Dark Side of the Moon (19 page)

When I woke up in the morning, I felt like I couldn’t move.  My whole body ached, my chest felt like it was being ripped in two.  My hair was damp with sweat, and I had somehow kicked the covers off of me during the night.

Someone knocked on my door.  “Selina?  Are you awake?” my mom asked.  “You’re going to be late for school.”

I tried to answer her, but I just couldn’t get enough breath in my lungs to form words. When I didn’t respond, Mom opened the door.  She looked concerned at first, then it morphed into shock as she approached my bed.

“What’s wrong, Selina?  Does it hurt?”

All I could manage was a slight nod.

“Where?”

“E-Everywhere,” I was somehow able to whisper.

She placed a hand on my head.  “Oh, baby, you’re burning up.  You need to stay home today.  Do you need me to get you anything?”

I shook my head.

“I can stay home today if you need me to.”

I shook my head again.  There was only one thing that would cure me, and I was pissed at him.  And if I was feeling this way, then I’m sure London was, too.  So there was no reason for my mom to stay home because she thought I was sick.

“Are you sure?”

I nodded.

“Okay.  Call me if you need anything and I’ll come home.  Hope you feel better soon.”

It was a couple minutes after she walked out of my room when I heard everyone leave the house.  At that point, tears had welled, and I couldn’t keep them at bay.  Why had London treated me the way he did, said what he said?  Why hasn’t he tried to contact me since I left Sunday morning?

My falling tears were part from feeling hurt by London, and part from the body aches.  They hurt so much I didn’t know how I’d make it through the day.  Maybe some pain medicine will help it a little?

It took me a while to get to my feet, and even then I was very unsteady on them.  I stopped by the bathroom first, then made my way to the kitchen to see if we had anything extra strength.  Unfortunately, we only had medicine for every day aches and pains.  So my next option was knocking out for the day.

After taking some allergy meds that would make me drowsy, I headed back to my room.  I curled up in a ball under the covers, and tried to keep it together.  Artemis said things would get better, and right now, I didn’t see how they could.  Thankfully, the medicine worked quickly, and I was able to fall asleep and not feel the pain.

I woke up a couple hours later.  The medicine had worn off, and the pain felt worse.  I didn’t want to move; breathing was now hurting.  Maybe I could take some more medicine until the pain just went away?

After struggling to get to my feet, I shuffled out into the hall.  And I thought cramps from my period were awful.  Why did we have to experience this?  What could it possibly benefit?

When I got to the living room, I noticed something through the window.  It looked like a person.  Shit, I was alone and vulnerable and in so much pain; I couldn’t defend myself against anyone.

But the longer I looked at them to figure out what it was they were going to do, I realized that the pain was slowly receding.  Was…was it London?  What was he doing here?  Shouldn’t he be in as much pain as I was?

But whatever the reason, London was here.  That had to mean something, right?  Taking a deep breath, which was now easier, I headed to the front door.

Not caring about the cold or that I was in my pajamas or not wearing shoes, I rushed out the door.  London stood at the end of the drive, his hands in his jacket pockets, head bent a little as he looked up at me through his lashes.  He appeared to be surprised as I headed toward him.

I flung my arms around London’s neck, and buried my face in his chest.  All of my pain went away when he returned my embrace.  I couldn’t help the sob that wracked through my body.

“Shhh, Selina.  I’m sorry,” he whispered, kissing the top of my head.  “Let’s go inside; you’re going to get sick out here barefoot.”

I nodded, and held his hand as I led him inside.  One of the first things out of his mouth was that he was sorry, so I was going to give him a chance to explain himself.  Besides, I didn’t like us not talking for two days.

After we closed the front door, we sat on the couch, facing each other.  My body felt so much better now that the aches were gone.  And I couldn’t help wondering how he got here because he should have been in the same condition as me.  But I’ll ask him later.

London took a deep breath.  “I’m sorry, Selina.  I didn’t mean what I said to you.  I was just frustrated from Saturday night and it didn’t come out the way I meant for it to.”

“O-Okay.  How did you mean for it to sound, London?”

