Chapter 27: Chapter 27

TWENTY-SEVEN

A week had passed since Willow and Levi argued. Willow wished they had resolved everything before she completely moved but that did not happen. Levi was clearly not ready to apologise first because he thought he was right. Willow on the other hand had thought everything through and realised that she had made a mistake. She could not just expect Levi to side with her every time. Of course, Levi would react the way he had after hearing what Willow had said.

Willow was certain that any other werewolf would have reacted just as Levi had, after all, they do treasure the mate bond. It was something sacred to them and Willow realised that she had belittled it whether knowingly or unknowingly.

But even after dropping her pride, she still could not bring herself to apologise. The chokehold that guilt had over her was too much. She felt so shameful to face Levi and ask for forgiveness. Despite knowing that Levi would gladly accept her apology, she felt too shy and shameful.

The past days had dragged on with no direction. The walls of the apartment seemed to be closing in on her. She had hoped to spend the week trying to get accustomed to the roads and the neighbourhood, perhaps visiting places of interest with either Black or Levi. But none of that happened. Instead, she had spent the last couple of days cooped up in the apartment. Charlotte was the only other person she saw and Charlotte’s work colleague, if he could be counted.

Willow sighed and looked away from the television in front of her. Even after everything in her life seemed to have improved after Charlotte got a new job, she felt like she was lagging behind. She could not even enjoy the things that came with the apartment. Other than that, Charlotte kept pressuring her to go back to college. How could she tell her that not only was she scared to go into new surroundings but she was also worried about finances?

She grabbed her phone and checked for any new messages. Just like before, there were none. None from Black or Levi. Unlike Levi, Black still sent her a ‘good morning’ and ‘goodnight’ text. Still, it bothered her that Black seemed to be keeping his distance. She frowned at the ‘good morning’ text and decided to send him a message. She continued typing and deleting for a minute until he decided to send a simple

‘Hey’.

She threw away her phone, not wanting to see his reply but curiosity got the best of her and she reached for it. She stared at the unread message for a few more seconds and sighed. Obviously, he had to be busy. Unlike her, other people actually had lives and it was afternoon, Black had to be busy.

Willow ended up curling up on the couch and falling asleep with haunting thoughts of how she had ruined two good relationships in her life. One with her best friend and the other with someone who wanted to gain her trust and become her lover. It hurt so much to know that she could not even blame anyone else but herself.

......

‘Hey’

‘Is anything wrong?’

‘Willow? Should I come over?’

Willow stared at the messages that Black had sent over an hour before and panicked. Was he going to come? She looked down at the big sweater that reached her thighs and grimaced. She rushed to her room and pulled on the first bottoms she could see which were sweatpants. After patting down her clothes she walked back to the living room and opened the messaging app once again with the intent to reply.

‘I’m okay, there’s no need to worry'

‘I just fell asleep'

‘Are you really coming?’

The reply almost came immediately.

‘Oh’ was Black’s response which caused Willow’s disappointment to soar to a different level. She stared at the message for a few more seconds.

After what felt like forever, Black sent another message. ‘I have to help Caleb with something and since you’re okay, there’s no need for me to come.’

Why did that make her heart drop even more? Willow once again curled up in the seat and threw away her phone. Frustration was slowly starting to build up and other than that, she really missed Black more than she would have liked to admit. His green eyes haunted her mind.

Willow heard the sound of the front door but she did not bother to look up. Only Charlotte had another key to the apartment and she figured that if she did not raise her body, Charlotte would think she was asleep. But just like every single time, Charlotte did the opposite and tapped her shoulder before taking a peek at her face.

“Will? What’s wrong?” She asked, her voice filled with concern.

“Huh?”

“You’re crying,” Charlotte said. Willow brought her hand to her face and just as Charlotte said, tears were indeed running down her cheek.

Charlotte pulled Willow into her arms and patted her back soothingly. After finally realising that she was crying and being pulled into her aunt’s comforting arms, Willow cried harder. Her shoulders shook and violent hiccups left her lips. As time passed, Charlotte grew more concerned. Willow held onto Charlotte’s blouse tightly, creasing the well-ironed cloth.

