Lunar's POV

Glimpsing over to Mathis, I watched as she climbed up a tree, cocking an eyebrow as she put her index finger over her mouth to motion me to keep quiet. Right above Jax was a wasp nest. Tapping Parker, I tapped my nose and motioned with my eyes to look up. He did, holding a laugh, "Hey, uh, Lunar, why don't we get some milkshakes for the group? I sure am parched!"

"Sounds good to me, what do you say Clarissa?" I held my laugh with a vigorous nod, standing up and shrugging, "Care to join us?"

She tilted her head, confused, and then followed where we pointed, her eyes wide with fear, "S-Sure! Race you?"

"Deal!" We cackled, gunning it as soon as Mathis cut the nest down. She practically launched herself off the tree as she ran. She was a lion pit of laughter, menacing and sadistic.

"Nice try, but they left the nest months ago. It's a little too chilly for them to stick around. Kiss my damn ass, Matty," We watched as the nest landed next to Jax, his face not even reacting as only a few wasps fell out, his hand lifting and flipping us off as he continued flipping through his magazine, a bored tone. He put his magazine into my bag, standing up and coming over to us, "But seriously, I want a milkshake."

"Fuck you," Mathis folded her arms in disappointment, a pout on her lips before she attempted to hop onto my back.

"You Lazy Bum, you can walk!" I scoffed, ducking, and watching her tumble.

"Somebody is no fun today. Did you get fucked too hard last night?" She whined as she ruffled my hair teasingly. Jax starting to laugh had my pupils be daggers at him, his hand miming a zipper and padlock as he kept quiet. He proceeded to pull out a package of a special type of cigarette. It was a type that wasn't filled with tobacco but burnable, powdered blood. He always did it when he was needing some blood, but he hated drinking around Clarissa, he was worried about scaring her over it. This just encouraged Matty, "What happened?"

Lifting the lighter, Jax lit the cigarette between his lips, chuckling as he puffed smoke at Mat, "Ask pretty boy here, I'm sure he'll be more embarrassed."

She looked straight at me, getting in my face, "Spill!"

I skid to a stop so I wouldn't run into her, almost stumbling, and knocking us both over, "I don't need to spill shit, damnit. Jax, you're an asshole! Nothing happened!"

"Bullshit, you're blushing," Parker teased, pointing to the Cadillac, "And I'm sure they aren't helping."

"Sometimes I wish I could do the neck-snapping thing to you all so I could run away," I huffed, watching as Jax blew out pretty red smoke, glaring at his devious little smirk.

"Payback is such a wonderful little bitch, ain't it? Almost as beautiful as today is. I love this time of year, don't year?" He sighed devilishly, looking up at the sky and then at me with a cocky grin. Leaning against the wall of the Shop, he watched as Mathis wrote down what everyone wanted, "Tell them Jax wants Strawberry."

He winked at Matty. Clarissa was clueless and just thought he meant actual strawberry. Praying Mantis looked at him with a small frown but nodded. She didn't approve of his waiting to tell Clarissa the truth, but at the same time, she understood it. Parker and I sat on the sidewalk, leaning on opposite ends of a lamppost, Parker perking up after a moment, "I haven't had shit from Anthien since the Play. Have any of you?"

He had a point; the Play was weeks ago and I hadn't gotten anything from Anthien. At least, I don't think I did... I put him on silent a long time ago, he'd always get a new number when I tried to block him. I furrowed my brows, pulling out my phone, "I haven't gotten any threat since the day after the Play. Has he been to the Club?"

"A few times, but I haven't seen him for about two weeks," Jax shrugged, finishing his cigarette, "Last time I saw him, he left with some of the Canines. Didn't look too good if I'm being honest. He was pissed."

Clarissa became ecstatic, chiming in as he slapped his hand over his mouth, "Puppies?"

She was clueless about what we were discussing, I felt bad. Parker and I looked at each other, awkwardly, Parker hesitating, "U-Uh... S-Sorta. They're pretty mean puppies, though. They get into a lot of trouble and pick fights."

She started to pout, sadness filling her eyes as she cuddled into Jax for comfort, "Poor things, bad owners are horrible."

Mathis came back out just in time, handing us our milkshakes. I was the only one who didn't get one. Instead, I had a water bottle, "Thanks, Mat."

