HUNGER

"I need to feed now, don't I?" He smiled and opened the door. "Tell me about yourself."
People stared and whispered as we walked side by side to the small café by the corner. I was sure though they were staring at the godly being next to me and wondering among themselves what he could possibly be doing with someone like me. They were wondering what their Alpha was doing with the pack whore.
“What do you want to know about me?” I asked as we neared the counter.
“Everything,”
I was appalled. “You would get bored.”
Roman stared down at me with a serious, irritated expression. "Hardly."
I frowned.
“Good morning,” The girl behind the counter said, watching me, her eyes appraising.
“What can I get for you, today?” she gave me a smile that showed her upper teeth, pushed her chest out and blinked more than necessary.
Roman's jaw clenched tight, but he answered in an even voice. “Two strawberry milkshakes.”
“Anything else?” The girl asked, batting her eyelashes.
His lips tightened into a fierce line. He stared into my eyes, and I stared back. I barely noticed when he shook his head.
“Don’t you want to try some blueberry muffins?” I asked him, confused by his sudden loathsome mood. "Trust me you'll love them."
Roman was staring straight ahead at the pretty brunette scrabbling her phone number on the napkin. “No!” he snarled, in his hard husky voice.
“There you go,” the brunette purred.
I stared up at her, confused, but she only seemed friendly — overly so. I tried not to imagine her with a wiggling tail.
Roman bared his teeth and stared at the brunette bitterly. She whimpered and I was sure if she were in wolf form her tail would be between her legs.
An agonising moment of silence passed.
He fumed beside me. “I don’t want the milkshake anymore,” he hissed, disgusted, and then whirled sharply and strode out of the café.
"Is that your boyfriend, the one true Alpha?" she asked me.
"Can I also have a dozen of blueberry muffins?" I stared at Roman's retreating figure in confusion. "Him?"
The brunette nodded.
I was still confused. Why was he suddenly so angry. "No, not at all."
The brunette smiled and I pulled a hundred bill to pay.
"Don't worry, it's on the house. I'm Twila by the way."
"Nuru... nice to meet you, Twila."
"Is he a friend?" Twila jerked her chin towards the door Roman disappeared behind.
I pursed my lips, hesitating for a moment, my body rigid, defensive. "What, you like him?"
Twila leaned over the counter and handed me my items. "I like you. Call me sometime and we can hang out."
"I will, okay?" I called over my shoulder. "Thank you, Twila." I kept talking as I walked.
I didn't see where he came from but suddenly he was there, pulling me towards the main entrance. He was fuming beside me, quivering in his anger.
“What’s wrong?” I asked Roman, struggling to keep up with his furious pace.
He glared at me and hissed in my ear. “Nothing.”
“Here, take this,” I said, offering him the milkshake.
“I said I don’t want it.” His voice had a new edge to it.
I smiled dryly. “Oh my god! Roman, are you jealous?” I teased. It didn't matter that I knew that he would never, not in this lifetime, or any other, feel anything besides sympathy towards me, I just wanted to distract him.
This startled him. “Obviously not.” he growled at me, eyes glinting hard.
“Sure,” I snickered. “For what it’s worth, I don’t go for brunettes.”
“Blondes?” he asked.
“They don’t do it for me either.”
He held my hand as we ran through the heavy rain. It was absolutely ridiculous for my chest to squeeze, and it was painfully impossible not to notice how perfectly my hand fit into his.
“Redheads then?”
Back again in the comfort of his car, I let my hair fall to my shoulders so that it would dry on the way home. He got the heater going. “I’m a redhead myself, and besides girls don't do it for me, period,” I mumbled, slightly out of breath. I wasn’t known for my athletic abilities.
It was warm in the car, and I could see his face clearly, he was so mad that his hands were shaking, and he glared through the windshield, away from me, rage burning out from his eyes
He raced down the downpour at an alarming speed, the tires protested with a squeal each time he turned a sharp corner. He didn't bother to abide by the traffic rules and once, when he'd speed through a red light, a graying man gave us his middle finger.
The car stopped and he opened the door for me.
"Get the fuck out of my car, now," he commanded, his voice turning brittle. He was taking hard, focused breaths, trying to calm himself.
I realized that I was clutching the box of muffins so tight that I left a hand imprint on it. He terrified me.
I wordlessly escaped out of his car in a daze, left a half-dozen muffins for Roman, pulled my backpack over my shoulder and walked up to the front door. I dug in my pocket and realized with great horror that I'd left my keys at his place.
I knocked and pulled the lock. It appeared that no one was home.
He was watching me with penetrating eyes.
"I'm locked out," I called out to him.
"There's something called keys, use those." His voice was heavy with sarcasm.
My jaw tightened, and I spoke through my teeth. "If I had them, I would."
He glared at me, his eyes critical. "You don't have keys to your own place?" his voice was so calm, and pure. It made me feel small. There was just something about the way it commanded me, that made me feel utterly stupid. "That's how normal people get into their apartments."
"I do." I glared at his complicated shade of blue and wished I could strangle him. And I felt a sudden rush of shame. For forgetting my keys, for being Nuru Lynn and for not being brave enough to tell him all the ugly things I thought about him in that moment.
He raised one eyebrow in disbelief. "Use them," he urged.
I glared at him, hoping my gaze would unsettle him. "I forgot them at your place."
"It's not that far of a walk." He halfway smiled; it was a bleak, twisted thing.
"He's just joking," I said to myself.
He barked out a bitter laugh. The engine revved. My eyes bulged. The tires squealed as the car faced south with a sudden turn and I sighed in relief when he leaned towards the passenger side and opened the door. Of course, he wouldn't leave me in the cold rain.
But then he threw his umbrella at me and then said, "Better start walking. The rain will pick back up in the next hour."
I watched in angered surprise as the white car accelerated swiftly down the street. I chased after it. "Wait!" I called as he turned on the next block.
I was unable to move from where I stood for a long moment, the rain pouring down at my face. I couldn't take my eyes off the road. Roman would come back. He had to!
My hair whipped in my face, sticking to my face and curling around my neck. The wind was acidic, the rain felt like acid as it penetrated through my clothes.
I waited and waited. And waited. Until finally the tears welled up. I turned robotically towards the house.