"I understand."

I sigh in relief. "I'm sorry about this, Thomas," I return, scratching at the back of my head nervously.

The blonde shrugs and smiles solemnly at me. "It's okay," he says, placing a hand on my shoulder. "I understand. You love him." He chuckles softly at me. "I'm just glad that you aren't gonna lead me on, ya know? I had a girlfriend that did that once."

"You're bisexual?" I ask, suddenly confused at the mention of a girl. He nods, and I let the subject drop. His sexuality is none of my business. "I really am sorry," I say again, feeling my brow furrow together. I shift my weight from foot to foot as I look around. We met up at the park next to the campus, where there happens to be a hoard of college students partying rather loudly. We're on the opposite end of the park, though.

"It's okay. I get it," he says, leaning forward and pecking my cheek. "You still love him, and he loves you. It's natural for you two to get together. I won't get in the way of that." He pulls me into a hug that makes me internally sigh with guilt. I can tell that he's disappointed, but I don't love him like I love James. I can't do that to him.

"Thank you," I return, hugging him tightly before releasing him and stepping away. "I hope you get someone amazing," I tell him honestly, making him grin.

"Me, too, Aaron," he returns, giving me a curt nod before stepping passed me and walking towards the party.

I sigh and start back towards my dorm, where Peter and James are waiting. We're supposed to be having a movie night in celebration of James and me officially getting together. The thought makes me happy, but I don't like that I upset Thomas. He really was a sweet guy.

Nearly jumping out of my skin, I answer my phone when my heavy metal ringtone starts blasting through the speakers. Relaxing a little, I answer when I see that it's James calling me.

"Hey," I answer, sighing softly to myself as I kick at a small rock on the ground, watching it roll and bounce away.

"Hey, babe," James murmurs gently. "You talk to him?"

I cough a little as the cold makes my throat itch slightly. "Yeah, he was pretty good about it, too."

"Good. I'm proud of you," he tells me, and I blush heavily at the compliment. "Now, hurry back. I've made you some tea, just how you like it."

I grin at that and start jogging to the dorms, which I easily reach within a few seconds. "Sweet," I return, practically sprinting up the stairs. He must hear my sudden change of pace, because he chuckles at me.

Getting back inside, I quickly shed my jacket before a pair of arms wrap around my waist from behind. It's a cheesy, cliche move, but it's still sweet.

"Hi," I greet stupidly, finding that all thoughts leave me in the prescence of my mate. He grins and pecks my lips lovingly, making me want to sway in awe at the contact.

"Hey," he returns, staying within centimeters of my face. He smells like candy canes and chocolate for some reason.

"Have you been eating candy?" I ask, narrowing my eyes. He better have saved me some, or I'm going to make him sleep on the couch.

"Yes," he admits. "I saved you some, too." He grins and pulls out a handful of sweets that makes my mouth water just by looking at it. Not to mention, the smell of chocolate is so good. God, I'm a pig, just like my dad. 

He pulls it away from me just as I try to reach for it. Why does he have to be taller than me? "Give me the candy, James," I order, glaring at the dastardly hand that witholds the chocolatey goodness from me.

"You gotta kiss me first," he returns, making my eyes widen and snap to his mischievous brown irises. "Ever since we've started dating, I've been the one kissing you. I want you to initiate it."

My cheeks turn a bright, cherry red. "W-What?" I ask stupidly. 

"Kiss me," he orders, stretching out his arms invitingly. "What? Mr. Big-Bad-Werewolf can't kiss his boyfriend?" he teases, lowering his voice so Peter doesn't hear. 

I furrow my brow and glare at James, shifting my weight awkwardly from one foot to the other. His soft lips lift into a smirk as he watches my awkward movements. Sighing, I decide to not care anymore. Walking passed Peter, I drag a confused James into the kitchen. If I'm doing this, I'm doing this right.

"What are we doing?" James asks, sounding unfortunately confused by my actions.

I grin and back up into the counter before lifting myself onto it and beckoning my mate over. He blushes as he walks over, coming to stand between my legs as I take his face into my hands, cupping his cheeks fondly.

