Before the car could even stop properly, Alexa leapt out.

"Last one in the waters is a rotten egg!" Alexa yelled and started running towards the ocean, leaving all their bags in the car.

Maddy immediately started running. Knowing that she wouldn't be able to win because the rest were werewolves, Maddy pounced on an unsuspecting Xander, making him trip and fall along with Maddy on top of him. Maddy quickly disentangled herself from Xander who was still recovering from the shock.

"Not fair!"

"All's fair in love and war," Maddy replied as she took off running.

"Which one is this? Love or war?" Xander shouted.

Maddy's cheeks turned crimson and she thanked the gods that he couldn't see her face right now. Maddy made her way through the waters, shivering because of the first impact of the water on her skin. From experience, Maddy had learnt that it was easier to jump into the water and tackle the shock head on, than wade into the water slowly. So, she took a gulp of air and ducked into the water. After spending a few seconds, she came out of the waters.

"Xander's the loser," Alexa said in a singsong way, mocking Xander.

Xander didn't say anything but glared at Maddy, with an evil glint in his eye. Maddy involuntarily shivered. However, that shiver turned into something else when she watched Xander take off his shirt and gracefully wade into the waters. He looked like a Greek god without his shirt. His chest looked like it had been carved slowly and intricately by god. When he came out of the water, his hair was dripping with water, hanging messily on his head, making him look even more sexy. Not to mention the water droplets on his abs which made him look even more sinfully delicious.

This was not good. Xander will without doubt, be looking out for vengeance and Maddy could not afford to be distracted. She blinked thrice and then looked away, only to catch Alexa's eye who seemed to be amused by the fact that she had caught Maddy gawking at her brother. Maddy blushed and decided to swim deeper to clear off her head.

Maddy didn't realize she had swum a long way until she felt someone tug her leg. She tried to swim away, but every time she did, the person tugged her harder. She grabbed on to her leg and tried pulling it up to no avail. Maddy looked around trying to call out to someone but found nobody around. That's when her leg was pulled underneath completely, her body following. Maddy desperately tried to swim back up by using her hands, but she couldn't. She tried to kick whatever was pulling her inside with her free leg but she couldn't reach it. Maddy was running out of breath and her vision was turning black. She felt certain that she was going to die, when a hand snaked around her waist and pulled her out. Maddy coughed and spluttered.

"Shit! I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to go that far. I forgot you were human and-" The voice droned on in the background but she couldn't hear it clearly. She tried to remain conscious but lost the battle and then everything went black.

***

Maddy opened her eyes and immediately shut it again because of how bright it was. When she finally managed to open her eyes, she saw four tearstained faces looking at her. Before she could say anything, she was lifted up and arms wrapped around her. This was a relief from the cold and a sigh escaped her lips. She buried her head into the warmth and stayed there for some time, nearly falling asleep because of how comfortable and safe she felt in there. People were talking loudly, but it felt like someone was pounding on her head.

"Stop talking," she managed to croak out. Maddy hated how her voice sounded so feeble, but she couldn't help it. Immediately everyone quietened and she felt much better.

A few minutes later, and she was almost back to normal. She lightly patted the arm that held her and blushed when she realized that it was Xander who had been hugging her. Xander's arms loosened and she sat back. She stared, confusedly at the faces of Xander, Leia, Alexa and Jeremy which were tearstained.

"What happened?"

"Gosh Maddy! I am so sorry. I thought that it would be fun prank to play but I forgot that you were a human and I went too far. I am so so so sorry. I-" Xander continued talking but Maddy zoned out.

"You are crying," Maddy blurted out to everyone in general. Even Jeremy, who always looked so put together had tears in the corner of his eyes.

"Of course, I am crying. I almost lost my best friend," Leia said softly and hugged her tightly.

Alexa and Jeremy hugged her once Leia finished squeezing Maddy. She then turned to Xander. It was strange seeing an Alpha crying for a human.

"You were the one who pulled my leg."

"I'm so sorry Maddy. I.... I... I need to go for a run." And with that Xander ran off to god knows where.

The others proceeded to make sure if she was comfortable, without bothering about Xander.

"He'll be fine. What he did wasn't right. I'm extremely sorry about that," Alexa said when Maddy asked her about Xander.

Maddy felt weird that they all left him like that but she didn't say anything. Maddy was going to kick his ass later for pulling such a prank on her but she felt that right now, they were being too harsh on him. If she pulled a prank like that on Xander which resulted in him almost dying, she would want someone to comfort her and tell it wasn't her fault. It was an accident. Everyone makes mistakes, right?

The others wanted to go back to the pack headquarters immediately, but Maddy insisted that they continue enjoying. At first, they didn't agree, but on guilt tripping them, they agreed and went back into the waters. Maddy started feeling impatient so she decided to jog along the beach.

A few minutes later she saw a black wolf running so fast that it nearly blurred. Knowing it was Xander, she started following the wolf. She wanted to talk to Xander and tell him that he didn't have to feel so guilty. I wasn't like he did it on purpose. Lost in her thoughts, Maddy almost lost Xander. Hurrying to keep up with him, she didn't notice where she was going until he darted into a huge, dilapidated building. They were a few miles away from the beach, but she trusted Xander, so without hesitation she followed the wolf into the building.

The entire house was built in the neoclassical architectural style with a lot of columns and blank walls. The interior of the building which once must have looked gorgeous, was falling apart. Maddy placed her palm on one wall and chipped off some of the paint. The piece of paint turned into dust in her hands. This house was clearly very old. There were a few paintings but they were covered from head to toe with dust, so Maddy couldn't make out what the paintings were about. out. She was so mesmerized by the building that she had lost Xander once again. Two minutes later Xander appeared running from one corridor and whined softly to get Maddy's attention. Maddy hurried after Xander who went through hallways after hallways until he reached a room.

After she entered the room, she heard the door shut behind her. She panicked at first, but then she calmed down slightly when she realized that Xander too, was trapped in here. Together, she had no doubt that they could bust the rogues' asses.

She turned towards him to discuss the plan, but a shiver racked her spine when she found herself string into a pair of yellow eyes. And that's when she realized....... This wolf wasn't Xander. 

Make sure to vote, comment and share this story. -Aroha