Song: Airplanes by B.o.B

[Destined - 8]

•••

Kian stared out the window of the plane, watching the palm trees grow smaller the higher up the plane ascended, leaving not only the nice weather and beautiful beaches, but also a piece of him.

The person sitting next to him, a young woman in her early 20s, kept sneaking glances at him from her isle seat. She even went as far as giggling to get his attention. However, Kian ignored her completely. Instead, he stuck earbuds in his ears and selected a song from his playlist, turning the volume up as much as his ears would allow him. He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, listening to the sound of the vocals as well as the rhythm of the instruments.

The plane ride only took a couple hours. When the pilot spoke over the intercom, Kian lifted up his window covering and stared out at the growing buildings of his pack's city, a completely different scenery.

Once the plane landed, he gathered his things with a sigh and exited the plane with the rest of the passengers. At baggage claim he found his suitcase almost immediately and went to go wait outside for his parents' car.

When their vehicle pulled up by the curb, Kian opened the back door and shoved his luggage inside before sliding into a seat. His mom turned in her seat and smiled at him.

"Hi honey!" she beamed. "We missed you so much! How was the trip?"

His dad grinned as well before shifting the gear in drive. Nancy continued pestering Kian about his time in the southeastern pack. Instead of answering, he leaned his head against the window and stared at the buildings and cars passing by, completely blocking their voices out.

Once she realized her son wouldn't answer, Kian's mother sighed and faced forward.
•••

Home didn't feel like home anymore. It was almost foreign to him. It didn't seem as cozy or welcoming as his cousins' house, more like a prison. A place full of awful memories haunting him.

Kian stared up at his ceiling, shifting on the small, rock-hard bed that didn't provide any comfort. The room felt cluttered and small in comparison to the guest room he stayed in. Temptation took over his body as he felt his hand inching towards the drawer of his nightstand where he kept a pack of cigarettes. But then he curled his fingers into a fist instead and brought it back to his side, resisting the sudden urge.

He made it this far without smoking. His inner conscience convinced him to resist.

He had to go back to school, but he wasn't mentally prepared to face reality again. It felt so long since he last attended, but he knew he was caught up, maybe even ahead, because all he did to pass time in Florida was work on his schoolwork and daydream about a certain brown-eyed Beta.

He glanced over at his alarm clock. 4:15 am. He had to get up in a couple hours for school. With a sigh, knowing he wasn't going to get any sleep, Kian slid out from under his blankets and decided to go for a morning run instead.

While the sunrise was nice, it wasn't nearly as beautiful as the coast. As he ran, he thought about the recent events for probably the millionth time. Everyone was right about his attitude. He would have never been caught up on schoolwork, nor would he have stressed so much. Usually he was the nonchalant, carefree guy. Now he was worried and frustrated and wasn't drowning his issues in liquor. Instead, he ran on the sidewalk in his giant wolf form, passing by the small houses in the neighborhood.

Most of the pack members were still sleeping, which meant he didn't have to pass anyone, to his relief. He was well known in the neighborhood, mostly as the teenage alcohol addict. Most of them went up to him to munch off his cigarettes and have a good time.

Originally he didn't give a fuck about what anybody thought of him, but now he was disgusted with his past self. How could one person be so careless and irresponsible?

By the time he reached his front lawn, his fur clung to his body with sweat. After shifting back into his human form, he grabbed a pair of shorts he left by the front door and put them on. Then he went back inside, showered, changed into some clothes, throwing on his leather jacket, and picked up his helmet. He hadn't ridden his motorcycle in awhile, he felt excited to get on it. It would have been nice to have it while he was away.

As he entered the kitchen to grab a granola bar, his parents sat at the table drinking coffee. They were surprised to see him up so early.

"Later," he said as he exited the house and mounted the bike.

It didn't take long before he reached the high school. Some students were surprised to see him and waved with smiles. He parked the bike in his usual spot and walked across the asphalt and onto the sidewalk. Once he entered the building, he went over to his locker to shove his backpack and helmet inside.

