Dropping my hands from behind my back, I knocked on the door. After a few moments, it opened, revealing Antonio.

"Antonio," I grinned. "You don't look a day over 50."

Opening his arms, he hugged me. "I appreciate that, April. But I might dye my hair back to brown – make me feel youthful again." He brushed his hand over his peppered hair self-consciously. I smiled again and returned his hug – it didn't feel as awkward anymore considering I looked towards him as a father-figure now.

As we walked inside, I craned my neck upwards, examining the planetary phenomena's decorating the ceiling; my eyes caught glimpses of detail so intricate, I had missed them whilst examining them countless times before. I was at Antonio's house – the one where the major pack meetings happened – for Antonio's belated 50th.

"Am I the last one here?"

"Most of us are here already. Carlos has just gone to buy some more wine – you know how I like my Chateau Petrus – I think Daniel and the boys wanted vodka though," he scowled.

We approached the French doors, lace curtains fluttering in the wind. I shut my eyes and savoured the fresh air. I'd only finished up my packing before coming here – I was going to England for the summer. As soon as I stepped out into the garden, my eyes riveted to the one face that seemed to be etched into my memory; a tattoo on my brain. Aiden Knight.

He hadn't noticed me yet, his attention on a conversation between him, Diego, Nina and Emma. I saw a glass in his hands, but it was filled with coke rather than alcohol, thank god. Antonio had been amazing about Aiden's recovery, going as far as removing all alcohol from the house - I think his sons definitely had more respect for him now that his fatherly instincts were less hidden beneath his Alpha status. My eyes traced his features, right from the sharp angle of his nose, to the way the sunlight reflected into his eyes, to his now neatly-cut hair. University had served him well – his mind was wondrous. I'd never known he was so clever – he tended to hide it with his cockiness.

A sharp tap on my shoulder made me jump out of my trance. Beau glared down at me. "God, April, if you're going to stare, at least be conspicuous about it, woman!"

"You idiot, Beau. How have you been. I've missed you!"

He shook his head. "I'm great. College is great. Barbara's great. And I've missed you too munchkin. Who do I annoy when you're not here?"

Firstly, I scowled and punched him lightly. Then, I grinned. "I see you're still in the honeymoon phase."

"No. I'm just –" he sighed, leaning back on his heels so he was facing the sunlight and opened his arms out like they were wings. "I'm happy."

"Oh, and congratulations on the upcoming graduation, Little A."

Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, I replied. "I only just finished exams. Hopefully I've done enough to pass. God knows it's long overdue." My eyes scanned the yard again – well, I was only really waiting for Aiden to stop talking and look up – when a flash of blonde caught my eye.

"Is that – is that Daniel? Who is that – there, next to him?" I pointed with my finger.

Beau nodded proudly. "Danny boy found a mate."

A small, excited squeal – well, more of a snort – escaped my lips. "Ah!" I clasped my hands together. "When? And why didn't he ring me?"

But I understood his predicament – everyone had been so busy – Emma and Carlos were working, the rest of the gang were all in colleges or travelling. Everyone was all grown up now.

"He met Leila 4 months ago. We know her from before anyway. She's part of a pack near Atlanta. I knew I recognised her from somewhere. I guess it explained where Danny boy had been disappearing to every weekend." Beau explained.

I let out a little noise of approval. Just then, Daniel spun around, as though we'd yelled his name aloud. Catching sight of us, a grin erupted on his face and he bounded over to us in 5 whole steps, Leila following close behind him. She was tall with a long sheet of sleek, anthracite-coloured hair, sharp features and a noise that was slightly upturned in a cute way. They looked like the sun and moon next to each other, but it was strangely complimentary.

Daniel enveloped me into a crushing hug. "Ap, oh, how I've missed you."

"How you've missed me?" I repeated. "I've missed you so much more Dan my man."

"Aw," he cooed. "Anyway, April, this is Leila." She smiled at me tentatively and I smiled back warmly.

"Hi." She produced a slender hand from behind her back. I took it and introduced myself, trying my best not to mumble.

