cloud

The room is silent when I wake up. Groaning to myself, I try to sit up but the pounding feeling within my head stops my movements. Blinking rapidly, I try to remedy the blurriness that's overtaking my vision.

Where am I?

Slowly turning my head to the side, I notice that I'm in an all-white room. There's nobody else here. Where were Mom and Dad? Where was Gray? My heartbeat speeds up nervously and I try to sit up once again. I'm barely off the table when I notice the chains holding my body down.

"You're finally awake!" An unfamiliar voice calls out excitedly.

I turn around and catch a glimpse of a dark-haired man. He stares at me with a wide smile as if he knew me.

"Who are you?" I ask quieter than intended. "Where am I?"

The man doesn't reply right away, instead, he walks towards me and his hands comb through my hair causing my body to tense up. His eyes meet mine and his smile grows.

"Welcome to your new home, Cloud."

...

My eyes snap open and I quickly sit up. My hands immediately wrap around my wrist and I take deep breaths before shaking my head.

It was just a dream.

Glancing around the room, I force myself to calm down once I realize I was still in Raiden's home. Getting off the couch, I run my hands over my face before standing up. Despite the sun being out, the house was still quiet meaning that either Raiden wasn't here or it was still early and he was asleep.

Moving quietly, I slowly open the door to Raiden's room, and sure enough, he was fast asleep there. I close the door and make my way toward the kitchen. Digging around, I begin to take items and move them into a bag in the cabinet underneath the sink. Small items; not enough to make Raiden realize, but enough to last until I could get far enough away from the pack.

The thought of leaving causes me to pause. Before all I wanted to do was get away, but now I couldn't stop picturing Raiden's face. I knew he'd be heartbroken if I left, but he'd get over it. He would have to. Staying would only hurt him.

"What are you doing?"

Turning around, I see Raiden staring at me with a sleepy expression on his face.

"Just looking for food," I lie. "Not being able to cook limits my options."

Raiden nods before smiling at me. "Give me a second and we can either make or go get something," he offered.

I watch ad Raiden leaves the room before shaking my head and sighing to myself. The faster I could leave, the better.

Closing the cabinets, I exit the kitchen and begin to walk toward the living room. As I move to take a seat on the couch, I stop when a knock on the door catches my attention. Looking back towards the bathroom where Raiden was, a frown forms on my face.

It was probably his parents or sister. Though I didn't really have a chance to talk to them much one-on-one, I could tell just by how Raiden talked about them that he didn't necessarily get along with them.

"Raiden's not h—" I start when I open the door. Expecting to see his parents, my brows furrow when I see an older man instead. His dark hair graying slightly and his dark brown eyes eyeing me.

"Oh? I didn't know Raiden had a roommate," the man says with a deep tone that causes me to tense up. His eyes trace over my figure before he glances back at me. Something is shining within them that I can't quite figure out, but it makes me uncomfortable. He makes me uncomfortable. "What were you saying about Raiden? He's not here?"

I don't get the chance to reply before Raiden appears beside me. His brows furrow when he sees the man.

"Alpha Demos?" Raiden questions, surprise coating his tone. "I wasn't expecting you to show up."

The man—Alpha Demos—only smiles at Raiden before sticking his hand out to him.

"I just happened to be in the area and decided to stop by," Alpha Demos tells him.

"You shouldn't have come all the way out here," Raiden replies, the smile not leaving his face though his tone sounded fake to my ears.

"Nonsense," Alpha Demos dismisses. "Besides I got to meet your friend..."

His eyes turn back to me curiously and then they shift to Raiden. It was clear that he was putting two and two together. Rather than saying anything, his smile tightens and he holds his hand out to me. My eyes drop to it. Glancing back at him briefly, I slowly raise my hand to grip his.

Once our hands are locked, his grip tightens around my hand and I fight back a wince. Looking back up at him, his eyes stare into me as if I had done something to harm him.

Raiden places a hand on my shoulder and Alpha Demos releases my hand. Raiden pulls me closer before looking over at Alpha Demos.

"Cloud," he nods to me. "This is Cloud."