on. Let’s get out of bed. You have a big day.”

“That was four,” I said, sticking my tongue out at him.

Mark winked at me. “Think of it as a bonus k**s.”