#mark wolf au

[got7imaginations]

A Lone Wolf Part 7

Summary: When Mark tells you to leave, you wonder what you are supposed to do next.

Length: 1832

PART 1 PART 2 PART 3 PART 4 PART 5 PART 6 PART 7 PART 8

“Mark, why are you saying that? I just told you I want to be with you.” You furrowed your eyebrows, not understanding Mark’s sudden change in attitude.

“And I’m telling you I don’t want to be with you.” Mark refused to make eye contact with you.

“You’re lying to me.” You didn’t need proof to know that Mark was lying, but you needed to understand why. “Does this have something to do with what Jaebum said to you?”

“It doesn’t matter what he said.” Mark stood up and looked at himself in the bathroom mirror.

“Yes, it does.” Your voice was firm, because you knew that whatever Jaebum had said to Mark was making him act this way. “It matters because you were ready to get yourself mauled for me not even half an hour ago, and now you want me to leave. The only thing that happened between then and now is whatever the hell Jaebum said to you, so yes, it matters, because I don’t want to lose you.”

Mark’s eyes lifted and he made eye contact with you through the mirror. “I don’t love you. I lied to you, because I wanted you at whatever cost. I wanted to use you, but now I’m done with you so leave.” Mark’s voice was soft, and each word came out of his mouth like a knife, slowly sinking into your heart.

Your chest clenched with his words. “You’re lying.” You voice was barely above a whisper, because you weren’t sure if you believed your words this time. If Mark had still been avoiding eye contact, it would’ve been easy to see through his eyes, but it was hard to ignore the look in his eyes. It’s not easy to look someone you love in the eyes and lie to them, so maybe he didn’t love you after all.

“Get out,” Mark whispered, finally breaking eye contact.

“Mark,” you said, not quite ready to give up on him yet. “I, I-”

“See, you can’t even tell me you love me, so why would I love you?”

The truth behind his words hurt you more than you imagined. You loved him, and you wanted to be with him, but it was like there was a roadblock on your tongue, stopping you from telling him exactly how you felt. Your eyes began to glisten as you started to believe Mark’s words. Maybe he was just using you all along and never loved you. You thought you had felt his love, the way he touched you, the way he would glance at you when he thought you weren’t looking, the way he had held you close at night, but maybe that was just in your head. It wasn’t like you had felt love before to compare it to, so maybe the moment someone had paid attention to you, you mistook it for love.

“Mark, please don’t do this,” you said in your final state of desperation.

“Get out!” Mark shouted, making you jump. “Don’t you understand that I don’t want you here?”

Your body shook, and you heard Mark loud and clear. This was just another pack that had rejected you. You turned and ran out of the bathroom as the tears poured out of your eyes.

“Y/n!” Youngjae called out, when he caught sight of you, but you ignored him and hurried to the door as quickly as possible.

Sobs built in your chest, and it took all of your strength to hold them back as you found somewhere a little more private to let your sorrow out. You ran down the stairs and out the apartment building. You had no idea where you were going or how you would get there, since Mark was the one who picked you up today, but all you knew was that you needed to get out of there.

Once you were outside, you just kept running, not paying attention at all to where you were going. You ran across the street, and before you knew it, you were running on all four paws. The clothing you had borrowed was shredded from your transformation, but you didn’t care. You didn’t care about anything at the moment, and you felt numb. You felt like losing Mark was either all your fault or something that was going to happen from the beginning, and you weren’t sure which one was right.

Trees passed you in a blur as you bolted through the forest surrounding your city. You were running as fast as possible, because you needed to get away from everything. When your body grew tired, you collapsed to the ground, changing back into your human form involuntarily. You weren’t sure how long you had been running or how far you’d gone, but none of that mattered.

Everything felt like a blur, and your body ached. Standing, you tried to move forward, not wanting to stop for even a second, because otherwise it would all come crashing down on you. You took a few steps, but even though you tried to push it back, you fell forward, clasping onto the closest tree as the sobs building up spilled out. Your cries echoed throughout the forest, but that didn’t matter because you were positive you were far enough from civilization that no one would hear you.