“Is this about Levi?” Charlotte asked carefully and Willow nodded.

Charlotte sighed heavily. She had not expected this to go on for this long. Even though she had promised herself not to meddle, seeing Willow in such a condition made her think otherwise. Perhaps it was time she actually had a word with Levi as well.

After Willow calmed down, Charlotte gave her a cup of water. Willow gulped down the water and wiped her eyes with the sleeves of her sweater.

“Are you ready to listen to my advice now?” Charlotte asked sarcastically. Willow remained silent, sniffling quietly. “I told you that letting go of such a great friendship because of pride was stupid. Why don’t you just text him?”

“I...I really want to but...I’m ashamed.” Willow said in a low voice.

How could she even tell Charlotte that not only was she crying over Levi but Black as well? Everything was so complicated. Telling her about Levi only seemed like the better option. Charlotte was not invasive. She only knew that Levi and Willow had fought but did not know why. Willow liked that about Charlotte, she could console without the full details.

“Goodness Willow, if you weren’t ashamed while being proud then why are you ashamed to apologise?” Charlotte massaged the space between her eyes and sighed.

“Any relationship requires equal effort from both sides...gosh even physics agrees with this.” Charlotte rolled her eyes and stood up. She picked up Willow’s Phone and gave it to her. “Text Levi and tell him that you wish to talk.” She commanded.

Willow’s eyes widened but when she saw the look on Charlotte’s face, she opened the messaging app and clicked on Levi’s name. She hesitated for a few seconds, fumbling over words to type while chewing on the inside of her cheek.

“Willow, hurry up with this, Owen is waiting for me.” Charlotte scolded.

Willow finally realised that it was only afternoon and Charlotte was not supposed to be back yet. And if she was right, it had to be Charlotte’s lunch break. She quickly typed and sent the message without thinking any more of it. She felt guilty for having taken up most of Charlotte’s break.

“I’m sorry.” She apologised.

Charlotte shook her head and stood up. “It’s okay, I still have half an hour. I didn’t come to eat, I left a folder in the morning.” She explained.

“Still,”

“Don’t be like that. Owen is treating me to lunch so I gotta go.” Charlotte waved as she put on her shoes. “Bye and don’t delete the message.” Charlotte rushed out with a smile.

Willow smiled at her happy aunt before leaning back into the seat with a sigh. Her eyes felt heavy after all the sleeping and then crying. She looked at the screen of her phone.

‘Let’s talk. Can we meet up?’

After staring at the message for a long time, she frowned thinking it was low effort and Levi would probably think the same. Perhaps she should have added an ‘I miss you’ or a pleading emoji.

......

After being certain that Levi wanted nothing to do with her, Willow was ready to cry another river but what she had not expected was for the said man to knock on her door. Levi had not replied to her text message and when hours passed, Willow was sure that Levi did not want to be her friend.

Bit Levi stood in front of her door with messy hair and his jade-green eyes staring back at her. She could not help it but smile and when Levi smiled back, she was sure that she still had a chance to right her wrongs.

“I received your text,” Levi said and removed his phone from his pockets as if to show her the proof.

Willow nodded and told him to come in. Levi looked around the room with curious eyes before he nodded. “This is so much better.” He commented before taking a seat.

“Water? Juice? Coffee? Tea?—”

“Don’t be awkward Wills. Since when have you ever offered me something to drink? You always shove me into the kitchen and you know that I don’t like tea.” Levi laughed and Willow felt more at ease.

Levi was still ‘her Levi’, he had not changed. No one could change in the course of a week. He was still her best friend, the Levi that seemed laid back and calm even in the face of great turmoil. He was her rock and she loved him greatly, as platonically as possible.

Willow took a seat next to Levi and placed her hands on her lap. “I’m sorry Levi...I’m so fucking stupid.” She said as solemnly as possible while avoiding his gaze.

Levi pulled her into a hug and placed his hand on the back of her head. Willow rested her head on his chest, the urge to cry was heavy and her throat felt even heavier but she concentrated on Levi’s warmth and his scent.

“I missed you as well, stupid,” Levi said and lightly hit her head.

