Chapter 16: Promises

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The bedroom door opens gently to reveal a groggy looking Chris. Honestly, with how late he was in the cells last night, I didn't think he'd wake up until dinner. He rubs his eyes as he crosses the room to us slowly and sits down next to me.

"Goodmorning." I whisper so as not to wake him further. He looks like he should go back to sleep. I don't know why or how he even got up. "What time did you get in?" I ask, again in a whisper, turning over to rest my head on his shoulder.

His arm wraps around me and pulls me closer to his side as he leans his head to rest atop of mine. "Early." He murmurs. "Or late. I can never tell after midnight."

Now, Nessa perks up, her mood brightening with both of them in the room with us. I fight against rolling my eyes at her. If only she were this happy with just me.

'I would be if you ever listened to me.' She quips in a sing song voice. How I miss the days when there wasn't another person listening into my thoughts. She stays silent after her statement though, seemingly too content to argue with me anymore.

"Are you okay?" Chris asks a moment later, actually opening his eyes to look at me. "You feel weird."

Cameron chauffles. I roll flat onto my back to see his cocky face. "I'm starting to reevaluate how I feel about you guys being able to tap into my feelings at any time." I mumble.

"Baby." Cameron says, resting his hand on my arm and gaining my attention. "You're not gonna get around eventually trying to shift. We can both tell that something is up with you. Might as well see if shifting fixes it."

"He's right." His brother agrees sleepily.

A deep breath rushes from my lungs frustratedly. It's two against one and this time it isn't in my favor. 'Three against one.' Nessa corrects annoyingly.

I grumble curses at her under my breath. "I just know it's gonna suck." I tell my mates.

"We'll be right next to you." Cameron promises. "And then it will only improve."

That does not make me feel any better. I'm only just getting more comfortable around them in human form. I can't help but wonder, what if we're not luna material? My slight grimace doesn't go unnoticed.

"What's wrong?" He asks. "I don't like what just happened and I can't fix it unless you talk to me."

It should be easier to talk to him about my insecurities by now. My confessions almost always come with a reward. But this feels different, it's not really about me this time. I mean, it is, but not in the same way. This is less about physical looks and more about my ability to lead effectively. I don't know what my wolf will be like all grown up.

'There's nothing wrong with me!' Nessa defends haughtily.

Closing my eyes, I focus on her for a moment. 'I'm not trying to hurt your feelings.' I tell her guiltily. 'But-you know we've always been small for our age in both forms. Is there really no part of you that's worried about if other wolves will respect us enough to be luna?'

She shrinks slightly into the back of my mind. I know I struck a nerve. She needed to hear it though. When she doesn't respond, I reopen my eyes. Cameron looks at me patiently.

"What if I'm not impressive enough?" I ask quietly.

Chris rolls towards me smoothly. "Impossible." He says, awake now and wrapping his arm over me. "Yesterday you made a seed grow into a full tree in like thirty seconds. Everything about you is impressive." He assures.

My fingers rub against his arm absentmindedly. "But, I've never had a very big wolf. I'm a pretty small person." I have a point. Size is a sign of authority in wolf packs. It isn't everything but it's definitely something.

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