You quieted down, but the tears didn’t stop flowing. You sat down on the ground and hugged your knees. You had been rejected plenty of times before, but this time felt different. You didn’t care about the others that had turned you away, but you had felt like Mark was a part of you, so you didn’t understand why he suddenly didn’t want you. Was there something wrong with you?

“Pretty ladies shouldn’t cry alone,” a voice said, startling you.

You jumped and looked up, surprised to see Jaebum out here. “What do you want?” Your words were cold, and you weren’t in the mood for niceties. You wiped your face, even though there was no chance of hiding your crying.

“I’m here to comfort you,” Jaebum said crouching in front of you. “I told you, you shouldn’t be crying by yourself.”

You sniffled a little, staring up at Jaebum in disbelief. “It’s your fault that I’m crying.”

“My fault?”

“I don’t know how, and I don’t know what you said, but because of you, Mark doesn’t want anything to do with me.” Your chest tightened at the thought of it.

“I didn’t tell Mark to break up with you. That was all him, and I’m sorry that he hurt you, but I wish you wouldn’t automatically label me as the bad guy.” Jaebum’s voice was surprisingly soothing. “We are mates after all, and if you give me a chance, you might see that I’m not such a bad guy.”

“Why should I trust you?” You had a hard time believing that Jaebum didn’t have anything to do with Mark’s change of heart, especially now that he was out here, trying to comfort you.

“You shouldn’t. You don’t know me, and I don’t expect you to trust me just because we’re mates.” He stood up and offered you his hand. “If you want to, you can come back with me, meet my pack, and just get to know me for a little bit. There are no strings. I won’t force you to, and if you want to leave, you can at any time. What do you say?”

You were a little hesitant about Jaebum’s offer, but he was making some good points. You didn’t know him at all, so how were you supposed to know if he was really the bad guy. Mark was the one who had kicked you out at night with no way to get home. You took Jaebum’s hand and said, “Okay.”

“Perfect,” Jaebum purred, smiling. He pulled you to your feet. “Right this way.” You and he changed into your wolf forms, and he showed you the way to his pack’s hideout. To your surprise, it was in the middle of the forest, like you had originally imagined Mark’s to be. On the outside, the place seemed to be a small little shed, but as you walked, a set of stairs led you down stairs, which opened up into a large area with multiple rooms.

“This was where we all used to live, well, before everything happened, but I’m sure Mark told you all about that,” Jaebum explained, leading you into another area.

“Y/n!” one of Jaebum’s pack members that you didn’t recognize said, jumping out of his chair. “I’m surprised to see you here.”

Jaebum saw the confusion on your face and smiled. “That’s Bambam.” The he pointed to the larger one with brown hair. “And that’s Yugyeom, and that’s Junior.”

You nodded your head and smiled. “It’s nice to officially meet you.”

Junior stood up and brought a tray of food over to you. “You must be hungry.”

You smiled and grabbed one of the mini sandwiches, even though you weren’t really hungry. You just didn’t want to be rude. “Thank you.” You popped the food into your mouth and were surprised with how good it tasted. “Wow, this is amazing.”

Junior smiled. “Thank you.”

You turned to Jaebum and said quietly. “Is there a restroom here?” You wanted to clean up a little, since you knew your face looked awful.

“It’s right this way.” Jaebum pointed across the room and then place his hand on your lower back as he guided you to the washroom.

“Thank you,” you said quietly before slipping into the bathroom. Shutting the door behind you, you stared into the mirror. You looked worse than you realized and quickly splashed water onto your face. Even after your face was clean, you locked eyes with yourself, wondering if you were making a mistake by being here. After everything Jaebum had done… But none of that was to you. Mark, on the other hand, told you to leave. He rejected you, and you still didn’t understand why.

As your mind continued to race with these thoughts the tears started building again. There was a light knock on the door, so you quickly wiped your tears and said, “Come in.”

Jaebum opened the door and frowned when he looked at you. “Are you okay?”

You forced a smile. “I’m fine.”

“You don’t have to lie to me, y/n,” he said taking a step forward.

You sighed, knowing it was useless. “I just don’t understand,” you whispered, letting your head hang. “I don’t understand why…” You had to stop talking before you broke down again.