"Dude!" a voice called out from behind him. "When the fuck did you get back?"

Kian turned his head to see Jasper sauntering over towards him with a confused look.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Jasper shouted, shoving Kian's arm playfully.

Kian shrugged, shutting his locker after grabbing his textbooks. "Didn't think it was a big deal," he said.

"Dude, it's been hella boring without you! We're all out takin' a smoke. Let's go! I'm sure the others will be happy to see you."

Kian shrugged his friend's hand off his shoulder. "I'll pass," he moved away. "I don't wanna be late for class." Then he turned and left, leaving his dumbfounded friend behind.

When he entered the classroom, to say the teacher was shocked to see Kian on time would be an understatement. The woman even went as far as taking her glasses off and rubbing the lenses with her blouse, making sure she wasn't hallucinating.

He took a seat at his usual desk in the back of the room, sitting his books and pencil case on the desk. The girl sitting at the table next to him sent a questioning gaze in his direction.

Throughout class, every time the teacher asked a question Kian raised his hand, leaving all of his classmates with their jaws dropped. This continued throughout the day, especially in the classes he shared with his friends. They had no clue what happened to their friend.

During lunch, him and his friends sat at their usual table in the cafeteria. They all stared at him while he quietly ate his hamburger. When he noticed their eyes, he raised an eyebrow, "What?"

"Something is different about you, bro," Jasper pointed out, narrowing his eyes. They all nodded their heads in agreement.

"Yeah, and since when did you do homework," Ryder questioned, shivering in disgust at the word 'homework'.

Kian shrugged. "I want to graduate."

Alex shoved the rest of his burger in his mouth before speaking with his mouth full, "You've never cared about anything before. What changed?"

Kian's mind immediately wandered over to the Beta over a thousand miles away. He shook the thoughts away and continued eating his lunch, ignoring the odd looks from his friends. Once the bell rang, he bolted to his next class, leaving the others behind.

•••

Weeks passed by as Kian started a routine: wake up early for a morning run, attend school, come home, do homework, go to bed. While his grades improved significantly, his personal well-being did quite the opposite. Anyone with eyes could tell he wasn't feeling okay, especially with the dark circles and bags under his eyes, despite the decent amount of sleep he got. His appetite was not normal either, because he didn't eat breakfast at all, barely ate lunch at school, and skipped dinner.

His friends tried dragging him to parties and small get-togethers, but the guy always found a lame excuse not to join them. He either claimed he had too much homework or his parents had something planned. They grew suspicious and attempted to corner him at school, but gained no knowledge of what bothered him. The group was afraid of losing their friend, not to mention the free alcohol and nicotine that came with his friendship.

His parents grew concerned with his behavior, too, not because he was being a pain in their asses, but they were worried about his health. So they decided to ask him one evening at the dinner table, which they were able to convince the boy to come down for.

Nancy prepared spaghetti with meatballs and placed a large bowl in front of Kian who stared at it, his stomach clenching. Frederick immediately dug into his food as Nancy sat down to join them. Their forks clanked against their plates as they ate.

"So," Nancy spoke up after a moment of silence. "I've heard from your principal that your grades are better. He said that you'll definitely graduate with your classmates."

"Great," he responded, but his voice lacked the enthusiasm.

"Are you alright, son?" Frederick asked, noticing the solemn look in his eyes as he pushed the pasta around with his fork.

"I'm fine," he mumbled.

"Sweetie, you are not okay. We can see it written all over your face."

Kian sighed and dropped his fork onto his plate with a loud clatter. Then he looked up and stared into his mother's eyes. "Do you ever miss someone so fucking much, that you literally can't function without them?" he queried. He could feel a lump forming in his throat and blinked the tears threatening to form.

His parents blinked as they tried to find the right words to answer. 

"I'm not hungry anymore," he stated as he stood up. Then he left the room, leaving his parents staring at each other in confusion.

