by Remy Marie
How many electrons are in the first shell of an oxygen atom?
Jason wanted to laugh out loud after he read the first question. Surely, it can’t be this easy, Jason thought as he skimmed for another question.
How is the mass of the electron calculated?
Jason snickered again. His second outburst caused the monitor to look up from his desk and glare at him. Jason gave a light smile to the monitor knowing that he could easily snap his neck in a matter of seconds. Jason gave the test monitor a quick wink and used a trick he learned from Allison. His eyes grew dark red as he stared at the test monitor. The administrator's eyes grew wide as he became frightened of Jason. Once Jason recognized the fear from the test monitor, he smiled and continued his test.
Jason finished the test in twenty minutes and handed the test to the administrator.
“Than-Thank you, you can-n see-e your results in the n-next few d-days,” The test monitor stuttered. Jason laughed at the recent fear the administrator showed.
“No sir, thank you.” Jason grinned as he left the testing room. Jason made his way to Walker’s lab on the third floor and knocked on the door.
“It’s open!” a female voice called. Jason thought it was strange that a female voice answered. Walker didn’t tell him that he shared an office with anyone. Jason used his abilities and inhaled, besides the intense smell of chemicals, Jason recognized the perfume from anywhere. It was actually coming out of Mohinder’s room a great deal in the last two months. Jason smiled as he opened the door and looked at his best friend’s girlfriend, Jennifer. Her curly ebony hair was placed upright in a lazy ponytail. She wore a blue and black dress along with a white lab coat.
“Jennifer, what are you doing here?” Don’t you have a lab of your own at the hospital?” Jason asked as he walked in. Jennifer jumped at Jason’s arrival and dropped the glass slide she had in her hands. The slide shattered upon reaching the ground.
“Shit!” Jennifer shouted, upset. Jennifer aggressively ripped off her safety glasses and went to the chemical safety station. She grabbed a chemical spray and a cloth to clean the substance off the ground. Jason recognized she needed help and grabbed a towel to help clean the fluid off the ground. As they cleaned, their hands softly bumped into one another, and both look up, embarrassed.
“Sorry about that,” Jason said as he got back up and took a step away.
“No, it’s okay. I have butterfingers. Now, I am going to have to remake this mixture.”
“I’m truly sorry, do you need my help? I know that you and Mohinder have been working on this project for quite some time now,” Jason responded.
“No, I got it. I’ve been nervous since we moved to the test phase of the project.”
Jason was surprised by Jennifer’s comments. “Mohinder said that you were still working on the simulations. Why are you rushing into the testing phase?”
Jennifer bit her lower lip and looked at Jason. “One of my friends is pregnant by a werewolf. I’m under pressure to find a cure.” Jason nodded in response. Jennifer threw the remains in a biohazard bag and then went back to her workstation to prepare another slide. As she worked, Jason walked around in Walker’s lab and smiled at the site. He had a typical Albert Einstein poster on one corner of the room. Behind his desk was an LGBT rainbow flag, and on his desk was a picture of Walker and Dennis. They were both at an ECSU football game. They looked happy as Walker kissed Dennis’ check.
“Alright, if you are in the testing phase, why isn’t Mohinder here? I mean you two have been close since your first date at Pasta, Pasta. A month ago, you two officially became a couple. I remember because Mohinder wouldn’t shut up about it. He keeps bragging about how he is in a relationship with the sexiest woman in Meekins.” Jennifer looked up from her microscope and smiled.
“That sounds like Mohinder.” She turned her attention back to her microscope as she inspected the slide.
“Also, I know that you two are not on the ropes either in your relationship. I think you woke the whole cabin up last week.”
“Sorry about that, Mohinder’s changed body shape turns me on even more now. Before it was just his brain, now it’s his brain and muscles. I can’t get over him. He’s like my private male model that I only get to touch. I love that man.” Jennifer didn’t lift her head up from the microscope this time as she focused on her research.
Jason felt as if he was missing something. Jennifer felt more distant than she usually is. Not to mention Mohinder isn’t assisting her in the testing phase. Just last week, Mohinder told me that they were nowhere near blood trials, unless…
“This friend isn’t actually a friend. The friend is you. You are pregnant right now with Mohinder’s child?” Jason claimed.