Jaebum wrapped his arms around you and pulled you into his chest. He stroked your hair and held you tight. “It’s okay,” he whispered. “You can let it all out.”

You leaned your head against his chest, and Jaebum’s scent filled your nose. You felt strangely calm in his arms, and you were starting to wonder if you had misjudged Jaebum after all.

PART 8

[got7imaginations]

A Lone Wolf Part 5

Summary: Jaebum shows up with his pack, trying to cause trouble. However, he also brings shocking news, leaving you wondering if it was true or not.

Length: 1319

PART 1 PART 2 PART 3 PART 4 PART 5 PART 6

Almost instantly after Mark had said Jaebum’s name, the scent of the other alpha hit your nose, and you knew it to be true. It was a little strange that you could even smell Jaebum, since when you were around Mark, usually your mate’s scent overpowered anything else, and he was the only smell that came through your nose. Maybe it was an alpha thing, and Jaebum’s scent was stronger than the others because of it.

“Stay here,” Mark order, getting out of bed and instantly getting dressed.

You ignored his order and followed suit, pulling on your clothes as quickly as possible. Since you weren’t a part of Mark’s pack, his alpha influence did nothing to you, and you weren’t about to sit around while whatever was going to happen happened. “There’s no way I’m going to let you go alone. What if they attack you?”

“I won’t be alone. I have Youngjae and Jackson.” Mark pulled his shirt over his head and straightened it out. “And if they attack, that’s just more reason for you to stay behind.”

You finished buttoning your pants and saw Mark heading towards the bedroom door. Moving towards him, you grabbed his arm and made him look at you. “There’s three of you and four of them. I don’t like those odds. If I was there, then it’d be even.”

“If you were there, he might-”

“What?” you interrupted. “Hurt me? I can handle my own, Mark.” For the first time, you felt defensive about yourself. You had always been fine on your own, and now you realized why; you didn’t like being told what to do.

Mark looked down, and you knew he was thinking about what to do. He wanted to protect you, but he realized he couldn’t tell you what to do. “Okay, but be careful. We still don’t know what Jaebum wants, and you’re not linked into our communication yet.” Mark’s forehead was creased, and you knew he was worried.

“And that’s why we need to go find out.” You reached up on your tippy toes and gave Mark a kiss, before grabbing his hand and leading him out of the apartment.

The moment you were out the door, Mark whispered, “Youngjae,” and started running.

There was a sinking feeling in your gut, and you charged after Mark, hoping it wasn’t too late. Mark bolted down the alley behind the apartment complex. Shadows started creeping down the buildings as the sun sank behind the horizon. You couldn’t believe that Jaebum would dare to approach you guys during the day, because it was too risky. Anyone human could’ve walked in on you werewolves, which would’ve been dangerous for both sides.

A whimper echoed throughout the buildings and Mark picked up his pace. Soon the two of you were standing on the edge of the tree line and apartment buildings. Youngjae was standing in the middle of a circle, and he was surrounded by Jaebum and his pack. “Please, can’t you just go home? We don’t want any issues,” Youngjae begged.

“You know why we’re here,” the taller one said. “Just tell us where she is, and we won’t have any issues.”

“Yugyeom, we used to be friends,” Youngjae pouted. “What happened?”

Yugyeom turned his head to the side. “You picked the wrong side.”

Youngjae dropped to his knees. “I just want us all to be friends again.”

“That’s not going to happen,” the one with a calm voice said. “Chances of that happening were ruined a long time ago.”

“Junior, please.” Youngjae’s voice was soft, and he seemed so defeated.

“Leave him alone!” Jackson said, pushing past two of them to get to Youngjae. “This is just cruel.”

“Just tell us where the girl is, and no one will get hurt,” the thin one said.

Jaebum smirked. “There’s no need. She came to us.” He turned around and made eye contact with you. “I see you couldn’t stay away from me.”

Mark instantly stepped in front of you and snarled. “Don’t you dare come near her, and leave my pack alone. We made an agreement when you left. You would never bother us again.”