“It was a stupid idea for you to go off on your own instead of waiting for us to help you.  You told me that I didn’t know what it was like having been changed against your will, well you don’t understand what it was like for me to come up on the rogue flinging you away from him.”  He took my hands in his, and kissed the tops of both.  “I didn’t want for you to get hurt, Selina, and I didn’t know how to tell you that while we were shifted.  I don’t want to lose you, Selina.”

I could see where he was coming from because I didn’t want for him to get hurt in anyway, either.  “I forgive you, London.  We’re just going to have to work better on our communication in the future.”

“Yeah, because I cannot go through the last two days again,” he said, pulling me into him.

Tears welled, and I tried to wipe them away.  “It hurt so much,” I nearly whispered.

“I know.  I could barely move.”

As he kissed the top of my head, I asked, “How did you get over here then?”

“Channing brought me over.  He came to the house Sunday afternoon for a report on the rogue, and checked up on me this morning.  If it makes you feel any better, he told me that I was a colossal idiot.”

I couldn’t help laughing a little.  “Well, yeah, that was a given.”

London retaliated by nipping at my neck.

“Stop, London,” I said, pushing him away as I giggled.

“I see how it is.  Ganging up with my beta against me.  So, what time do I need to leave?”

I glanced at the clock to find that it was a little after two.  “Sometime soon.  Dan will get here first, then my mom.  And if he sees you here, he’ll probably hold it over me or rat me out just because he can.”

“Yeah, don’t want for you to get in trouble,” he said, standing up.  “So I’ll see you in the morning?”

“Yeah, meet me at my locker?” I asked, standing with him.

He gave me a confused look.  “You don’t want me to pick you up before school?”

“Everyone’s going to think it’s strange for you to show up after we had a fight as if everything’s normal.”

“True.  Alright, I’ll see you at your locker.” He gave me a small smile before leaning in to give me a gentle kiss.  “I love you, Selina.”

“I love you, too, London.”

He gave me one more kiss before walking out the door and returning home.

Chapter 21

It had taken London and I a couple days to get back to normal.  He picked me up before school, walked me to all of my classes, ate lunch together with the pack, and hung out after school until I had to go home for dinner.  My parents had thought that I had a strange virus that didn’t last very long when I couldn’t get out of bed, and I was thankful that they didn’t question anything about me miraculously feeling better.

On the weekends, London and I would go out or hang out at his house.  When I knew we were going over to his place, I would bring over the paintings I had made during our fight to see what he thought of them.  He really liked the abstracts, but told me I should practice on making my work more realistic and push my limits.

Most of my work was focused around London.  He didn’t mind being my model, and was patient with me as I drew and redrew him when something didn’t work out on my sketches.  It was going to take a while before I was even close to being on his level.

I was so glad things had gone back to normal between us.  I didn’t want us to fight again, but only time would tell.  Currently, we were in the lunch room, the cafeteria alive with chatter.  That Monday after our fight was just so strange with the pack being quiet, but they were lively now.  I never joined in on their conversations, but something Raff said piqued my interest.

“So, London, are we still going camping for your birthday?” he asked, making the rest of the pack go quiet.

My eyes widened as I looked at my mate.  Why was this the first time I heard anything about going camping?

“Yeah,” London responded.  “So have all of your stuff ready to go after school Friday.”

Everyone nodded and went back to their conversations.

I continued to look at him as I stood from the table.  “Can I talk to you for a minute, London?”

He cocked an eyebrow at me, but stood up next to me.  I took his hand, and walked him out of the cafeteria.  After we closed the doors behind us, I turned to him.

“When were you going to tell me about this camping trip?”

“Tonight.  Or tomorrow….” He said looking away from me.

“And were you going to invite me?”

“Well, yeah, Selina.  The full moon’s next Wednesday, and we were planning on just camping out for the full week of spring break.”

“The whole pack?”

“Most of the pack.  Some are going to stay behind to patrol the border and make sure our homes are safe.”

I nodded.  “I wish you would have given me more time to convince my parents because I think they’d notice if I was ‘sick’ for a whole week and not in my room.”

“Sorry, Selina.  I didn’t think.”

I was about to tell him it was okay and to not forget next time when the bell signaling the end of lunch rang.  Figuring someone from the pack would take care of what was left of our lunch, London and I headed for my next class.  He gave me a kiss at the door, and headed off to his class, most likely going to be late for it.

