The Wooden Heart Editing

Chapter 17

ITS ALMOST DONE! Editing this thing was a b***h but also so much fun! I love how it's coming together, finally. And I dropped a clue about Book 3 in the new sixth chapter, I didn't really change much but there is a HUGE clue about what I'm planning for the third novel. If you read it, drop me a review telling me your option on it

Now, guys, I'm going to be honest with you. Over the years, I've wondered why I'm still writing if my passion for it had melted under the pressures of real life. Don't get me wrong, I love writing so much, I just hadn't had the burning passion for it since high school. I'll never stop writing, I can't; it'll be like giving up a part of me, I am not saying that. What I'm trying to say is I will never be able to put myself on a shuelude (I can't spell):

So, you need to deal with the long periods without a post, because I don't want my writing to suffer and then my readers would too. I hope you understand.

The song is from an anime called 'The World is still Beautiful' and its beautiful

Disclaimer:

I do not claim the original fairy tale, but WH's plot and characters belong to me. Any famous songs, TV show/movies/books and manga names, and brands that are mentioned in this work belong to their rightful owners.

Willa Field

-.-.-.-.-

Sixteen:

Dreams comes True

-.-.-.-.-

I want to protect you, I want to touch destiny.

Every tear you shed, the hollow hole in your heart,

I want to fill it with happiness.

It's a tender rain.

May this song reach your side,

No matter how apart we are, please believe in those words I gave you.

Singing in the rain, the raindrops are shining beautifully,

The moment when all the sadness washed away.

The word will come to live.

Please come, the tender rain.

-.-.-.-

The simple but magical melody of a woman's voice echoed around him as Russel slipped under, into the dreamland, and away from reality. He didn't understand the lyrics, but the song always made him feel loved. The scene that greeted him was the same from the past dreams he kept having since the young man turned sixteen.

The feeling of the warm excitement sat in his chest, just like every night before. He was going to see her again, his mate, Madison Sawyers:

His parents told him that this would happen when he turned fifteen, the maturing age of the Wolves and the age that they start realizing their mates as their mates from deep inside of their hearts. But, the dreams, what they called 'Luna Lohve', only start for Wolves who has mates that are other species.

The dreams are where the two mates meet while they are sleeping, they start when the other mate turned an age of maturity; namely fifteen or seventeen. The dreams give the Wolves an outlet until they could hold their mates in their arms for real.

Now, the dreams are changing for him; they were getting more and realer as the years went on.

Maddie became clearer as he slowly reached the age of twenty-five, which clued Russel in that his beautiful girl was getting to the age of maturity and she was close to the Calling—when the hearts of the mates start to speak to the other. And the young man was excited to think that the time of meeting was getting closer.

Tried as they may, the then teens couldn't visit and soon the phone calls and letters stopped, bringing Russel into such a depression. He tried his best to be happy for his family, but inside he was dying each time he went to the mailbox and there were no letters from his beautiful princess. The only time he could see her was in the dreams.

They dated other people because they were lonely and they needed someone to lean on, however, they always wished whose eyes they were staring into was the one they were missing. But wishing didn't exactly help things.

As those thoughts ran through his mind, the reddish-brown-haired Wolf stood there in the falling snow, wearing the usual pure white suit with a bright red rose in his hand, and his eyes stared at the beautiful icy land with a happy grin placed on his thin lips, the happy feelings were still growing in his chest:

Russel was waiting for someone but didn't exactly know who it was, but he could guess who was coming.

With a sigh, he slowly walked forward to the railing of a baloney and leaned into it, looking out to the most beautiful sunrise he has ever seen, it added to the new tune of the dream; it looked like a scene from his mom's romantic movies. The thoughts were still rushing through his mind as he looked out to the rising sun, waiting for her to show.

Then the wind carried a soft whisper:

"Susi*…"

Russel turned his head quickly, trying to find the owner of the soft, comforting voice, the young man had to see her, even if it was only in a dream. Moments later, his silent prayers were answered as light blue eyes met deep green-blue ones.

Madison smiled sweetly, tears pooled in her eyes, as the wind blew her reddish blonde short hair over her shoulder and her pure white skirt gently.

