Shewolf

Chapter 5: new friends

Matt hugs me awkwardly and walks out the room. It turns out he's actually good friends with Ben and has told him to take care of me as the tension between us is still uncomfortable. I step out the room and Ben guides me out of the room with his hand on the small of my back. As we enter the kitchen I am overwhelmed with glee: it is absolutely stuffed with food and I can't help but salivate a little.

"Oh we are going to get on" I address the room and Ben chuckles as pulls a homebaked pizza out the oven and rests it on the counter. I eye the masterpiece in awe stepping closer.

"I had the chef make it while you were talking" he smirks as my eyes practically bulge out of my head. "Go ahead" he gestures and I hop up onto the counter, cutting a piece off and moaning at the cheesy goodness. Ben just laughs as he takes his own piece. "So how did it go in there?" he asks cautiously. I shrug and sigh.

"As well as it could have. I just have so many questions" I sigh helping myself to another slice. 

"You know if you have questions you're more then welcome to ask me" Ben says leaning next to me against the counter.

"Um ok... How does a pack work?" I ask the first thing that comes to mind.

"Well there's the alpha who's like our leader. He brings the pack together, offers us guidance and support. our pack is pretty big so our alpha is very well known. His name is alpha Kade Black." Kade Black... even his name sounds intimidating I think."Why haven't I met him?" I think out loud.

"Alpha is signing a peace treaty right now with an opposing pack so he's gone for a week" he explains. "Alpha Kade has kind of a rough past and he's been left with a lot of broken pieces to fix with the pack which is why he often has to leave us.  You'll meet him soon though." I nod in understanding.

"The luna is the alpha's other half. She guides the pack alongside the alpha and supports us all. Alpha hasn't found his luna yet though so for now we don't have one. The beta is like second in command. The alpha trusts him with everything and he steps in to lead when he is needed."

"That's what Jacob is, right?" I ask, proud of remembering his name.

"Yeah" Ben chuckles. "And then there's the gamma who's third in command. For this pack that is yours truly" he grins and takes a little bow making me giggle.

"Wow so you're kinda a big deal then huh?"

"You sound surprised" he c***s an eyebrow at me.

"It's just with the hair and the driving me around the place I wouldn't have placed you so high up in the food chain" I tease reaching out to ruffle his long mane. He growls playfully and bats my hand off. I don't know why but I feel really comfortable around Ben despite having met him a few hours ago. 

"I'll have you know I'm a respected and valued member of this pack thank you very much. I only came to pick you up because your dad's kind of a legend" he grins at my shocked expression.

"There are other rankings below gamma like delta but some of our most important members are the warriors. Your dad was one of our top warriors for alpha Gabriel and his fights are infamous" he gazes off.

"Oh yeah?" I ask amazed that my old man was a bad ass fighter back in the day. 

"Oh yeah. They say he once killed 4 rogues at once with a single blow. That's gnarly as fuck." I nod pretending I know how hard it is to kill a wolf. I'm guessing rogues are like pack rebels who don't belong to a pack.

"Your brother inherited the warrior gene. He's one of our best fighters" Ben adds. "Maybe you do too." I scoff but secretly ponder his comment. I'm tougher then I look and I know I could hold myself in a fight pretty well. If only everyone wasn't a werewolf.

"When do people normally turn into a..." I gulp "wolf?" 

"Most wolves can shift on their 18th birthday. That's when your wolf wakes up. It's also when you can find your mate."I turn to him wide eyed. 

"Mate? Like a best buddy?" I ask, unsure why it would take 18 years to find a friend.

"No, no" Ben chuckles. "We believe in the Moon Goddess and she gifts everyone with a person that completes them. Kind of like a soulmate."

"Wow, that's intense. Have you found yours?"

"No not yet. But they say when you do, the world stops. I can't wait" Ben looks off and I smile at him. Yep. We're gonna be besties.

Once the pizza is finished Ben takes me to a guest room on the third floor and wishes me good night. I walk in to find my stuff already in there and I collapse in a heavy pile on the bed. It's like everything has caught up to me at once and all I can do is let the darkness take me as I fall into a deep sleep filled with big wolves and Tarzan.