Forsaking His Luna

Beach

Miriam

After the hottest guy I have ever seen left faster than I could process, I was speechless. I turned around to find Diego fuming. Not waiting for him to lash out, I pointed the finger at his chest, warning him.

"Next time you touch her like that, I will f*****g kill you! You got that?" without waiting for an answer, I grabbed her hand and pulled her towards our tent.

"Miriam?! Are you out of your damn mind? You can't talk to him like that!"

"Why not? He shoved you and hurt you. Besides, I am not a wolf; I don't owe him any allegiance."

She seemed to be a mix of happiness and pissed off.

"Yes! But you aren't supposed to know about our kind, but you do. And you know the consequences we could face from letting you know, decide that it's a good idea to confront him in front of an alpha from another pack. Diego might have a crush on you, but he won't let you make him look smaller. He will retaliate, be certain."

"He can try. I couldn't care less! If he does it one more time, I will tell Bea."

"Miriam, I appreciate you defending me, but sometimes I wonder if you have a death wish... I hope never to see the day your words get you in trouble."

Rolling my eyes at my best friend, I try not to dwell on her words that ring with some truth.

"Okay, Mafalda, enough of Diego and his s**t. I'm sick of it!"

"Fine! Let's go back to camp to ..."

"No! We are not going back there now, and I do not wish to argue or explain myself any further today. Besides, Diego will be there, and I do not wish to look at his face, much less talk to him. We are already wearing bikinis, and who needs a towel with this heat?"

She seemed surprised.

"But... "-she was ready to argue but contained herself after seeing my puppy's eyes.

"Not fair! Don't you dare pull the puppy's face on me...Fine! I'll grab my wallet. They won't even see me. I'll be fast; meet you at the bus stop."

With that said, she was out of sight in a flash. I made my way to the bus stop when I saw Arthur with his back facing me with that guy, Cody. They were in the queue, and there were a couple of people behind them, and when the line moved, and I moved as well, he turned so fast, his eyes meeting mine. I looked away, feeling like I needed to make myself disappear.

He's so hot!

When we had our starring contest, I could appreciate his eyes. They were hypnotising, the light brown colour almost like honey. His hair was chocolate brown, and he had a straight nose, a defined chin, thin lips, and a very accentuated jawline.

He was wearing a sleeveless dark green shirt and black hurley shorts, he had all stars on, to go to the beach? How weird!

His arms and leg muscles were right on the spot without making him look like a gym freak like Diego.

I was a coward because I grabbed my mp3 from my bag, broke eye contact, and started listening to my music. I needed something calming, so I chose the last kiss from pearl jam and mentally sang along.

The bus had just arrived from town, packed with people returning from the beach. I frowned at that. Never would I come back before sunset.

Where was Mafalda? I looked towards the trees in hopes of seeing her. I felt a hand on my shoulder, only to look up and see Cody flashing me a smile that would get a teenage girl in trouble. I removed my phone to hear him.

"Hey, I didn't get your name earlier. I just wanted to apologise if I have caused you any trouble with your boyfriend." He stretched his hand for me to shake.

"It's Miriam, and he's not my boyfriend. We're just friends."

I shook his hand as he frowned at my answer.

"Friends, who get jealous of each other?"

"No! Complicated friends, thanks for defending Mafalda after he shoved her that way. You were hitting on her. But you guys were talking... not that Diego has anything to do with that, anyway. I have to say I think that she liked you..."

"Oh wow... you are very straightforward, no hitting around the bush, I see..."-he said while blushing- "I'm just glad I could help, and since we're being honest, I liked her too. Obviously. Anyway, are you going to the beach too?"

I nodded.

"Yes, I am, just waiting for Mafalda."

"Care to join us? Arthur and I are going there now. Do you know the area?

"I should charge you if I'm going to be your guide..."-seeing the serious look on his face, I laughed. "Just kidding! You should have seen your face!"

"I happen to believe people a lot!"

I couldn't hold up my laugh. This guy was funny by nature.

"I come here yearly and usually stay at the campsite closer to the village. It's my first year at the festival, though. You guys are going to love it here. I just wished Mafalda would hurry. I need to go for a swim asap."

"You can wait for her with us! Arthur was saying he needed a swim too. You could go together." - he must have heard him but kept pretending he didn't. I spoke in a low tone to avoid others from overhearing me.

"Oh hmm, I don't think he likes me... I'm not his type, there's very little submission to my nature, and he's an alpha."

"How do you know that? You're human..."

"Because I was raised with them, my only friends are wolves. I can tell if someone is a wolf just by their behaviour and body language."

He seemed to be surprised by my words.

"Wow..uh. I'm sure you'll find Arthur is different."

"Sure...whatever..." I was very aware that he had just heard our entire conversation.

He turned around after I said that and slowly approached Cody from behind, keeping eye contact with me the whole time. His gaze was intense, and I almost lost my ability to breathe.

He started to speak, extending his hand for me to shake.

"I'm sorry if I came across as a snob earlier. It wasn't my intention. Let me try again; I'm Arthur Greenwood. It's nice to meet you." I found his honesty surprising, but I liked it. Taking his hand and shaking it, I felt like I had just been shocked by an electric wire.