While I sat in class, trying to comprehend the formulas the teacher was giving us, I thought about how I was going to convince my parents to let me go on this camping trip in basically two days.  Three if I counted trying to convince them before we left on Friday.  This was going to be a challenge.

Throughout my remaining classes, I thought about what I was going to say to my parents that would allow me to go on this camping trip with my boyfriend.  And on top of it, I had to think of something to get London for his birthday.

So after school let out, I told London that it was probably best if we didn’t go out for the next couple of days so I could talk to my parents about spring break.  He seemed a little surprised, but agreed, even if it meant body aches in the morning.  After he dropped me off at home, I locked myself in my room and tried to come up with something to give London for his birthday until my parents came home.  I wanted to draw or paint him something, but I wasn’t sure of exactly what just yet.

When my mom called that dinner was ready, we all met in the dining room.  Dad asked us how school was today, and thankfully Dan spoke first, talking about something he did in one of his classes.  I wasn’t really paying attention because I was nervous about what was going to happen next.

“What about you, Selina?” Dad asked when Dan finished speaking.

“My classes were pretty boring, actually.  But London’s birthday is next week, and he’s getting a lot of our friends and going camping during spring break.  And he wants me to go with them.”

Both of my parents stopped eating to look at me.  “Selina—” my dad started.

“I know what you’re thinking.  I know that his mom, Artemis’ parents and sister, Channing’s parents and sister, and several other people’s parents are going to be there, too.  They want to make sure that we don’t get into trouble while we’re camping.”

They were silent for a moment, looking at each other.  “They’re going to be camping for the entire break?” Mom asked.

“Yeah, they’re going to head out after school on Friday.”

“I don’t know, Selina.  You’re going to be in the woods practically by yourselves for a week.  You’ve only been dating him for a couple months, too.”

I knew where she was going with that.  “Mom, please, not here.  And besides, even if they weren’t camping, I’d still be over at his house every day next week.  And there’s going to be a lot of parents there, too, for the sole purpose of chaperoning us.”

“We’re going to have to think about it, Selina,” Dad told me.

“Well, I need to know soon because I’ll have to pack,” I said, finishing up my meal.

After I put my dirty plate in the sink, I returned to my room, and sent a text to London, telling him my parents were thinking about it.  He sent back an okay, and I collapsed onto my bed.  I needed them to say I could go because I had no idea what I was going to do during the full moon in a week.

For the rest of the night, I thought of my little project for my mate.  I knew all of the movies and games he liked, and figured I could do something that involved a favorite character of his.  Now to narrow it down to one.

Because I was pressed for time, I had no choice but to sketch out my project in front of London.  At first, I knew he couldn’t tell what it was.  But by chemistry, I knew he could see that I was drawing the main character from his favorite alien game, standing as if for an actual portrait.

After I returned home, I continued on my drawing, adding some color to it for emphasis.  All the while, I was nervous about what my parents were going to decide about the impending camping trip.  I really needed for them to say yes because I didn’t want to have to lie to them again.

During dinner, Dad spoke up.  “I spoke to London’s dad today about the trip.  According to him, they go on it every year, and in as many numbers as you said.  He doesn’t go because he’s too busy at the office and doesn’t like camping.  We’re still a little skeptical, though, and want to speak to his mother about us going with you.”

My stomach fell through the floor.  There was no way London was going to allow my human parents and brother come on our camping trip, especially on the full moon.  I needed to think of an excuse quickly.  “You really want to go camping?  I didn’t take either of you as the outdoorsy type.  And there’s going to be like thirty parents there, so what are you worried about?”

“We didn’t think you like camping, either, Selina,” Mom retorted.

“It’s for London’s birthday, and I want to spend time with him and he wants to camp, so I really don’t have a choice, now do I?”

“How are we going to contact you or you contact us if something happens?  Your phone can’t stay charged for a whole week.”

“We’ll be in the woods, not going across state lines or anything.  We’ll probably be within walking distance of any building.  Please can I go?  I already told everyone that I was.”

“Is there any way we can convince you to take Dan?” Dad asked.

I gave him a look of disgust.  “I don’t want to spend my spring break and boyfriend’s birthday with my brother.  Besides, do you even want to go, Dan?” I asked, looking at him and wishing I had telepathy to tell him to say no.