He walked towards her, but the young Wolf stopped a few feet from her, afraid to scare her off, even though they saw each other every night for five years. But, god, he wanted to just pull her into his arms and never let the beautiful creature go, just keep her safe from all the dangers in the world.

They were silent, just as the other nights, just staring at each other, and taking in the changes in each other, how they grew up in the past years. They loved to see the changes in their loves.

She was breathtaking, truly beautiful:

She cut her long hair that went down to her waist when she moved, but it looked richer in color. Her eyes held wisdom that someone their age shouldn't have, but despite that, that wisdom made them look kind and warm. The greenish blue shade of her ovals reminded him of a calm ocean. Her rosy lips had gotten fuller since the day the dreams started, the young man had the urge to grab her and kiss them, but he didn't want our first kiss to be in a dream.

Well, a dream to her, what is really happening is something holy different and amazing.He shook his head to free himself from the thoughts, he needs to spend time with his princess before this fades, not just stare at her.

He finally stepped forward, closing the distance between them, and hugged her close, keeping her small frame against his larger one and took in her scent. Russel let the silence linger over them for a few seconds before speaking in a soft whisper, not wanting to break this spell:

"Kisu*…I'm so happy to see you. I've never stopped thinking about you all day. Are you alright? Is your life good?" He asked sweetly, stroking her arms tenderly as he stared into her beautiful eyes. The blonde smiled that cute little smile, the one that melted him every time he saw it:

"I'm fine, susi, you worry too much about me sometimes. You are too sweet to me, but you don't need to worry." The young woman c****d her head, reaching up to touch his cheek tenderly.

The Wolf sighed in both relief and contentment at the tender touch. But, he felt a little twig of annoyance at her statement, because she knew that the young man could not stop worrying about the beautiful creature sitting in front of him. She is the reason for everything good in his life and he was going to voice that to her:

"Yes, but damn it, Maddie! You mean everything to me; don't you see that!? If anything happened to you…...it would drive me completely insane! I couldn't live with that. You are my mate and I'll always worry about you. When you moved and I had no contact with you, my mind died."

He let her go, turning to the baloney again, not wanting her to see how truly upset Russel was at the very thought of losing her to anything or anyone. It made him sick just to think about that.

Her hand landed on his shoulder, forcing him to look at her and gave him a smile.

"But nothing happened to me, I'm okay and here. I'm never going anywhere. I'm alright, sweetie, nothing's going to happen to me. It's okay, I'm safe, susi." Russel smiled softly and caressed her cheek.

"You're so stubborn, my little kisu…"

After moments of just holding her, he then remembered the rose in his hand and he handed the beautiful flower to his beautiful flower as he whispered into her ear, the vision ending as fast as it begun:

"I love you so much, my love."

-.-.-.-.-

Russel Griffiner rolled onto his back and sat up, laying his arm over his face as a sigh slipped from his lips.

This is getting old, the young Wolf thought annoyed before getting prepared for a day filled with teaching chatting and shrieking teens. Another day of being alone, that thought danced through the walls of his mind as he sat up from his laying position and stretched his sore joints, popping as he did so, trying to forget the haunting dream. That was impossible, however, and the young man knew it was:

After making his limbs feel better, he peeled off the heavy covering and swung his legs over the edge, heading to the dresser and pulled on a pair of a faded white jeans and a nice bottomed-up shirt, and then he dressed and laced up his sneakers on his feet. With one more sigh, the young man walked to the living room of the home he shared with his brother and his lovely sister-in-law.

He smiled at the wedding photo of the two as he waited to have breakfast with his sister, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

Russel hated that the picture made jealously around his heart whenever he took in their happy expressions, hated the fact he got angered as he imagined he would never have a day like that to remember. Whenever he saw the photo, his desire to find his princess grew even stronger:

He wanted to flip the world upside down and rip it apart as he searches for Maddie, but Russel knew that he would have to wait for her to come back to him on her own choice, back to Crescent City where it all begun for them. Because that is the way the mating for Wolves works.