Jax perked up as he was handed his, sitting with it as a happy camper and drinking from it, groaning, "Madam Elysium, yes, he added the good kind."

"What's the good kind?" Clarissa heckled, scrunching her face with curiosity, "It's just strawberries."

Chuckling, he replied, "With rum and vodka."

"Thought you couldn't handle alcohol," Mathis and I taunted in unison, laughing at our same thought process.

"I'm adjusting to it. It's a special kind so it's not as strong," He razzed back as he took a sip. Clarissa laid her head against his shoulder, playing with her shake. He tried to hide his smile by drinking his shake, lacing his hand with hers.

"Speaking of Satan himself," Parker grumbled, dropping his head. This drew our attention over to where he had been looking. Anthien was approaching us, but he didn't seem focused on us but passing through. He didn't look so great. He looked like a mess. Like he was dying on the inside but making himself look good.

Jax seemed to grow nauseous as Anthien passed through, drawing my attention over to him, "You and I need to talk."

He had this look like he'd seen death themself and they were coming for him, his jaw tight and horror in his irises. Without warning, he yanked my wrist, hard enough that it hurt. I tugged once we were far from the group, "Hey, hey, hey! Owe, Dude. Calm down!"

Turning, he looked at me, literally cornering me as he pointed where Leville went, "Anthien may be a pain in the ass but that --- what you saw --- Even that is cruel."

I grew confused, raising a brow with a roll of my eyes, "All they did was kick his ass."

"They didn't kick his ass, Lunar," He winced at my words like I had just insulted him or kicked him in the balls, "Lune, did you not notice the markings?"

Thinking about Anthien walking by, he did have some weird markings, along with a wrist chain. I couldn't understand why Jax suddenly cared about the asshole's wellbeing.

"When you pull too many issues into hand the Canines don't take it lightly," Jax explained, it almost sounded like he was afraid his words were going to kill him, "If they see you as an issue, they'll make you an example. They especially don't like it if that 'issue' pertains to a Claimed that is owned by a Fang. They punish you by taking out your canines and pouring boiling metal into where they were to make sure they can't grow back. Because it's so blisteringly painful, you're restrained as tightly as possible, and it can even break your connection with your wolf. He has those marks on his face from the metal leaking onto his skin. And the chain on his wrist? That's not just a chain, Lune. That is melted into his flesh. He's been marked as a Canine Pet, meaning if he causes any more issues and doesn't fix his bullshit, he'll be worse than their bitch. He'll be a meal."

I winced at the thought of the metal, shoving my hands into my pockets, as I focused on a rock I was messing with my shoe, "What do you mean by him fixing his bullshit?"

Jax hesitated, "By causing issues with you, he caused a war with the Fangs. Just because Ryker and Tyler haven't been showing aggression, it doesn't exactly mean the rest have done the same. Anthien has to fix his mess and help get the Canines back on the Fangs' good side. However, his actions of ignoring us mean he has no intentions of doing so. He still wants to get at your throat for being with a Fang than accepting his delusion of being with him."

"He can kiss my ass," This explanation only made me roll my eyes, starting to head back to the group. Anthien can be stubborn, but so am I. I'm not going to sit here and let him get himself killed.

Mathis looked at me confused as I grabbed my bag, taking a sip from her drink, "Where are we going?"

"I am going to go hang out with Douchebag," I corrected, putting on my backpack, causing her to jump to her feet, spitting out her milkshake, "Dumbass wants to play stupid? I'll kick his ass myself, then."

"The fuck is wrong with you?" She hissed, shooting a glare at Jax, knowing my actions were his fault, "What the fuck did you tell him?"

"Lunar, you are not," Jax warned, Mr. Lincoln's voice agreeing in unison as his shadow encased my body.

I side-stepped as soon as they reached for me, "I am. I'm not going to sit here and let shit happen just because you guys don't like him. I hate him, too, but not that fucking much."

"What's going on?" Clarissa's innocent confusion distracted them long enough that I could trail away, ducking through a couple of alleys to make sure I had lost them for a while. Looking around, I tried to think exactly where Anthien would hang out, especially when Lava Lamp, Jax's Club, was closed so he couldn't get drunk off his ass or fuck with people.