“Shit, is it that obvious. You couldn’t smell it on me?” Jennifer asked.
“No, not yet. I’m sure Isabella will. She has the best nose in our pack. How did this-“
“Happen? I don’t know. As someone who was researching pregnancy between werewolves and humans, you would think I would be smart enough to tell Mohinder to strap a condom on. You know how it is sometimes. In the heat of the moment, you want nothing more than to be with the person. So instead of playing safe, you do the one thing you know you shouldn’t do.”
Jason nodded in agreement; he knew that Trini and he were not always safe during their engagements. However, the prospect of a child with Trini doesn’t scare him. “How far along are you right now?”
“Based on my lab results, three weeks,” Jennifer replied. “Please don’t tell Mohinder,” Jennifer added.
Jason stood in shock. “He’s my best friend, I have to tell him. Besides in four months, I think everyone is going to know.”
“I know, but listen, I don’t want Mohinder to know. He will flip out. If these are my last months on the earth, I want them to be normal. I know if told him now, he would be diving into his research all the time. It wouldn’t be the way it is now. I just want a few more months of it being normal.”
“For starters, who else knows? Does Walker know?”
Jennifer shook her head, “No, I haven’t even told him yet. Walker thinks that I moved to the trial stages as well.”
“It’s just me?”
“Yes, please don’t tell anyone, even Trini.”
Jason felt his mouth drop. How could he not tell Trini, he already lied to her about not being attracted to her scent, now another lie? Jason thought. No, I should tell Trini, lying is like falling down a deep hole, it hard to get out once you fall in one. Jason was going to tell Jennifer that he couldn’t keep her secret until he saw her face. Jennifer’s face had already had two clear streams of tears as her lips quivered. She shook in fear as she moved closer to Jason and hugged him.
Jennifer whispered into Jason’s ear, “I’m not ready to die.”
Jason took a deep breath and clutched Jennifer closer and whispered back, “I’m not going to let you die. This will be our secret. What do you need me to do?”
Chapter 25
Istill can’t believe about Jennifer, what type of pickle did you get into today, Jason? The young wolf reflected as he walked out of Walker’s lab room. Jason walked down the empty hallway until he detected Walker finishing up his conversation with a school administrator. Walker noticed Jason leaving when he shouted, “Jason, wait up!” He broke out into a run to catch up to Jason. “I know you are a werewolf, but damn, you walk speedy. Sorry I wasn’t able to greet you in my lab. I got caught up in the front office. The damn bureaucrats would rather spend money on new football equipment than new science textbooks. I mean like hell, I would support the decision if our football team was even good. We haven’t won a game in two years. I wish some of you wolves would join the team. But I know Greg would flip his lid if he found out about that. Too much exposure, I guess. Anyways enough about my rant, how did your test go?”
“Remarkably easy, but don’t tell the state of North Carolina.”
Walker created a loud laugh that th
undered in the hallway. His laugh echoed in the hallway and made Jason slightly uncomfortable. “I had a feeling you would pass.”
“Thank you,” Jason replied. “What now?”
“The test should be posted in two days. I’m assuming you passed, so you should hear back from the school in a week. Until then, have a good time.”
“I will try its hard when you are waiting for test results. What are you going to do till then?”
“I’m not sure, perhaps go to the beach. I love looking at Dennis without a shirt. You wolves and your abs. Did you need a ride back to Greg’s cabin?”
“I was thinking about running back, but I wouldn’t mind being human for a little bit.” Walker smiled at Jason’s response and walked him back to his truck. “How are things with Dennis?” Jason asked as he placed his seatbelt on.
“Oh, it’s going well. We celebrated our twentieth year anniversary last week.” Walker started the truck and left the high school.
“Dennis told me about that, he said you guys went on a cruise to the Bahamas. How was that?”
“Oh, it was amazing. The food, the beach, and the sex,” Walker grinned. Jason raised his brow at Walker’s comments.
“That good huh,” Jason asked.