The female is the one the male needs to show that she is worthy of him, but she needs to be the approacher so the male won't scare her away if the female is shy. He, the bonder, needed to rely on his patience to be able to wait and care for the beautiful woman when time comes:

And he knew that his mate is painfully shy, it is just the way she is. The young man just knew she was shy, unable to open to strangers and, no how long they knew each other in the past, he was a stranger to her now. He didn't like that fact, but the dark ginger knew that she will need lovingly time and attention before she would be able to open wide up to him again.

However, the young wolf knew he was willing to wait until his love was ready for him. And Russel knew that they would reunite soon enough, because he is the bonder and the beautiful young woman is his bondee, they are meant to be together.

And they will be together no matter what, they are each other's other half. As that thought crossed his mind, he smiled slightly as he pushed the eggs across his plate, sighing as his sister hummed knowingly before kneeling to his level and held his hand comforting.

"Russy, sweetie, I know this is hard for you, but it will be over soon. Be patient, baby, she will get here soon enough." Locia uttered compassionately.

The young man noticed her biting her bottom lip to hold back a sigh but failed when he turned his sad eyes to her brown eyes, crushing her under such a sad expression.

Locia hated to see him like this, but she knew that it was just something he had to deal with for the time being and she couldn't do anything about these feelings in his heart, even if the pretty ginger was his sister and she wanted to help him. This was something that each Wolf must go through before they met their mates.

When her younger brother growled and stood from his seat, Locia was shaken from her mind, making the ginger stand and cross her arms as a frown danced across her face.

"I know that this has to happen but sis, I am getting so freaking tired of waiting! I want to find her right now!" Russel screamed angrily, slamming a fist down on the counter as a growl slipped out of his lip.

"I know, baby, I know. This is so unfair to you and the other Wolves but this is something just you must go through. It will make your relationship just that stronger when you two do meet, brother. Just be patient and your rakas kissanpentu* will come back to you." Locia soothed him, rubbing his back lovingly and kissed his temple. He sighed, cuddling as he nodded at her statement before he turned to her with a small smile dancing across his facial features while he held her hand:

"I'll try, sissy. It's just hard but I'll be strong, Locia." Russel stated sweetly and the older ginger gave him a smile in response before she went back to eating her breakfast, ending their conversion for now.

After eating their meal, they made their way to Del Norte High, where they and his family's friends teach at. Which gave the young man time to think about things as his sister drove, without worrying about upsetting her more. He just wanted to think all the things he was going through now on his own:

He knew that the beautiful woman won't be his anytime soon and he was alright with that because he understood the reason why she will not be in his life soon. But, it was starting to wear on his soul each night he saw her face and slowly he was changing from the easy-going guy to the depressed guy he was now. The young Wolf was losing hope that he would find her, but he will never give up on finding the one that completes him. Russel will always be waiting patiently for his beautiful mate.

He smiled softly, nodding firmly as they entered the school's parking lot. He looked out of the window as his mother parked her car close to the first entrance to the school, then they just sat there in silence. They wanted to just be each other, comforting each other because they both knew how it was for the young Wolf to be going through the Bonding and just wait for his mate.

But, Russel was being so brave about this, not letting it get to him to the point that he completely gave up on the search for her. He was ready to wait for her forever if he had to, Locia thought proudly as her hand wrapped itself around his while she held it tenderly, her dull brown eyes meeting his:

"I'm so proud of you, Russel. Some Wolves aren't strong enough to wait and in return, they become mad to the point they become evil. You are willing to wait forever if you have to and that is real strength." She smiled boldly as the words spilled out her pink lips.

He had to swallow hard to not cry, not wanting to show his sister any weakness. He knew he had to be strong because that's the only way to make the wait easier on him and his family, so he hugged her to push the fears inside of him. It was going to be alright, the young man reminded himself as he tightened his hold on his beautiful mother, letting the worrisome thoughts go for once and for all.

Silence fell upon them then, they just holding onto each other; his mother kissing his cheek comfortingly as they hugged tightly to one another.

Wild thoughts ran through their minds, but no one wanted to say them, not wanting to ruin the calm mood. They needed to let the soft feeling of calm soothe out the knotting feeling of worry in the pits of their stomachs. Otherwise, they might just go mad.

