Five

"Kol, can you slow down? I am walking around barefoot, okay?" Freya snapped, trying to follow him down the trail behind her house. He didn't answer her but he slowed down, allowing for her to catch up. They walked down the trail that they had found when they were little, around the time that middle school had started. Freya sighed as she looked around, thankful that the moon was high and bright as they navigated their way through the mossy rocks and trees. Soon they came to their spot, a small clearing that was beside a hot spring that no one else knew about. Kol sat on the ground, his back against a rock as he watched Freya sit down on the rock across from him. The two sat there, staring at each other in silence as the sound of the woods enveloped them. The wind blew, making the trees rustle as an owl hooted in the distance, allowing itself to make noise after hunting when the night began.

"Why did you come back?" Kol asked, breaking the silence.

"When I left dad asked me to make a deal with him. I asked him if I could leave and travel, make memories for myself. In return for getting permission from your father for me to go, I promised I would come home in a year and I would go to your father's University and work for the company." He nodded, looking over at the spring as he brought his knees to his chest, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Sounds like you were having a good time while you were gone, even found yourself a boyfriend." Freya frowned as he said this, her hand reaching for her necklace as she shook her head.

"That's not fair, you can't say that. You can't be mad at me for trying to move on, Kol. I'm not the one who rejected you after I turned, okay?" He looked at her and smirked.

"Freya, I wasn't saying it because I'm mad." She returned his gaze and he ran a hand through his hair, scratching his chin as he thought about what he wanted to say. "I understand I hurt you, and I can understand if you never want to forgive me. If we had the option, I would even offer you a way out right now." Freya blinked as he began to talk, her heart beating fast as he stared at her, a look of regret on his face. "Freya, I really am sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry I humiliated you in front of the pack. But we need to work through this, because we no longer have time to procrastinate dealing with this." Kol stood, brushing off his backside as he looked down at her, holding out a hand. "Will you be willing to start over with me, Freya?" His hand was outstretched towards her but the girl frowned, looking away from him as she sighed.

"Kol, I appreciate your apology. I really do." He let his hand fall, looking at her as she began to play with a rock beside her leg.

"But?"

"But I'm not ready to forgive you." She looked up and saw he was looking at the water, his hands in his pockets as he listened. Freya stood, dusting off her dress before she crossed her arms. "It's hard to be around you and I need time to see that I can trust you again, and if you have changed you will understand that." He looked down at her, giving a nod when she looked at him. She gave a small smile before they turned, making their way back towards the house.

~

A knock woke Freya up, making her jump when before the door exploded and Adrian bounced inside before catapulting himself onto her bed, landing on her slightly.

"Adrian, what the fuck." She groaned, grabbing her ribs as his elbow rammed into them.

"You talked to Kol last night? Like actually talked to him? What happened?" Another groan left Freya's lips as she pulled her covers over her head, trying to block out Adrian's voice. "Oh, come on." He grabbed the blanket and pulled it down, smiling as she scrunched her nose before she sat up. Freya walked to the window and watched as the trees waved in the breeze, closing her eyes as she breathed in the smell of her home.

"Adrian?" She asked, her eyes still closed as she leaned against the wall.

"Yes?"

"Do you want to go for a run?" She turned towards her friend, smiling as he turned to look at her with excitement on his face. He looked at his phone and smirked, showing her that they had plenty of time to go on a run before they needed to leave for classes. As if they were racing, the pair ran out of the room and pushed at each other as they ran down the stairs. They turned around the corner, Adrian stumbled and bumped into Freya's father as he walked out of the living room to see what was going on, only to see the boy pivot and dash after his daughter out of the door leading to the living room. Greyson smirked, shaking his head as he refilled his coffee as he watched his daughter and her best friend run down towards the woods before they disappeared into the sea of trees.

"Stop pushing me! You're cheating!" Freya yelled when he shoved her into a tree, a laugh ripping through him before they broke into a clearing.

"Winning is winning, baby. You're just mad that I beat you." He stated as he fell onto the ground, his eyes staring at the sky as the clouds moved over the sky swiftly.

"Come on, shift and I'll show you who the loser is." Freya shoved Adrian's leg before she moved behind a bush, stripping out of her pajamas before she piled them neatly. Getting on the ground, Freya positioned herself in the best way she could to help make sure the change wasn't too painful, but as soon as it kicked in she regretted not changing in so long.

The sounds of Adrian's shift rang out, the sound of his bones snapping and popping reaching her as her own body responded to the shift. She groaned as she felt her bones breaking, snapping and reshaping themselves. Her eyes watched as her thumb popped out of place on her hand, moving as her skin stretched as her arm changed before her legs followed, forcing her into a position on all fours as fur began to sprout from her skin. After her shift finished, Freya stood and shook out her fur, the fur matching the color of her milk chocolate hair that she got from her father. She moved forward, leaving the place she shifted to see that Adrian was laying there, watching the bush as he waited for her to finish. As soon as he saw his friend he stood, his sandy blonde body making it's way to her before she growled at him. He continued towards her, nudging her as he got closer. She nipped at him and he jumped away, lowering himself as he stared at her, seeming to dare her to come at him. Freya jumped at Adrian but he dove away, shooting off as he began to run away from his friend as she chased him.