"Daniel.." I began, giving him the stink eye, silently ordering him to tell me everything later on. Daniel nodded and shot his gaze at Leila, smiling. My eyes rested on him for a few moments, my heart squeezing at how content he looked. No longer was the boy who was constantly on the lookout for a new conquest or a good time. No longer was the angry boy yelling at the Universe for taking his best friend away for a girl.

He looked a new man. With the same pervy-Daniel tendencies, like the way he stretched out, yawning, only to rest his arm around Leila's shoulders. Or the way he did that small, one-sided smile he knew crept us out.

Gentle pressure on my shoulder made me freeze. A hand. Resting upon it. Instantly, a familiar sensation coursed through my body as a familiar voice whispered in my ear: "You know it's very rude to not look at someone when you're talking to them."

I struggled to stop myself from grinning like a Cheshire cat. I remained where I was. Leila, Daniel and Beau had immersed themselves in conversation and Barbara had joined them. She flashed me a pretty smile and winked to Aiden over my head.

Aiden's arm was still leaning on my shoulder. "Yes, because you know an awful lot about common courtesy, don't you, Knight?"

He pretended to gasp. "That is so rude, Evans. God, you don't see me for a month and this is the reception I get?"

I don't think he realized how much of an effect he had on me – the feelings I felt were still very surreal to me; the way my breathing became considerably shallower, the way my heart began to race, the way my mark sparked under the material of my t-shirt. But I was slowly learning to control these sensations to a level that did not make me feel like I wanted to crawl up in a hole from embarrassment.

"Geez, your heart is pounding loudly."

I turned slowly on the spot, attempting to mask my expression. As soon as I had turned, his lips were on mine. He pulled away too soon, his eyes sparkling.

"Don't want people to stare and talk about the scandalousness of it all." I punched him lightly, stomach knotting. "Anyway, what was I saying? Oh yeah. Your heart's embarrassingly loud."

"Shut up. I'm – "I thought for a moment. "It's a long walk from the front of the house to the garden, okay?"

He flashed a grin at me. Noticing how tanned his skin was, I frowned. "I didn't know you spend a lot of time outside in your Astrophysics course."

He raised an eyebrow at me and straightened up. "We've been doing loads of outdoor astronomy this past month. Practical and observational work."

Nodding, I let out a little noise of surprise. Despite Aiden's commitments to his college course and my time being consumed by my last year of high school, we still tried to meet up regularly. The last time we met up was last month for my 18th birthday, but since then, we were both busy with finishing up finals before summer break.

"Oh, I got your little end of exams text. You use too many emojis, Cruella."

"Emojis are cute. And expressive."

We gazed over the yard together. "So my first year at college is over, your last year of high school is done. Another summer is here and I feel old." Aiden ran a running commentary as we looked over the yard; something was sizzling on the barbeque nearby and Carlos's voice was travelling over the lawn. I'm fairly certain he was telling Beau to hide the birthday cake somewhere and from here, I could see Beau comically ducking behind hedges with a large box in his hand.

They couldn't have been any more obvious, I thought, amused.

Just then, Lisa appeared from behind the barbeque area. "Food's ready." She said loudly to no-one in particular. Immediately, Barbara, Leila and Daniel were the first ones there, plates at the ready. Instinctively, I glanced towards Aiden, looking out for a clench of the jaw. But he wasn't doing any of those things. In fact, he looked incredibly normal. Just then, Lisa looked up, catching his eye.

I held my breath, squeezing his hand.

But Aiden smiled and raised his other hand in a small wave. No signs of sarcasm were present.

Lisa smiled warmly back. Aiden caught me staring at him and turned, giving me a frown that made his features look even more patronising.

"Things are okay between you?"

"Never better."

"How?" I was flabbergasted.

He raised both palms to the Universe. "College changes you, Cruella. I suppose you'll see when you get there."

I smacked him on the arm, my curiosity peaked. "Seriously though. The animosity is over?"

"I guess- "he paused, biting his lip. "I guess I grew up," he shrugged, rubbing the side of his neck as he spoke, "I finally came to the long-overdue realization that Lisa wasn't the cause of my mum's death. She had nothing to do with it. If anything, she saved my dad. Disliking her was a child's way of denial. I'm not a child."

