THE UNTAMED LUNA

DRIVE ME CRAZY

Marvin rode in his car, going home with us. While the twins take their car. Maybe I should be riding with the twins. But I really want to stay right where I am. It was a good day. We spent as much time together as we possibly could. It helps.

On the road, I have been thinking about something for a while. I remember the story of Robert, my father, being killed. Along with Marvin's father. Then the boys said I needed to learn self-defense. No one has said who killed my father or why. I still have so many questions on my mind.

At Marvin's house, we directly entered the kitchen to eat.

"Eat up, everyone."

Jolina says. I am starving like them.

"Hello, baby, don't be shy. Starting today, I am your second mom, as always."

Jolina says a warm welcome to Tagi, and she hugs Tagi the same way she did in our first meeting.

"Besh, are you okay?"

I ask Tagi. The house is new for her. I knew what she was thinking even though there were no words coming from her mouth.

"You need to eat more before you change, so you are probably hungrier than usual."

Marvin tells me.

"So, are there any other changes I should know about?"

I ask everyone.

"Males usually become more muscular and taller in a short period of time. While females will get curvier. Their bodies are preparing to carry children."

Jolina tells me I'm a little bit shy because she says it when Tagi is sitting behind me. and I'm pretty sure she hears it clearly.

"Children, like right now?"

I ask.

"No, no, that doesn't have to happen right away. But in the werewolf community, children are considered a blessing and are very cherished and wanted. So, most couples do try to get pregnant soon after mating. Especially since there are so few of us left. But don't you worry about that."

Jolina assures me.

I am going to worry about that even if she tells me not to. I don't want a baby any time soon. But I have noticed my body changing. My hips are getting a little wider, and I have gone up a cup size in the last couple weeks. I thought maybe my clothes were shrinking, but when I looked in the mirror this morning, I could see it. Am I going to just get fatter and fatter? Jolina looks really fit. Now I'm going to worry about this too.

"Should I worry about my weight?"

I ask her.

"Oh no, absolutely not. Werewolves have amazing metabolisms. We can pretty much eat anything we want and not gain weight. You will burn fat quickly once you change. I should have said that you will get curvier in all the right places."

She assures me with a wink. The three boys are all pretending they aren't listening. Except Tagi.

After dinner, Jolina and the twins spend their time with Tagi. They bring her to the backyard and talk about our new life and how to prepare for it.

I work on my homework while Marvin sits next to me, correcting papers when I'm done. It feels good to just sit here with him. So much better than suffering alone at home. But what Jolina said a while ago remains floating in my mind.

"Do you want children, Marvin?"

I ask hesitantly. He thinks before answering.

"Yes, I have always wanted children. And now that I know you, I would love to have children with you specifically. But I want to wait until you are ready. I know you want to go to college, and I want you to do that. I don't want to rush you at all. I can wait. That is one more thing I haven't mentioned: we werewolves live longer than humans."

He tells me Well, that was a lot of information. I'm glad he wants me to go to school.

"How long do we live?"

I must ask.

"Most of us live to about one hundred and twenty-five or thirty."

He tells me Wow, that's awesome.

"I have been meant to ask you this: why did those men come after Jolina?"

He seems pained by my question.

"I thought you would be asking that soon. It's a long story. I will give you the short version."

He said.

"Alright."

I say. Then he tried to tell me the story.

"You know that there aren't many female wolves. Females in our community are revered. They are prized. Every male wolf dreams of one day finding his soul mate. It's really the goal. Our lives are fulfilled by our mates. Nothing compares.

There was a male wolf named Allan who came to our pack looking for his soul mate. He had his heart set on Mom, even though she was too young. She was only 15. He swore that she was his soulmate. She was quite a bit younger than him, but she insisted he was not her mate. He kept contending that as soon as she turned 18, she would admit he was her mate. But Mom didn't. She continued to insist he was not. Shortly after, Mom and Dad met when their packs merged. He was the alpha of his pack. They knew immediately when they saw each other. Everyone celebrated the union. But Allan was livid. He said my dad took his mate. This went on for years. My parents mated, married, and had me a few years later.

Allan got more and more agitated as time went on. He left and looked elsewhere for his mate. He never found her. When he came back, he started to become unstable. He kept insisting that Mom was his soulmate. She was pregnant with the twins at that time. He went so far as to say that her children should be his. Because of that, Dad decided to build a safe room in the house. That's what we have in the basement. Then one day, Allan lost it. That's the day Robert and my dad were killed."

"That is horrible, Marvin. I am so sorry. But what happened to Allan? I remember someone dying. Was it him?" I asked.

"No, Allan was injured, but he got away. We haven't seen him since. We assumed he died because he never came back. We have put in better security cameras in the whole city, especially the nearest town from here, since then. No one has seen him in all these years. I suppose he could have gone to another country and found his real mate. But no one in any of the packs in the United States has seen him. He is wanted for murder in the werewolf community."

"Wow, that is really scary. Do things like that happen often?" I ask.

"No, it's very rare. I have heard of a couple males claiming a female was their soulmate when she wasn't. But it never goes any further than that. She tells them no, and it's over. I have never heard another story like this. He must have been mentally unstable before he ever came to our pack. He was never quite right. Please don't worry about this ever happening again. He should have been expelled from the pack long before it got that bad. We learned our lesson. We are incredibly careful and protective of the women here. Any one of us would give our lives to save a female in our pack. And I will never, ever let something like that happen to you. You are so precious to me."

Then Jolina comes in and tells us that the midnight snack is ready. I feel like we just ate. But I am hungry again. We have a nice meal together with lots of laughter and teasing. I love this family.

"I asked your mom if they wanted to come to dinner tomorrow since she has the night off. They agreed."

Jolina tells me

"Oh, great. The sooner, the better. I want Dad to understand it all."

I replied to her.

After a midnight snack, Marvin suggests we chill and watch a movie. I agree happily since I don't want to leave. We all have popcorn and junk food. I enjoy watching Marvin relax and just have fun. He is usually so serious. I know that in his position, he has to be the leader and show that he is in charge. And at school, he is the teacher. So here, he is just a guy trying to watch a movie with his girlfriend without accidentally touching me.

Marvin drives us home, and I talk to my parents for a little while before heading to bed. I appreciate how understanding they are about this whole situation. This could have been much worse if it weren't for them. I text Marvin before I fall asleep.

"Miss you already." I sent it.

"So do I love." he replied.

"It's really strange when you are in love."

Tagi says when she caught me smiling.

"It's my Marvin.. he really drive me crazy, my first love.. my everything.. my mate. I can feel that he is my world now. I am excited soon, he will be going to marry me.."

"Ok, your wish is not my command, let's see if there's a fallen star from heaven that will give us the sign.."

"Hahahah.haha you really believe in fallen star?" I told her, it's seems to be funny and cute.

"Of course, we cannot predict the future." Tagi said and we both look up in the sky.

Waiting for that sign.