A few moments of silence passed before Locia finally broke the seemingly endless silence:

"You will find her, sweetie. All you need is to be patient and keep smiling because she will find her way to you when she's ready. Just be patient and you will be together. I promise you that everything will be alright, baby, I promise you."

After saying this, Locia pulled his chin up, so she could see the emotions playing in his deep brown eyes, and she could, a sweet slow smile smeared over her lovely face, knowing he was just like his father. Strong and strong-willed, he would never give up on the young woman he was fated to be with:

"Just try your best, Russy." She whispered as her hand traveled up to his cheek, caressing tenderly, he sighed at the feeling of relief, his sister's words calmed all the worries and doubts that were warring in his chest since the dream this morning.

Russel watched her as she walked to where Aunt Alicia and Uncle Jasper were waiting, thinking of things, and then he smiled as he moved to the sky. He will find her, no matter how long it would take him, he will find her and he will always protect her:

"I'm here to stay, Madison Isabella, you can't escape me." She let a soft laugh fell from her lips.

"She knows you won't, Russel. You are a Wolf, after all. Very protective and possessive of your mate."

Russel chuckled as he walked in Del Norte High behind his sister and his aunt with his hands in his jacket pockets, feeling like it would be okay now…

-.-.-.-.-.-

"I don't understand why you moved back to America, you had a job here." Annamarie, annoyed that her sister left her to face preteenhold on her own; whined as Maddie snickered softly, putting on her makeup while the cute eleven-year-old went on complaining.

They were talking over webcam as the older one readied herself to face her past with new eyes and a new heart. She wished that her sister was a little older to understand that the older blonde needed to do this, to see if Russel was still here.

Madison Isabella Fields has always wished she could just reach out to him, but as years passed, the young teen became too busy with the heavy homework and helping her parents raise Anna to even think about what to write in a letter. And deep down, she was afraid that he would be angry with her, never to speak to her again. That thought scared her so much, she thought it better she kept the thoughts to herself until she could move back to Crescent City and see if Russel even remembered her.

Which the thought scared Madison to death. Revealing that she was just a fleeing memory to the only man she ever loved would destroy her to the point her family might not be able to repair the damage. But, the blonde knew she had to this; even her parents told her to move back; because if Maddie didn't, she might regret for the rest of her life.

However, how could she explain this to a young girl who was just noticing the opposite s*x? To someone that doesn't understand there's so much more to the world she couldn't see?

When Madison graduated high school and moved to Mills Women College for a teaching degree, her parents told her the real reason they pushed her to move back after only having their second oldest back for a year's time.

She really didn't want to believe that she wasn't human, but it made sense. The dreams, the feeling of being the odd duck out, everything. But what they said about mating still didn't put her fears to rest.

What if her parents were wrong? What if they weren't mates and he will just laugh at her, leaving her cold to love? The thought made May shudder, however, she still had to try:

"May, are you listening?" Anna cut her thoughts off and startled her back to reality. Maddie shook her head, smiling sweetly as she quickly cleaned her make-up up.

"Yes, A, but it's complicated sweetie. Believe me, I'm going to miss you so much, but it's something that sissy needs to do, baby; you'll understand when you're older." The blonde scooted her case out of view before she leaned forward, smiling when the ravenette pouted and crossed her arms.

"Why do adults always say that? And sis, you know I'll always stand by you, but this seems crazy. You moved all the way across the world and for what? It's something you need to do? But what's the reason behind this move? Why can't anyone tell me?"

With a deep sigh, Maddie smiled sadly as she touched the screen, wishing she could comfort the young girl in some way. The blonde knew the youngest Sawyers would have a hard time with this, she also knew that she won't be happy until she saw for herself:

"I can't explain it, Anna, just trust me when I say I have to do this and I'll all the better for it." This earned the older sister another sigh, but Annamarie nodded as a smile crept onto her lips.

"Okay, I'll trust you, but you have to promise me to call and come to visit every chance you get."

"You got it, baby. Now, you need to sleep. School's tomorrow for you and I need to get to work now. I love you, Anna."