I tug him into a gentle kiss, making his beatiful brown eyes go wide as our lips press together in perfect syncronization. I can taste the candy on his lips, and the thought makes me smile into the interaction. 

"Hey, homies, check this out," Peter calls to us, trying (and failing) to sound cool. "Stop eating each other for two seconds," he adds after a few seconds. I roll my eyes and hop down from the counter, snatching the candy from my mate's hand as I pass him. Peter has the news pulled up and nervously eats popcorn as he watches.

He grabs the remote and turns the volume up whenever James and I enter the room. The lady on the news is talking about a body that was found on this school's campus.

"What the hell?" I murmur, slowly closing in on the screen as they discuss how the girl was slain.

"A girl, identified as Rosie Sanchez, was found dead a mere hour ago by a group of students heading back home after a party in the park. Officials report her body having been killed in a systematic and clinical way. They suspect the killer knows what they're doing and caution anyone from going outside alone, until the person who did this is caught. The girl's body was found about a block away from the girl's college dorm at the campus of Woodbend University. So far, the only clue to the girl's unfortunate demise is a strange tattoo over the girl's chest."

A picture, a closeup of a tattoo on the poor girl's skin is displayed, showing a design that I hoped I'd never see. It's a demon summoning symbol, and I'm suddenly reminded of the incident that happened when I went on that run. Someone is willing to kill innocent humans, and that can't mean good things are happening. Light magic never requires death. In fact, it's quite the opposite. There are some spells that require a life to be created, also known as the ritual of sex. I bet those are fun.

The anchorwoman is pulled back up as the picture disappears. Her perfectly done up face is painted with a frown that will surely cause her future wrinkles. Her blonde hair is styled perfectly, and if you look close enough, one can see the small tears building in her eyes.

"I'm Mary Vanelly with Channel 6 news. We'll continue with more details as this case developes. Stay tuned."

The air grows heavy around me as I recall how my Papa was also the victim of a demon attack, and my mind swarms with possibilities and fears of what might happen. Almost immediately, I fumble for my phone, ignoring the concerned gazes of my boyfriend and roommate.

Typing in the number I've memorized by heart, I tap my fingers as the phone rings. I know it's late, but I need her to pick up.

"What the fuck do you want, bastardo?" she whines, answering the phone call with a whine and a yawn. She loves sleeping, and it was probably a bad idea to wake her up in the middle of the night, but this is bad news.

"Marie, get up and shut the fuck up," I order, and I can practically smell the surprise on her. She obeys, thankfully. That isn't really a surprise, though. I'm next in line for the role of Alpha, so they obey me when I need them to.

"Get the others and the books from our stash and get down here as fast as you can," I order, listening to her move around, getting ready to leave.

"Okay, but tell me what the fuck is going on," she returns, and I can hear her waking up her parents in the process.

"There's been a demonic summoning ritual," I reply, wincing at the horrified looks on my two companions' faces. Maybe I should've left the room for this. Oh, well.

"What?" Marie asks, obviously in complete shock. "H-How do you know?"

Swallowing thickly, I sit down on my couch. "Do you remember the story my dads tell, about how my Papa was nearly killed by a demon?"

"Oh, God," she whispers. "It's the same mark, isn't it?"

I swallow thickly and wince. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."

She laughs slightly manically. "Oh, fuck me sideways," she curses, and I can picture her slapping her forehead in frustration now. "I'll see you when we get there," she says, and suddenly the line goes dead. She hung up.

I turn to Peter and James, who are both staring at me in shock. 

"Demon?" They ask in unison, and I sigh.

Damn it all.

"Wait. Where's my tea?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Heylo, my lovely little nuggets! I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to leave any comments and such! I love reading them, and I try to include suggestions when I can! So don't be afraid to ask! Oh, and for those who want a little more USUK (can't say I blame you ;D) there will be a really touching moment of it coming up soon, but it may not be what you're thinking... That's all I'm saying ;3 Anyway, I'll see y'all nuggety readers in the next update! Until then, have an absolutely fantastic and fabulous day!!! Bai!!! >:3

-IggyScones