I wrapped one of my arms around him, pressed my cheek into his t-shirt as we walked and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

"I'm happy for you, Aid."

"Ah, come on. Stop acting so soppy. I only saw you 29 days ago."

I shot him a glare. "Oh shut up. You're the one who counted the days."

A few hours later, I could safely say that I never wanted to leave.

One of the best and most underrated and un-measurable things in life is the small things like the moments when someone trips up, or snorts during a serious discussion or embarrasses themselves - or the moments where you rekindle with the people you love after months of stress and chaos.

Emma and Carlos had just announced that they were expecting their first child – a girl! They'd never looked happier and I'm fairly certain I and Daniel were more excited about it than them. Nina and Diego were just as they'd always been. They were planning on travelling all summer across America. Diego greeted me with a warm hug and a solid of hour of catching up – I'd met up with Nina and Kayla frequently over the past year, but Diego had been busier and I'd only seen him rarely.

Talking of Nina and Kayla, we were all still firm friends. I was secretly frightened that they'd find new friends at college, but surprisingly, they hadn't yet found someone cool enough to replace me (when I told them this, I flicked my hair as well to show my sass levels were high.) We met up religiously every month at least – no less – because we knew that sloppiness on our behalf would tear us apart.

In terms of Kayla and Noah, they were going strong. Animosity was animosity, but I decided to leave it behind because dwelling on the bad things in the past – though significant – wasn't good for me. I had an awful tendency to let the past ravel me up in a big ball of fear, meaning I never wanted to go out into the real world again. Noah and Aiden were officially on 'speaking' terms – honestly, I don't think Aiden would quite forgive Noah – well, maybe when he was 80 and on his death bed, he may say that he was 'no longer a young adult' and decide to forgive him, but I doubted they would ever really like each other.

Sometimes, history outweighs righteousness. And you can't do anything about that, so you sit back and enjoy the moments where they actually speak – well, grit their teeth and manage to not punch each other. The tension levels were so low that Aiden had managed to speak to Kayla normally now, all mockery aside. I, on the other hand, had met Kayla and Noah several times – I could tell Noah still felt uncomfortable, but I think we were beginning to warm to each other again. I was beginning to catch glimpses of his warm brown eyes and infectious smile and and that made me extremely happy.

I mean, who can't like someone you met when you threw a condom at them by accident?

Donna was seeing someone – a human. Even though she claimed that humans weren't her taste, she seemed quite comfortable with him – I think he was her mate – he must have been. If he wasn't she would have left his ass in a dumpster long ago. Her willing integration into the group suited her well.

Barbara and Aiden were still good friends; they were even beginning to joke about their 'romance' in an awkward way. In her, I saw glimpses of Aiden's 12 year old self and I saw the way they fitted together, like best friends do. He confined in her and vice versa – to be honest, I wasn't jealous as such. They were like me and Nina. I told Nina things Aiden didn't know (which wasn't an awful lot – maybe something really pointless like I'd eaten 6 meals that day or that I was starting to grow a food baby.

In terms of Aiden's family, Kaden was busy during the BBQ talking to people and looking very important because he was chosen to be the new Alpha. But his lips twitched when he caught my eye, so I suppose that was greeting enough. Cole kept me occupied for a whole 49 (yes, I timed) minutes talking about how Nadia was blaming him because of some prank he probably committed. I didn't mind though; Cole was amusing enough and he did make me spit my drink out 4 times with laughter.

I was shaken out of my reverie by a petite hand on my shoulder. Startled, I glanced up and found Emma peering up at me with wide, green eyes. Her porcelain skin was aglow.

"Oh, Emma, congratulations!" I threw my arms around her.

"God damn it, April, how I've missed this." She looked back at everyone, who'd somehow formed a large circle and smiled broadly. "Everyone, together at last. I know you were thinking it too – you had that look in your eyes."

"I have a look?"

"Yeah. Your forehead like –" she gestured with her hands towards my forehead. "It looks like you're giving people evils, but you're really just observing."