The girl smiled again, nodding in and waved goodbye before logging off. Maddie sighed sadly once she was alone as she closed her iPad's case, closing her eyes to steady her nerves and thoughts of Russel.

With a shake of her head to free herself from the confusing thoughts before the blonde opened her blues. As Maddie's eyes adjusted to the lights, she looked around her small apartment. When she moved into it, she thought it was perfect; but now it made her feel alone, making her think about the past.

The blonde sighed deeply, pushing the thoughts back to a dark corner of her mind as she moved to continue her morning route. She didn't want to keep thinking about those things, they just will make Maddie more confused and distracted from the things that really need her attention.

So, with one more shake of her head to free herself, she grabbed her jacket and wheeled into the light of day, leaving the thoughts behind her with a small smile placed on her lips.

Never knowing what this week would bring:

-.-.-.-.-

"Settle down, guys, or I won't let you out early." Russel growled out through his clenched teeth, trying to not to show his building frustration with the unruly teens behind the computers they were assigned to.

He loves his job, but sometimes he wanted to just quit and devote his time to finding her, but the young man knew he needed this job for their future. Russel knew that, but it didn't make this any easier, though.

That was just adulting, he growled at that thought. He hated it, just itching to run away, but knowing better. He was too responsible to just leave his family and pack mates behind. Russel's mind went back to his sister's words this morning, slowly sighing as he tried to free himself from the thoughts.

"Mr. G, I need your help, my computer completely froze on me and I was almost done with the project." Willa Fed, his favorite student, wheeled to him, bringing him back to reality as he exhaled deeply with a smile settled on his lips:

"Okay, Willie, coming." Russel soothed, knowing the small ginger was slightly freaking on the inside. She was like Madison in that way, always wanted to be the best she could be, no matter how much others think she was perfect already.

Soon, the period faded into the lunch period—and without any more freak-outs on his smart little student's part, thank the gods and the goddesses for that, he mused amused as he waved her off before Russel moved to his desk to eat his lunch in peace and think.

As the brunette teacher got lost in his mind again, he failed to notice that his aunt and sister ran in the small lab excitedly until they hit the desk, startling him into the real world. Russel stopped absently chewing his lunch, raising an eyebrow as he set the fork back into the salad:

"Whoa there, guys, what's the hurry for?"

They giggled at that, grinning at each other before they explained, the ginger went first and then the brunette excitedly:

"There's a new English teacher, and this might be rumors, but she moved back here from Japan, Russel." Locia breathed out in a mere whisper, seemingly too excited to push her voice beyond that breathy whisper.

"And I heard some of my students saying her name was Miss. Fields, there's no way it isn't her. It must be Maddie, it must be. Her parents should've told her by now." Alicia uttered eagerly, leaning on the desk with a smile as they watched his eyes go wide.

"She might be here, really? But why didn't she…?" Russel questioned quietly as he moved to the classroom's door, letting his blues roam over the buzzing hallway while his mind went wild with doubtful thoughts:

The women glanced at each other, a frown placed on their lips, knowing what the handsome brunette was thinking; if she was back, why would she not tell them? Seeing that, in the past, they were so close. Especially the two youngest of the group, the women had to wonder why as well.

But, as they stared at their friend's back, they realized that the girl was probably afraid of their reaction, seeing how she disappeared slowly from their lives when she left, and if Russel would be angry at her. If she sought them, or namely him, out and only to be refused or laughed at must be the reason behind why Maddie didn't tell them.

Locia voiced this to Russel, earning a growl from the blue-eyed wolf as he turned to the two women with a scowl placed on his lips:

"Are you trying to tell me that my mate is afraid of me? When, when we were young, I gave her no reason to worry that I would ever refuse her anything; especially me? When in the dreams, I am very open to her? I always showed May nothing but love, Locia, don't you dare say that to me!"

The ginger winced at his statement as she shifted her browns to Ali's shocked expression, lifting her hands up in a surrender post before she continued to speak.

"I know that, but you also must remember how she is, Russy. Maddie is the most unsure being we know since…Maria died." Locia mused, hugging herself as her mind went back to their time as teenagers where the young princess was beginning to open more and more as the weeks went on.

