He woke up calmly. It didn't feel like he needed to do anything. He was merely hungry. That was always a good reason to wake up. But his body didn't want to get up. It wanted to stay in the comfort of the bed he was in. If it weren't for his stomach screaming at him, he may have laid their a little longer. He enjoyed the snug feeling that it gave him. It was as if he had gotten tucked in. Hiroko used to do that for a while, after his grandfather passed away. The small action helped sooth him in many ways.

When he finally opened his eyes, he slowly began to take in his surroundings. He was in Hiroko's apartment. The one that she had always used whenever her cycle for the curse came. She had prepared it for him before her departure. She would help with the Luna duties until the day before Shiro was supposed to come back, as she had another trip that father wished for her to go on. But her apartment was stocked with everything that one would need when they underwent something like this. There was food, plenty of extra sheets, a stocked bathroom.

And, for some reason, an unbearably handsome man that was under him.

Shiro somehow managed to get out of the strong arms this time. He quickly moved to the edge of the bed, looking at the peaceful face of his mate. He must have really been asleep for him not to be holding him as tightly as he had the last time. The blanket just barely covered his waist. The muscular torso of his was what Shiro had been laying on the entire night. It raised and shrank with ease. He looked like a god had created him.

How did he get in here? Shiro wanted to know, but he also didn't want to remember the events of the night before. That would only send him right back to the mess that he had been, and he liked that he had a clear head at least.

Instead, he inspected the small apartment, making sure that the door was still locked and everything was okay. He noticed Jett's scent in certain areas, like the window, for some reason. It left him so curious about all of this. But he was going to wait until he had gotten a shower in and had eaten something.

The shower was the first priority, as he didn't know when the next episode of the curse would come. According to Hiroko, if you were able to satisfy it a little, it would calm down. But that only worked so much. It liked to come in waves throughout the day.

He wished he could change those sheets. They were a mess, just like him at the moment. He carefully washed himself, making sure to be softer to more sensitive spots. Everything set it off now. That was what he had learned the day before. Even the smallest of tasks could invoke the lust that the curse caused. And he still had six more days of it.

Of course, if Jett was with him the whole time, it might make things more tolerable...

No. He couldn't be thinking like this. He shouldn't even be thinking his name. For that name had more power over him than anything else. Especially as the memories of last night were replaying through his head. But his mind and body were beyond his control now. That was another reason why he had wanted to be left alone. He wouldn't be able to control any of the emotions that he held back on so much.

He needed to get Jett out of there. All it took was one tiny mistake and he would end up marked. Shiro couldn't have that. Not with his father already getting suspicious of him. He had been asking about whether he would be looking for his mate the entire month. Shiro had gotten so many headaches debating with his father on whether he should try and find his mate before he gained his title. Thankfully, he was able to convince him otherwise every time. He knew how to outsmart his father more than the man thought.

That wasn't the problem that he needed to face in the present, though. The biggest problem was trying to get the lump of muscles that had somehow found him out of his apartment.

Shiro walked out of the shower, wrapping a towel around his hair and putting on a robe. He wished he had brought more clothes with him at the moment. Wearing something so thin and small didn't seem like it was the best thing to talk to someone in. Especially when that someone was his mate that he was supposed to mark long before it even got to this point.

After brushing the knots out of his long hair, Shiro walked out of the bathroom and into the kitchen area. Jett was still asleep, thankfully. He had no idea what he was going to say when the man woke up. All he knew was that he desperately needed food. He quickly grabbed ingredients and started cooking. Since he had lost control over himself at the moment, his mind was being inconsistent. And his emotions were slowly starting to take control over him.

He couldn't believe that the man had somehow found him. On the first day, as well. Shiro failed to hide their bond for more than three days at the beginning, and had failed to hide from him now for even one day. He was getting worse at this rather than better, and he hated that fact.

He ate in silence, scarfing down the food that he made as if his life depended on it. It might have. He hadn't eaten much the day before. It was difficult to do anything other than lay in bed. He was thankful that he wasn't glued to that mattress anymore. He had some kind of reprieve from it, even if he knew it would only be short-lived.

It wasn't until he had started to wash his dishes that his senses truly became alert.

"Stop," he said, not even turning from his dishes. He knew Jett was up from his scent alone. He could smell him getting closer. His body was betraying him by wanting his mate as close as possible. "There's food on the table for you."

Jett silently complied, probably just as hungry as Shiro had been when he first woke up. He could smell him moving farther away. It made a part of him long for the man. Shiro waited until he was finished cleaning up to finally turn around to face him. Those orange eyes had been staring at him the whole time. He could tell by how intensely they stared at him when he finally met them with his own. They truly were his siren, as they pulled him closer to his inevitable doom. And the smile that adorned the man's face didn't help him keep his distance. He looked warm and inviting.

He was also still naked. The realization of that made a shiver go down his spine.

