35

I give him a confused look. What’re you talking about ?
Pull over for me, he tells me, pointing me down a dirt road that seems abandoned and especially scary in the dark light of the moon looming over us. Once I put the car in park, I unbuckle my seat belt to turn to face him.
What’s going on ? You’re freaking me out, I ask.
We need to tell you parents… about me, he says and I immediately freeze because this is the last thing that I need right now. With everything going on with my dad, I don’t even know what he would do if we told him that while I’m still dating a boy, he also happens to be an alpha of a werewolf pack.
Why do we have to do that ? I whisper.
It’s a rule with the elders that if an alpha has a human mate, the mate’s parents must also know about the pack just in case anything was to ever happen to them. Basically, since we’re both already targets for hunters and rogues, they’re also targets because they’re related to us, he tells me.
I put my head in my hands, all the stress and anxiety becoming even worse because while being hunted by a rogue pack, I had to tell my parents that and tell them that that means that they also are being hunted by a rogue pack. Joey reaches over to rub his hand up-and-down my arm before kissing the top of my head.
I’m so sorry, I wish I could ignore them, but this is one of the most important rules to them because if they don’t know when something happens, it can get them killed, he tells me.
I nod my head, looking up at him. Yeah, I know, but be prepared for the worst, okay ?
We’ll take it slow and make sure they understand everything that we tell them, alright ? Giving them more information will help them understand it better.
I shake my head. My dad won’t understand, Joey. He won’t care how we tell him or where or why or whatever, all he’ll see if that I’m still gay while still dating a man that he will now think of as a predator. He’ll start to question me about everything and just make everything worse and-
Joey cuts me off by pulling me into a hug as he starts to see me work myself into a panic attack. I grip his shirt in my hands as I try to calm myself down from everything just crashing down around me. Not only will there be a whole pack of angry wolves looking for me and my boyfriend, but now my dad will start to see me as an even worse person because of the man I chose to be with. Joey’s hands run through my hair to emit sparks throughout my head. It’s okay, I’m here. I’ll always be here.
After we’re able to calm me down, I start the drive back to my house, but the entire time, there’s this voice in the back of my head that’s just telling me to turn around. About 100 times during the rest of the drive, I almost listen and run away from my problems instead of facing them head on like I was taught to my whole life by my father, but who knew that the one who taught to face my problems was also the one creating the biggest one ?
When we pull up to my house, we get out as I walk as slow as I possibly can to stall the situation even further, but Joey keeps his eyes on me that’s pushing me forward. I open the front door to see my parents sitting on the couch with some movie playing in front of them while my father holds his phone in his hands.
My mom looks up with a smile. Hey, boys, dropping off Emilie was okay ?
Yeah, it was good, I tell her, my throat suddenly becoming extremely dry as they both look up at me with confused looks. we need to talk to you two.
Mom sits up to the edge of the couch as I go to sit on the loveseat along with Joey who sits down next to me. My father looks up from his phone to see my serious tone before setting the device down on the table in front of him before crossing his arms to look at me. I look over at my boyfriend, not knowing how to start this conversation.
What’s going on ? Mom asks with a concerned look on her face.
Joey clears his throat, sitting up to stare at them, trying not to keep too much eye contact with my father. I know that neither of you have a concept of anything besides humans, so this might come as a shock to you two, but werewolves coexist in this world and I happen to be the alpha of a werewolf pack, meaning that your son… also is the alpha.
My dad lets out a bitter laugh before standing up and turning away from us. I’m not listening to this bullshit joke.
Brody, don’t do that, my mom says to her husband, surprising him as he turns around to stare at her and I notice the slightly angry look that he tries to hide from all of us.
We can go outside and show you, if you’d like, I tell them and I notice the way that my mom wasn’t freaking out like I had expected her to, which tells me that she might already know about werewolves while my dad is completely shocked and angry at the whole situation.
Yeah, you should show us, Mom says and I give her a confused look before standing up as we all walk out to the fenced backyard that wasn’t seen by any of our neighbors. I notice the way my dad is walking slightly behind us with a look on his face like he was about to explode any minute.
When we stand in the backyard, Joey looks at me before putting his hands on the hem of my shirt, reminding me that he needed to take all of his clothes off if he doesn’t want to ruin them when he shifts. I motion for my parents to turn around, my throat being even more dry than before as I notice the glare my dad gives me before he turns around with my mom. I watch as Joey undresses all the way, handing me his clothes before shifting as I hear his bones crack before he falls onto all fours.
Okay, you can turn around now, I tell them and when they do, I notice the angry look on my father’s face shifts into a look of horror and fear. He takes a step back as my mother looks over my boyfriend’s wolf form before looking up at her husband and I realize that she most definitely already knew about wolves before this moment.
Kade, what the fuck ? Dad says to me as he backs up all the way until he hits the house with his hands sprawled out by his sides.
Brody, the boy isn’t going to hurt you. You don’t need to be so frightened, my mother says, crossing her arms at her husband’s ridiculousness as Joey sits down to lick at his paw that now had dirt coating his fur.
That isn’t a boy, Alexis ! What the hell are you talking about ? Are we seeing the same exact thing ? He yells at her before he turns around to run back into the house before my mother follows him with a sigh and when they’re gone, Joey shifts back as I hand him his clothes.
It’s going to get worse when we get in there, I tell Joey as he slips his shirt over his head to fall onto his body. Once he gets all his clothes on, he pulls me into his arms to kiss the top of my head.
Don’t freak out, alright ? We’ll work through all of this, he whispers into my ear before guiding me back into the house before stepping away from me so my father doesn’t see him touching me because that might just make everything so much worse. When we step into the house, I see my father sitting on the couch with his head in his hands while my mother stands next to him with her arms still crossed while staring down at him.
Dad ? I ask, making his head snap up to stare at us. All of a sudden, he stands up as fast as he can before coming over to Joey to push him against the front door with his hand wrapped around his neck.
Did you hurt him, you son of a bitch ? My dad screams in my boyfriend’s face as I run over to try and pull my father off of him while my mom runs over to pull me away, probably expecting my dad to turn around and hit me off of him.
No, sir, Joey chokes out and I notice the way his eyes are shifting between their hazel to their electric blue as he tries to get his wolf under control since this was my dad and the last thing he probably wanted to do was hurt him and make the situation ten times more complicated.
Dad, stop ! I scream as loud as I can as I try to fight against my mom to let me go, but I’m unable to because I didn’t want to hurt her whatsoever. She has her arms wrapped around my waist and chest to hold me against her body as I try to pull her towards my father’s body that was still choking Joey against the front door.