“Oh God yes, that man has the stamina of a horse. Not to mention the body of a deity. However, that wasn’t the highlight of the trip. The biggest highlight was that he asked me if I wanted to adopt a child with him,” Jason’s mouth opened in surprise.
“As a child of an orphanage, that news makes me so excited. So what did you say?”
“I said yes, of course. Over the next three months, we will be looking for a child. Boy or girl, it doesn’t matter.” Walker stopped at a stop sign and looked back at Jason with a grave face. “However, we will only be looking at a baby younger than one-year-old. Dennis says it’s too much of a risk to get a kid older.” Jason nodded.
“I understand, it still means a lot to me that you guys are adopting. To take any child out of an orphanage and give them a family is a big thing. I’m super excited for you both! If you got to choose, would you rather have a boy or girl?”
“Honestly, any child would do.”
“I’m not the adoption agency. Come on, boy or girl?” A guilty smiled appeared on Walker’s face. He turned down the dirt path that led to Greg’s cabin. He was quiet as he internally debated about his answer. The only noise created was the dirt being separated by Walker’s off-road tires.
“I want a boy,” Walker replied after a long pause. A smile began to grow on his face as he looked out in the distance. “I want to teach him how to play sports, how to hunt, fish, and talk to girls or boys. Whichever he prefers, no pressure. I’m not going to be my parents; I’m going to be supportive, no matter what. It’s going to be a very open home.” Jason smiled at Walker as the tree line opened up to Greg’s cabin.
“That’s great news, you and Dennis will make great fathers,” Jason replied. Walker smiled back at Jason until his face changed into a curious glance.
“That’s strange. Dennis’ patrol vehicle is here.” Jason looked in Walker’s direction and noticed Dennis’ patrol car. Parked beside it were four other police cruisers. Jason then inhaled and picked up the scent of everyone in his pack in Greg’s cabin.
“They’re all meeting in the cabin,” Jason said out loud. Jason paused once more to listen to the conversation. The more he listened, the larger his frown grew.
“What is it? What’s going on?” Walker asked.
“There’s been another attack by Jasper,” Jason replied.
“This is the second time this asshole as attacked our territory and we are going to do nothing?” Dennis screamed at Greg.
“Damn it, Dennis, just listen to me for a damn minute!” Greg shouted as he exhaled his cigar while flicking off the ash. “I’m not saying we’re not going to do anything. I’m saying we can’t go and retaliate against an entire damn state over one damn rouge wolf!” Greg growled. The cabin’s walls shook as Jason and Walker walked in.
Dennis and Greg were both standing up in the large dining room. The dining room in the cabin contained a large wooden table with twenty seats. Normally, Greg would use the room to stage pack meetings and entertain other werewolves from out of town. As Jason and Walker walked into the large hall, Jason’s noticed the rest of his pack sat silently in each chair at the table. Each shared an expression of seriousness as they watched Dennis and Greg argue.
Greg noticed the duo enter the large dining room and shook his head negatively. Jason watched as Greg’s face grew in a dark red from his rage. “Jason, where the hell have you been? You didn’t ask any of your mentors if you could leave the area. Jasper Doxie is on the loose in our area, and you need to stick with a pack member at all times. It’ was damn reckless of you leaving without telling one of your mentors. You’re not ready to be on your own. Do it again, and I’ll personally beat you so badly that you wouldn’t be able to move until the next moon cycle.”
“It’s not his fault Greg, I took him-“
“If I wanted your opinion human, I would have asked for it,” Greg growled at Walker. Dennis roared as he transformed his hands into claws. His eyes grew dark red and mouth sharpened into fangs as he lifted Greg into the air. Greg was caught by surprise as he was unable to move by Dennis’ grip. Slowly Dennis clenched down on Greg’s throat. The remainder of the wolves in the room sat in silence as they watched Dennis’ violent outburst.
“Do not talk to Walker that way! I will not allow you to disrespect my mate in front of me. I’ve beaten you once in combat. Do not make me do it again,” Dennis shouted in anger.
Jason stood in shock; I’ve never seen Dennis with so much rage.