“I was insensitive and dumb. I realised that I was the wrong one after some time but I was more ashamed than proud to apologise.” Willow told Levi as they pulled away from each other. “I’m so sorry, I should have been more considerate of your feelings as well as Black.”

Levi remained silent and only held her hand. “I don’t want us to fight anymore,” Willow said.

"Neither do I.” Levi agreed.

“I think Caleb doesn’t like me anymore,” Willow said with a small laugh and tried to not make it seem like it bothered her. It bothered her though, she did not want Levi’s soulmate to hate her.

“He was just upset, he’s better now. His very protective over his family.” Levi defended his mate and Willow nodded.

She remained silent for a few seconds and nervously nibbled on her bottom lip. The mention of Caleb’s family made her thoughts wander off to Black. She wanted to ask about him. Why he was avoiding her? Surely Levi would know. Before she could ask Levi poked her forehead.

“What are you thinking about? You always have this constipation look on your face when you’re overthinking.” Levi teased her and Willow frowned at him.

“No I don’t,” She defended herself.

“Mhm,” Levi hummed sarcastically. “What’s bothering you?” He repeated.

Willow went stiff for a few seconds before looking up at Levi. “I think Black doesn’t like me anymore as well.” She muttered in a low voice and wondered if Levi heard her but when he chuckled, she was certain that he heard her.

“Black wouldn’t be able to hate you. He’s just...um...he’s avoiding you because he’s scared that if he meets you in person, you will reject him.”

Willow’s lips formed into an ‘O’ and her eyebrows scrunched up together. Black was not avoiding her because he was upset or did not want her anymore. He was avoiding her because he did not want her to reject him. Willow was glad, even if she would not say it out loud. She was glad that he was not upset with her.

“

He was pretty angry when Caleb told him at first but after a while and a talk from Nina and Isaac, he cooled down.” Levi told Willow. “Black is very intimidating when he angry and this is coming from someone who was once a recipient of his anger.” Levi laughed.

“Is he okay?”

Levi nodded. “Why don’t you call him and ask to meet up?” He proposed and Willow thought about it for a while before shaking her head. She remembered Black’s texts and it was clear that he didn’t want to see her.

“As long as you’re not going to reject him, you can ask to meet him,” Levi said with a certain edge to his voice.

Willow pursed her lips into a thin line. “I’m really sorry Levi...I don’t know what happened but all this mate stuff had me panicking, and every time I think of letting myself trust another person I only see Louis’ mocking stare.” She explained hurriedly with frantic hand gestures.

Levi squeezed her hand. “All of this is just in your head. Black is a good person, trust me.” His reassuring voice made Willow nod. “You can’t let my brother have such a hold on you. Let the past remain in the past.”

Willow exhaled loudly and smiled at Levi. “I think I want to give this soulmate thing a chance.” She said after a few seconds and Levi smiled.

“You won’t regret anything. Call Black and tell him.” Levi said excitedly.

Willow shook her head. “I’ll do that later, right now I want to spend time with you.” She said.

Levi stood up and pulled her up. “Let’s get something to eat, Charlotte told me that you haven’t been eating much.” He said and Willow’s face contorted into one of shock. “She also told me that you cried for me, I’m so flattered.” He teased her with a goofy grin and Willow hit his chest.

“Char is such a betrayer,” She snickered.

“Come on, I saw a Korean restaurant down the street,” Levi said.

......

“Do you just use me as a stress relieving mechanism? Every time something goes wrong, you come to me but when I call you, you make it sound like I’m clingy. Am I just your rebound?”

Black rolled his eyes and eased back into the seat. Why couldn’t he just have a quiet afternoon? He adjusted his seating position and looked up at the dramatic younger boy in front of him.

“Why do you have to word it like that?” He asked while squinting his eyes. “You make it sound like you’re my bitch.” He added and cringed at the end.

Caleb cringed and his face twisted in disgust. “Ew!” He rolled his eyes. “You never want to play when I ask you but you always run to me when you’re in a crisis.” He added and pointed to the television screen with the gaming console in his hand.

Black ran a hand through his hair. “Video games are a great distraction and I need one right now.”

“That sounds insulting but I’ll ignore it because I know what you’re going through.” Caleb tossed Black another console.

