The Lycan King & I

Twelve.

I'd always been an impulsive person; forgetting to think before I jumped. I guess I was just proving I hadn't outgrown that trait. I close my eyes and brace for impact, the frigid air burning my cheeks. Perhaps jumping four stories wasn't my best idea, but I needed to.

It feels like seconds later when I am engulfed by a warm, large body. Mid air, I am aware of King Benjamin latching around me like a blanket. He shifts us in the few seconds so his back is the one about to absorb the impact.

We hit the ground hard, the King groans in pain. I let out an 'oof' when I bounce against his warm chest. I finally open my eyes seconds later and see the situation. I hadn't hit the icy ground. Instead, Alpha Benjamin had dived after me, shielding me from the impact of hitting the hard ground.

He opens his eyes, wincing. I am aware that our bodies are flush against one another. "Are you okay?" He seethes out, he is in pain.

"Y-yes." I am dazed.

Though he arguably was the only one who sustained injuries from my student, he lifts us up with ease. He carries me, though I can walk. There's a dull ache in my neck from the impact. He carries me all the way to the bathroom connected to his room- talking the entire time.

"What were you thinking?!" If I wasn't so concerned about his pain, I would've been mesmerized by the bewildered look in his eyes.

"I...." I don't have a good explanation, but it's okay because he keeps talking. He's mindful of his clearly sore back as he sets me on the side of the bathtub.

"You jumped?" He is worked up, his neck is reddening. "Jumped? You tried to kill yourself? Do you really hate a life with me that much that you wanted to die?  What were you thinking-"

"I had to." The words slip off of my tongue.

"You had to?" He looks at me expectantly but I refuse to meet his gaze.

"Care to elaborate?" He's annoyed. I can tell by the crinkles of the ivory skin on his forehead.

"Why won't you talk to me?" He is exasperated, and I look up. The look in his eyes reminds me of someone being kicked while they are already down. He sad look in his eyes almost physically hurts me. "Of course." He grumbles, "Take a shower, Eliette, you're soaking wet."

I look down and realize that the snow that covered me had melted.

"Shower, please. I don't want you to get sick." He isn't looking at me as he leans against the counter.  I push off of the bathtub ledge and stare at the levers on the shower. I pull hard on it, but the water doesn't turn on. I twist it to one side and jump when icy cold water hits me.

I look to the King and realize he's watching me with squinted eyes, "You don't know how to work the shower?" I feel ashamed, yet another clue of how uncivilized I was compared to him.

His gaze softens for the first time since my four story jump. "You can ask me these things, Eliette."

He takes the few steps across the wooden floor to help me. I notice how he slightly limps in discomfort. I seem to find my voice, "I had to know if you would save me."

"Of course I would save you, you're my mate!" His voice is the loudest I've ever heard it.

"But I don't know that! Every night is sleepless for me because of you!" I accuse. "I had to do something for my sanity, to know that I could be at peace around you."

At my words, King Benjamin forgets about the shower. He leans back against the counter and we simply stare at each other. His dark blue eyes seemed to be hypnotizing my own. There's a frisson between us, a static energy. The spark has already been lit, and the shock is not far behind, I fear.

"C-can you please lay down now?" I ask him, "I will change into something warm but... your back has to hurt."

He nods and I make my way into the closet, choosing a warm nightgown from my trunk. Once changed, I quickly bounce down the stairs to grab an ice pack from the freezer. When I return to his room, Alpha Benjamin is laying on the bed, on his stomach.

I hesistantly sit on the bed, my hands hover in the air. "Is it okay if I-"

"You can touch me all you want, Ellie." His words make me blush but I go to work. I slowly lift off his black shirt. There's purple and green bruises splattered across the taut skin, a few cuts and scratches from the ice.

He sharply inhales when I place the ice pack against his muscles.

"Sorry," I mumble. I press the ice pack against his lower back and let it sit for a few minutes. While waiting for the idea to numb, I gingerly place my palm flat against his spine. Just.... feeling his warm skin. He tenses ever so slightly, worried about his pain I quickly lift my hand and move the ice pack to the area.

"You do feel it." He notes.

"Huh?"

