"So, are you enjoying life at the Howling Night?" Dad asked me the moment I answered his call.

A small smile formed on my face. It was always the same question. "Yeah, the pack is fine. It's definitely different from ours, but not in a bad way. It's more relaxed."

"Yeah? Maybe your father and I should come visit you sometime."

"Yeah, maybe..."

Just not now.

It wasn't that I didn't want my parents to visit. In fact, it was the opposite. At some point, I did want to take them to the Howling Night and show them around. It had been a while since I last saw them in person, but now wasn't a good time. One reason was that I still wasn't over the whole Fen thing. I knew my dads would never judge or make fun of me for it, but I didn't want them to see me while I was still in this slump.

The other was that they didn't exactly know I was in Oakwood right now. When Tatum told me I would be going, I made the decision to not tell my parents. Knowing how much they worried about me as is, I didn't want to tell them anything else that might cause a few grey hairs to sprout.

"What are you doing right now?" Dad asked.

"Right now? Nothing really, I'm just walking around the pack until it's time for my meeting to start," I responded.

I did feel a little guilty about lying to my parents, but it wasn't a complete lie. In about an hour, I would have to go back home and call Maia and Tatum so we could talk about Oakwood. Until then, I would walk around the town and try to get a feel for the area.

"A meeting?" Dad repeated. "I guess it's time for me to let you go."

I shook my head even though he couldn't see me. "You don't have to do that. You just called."

"It's fine if you're busy. When your papa gets home we'll call you back so we can really talk, alright?"

"Alright," I said, but I couldn't stop the sigh that escaped. "I love you."

"I love you too," Dad replied. "And E? Make sure you're taking breaks and not overworking yourself."

"I will," I promised.

"You know we're always one call away if you need us, right?"

"I know, Dad," the smile was back on my face.

"Make sure you're taking care of your health—"

"Dad," I cut him off. "I'm going to be okay and in the unlikely event that I'm not, you'll be the first one I call."

"Alright," Dad said with a small laugh but I could still hear the worry in his voice. "I love you to the moon and beyond, Eli. Don't forget that."

"I won't," I told him, but my voice came out more choked than intended.

The phone call ended and I leaned up against a wall before taking a deep breath. You are not going to cry in the middle of town Eli. You are not going to make a scene.

I closed my eyes and waited until I calmed down before opening them again. Even though I had been at the Howling Night for a while now, I didn't realize just how much I missed my parents. I'd been so determined to put on a strong act that the moment it came down even in the slightest, my emotions came out like water bursting from a broken dam.

Keep it together, Eli.

I pushed myself off the wall, but clearly at the wrong time because almost immediately my body crashed against another one, sending us both stumbling back and the drinks they had all over the both of us.

"Shit," I whispered more to myself before turning my attention back to the stranger. "That's my bad. I'm sorry, I should've been watching where I was heading."

Dark blue eyes glared at me and I immediately realized that the stranger I ran into was a werewolf. He didn't seem to be just another average one either. A worried feeling ran through me. I didn't need to be making enemies; I might need his help in the future.

"I'll buy you some more drinks. What store did they come fr—"

"Forget it," the stranger cut me off.

"Are you sure?" I questioned, but he didn't bother to respond. Instead, he shouldered his way past me and stomped off, leaving the broken drinks on the ground.

Way to go, Eli.

I kneeled down at began to gather the trash so I could throw it away. A wave of disgust filled me once I noticed just how wet the cups were and I sighed. Once I got home I was immediately taking a shower. After I gathered up all the cups, I moved to throw them away but stop when something caught my eye.

It was...a paper?

It was wet from the drinks, but still legible. There was a party going on in the woods tonight. I discarded the drinks and frowned. A party would only make my mission harder. Having unnecessary people around was the last thing I needed, but...

But what if Reuben was one of those people?

No, that seemed unlikely. Reuben didn't seem like he was much of the party type...but what if he was there?

My eyes quickly darted around the area and when I saw that nobody appeared to be looking, I quickly snapped a photo of the wet paper and began to walk back home.

I was going to go to the party. Best case scenario, I'd find Reuben and actually get to talk to him about everything that happened between us. Worst case scenario, he wouldn't be there but even then, it would still be helpful to know where exactly these parties were held, and that way I could avoid them.

If I was lucky then it'd be like knocking out two birds with one stone.

I took a quick glance at the time and saw that I had twenty minutes before I needed to call Tatum and Maia which meant I had twenty minutes to get home and shower.

And twenty minutes to figure out what I'd say to Reuben if he was there to get him to not run away from me again.

In theory, it sounded easy, but I was quickly beginning to learn that anything involving Reuben was far from easy.