Thankfully, he was of the same mind.  “Uh, no, I’ll pass and spend my break happy in my room with my games instead of bored out of my mind looking at a camp fire while bugs crawled all over me.”

Dad sighed.  “I want you to be very careful, Selina, and come straight home afterwards or if something happens.  Try and save your phone battery, and let us know every day that you’re fine.”

I couldn’t help smiling as widely as possible.  “Thank you so much, but I have to go pack,” I said, standing up from the table.  Leaving my plate there, I rushed to my room so I could have everything ready for tomorrow.

After I sent a text to my mate, letting him know my parents said it was okay for me to go, I set to work getting a week’s worth of clothes together plus a few extra outfits in case they got dirty or ripped.  London texted me back saying that he had a tent and double sleeping bag we could use, so I didn’t have to worry about that.  I packed my brush, toothbrush, and toothpaste because I wasn’t going a week without brushing my teeth or hair.  Ugh, we were going to be in the woods for a week without running water.  I may have to come home after a couple of days for a shower.  Why exactly did he want to camp for a week again?  In case I couldn’t make it home or if his place was much closer to our campsite than mine, I packed all of my shower stuff, too.

Once I was sure I’d have everything I’d need, I set to work finishing up London’s present.  I needed to have it finished before we left tomorrow.  I didn’t want to give it to him in front of his friends because I didn’t want to hear what they might say about me giving their alpha a drawing for his birthday.

The next day, I had my bag for the trip setting by the front door before I walked out to get in London’s car.  He was going to bring me back home after school so that I could drop my school bag off and get my camping bag.  After I got in his car, I opened my backpack, and pulled out his drawing before he could put the car in reverse.

He gave me a smile as he took the piece of paper from me.  “This is really great, Selina.  Thank you,” he said as he gave me a kiss.

“You’re welcome.  It looks so much better than my work from a month ago, right?”

“Definitely.  Practice makes perfect does have some meaning to it.”

“I know it’s a few days early, but happy birthday, London,” I said, giving him another kiss.

“It’s already the best one I’ve ever had,” he said, putting the car in reverse.

School was almost torturous, dragging because I was anxious about spring break.  Sure, I was glad that I’d be spending all of my time with my boyfriend away from my family, but we were also going to be with almost all of the pack all week.  The most I’ve ever spent with them was on the full moon or during lunch on the weekdays.  I was going to make it my mission to get to know some of them this coming up week.

During lunch, our table was abuzz with conversations about what all they were planning on doing next week.  Apparently fishing, playing football and baseball and a couple other sports were on the agenda.  I wasn’t too crazy about any of those activities.  One of the girls mentioned something about a volleyball net, and I thought that was better than playing football.  Maybe I should have packed some art supplies, just in case.  I think I’ll do that when I pick up my bag.

As soon as the bell rang for the day, I went to my locker to change out my books so they would be ready when we came back from break, and headed out to the parking lot.  London was waiting for me by his car.  The drive to my house was quick, and as soon as I was inside, I packed a quick bag of my sketch books and some charcoal pencils and erasers.

After I was back in London’s car, we headed over to his house.  He quickly ran inside to get his stuff, telling me when he came back he had loaded his tent and sleeping bags the night before.  Along with a bag of clothes, he also had a couple bags of snack food and a large cooler of drinks.  We’d have to go get some ice before we headed to the camp site.

Once we had the ice, London drove us just out of town.  There were a couple camping sites that we passed, but I guess that he had a specific one that he went to.  And when we arrived, I found a couple dozen cars already parked in a lot.  But there wasn’t a soul in sight.

Getting out of the car, I grabbed my bags as well as London, while he grabbed the tent and cooler.  I followed him into the tree line, and we hiked for quite some time before arriving at a large field.  Others were here, setting up their tents on the far side of the field.

Everyone greeted us as we made our way to the tent site.  London immediately set to work pitching our tent, so while he did so, I sat on the lid of the cooler, watching him and looking around.  One thing I noticed was a building on the east side of the field.  “What’s that?” I asked my mate.

“Bathrooms.  And they have showers, too.  So there’s less of a chance of someone accidentally using poison ivy or getting bitten by bugs or pranked in such a vulnerable position,” he explained.