" You did not..." 

   " I totally did."

   " Roxy..!!!" I whine. She laughs as she pulls her backpack onto her lap, unzipping it and pulling out her infamous 'Noah Photo Album', something I despise more than anything," I can't believe you brought it!" 

   " Of course I did! I thought James would like to see some photos of his very lovely mate." She states, wiggling her eyebrows at me.

   " My goddess! Please! Burn it with fire!" I say over-dramatically, falling back on my hospital bed.

   " Shut up Noah. You looking amazing in these!" Roxy argues, flipping to the first page in her scrapbook," Just look at this photograph! Mr. Van Dort loved it! You were made to be in front of a camera I tell you!"

   I roll my eyes just as James enters my hospital room. He walks over and sits down beside me, planting a kiss on my cheek," Are you ready to go love?" he asks. I nod my head frantically, smiling brightly at my handsome mate," Good."

   James looks across from us at Roxy, who is smiling fondly at the photos in her album," Isn't school suppose to start in 30 minutes? Why are you here?" James asks.

   We watch as Roxy's facial expression lights up," Truthfully, I had a project in my photography class due today. And since I don't have my main model, I decided to use one of my old photos of Noah." Roxy explained, closing the book before handing it towards James," But I actually wanted to see if you'd be interested in seeing some of them, James?"

   " Pictures? Of Noah? I can barely get him to take a picture with me." James states, giving me a sideways glance as he spoke to Roxy.   

   I felt my cheeks heat up a bit," You know I hate being in front of a camera..." I grumble, my hair falling in front of my eyes.

   James doesn't reply and instead begins to flip through Roxy's book. I watch through my hair as James scans each photo of me," So..? What do you think?" Roxy asks, eager to hear James opinion; Roxy loves when she gets feedback on her photos since she wants to be a photographer.

   " They're...beautiful." he replies, looking up at Roxy with a smile," They're amazing Roxy."

   " I knew you'd like them!" Roxy cheered, giggling with glee," I swear, Noah is the most photogenic person I know."

   I shake my head," No I'm not Roxy."

     " Just look at these pictures!" Roxy shoves her photo album in my face. I lean back and stare at the screen; it looked like I purposely posed for each picture," See? See? SEE?!"

   " Yeah yeah, I see." I state, shoving her book away from my face," That's still isn't going to change my mind."

   Roxy rolls her eyes as James turns to me," Why haven't you told me about these, Noah?" he asked.

   I shrug my shoulders, avoiding his gaze," I didn't think I needed to bring them up." I reply, fidgeting with my hands," Besides...I don't really like the way I...look in them."   

   " What? You look beautiful in these. Just look at this one," he begins, flipping to the picture where I sat outside, my head down while wearing a flower crown," You look stunning in it."

   " T-Thanks..." I stutter, avoiding my mate's gaze as a pink blush dusts my cheeks.

   " Oh shit!" Roxy suddenly looks at the clock and sees it's ten minutes till school starts," I'm running late. I gotta go. I'll call you later. Bye Noah!" And with that, Roxy dashes out of my hospital room, taking her 'Noah Photo Album' with her.

   "...And she's gone now." James says before noticing something on the ground. He leans down and picks it up, inspecting it," She dropped a photo."

   I look over to see which one it was; it was of me sitting on the front porch, pretending to be reading while holding a mug of what is suppose to be coffee, but instead of looking down at the book, Roxy had made me look off into the distance in front of me," We can return it to her when I return home." I state before standing up from my hospital bed, fully clothed in clothing Roxy brought from home.

   James nodded and slipped the photo into his back pocket before standing up as well. He swiftly grabbed my hand and began to exit the pack hospital. 

   The hospital was quiet, quieter then a normal hospital is. You had nurses lounging around and doctors talking amongst themselves since there weren't many patients.

   Once we got outside, James lead me to the pack house," Your sister dropped off some clothes and a few belongings while you were asleep." James stated as we walked up to the house. I nodded, leaning against his muscular arm.

   I suddenly gasped when I see the sight of the pack house," It's so...beautiful." I say in awe. 

   James chuckles at my reaction," Come on love, let's get you settled in." he says, leading me inside the house. I look around the entryway leading to the extravagant staircase. James must have seen my awe-struck expression because he chuckled again before placing a kiss on my knuckles," One day, my love, this will be all yours."

   I blush and look away from James' gaze. I hear his laugh again before pulling me upstairs," My room is up here." he states.

