The sun pouring in through the window woke her. Sunshine, finally. She didn't mind rain, but she didn't like riding around in it either. She scooted down to the foot of her bed and opened the window. The damp earth and freshly-washed plant life smelled glorious even over the smell of the wet brick and cement that dipped two stories beneath her room. Spring was definitely her favorite time of year. If she didn't have a class to go to, she'd go for a long jog before it got steamy.

She quickly dressed, downed a couple of pop-tarts and a swig of milk from the small refrigerator in the bottom of her closet, and threw on her backpack. At the bottom of the stairs, instead of turning toward the front desk, she turned toward the men's wing on the first floor to take the shortcut out the side exit.

"Hey Aiyana!"

She looked back over her shoulder. Michael was standing by the front door giving her a come-hither wave. Strange. Until two days ago he'd never paid her any attention.

She shook her head. "I have to go to class," she yelled as quietly as she could while pointing at the door. Half the students were probably still in bed.

He waved like he was trying to pull her closer. "You have a visitor."

A visitor? Who would visit her at this time in the morning on a Tuesday? She turned away from her shorter exit and toward the front door. She could talk for a few minutes and then jog to class, or maybe whoever it was wouldn't mind walking with her.

The furry face of a large gray and white wolf with a bandaged head was pressed up against the glass on the front door. He looked so silly, a giggle escaped her. He dropped down to all fours as she pushed open the door.

"Nate, what are you doing here?"

He whined and clawed at the cement. "All right, follow me."

"What does he want?" Michael asked behind her.

"To play in the sand I think. He's a rather silly dog."

"He doesn't look silly. You should get him a leash. There's a law."

She didn't have a leash. Maybe a belt would work. Oh, duh. "Can I check out one of the jump ropes?"

"Sure."

Time was ticking. She was going to be late, but she couldn't take Nate to class with her, could she? Maybe if she sat in the back. Hopefully there was no one in the class allergic to dogs.

She led him away from the door and Michael's prying eyes before making a loop in the rope big enough for Nate's head. "Will you wear this for me so we don't scare anyone?"

He touched the rope with his nose and she slipped it over his head.

"I'm running late for class. Can the answer to my question wait or is there an emergency?"

He put his head against her chest. She put her hand on his head. It surprised her how much she'd missed him now that he was here. It had only been two days.

"I guess I should ask a better question. Do you want to go to class with me?"

He nodded.

"Come on then, we need to run."

It felt like everyone on campus turned to watch them go by. No one stopped her as she led Nate into the building - they were too busy pushing themselves into the wall to give them room to pass or abruptly deciding they should go the other way. They got to class with one minute to spare. The teacher was already up front but she was speaking with the TA and had her back to the door. Aiyana urged Nate through the door and immediately to the left. The other students didn't look pleased, but they didn't say anything. She sat behind the table at the end of the last row. Nate crawled under the table and was soon not quite snoring, but breathing long and deep. She was tempted to take off her shoes and use him as a footrest. How rude would that be? Somehow, she didn't think he would mind. How had he found her? The farm was five miles away and he was blind. He couldn't have tracked her scent - she hadn't been there since the last full moon.

The professor used up every single minute of class trying to cram in all the information on the syllabus that they hadn't yet covered. She was going to have to go over her notes later today or else she'd forget all the things she hadn't had time to write down, but first, she'd have to take care of Nate. She took her time stuffing her things back in her backpack to give everyone else time to leave before she woke him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Kobe Bass, the only other werewolf in her year who had also been accepted into the DMV early admissions program, glared down at her from the other side of the table.

"Sitting here."

"With him," he lowered his voice, "that way?"

"He's injured. Besides, everyone thinks he's a dog."

"Only idiots would think that."

"A wolf-dog then." She looked directly up into his face. "Why are you so upset about it?"

"I'm not," he blustered, looking down to avoid her eyes.

She smiled to herself. Kobe was smart and sweet but he was also easily intimidated, at least by her. It was very different from the way most other wolves treated her.

"I'm going to take him back to the farm. I just brought him here because I was running late for class. I heard Professor Turner always puts something from the last lecture on the final exam and I didn't want to miss anything."

Kobe bravely raised his head again. "Who is he?"

"His name is Nate. He's from the Yellowstone pack."

"Why is he here?"

Did he mean in the state or in class? She decided to go with class since Nate's business was his own.

"I don't know. He just showed up at my door this morning."

There were only a few stragglers now. She ducked under the table and ran her hand down Nate's back. "Hey, class is over."

He lifted his head, but didn't open his eyes. She supposed that didn't matter.

"Did you have a nice nap?"

He yawned and put his head back down.

"Still tired, huh. I thought you wanted to tell me something."

His tail wagged and he started to lumber to his feet.

