Chapter 30: Chapter 30

“That hybrid. Who does he think he is telling me to protect Gabriella? Of course, I'll protect her. He didn’t need to tell ME that.” Tyrelle muttered under his breath while we walked side-by-side to head for the school gate. Just before the bell for lunch rang, I ordered food online to be delivered at the gate.

With Tyrelle’s current mood, I was already half afraid of him because there was no telling what he would do. Tyrelle is rarely this pissed off unless it involves Aelfric. I guess all I have to do now is nod and agree to him, even though I wasn’t entirely sure why he was so angry with the hybrid.

I let out a yelp of surprise when my phone began to ring. It was a message from the delivery man that our food had arrived. Tyrelle peered at my phone screen to see what got me tensed up.

“Our food is here,” I told him and looked before us. Just at the closed gate of the school, I could see a man already waiting at the other side while carrying two paper bags in his hands.

“Stay here, Gabriella. I’ll go and get it.” Before I could protest and insist that I go along, Tyrelle was already on his way to the gate at a pace I could not match. He was tall and athletic, making it even more impossible for me to catch up with him without running.

Well, it’s not like it matters anyway. I had already paid for the food, so there was nothing for me to do except to retrieve the food.

“Where do you want to eat?” Tyrelle asked me when he got back. His angry demeanor finally ended, and he looked like he was back to his regular self again.

I pondered over the decision and finally decided what to do the moment I felt the cool breeze blowing on my face. I turned to the werewolf boy in front of me. “It’s nice weather today. Maybe we should go and eat at the outdoor tables? It’s less crowded that way.” I suggested.

Tyrelle nodded, and I started following him to the outdoor tables overlooking the school gym and just outside of the cafeteria. Usually, I wouldn’t sit here as it was too bright for me. But right now, the weather is cloudy, which makes gives it the perfect temperature to sit outside and eat our lunch.

I took my seat, and Tyrelle set our food down on the table and sat beside me. “Burgers?” He looked surprised while gazing at the labels on the boxes. “How did you know that I like these?” He was so busy gawking at the boxes that I had to make a move and take one for myself while I carefully placed the other one in front of him.

“I didn’t?” I answered immediately so he wouldn’t assume things. I got so used to Aelfric’s reactions that I forgot that I was hanging out with Tyrelle. “I mean, these are my favorite as well, so I ordered them. Plus, since you are a werewolf, I just thought that a heavy and meaty food would suffice?”

Light laughter came from the back of his throat, which baffled me. Tyrelle is an uptight person, so the fact that he was this carefree was already surprising. “Trust me, Gabriella. This is enough. I rarely get to eat these because my father would rather have me eat foods cooked by our chef instead of fast foods. They’re both burgers, but there’s just something about the ones from fast food that are…slightly better?”

“You mean the grease and the heavy dose of ketchup and fat?” I said while opening my box containing my burger and saw the heavily greased meat inside with a side of fries.

Tyrelle laughed at that. “Yeah. I guess that that’s it. But I used to eat these a lot when I was in my old school.” He said and opened his own box. For Tyrelle, I made sure that I ordered the double meat since he’s an athlete and a werewolf, for that matter. I doubt that a regular burger would suffice for him. And thankfully, I did because he seemed thrilled.

I heard that food always brings out the best in people, and considering that he was in a bad mood earlier and smiling right now seemed to be the perfect proof of that claim.

I was already eating peacefully when I noticed that Tyrelle was just staring at his food. It struck me weird because earlier, he seemed eager to eat it. “What’s wrong? Is the food not to your liking?”

“Hm? Uh, no.” I noticed his cheeks burning up a bit while he continued to gaze at the burger. “I just feel a little strange. I never had a girl buy me lunch before. Normally I would be the one paying.”

“Now you know how I feel when you treat me every time,” I told him. “Look, don’t think about any of it, alright? Just think of it as my gift for everything that you have done. Although this relationship is just a contract, you still introduced me to that witch doctor who magically healed me. I will be honest and tell you right now that my body has never felt better before. I feel a hundred times better!”

Admittedly, the reason I treated him for lunch was that Aelfric used Tyrelle’s money to pay for his gifts to me the other day without him knowing. I feel awful about it so I am doing this as a sort of payment for that. But about the healing part that I told him, it was real. I am really grateful for the witch’s magic. I know I have had my share of body pain for the past few days since the first attack, but I swear that my body has never felt better. I feel so refreshed and energized. Powerful even, if that makes any sense.

Tyrelle seemed unconvinced as he started harvesting the lettuce from his burger. “That’s odd. But I guess that his potions work differently on humans.”

“What do you mean?” I turned to Tyrelle to ask after taking a bite from my burger.

Tyrelle checked the burger in his hands to see if there were any vegetables left. When he tried to take out the tomatoes, I slapped his hands and gave him a disapproving look. “Well, I think that I already told you this before, but our witch healers are just like doctors of the supernatural. As werewolves, we have fast healing, but that doesn’t mean that we can heal from poisons or colds all on our own. So, they make medicines for us. The medicine that he applied to you the other day was to help speed up the healing process and also stop the bleeding.”

“But the wound disappeared overnight.”

“Yes, I know. I just find it odd. Maybe the medicine was just a pretty good batch or it only works that well to humans. Either way, I think I should reward Doctor Kosher for doing an excellent job.” Tyrelle gazed at me with a grin before he continued with his meal. By the looks of it, he seems to be enjoying his food, which was a huge relief on my part. He was eating it even though he discarded all of the vegetables.

