Jasper is my mate… I can't believe what I'm thinking. I keep swirling those words around in my head, like those snobby guys do with wine, trying to make them make sense.
But it's too, too wild.
Not only is he, like, way out of my league––he's practically royalty and hotter than Noah Centineo––but Jasper and I haven't exactly been hitting it off. And besides all that he's a guy. He's a...guy!
I know this kind of thing is perfectly normal out in the human world. Most of the human kids at my school who are gay or bi have come out already and it's super cool. But in wolf culture it's not really a thing.
So I'd never thought that I could be… But I must be, because here I am, standing across from Jasper with a heart rate that would terrify any decent medical practitioner, and a belly full of butterflies.
We're staring at each other, neither one of us willing to move. But I can feel him. There's a connection between us now like radio waves. A pulsating current sparking and zapping, holding us in place.
Part of me wants to run back the way I came and dive under a bush.
Whatever this means it's going to make our lives wildly complicated.
Yet, no matter how daunting the idea of being Jasper's mate is, another part of me, the bigger part, wants to find out where this could lead.
One of my feet edges forward, skidding through the soil. Jasper huffs and lifts his head warily. But I'm moving now, the rope that's tied itself around my chest is pulling me forward and I'm giving in. I take a proper step in Jasper's direction.
I can barely breathe. Nerves and tingles are making my entire body shake like an overfilled smoothie blender. My jaw is clenched tight and I feel like any second I might explode into a billion microscopic pieces.
I take another step.
Jasper lowers his muzzle. The fur on his back is standing on end, like a punk rocker's mohawk.
He's shaking too.
I take another step and as I do a breeze whispers through the clearing sending a cloud of his scent right in my direction. It hits my nose like a delicious pillow and I rear back. Lights erupt and obscure my vision.
There is no mistaking it––this boy is messing me up!
When I've recovered I take another step. I'm less than a foot away from him now and he still hasn't moved.
I lower my muzzle as a sign of submission, to show him I'm not a threat. To my surprise, his lips curl back, and he growls.
It's a warning, to keep my distance.
But we're mates. Aren't we supposed to be all over each other?
It's not that I'm suddenly sold on Jasper as a person, but if he's feeling anything like I'm feeling, I don't know how he's resisting.
I lower my head even further and his growling stops.
That's right, buddy. I'm not going to hurt you.
Jasper's emerald eyes are unblinking. He's watching me like I'm a threat, which is hilarious considering how much bigger than me he is.
I edge a little closer until our faces are side by side. All of my instincts are telling me to push my face into his neck and bury myself in his fur.
If only I could touch him, if only I could...
I move my head and suddenly, a scream pierces the night air, breaking the tension. Instantly,both of us snap out of our hypnotic state.
The girl screams again and I feel like I've been dunked in ice water.
That's a human scream.
Everyone should have been in their wolf form by now. Did someone not shift? Did some hiker get lost looking for her campsite? There's more than a hundred hormonal wolves prowling these woods. Whoever it is, they're in trouble.
"Heeeeeeelp!" she goes on screaming, and my ears twitch because I recognize the voice. It's Katie!!!
Jasper is faster than I am and he's already leaped beyond the treeline by the time I start running.
My heart is in my throat and there is more adrenaline pumping through my system than ever before. I'll be lucky if I make it to Katie before I pass out.
I catch up to Jasper, relying on that blue moon-super speed. We glance at each other, sharing a knowing look that whatever is happening up ahead we have to take care of it before we can address our own situation.
For some reason just knowing there is a situation makes my heart do a little backflip.
Katie's voice becomes louder as we approach and the sound of wolves rises to meet it. Low viscous growls are punctuated by snapping jaws and harsh barks.
Jasper and I burst through some low-hanging branches and find ourselves at the top of a slope above a stream.
I spot Katie at the bottom of the hill. She has her back pressed up against a tree and is holding her dress to her chest. Her face is blotchy and red and her eyes are puffed out from crying.
Between me and her are two wolves. One of them is lean, walnut-brown, with a long pointy jaw, and joints sharp enough to shuck oysters.
The other is ginger and carries its larger than average frame on four sturdy legs. If I squint they almost look familiar.
The wolves are fighting, circling each other, trying to get to higher ground. The brown one jumps and latches onto the ginger wolf's neck, tackling him sideways. Locked together, they tumble down the slope toward Katie. The ginger one stops their momentum with its hind legs and tosses the brown wolf to the ground.
Katie is sobbing, crying out for them to stop.
In a second, the wolves are back snarling at each other.
Neither one is backing down. What happened to make these wolves want to take each other out so badly?
Jasper motions with his head for me to go to Katie and before I know it he's leaped into the middle of the fight.
I take that as my cue and circle around the three males, giving them a wide berth as I sneak down the hill.
Jasper growls––his commanding tone sends a shiver down my spine–and his agitated subjects back off.
I approach Katie, who recognizes me instantly and looks more than relieved to see me.
I nuzzle against her side and she places a hand on the back of my neck. Back up the hill, the walnut and the ginger wolf are still on opposite sides of Jasper, snarling.
Despite his alpha-like commands, these wolves aren't giving up.
When the walnut wolf goes to make another move, Jasper lunges at him. He recoils, whimpering. Jasper barks at him and finally the walnut wolf submits, lowering his head and backing up.
Jasper turns and sends another curt bark in the direction of the ginger wolf. He's less resistant and quickly bows his head. With another bark and a howl, Jasper instructs the fighters to take off in different directions.
They're hesitant at first, both whining and unwilling to turn their back on the other. But Jasper snaps his jaws one last time and instantly they turn on their heels.
He watches until they are gone and then he stares back at me. Our eyes meet and, with the commotion over, I remember exactly where we were before we heard Katie's scream.
What happens now? I don't want to leave Katie alone. She's clutching onto my fur and shivering. But there's so much that's unclear to me about Jasper, about Jasper and me...about everything… "Max?" Katie asks, her voice quivering. I glance at her briefly and when I look back the end of Jasper's tail is disappearing into the forest.
He's gone.
I huff, and shuffle forward, my wolf instincts desperately telling me to run after him.
"Max, can we go back to the camp?" Katie asks. I close my eyes.
I've just met my mate. But I have no idea what that even means.
And on top of that the person I'm mated to turns out to be the one person I have no idea how to get along with.
Before I came here I didn't care about mates, even a little bit, and now...now I want to run after mine and tackle him to the ground.
Katie sniffles and I turn around.
Jasper will have to wait because my friend needs me now.
I nod at the dress in her hands and turn around so she can get dressed. She ruffles the fur on my neck when she's done.
"Let's go find your clothes," she says.
She keeps her hand resting on me as we walk through the forest, back to the place where I started the Mating Run, where I first heard Jasper's howl.
The entire time we're walking all I can think is that Jasper's out there somewhere. My ears stay alert in case I can make out the sound of his breath nearby "Hey, Max," Katie says, scratching behind my ear. "Was that Jasper you showed up with?"
I huff and shake out my muzzle, grateful to be in my wolf form. I have no idea how I'm going to explain everything to Katie.
How have I ended up with Jasper as my mate? Will Jasper accept what has just happened? Will he accept me? Do I even want that?
My biggest fear about coming here has come true. Everything has changed. My world has shifted off its axis in a way I could never have imagined.
There are so many questions running through my mind.
But they are all going to have to wait until the morning.
The only thing I'm certain of now is that I'm in real need of a decent sleep.