"You're feeling unsettled right now, aren't you? That's why you feel the need to touch me." He explains casually. True, I was feeling a bit uneasy.

"And you aren't sleeping at night because the bond is trying to tell you something." He continues, before rolling over so he can look up at me.

"Your back-"

"Shhhh," He grabs the ice pack out from under him, " I heal fast."

"F-fast?"

"It's a Lycan thing, no ice needed," He beams.

"I-i Didn't k-know." I hang my head, feeling silly.

"You can ask about me." He says gently, softly resting his hand atop of mine on my knee. There it is. That shock that I knew was going to happen, with the charging current between us.

I revel in the warmth that has spread to my every extremity at his touch, I hope it doesn't end soon. But beyond the euphoria of the contact, I feel the words hanging in the air. What he wants me to say: You can ask about me too.

He sighs when I stay quiet, "You have to feed our bond, Eliette."

"F-feed?" I stutter out, looking up and meeting his sinful eyes again.

"Yes," He nods, "We need to find ways to feed it, that don't involve you trying to kill yourself."

"I wasn't trying to kill myself," I defend, "I needed to know that I could trust you."

"You can earn my trust without jumping off a roof, most don't do that."

"I'm only human." I grumble, feeling like a child.

"That's not true." He corrects me, he lifts his other hand to the side of my face. His touch is so soft, and my face feels so small in his large palm. He guides  my head so we are looking at one another. "You're a queen."

He lifts the other hand from my knee, so he's holding my face. "Say it," He commands.

"W-what-"

"Say it. You're a queen."

"I-I'm a queen." It feels silly.

"You do not work for me." He is solemn, so I do not dare test his mood.

"I do not work for you,"

"You can trust me," He commands, and I am practically melting in his arms at this contact. I felt my anxious cells settle, and I feel wholly, completely safe.

"I can trust you." I feel his words in my soul.

"I will always protect you,"

"You will always protect me, Sir." My lips curve upwards at the thought of not having to worry of him hurting me."

"Benjamin." He corrects, I expect it to be a joke but his face is still deadly serious.

"Ben." I whisper back.

The somber mood lightens at the nickname. He cracks a smile in the armor that is his face, a smile so infectious that I can't help but grin back. We seem to just stare into the eyes of one another. The moment felt like it was a gift, the two of us wrapped in it.

"You can try that, I promise it's good." He points his fork towards the noodles on my plate as we sit at the Kitchen counter.

I take a tiny bite of the noodles and sauce, surprisingly it's not bad.

"Told you." He smirks, taking a massive bite. I smirk back and continue eating. One new food, but I don't dare touch the other gross looking casserole on the plate.

"I'll have to let the cooks know you're a picky eater for tomorrow," His eyes glaze over as he mindlinks someone.

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes, we'll be introducing you to all of the High Ranking Back Members, just those with royal blood." He explains, "It won't be a huge as the Pack Gathering to meet you."

"Gathering?"

"Yes, my mom will throw that, I suppose." He notes, "They're waiting for my brother to return from town."

"You have a brother?" I remember Val saying something about it.

"And a sister in law."

"I didn't know that." I feel dumb for not knowing about the family of someone who was intended to be mine.

"You didn't ask," He shrugs, "You don't ask too much about me."

"You don't too much about me, either." I automatically say back, as defensive as I am, it also was true.

He looks up from his last bite of his dinner roll and c***s his head to the side. Moments like this and when his eyes gleamed like this, I saw how he truly was part wolf. The mannerisms were uncanny, and adorable.

"Fair point." He nods after a moment of contemplation. "I have a younger brother named Cole, who's a tracker. His mate is Jenevieve, she's Wells sister."

"Wells's sister?" The links seemed so coincidental.

"Yup, so beta blood. She'll probably be there tomorrow, unless she's caught up at work."

"What is her role?" I ask. Cole, a Tracker with Alpha Blood was probably one most royal ranks in the back. I wondered if his mate was just as impressive.

"She oversees the pack house." He explains. Not bad, everyone seemed to fit in the Alpha Family shoes but me. A human.

"And you're Luna." He reminds me casually, washing our dishes in the sink. I look up and c***k a smile.

I am Luna.