"Good morning," he broke the silence. He had finished his food almost just as fast as Shiro had finished his. Shiro stayed near the kitchen area to try and keep some distance between them.

"How did you find me?" Shiro asked. That was the first and most important question he had for the man. He needed to figure out just where he went wrong in his planning.

"Easy," he shrugged. "I followed our bond."

"How?" he asked. Their bond couldn't be that strong. They hadn't even marked each other yet, and barely spent any time with each other.

"I'm guessing it's the same way that you were able to try and hide so many things from me," he smirked. "It's all in the mind."

Great. He was learning his tricks. Now there would be no way of him ever being able to hide from him.

"I suppose that makes sense," Shiro said. "But you can't stay here."

"Why?" Jett asked. "Do you really want me to go?"

"Yes," he backed away some more. Just saying that was hurting him. He was good at hurting himself when it came to things like wants. He had sacrificed a lot for the people that he called family. He couldn't risk it all for Jett. There were too many things at play.

"That's not what you said last night," That grin of his was getting wider as he said that. Mixing in with his smell, Shiro could feel his body heating up just by watching his mate's actions. He needed to act fast. But his mind wasn't thinking right. It wasn't thinking how it normally would.

"That's what I'm saying today," he told him, trying to keep that confidence in his voice. "This room wasn't meant for more than one person."

"We seemed to make a fine exception," the man argued. "Why do you want me to leave so badly now?"

"Because I can't have you in here," he answered.

"What's going to happen when I leave?" Jett asked. "Are you just going to wind up in pain again?"

"Why do you care?" he asked him. His heart was out for him to see and his face was an open book right then. He didn't like that he was like this now. He felt weak and exposed. "Don't you have a family to worry about? Don't you have a pack to lead?"

"My pack will be fine without me for a little bit," Jett frowned a little.

"A good Alpha never leaves their pack unless it's something important."

"Are you saying that you aren't important?"

"I'm saying that I will be fine," he told him. His voice was cold now and menacing. "And you need to leave."

"Why do you want me to leave so badly?" Jett asked. "I told you that I wouldn't do anything to you that you didn't want."

"I don't want you in here."

"Shiro," Jett's face matched his right then. "I'm not leaving until this is over."

"Why?" Shiro was having a hard time fighting his emotions. They were threatening to pour out of him as they threw whatever they could think at him. He wanted to push him away. He wasn't used to someone who kept coming back to him. He wasn't used to all the kind words that Jett said or all the ways he tried to make him happy. It scared him.

"Because I was the one who caused this pain," Jett told him. "Whether you want to admit it or not. And I'm not going to let you go through it alone."

"Why not?" he couldn't help but blurt out. "I've lived practically my whole life alone. I don't need someone coming in to save me. I don't need help."

"No one deserves to go through something like this alone," Jett stood up and walked towards him. There was only so far he could back away from him until he hit a wall. And there was no way of running from the man. Not when he had to stay in that apartment. It was small in and of itself. And the closer he got, the more heat his body decided to give off.

"Stop," he tried to tell him. But Jett didn't listen to him this time. This time, he grabbed Shiro by his chin and forced him to look at those orange eyes again. He didn't want to look at those gorgeous eyes. It left him feeling the most exposed he had ever felt.

"Shiro," his tone grew softer when he looked at him. "What are you afraid of?"

"You," he blurted out. He shouldn't have said that. He immediately felt guilty for it.

"Me?" those eyes turned sad as he caressed his cheek with his thumb. The feeling had him wanting to lean into him. "I'm never going to hurt you, Shiro. I would rather die."

"I-I know," his voice cracked. The pain in those eyes were enough for him to feel it as well.

"Why are you afraid of me?" Jett asked. "Just answer me that, Shiro."

"Because you don't stop," Shiro answered. His rational and logical sides to him were hibernating now that the curses effects were in full swing. "Because you seem to read me better than even my sister can. You somehow found out that I was your mate when I did my best to hide it. You even found me here within the first day of the curse starting. I'm scared because you should have rejected me right when you found out that I was your mate, and especially after I kept you waiting on us marking each other for so long. You should have rejected me right when you found out that you might have had to deal with the curse yourself, even though your pack hasn't had the curse for three generations.'

"I'm scared because, out of all of the things that I have yet to tell you, and the frustrations and complications that I've put you through, you've still come to me and found me here. And, after waiting so long, you still decide not to try and mark me until I say I want to."

He had never told anyone as much of what he was feeling as he had with Jett right then. His heart was open to someone for the first time since he was a child. He didn't like the feeling, it left him weak and afraid. It brought out all of the things that he had kept hidden from everyone. All of his negative emotions that he had buried so long ago.

"Of course, I would, Shiro," Jett moved his hand to cup his cheek, stroking it with a care that he wasn't used to. "I would do anything for you."

"Why?" he asked. "We barely even know each other. We've merely met a month ago. Why would you go and try to find me when there are more important things that you could be doing?"

