Double update! Read Chapter 30 first!

Being able to adapt quickly was a skill I picked up fairly quickly while being in foster care. Every time I went from home to home, I was forced to confront the unknown time and time again. As a young child, I always feared the homes I'd be placed in. I'd ask myself questions like if the people were nice; would they liked me; and, more importantly, if I was safe. As I got older, I learned to stop asking so many questions. The more I pondered over it, the more worried I became, so by the time I reached the Hansons, I'd basically stopped asking altogether.

George and Lola Hanson already had three children before I arrived. They had two daughters, Melody and Jesse, and a son named Mathias. Melody and Jesse were sixteen and seventeen while Mathias was a few months older than I was. I expected the house to be just like any other one I stayed in—temporary until they decided to get rid of me—but I was wrong.

For the first four months, I spent my time waiting for the ball to drop. I waited for the stereotypical "It's not you, it's me" speech, but it never came. So, eventually, I got tired of waiting. I remember sitting on the couch with Mathias and asking him, "How long are your parents going to keep me?"

Mathias' brows furrowed and he looked at me as if I'd grown two heads and said, "What do you mean?"

So I explained to him. I explained how no matter what I did or didn't do, eventually everyone got tired and I wanted to know how long I had before it was time to move again. Mathias simply shrugged and responded with, "I don't know, but I hope it's a long time because I like you a lot."

What I didn't know at the time was that George and Lola were listening to our conversation. I didn't know that later that night they'd gotten Jesse, Mathias, and Melody together and asked them what they thought about adopting me. What I didn't know was that they planned to be my forever home.

It was a few weeks later when my thirteenth birthday arrived and we were planning on going out to celebrate that everything changed. Mathias was bouncing off the walls which was strange in itself. He kept on going on and on about how this would be my best birthday ever.

He was both right and wrong.

We spent the day at the zoo and then on the way home we stopped by the park. Mathias and I ran around playing games like tag and hide and seek before his parents called us over to open gifts. There were a few generic ones like video games and action figures, but what really stuck out was a piece of paper with four words written on it.

Can we adopt you?

I remember sitting there, staring at it for what felt like hours before letting out the smallest, "What?"

"If you'll let us, we want to make it official, Elias," I remember hearing George say. "We want to adopt you."

A large array of emotions swarmed me and Lola shot me one of her signature smiles. "So, what do you say, kiddo? If you need some time to think about it—"

I didn't. One minute I was standing there holding the paper and the next I was wrapped tightly in her arms repeatedly saying yes. A family was the one thing I'd spent years wanting and now I was finally getting it.

We spent a few more hours at the park before we began the ride home. Mathias and I were talking about officially being brothers and laughing when it happened.

One minute everything was fine and the next I was in a hospital room. A drunk driver is what I later found out. A drunk driver had come out of seemingly nowhere and crashed into the car, killing Lola and Melody in the blink of an eye. George and Mathias ended up in comas and Jesse was left badly injured, but me? I was fine. At the time they called it a miracle, but I later found out that it wasn't some miracle that I was alive, but since I'd turned thirteen that day, my enhanced healing ability had kicked in and saved my life.

I was alive because I was a werewolf.

If the tragedy in itself wasn't enough, it was later decided that since Lola was deceased and George was comatose, I could no longer stay with them. The news of my newfound lycanthropy only added to the urgency to remove me from their lives. I remember crying, screaming, fighting—doing anything and everything I could do to possibly stay with them, but it all proved to be futile.

That was the last time I saw George, Mathias, and Jesse.

...

"Whatcha thinking about?" Nixon asked, catching my attention. We were sitting in my house, Willa was eating while Nixon sat on the couch.

"The past," I admitted, but didn't elaborate. Nixon knew about a few of the families I'd stayed with, but he didn't know about the Hansons. Nobody but my dads and his mom did.

"Are you okay?" He asked worriedly.

Honestly, I wasn't sure. I hadn't thought about the Hansons in a while, but now I was. I didn't know why. Was it because of everything that happened in Oakwood? Was it because of...

"You're doing it again," Nixom frowned.

"Doing what?"

"Thinking of him," he said and I sighed.

"I know I shouldn't be, but...it's hard Nix. I look down at my phone and I want to call him. I can't get Reuben out of my head." The was a brief silence between us before I realized what I'd done. "Nix—"

"Reuben?" He repeated. "As in your mate, Reuben, who rejected you the first time?"

"Nixon, don't," I groaned.

"This guy has hurt you twice in a row, Eli. What do you mean 'don't'?"

"I don't need you fighting my battles, Nixon."

"Eli—"

"No, Nixon," I crossed my arms and met his gaze. "You will, under no circumstances, go to see him."

I could tell he wanted to disagree, but he relented with a scowl on his face. "Fine. At least it's him and not Fen."

I froze. It wasn't that I purposely kept it a secret that Fen was there, but it didn't cross my mind when I first arrived. I was focused on Reuben.

Noticing my expression, Nixon frowned. "It is just Reuben right?" I didn't respond and his expression seemed to darken. "What the hell, Eli?"

"I forgot to mention it," I blurted out. "I only saw him once so it must've slipped my mind."

"How does seeing Fen, of all people, slip your mind after everything he did?"

"I'm sorry, okay?" I sighed and ran my hand through my hair. "I'm sorry."

Nixon's expression softened and I could feel Willa's eyes on me too.

"I shouldn't have gotten so mad. I'm sorry too," Nixon said, followed by a sigh. "If he's still there then—"

"Get Nolan to handle it," I interrupted.

He frowned. "Why would I do that? I have two capable fists right here."

"That's why," I shot him a pointed expression. "You've been doing good since we came here. Don't let Fen ruin that."

I could tell he wanted to argue but to my surprise, he nodded. "Fine. I'll call Nolan later and let him know."

I smiled at this and not a second later, my phone rang with a call from Cronan. Noticing this, Nixon stands up and stretches.

"I'm going to find my mate. I'll text you later, okay?"

I nodded, even though I fully knew that he more than likely wouldn't. Once Nixon was gone, I answered Cronan's call, and before I even got the chance to say hello, he started speaking.

"I have never met someone so...so...frustrating! All I did was say hello! You'd think with the way he was glaring at me that I killed his entire family or something."

"Hello to you too, Cronan," I greeted. "Now who are you talking about?"

"My mate!" He exclaimed. "I only just met him and he's already an asshole, Eli!"

"You really didn't do anything?" I asked a little skeptically.

Cronan huffed. "For once, I didn't."

"Maybe he just needs some time," I suggested. "Some people have to warm up to the idea of finding their mates first. Give it a few days and if you see him again then try."

Cronan sighed. "Alright."

"Where's Reed?" I asked curiously since I didn't hear him in the background.

"He went home to talk to our parents," Cronan replied.

"Why didn't you go with him?"

There was a brief pause. "My relationship with our parents is...complicated." I wanted to ask more, but the way he spoke made me hesitate. "Hey, I have to go meet up with Callie. I'll call you later okay?"

"Alright," I replied, but truthfully it seemed a little abrupt. Had I said something wrong? Cronan hung up and I set my phone down and turned back to Willa whose plate was now empty. "Looks like it's just you and me."

Willa didn't respond and though I tried to stop it, my mind traveled back to Reuben and I couldn't stop myself from wondering what he was up to.

AN: Not dead! Chapter 30 took longer than expected to get right. I rewrote it like three times because of that, but it's finally up! Also, do we really think Nixon is going to stay out of it? It is Nixon after all.