"Wait. You're still under the table. Come toward me. I'll tell you when you're clear."

The way he crawled out with his belly touching the floor made her laugh. "You're not that tall."

"Do you need a ride to the farm?" Kobe asked. "Or did you get a car yet?"

"No car, but it's not that far." Only five miles, but she had time before her next class.

Nate yipped at her.

"And we have to do something else first." She threw her backpack over her shoulder and picked up the make-shift leash around Nate's neck.

"You put a leash on him?" He made it sound like she'd turned Nate into her slave.

"There's a law, remember."

"Yeah, but there are better ways..." he waved his hand in front of his body.

"He's stuck."

Trying not to smirk at the dumbfounded look on Kobe's face, she squatted beside Nate to whisper in his ear. If she were blind she would want as few wolves as possible to know. Wolves usually healed so quickly that anyone with a permanent injury - which was extremely rare - was regarded with much pity. "Stay close to my leg. When I get to the wall I'll turn."

He turned his long nose toward her and she tensed, expecting another lick, but he just nudged her cheek with his wet nose. She returned the favor, then led him around the table and toward the door.

"Is he your mate?" Kobe asked behind her, rather demanding she thought. She'd never asked, but like most wolves, he probably hadn't found his yet.

"No. He's a friend."

—————————-"I am your mate!" he wanted to scream. He didn't since it would sound really weird coming from his wolf mouth. He plodded along obediently behind her, trusting she'd warn him of curbs and other obstacles. He couldn't remember ever feeling so weak and tired. The darkness that was now his world felt like it was closing in on him, encroaching into the other parts of the world he could still enjoy.

"We're here Nate."

Already? He sat down, glad for the respite.

"I thought you wanted to tell me something?"

Right.

They want 2 take me home, he spelled out. Ugh this was slow. He had to make big letters because of his paws and each word overlapped the other because it would be too obvious if he were to move around to make sentences, not to mention he couldn't see what he was doing.

"Is that bad?"

I won't leave U.

"Your pack is much bigger than ours. They probably have better doctors there."

I waited 3 years 2 find U.

"Three years?"

He nodded. Felt U 3 years ago. Waited 2 finish school. Wanted 2 B free 2 stay. Wish I'd come then.

"But I'm not..."

He cut her off with a growl. Oh shoot, he'd growled at his mate. He hung his head. How could she not feel it? The link was so strong now he'd had no problems finding her this morning. He wasn't even sure if he'd taken the road or walked through fields. He'd just followed the link.

She draped her arm around his shoulders and despite the irritation he felt at her, he snuggled against her. He couldn't help himself.

"How did you find me this morning?"

I followed our bond.

"But we don't have a bond. We can't. There must be another wolf in the dorm."

It's U. Tell me Y U think it can't B.

Her hand trailed slowly down from his head to his side, then lifted and started at the top again. He didn't need to see her face to know she was debating whether to tell him or not.

Please.

Her hand paused between his ears and she sighed. "Three years ago, on my eighteenth birthday..."

May 1, he wrote.

He didn't see her nod, but he felt the movement. "I was at school."

It was Tuesday.

Her hand clenched in his fur for a moment. "Yes. I woke up and I knew I was going to find my mate. I could feel it. I tried really hard to make myself presentable that morning. I wore my best jeans and tried to get my hair to do something other than a pony-tail. It didn't matter. I was such a fool. I thought whoever was destined to be my mate wouldn't care who I was."

I care who U R.

She leaned her cheek against his head. "I meant," she sighed. "I wasn't popular in school. In fact, if you lined everyone one up by popularity I'd probably be either last or next to last. I went to a very small school. There are about 220 students there K through 12. I went there nearly my whole life. Anyway, I got to school and went to my morning classes, looking for him, but he wasn't there. I knew he was somewhere in the school though, so at lunch I went searching. He was waiting for me behind the bus shed. Cliff Reid, the most handsome, popular, and athletic boy in the school. I went right up to him, smiling, looking like an idiot, I'm sure. He waited until I was close enough to touch, then he pushed me. I was so surprised I tripped and fell on my rear. He said, 'No, and stay away. I refuse to be mated to something like you.' "

Nate wanted to pummel the guy and pull Aiyana to his chest at the same time, both of which were impossible at the moment.

What a dog.

"Yeah," Aiyana agreed.

That's when I felt U, he wrote, that morning, near noon. There's more. Something else, a few weeks later.

"Yes," she let out a long, shaky breath. "We had a class trip planned to San Antonio, Texas. We'd been collecting money from fundraisers since the start of 9th grade. I'd never been to Texas so I decided to go even though he would be there with his girlfriend."

Girlfriend?

"Yes, pretty, popular, they were always together."

Wolf?