“I can’t quite recall that. Besides, if it wasn’t in writing, then you have no proof,” Jaebum said smugly. He wasn’t the slightest bit worried in this situation. “Plus it’s not my fault you weren’t strong enough to kill me.” There was poison in Jaebum’s voice, and you knew that he was very bitter over what happened long before you were around.

Jackson helped Youngjae to his feet. “Why are you trying to cause issues, Jaebum?” Jackson tried to push past Yugyeom and Junior, but they blocked his way.

“You’re not going anywhere,” Junior snapped.

Jackson looked to the thin one, but he looked away from Jackson, unable to make eye contact. “Bambam, it doesn’t have to be like this.”

“Don’t try going after Bambam,” Yugyeom said. “He’s not yours anymore.”

“He can speak for himself.” There was hurt in Jackson’s voice, making you wonder their relationship was exactly.

The sky was almost completely dark now, and you knew it wouldn’t be long until the moon rose, which worried you. It would be best if the situation was under control, before that happened, so no one could turn into wolf form and attack. You had never seen a werewolf brawl before, but you heard that they could get extremely bloody, and that was the last thing you wanted.

Stepping forward, you said, “Let’s just stay calm. Tell us what you want, and I’m sure we can figure this out peacefully.”

“I doubt that,” Jaebum said, “at least not with what I want. There is no way this is going to end peacefully.”

“What do you want?” you asked.

“You,” Jaebum said simply. “I want your mind, your soul, and your body under mine.”

Mark snarled and tried jumping forward, but you quickly stepped in front him, sensing his anger before he took any actions. Your hands rested on Mark’s chest as it heaved up and down with fury. “It’s not going to happen,” you whispered to Mark, trying to reassure him.

“You might fight it, y/n, and you can deny it all you want, but I’m sure you feel it, too.” Jaebum was looking at you with his dark eyes, making your body tingle.

“What are you talking about?” you asked.

Jaebum hummed, thinking. “You really don’t know what it is, do you?”

“Will you just spit it out already?” Mark snapped, making you tighten your grip on him.

Jaebum shrugged. “If you insist. You see, y/n…” His dark eyes continued to pierce your soul, making you feel weak. “I’m sure you sense what I’m talking about. You just don’t know why you’re feeling this way. You know how my scent is overwhelming, and even just being around me makes you feel weak? I can see on your face that you hate me, but your body wants me, and do you want to know why? It’s because we’re mates.”

Your chest tightened at Jaebum’s words, and you wanted to call him a liar, but you couldn’t. Everything he was saying was true, and you weren’t sure if you could deny it, but it didn’t make sense at the same time. Mark was your mate, right?

“Liar!” Mark barked, his claws pushing out of his fingertips.

“Mark is her mate,” Jackson said. “I can feel it, so I know it’s true.”

“I’m not denying that,” Jaebum said. “All I’m saying is that I’m her mate, too. Don’t believe me? Ask her yourself.”

You were speechless and didn’t know how to respond.

“Wolves can’t have multiple mates,” Youngjae said.

“Most wolves can’t,” Jaebum corrected, “but female alphas can.”

Mark turned to you and looked at you with his wide eyes. You could see the hurt in them, and it broke your heart. “Is what he’s saying true?”

PART 6

[got7imaginations]

A Lone Wolf Part 4 (M)

Summary: After finding out that you have the alpha gene, you try to figure out what that means exactly.

Length: 2102

PART 1 PART 2 PART 3 PART 4  PART 5

Warning: This section does contain Smut

“What does that mean exactly?” you asked, looking around at everyone staring at you.

“It means that you have the potential to become an alpha,” Mark said flatly. You looked at him closely, but his face was blank. You weren’t really sure if this alpha gene was a good thing or a bad thing, but since Mark wasn’t super thrilled, you had a feeling you already knew.

“But what does this really mean?” You got that you had the potential to become an alpha, but what did that really matter? You and Mark were mates, and he was already the alpha of his own pack. “I’m not going to cause any issues with you guys.”

“It’s not that,” Mark said, standing up. He turned away from you and looked out the mirror. You waited for him to say something else, but he stayed silent, so you looked at the others for an explanation.

“It’s unheard of for a female to have the alpha gene,” Jackson explained. “It makes you one of a kind.”