Our peaceful lunch was interrupted when we heard a silent purr under our table as we ate. Tyrelle and I paused and turned to each other to check if we heard the same thing. A few seconds passed by until we heard it again. Tyrelle had finished his meal first, so he was the first to check what it was. When I heard him whisper a curse, that’s when my curiosity got the best of me, and I went to check it for myself and left the quarter of my food left on the table.

I crouched beside Tyrelle until I saw him petting a bloodied kitten on the ground.

“What happened to it!?” I gasped and scooted closer, so I could check the kitten more closely. Its fur was stiff and muddied, and one side of its face looked like it had glue poured over it. What’s more, it looked pretty beaten up that I saw a rib poking out of its skin. It was brutal and inhumane that I almost barfed up my food. I turned away for a second just to get my bearings in check, or I might pass out from the smell of blood.

“Another victim of pranking teens.” Tyrelle guessed, answering my previous questions. “Humans are cruel creatures.” He muttered.

I turned to him, “How can you say that humans have done it and not werewolves?”

“Wolves go for the kill. They don’t mess around like this. And what’s the use of targeting small kittens? My first thought is that it must have been the hybrid but there is no scent of him here.” Tyrelle’s gaze never left the small cat’s form as its breathing started to grow weaker. “It looked like it dragged itself all the way here.” He nodded the blood trail that the kitty left behind. “Maybe it smelled food, or maybe it was asking for help.”

I looked towards Tyrelle. “Can’t we do anything for it? Can’t your witch doctor help?”

Tyrelle shook his head. “Gabriella, I told you that he-”

“Can’t we at least try?” I insisted before Tyrelle could fully disclose the idea. I even begged him with my gaze, which I rarely do. Plus, I believe that this was the first time that I ever asked Tyrelle for anything, and he knows it too.

“Alright. Wait here while I go and call the Doctor Kosher.” Tyrelle got up and started to run back into the school building. While he was gone, I stayed with the kitten under the table even though it was uncomfortable.

The kitten kept licking its lips that I figured it could be parched. I grabbed my water bottle from the table and began to pour a small amount on the bottle cap. Then, I dipped my finger into the water and allowed the droplets to fall on the kitten’s lips.

“You poor thing.” I couldn’t help but stroke the kitten. I was horrified at its state. If Tyrelle said that it wasn’t the wolves that had done this, then that could only mean that humans did this, right? “I’m so sorry. I wish I could help more. But if you survive, I’ll take care of you.” Something cold trickled down my finger as I stroked the kitten. Then, I felt a spark that immediately made me draw my hand back. It wasn’t painful, but it startled me.

“Gabriella, are you there?” I got surprised by Tyrelle’s call that it made me bump my head on the surface of the table.

I crawled out while clutching the top of my head. When I saw Tyrelle standing there with Doctor Kosher, I was so thrilled that I almost smiled in relief. “Doctor Kosher, please, do you have that medicine with you that you used on me?”

Doctor Kosher’s brow parted, and he glanced hesitantly towards Tyrelle like he was asking him for help. But when Tyrelle’s response was a nudge of his head in my direction, Kosher faced me once again with a solemn look. “Lady Gabriella, I am thrilled to know that you are doing well. Frankly, I could not understand how fast you recovered either because the concoction that I created was mainly for disinfection and-”

“Kosher,” Tyrelle cut him off. The witch doctor turned his attention to him. Tyrelle’s gaze was stern when he inclined his head towards the table. “Just try.” He ordered him.

With Tyrelle’s unwavering gaze, the doctor could do nothing but bow in obedience. “As you wish, Lord Tyrelle.” The doctor got the familiar bottle of ointment that he once placed on my wound and headed for the wounded cat under the table. I could not see him placing the medicine on the cat. I just assumed that he did from the movement of his hands while I was facing his back. I heard him sigh, and not long after that, he got up with a cloth wrapped around his arms.

He walked towards me with a distressed glance. “My lady, I apologize but-”

When I first saw the look on his face, and the moment he started apologizing, my initial thoughts were already on the negative side, but that was until I heard a soft purr. Our gazes flew to the wrapped blanket in the doctor’s arms where the sound came. The fabric began to move until the black cat’s head poked. From the sparks in its eyes, I could see that it was healthy as it fixed me with its gaze and meowed adoringly.

Even Tyrelle was surprised when he saw the sudden change in the cat when I carried it in my arms. There were no broken ribs or other broken bones. The only thing that made me think that it was ever abused was the dried blood on its matted fur.

“Doctor Kosher, it seems that I have underestimated your abilities,” Tyrelle muttered in amazement while he continued to inspect the cat with his eyes. “I guess I owe you an apology.”

I turned to the doctor with my lips pressed together so I wouldn’t end up scaring the witch doctor with my smile. “Thank you so much!” I bowed instead. When I raised my head, I saw the trouble and baffled look on his face.

“B-But, my lord-” The bell rang before we could hear the rest of his words.

Tyrelle grabbed the cat from my hands and handed it back to the doctor when he heard the signal for the end of lunch period. “Hold the cat for a while. Gabriella and I still have classes. We’ll talk later, and I will compensate you heftily for your trouble.”

Before I could say any additional words of gratitude, Tyrelle grabbed my hand and started to lead me back into the school. My hand, the one I used to touch the cat seemed to shiver for some reason that Tyrelle paused by the doorway to stare at me.

“Is something wrong?” He questioned. He must have felt my hand quiver since it was the hand that he was holding on to.

I shook my hand and grasped his hand without even thinking to hide the fact that it was shaking. Tyrelle’s eyes widened in surprise at the gesture, but it was gone the second I answered. “It’s nothing,” I assured him. Since it appeared that he stopped moving, I took the next initiative and began to lead us back into the school building. “Let’s go, Tyrelle. We have a class to attend to.”