Klepto POV

"What are you doing here?" The haughty voice leaves no question of who is asking me such a thing.

Tressa stands in the doorway, leaning against the doorframe with her hip jutted out in an effort to look sultry, but it just comes off as ridiculous.

I'm at my house, or my parents house I guess I should say.

It has been a week since the pack run, and I am still feeling totally and utterly depressed. To make it worse, I barely got any time with my Aunt Emilia, and she's leaving today.

Seeing it as my last chance to see her, I had woken up early and made my way over here in a hurry.

I'm not going to skip the opportunity to interact with someone who doesn't think I'm absolute trash. It's not often I find a person who actually cares about me.

"I'm coming to see Aunt Emilia off." I say slowly, trying to get it through her thick skull and into her itty bitty brain. Hopefully she'll understand something as simple as that.

She rolls her eyes and hooks her thumbs through the belt loops on her low rise jeans.

"Yeah, whatever." She says, letting me past reluctantly.

As soon as I walk through the door, she narrows her crystal blue eyes down at me.

"I'm sure you heard about what happened to Nathan?" I nod my head and she continues, "You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?" The suspicion in her question is obvious, it's clearly an accusation.

"Nope." I say, shrugging my shoulders innocently. I don't think she buys it even if I am the best actress around.

"Hmmm." She hums in thought, rubbing at her arm subconsciously.

I'm surprised to spot a dark bruise maring her tan limb. It's large, and roughly the size of a fist. I squint at it as if it's about to disappear.

"Um, what happened?" I ask, actually feeling concern for her.

She glances down at her skin, her eyebrows furrowing, and her mouth drops open. Her hand immediately wraps around her arm, shielding it from my view.

"Nothing." She insists, walking up the stairs without another word.

I can't help being curious about what ex's happened to her. If she acts like nothing is wrong, then something is definitely wrong. I've never seen her be so quiet and reserved.

"Hey there, Kleppy." Aunt Emilia calls, and I smile before following her jovial voice down the hallway.

I find her sitting cross legged on the floor, eating a cup of yogurt in the middle of the living room rug.

It's a very Aunt Emilia thing to do.

"You know we have a dining room, right? With a table and everything." She rolls her eyes at my sass and dips the spoon into the yogurt while pursing her pink lips.

I sit on the floor beside her, studying the vintage suitcase parked by the couch. Itms covered in 60's style green and orange flowers, so I know it has to belong to her.

"When are you leaving?" I ask in a somber tone, not wanting to address the fact that she's disappearing again. Who knows when I will ever see her again.

She glances at me over her shoulder as she licks the spoon clean, shrugging her shoulders.

"Sometime today. I've got a bus schedule printed out, and since your Alpha has refused to let anyone give me a ride, I'll be leaving on foot." She says in a light voice.

Another thing about our Alpha, he hates rogues, even if they aren't violent. What else do you expect from a guy who lost his mate and Luna to a rogue attack? It's a wonder he lets Emilia stay.

"Why don't you just stay?" I ask, knowing full well what the answer will be.

"Because... they're waiting on me." The amount of pain in that sentence is enough to make my heart sink. Aunt Emilia longs for her mate, and I'm the only one who knows it. I hope she'll find someone who loves and accepts her for who she is. She needs someone who will treasure her.

I know the suffering that comes with a rejection, and I never want her to feel that, or anyone else for that matter.

As if sensing my pain, she snuggles closer to me, wrapping a thin arm around my shoulders and squeezing tight.

"I'm sure you'll be fine here, pumpkin." She murmurs, "Some day, you'll break free from this pack, I know you will. Just you wait and see."

"Somehow I doubt that." I say, and she laughs.

"Believe me, I never thought I'd leave either, but look at me! Livin' the dream." She sounds so proud, and she should be. Her life is peachy.

Breaking free of this hellhole seems impossible though. Especially since I don't want to be a rogue, and I will not leave the little boys that bring sunshine into my life.

Life will become a lot better once Ezra leaves for good.

Aunt Emilia snakes her arm back to her yogurt cup, scraping the sides to get every last drop.

"So how's your mate?" I nearly choke when she asks that question, I definitely wasn't expecting that one.

"Bu.. how.... I don't..." I sputter, trying to make a sentence and failing miserably. How does she know about him?

"How do I know about him?" She asks, as if she's some sort of psychic. I nod with a stunned look painted on my face, my mouth hanging open slightly. Aunt Emilia chuckles, her slim shoulders shaking.