“That’s the real reason Jaebum showed up here,” Youngjae said. “He doesn’t care that Mark found a mate—although I wouldn’t put it past him to try to ruin Mark’s happiness. Jaebum cares about you. He wants you.”

“Why? What does it matter if I have this alpha gene or not?” you asked. You couldn’t wrap your head around it.

“It means that you were meant to be an alpha,” Youngjae said.

“But Mark’s the alpha of this group,” you said. Just because you had the alpha gene, it didn’t mean you had to use it, right? All you wanted was just to be a part of Mark’s pack and to finally be accepted. You had thought that was what was going to happen. The day had been amazing, but then Jaebum had to show up and ruin it.

“You don’t have to be the alpha of this pack,” Jackson said simply.

“Mark’s my mate,” you returned. How was it possible for two alphas to be mates? That just didn’t seem logical to you.

“Just stop it,” Mark snapped, silencing the room. “There are more prominent issues right now, and that’s Jaebum. He wants you for some reason.”

You stood up feeling a bit overwhelmed. You had always thought you were bland or weird or that something was wrong with you, which was why you had been alone all of these years, but now you were being told that you were special and unique and wanted. “Why would Jaebum want me?”

Jackson shook his head. “We’re not sure.”

“Then maybe it’s not a problem,” you said hopefully. “Maybe he was just curious.”

“No,” Mark said. He was quiet, but his voice was deep and commanding, making everyone look at him. “I can feel it. He’s going to cause problems. Only if I could find out what he was thinking exactly.”

“If I just don’t use my gene, then I don’t see what the big deal is. It’ll solve all these problems. I could stay with you, and it’s not like Jaebum would want another alpha in his pack, threatening his leadership. It’ll be okay,” you said, but it was clear that the others didn’t think so.

“It’s not that simple,” Mark said. You wished he would look at you, and you wished you knew what he was thinking. “There’s something we’re missing.”

Jackson and Youngjae glanced at each other, and it was almost like they were reading each other’s minds. “We’re going to check the perimeter to make sure they didn’t follow us,” Jackson said, and then the two of them left the apartment.

Neither you nor Mark said anything for a while. He was trying to figure everything out, but he couldn’t, not with the information he had. You stood up, hating to see Mark like this, and you wrapped your arms around his waist from the back. You laid your head against his back and just listened to him breathing. It was weird thinking that you hadn’t even known Mark a couple weeks ago, and now here you were, holding him to comfort him.

“I don’t know what he wants,” Mark whispered. “What if he wants to take you away from me? I just found you. I don’t want to lose you.”

“You’re not going to lose me.” You squeezed him tight. You didn’t want to lose him either. It felt like he was a part of you now, and there was still so much you didn’t know about him.

“There’s something I’m missing. There is something about you having the alpha gene that I’m missing, and that scares me,” Mark admitted. In the entire time you had known Mark, you had never really seen him scared. He seemed so confident and cool. He had the aura of a leader, but not in this moment.

“We’ll figure this out together,” you said.

Mark flipped around, and you saw the fear in his wide, beautiful eyes. His hands were shaking, so you held them tight, trying to keep him steady. “Tell me you love me,” Mark said.

Mark’s words seemed to knock you out of breath. They were so sudden, and you didn’t know how to respond. He was your mate, and you knew you wanted to spend the rest of your life with him, but it seemed too early to say that you loved him. It didn’t make much sense. He was your mate, and it should’ve been easy to say those few words, but you were scared. The moment those words spilled out of your mouth, you became vulnerable and weak.

Mark cupped your face and pressed his forehead against yours. “Please,” he whispered with a shaky voice. “I just need to hear you say those words.”

You opened your mouth, but nothing came out. Afraid that Mark would get mad, you pressed your lips against his, trying to show him how you felt, instead of saying it. He responded well, kissing you back. He ran his fingers through your hair lovingly. He kissed you again, sending sparks flying throughout your body. Every way he touched you was magical, and it told you that you two were meant to be together, which was why you didn’t understand why you couldn’t tell him you loved him.

