Wonderfully Wandering Alone

I stiffened as I moved my feet to the floor, sitting straight as a ruler. Ryan swiftly stood, facing the door as Pete walked in.

"Hello Ryan. Was Ver good while I was gone?" Pete spoke, suspiscion evident in his voice.

"She behaved very well, other than her slight attitude. She slept most of the time." Ryan spoke in a cold tone, very unlike the one I had heard when we were alone.

I tried to catch a glance at Ryan's face as he spoke, but my body's position limited me to seeing his back.

I desperately wanted to turn and see Pete's expression at the moment, but my small amount of fear kept me staring ahead of me, my back to him.

"You are dismissed now, Ryan. I sense that you haven't fed lately, maybe you should go hunt. I think that would be good for you. I need you strong." Pete's voice held a teasing tone, which I believed to be directed at me, making me cringe inside.

My eyelids squeezed tightly, painfully so, as I said a silent prayer that Ryan would defy Pete and stay with me. But that broken as soon as I heard the dreaded door click shut.

My fingers began shaking violently, making me clench my hands and lay them in my lap. My gaze then quickly followed my hands, leaving me to stare blankly at my lap as I heard Pete walk past the loveseat and into the large closet.

I let out a quiet sigh of relief as I felt myself relax a little.

I stretched my arms above my head, feeling a satisfying "pop" noise from my elbows before I resumed my previous position, laying down on the couch with my arms beneath my head.

The remote to my iPod dock lay next to me, beckoning me to press one of the many buttons. My finger soon found the play button, and then the shuffle button, allowing a familiar song to fill my ears.

My head cradled itself in my hands once again as I made myself comfortable. I soon found myself quietly singing along to the words.

"Give me therapy. I'm a walking travesty. But I'm smiling at everything. Therapy, you were never a friend to me. You can take back your misery. Therapy, I'm a walking travesty. But I'm smiling at everything. Therapy, you were never a friend to me." My voice melded well with Alex Gaskarth's as I sang along to "Therapy" by All Time Low.

"You can choke on your misery." My voice mixed with not only Alex's but with Pete's as well as I opened my eyes to see Pete standing above me with soft smile on his face.

I could feel my eyes widen, realizing that Pete had been listening the whole time. I groaned internally before I quickly paused the music and muttered a barely audible "Sorry."

"It's okay, Sweetheart. I enjoy listening to your voice. I don't get to hear it often." The smile remained on his face as he sat down next to me, about a foot away, respecting my space.

I found myself chewing on the inside of my cheek as I looked anywhere but Pete, feeling slightly nervous and embarassed.

"So..." I spoke quietly, not wanting the silence to last any longer.

"I'm sorry for what happened, Ver. I tend to lose control when I'm angry. I shouldn't have tried to do that. It wasn't right of me to do that. I've just waited for so long... that..." He sighed, sounding frustrated, before he ran his hands through his hair, then rested his head in his hands, facing his lap.

A feeling of pity rushed through me at that moment, resulting in a frown forming on my face. After a few seconds, I moved to kneel next to Pete, wrapping my arms around him in a hug.

My feelings had changed from fear and nervousness, to a need to comfort him.

"It's okay. Ryan told me about the psychic and how long you've waited for your mate to come along. I think I'd be frustrated if I were you too."

His hands moved from his face to wrap around me, returning the hug. He pulled back a minute or so later, letting me stare into his slightly watery brown eyes.

His eyes held so much emotion, from frustration and sadness to love and wonder.

I could practically feel my heart breaking in half at that very moment. My eyes watered slightly just wondering what he must be going through.

"I have no idea what you're going through right now, but I know that it's gotta be tough. I want to help you get through this, but if you don't have patience, then it'll fall apart in front of your eyes. You and I have to take it slow. Falling in love is a process, not something you can force someone to do." I thought for a moment before continuing.

"Being friends is a process too, which is what I think we should start with before anything at all happens between us. I mean, you could end up hating me as a person or I could end up not being your actual mate. We need to figure out where we stand." I spoke softly, letting him hear my logic of his and my situation.

I didn't want to end up falling in love with Pete and then ending up not being his actual mate or having Pete hate me while I still loved him or something like that.

That would be absolute torture.

That was probably what Pete was feeling when I refused to kiss him.

"Okay. I think we should do that." He answered me, staring into my eyes.

"We'll move you back to your old room tonight." He smiled at me with a twinkle in his eye that I had never seen before.

That little twinkle gave me hope.

Maybe this will all work out.