"It was hard not to notice when he was dragging you through the pack grounds by your arm." She cackles, "You should've seen the look on your face! It was even more entertaining than the one you have on right now."

I quickly wipe the expression of shock off, frowning at my Aunt.

"How did you guess it was Ezra?"

Her eyes widen.

"The look on his face was enough to let me know. It was like he was pissed and in love all at the same time. That expression means one thing, and that's a mate." She shrugs, "And, I mean, I didn't know for sure, but you sure confirmed didn't you?"

My crazy, hippie Aunt is laughing again, but I'm anything but amused right now.

"You can't tell anyone. Seriously, Aunt Emilia, no one can know about this."

Hearing the franticness in my voice, she straightens and narrows her pretty brown eyes at me.

"What do you mean?" She questions.

I sigh, knowing this is going to be a doozy.

"Well, he's been so... hot and cold. One minute he's telling me he cares and the next he tells me that he can't accept me as his mate. It's so infuriating and I can't take much more." I blow out a frustrated breath, running my fingers through my hair, "I just want him gone. I'll be better off."

I am just trying to convince myself. As much I wholeheartedly believe he is an asshole, a little tiny part of me still wants him and I absolutely hate myself for it.

The mate bond is a little seed in the bottom of my heart, and that seed will grow and completely take over if I water it.

"That's awful, and he's a jerk, but don't let that make you feel down. He is lucky to get a mate like you! If he is so set on letting you slip away, it's his loss." She elbows me in the side, and I can't help it, I smile at the compliment because it makes me feel good.

People rarely compliment me, and I enjoy when someone does.

"Now, all you gotta do is show him what he's missing. Hold your head up high, and don't give him the time of day." Aunt Emilia's advice was what I was already planning on doing, but hearing her say it out loud gave me more determination.

Before I can say anything else, someone walks into the room and I jump a little.

My Dad stands in the doorway, his gaze flicking from Emilia to me and back again. His tan skin is lighter from the lack of sun, and there is a glint of nervousness in his stormy gray eyes.

"Klepto, What are you doing here?" He asks the same question that Tressa did, but the tone is much different in comparison.

It's hard being around my Dad, looking at him always reminds me of the way he use to be before I turned out to be a freak.

I don't think he truly despises me the way my Mother does, but it's more like he is going along with what she wants. She is a very manipulative woman, I can only imagine what she did to him.

Not to mention the fact that he works for Alpha Green of all people. The Alpha that despises my existence.

"Just seeing Aunt Emilia before she leaves." I reply stiffly, feeling suddenly awkward.

Apparently Emilia feels the same way, she stands up and backs away, slowly walking down the hall, empty yogurt cup still in hand.

"I'll say goodbye in a little bit, I've got to finish... uh.. packing some more things." She says quickly before sprinting away. I roll my eyes and look back to my Dad.

His posture is too straight, and he watches me like a hawk.

"So, how have things been?"

"Things? What things? Oh, being banished to the pack office building? It's been great, thanks for asking." I add as much sarcasm as I can, smirking at him while I get up off of the floor, brushing my hands on my knees.

"Don't give me that, young lady. It's better than being kicked out of the pack." He says, and I can tell he isn't exactly mad, just trying to make me see reason.

"Is it?" I ask, and he shifts uncomfortably.

My Father is silent for several seconds.

"Yes, believe it or not, I can't stand the thought of you being a rogue. Out there all alone." He says taking a deep breath and shaking his head.

I laugh at him.

"I'm alone here, Dad, that's what you don't get. I have nobody here. Felix and Daniel were all I had, and now I can't even see them whenever I want!"

His lips turn down, and he shakes his head again in frustration.

"I know you're mother would disapprove, Klepto, but you can come see them whenever you want." He pauses a beat before sighing, "You can come to me with anything, I know I haven't been the best lately, but I've been under a lot of stress from the Alpha. You know I love you."

I do know he loves me, and I do know that Alpha Green gives him a whole lot of crap for bringing me into this world, I just wish my Dad acted like he did when I was a kid.

Like I'm his world.

"I love you too." I whisper.

He gets closer and I reach out for him, wrapping my arms around him and burying my face in his chest.

Maybe he isn't the same wolf he was when I was a pup, but I can pretend.

So I cling closer to him and I pretend, just for a moment.

❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀ ✿ ❀

If you're reading this, I love you:)

❤️