But the ginger knew she still struggled with being loving towards herself, and that carried over to her new life as Maddie tenfold. She sighed deeply, closing her eyes in slight sadness.

When Alicia noticed the change in her friend, she placed a soothing hand on her ginger waves while she took over calming the furious wolf:

"That's right, Russel. She probably thinks you might refuse her because how many years had passed since you guys talked. Yes, you two are mates, but I will bet you that she is doubting the truth behind her parents' claim."

Russel growled once more before he groaned softly as his hand ran over his face. The young wolf knew that, but he wished she was a little more confident in her worth and in her mate. He shook his head at the thought, pinching his nose to fight yet another headache before looking up at his friends as he replied:

"I'm sorry, Locia, I just hate when people imply she can't let me in even if I know she's a bit damaged."

The pair moved to hold him soothingly, getting lost in their own sadness as the trio's minds went crazy with plans to how to get the couple together. Before a few moments had passed, Alicia pushed back from the group hug, moving to the desk before she leaned on it as her scheming mind went into overdrive while the other two stared at her; not sure what was going through her mind.

Everyone knew that when Alicia went silent, she was coming up with something you might not want to be a part of. But, the group also knew that she has the best plans to get things done and finish.

But, Russel didn't want to wait for whatever hair-brained plan the brunette thought up. He wanted to do this on his own, but deep inside, he knew that he needed the girls to ease Maddie back to Russel's loving arms and this time, the handsome wolf won't let her go. He will make sure she would be his evermore.

So, with one more sure smile sitting upon his lips, the young wolf took a slow step forward and laid a gentle hand on his friend's shoulder. When she startled back into the moment, he gave her a grin before questioning her teasingly:

"What's the crazy plan this time, Ali? I won't be needed to dressed up in drag, right? Because I am not doing that again."?

Alicia chuckled, remembering the time Madison needed to go to the hospital for a surgery and wouldn't smile until a certain silly wolf showed up sporting a green dress and jewelry to match upon Alicia's urging. However, she had the sinking suspension that the boy would do it again without hesitation if it meant that his princess was smiling in the end.

"Nope, just be the charming wolf that you are. We will do the leading now. Just like we did before."

-.-.-.-.-.-

"Hey, blondie, what's up?" A strangely familiar voice shouted out to her as she wheeled to her van after the school day was over, startling the young woman from her thoughts. Maddie turned to the voice to see her old friend, Alicia, standing there with a grin settled on her lips:

"Oh, my god! Ali! You teach here too?" Maddie squealed like a little girl before wheeling to her, throwing herself at her old friend while the pretty brunette laughed and wrapped her arms around her.

"I guess you missed me, huh?"

"Of course, I missed you! I missed all of you guys!" The blonde grinned lightly, but it didn't reach her sapphire eyes as she settled back into her chair.

If Alicia is here, she thought wistfully as the blonde bit her lip, then he must be here. What should Maddie do?

Alicia noticed the change in her friend, she smiled to herself before she knelt to her level as she tucked a loose strand behind her ear:

"I guess you are thinking about your wolfie, right? You know he won't be mad at you." She soothingly whispered, before moving into a more comfortable position as the blonde sighed deeply.

"Are you sure, though? I dropped off the face of the Earth and you guys were probably so worried about me. Is Russel really okay with me leaving?"

"No, he was a mess when you left, but Russel knew that you needed to go, sweetie, he just wished you reached out to us, to him."

The pair shifted their eyes to the side, when Madison grinned at her beautiful ginger-haired friend as she sat down on the other side of the curb. She hugged Locia before the blonde moved her sapphires back forward, a sigh escaping from her lips:

"I don't know, guys, I know mama and papa said that we are meant to be, but are there really such things of soul mates? Even if in a magical world? And after being out of touch for eleven years, how could he still love me?"

The other two women leaned back to share a shocked expression; they told her everything? They grinned behind Maddie's back before Ali moved to soothe the blonde, rubbing her back.

"So, they told you?" Alicia whispered into her ear, nuzzling her like a mother cat. She knew this was a bit hard on Maddie, seeing she found out her whole life was only a half-truth, finding out that she wasn't human; but a reborn fairy princess. It must have been so hard on the blonde.

