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"Mate? Can I mark you?"

Abort! Abort! STOP TALKING!

She finally moves, but only to let her hand drop back to her lap. The loss of her touch is keenly felt but I push that desire down to focus on the conversation.

NO, FOCUS ON ME!

"What do you mean?" she asks and I jump up to my knees excitedly at the curiosity in her voice.

STOP IGNORING ME!

"It's how I can show everyone else you're mine!" My arms wrap around her calves and I hug them tightly, my heart beating erratically at the thought that she might be open to this. "Please let me do it, ?" I draw out the last word as I beg hard.

Mate laughs a little and shakes her head. "You have to explain. What is marking? I'm guessing another werewolf thing?"

Outside in the hall I distinctly hear four paws drawing closer. That sound and the warning bells going off are unheard when I'm this close to what I want. I need to get it out before anyone can stop me.

She's going to kill us if you tell her. The reason I gave her the book was because it describes it better. Stop-

"Ahuh." I nod happily. "All I have to do is bite you once right there!" I point at our spot on her neck where it smells just right. "That's the best place ever and it's because that's where I need to bite-"

"WHAT?" I flinch when Mate yells and shrink back down to sit on my butt. "YOU WANNA DO WHAT TO ME?"

"I..." My knees shuffle uncomfortably on the floor and I look down at them. "Want to mark you?"

"Mark me?" A huff of air is pushed out of her mouth. "Mark me? You want to brand me like cattle? I'm a person, Namjoon! You don't get to own me."

The way she called me Namjoon hurts but I can't fixate on that right now. My head shoots up to meet her angry gaze and shakes back and forth frantically. "No, no, Mate! It's not like that."

Her arms cross and the glare she directs at me makes my whole body cower. Hoseok's wolf was scary? Not compared to my mate. She's the scariest.

"Then explain it."

"It's..." What is it like? What's the difference between branding cattle and marking my mate? They brand cattle to show who the animal belongs too. I mark my mate to...show who she belongs to. No, that's not right.

Namjoon, a little help here.

Namjoon?

Namjoon?

NAMJOON?

Nope.

Please?

Go away.

Oh no. What do I do? Mate is mad and scary and Hoseok's wolf is sitting right outside the door, ready to pounce on me. I'm stuck between a rock and hard place with no wiggle room. Mate's anger is real and radiating off of her in waves and adds something decidedly spicy to her scent. It makes my nose itch and I don't like it.

"I'm...kidding?"

She doesn't buy the excuse and I didn't expect her to, especially when it doesn't sound believable coming out of my own mouth.

"I'm sorry," I decided on hanging my head and begging for forgiveness instead, though I can't understand why she won't let me mark her. The last thing I expected was for it to make her feel like cattle. "I didn't mean to make you mad...marking doesn't mean I'm branding you, there's a lot more to it but Namjoon is mad at me too and won't explain-"

Idiot.

"-he says I'm an idiot-"

And hard headed.

"-and hard headed-"

And too possessive.

"-and too possessive—wait, no I'm not! I'm the right amount! If anything, I'm not possessive enough! Mate is my mate, she's !" I catch eyes with her and duck my head again. "Sorry." Then whisper under my breath, "but not really."

"I HEARD THAT."

A soft thump from out in the hall makes it way to my ears, I think it's that scary wolf sitting down. He must have assumed that any 'danger' has passed, but it's pointless if you ask me. I won't ever hurt my mate, no matter the circumstance. However, she might hurt me.

There's a tired sigh mixed with a groan that comes out of her. When I peek in her direction she's rubbing her hands through her hair to calm down. Usually it's put up messily in a bun. Today it's down and tucked behind her ears. I prefer it up because she looks really yummy like that but she's beautiful no matter what in my eyes.

"Let's just," she begins after a moment of silence, "let's pretend this never happened. I'll talk to Namjoon about it later."

I carefully lift my head back up and tentatively tell her, "he says you need to read the book."

"Fine. I'm tired. I'll go put on my pjs-"

"You're leaving?!?" she startles at the sudden incline of my tone.

"Just for a second."

"Change in here." I beg and she gives me an incredulous look.

"Uuuuh no."

"I won't look I promise!" I plead with her to stay, mostly because I don't want her near that scary wolf, but in part the fact that I can't stand to have her out of my sight for that long. What if she falls and dies?!? It's possible.

"I mean-" her eyes shift to the door and she says in embarrassment, "I have to pee."

Oh. Well I can fix that. "Wait," I glance around the room until I find what I'm searching for. Namjoon's trashcan.

Don't do it.

In two seconds I've clambered to my feet and shot across the room to pick it up and hold it proudly out to her. "Go in this!"

Why are you doing this to me?

To my confusion Mate starts to laugh with a disbelieving look on her face. "Fluffy," she giggles, "no."

"Why not?"

STOOOOOOP.

Namjoon is screaming and Mate is giggling while rifling through her bag. "Because it's not a toilet and I need to brush my teeth, too."

"But—but-" I scramble for words to convince her to stay. "Mate, please, you can't go out there." My eyes widen when she moves for the door. I jump in front of her. "He's out there."

"Who?" her eyes drift to the door and then it clicks. "You mean Hoseok?" I nod. "He's upstairs?" I nod again. "Then I'll ask him to go downstairs while I go use the restroom."

"No, you stay here. I'll ask him."

"You really think he'll listen to you telling him to go away and leave you alone here with me? The person he's looking out for?"

That's...a good point. I frown, realizing she's right. Just the thought of that wolf looking at her makes me uneasy. He won't hurt her and I understand that. It's that Hoseok's wolf is very...scary.

My growing anxiety is slightly melted away when she cups my face in her hands.

"I'll be ok. It's right across the hall. If I fall in the toilet I'll call you to help me out."

I grab her shoulders with the utmost urgency and stare into her eyes, trying to drive it into her brain how dire this situation is. In fact, this is most serious I've ever been in my entire LIFE.

" fall in the toilet."

I don't know why but for a second there it looked like she was going to laugh at me. Why is this amusing?? Doesn't she know how much danger she's in?!?

"Come on," she lets go of my face to hold one of my hands and makes a move for the door.

I swing her back around to stand behind me. "No, we'll go like this. Stay behind me at all times until I say it's safe."

She sighs. "Fine."

—

Edited 5/30/22