"Ah, well you know what the great Sherlock said: don't just see, observe. God, Benedict is good-looking. But Tom is too, you know. I mean, who can't go weak at the knees when he plays Loki and F. Scott Fitzgerald and Captain Nicholls." I pretended to sigh dreamily.

Aiden turned from some distance away and scowled at me. "Thanks, April. Way to make a guy feel secure."

"Stop eavesdropping!"

"I'm not! You're speaking so loudly that the whole circle can probably hear you!"

I looked at everyone defensively, but seeing the look of agreement on everyone's face, I turned away, embarrassed. At first, it felt like werewolves were Godly – but now, I realized that their enhanced powers were just as annoying as they were brilliant – especially when they would call you out on how scared you were at certain times (due your heartbeat) or the way they always beat you when you were racing to get the last slice of cheesecake.

Emma giggled and glanced down at her stomach. "Imagine a little Emma running around," I commented. "'Quick, lock up your children!'"

Emma shot me a look and I stopped grinning. "You know, Ap, I never realized how awkward you were around children until I saw you talking to one of the kids here." She broke out into a smile. Carlos had emerged behind her and rested an arm on one of her shoulders so he could look at me over her head.

"She's right. I can just imagine you offering a 256-page book to our kid and teaching them about the science of baking or something."

I scowled at him. I'd probably shake a toy in front of them or show them something shiny, like my phone. In my experience, children either preferred staring at your phone or staring at your teeth.

"Ah, no. You'll be great with her."

"Have you decided on a name?"

Carlos and Emma shared a knowing glance, as though they were telepathically communicating and shook their heads. "We're conflicted over a few names. But to be honest, I don't really know yet. We'll see what pops up in the future."

"I propose you call her April Jr. She could be my apprentice."

"No!" Daniel yelled from some way off. "Daniella! Or Danny! Name her after me! The best Uncle she'll ever have!"

At this, Diego, Aiden and Beau looked up, preparing to argue out who would be the best Uncle and I rolled my eyes. I already knew Beau would probably be the best - he was just too cute with babies.

Instantly, a vivid memory flashed across my eyes. The moment I met Emma - perky, beautifully eccentric, unconventional Emma with flamed hair who offered her friendship quicker than I could blink. Emma, who'd confided in me about her loneliness from other kids because of her quirky personality. Emma, who'd clashed with me over certain issues, who'd searched the woods at night with me for hours, who'd helped me get ready for little things, who'd advised me on issues I would've asked an older sister about - the same Emma I cried with and laughed with. It made my throat tighten as I looked at her and Carlos together - how far they'd both come.

God, how I appreciated that girl.

From the corner of my eye, I caught a darkening silhouette near the edge of the lawn, facing out towards one of the finest vistas of the garden. The one that had forest enveloping the horizon, colours soaring above it in an arch of sky and cloud, sun shifting to moon; it was quiet over there and I liked the look of it.

But Aiden looked peaceful over there.

And slightly upset, judging by the slump of his shoulders. The hang of his head.

Slowly, I made my excuses and edged away from the circle, moving towards him. I hesitated before calling his name softly.

"Do you want to be alone? I can leave. Just say the word." I attested, making a move away to show I was serious.

"No. It's fine. You can stay."

This time, I didn't make pointless rapport – it was clear to me that silence was the best antidote. Taking his hand, I moved away from the crowd and towards the woods; someone had taken the effort to string up fairy lights across the woods and it looked beautiful as it lit up.

After 5 minutes of walking, Aiden slipped his hand away, sighing. "April, where are you taking me?"

"To yourself."

"What?"

"Aiden," I sighed, "your mood changes like a bitch. I can ask you what's wrong and you can reply nothing and we can go back to the crowd, but I'm not going to do that because I love you. You're yourself when you're alone. I'm taking you away from the crowd to think."

"Ap," he edged towards me, eyes glowing green and grey in the darkness. "There's honestly nothing I'm not content with right now. I'm –" he shrugged, "finally happy with where I am and who I'm with. I'm just..." he blew out another breath. "I'm missing people."

"Your mum." I said softly.

He shook his head, hesitating.

"No? Then..." I paused, thinking.