   I nod my head with burning cheeks and follow James up to his room. We walked down a long hallway, pictures of The Moon Goddess and other beautiful paintings hanging on the walls. Once we reach two double doors, he opens them and leads me inside.

   The room was expensive-looking; a nice queen size bed with red silk sheets, a beautiful writing desk near the bedroom door, a lovely dresser and bathroom attached to the room, a fluffy black rug in the front, and of course, the extravagant window seal near the bed," Just...wow..." I say, astonished by the room," This is way better than my room."

   I gaze at James' bed for a moment before racing towards it. With a big jump, I land in on the soft sheets," You're such a kid sometimes..." I hear James laugh before laying down beside me. I turn my head to face him and see him already staring at me with a dreamily look in his eyes. I smile and trace my hand down his face and over his goofy grin. He grabs a hold of my hand and holds it against his cheeks. I let a small giggle as I stare into his eyes. He leans in close and brushes his lips against my own. I hum happily as I wrap my arms around his neck, while his arms secure themselves around my hips. He switches our positions to where he was hovering above me now. James pulls away and pecks my lips before trailing down my jawline. He moves his head lower to my neck and begins to suck and bite at my skin," I love you..." I heard him between kisses, my hands entangled in his hair.

   I try to move my head to allow him more access, but a sudden pain in my neck causes a small yelp to escape me. James immediately pulls away, worry and fear swimming in his eyes," Are you okay? Did I hurt you? I'm sorry." He begins to apologize, but I just shake my head.

   " I'm fine...i-it's just my neck," I reply, smiling even though the rest of my body was now aching from all the movement,"...and the rest of my body..."

   James sits down on his knees in front of me, allowing me to sit up on his bed," Are you sure you're okay?" he asks, worry lacing his voice.

   I nod my head," I'm fine now..." 

   " I'll get you some painkillers," He states, standing up from his spot on the bed. I nod my head in response. He smiles at me before leaning down, placing a soft kiss on my lips," I'll be back love."

   I smile happily at James before he leaves the room, leaving me alone to unpack my stuff. I slowly slip out of bed and walk over to my suitcase in the corner of the bedroom. I drag it over and place it at the foot of the bed and begin to go through it. I grabbed my phone charger and headphones, along with a book I had been reading.  While looking through my stuff, I found my mother's amulet stuffed into a tiny pocket with a note attached. It was from Roxy. I held the amulet close to my chest as I read her note:

Dear Noah,

I know you have a hard time sleeping without having your amulet nearby, so I decided to pack it with your stuff! Remember to not shift while wearing it! But that's why you rarely wear it so I don't really need to remind you.

Anyways, please take care of yourself so you can come home soon! Mom and dad miss you! And of course, I do as well. Remember to call me!

Love,

Roxy

 I smile as I place the suitcase back on the floor before going over and plugging my phone on the charger. I quickly put the amulet, admiring it through the mirror. But something was off...the sapphire jewel that the wolf surrounded began to glow a light blue," What the-?"

   But suddenly, a familiar scent hits my nose as footsteps near the bedroom door," H-Hello?" I ask when the steps suddenly stop. I can see someone standing on the other side from the shadow underneath the door," I-Is someone there?" I got no reply. Fear racked through my body as I stepped closer to the door; I didn't know why, but the familiar scent scared me. Before I could reach the door handle, the shadow on the other side backs away. I hear the sound of echoing steps as the stranger's scent slowly disappears. I place my hand over my heart, feeling it beat against my rib cage.

   I lean against the wall, holding my hand above my heart as I slowly sink to the floor. Why was I so scared? That question continued to swim in my mind as I tried to calm my breathing. Just as my breathing begins to mellow out, the bedroom door suddenly swings open, giving me yet another mini heart-attack," Noah?" James question, looking around the room before his eyes finally land on me sitting on the floor," Noah! Are you alright love?" He rushes over to me, placing the pills and glass of water he had been holding beside me.

   I nod my head, feeling calmer in the presence of my mate," Y-Yeah, just...scared myself is all." I reply, giving James a small smile.

   He let out a sigh, laying his head on my shoulder," You scared me for a moment..." he says, inhaling my scent for comfort. I smile to myself as I begin to run my hands through his hair. He let out yet another sigh, only in relief this time before pulling away from me. He picks me up with ease and gently sits me back on the bed. He walks over and grabs the pills and cup of water before walking back over to me," This should help with the pain."

