Ch. 60: Don’t Forget About Me

CHAPTER SIXTY
Nick~
This had to be the craziest Sunday of my life. Jake’s eyes were still going nuts. I had luckily found a pair of shades in Evan’s car, which he was now wearing as we were in the mall rushing to the movie theater.
“Three tickets for the 2:30pm showing?’ Evan asked the guy behind the counter.
Jake was bursting out of his skin.
“It’s wrong, it’s wrong,” he muttered to me.
“I know man, I know. We’re working on it,” I told him as I started guiding him to the escalator.
She’s here, Asher said to me.
Thank the Goddess. The first theater we went to, she was nowhere to be found. She had to be getting out of whatever movie soon.
Evan caught up to us and we followed Jake as he walked up the escalator. Evan rushed past him a bit and gave our tickets to the ticket-taker who was a second away from getting his face smashed in if he took any longer. Jake was completely stiff, tensed up and ready to strike.
“Door 14, all the way down to the left,” the oblivious ticket guy said to Evan as I followed Jake jogging ahead.
I don’t know how he knew where to go but he went like he could smell his mate.
People started to exit from Door 10 on the right hand side. And there she was. His shoulders dropped their tension.
Then Sean came into view. He immediately looked at Jake like he could sense him there and Jake started to charge.
Goddess no!
Evan reacted faster than I did and clamped down on Jake’s arm, helping him wake up from whatever spell Rachel had on him.
I rushed past them both.
“Rachel!” I exclaimed way too loud.
“Oh hi,” she smiled at me earnestly. “I’m sorry, do I know you from somewhere?”

Rachel~
Some handsome, tall white guy in front of me just called my name. He looked vaguely familiar. He seemed shocked when I let him know I didn’t know who he was. I know social etiquette says I should have played along, but I like to think I’m more honest than that.
I could swear at that instant I heard some animal growl.
Sean cleared his throat next to me and I looked over into his dazzling eyes.
“Sorry, guys. I think you’ve got us confused with someone else,” Sean told them.
He was always so kind.
I looked back at them as Sean led me back to the mall, we were going to get a late lunch nearby. Something struck me about the broad-shouldered latino-looking guy being held on one side by the super tall black guy. I had a flash of an image of him on… a bus? He seemed kind in that flash. Maybe that’s how I knew them, from a bus ride? I smiled and mouthed ‘bye’ to them.
“Ready for lunch, Sunshine?” Sean asked me, his arm linked in mine.
“You bet,” I smiled.
What did I ever do to be so lucky?

Jake~
What? How? A growl escaped me. Something was happening. Rachel?
I saw her walking away and suddenly I had to chase her. But Evan and Nick were pulling me the other way. They needed to back off. I started shoving back then suddenly it all went dark.
I woke up on four paws. In a field by a lake. I knew this place, and had dreamed of it before.
“You’re early Jacob West,” a silver haired woman called from ahead.
I trotted over.
“There are some things I saw going differently, I’m sorry,” she soothed me while petting my forehead and ears.
I remembered the movie theater, and Rachel. I whined.
“It’s okay, go ahead and shift. We need to talk,” she urged me.
I had never shifted before. In real life or a dream. I titled my head to the side.
“Just focus on your human body. What you look like, sound like. And let yourself feel something magical, lovely,” she instructed.
I thought about Rachel in the library in middle school, glancing at me when she thought I wasn’t looking, her voice as she sang holiday songs at the tree lighting, the way she held on to me when I picked her up after banging her cute self into the light pole at the park, her relief after she cried on my shoulder in her living room, the stubborn look on her face after she ran at me in the bubble bowling game at the park.
I opened my eyes to see my human hands in front of me.
“What’s - what’s going on?” I asked her. There were too many questions. I didn’t know where to start. Is Rachel my mate? How did she forget us? Who is bothering her at her school? What is happening? What am I?
“I know, there’s a lot,” she breathed out and sat down at the lake’s edge. “I can’t tell you everything. Some things have to happen the way they need to happen. I know - that is awful. I brought you here though, for a reason. I will answer one of your questions. Not the one you asked. Yes - yes Rachel is your mate,” she said softly.
My head whipped around, “Really?”
She nodded.
But isn’t she human? How does this work? I was stuck with more questions.
“Before you ask anything else, no I won’t respond to any other question. I just wanted to confirm what you already knew. What Evan, Nick, and your wolves all know,” she said looking at the lake.
“Wait - our wolves?” I asked breathlessly.
“Ah, I can’t clarify that right now, Jake of the West Woods pack, you’ll see soon enough. You have something right here,” she said pointing to the side of my head, “And it will come out when the time is right.”
I looked at her confused.
“We don’t have much more time, I think we’re going to give Nicolas a heart attack,” she laughed lightly. “You are good boys, good wolves. And I have faith you will be good men. There are bigger things coming your way. People who will try to take you down. But if you all stick together, protect Rachel until she can handle herself, it will all turn out for the good of wolfkind.”
She took a breath then continued, “Jake, it’s going to be hard, but I need you three to leave Rachel with her situation for just a little bit.”
“But-” I started and she cut me off.
“Jake, I’m serious. This part has to be done like this. I promise you, no harm will come to her right now. You and your Beta and Gamma need to focus on training and on finding answers. I will come to you again when she’s ready. Then you can go for it, okay?” She drilled her gaze into mine. She handed me something in a vial.
Something in me knew to trust her. “Okay…”
I could feel me fading away, I must be waking up.
“One last thing, on Monday, sit behind her on the bus but don’t talk to her. Wait for her to fall asleep then whisper how you feel. Just quiet enough so that if she were awake she would hear you - okay? Trust me,” she finished as light flooded my vision.
I found myself on the floor somewhere bright.
“Thank the Goddess,” Nick exclaimed in relief.
I sat up, finding myself outside the movie theater by the parking garage.
“What happened? What was that?” Evan asked me. “Are we going after them?”
“Uh,” I took a breath, and shook my head, “No, not yet.”
I breathed out heavily and put an arm over my eyes as I layed down on the floor again.
“Well, guys. I saw the Goddess,” I breathed out.
“What?” Nick asked.
I just held up the vial I knew was still in my hand and handed it over to Nick. I didn’t look.
“Listen to Jake - love, your favorite Goddess,” Nick read, “What- what is this?”
I moved my arm to see them both there reading the message on the vial and rotating the liquid inside to see it.
“I’ve never seen anything like this, what is this?” Nick asked.
Starlight, Xavier, Evan’s wolf said.