◈A D R I A N◈

"All done," Ari tapped on my shoulders and pulled off the gloves to dispose it into the wastebasket. I gave a jerky nod and wiped my sweaty forehead with the back of my hand.

Damon perked up from his seat and strode to stand behind of me. He let out a low whistle and grinned, "Nice work, Ari! Haven't lost your touch, huh?"

Ari smiled wryly and wriggled her fingers, "Yep, still got the Midas' touch."

While the two of them exchange banters as if they hadn't had a row just minutes ago, I smoothed out the wrinkles of my shirt from having been in my death grip for the past thirty minutes.

Every minute was agony as I felt the needle lightly grazed my spine, ejecting foreign pigments into my skin.

Damon was a liar.

And I was a fool who fell for his honeyed words.

Damon squeezed my shoulders and beamed at me. He looked as proud as a mama tiger at her cub's first kill. "You're officially part of the pack now, Adrian."

I smiled weakly, still a little limp from my frazzled nerves. Looking around the room for a mirror, I straightened my back only to wince when my irritated skin pulled.

Damon noticed and pushed on my shoulders, "Careful, don't make any big movements."

"I—I just want to see what it looks like," I reasoned, curiosity growing restless in my heart. I wanted to know why Ari reacted such ways.

Damon's lips was set in a grim line before a smile slid in place with practiced ease when he saw me staring. "It looks wicked. Don't worry," he reassured and slowly helped me to my feet.

I frowned, not understanding his reluctance to show me the pack tattoo he was so proud of.

Maybe something bad happened.

Maybe Ari has shaky hands, I blanched at the thought. Regret was starting to spill over like an overfilled bathtub, filling my heart with dread.

"We need to go now. Can't be late for the pack meeting," Damon spoke, pulling me out of my reverie.

I followed him out of the room, passed the long stretch of dim hallway and through the gear door. Ari was already out, leaning against a brick wall with a lit cigarette between her matte lips.

"You coming?" Damon asked her. She gave a slight shrug and shook her head, wisp of smoke curled like a misty snake.

In a flash, Damon closed the distance and slammed his lips on hers, their tongues in a sensual battle. My eyes widened at the sudden erotic display, unable to catch the drift between them.

If Jenna was his hot wings, what does it make of Ari? Buffalo wings?

They broke the kiss soon without a word of affection. Ari turned her head sideways, avoiding my stare while Damon strode past me, leaving me dumbfounded.

"We're late, Adrian," he called out. His stern tone put my feet in motion as I hurried after him. We backtracked to the park and found the usual scene.

Thomas and Charlie in their usual headlock, Zax with his brooding moods and the silent ones. The ones who seemed to be mute and creepy, with their eyes tracking your every moves.

And Jenna.

Speaking of the devil, she sensed Damon and perked up like an obedient puppy. She prattled towards us and threw herself onto Damon, nearly sending both of them rolling on muddy grounds.

"You're late," she whined with a pout. Her arms wound around Damon's waist like a constrictor.

"Sorry, babe. Gotta take care of something," he pacified patiently. She hummed meekly but turned her crazy eyes to me and narrowed them into slits.

This crazy chicken was as delusional as she can get.

Damon guided her back to the pack and I trailed behind them glumly. The numbing sensation from the anaesthesia was fading and it restricted my movements to slow and steady.

Damon stood in front of the vert wall and Jenna peeled away from him to sit on the deck. Thomas and Charlie pulled away from each other and settled down too. Even Zax left his brooding aside and paid attention to the pack leader.

I stood on the far left, trying to be as inconspicuous as a sore thumb with everyone sitting. Hunching my back carefully, I tried to make myself looked as small as possible.

Damon cleared his throat and had his hands clasped, looking grim and serious.

"My brothers and sisters, I have some terrible news. Unfortunately, our funding is running dry. There won't be any more feasts and drinking for the time being," Damon explained.

The crowd booed and stomped their feet to show their displeasure. Even Thomas who seemed to be the most cheery one slammed his fist against the concrete.

I was a little stupefied by this outrage. I always wondered how they managed to spend like kings when they didn't seem to work. Damon had once told me he was homeschooling when I asked about his age. He was only three years older than I was.

Homeschool meant he was rich, wasn't it? Were we living off his trust fund all this time?

Damon raised his hand to calm the crowd. "I've heard enough. I know this makes you upset. I am as well, believe me. This is why I've decided on a hunt," Damon continued.

He looked...excited.

The mischievous, playful glint was obvious in his gaze. I could feel the energy vibrating off him like a contagious hype. Thomas howled and Nico, a beefy guy who looked like a tank whooped loudly.

I chanced a look at Zax, his impassive expression made it hard for me to read. Was he as excited as Damon was?

"I declare the hunt to begin tomorrow at the witching hour," Damon winked. "Bring your usual gears and we'll meet here before the hunt."

I was infected by the buzzing excitement, my heart pumping and yearning for tomorrow to come sooner. A million questions popped in my head like mushrooms after rain. What was the hunt like? What are the gears? Are we really hunting for food? Wild boars?  Deers? Are we going into the woods?

Damon caught on my confusion and came toward me. "I know this is your first hunt. You ought to be nervous," he comforted. He then snapped his fingers at Zax to make him come over.

Zax wore his usual scowl but obeyed. He stood at his full height, not missing a beat to intimidate me at any given chance.

"Zax will guide you through. Just follow him and you'll be all good," Damon assured and shot a warning look at Zax.

Zax rolled his eyes and grunted. Feeling pleased, Damon went to the rest of the pack to strategize, leaving two awkward people behind.

✴

The crowd slowly dispersed with only a few of us dawdling. Damon was long gone with Jenna in tow. Thinking back on Ari, I wasn't feeling so sure about Damon's attitude towards relationships. Clearly, fidelity wasn't part of his principles.

Thomas skated past me, flipping me off as a friendly gesture. Chuckling, I flexed my middle finger too. Thomas raised a brow and laughed, glad to see the reaction he had been hoping for before he skated away.

Seeing as the only amiable person had left, I picked my speed and started my way home.

I heard loud strides catching up on me before I bumped into a tall figure. Before I could right myself, two hands pushed me away roughly. My eyes found Zax glaring at me.

"Don't you dare to show up tomorrow," he warned. His voice low but with an unmistakable hostility targeted at me.

Feeling unjust, I held my head high and asked, "Why not? Damon asked me to follow you."

"You're dumber than I thought. Isn't it clear? You're not one of us," Zax scoffed.

That was a huge blow to my ego. I puffed up my chest and turned my back to him. Lifting the hem of my t-shirt, I revealed a strip of my bare skin. The spot where the ink penetrated still stung like a bitch, adding a reddish blush to my normally pale skin.

"I've got the pack tattoo. I'm part of the pack now whether you like it or not," I boasted. I wasn't intending to show it off so soon, especially not when Damon was not present to subdue Zax.

Instead of furious growls, Zax laughed. He laughed so hard that he was clutching to his stomach. The ring of his laughter was like waves of mockery washing over me repeatedly.

I started to doubt myself as I stood still with my cheeks red, waiting for Zax to somehow explain himself.

"What's so funny?" I asked, unable to keep quiet any longer.

Zax let out a long sigh to calm his funny bones. He looked at me with a mock sympathetic expression and shook his head.

"That's a tramp stamp, Addie boy."

✈

Author's note

Oh, snap.

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{Song: Downhill Lullaby by Sky Ferreira}