- Thank God you haven't kicked the bucket yet. You worried me when you suddenly passed out. - Dan barged into the place where I was staying and threw himself onto the bed, crushing me with his weight.
- Dan... You're choking... - he rolled off me and when I tucked my legs under him he sat there in a Turkish position. - Hey, I'm fine, you can stop playing overprotective dad. - I sent him a wide and sincere smile. He relaxed at the sight and wanted to say something, but I stopped him by raising my hand.
- Listen to what I have to say. I have to tell them that I am a shifter. I decided that after this situation they would guess everything when it became clear that we are not bonded. Just losing consciousness for that length of time would be hard to explain. My body had not assimilated the venom that had gotten there through the marking. His wolf recognized me as human, just like everyone else, and sent the poison straight into my veins. I can't heal myself with my blood, and then I ran so far that I weakened my entire body system. According to Ann, I am lucky to have opened my eyes at all. But they still can't know about my lineage. That's between you and me. No one, NO ONE can know.
- Okay, but... - he didn't have time to say anything because the door opened with a bang and Em stood at the threshold with tears in her eyes, followed by Adrian whose face expressed one thing: relief. I wanted to see only Dan, but there's no way that the two of them are going to get out of here now. I sighed and smiled artificially, then nodded for them to go in deeper. My friend, seeing my resistance to socializing, uncontrollably burst out laughing, but covered it up by faking a coughing fit. The siblings sat in two plastic chairs on the right side of the bed so I could get a closer look at them. Em's eyes were puffy, probably from crying, and her brother looked like he hadn't slept or eaten in days. There was an awkward silence, which I broke after a while, finally speaking up:
- Em found out by accident, but you need to know too Adrian. The truth is, I'm a werewolf. - I looked at him out of the corner of my eye and he was in a bit of shock. Though actually I was a a little in disbelief that his wolf hadn't sensed my second nature. Weird. Maybe masking your scent really does work wonders.
- What, but how? - He asked unsure of what he had just heard and began scanning everyone with his eyes.
- Em found out by accident, during a questioni...mmmm... My conversation with Daniel. However, no one was supposed to know about it because I was going to get out of here soon. - All three of them were confused by the last sentence, but I told the truth. I planned to pick up my graduation certificate and then take my original direction, which was Canada. There was less than a month left to get that paper, so I wasn't really worried about being absent from this pleasant student institution. Usually teachers let students pass in order to have peace of mind.
- Where exactly did you want to go? - asked the brunet curiously.
- About three hundred kilometers north of Toronto, I have contacts there that would allow me to settle there for a while without any problems. I was supposed to meet a friend here, but at the last minute he had to cancel everything. I figured that while I'm here I might as well stay a while. By the way, I thought that this friend will find some time and we will see each other. - I finished and a question came out of the black-eyed man's mouth which I wanted to avoid at all costs:
- Why didn't you say anything before and no one was able to sense you? - All eyes turned to me and Dan swallowed his saliva nervously. I bent the truth as much as I could:
- I didn't want anyone to know because I'm a free wolf. I have the right to do what I want and where I want. I don't have to have a pack to survive. - Apparently my rebellious nature completely agrees with everything I just said. I have no intention of living a slave lifestyle. I've experienced that once before, and I wouldn't wish it on even my worst enemy. The siblings looked at me strangely, and Dan winked at me in agreement. He knows well the feeling of being an errand dog. Fortunately, they couldn't ask any more questions because Dr. Ann rushed into the room. She smiled and then in a commanding tone told everyone to leave. They did so, but with great reluctance. She laughed at their dragging, then as they disappeared and the door closed, she became serious in a moment. I hope there is nothing bad to report.
- I have two things to discuss with you. The very first one. Your blood is strange. It indicates that you are one hundred percent werewolf, but on closer inspection it indicates human. I suspect you are more knowledgeable about your blood and your entire body than I am and my results. You don't have to explain it to me, I understand that we prefer to keep some things to ourselves. Just tell me if this anomaly should worry me or not. - I shook my head in the negative because it's not dangerous. My blood on closer examination has a different structure. It is "universal" to all species, something like type zero blood. I can offer mine to everyone, but no one can do it for me. - Okay, that's one worry off my mind. The other is your scars. They take up most of your body. Can you explain that? - She asked with open curiosity. Nervousness, surprise, and distrust were just three emotions I felt in that moment when she started talking about the scars. Only Dan knows about them because he has the same ones.
- I'm sorry, but I can't answer that. - She lowered her head in disappointment, sighed, and said:
- If you need anything, I can help you no matter what. You can come and talk to me at any time. I don't want to be treated as "that mean doctor who pokes her nose into other people's business and picks on everything". You can put me in the "friend" shelf, not the "enemy" shelf. Besides, I suspect how you might feel about mate. I just found it in this pack. I had to travel half of the continent to finally be by his side. In the beginning we had problems, but after some time everything settled down and after dozen or so years we are a harmonious couple with two wonderful kids. - She was about to leave, but my following words stopped her for a moment:
- I... Thank you. Everything is new and difficult for me to grasp. I will keep your proposition in mind. - She left without turning back to me.