“Sweetie, please put him down. He didn’t mean it. He’s just a worried about Jasper,” Walker reassured as he made his way to Dennis. Walker grabbed Dennis’ opposite hand and rubbed the fur that was on his hand. “Dennis, please, not like this. Please put him down,” Walker repeated as he stared into Dennis’ cold red eyes. Dennis released his grip and dropped Greg to the floor.
His glare was still on Greg as he regrouped. “That human is the only reason why you’re still breathing,” Dennis said as he walked back to Walker. Dennis kissed Walker and rubbed his cheek as he looked into his eyes. “I’m sorry you had to see that,” Dennis said to Walker as he pushed Walker’s salt and peppered hair back. Walker gave Dennis a big hug as they regrouped and faced the group in the dining room.
Greg shook his head, then picked his cigar off the ground and placed it back in his mouth. “Shit, Dennis. I forgot how strong you are. When was the last time we spared? 1910? You were such a young wolf then, still have that same energy too.” Greg then looked towards Walker, “I’m sorry, Walker. I meant no disrespect. Just lost my temper, that’s all.”
“It is okay, Greg. Jason was with me at the school the entire time. He was applying for a teaching position.”
Greg nodded to Walker’s response “Is Butch still the football coach there? I can’t remember, he likes to switch jobs every twenty fucking years.”
“Yeah, he is. He is also the reason why we haven’t won a game. He still thinks the wishbone is a dominant offense.”
“Butch is an old school guy. Leave him alone. By the way, Jason, Butch is another werewolf. He doesn’t like to get involved in general pack business, but he still looks after our own. If you get the job at the school, he will be your point of contact for anything. That being said, Jason, Walker, and Dennis sit down. Let’s discuss this Jasper issue,” Greg said as he pointed to three empty chairs. Each one sat down and looked at Greg, waiting for his remarks.
“Jasper is an infection to both the East and the West. Not only has he killed humans, but he has also started killing our brothers and sisters. Today’s violence will not be forgotten. Jasper and his followers need to be dealt with individually. We will not violate the truce by showing any force to West Alocenia. I propose we travel to Korywen, and speak to the king. T
here he can request a parlay with the king of West Alocenia to allow us to send a hunting party into West Alocenia lands. With both states working together, we could possibly bring Jasper to justice for the crimes that he has committed. However, I am not one wolf in this pack. It takes multiple wolves to make a pack. Therefore I will put this to a vote.”
“Well said,” David added. “I vote that we go to Korywen, and meet with the king,” Trini stood up and looked at Mohinder then Jason.
“Jasper killed Kyle. While he may have been an asshole, he didn’t deserve to die. I seconded that we go to Korywen.” Greg nodded to Trini’s response.
“Trini, Jasper will pay for his sins. All in favor to go to Korywen?” Greg asked the group.
“I,” everyone chimed at once. Dennis looked at Greg in the eyes and was the last one to say “I”. Greg nodded at Dennis in agreement. Jason assumed Greg was saying a silent “thank you.”
“Alright, it’s decided. Everyone pack up for a least a three weeks. I’m sure we won’t stay that long, but you can never be certain. Walker, do you mind if you drive our stuff to Korywen?” Greg asked Walker.
“Sure, I have my truck outside. Once you guys are done packing, you can place your bags in the truck,” Walker replied to Greg.
An hour later, the wolves left the cabin and threw their travel bags into Walker’s truck. “Is that it?” Walker asked as he watched Jason place his bag along with the nineteen others already in the back of the cab.
“That should be it,” Jason replied. “Are you going to meet us in Korywen?” Jason asked.
“Yeah, to the human eye, Korywen is actually based in an Indian reservation. It’s one of the oldest cities in the United States, believe it or not. Since the city is based in a reservation, it’s not under state or federal government; therefore, it’s hidden from the majority of the humans. I’m not actually allowed to enter the city. I would love to, maybe one day. Dennis says it is gorgeous; I think you would love it,” Walker said as he wrapped the luggage up with a rope. “However, they do have a kickass casino, which I get to stay in. If you need to find me, I’ll be at the blackjack table. See you soon at Korywen, Jason,” Walker said as he gave Jason a hug.