It was obvious with the way you needed him in this moment. You needed to be close to him, so you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him in closer, and you pressed your body up against his, trying to eliminate every inch of space between you. In response, Mark wrapped one arm around your waist, holding you closer, holding you like he was about to lose you. Was that really the inevitable?

Mark flipped you around and pressed you against the wall. He stopped kissing you, and then he pressed his forehead against yours. Your chests heaved in rhythm, and neither of you spoke for a moment. Mark rubbed his thumb against your cheek, and your hands slid from the back of his neck to his face.

“I can’t lose you,” Mark whispered. “I don’t know what to do, because I can’t lose you, but it’s not fair for me to hold onto you.”

“Shh,” you hushed. “Don’t talk about that now. You have me, and that’s all that matters right now.”

Mark pressed his lips against you again, and this time his kisses were more aggressive. He nibbled on your bottom lip, making it raw, but right now you didn’t care. His tongue stroked across your lips, desperate for entrance. You parted your lips, and his tongue darted into your mouth and swirled around your own wet muscle. You moaned into his mouth, and you could feel yourself getting wet already. You needed this, every touch, every breath, every moment made you sane.

Mark slid his hands down your side and wrapped them underneath your thighs, lifting you up with ease. You instantly wrapped your legs around his waist and your arms around his neck for stability. He started moving you through the living room, and not once did your lips part.

You made it into the hallway, and Mark pressed you and the wall, slamming you a little harder than you expected, but it didn’t hurt you. For a moment, he let go of your legs and reached for your shirt, pulling it above your head and letting it fall to the ground. His hands return to your thighs, and he slipped his fingers to your inner legs and started massaging you. His kisses trailed down, and he started sucking on your neck, making more little noises spill from your mouth.

Your hands trailed down his torso, and you played with the hem of his shirt. Your fingers slipped under the cotton, and they ran up his body, feeling all of the subtle ridges in his muscles. The shirt came up with your hands, and you pulled it over his head. Your hands returned to Mark’s head pulling his hair to deepen the kiss as your bare torsos collided.

He continued moving you two to the bedroom, and he pushed the door open with his back. Turning around, he headed twoards the bed and quickly proceeded to lay you down on the mattress. He fumbled with his pants and the let them collapse to the ground, before climbing on top of you. He nestled himself between your legs, and you could feel him poking your core through the thin clothes separating your bodies.

Mark rolled his hips against yours, pushing your folds apart and increasing the friction between your bodies. His fingers slipped between yours, and once again you were kissing. In this moment, everything else seemed to flitter out of your head, and all you cared about was Mark’s body on top of yours. His grinding increased, and your mouth hung open as your core tingled and throbbed.

Your legs started to shake as Mark’s cock rubbed right against your clit. Instinctively, you arched your backing, needing more, needing Mark deep within your soul. “Mark,” you whispered. He paused and looked into your eyes. With a nod, he knew exactly what you needed. He always knew what you wanted, which was only part of what made him so perfect, so why couldn’t you tell him that?

After sitting up, Mark started undoing your pants. He slid the material down your legs, leaving you completely exposed. You stared up at him, watching him as he slowly removed his boxers. Then he leaned forward, placing his hands right next to your head, and with a slight adjustment of his hips, he was sliding into you, connecting you in the most physical way possible.

You looked up into Mark’s eyes, and things couldn’t feel more right in this moment. He started moving hips, savoring the moment with his slow movements. You rolled your hips against his, trying to find a rhythm between the two of you. Something just clicked, and you two rocked together. Mark picked up his pace, and the bed squeaked beneath you. Time seemed to freeze in this moment, and it felt as if you two were the only people in the world and nothing could destroy that.

You wrapped your legs around his waist, and he thrusted into you even deeper than before. Your eyes fluttered shut, and you wanted to feel every sensation as it coursed through your body. Mark pressed his lips against your neck and moved up towards your ear. “You’re so beautiful,” he whispered. He nibbled on your earlobe, and your arms wrapped around his neck, wanting to pull him closer as your body heated up.

Mark started pounding into you, and as your stomach churned. He pressed his lips against yours as he twitched, and it wasn’t long before he released with a loud groan. He reached down and rubbed your sensitive nub, helping to push you to your own high. It wasn’t long before your body tightened and then released. A cool numbness coursed through your veins, and your breath was heavy.