"Anthien," I called when I spotted him yards away, going into a sprint and catching up, "Wait up!"

He growled weakly at me, whimpering as he held his throat. The growling he tried to keep rolling with only seemed to make his whimpering worse, the grip on his throat tightening as he started to hack and cough, blood splattering onto the pavement, "Fuck off, Rat."

"Do we really have a choice to befriend each other?" I cocked an eyebrow at him, tilting my head, and watching him step back when I reach for him. He gave a look to say he wasn't the issue, my tone unamused, "I'm not the one who got punished for starting a war, am I?"

He shut up, whimpering as he coughed again, leaning against a lamppost as he spat up more blood, "F-Fuck."

"Stay here," I rolled my eyes, taking his unchained hand and leading him to the Café, sitting him at one of the booths, listening to his hurt puppy whines. Stepping to the counter, I smiled at the male, his face was pale as he looked from me to Anthien, "I need an iced coffee, please. Extra whipped cream and milk with a drizzle of caramel, chocolate syrup, and cherry with the stem still attached. Oh, and one of those super chocolatey cookies you guys have that have M&Ms."

"Are you sure you want to be hanging out with him?" The male did as requested whispering nervously. His wrist had a similar pattern to my neck, his iris pink and his ears pointed. He had the smallest fangs.

I ignored his question, giving a reassuring grin, paying him and taking the stuff over to the booth. Anthien looked surprised by my actions of buying him a drink and some food, "I thought you didn't like me."

"Don't get your hopes up," I retorted dryly, "You're still on my shit list."

He lifted the drink, sipping from it before pressing the side of the cup against his jaw. His tensity seemed to settle at the coldness pressing against his jaw, his shoulders relaxing, "Why are you here?"

"Jax told me about what they did to you," I replied, with a shrug, messing with the napkin I had been given, "Just because you're an asshole doesn't mean I can't try and forgive and help you."

"Forgive me for what? Liking you? Wanting you?" He disparaged, causing me to stand and begging walking away, I held back a smirk as he grabbed my wrist, "F-Fuck, alright! I'm sorry!"

I spun on my heel, looking at him with a curious look and a shrug, "Sorry for what? I never brought anything up. Clearly you feel guilty about something if you're already apologizing."

He dropped his head, defeated and not wanting to argue, "I'm sorry for causing so many problems with you. I just liked you... a lot. Even while babysitting you when you were a kid."

"That's not an excuse to rape somebody, Anthien," I frowned with narrowed eyes, sitting back down, "You raped me repeatedly and cornered me every chance you got. I told you no and begged you repeatedly to stop while crying. You made me feel trapped."

"I didn't know how else to show I liked you, damnit--"

"Anthien, you raped me," I interrupted, repeating the word to engrain it into his damn skull, "Then harassed and bullied me. If it hadn't been for Mathis being my best friend, I probably would have committed suicide, I have the self-harm scars to prove I wasn't alright. I have my parents who didn't even know until the night of the carnival. I get not knowing how to flirt. I get you were abused. But Anthien, that does not excuse what you did to me. It doesn't excuse what you did to my friends. You have this delusion that I am yours, but I'm not. You attacked the people who were protecting me. You attacked me for denying you when I had a right to deny you. No offense, but why in the fucking hell would I want to be with you after the things you did?"

Saying this was like a huge weight off my shoulders. I'd been holding it in for years, wanting to say it out loud but never thinking I'd get the chance. He became quiet, holding the cup to his jaw, "I-I wasn't trying to hurt you. I was only trying to make you like me for being possessive."

I busted into laughter, "Anthien, no offense, but you have a shitty way of showing possessiveness. You weren't being possessive; you were being abusive and toxic. If there were worse words to use than abusive and toxic, I'd use those."

He frowned, furrowing his eyebrows at me, puzzled by my words, "I was only doing what my father did to my mother. He said that was the correct way to get somebody to be with you."

"And look how that turned out," I replied bluntly, pointing my finger at his wounds. He tried to hide his chained wrist, but he couldn't hide his face, "You could have been killed, Anthien. Do you really think your behavior has been acceptable?"

