XLVIII. Sonny Lynn

Raine’s POV:

Where did that come from?

Leon?

I thought of Leon?

Did I say Leon’s name out loud?

I sat up straight and smacked my cheeks, “What do you think you’re doing? Leon? Wolfie. I understand because you know his potentially fake personality, and you can imagine how hot he looks inside your head.”

Wolfie’s position in my life does not sound as good now that I said it out loud.

“But, Leon? Why did you say, Leon? What’s so good about that shut in alpha?”

His ass.

“I mean, he does have a nice southern side.” I grinned to myself. I cannot believe that I am thinking of a werewolf’s butt in the middle of my unstable life.

I pressed my fingers further into my temple before my eyes cast upward. “I blame you, Moon Goddess. I’m not even from this place.”

“Pardon me.”

My body jolted slightly at the voice. I turned to my left, “Yes?”

The hotel receptionist smiles, “Will your friend be here soon?”

I look out the glass windows. It’s dark. I turned back and smiled, “Yes.” I knocked my head, “As a matter of fact, she told me to wait at the water fountain nearby. I almost forgot.” I fake laugh, “Thank you for reminding me.” I got off the couch and walked towards the exit. The last thing I need in my life is to be escorted out of a hotel.

When I’m outside of the hotel, only bitter darkness greets me. Then again, it was really bright inside of the hotel. I pulled my sweater closer to my body and walked down the streets.

The farther I walked from the hotel, the more my eyes seemed to move. Quickly, it reflexed from one location to another, and when I heard a sound, it went towards it. Someone kicked a can. When the streets begin to divide more and more, I decided to take the brighter path. Only a fool would take the dark alley.

I noticed a small wooden bench in the middle of the street, and I sat down.

“Ow.”

My body bounced off the bench, and I turned around to see a hobo.

Steadily, he sat upward while rubbing his forehead.

“Hi?”

His eyes motion upward - deep brown.

He cleared his throat.

I backed away.

“Sorry. I don’t know how I missed your body.” I seriously don’t know how I missed a large man lying on a bench. Is my mind that much of a mess?

He stared at me momentarily before he chuckles, “It’s fine. People tend to miss me whenever I lay on a bench.”

“Why?”

He shrugs, “Benches give me the power of invisibility?”

I chuckle lightly, “Well, we do live in a world with magic. So I wouldn’t brush off that thought.” I saw a flying carpet and car before. I would believe it if someone tells me that benches or shoes give them powers.

His shoulders trembled, “Yeah. It’s weird, isn’t it?”

“Pardon?”

“I mean, you and me, we’re humans. We don’t have magic. So, it’s weird that there are others with magical abilities. It’s weird how...we don’t get it.”

I sat beside him. My legs are exhausted from walking, and I don’t want to stand in the middle of the street. I tucked my hands underneath my pants, “You know. My dad...he used to say...even if you can’t feel it. Everyone has a bit of magic inside of them.”

He stared at me for a brief moment before his face burst into a smile. It’s nice. His smile. It makes people want to orbit around him, to waste time with him.

I laid out a hand, “I’m Raine Fall. What’s your name?” If I’m going to spend the next few nights in the streets, it may not be a bad idea to have a friend. He seems large and threatening, but he isn’t so bad.

He took my hand, “Sonny Lynn.”

My brows creased, “Lynn? That’s an unusual last name.”

Sonny smiled, “It’s quite unusual. But, I like it.” He tilted his head, “You’re teasing my name, but your name is Raine Fall. You do know that, right?”

I shrugged, “My dad said it was raining at the time.”

“Your dad is a very simple man.”

I exhaled, “That’s what I thought too.”

“So, Raine. You don’t look like you belong in the streets.” I wish I could say the same about him. He leaned forward, “Do you happen to be a runaway?”

I kicked my legs, “Close. I’m an orphan.” In this world.

Sonny straightens his back, “Oh. I’m sorry.” He exhaled, “If it helps, I’m an orphan too.”

“Really?”

“Well, I considered myself an orphan.”

“What happened?” Unknowingly, I enjoyed this—the meaningless but not so meaningless conversation between a stranger and me.

“My dad. I ran away from him.”

“Is he...bad?”

Sonny looks down, “Yeah. He wasn’t the best dad.” He scratched his head, “Your dad sounds great, though.”

“He was.”

“Was?”

“He passed away.” I know I saw him not too long ago, but understanding the reality that it’s not really him - pains me. The tears dripped down, “And...mom... she’s not here.” I covered my face with my hands. How embarrassing - to break down in front of a stranger.

I can feel a warm hand on my back, “My mom...she left when I was younger.”

I look at him.

He smiles, “It’s okay,” he said. “You don’t have to feel embarrassed. I still cry too. Sometimes, I would even cry on my wife’s chest at night.”

Wife? Well, that’s unexpected. Maybe he isn’t a hobo. “Wife?”

He nods, “Yeah. I have a wife.”

When he saw the look on my face, he laughed.

“I know it’s unexpected, particularly coming from someone that looks like me, but I do have a wife.”

“She’s...a lucky woman.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“She is a nice woman.”

“Again. Don’t lie. If you know here, you would think she’s the meanest woman who ever lived.”

My lips burst into a smile. He’s really in love with his wife. “She hit you?”