"Because I love you," Jett told him. Hearing that made his heart stop. "Nothing is more important than you to me, Shiro."

"How can you love me?" he continued his questioning. He felt like he was tearing himself apart as well when he said it. "What about me made you love me? After not even knowing me for that long, what made you love me enough to try and follow me?"

"I don't know Shiro," Jett shook his head. "Love doesn't have a set definition. It doesn't exactly come from certain actions. It doesn't always come from time together or things said. Love just is."

The way those eyes looked at him was enough to make all those fears and insecurities of his wash away. He hadn't had someone look at him like that before. It was alien to him, but warming. It was absolutely mesmerizing.

"You don't know what love is," Jett asked. "Do you?"

"I know it's you."

Wait. No. That was supposed to be a thought. He wasn't supposed to say that out loud. He was supposed to be convincing him to leave so that he didn't get marked. He was supposed to stay miserable. For happiness only came to the successful. And he had yet to accomplish that yet.

But Jett had somehow managed to push past the part that tried to shove him out the door. He did it easily, not taking a single blow he spat at him to heart. Shiro didn't get it. Jett wasn't supposed to be this understanding. It only made him even more unworthy of his love.

Those lips met his with a fiery passion. Every time they touched he felt their bond getting stronger. He wanted it to be unbreakable. He wanted to be as connected to him as possible in that moment. He wanted to never leave those arms that wrapped around him. For this one was his. Out of all of the things that he had to share or give up in his life, this was the one thing that he refused to, no matter how many times the logical part of his mind wished him to. He put his arms around the man's neck and deepened the kiss, rebelling against himself in every way that he could. This one was his. They could have everything else, but this one belonged solely to him.

"Mine," he held onto Jett as tightly as possible as he broke off the kiss. All that he had been holding back since he met the man was coming out right then and there.

A growl came from that muscular chest that was pushed against him. His hips were pinned to the wall as they both allowed instinct to take over. The thin robes that he had on didn't stand a chance against the lust that was now growing inside the both of them. Jett's hands quickly moved underneath them to find the sensitive area that he had been trying to avoid the entire morning.

"Say it again," Jett rubbed himself against him. His body betrayed him by letting out a moan of delight. He could never hide anything from this man. He didn't know why he even tried. If felt too good letting it all go finally.

"You're mine," Shiro said, his legs quickly wrapping around the man's waist. There was another growl as the man began to rub against him more. He didn't realize just how a simple sound like that was enough to send flames all throughout his body.

"Is this how you really feel?" Jett's voice was lower than before, and his scent was getting stronger as it mixed with the man's arousal. Shiro was losing his mind over it. "Is this the real Shiro?"

He couldn't answer, so caught up in the sensations that were going on all over his body. So, he nodded, clinging onto Jett and trying to press himself into the body that had him pinned against a wall.

"Do you really want me to leave?" he teased him by slowing down his movements. Shiro let out a groan as his body begged for release again.

"N-no," he stuttered. "I've never wanted you to leave."

Jett met his lips again for a brief second. Shiro could feel all the passion of the man through something as simple as a kiss. It was something he would do anything for. It made him want to cry out when Jett broke it off.

"I'm never going to leave you, Prince," he nibbled on his ear. "I'm all yours."

His heart swelled up when he heard those words. Nothing in the world compared to that feeling, or that moment. He felt like he belonged in a place unlike the pedestal that everyone else put him on. For once, he was simply a person that belonged to another.

Jett was as hard as a rod as he rubbed against him. Shiro loved the feeling. He could feel it going over his entrance over and over again, teasing him the entire time. He was already wet down there. It was yet another side affect of this curse. The Spirit of the Moon had done all that she could to make the mating process as inviting as possible. The curse wasn't meant to be a bad thing. It was merely meant to teach the packs to listen to her.

"Jett," Shiro whined. He couldn't take this teasing much longer.

"What do you want me to do, Prince?" he asked, moving his hips slower. His lips had gone to his shoulders. He had been kissing them when they weren't on Shiro's lips.

"I-I want," he moaned when Jett got to a certain spot on him. Jett seemed to moan in response to him. His hips bucking into his faster now.

"You're going to have to finish that sentence."

"I want," he had to take a deep breath to calm himself down just a little bit. This was a kind of torture that he would never have thought that he would enjoy. "I want you."

Jett didn't need to hear more. He was already so close to entering him with how they had wound up positioning themselves on that wall. Shiro was completely lifted off the floor as Jett supported him, holding his waist as he slowly began to enter him. He moaned every time it went deeper. He didn't know how much he needed this. Shiro had no idea just how amazing this feeling would be, but he never wanted it to end.

When it went all the way in, those hips started moving, rocking him as he went in and out. He moaned with every thrust, begging him to go faster the longer it went on. The man complied to his every word, kissing every spot he could find on him. Shiro threaded his hands into the curly hair of his mate's, holding on for dear life. He could spend the rest of his life in that position and be happy.