"I get jealous because I'm afraid someone is going to make you happier than I do."
~Unknown

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Elsa

I stormed down the stairs, barely holding back my frustrated tears. When I left the house, I found Josie's celebration still in full swing. The others seemingly had no idea what the others and I had just witnessed. That, or they didn't care. Either way, I didn't care. I needed out and away from this compound and its residents. I tried to sneak out the back, away from prying eyes, but one of them saw me.

"Elsa? Where you going?" Riley asked, jogging up to me.

"A walk," I replied shortly, hoping he'd get the message that I wanted to be alone.

He didn't.

"Cool! I'll come with!"

"No, I want to go by myself."

"I'll give you space! I just know Caleb and Hunter don't want any of us to be by ourselves, especially out in the woods after what happened-"

"I don't care what they want."

Ember strolled over to us with Noah and half the pack behind her. "What's going on here?"

"Nothing. I just need some space," I said. "I'll be back later."

"One of us needs to go with you."

"No, you don't."

I started walking away from her, but my sister grabbed my arm. "Yes, we do. Give me-"

"Get off of me!" I snarled, yanking my arm out of her grip. Ember stumbled back from the daggers in my eyes. "Just stay away from me! I don't know you! I don't know any of you! Just let me be!"

Tears blurred my vision as I whirled around, shifted, and tore into the woods. Everything blurred past me, and I could barely hear the sound of my packmates coming after me over the rushing wind. The knowledge made me put on a burst of speed.

Not long after I left, two howls sounded throughout the night, clear as a bell. I stopped to listen to the message. To my surprise, not only were Caleb and Hunter calling off the chase for me, they weren't calling me to come home either. Taking advantage of the situation being in my favor, I hurried off to an unknown destination, searching for any place that seemed like it would be good to rest and think.

I ran for ages and ages, never finding a spot until I was miles away from the compound and into the national park. I collapsed next to a small lake. Interestingly, I could smell the faintest trace of my perfume and a familiar cologne, but I couldn't place where it originated.

Sinking against a boulder, I finally allowed myself to breathe and cave to the turmoil within. Tears spilled down my cheeks as the frustration, terror, and loneliness crashed down in one wave. All I wanted was my memories so I could remember my pack, so I could share the same reminiscence as them, understand the family jokes, and never see the look of disappointment in their eyes when I didn't understand something they expected me to. That was the first.

I hated that I understood why they didn't tell me much about what was going on because, truthfully, I wasn't handling it well. I couldn't fathom being on a hit list, having my name taken off of it for some unknown reason, having my family on it, or being this freaking weak. Was I this weak before? Was I always the one getting injured? Was I always the troublemaker? Was I always bringing pain and suffering upon my family? What kind of a person did that?

Who the hell had I been before I lost my memories?
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Spencer

Everyone stood in shock at Elsa's outburst as she slammed the door behind her. Anna paled so severely, I thought she might pass out. Caleb and Hunter looked like they'd been slapped in the face. Verbally, they kind of had. Seeing them, I could only imagine what my expression was.

"What were the side effects of that cure?" I asked quietly, breaking the silence.

Caleb shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. "The short version is permanent catatonic state, permanent coma, personality change, among others. I think there was even exploding heart on there."

"Elsa's right," Anna said, wiping a tear off her cheek. "It's her life. She should make the decision about whether or not she uses Lemur Brassiere."

"Le Mur Briseur," Hunter corrected.

"What's the difference?"

"The- never mind."

Caleb rubbed his face. "We'll discuss it, but we're not going to stop looking for another cure. I refuse to believe it's the only one out there. We'll talk to mom and dad, see if they can help, or maybe Babatunde."

"We'll be-"

Riley burst through the door, panting heavily. "Elsa just... ran off! Ember and a few others... th-they're chasing her."

Hunter and Caleb shared a look before running downstairs with Riley on their heels. Josilyn, Dom, and Anna remained behind, none of us quite sure what to do.

Once more, I broke the silence by saying, "I think it's time for me to tell Elsa everything."

"I think so," Anna agreed. "I'm, uh, I'm going to go to my room. Call me if you need anything."

Without another word, she left. Dom said he was going to go take care of her and left too. Josilyn walked up to me and said, "Why did you never tell her? I know why you didn't in the very beginning, but there were plenty of openings. I'm not mad or anything; I'm just curious."

"Because despite knowing that telling her about us won't trigger her memories of us, this irrational and loud part of me has convinced me that she won't want to be together after I do."

"What makes you think that?"

"No matter what we did or said or argued, whenever we would leave to take a breather or just end the conversation, we'd always end it by saying 'I love you.' The day she walked out the door, I did. She didn't reply. It's a minor thing, I know, but for us, it's big. We promised we'd never leave a fight without saying 'I love you' because we didn't want the other to believe we hated them if something happened to us on the way like it did when the Hunters killed my parents and Callie, or when-"

"-when Elsa got in the wreck."

"Yeah..."

Josilyn gave me a comforting hug. "Trust me, Elsa still loves you. She's frustrated and upset, but I know she loves you."

"Yeah?" I asked, pulling away. "How do you know that?"

"Because while you avoid looking at her as much as possible, she hardly ever takes her eyes off of you. The day you, Noah, and Dom came back with the prisoner? She only had eyes on you. The day she first came back after her memory loss, I saw her telltale eyebrow raise when she saw you, a sure sign she at least found you attractive, so, I mean, you're already halfway there to recapturing her heart."

I chuckled. "You make it sound so easy."

"Because it is easy. You love Elsa, and Elsa loves you. This obstacle isn't easy, but the solution is."

"Tell her everything?"

"Tell her everything," she confirmed.

"Thanks, Josie. I'm sorry we ruined your celebration."

"You didn't ruin a thing! Family comes first."

"Speaking of family, my little nephew or niece doesn't need their mom stressed out by all this. You go relax and take a load off. You deserve it after dealing with everything, especially all my crap."

"I'd rather help with your crap than let you wade in it alone, but getting off my feet sounds nice. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Night, Josie."

"Night, Spencer."

She left, and I headed to my room, collapsing on my bed and staring at my ceiling, listening for any sound of Elsa's return home. However, for five hours, all I could hear were the sounds of my packmates fading into silence as they turned in for the night. I had a feeling not all of them were asleep, though, being too concerned about Elsa's whereabouts and when she would return to the compound.

I sighed, going through my phone's photos to pass the time, smiling wistfully at them. There were ones from the dance competition when Elsa and I were having to fake date for half her pack and not fake dating for the other half. There were photos of us at our special place near Bear Lake. Most of those were of her, and half the time, Elsa didn't know I was taking the photo. There were pictures of us at Hunter and Josie's wedding and Caleb and Lily's wedding. Both of us wore smiles that reached across the entirety of our faces.

What have I done?

Muted conversation outside caught my attention. Pushing myself off the bed, I peered out the window to see Elsa talking to Roy. I wanted to interrupt because I didn't want him near her, but my overprotectiveness caused the fight in the first place. If I did it again, I'd be in for a world of hurt. Besides, Elsa was pissed off enough at me. I didn't want to add to it by acting like a jealous boyfriend again. I wasn't jealous of Roy; I just didn't trust him. Or Paul. Something about them irked me.

I'd like to say I remained sane when I saw Roy lean in and kiss a stunned Elsa, but in reality, all rational thought fled my mind. A red haze descended over my vision at the sight of him kissing my mate, and as I stormed out of the house to approach them, all I could think about was ripping Roy's throat out.