When he fell on his bed, he hugged his pillow and closed his eyes. Graduation was right around the corner, something he didn't think he would be a part of. However, he wasn't as happy now as he thought. To be honest, he did not even give a fuck about it anymore, but he wanted to make his parents proud. He wanted to prove he wasn't a stupid fuck up like everyone perceived him to be.

And he did just that.

•••

The chairs in front of the stage filled up extremely fast by friends and family of the nervous, yet excited students, who gathered around before the graduation ceremony started. Nancy and Frederick sat excitedly in their chairs, proud that their son was a part of the celebration. Kian's cousins, aunt, and uncle also flew out from Florida for his graduation, to his surprise.

The ceremony soon began with the principal greeting everyone and giving an overview of the year. Then some students gave speeches, but Kian didn't really pay attention to them. Instead, he sat in his chair playing with a loose string on his crimson gown's sleeve.

Eventually it was time to list off students' names as they received their diplomas. The most tedious part of the whole ceremony. By the time one of the teachers read off Kian's name, he practically dozed off. His head lolled to the side with his mouth slightly opened. The brunette in the spot next to him nudged him awake with her elbow.

"Kian, it's your turn," she whispered.

At first he sat up confused, but he quickly got up and made his way onto the stage. People in the audience cheered as he shook the principal's hand, who passed him the certificate with a smile.

"Well done, Mr. Donahue," he congratulated. "I must say, I'm quite surprised you made it up here."

"You're not the only one, sir," Kian responded with a small grin.

"Good luck on your next journey," he patted the teen's shoulder before Kian stepped down from the stage.

The rest of graduation went by extremely slow. Once everyone received their diplomas, they switched the tassels to the other side of their caps before the principal announced the graduating class. All of the students cheered, tossing their caps up into the air while their loved ones clapped with pride.

Kian clung to his cap with a frown instead, staring down at it in his hands. They had the option to decorate their caps, but he kept his blank.

Afterwards, Jasper greeted his friend with a tight embrace. "Congrats, man," he said with a lopsided grin. "Never thought this day would come." Jasper and Kian were the only ones in their friend group who graduated from highschool that year. Alex and Ryder had to repeat the grade because they failed multiple classes, while Andrew still had one more year to go. The other ones he wasn't sure, because he barely knew or paid attention to them.

"Same goes for you," he laughed.

"Dude, I thought I would be the only one, but you sure did surprise me," Jasper said as he leaned against a tree, taking his cap off and running a hand through his blond hair. "Whatever happened to you in Florida sure made a difference. You're like a completely different person."

Kian couldn't tell whether or not his friend's tone was accusatory or if he was genuinely happy for him. "Is that good or bad?" he asked.

"It could be good, if you told me what-" Jasper got cut off by someone clearing their throat. Both boys turned their heads at the sound. The blond's voice got lodged in his throat from the power radiating off the man standing in front of them. Of course it wasn't the power of an alpha, but the energy from a beta was definitely enough to make any werewolf with common sense submit.

The Beta paid no mind to the blond boy, however. Instead, his chocolate eyes burned with an intensity as he stared at the other teen before him. Jasper blinked in confusion as he glanced over at his friend, whose gaze seemed to be fixated on the stranger.

"Do you know him?" he questioned, nudging Kian's shoulder.

"Um..." Kian hummed, his mind not really working. His stomach churned from the numerous butterflies swarming inside, a giddy feeling surging through his veins. It had been a while since the two were around each other that he felt a sense of completion. The same sensation from when they first met.

Theo stepped toward his mate with determination and wrapped his strong arms around him in a tight embrace, burying his face into the crook of his neck. Kian tensed up from the sudden affection, but eventually relaxed, sliding his arms around the slightly taller guy's waist. He sighed, basking in his very masculine, yet comforting scent. Theo's hot breath tickled his skin, which caused shivers to crawl down his spine.

Jasper's eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. Not once has he seen his friend hug anybody like this, not even one of his flings. The exchange seemed way too intimate for Jasper to not be bewildered.