   " Thank you," I say, taking the cup and pills from his hands. I take a swig of the water before popping the pills into my mouth. I swallow before handing the water back. I lay back down on James' bed while he puts the cup on one of his nightstands," Are we going to do anything today?" I ask, glancing towards James.

   " Nothing much; I could introduce you to my father if you like," He replies, crawling over towards me. He pulls to his chest before continuing," He's currently speaking to another pack alpha at the moment, something about a peace treaty. So we'll have to wait a bit."

   I subconsciously begin to draw circles on James' chest, enjoying the warmth that radiated from his body," That would be nice." I say before looking up at his face," What should we do in the meantime?"

   He shrugged his shoulders before pulling me closer to him," I'm good with just cuddling for now." He answers, burying his head in my hair. A small laugh escapes me as I cuddle even closer to James.

   A peaceful silence falls between us, the only sound I hear as I lay on James' chest is the rhythm of James' beating heart. It felt so nice to be laying with my mate, the comfort, and warmth it brought made the smile on my face never want to leave.

   A few minutes pass.

   " Hey, love?"

   " Yes, James?"

   " I umm...got to ask you something..."

   I move my head to where I am able to face him," Okay. What is it?"

   James was visibly nervous," I-I um...wanted to ask you about the...Luna and Alpha coronation..?"

   My breath got caught in my throat for a second," W-W-What..?" I stutter out, feeling my cheeks flush pink.

   " The Luna and Alpha coronation. I-I wanted to ask about it." James replies, rubbing the back of his neck nervously," It's just...we haven't talked about it yet, and my father has asked about it a couple of times."

   I turn my head away, feeling embarrassed; its like I've forgotten all about wolf culture. I mean, I haven't had contact with any packs for years," C-Can we talk about it later...?"

   James nodded his head, giving me a reassuring smile," Sure love."

   I smiled and laid back down.

   " Hey, Noah?"

   " Yeah?"

   " After we graduate, will you...move in with me?"

   I feel my heart skip a beat as I sit up again, staring at James with flushed cheeks," M-Move in..?"

   He nodded, now avoiding my gaze," Yeah. With werewolves, after they meet their mate, they usually move in with each other and start a family, like a normal married couple." James replies, a light blush dusting his cheeks," But since you have a human family, it's a bit more...difficult. I didn't want to rip you away from your family, so I wanted to wait till after graduation since that's when humans usually leave for college."

   " O-Oh..." I say, looking down in embarrassment," Y-Yeah...I would like that."

   A smile spreads across his face as he looks at me," Really?"

   " Of course. I am your mate after all." I say, smiling down at James.

   He smiles once again before leaning up and capturing my lips with his, giving me a sweet kiss before pulling away," I love you so much, Noah."

   " I love you too James," I reply, leaning down a pecking James' lips. I once again lay back down, now cuddled into James' side," Will we be living in the pack house?"

   James shakes his head, smiling to himself," We're going to have our own house, with a wrap-around porch, and a small garden in the front." He begins," It'll be big. Big enough to raise our family. And if you don't like the house, I'll build a new one for you."

   I giggle as I dig my face into James' side; I loved when he talked about us like this, our future. It always gave me butterflies and made me giggle like a school girl," I like the sound of that." I say before looking up at James," But I don't care what the house looks like; as long as I am with you, I'm happy."

   " And you call me cheesy," James states, causing a laugh to escape me.

   We talk for an hour or so about anything that came to mind. It was fun, just being with my mate made me happy. Finally, James decides it's time for me to meet his father. I was a bit nervous, still am, but I felt excited nonetheless.

   I checked my outfit real quick before we both exited James' room. We walked hand-in-hand down the long corridors till we reached two magnificent doors, authority radiating from it. I squeezed James' hand tighter as he knocked on the door. I felt uneasy, and it wasn't my nerves. The scent I smelled earlier seemed to leak through the door as well, but I tried to ignore it when I head some from the other side yell," Come in."

   James gave me one last smile before opening the door. A man -who looked similar to James- stood facing the door, speaking to another who had his back turned to the door. I hid behind James' large frame as we walked across the room, the uneasy feeling in my chest seemed to grow the closer we got to the two alphas.

   " Father."

   James' father, or Alpha Aaron as I've heard around the pack house, turned away from the other man and stared at his son," James! Sorry, I was discussing our alliance plan with Alpha Logan." Alpha Logan? That sounds...familiar. My uneasiness grew as I peeked my head from behind James.

   My blood went cold at the person in front of me, who happened to be staring right back.

   " Why hello, Noah."