Mark stopped moving and nuzzled his face in the crook of your neck. “I love you,” he whispered.

Your chest tightened, and you didn’t know what to do, so you stroked his hair. You opened your mouth to say something, even though you didn’t know what yet, but then you were cut off. A howl echoed through the room, ringing in both of your ears. Mark snapped up, and there was a look of panic on his face.

“What’s wrong?” you asked, sitting up.

“Jaebum’s here.”

PART 5

[got7imaginations]

A Lone Wolf Part 3

Summary: After finding your mate, Mark, he insists on you meeting the rest of the pack. You end up meeting someone a little unexpected, too.

Length: 1537

PART 1 PART 2 PART 3  PART 4

Jaebum’s scent hit your nose, and you felt a little dizzy. Jackson stepped in front of you protectively, which surprised you, since he didn’t know you very well. “I think it would be best if you left.”

“Why?” Jaebum asked. “I’m not causing any issues. I just want to get to know this lovely lady. She smells delicious.”

You looked at the others who were with this Jaebum, and they all took a step closer, making you feel uncomfortable. Even you knew that it was important for werewolves to keep their cover in public places. It was bad enough that there were novels out there about werewolves, making it harder to keep your identity a secret.

Jackson growled, and you could see his claws coming out from his fingertips. You weren’t sure how to feel about this situation, since you didn’t know anything about Jaebum and his pack, but you didn’t really know Jackson either. Either way, you felt uncomfortable and knew the tension wasn’t good. You grabbed Jackson’s shoulder and tried to get him to relax.

“Please leave us alone,” you said. “I don’t want any issues.

Jaebum snickered at you. “You’re cute, and it’s not like I’m causing any issues. It’s your guard dog here who’s making a ruckus.”

“Which is why I’m asking you to leave,” you said, making your voice sterner and taking a step forward.

“Oh, very commanding. I think I’m going to like you,” Jaebum said. He reached out to touch you.

“Don’t you dare lay a finger on her,” Mark growled, pushing through Jaebum’s pack. He stood in between you and the alpha.

“Ah, so she must be your mate,” Jaebum concluded from Mark’s level of fury.

“What are you doing here?” Mark demanded.

“I came here to ride the rides, just like everyone else.” Jaebum’s eyes flicked to your face, and even though his intense eye contact made you feel uncomfortable, you couldn’t break away from his stare.

Youngjae quickly caught up to Mark and put his hand on Mark’s shoulder. “We shouldn’t do this here. People are starting to watch.”

Mark’s chest tightened, and he hated the smug look on Jaebum’s face, but Youngjae was right. Out of all of the places for something to start, here would’ve been one of the worst. There were too many people, too many families, too many children that could get hurt if a fight broke out among the two packs. Mark took a deep breath. “You’re right, Youngjae. Besides, he’s not worth my time.” Mark turned away from the other alpha. “Come on guys. Let’s get out of here.”

“I’m sure we’ll see each other again, soon,” Jaebum chuckled, pleased with the reactions he received. “Before you go, there’s one more thing.” He was still making direct eye contact with you. “Don’t let these fools take advantage of you. You’re more special than you probably give yourself credit for.

Mark grabbed your hand and started pulling you away, and Jackson and Youngjae quickly followed behind you. You wanted to ask more questions about the other pack, but you waited, knowing this wasn’t the time or place.

As you entered the parking lot, Jackson said, “We should go back to our home base and discuss what this means.

Mark nodded in agreement, but he was still fuming too much to actually talk.

“What about y/n?” Youngjae asked. “Is she coming with?”

“Of course she is,” Mark muttered. “She needs to know about this.”

Jackson patted Mark on the back. “I’m sure we’ll figure things out. I’ll meet you back at the fort, okay?”

Mark nodded, and then you and he went back to his car. He drove just as quickly as the night the two of you first met, only this time you were more fearful than excited. The silence was also completely different. You could tell Mark was just trying to calm down, but Jaebum must’ve really gotten under his skin.