He groaned, “All the time! When I do something wrong. When I do something right. She hits me! Our daughter does the same thing! Always hitting me!” He closed his eyes and covered it with his gloved hand, “What if our son grows up and hits me too?”

I laughed, “That would be lovely.”

Above the gloves, I watch as the tips of his right fingers make their way towards his left finger. He held onto it and twirled the ring beneath.

“If you miss them, you should go home and hug them,” I said. That’s what I would do to my mom.

He stops, “If only.”

Then, the realization occurs. “Your family.”

“They’re...not in this world.”

I cover my mouth, “I’m sorry.” My stomach growls.

Of course, it did.

“Apologies don’t actually change anything. You do know that, right?” Quite the response. “But, you tried, so how about I buy you a sandwich?”

I cover my stomach, “No. It’s okay.”

“Come on.” He smiles, “It’ll be quite the sandwich. Who knows. It may change your life.”

I inhaled a sharp breath through the gaps of my teeth. “I don’t do well with changes.”

“Me too. But, let’s not use that excuse today.” Sonny stood up, “Come on. I promise not to kidnap you.”

I chuckled twice, “How comforting.”

Should I really follow him?

Yes. I am hungry.

But I also don’t want to get kidnapped again. I also don’t want to get hit, drugged, and thrown into the back of a truck. I’ve done enough of that to last several lifetimes.

“Does it help to know the sandwich place is right over there?” He pointed at the shop across the street. It is comforting to know that we won’t be walking through a dark alley.

I stood up and walked beside him. Once we reached the end of the street, Sonny pressed a button.

“Why?” I asked.

“Why what?”

“Why are you treating a stranger to a meal?”

“Why not? Why is it that treating a stranger well is suspicious?”

“Motives,” I said. The light switched turned green.

Sonny walked, and I followed him. He smiled, “You’re not wrong.” Sonny opened the door. I wonder if this is a slave-trading business disguised as a sandwich shop. Sonny leaned against the glass door, “I used to be a hobo,” he said. “My wife gave me a sandwich that changed my life.”

“I’m not a hobo.”

He chuckles, “Sure.” He walked inside the store.

I narrowed through the closing door. “I’m really not! My friends are coming to get me!”

Sonny ignored my comments and ordered a sandwich.

“And you?” The man behind the counter asked.

The saliva inside my mouth increased when I smelled the baking sandwich. Immediately, without feeling an ounce of embarrassment, I ordered the sandwich.

After the man finished, Sonny paid for the items. Together, we sat beside the window and ate. I would say the meal was peaceful, but it wasn’t. I shoved as much of the sandwich inside my mouth as I could.

“Slow down,” Sonny said. He pushed the cup of water towards me.

I shook my head and took another bite. I don’t know how I’ll survive the next few days if I’m already this hungry after half a day.

Sonny chuckles, “You sure you’re not homeless?”

I swallowed, “I kind of am,” I said. I took a sip of water. “I’m governmentally funded.”

“Oh, yeah. Sorry. I slipped up.”

“It’s fine. You’re an orphan-ish too. So, we’re kind of the same.”

“You’re funded to live in the Black Forest Pack? Isn’t it dangerous for a human to live among werewolves?”

I shook my head, “I’m from the human community.”

“Why are you here?”

“I got kidnapped.” Wait. Did I just tell him I got kidnapped? I stopped eating my sandwich and looked at him.

He nods, “Tough bacon.” He took another bite of his sandwich. “That must suck. I mean, it also explains why you’re so dirty.”

“You’re not surprised?”

“Nah. I got my fair share of being kidnapped. Not fun.” I don’t know if he’s joking or telling the truth.

Either way. I don’t want to know the answer. “It does suck.”

“Kidnapped by a werewolf? Mating things or something?” I can see how he came to that conclusion. After all, I am in a dominant werewolf community. “Yeah. But, not from this pack.”

He nods, “Rough path you’re walking on.”

I exhale, “Yeah.”

“Rejection?”

“Crazy father.”

“You called your mate your father?”

I don’t know what kinky stuff he thinks I’m interested in, but I should clarify that I’m not that type of person. “No. My so-called mate’s father is crazy. Wouldn’t let him reject me.”

“Your mate wants to reject you?”

“Yeah. Something about loving this other girl.” There it is again—the uneasy sensation. I grabbed my chest and rubbed it.

“I’ve heard about that,” Sonny said. “You’re feeling the mating bond, right?”

I nodded, “Yeah.” I took another bite, “Apparently, I’m forced to feel uneasiness.”

“Sucks.”

I swallowed, “At least I don’t feel too much pain. I read that wolves feel this thing like someone stabbed their heart.”

“Suck times ten. I don’t understand why werewolves would want that.”

I shrugged again, “Sounds cool to know who’s your soulmate.”

Sonny rested his chin against his palms, “Not really.”

“Hm?”

“I mean, where’s the fun in knowing who your perfect half is? Isn’t the whole concept of love is to go through thick and thin until you find someone you don’t necessarily fit but can’t live without?”

I chuckle, “I guess.”

“You’ve never fallen in love before, have you?”

“The truth?”

“Why lie in front of a stranger?”

“To please them?”

“That’s the dumbest reason I’ve ever heard. Why please someone who doesn’t matter in your life?”

I smile faintly. Sonny is right. Why are humans so eager to please strangers? Why? Why?

“No. I’ve never been in love.”