"What the fuck is happening right now?" he asked out loud, expecting an explanation. However, the two didn't seem to even hear the guy. Or if they did, they chose to ignore him.

"Why didn't you tell me you were leaving?" Theo whispered. Even though the Beta's voice was muffled, he was able to detect the hint of sadness.

"You were busy," Kian responded, his voice holding an emotion along the line of jealousy.

"I'm sorry," Theo apologized, tightening his hold on his mate, afraid he would leave him again. "It was all a misunderstanding. She barged into-"

"You don't need to apologize. I have no reason to get mad. You don't need to explain it to me." He replied. And he meant it. He was just happy that he was here with him. "What are you doing here?"

Theo lifted his head but didn't release his hold on the teen. "I came with your cousins."

"Why?"

"Because," he started hesitantly. His eyes wandered over to Jasper who stood awkwardly off to the side, watching them with confusion written all over his face. Theo's grip loosened as he stepped back, creating some distance between the two of them. If people saw their small exchange, they would have assumed they were gay. That was probably going through Jasper's mind at the moment as wheels turned in his head. Theo's cheeks reddened as he attempted to find the right words.

"I needed to see you."

Before Kian could open his mouth to say something, someone leaped on him from behind and another pair of arms snaked around his waist. "Kian!" girlish squeals rang through his ears. "We missed you!" A smile broke out onto his face as he hugged them back.

"Did you like your graduation present?" Jamie asked with a smirk.

"Yeah! It was my idea," Amelia said as she slid off of Kian's back.

"Was not! It was Theo's idea," Jamie shot back, nudging her sister in the shoulder with a wink. If Theo's face wasn't that red yet, it sure as hell was now. Jamie noticed Jasper off to the side. "You must be one of Kian's drug buddies."

"Hey, you're kinda cute," Amelia purred as she sent him a flirtatious wink Jasper just stood there blinking, not knowing how to react.

"Alright, I'm gonna go...I'll see you later, Kian. You're going to the after party right?" Jasper asked.

"Uh, yeah. I'll be there," Kian responded before Jasper turned and walked away.

"He must be one of the 'bad influences'," Jamie muttered under her breath. "A hot one though."

Kian narrowed his eyes at his curly-haired cousin. "He isn't one of them. Well, he is, but he's not that bad. He's the only one that I would really call my friend."

"Kian, honey," Nancy rushed over to her son with tears pooling in her eyes. "I'm so proud of you!" She pulled him in a tight hug. When she moved to kiss his cheek, he dodged out of the way.

"Mom!" he protested in embarrassment when he heard his cousins snicker. She pouted with an eyeroll, but grinned nevertheless.

"So I met your friend," she said, pointing at Theo who chatted animatedly with Jamie and Amelia. "He sat with us during the ceremony. You know, I was quite shocked when I found out you befriended their Beta, not to mention you hung out with the Alpha and Luna as well."

"How much did you hear?" Kian queried nervously.

"You enjoyed it over there, didn't you?" Kian nodded his head. "I noticed your sudden mood change over the past few weeks. It was like you were homesick, but you were at home..."

"He's my mate," Kian blurted out, catching his mom off guard.

"W-What?" she sputtered.

"He's my mate," he repeated.

"But I thought... You were caught having sex with-"

"I know..." Kian mumbled with a sigh.

"I mean, it makes sense if you think about it. I guess you never really stopped, right? Were you in denial this whole time, ever since..." she whispered the last part so no one could hear. The corners of Kian's lips tilted downward with a shrug.

"I don't know..."

"Does he know?" she glanced over at the Beta, who couldn't hear their conversation.

"About us being mates?"

Nancy shook her head. "No, does he know about what happened to you before we moved?"

A lump lodged in Kian's throat as he gripped the fabric of his large sleeves. "No," he whispered.

"I think you should tell him if you're going to be mated to each other. He will see them, you know. "

"I will."