It wasn’t long before you were back at what you assumed was Mark’s place. You two were the first ones there, and Mark led you up to his apartment. He opened the door and led you in. Looking around the place, you were honestly a bit surprised with how normal it looked. When Jackson had called it home base, you were expecting something fancier or something more hidden, but it looked like a normal apartment. It made sense, though. You were a werewolf, and you had a normal apartment.

“Do you want something to drink?” Mark asked, pulling you out of your thoughts. His voice was soft again, and you couldn’t read his mood. You really wished you could read him better.

“Some water would be great.” You smiled and crossed your arms. You had a sinking feeling in your stomach, and you had a feeling that something serious was going to happen soon.

Mark got you a glass, and when he was handing it to you, Jackson and Youngjae finally entered the apartment. Mark and Jackson made eye contact, and then Jackson nodded in response. “Let’s sit down,” Jackson suggested, and he and Youngjae made their way to the couch.

You followed behind them, staying quiet. You felt a little out of place, since there was clearly some piece of information you were missing, but hopefully that would change soon. No one spoke up first, and you were pretty sure it was because they weren’t sure where to start exactly.

“Who is Jaebum exactly?” you asked to get the ball rolling.

Jackson and Youngjae both looked at Mark. Mark sighed and looked at you. “Jaebum and the others, Bambam, Yugyeom, and Jinyoung, all used to be a part of our pack.”

“Wait, really?” you said, your mouth agape. “How is that possible?”

“Mark was the original alpha,” Jackson quickly said. “Things went smoothly for a long time, but then Jaebum started getting antsy. He didn’t like the way Mark ran things, because he thought we were always being too careful. He ended up challenging Mark for his alpha position.”

“When someone challenges an alpha, there are a few things that can happen,” Youngjae continued. “The challenger could kill the alpha and take his place, or the current alpha could defeat the challenger and kill that person for insubordination.”

“I thought werewolves were born as alphas,” you said.

Mark glanced at you and then looked at Jackson. “Yes, that’s true, but some werewolves have a gene that allows them to become an alpha, if they decide to take on that role.”

“Ah,” you said. You were grateful that Mark and the others were so nice about explaining this stuff to you. “Wait, so why are both of you alive right now?”

“There’s one more thing that can happen when a werewolf can challenge an alpha,” Jackson continued. “They can tie. In that case, the werewolf who challenged the leader is forced to leave the pack.”

“And sometimes other people join them,” Youngjae added. There was hurt evident in his voice, and you wondered how close he was to the others when they chose Jaebum over Mark.

“I’m sorry,” you said quietly, unsure of what else to say.

“It’s okay,” Youngjae said, but his eyes were glistening.

“There’s more,” Mark said, pulling your attention back to him. “Jaebum left the city with the others after all of this happened, and things were peaceful. But now he’s back.”

“What does that mean?” you asked. You hoped that it meant they wanted to mend fences, but after everything that happened today, you doubted that would be the case.

“It means he wants something,” Jackson said, “and he’ll probably do anything he can to get what he wants.”

“What would he want? He’s already an alpha.” Things were definitely easier before you met Mark. You had no idea there were so many issues between packs, but this was completely understandable.

Everyone was quiet for a moment, making you more nervous. Finally, Mark said, “I think it has something to do with you.”

“Me?” you repeated. “That makes no sense. How would he know anything about me?”

“Even after a pack is splits, there are still ties that are never completely severed, kind of like telepathic messages,” Jackson explained. “Sometimes we can feel the things they’re going through, and I’m sure they felt the moment you and Mark mated.”

You widened your eyes, realizing what that meant. You and Mark had a lot less privacy than you realized, not just from Jaebum but from Jackson and Youngjae, too. You didn’t realize packs had such strong ties, since you had always been alone. “So why would they care about that?” you finally asked.

“Because there’s something special about you, y/n,” Mark said. He scooted closer to you and grabbed you hand. “I knew there was something special about you from the moment I met you, but I thought that it was just because we were mates. The more time I spent with you, the greater my suspicions became, and Jaebum showing up here only confirmed what I thought.”

“What is that?” you asked. You had never felt special before, so you had no idea what Mark could possibly be talking about.

“You have the alpha gene.”

PART 4