Just the thought is enough to make me wrap my arms around myself, my shoulders shaking and my chest painfully tight.
I can’t let Kyle die, not when he means so much to me. Besides, if he dies, it’ll be on me. And I can’t live with that.
I can’t be the death of him.
Which is why I can’t have him by my side.
The realization brings tears to my eyes as I stand up on shaking knees, my arms hanging at my sides.
If I want to keep Kyle safe, I have to make him leave me, but I know he won’t do that. He’ll never leave me. He’d rather die than leave me. So I have to leave him. And stay away from him. Even if he is the one person who knows and understands me. Even if he’s my best friend.
It’s for that reason precisely that I have to leave him.
And now, while he can’t stop me.
I take a step back, blinking away tears as I blow him a goodbye kiss.
Goodbye, Kyle. I know you’d rather die than be parted from me. But I would rather be parted from you than have you die. Sorry.
Leaving the room without a sound, I dash out of the house and into the woods, the wind blowing in my hair and tears streaking down my cheeks.
I don’t really know where I’m going. I’m just running as fast as I can and I keep running until I’m out of breath, at which point I can no longer see the house. In fact, I can no longer recognize the scenery around me.
Tired, I lie down in the middle of the meadow, blurry eyes on the sky above me.
Oh, how I wish I could turn back time. I wish I could turn back to the time when Kyle and I were in the Amazon, looking up at these same stars. Or at least ones like them. Then I would never leave for Alaska and I would never run into Sebastian or Theo or Toshi and I would never know what I was and I could go on living a normal, happy life.
Who knew normal was so underrated?
It’s true, I think as I close my eyes, letting more tears fall to the ground. You never know what you’ve got until it’s gone.
I must have fallen asleep or maybe I was just too wrapped up in my own thoughts. Whatever the reason, I don’t hear paws on the grass until it’s too late. As I open my eyes, the prick of a needle on my neck forces them closed again, the stars and the rest of the world fading into what my world has become – the unknown.
Chapter Twenty-One
~ Theo
“I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN the two of you would try to rip each other’s throats out the first chance you got,” I scold Sebastian and Toshi as soon as I hear their report about what happened.
I already had a feeling something was wrong when I saw them so far from the house, Sebastian running in his wolf form and Toshi sulking up in a tree. But this?
“I wasn’t going for his throat,” Toshi corrects, still up in the tree. “I was going for his heart.”
Sebastian pauses in putting his shirt on to narrow his eyes at Toshi.
“And you’re still at it.” I sigh, slapping my forehead.
I swear they’re like annoying children. I don’t even understand why they hate each other so much. I know they’ve ended up taking opposite sides in battles throughout history, but how did it start? It beats me.
“How’s Kyle?” I ask.
“He’ll be fine,” Sebastian says.
“And Clarissa?”
“She doesn’t want to see us,” Toshi answers, definitely pouting.
“Of course not.” I put my hands on my hips. “You tried to kill her best friend.”