As I sat in my apartment with Cronan, his brother, and the girl from the woods, I did my best to try and make sense of the situation.

"You think we're siblings?" Cronan's brother, who I learned was named Reed, asked disbelievingly.

"I'm not positive, but it would make sense," I answered honestly. "You said that you're twenty, and she's clearly in her late teens. The timing matches up."

Reed frowned and honestly, I didn't blame him for not wanting to believe it. At first glance, Reed and I didn't look much alike, but when next to the young girl, the resemblance was there.

My eyes drifted over to the girl. She sat curled on the couch, under a blanket. Her eyes were darting around and she looked to be overwhelmed. I wasn't sure whether or not she could understand what we were saying, but honestly, I was just glad that she wasn't in the woods anymore.

"This is a lot to take in on one night," Cronan shook his head. "Let's all get some rest and we can regroup tomorrow."

Tomorrow. I knew Cronan was aware of the fact that I planned to leave after the wolf was rescued, but I don't think he realized just how soon it was.

"Tomorrow," I agreed. "Let's meet around three. I want to try and make sure she gets a good night of sleep before. I doubt the woods were comfortable."

Cronan nodded and he gestured to Reed that it was time to go. Once they were gone, I turned my attention to the girl sitting on the couch. I approached slowly and crouched down in front of her.

"Hi," I smiled softly. "Honestly, I wasn't expecting you to shift. Well, I thought it would happen soon, but not this soon. I'm happy though." She didn't reply, but that didn't make my smile drop. "How about we get you ready for bed, yeah?"

I grabbed some of the pillows from my room along with a few blankets before returning to the living room. I wanted to move her to the empty room across from mine, but I was worried about how she'd react. I didn't know where she had come from and I didn't want to risk it. Once I was sure she was comfortable, I turned on the ceiling fan and gave her one last smile.

"Goodnight."

With that, I turned off the light and headed back to my room. I made sure to leave the door open just in case I needed to check up on her and changed into my pajamas before climbing into bed. After everything, I was more than happy to be back on the soft mattress and before I knew it, I was fast asleep.

...

I woke up to the sound of rustling in the kitchen. Immediately, my mind was alert. I climbed out of bed and exited the room, expecting something to be wrong, but I found an unexpected sight.

The girl from the woods was still sleeping on the couch, but digging around in my fridge was none other than Reed.

"What are you doing?" I asked. "Actually, how did you get in?"

Reed stopped moving and he looked at me with a distasteful expression. "I think the better question would be what are you wearing?"

I frowned. "What is it with you and Cronan making fun of my pajamas?"

He glanced at me from head to toe, snorted, and turned back to digging through the fridge.

"You're just like your brother," I sighed. "Where is he by the way?"

He shrugged. "Something about getting ice cream for the girl."

"And you came here because...?"

"Because Cronan seems to be allergic to grocery stores and I thought you'd have something to eat. Clearly, I was wrong."

I rolled my eyes at that. I started to say something but stopped when I heard the sound of someone knocking on the door. I made my way toward it and opened it to reveal Cronan standing there with a bag in his hand. That wasn't what stood out to me though—it was his expression.

"Cronan, are you okay?" I questioned as I stepped to the side, allowing him to enter.

"I'm okay. At least, I think so?" He replied as he set the bags on the counter in the kitchen to which Reed immediately began digging around through.

"You think?"

"I just saw my mate," he admitted.

"You what?" Reed and I asked at the same time, causing the sleeping girl to shift.

Cronan rolled his eyes. "Why is that so shocking?"

"Did you talk to them?"

"No."

"That explains it," he snorted and took a seat. "One conversation with you would have them running for the hills."

"Fuck off," Cronan scowled.

"You're not that bad," I interjected "I mean sure, your manners might need some work and your attitude might need some tuning, but you have redeemable qualities."

"You really know how to make a guy feel appreciated, Eli," he said sarcastically.

"I try my best."

He rolled his eyes.

"Did you at least get their name? Reed asked him.

Cronan shook his head. "I didn't get the chance to. He was sitting with A—"

He didn't get to finish. The quietest yawn filled the room and all three pairs of eyes turned to the couch.

"Good morning," I greeted as I approached the couch. "Did you sleep well?"

Brown eyes stared up at me and I glanced over at Cronan who was approaching slowly with one of the bowls of ice cream he picked up and a spoon.

"You couldn't have gotten actual food?" I frowned.

"I don't see you going out of your way to buy anything."

I shook my head but took the ice cream and spoon from him and offered it to the girl. She looked at it hesitantly and then back up at me.

"It's okay. I promise," I assured her.

I took the lid off and scooped up some of the ice cream before offering it to her again. The girl reluctantly ate it. I watched as her eyes widened and she held her hands out for the rest of it.

As she ate, I couldn't help but wonder where she had come from and why she was alone. If it was true and she was Reed and my sister then why had we ended up with families while she was left alone?

"Can I ask you something?" I said to Reed. "When were you adopted?"

Reed shrugged. "Around four."

I frowned. "Around?"

"Our parents found Reed wandering around in the woods and took him in so we didn't actually know his birthday until he shifted," Cronan said.

That wouldn't have been long after I was placed in the system. So then why were they separated from each other?

"This is confusing," I sighed. "I don't think we're going to get anywhere. At least, not on our own."

"What do you mean?" Cronan asked.

"I mean I'm taking her," I gestured to the girl. "And returning to my pack."

"What?"

"Don't act so surprised. I told you from the start that I planned to leave."

He frowned. "Yeah, but that was before I got to know..." he sighed. "What about Reuben?"

"What about him?" I retorted.

"Come on, you honestly can't expect me to believe that you don't care."

"If he doesn't care about me then why should I waste my time," I sighed. "It's not worth it."

"He does care about you, he's just too fucking stubborn to realize it," Cronan argued.

"Am I just supposed to wait around until he does then? Let him continue to lead me on like a lovesick puppy and forgive him even after he continues to make mistake after mistake?"

"Eli..."

"I care about him, Cronan. I do, but I refuse to let him hurt me again. If I go to him then he's either going to deny any wrongdoing or he's going to fill my head with false promises. Words aren't enough at this point. He hasn't shown me that he cares at all."

Cronan sighed. "And leaving is the only option?"

"I was always going to leave, Cronan. No matter what happened between me and Reuben. I was hoping to convince him to come back with me, but this is only a small change in my plans."

Cronan frowned. "Alright, I understand."

I smiled at him. "Come on, don't look at me like that. Just because I'm leaving Oakwood doesn't mean that we're never going to see each other again. Let me see your phone." He did so and I quickly added my number to his contacts. "And now we can call and text too."

Cronan returned my smile. It was funny to think that this was the same angry wolf I'd met when I first came to Oakwood and now here we were eating ice cream and exchanging numbers.

"I hate to break up this heartwarming moment and all, but she's done," Reed gestured to the couch.

Sure enough, the ice cream was all gone. The only evidence was what was around her face.

AN: The next Eli chapter will be when he's back in the pack!