"Well, clearly not now. Goddamn it, I'm sorry! Would you sit the fuck down?" He remarked dryly, scowling at me, snarling at my getting up. I started to walk away, hearing him smack his hands against his face and yelp from the pain in his jaw, "Please, sit down! I'm sorry."

"I am willing to start over with you," With a sigh, I sat back down, folding my arms over my chest, watching the shock rush through his face, "Because there's a difference between forgiving and forgetting and forgiving and moving on. Forgiving and forgetting is acting like shit didn't happen and trying to forget the actions of the person who hurt you but forgiving and moving on is starting over with the person but holding their actions accountable. I'm never going to forget the trauma. I'm never going to get over the trauma. But that doesn't mean I can't help my abuser make a better future from my past. If I forgive and forget, that would mean it didn't happen and we go our separate ways while I live in fear of you attacking me again. Whereas, forgiving and moving on means I can move on by making sure you behave by teaching you the faults of your actions. I'd rather befriend and help my abuser get better than risk him being killed because he didn't get help. Now, how's your jaw?"

"Hurting like a bitch," He hesitated, millions of emotions attacking his mind, "It's very unpleasant."

I stood up, holding out my hand, "Come on, I think I can get your mind off the pain."

Without taking my hand, he stood up, following me out of the Café and towards one of the parks, "If this is a trap, I'll kick your ass."

I started to chuckle, "I don't think my elaborate plan to kill you would have to take this long to pull you to me."

"Fair point, where are we going?"

"Do you remember that lake in the woods behind the park near the city? The one we went to as kids and then forgot about?" He sipped his coffee, nodding as I smiled, "Matty and I started hanging out up there, we made a new hideout... Even added a rope to swing into the water."

He let out a chuckle, raising a brow as he eyed me, "Aren't there leeches in the lake?"

"Are you chicken?"

He let out a heartfelt laugh, spitting out some of his drink as he choked, starting to cough, "You are what you eat, right?"

This was probably the first time I'd heard him laugh and it wasn't during a moment he was being abusive or cruel. It gave me hope as I joined his chortling, "No wonder your breath smells like blood and chicken."

"Just because I'm in pain doesn't mean I can't enjoy some damn food," He took a big drink of his coffee, dumping the rest onto my head, "Any now you smell like coffee."

My mouth gaped open as I watched the coffee drip from my hair, "And now you shall meet death."

"Death sounds beautiful coming from you," He smirked, a gentle and innocent flirt, "Too bad, you've got to catch me first."

I was alright with the light flirtation; it was normal to do. Plus, I'd prefer this over the other things he could do. He dodged as I lunged at him, tossing his trash into the garbage can and ducking as I tried to catch him, "If only killing you made my future of being sticky from coffee falter!"

"I'd make a joke, but I think we both know I'm not joking when I say it," He ran backward, a slight pause in his steps, chuckling at my lack of catching him, "Are you struggling, there? I'm not even trying to run."

"I'm human," I huffed, "This is unfair! Jax and Parker would be a great help right now!"

Stopping, I panted, needing a small break. Anthien laughed as he stopped, but continued to slowly back up, "Maybe it'd help if ya didn't have a backpack waying you down."

I tossed my bag up onto the hideout that Mathis and I had made, going back to chasing him, "Come here!"

Dodging, he caught me by my collar before I could land in the lake, "You are shit at watching where you're going."

"Really need to work on that part," I coughed from my shirt choking me, holding my throat as he let go. I took my opportunity of a distraction to push him into the lake, "Haha!"

Coming up for air, he scrunched his face, "This water smells like ass."

"Hey, it fits you!"

"Oh, now, I'm going to kill you!" He razzed as I ran towards the park, "And not just because of that comeback! There are leeches in this fucking lake, and you knew that!"

"Chicken!!" I retorted, watching as he took off leeches. He gave up on looking in his shirt and just took it off, taking leeches off and draining his shirt.

"Oh, haha... I'll get you in a minute. I've got to stop smelling like lake water, first," He puffed, still draining his shirt as he headed over to the splash pad. He lifted his hand and flipped me off as he backed up to where the buckets were going to drop, "Bring the Rain, bitch!" We both jumped when it thundered, making him cackle, "Goddamn it, I didn't mean that!"

I ran to grab my bag, jogging over to the bathroom area and putting it and my phone there so they'd stay dry.