Rise of the Luna (completed)

5-Strangers

- Leyton POV -

Kayla’s breathing slowed down and I could feel her calming down and relaxing in my arms. I look down at the girl in my arms and was surprised by how much she has changed. Her once chubby face has lost all of the cute baby fat, but not in a good way. Her cheeks are slightly sunken in and I would even say she looks tired. Suddenly, she nuzzles against my chest, making herself more comfortable in my arms and snapping me out of my thoughts.

“Kayla, are you ok?”

No response.

“Kayla?”

She whines and her breathing evens. I guess she must have fallen asleep and decided to carry her back to the pack house. At least the pack house hasn’t changed and I made my way to her bedroom and tucked her into bed. She turned to her side and immediately kicked off the covers, making me chuckle as I remember how this was always a sign that she had actually fallen asleep and Mum would only re-tuck her into bed after she has kicked off the covers. Then something caught my eye, interrupting that happy memory.

Her dress had hitched up to her waist as she turned and kicked off the covers. Before I could put the blanket back on her, I saw bruises on the back of her upper thighs. They look fresh and I frowned, not sure if it was possible to hurt oneself like this by accident. Heaving a sigh, I decided to tuck her into bed again and talk to her tomorrow.

- Kayla’s POV -

The sun was shining on my face and I pulled my blanket over my head, wondering why I had forgotten to draw the curtains last night. Then it slowly dawned on me, where was I?! I don’t remember going to bed last night. The last thing that I could recall was Leyton, or at least I think it was Leyton, hugging me and assuring me everything was ok. I sprang up to a sitting position and was relieved to find myself in my own bedroom. Leyton must have carried me back. I smiled as I thought of the many times he would carry me to bed when we were kids if I had fallen asleep watching TV. Back then he was also a kid and sometimes, carrying me to bed was more like dragging me to bed. I felt a surge of warmth in my heart as I got myself ready to go downstairs for breakfast, excited to see my brother for the first time in ten years.

- Leyton’s POV -

The Luna made our favorite pancakes and bacon for our first breakfast back home. It was not as good as Mum’s but it was still the taste of home, I smiled as that thought crossed my mind. Suddenly, I could feel Finn staring at the stairs intensely. I frowned and followed his gaze. Wearing a white oversized t-shirt and black leggings, Kayla ran down the stairs with a big smile on her face, her big brown eyes caught mine and I smiled at her. Finn frowned and I knew he must have forgotten who Kayla is or had not recognized her, since he has not seen her for as long as me.

“Chill man, that’s Kayla, my sister. You remember? She was only seven when we went to boarding school for training,” I explained quickly. Kayla nodded and waved at Finn to say hello before sitting down next to me.

“So Kayla, do you remember Finn? He’s the son of our Alpha and Luna. Don’t worry if you don’t recognize him. It has been a long time and we have all changed a lot,” I reassured Kayla. She shook her head and then smiled at me. Not understanding what that meant, I asked her. To my surprise, she took out her phone, typed something quickly and showed me what she wrote, “I don’t recognize Finn and barely recognize you.”

Finn looked just as confused as I was and then the Luna cleared her throat, explaining to us, “Leyton, I know we should told you this but you never responded when we tried to tell you about Kayla when you called, so we didn’t know how to tell you this. After you left, she has never spoken again. The doctors did many checks and couldn’t find any problems with her. After some time, we.. we didn’t have a choice but to give up. I’m sorry.”

Suddenly, Finn stood up, glared at Kayla in disgust and ran out of the house. I was just in shock and unable to react. What have I done? A small but warm hand holds onto me and I turned to look at its owner. She smiled at me assuringly and gave me a thumbs up sign. A tear rolled down my cheeks as I looked at this familiar stranger. She was still so optimistic and caring, just like when we were kids. Yet everything has changed. Her tired face and inability to speak and the swirl of conflicting emotions when I look at her. Would we be able to go back to the way things were?