She shook her head as she pulled out of her hold, wheeling to a flower to focus on something else while Maddie thought of what she should say, but her thoughts couldn't leave her lips and a frustrated growl ripped from her throat before she turned to the pair:

"I know some, but they couldn't tell anymore, they did say that I had to move back before I regretted it for the rest of my life. It's frustrating! I want to know everything about myself without leaving my parents and sister behind."

She finished her rant as the two older looked on with a frown, watching her catch her breath and letting the blonde collect her thoughts before they would soothe her worries.

They knew that the poor girl went through a lot these passed years, even though they weren't there with her. They knew she had a hard time fitting in, and being in a county foreign to her disability, it must be beyond difficult for a young teen. Then, she found out some of the truth about herself and was forced to move far away from the only people she had to lean on just to find out the whole truth just added a level to her stress, they figured:

They both knew that it would be worth it in the end, but they also could understand her frustration with the whole situation.

"I get I needed to do this to really understand my and Russy's relationship, but you know how close I am to my family. I missed you guys so much and am completely excited to see you and him again, however, being away from the baby I helped raised and the best parents a girl could ever ask for is the hardest thing about this. And I foolishly thought facing him again was going to be the hardest part." Maddie continued after a long pause, waking the other women out of their thoughts.

Locia gave a low chuckle before nudging Alicia for help up. Being pregnant still frustrated Locia to the highest level, she loved the fact that Aaron and she were becoming parents, but at times like this when she needed to move fast, it was annoying to have a swollen stomach slowing her down. After wiggling and Ali nudging her up, she paddled up to the beautiful blonde, putting her hand on her shoulder as she gave a reassuring smile:

"Honey, I know this might be hard on you, but you're right; you needed to move. You wouldn't find out the truth if you didn't. Just talk to Russel and you will find out the truth. It seems hard, but you might find it is a lot easier than you thought."

Maddie bit her lip, staring at the doors leading back to her past as the burning desire to see Russel returned with crushing weight. She was fighting against it until Alicia's voice put her will to fight to rest.

"She's right, Mays, once you meet his eyes, everything will make sense. Don't be shy, kitten, go talk to him. He is waiting for you." Locia stated through a wide smile, causing the blonde to lick her lips s as she caved into the building desire in her chest.

"Where's his room?" Maddie asked in a breathy whisper, her hands moving to the wheels careful and slow:

"D Hall, the computer room. Good luck, sweet girl, and don't worry; he always has loved you. You'll see."

That statement followed Maddie as the door closed behind her, sealing her on this path. With a last look at her friends' reassuring smiles, Maddie exhaled deeply before she squared her shoulders and made her way to the smaller computer room, the beating of her heart echoed in her ears as the door came into view.

She doesn't know what would happen next, but she knew that she wanted to be in his arms, even if it was only for a moment. She chewed her lip as she slowly entered the tiny room, knocking on the frame shyly.

The man was busy with tidying up his desk, unable to notice the beautiful blonde in the doorframe. She shook her head amusedly at the familiar scene, moving further into the room as her shyness melted away while Maddie smirked teasingly:

"You were always easily pulled into thought, Russy." She teased lightly, smiling while she watched as his head snapped up to meet her own blues with a shocked look held in his.

The moment their eyes converged, the clock began to reverse and the feelings came crashing down on them tenfold while they just stood there, lost in the moment.

Even though he was always handsome, he was better-looking now as he matured through the years. And although he was more on the fluffy side now, he still had the kind face and eyes she fell in love with those years ago. It made him look like a teddy bear, but there was something in his bright eyes that was a fierce fire to protect everyone.

The fire burned even brighter as a loving smile danced across his thin lips:

"I've been waiting for you, my princess." And with that, everything cleared, blue eyes widen before they went back to shining excitedly, the memories blooming as the wolf pulled her to him and nuzzled her close.

She smiled waterly, wrapping her arms around his waist tightly before she whispered softly:

"I'm sorry for the wait, Nutcracker…."

*Kisu-Kitten in Finnish

*Susi-Wolf in Finnish

*Rakas kissanpentu-Beloved kitten in Finnish