"No. Anyway, one of the parents had one of those large passenger vans, so all the students and a chaperone rode in it and the rest of the chaperones took cars. Cliff and Kyli were in the back seat, making out. I tried to sit as far forward as I could, but I could still sense him and I think he knew that what he was doing was ...painful to me. I was distracted. I should have smelled the peanuts on my fingers, but I took a bite, and then it was too late."

Peanuts?

Her laugh came out like a bark. "I'm probably the only wolf in history to be deathly allergic to peanuts. My whole class knew about my allergy, but someone brought snacks with peanuts in them and after eating them, touched the snack bags available to the whole class. I picked up one of those bags and got a little on my fingers and then my food. I knew what was happening right away. I always carry an epipen, and injected myself. They still took me to the hospital. I could have joined the class later but I didn't want to be around him any more. I had my aunt drive all the way down to the hospital to pick me up. I never made it to Texas. I haven't seen him since then."

I felt it. You were sad. I wanted 2 go 2 U, but I was starting an internship. I thought U cud feel me 2. I hoped U would come 2 me.

"That's just it, I don't feel anything."

Not even 2 him?

She was quiet for several moments. "I don't know. I haven't tried or wanted to since that day. I always thought it was because I was far enough away that I couldn't. He got a basketball scholarship to a college not far from where we grew up. I assume he's still there."

Even if I were on the moon, I could feel U.

He could feel her shaking her head. "I don't think the bonds work that way."

Ours does.

"Yours does. Not mine. I can't have two mates, and I know that was a mating bond. Cliff felt it too. I've never heard of someone having two bonds."

How could he convince her? Wolves don't have allergies either.

"Not true. What about silver?"

Doesn't count. All R allergic.

"Except me. I got peanuts instead. I think silver would be easier to avoid."

He nearly licked her cheek but remembered just in time that she didn't like it and nosed her instead.

"Hey Rivers, if you and your mutt are finished playing in the sand, think we could have the court?" a female voice called behind them.

He felt Aiyana stand beside him. "Sure, Booker. I know how desperately you need the practice."

"You wish."

Nate sniffed and nearly sneezed as the girl came closer. Had she bathed in perfume?

"You'll find out Saturday, unless, of course, your teammates stand you up again," Aiyana said

"At least I don't have to sleep with all of mine to keep them interested," the Booker girl said.

"You have to sleep with some of them?"

"Funny. Hey, what's wrong with your dog?"

Nate sat back down and waiting for the woozy feeling to pass. Aiyana put her hands on either side of his head and lifted it toward her. "Nate, are you OK?"

He shook his head just enough for her to feel it. His stomach chose at that moment to made a loud noise.

"Did you have anything to eat this morning?"

He shook his head again.

"You didn't feed him," the girl asked.

"He's not mine. He just showed up this morning. I know him though. I better go find his owner."

She didn't meant that did she? He refused to budge when she tugged on his rope leash.

"Nate, come on, we're in the way of their game."

He put his head down between his paws.

"I didn't mean it." Her tone became beguiling. "If you come with me I'll get you a hamburger."

He barked twice.

"Okay, two hamburgers."

He barked again.

"With fries."

"Huh, I didn't know you were bilingual. It's not everyone who can speak dog," the Booker girl teased.

"Lucky me," Aiyana sighed. "Come on, Nate. There's a place in the student union that makes burgers."

He stood, but immediately felt dizzy again.

"Take it slow."

He tried again, but tripped over something and stumbled after the first few steps. He felt the warmth of her body beside him as her arm fell over his shoulders. Then felt her breath against the sensitive fur inside his ears as she whispered, "Let's try to sneak you into my room and I'll get you some water. You can stay there until I'm back."

It was a good thing she was his mate because he was already head over tail in love with her.

——————————————-She received four calls while she was in class, one from her aunt and three from Doc Brown. She called the doctor back as she started toward the Student Union. Her aunt would be at work by now.

The doctor picked up before she heard it ring.

"Aiyana, is Nate with you?"

"Yes."

He let out a relieved breath. "That's what we figured. Where are you? His parents are waiting to take him back to Yellowstone."

"He doesn't want to go."

"They want him to go though. They have a better set-up up there and a doctor who's an expert on the were-gland."

"Couldn't the expert come here?"

"It makes more sense for him to go there."

He was right, of course. "I'll try to talk him into it. He's not feeling well. I think he's just hungry, but he was having trouble walking. I'm getting him some food now."

"Trouble walking?"

"Stumbling, weaving. It looked like he was either drunk or very tired."

"Have you got the food yet?"

"No, I'm still walking to the Union."

"Go back and keep an eye on him. I'll pick something up."

"I promised him two burgers and fries."

"Two burgers? Check. I'll get you one too."