"I'm Miriam Moura. Nice to meet you too." From behind me, my best friend put her hands on my shoulders, giving the guys a friendly smile.

"I am Mafalda Felix. Nice to meet you too, and now we are done with presentations. Can we catch the bus?"

"Thank God you're here. I was beginning to worry and was about to..."

"Yes, I know, on your way to kill people who might be holding me hostage, but look, I got our towels as well."

"Marry me?"

"It would never work, darling! We both know it."

We looked at each other seriously before bursting into laughter. Felling the awkward silence from the guys, I turned around and saw Cody with a big smile and Arthur with an expression I couldn't understand if he was happy. Cody broke the silence first:

"Mafalda, sorry about earlier..."

"Don't mention it. It's all good, and I should be the one apologising for my alpha's attitude."

Before things got awkward, I jumped in.

"Then that's settled? Let's get on the bus."

Two sets of seats were facing each other, I was starting to feel nervous, and I didn't even know why. Mafalda em Cody started talking finally, breaking the silence.

"So, where are you guys from?"

"Devon in the UK, and you?"

"We are from Sintra. It's near Lisbon. Did you guys come here for the whole week? Or just the first three days?"

"We came the whole week. Arthur is a big fan of Eddie Vedder. So, since he's going to uni in four weeks, my uncle and aunt gave him and me the tickets for our hard work."

"Man, come on, you're making me blush!" Arthur said sarcastically.

"You shouldn't be embarrassed... you should be proud!" sensing his discomfort from being at the centre of attention, I changed the subject.

"Uni, wow. So what are you going to study?"

His eyes met mine, and something soft and endearing came across them. Almost like he understood that I was trying to make him feel comfortable.

"Hmm, Biology."

"That's so cool."

"So, what year are you in?"

"Oh, I guess they are different systems, but I'm in year twelve next semester, secondary school. I have chosen Biology and Chemistry as specific subjects since I want to become a nurse. What about you? What do you wish to do with your degree in biology?"

"Well, pharmaceutical companies are always a good option to begin. I would love to do research, but that's at the beginning of my career. Later, I think I want to become a teacher. Who knows?" - he and I were utterly tuned out from Mafalda and Cody's conversation. However, that didn't seem to bother them. They were talking about the same as us.

"A teacher? Really? I don't have the patience to go back to school, I'm there now, and all I can think about is when I will be done with this place! Also, the fact that you are willing to deal with brats it's admirable."

"What can I say? I had an excellent Biology teacher. Plus, it's a work-life balance.

"An alpha teacher... that is unheard of..."

"I'll let you know that I'm not the alpha of my pack, nor am I looking to be. Yes, my wolf is an alpha, but that doesn't mean I need to have a pack to lead. I like my freedom."

"But are you capable of taking responsibility for others who might not be suitable for the job?" He looked shocked by my question, which got me thinking that his decision hadn't been made yet. I found Cody and Mafalda looking at me with incredulous expressions. Mafalda cleared her throat.

"We just arrived, guys. Let's go."

"Oh wow, that was fast," Cody said.

We left the bus in silence. Mafalda and Cody are taking the lead, and me and Arthur following behind.

Trying to defuse the tension, I wanted to apologise for my big mouth,

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude into your personal life. I was just curious, I guess." He just nodded, his expression unreadable.

As soon as my feet touched the sand, I felt peace and a sense of belonging. I loved the sea. I took off my Havaianas and walked forward until I got a nice spot and started putting my towel down.

“Uhh, isn’t here too far from the water?” Cody said.

“No, trust me, in 45 minutes, the water is going up. If you keep going far ahead, we will have our towels dragged by the tie.”

Mafalda turned to him, giving him a knowing expression, for him to accept what I was saying.

“When it comes to this, I learned a long time ago to just listen to her...” turning to me, her tone was of surprise.

“Miriam, how are you not running to the water already?” She sighed in defeat. When she turned around, I was already in my bikini. Having tossed my shorts and top on my towel, I was ready to run, so I flashed her a grin.

“I always speak too soon, don’t I? Look, I’m going to get some water and then sunbathe...”

“Boring!”

Cody was quick to offer to go with Mafalda.

“I could use a drink. Do you guys want anything? If you don’t mind me going?” he said, giving her an expecting smile.

“Sure... I’ll see you later, Mi.”- they started walking towards the bar.

Arthur turned his attention, making me feel self-conscious. In the end, I was wearing just a bikini. Somehow he didn’t make me feel bad, and he was looking at my face as if he was trying not to look at my body. It seemed like it.

“So it’s you and me then.”.

“Well, I’m going to swim,” I told him as I started to walk faster, anxious to get in the water.

He seemed to notice my eagerness and decided it was a good idea to tease me.

“I guess you just like to follow me.” he flashed me a knowing grin that made my heart beat.

“Really? Let’s see who follows who...” I started running towards the crystal clear ocean, and the next I knew, I was diving underneath a wave, enjoying the incredible sensation of salty water on my body.