“Do you think anything significant is going to happen?” Black asked after a while into the game.

Caleb turned to face him for a split second before turning back to the screen. He shrugged. It was clear what Black was asking if anything would happen to change his seemingly stagnant relationship with Willow. He was clearly asking g if Willow would consider giving them a chance. But after what had happened, Caleb was also uncertain about Willow. His hope for Black’s happiness was dwindling and only Willow could balance it.

Black felt hopeful after Willow reached out to Levi, he did not say it but Caleb could see the glimmers of hope in the elder’s eyes. Caleb did not want to be the one to extinguish that hope but he was also aware of the cruel possibilities. What if Willow only sought to mend her relationship with Levi? What if she had already decided to reject Black?

“I don’t want to give you false hope,” Caleb said and paused the game.

Black frowned and placed the controller on the armrest. “She texted me.”

Caleb’s eyes widened. “What did she want?” He couldn’t help the hostility in his voice. He still felt wary of her and his mind went off to negative possibilities.

“It was a simple ‘hey’,” Black replied and decided not to say anything more.

Caleb frowned and pursed his lips together, thinking. “Could she possibly want to apologise?” He wondered more to himself.

Black shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“Perhaps you should grow a pair and see her,”

Black glared at Caleb and was about to scold the younger before the door opened and an angry black woman walked up to them.

“A year! A freaking year! That’s how long it takes for you to forget me, hmm Blackie?” Zaira placed her hand on her hip.

Black looked at her with drawled eyes. He wondered what spurred on these theatrics. Unlike, the last time he saw her at Kace’s birthday, Zaira had longer braids that had a bit of blue. She looked upset but Black always failed to differentiate her I’m-actually-upset look and her I’m-just-being-dramatic one.

“I hate that nickname,” Black grumbled.

“Exactly!” Zaira exclaimed. “Just like how I hate being left out of the loop. Why did you not tell me that you found your mate?...and don’t tell me that you forgot ‘cause that’s bullshit. You once promised that I’d be the first person you’d introduce your mate to, I feel so betrayed. Even Aleisa has met her but I haven’t.” The disbelief in her voice was heavy.

Black deciphered that this was her I’m-just-being-dramatic self after the end of her rant. “Don’t you have a pack to run?” He asked nonchalantly.

“Fuck you, don’t you have anything to say?” She shot back, waiting for him to explain himself.

Black shook his head. “Where’s Evie and Allie?”

“Black, get serious.”

Black straightened his body and looked at Zaira. “This is why I didn’t tell you, because you’re...extra.” He paused to find the right word to describe her.

“Extra?”

“Yes.” He nodded. “I’m not even sure if she’ll accept me and I know that if I introduced you to her earlier, you would have freaked her out more than she already is.” Zaira had a confused look on her face.

“Is it because she’s a human? I know how to handle humans.” Zaira said smugly and Black rolled his eyes.

“How do you even know that she’s human?” Caleb asked behind them.

Zaira smiled at him and flipped her hair. “I’m the Luna of one of the strongest packs, I have my ways.”

“It doesn’t matter how you found out as long as you don’t meddle and ru—” Black’s phone’s ringtone went off and he took it out. His body tensed up immediately after seeing the name of the caller.

The worst scenarios popped up in his mind. Why was Willow calling him? She had never done it. What if she decided that rejecting him in person was not important and she could do it over a phone call?

Caleb noticed Black’s change in mood and he immediately knew that Willow was involved. It could either be a phone call from Levi or Willow, but after thinking about it Caleb realised that Levi did not have Black’s number which only meant that Willow was the one calling Black.

The call cut and Black almost sighed but it began ringing once again.

“Answer the damn phone.” Zaira rolled her eyes.

Black took a few more seconds before answering the call and putting the phone to his ear. “Hello?” He said in a low voice.

“Black,” Willow’s voice came through from the other end of the call. “Can we meet up? I’m at the restaurant I used to work at.”

Black could feel his hope dying slowly. She still wanted to meet up to break his heart. After spending a week away from her, he did not know how he would react to seeing her or her rejection.

“Sure...” He replied.

“Great, I’ll see you then.”