Chapter 8:

When Peter woke up, it was dawn. He was met with warm breath hitting his face and he smiled at the warmth engulfing him. He surprisingly didn't have the sickening urge to pull away from you. He recognized you and he knew that with you he was safe, he didn't have to be afraid.

He stared up at you for a while, all kinds of thoughts running through his mind. But the most replayed one was the most triggering.

Is she my soulmate?

He was suspecting it the moment you walked into the booth on the train. The feeling of ease and comfort he felt when he saw you were so unfamiliar to him, it had to be the first thing he thought about. Is it her?

He thought to himself that until you don't show any signs confirming his suspicions, he would keep his guard up while still enjoying your company. He didn't need to feel threatened with you or by you, he only felt warmth.

Retracting back from you by an inch, he tilted his face to admire how adorable you looked while sleeping. With your round face and puffed rosy cheeks, you looked at ease in dreamland. He was glad you weren't having a nightmare as you did back on the train.

Your big almond sleeping eyes were closed as your pupils were resting. Round full lips were parted and he suddenly wanted to kiss you.

I wonder what they feel like? Are they soft?

Setting his lips into a straight line, he fought the urge to collide them with yours.

Get yourself together Peter, what were you just thinking?

He kept staring at them, only to reach for his hand to trace the outline of your lips instead. But his hand stopped midway when a loud growl resonated in the depths of the forest.

You shifted in your sleep before snapping your eyes open, locking them with Peter who was staring back at you.

Your face flushed when you saw how close you were to each other, your faces inches away. You remembered what happened last night and a discrete smile made its way to your lips.

Another loud growl was heard and you both woke up from your trance. Peter pulled away from you, standing on his feet. He frantically looked away from you, picking up his backpack and drinking some water.

You shook your head as if clearing your mind of any intruding thoughts before standing up as well.

"Uh… we should go, it's not safe to stay here."

He only nodded before following you to find a way out of the forest.

You both got tenser with each growl that was heard. It seemed as if they got louder and closer the deeper you moved into the forest and you were stressing over not only your safety but also Peter's.

"I think we should go the other way. I feel like we're only walking into danger this way." Peter voiced, already walking the opposite way.

"Peter, we'll only keep walking in circles… we won't find a way out." You retorted. You didn't have the energy to argue, so you only hoped he would follow you without a word.

"Should I remind you that you were the one to get us here? Just listen to me and let's go the other way." He protested, turning around to look at you.

"I was better off on my own before you followed me. So now, you will listen to me or I could as well leave you here to die alone!" You were screaming by now, the level of anxiety in you, rising higher.

Only you didn't know the words that you said should've never got out of your mouth. Peter's eyes widened and the tears forming at the brim of them couldn't be more noticeable. That's when it dawned on you that you kicked a nerve in him.

"So it's like that huh? I knew you were like them… how could you be any different…" Peter couldn't believe his ears. When he finally thought that he found someone he could feel safe with and in only a matter of hours, it all came crashing down on him.

Sudden fear rushed through all your senses and your hands started trembling. Am I going to lose him like that?

"Peter- no… I didn't mean it like that. You know I would never, never hurt-"  You couldn't finish your sentence, fear blocking the words in your throat. But it wasn't fear of losing Peter, it was fear of getting killed.

"Liar! You all say the same thing…" Peter was yelling by now, his panic attack only getting worse. But you had long forgotten the fight.

Your eyes trailed behind Peter, lingering over a bear that was highly about to kill you both.

"Peter-"

"No! I shouldn't have trusted you…"

"Peter…"

"I even thought you were my soulmate… I-" You quickly snapped your eyes on Peter when hearing his words, distracting you from the beast that was moving closer and closer, its paw reaching out to attack the boy who was still frantically moving his arms around while yelling.

You darted your eyes to the animal and your eyes widened. It was inches away from killing him.

Without thinking twice you wrapped your arms around Peter and pushed both of you to the ground, falling with a loud thud.

You both tried to unsuccessfully crawl away from the bear. Peter covered you protectively with his body and repeatedly kept apologizing for yelling at you. You only shook your head wanting to reassure him and yourself that you would be okay but seeing the horrible situation you were in, you weren't so sure if you could even survive.

You tightly clutched Peter's hoodie with your hands, burying your face in his chest, thinking it was the end of you, when suddenly someone yelled.

"Ursus! Stop!" The woman's voice shouted and you thanked the heavens for whoever came to save you.

The bear stopped in his tracks and looked around searching for the source of the voice. Meanwhile, Peter completely broke down. You could feel him trembling in your embrace, shaking and sobbing. You couldn't help but join him as you were still shaken by what just had taken place. You felt as if death was looking down on you, ready to take you away whenever it pleased.

You held Peter close to you, murmuring calming words to him to try and soothe him down. "It's okay Peter, you're safe. We're safe, everything is fine…"

After calming the beast down, the woman approached you with wise and calculated steps, crouching down beside you. And when you finally found the energy and courage to look up, you couldn't believe your eyes.

"Aunt Yanet?" You exclaimed, not quite sure if it was her who was staring back at you.

Her eyes widened. "Yn…?"

Reluctantly pulling away from Peter, you stood up with your shaking legs, your aunt following your actions carefully.

"Aunt Yanet!" Without thinking twice you threw your arms around her and hugged her close to you. "Oh, Aunt Yanet… where have you been? We thought you died, we-"

"You could've died Yn…" She whispered, detaching your arms from around her when she heard the bear growl.

She walked towards it and the next thing that happened shocked you, to say the least.

Without holding fear in her heart or hesitance in her moves, Yanet wrapped the ebony-haired bear in a warm comforting hug. What shocked you, even more, was how submissive the bear was under her touch, nuzzling his muse into the crook of her neck, loud purrs resonating from his stomach.

She whispered some words that didn't quite sound like human language to you, and peppered him with kisses before looking back at you.

"Follow me. Wolves are around at this time and we don't want to meet any. I'll take you somewhere safe." Yanet told both of you before climbing on the bear's back and walking away.

You only got out of your trance when you felt something grip your ankle. You were about to scream when you realized it was only Peter. For a moment you forgot he was still there.

You crouched down beside him and held his hand.

"C'mon, we're going with her… do you think you can walk?" You asked him, helping him to stand on his feet.

He only shook his head, eyes holding fear and uncertainty in them. "Don't worry, she's my aunt, I trust her… we're going to be safe."

"But what about the bear? He could attack us again…" He inquired, still not sure if it was a good idea to follow a stranger. Because Yanet was a stranger to Peter.

"I think aunt has him under control. Trust me, we'll be fine… now let's go."

He nodded reluctantly, choosing to trust your judgement. All trace of betrayal from you was wiped away from his mind now. He realised that he may have overreacted during the argument and was just glad you both made it out alive.

Your aunt had stopped waiting for you to follow her, but when Peter attempted to take some steps forward, he screamed in pain and fell to the ground, pulling you down with him.

"Peter! Peter, are you okay? What happened? Are you hurt?" Worry rushed through your veins, you thought the bear got to him before your aunt intervened and you didn't notice.

"I think I sprained my ankle earlier when we fell." He explained, clutching his leg in pain.

You sighed in relief. At least blood isn't involved.

"I'll help you walk." You said, throwing one of his arms over your shoulders and supporting him with your body.

It's going to be a long walk.

Your aunt and her bear started moving, leading the way to God knows where, while you and Peter struggled to keep up with their pace. Yanet didn't seem to notice but the bear was surprisingly glancing your way every once and a while. If it didn't sound ridiculous, it almost felt as if the bear was annoyed but also intrigued every time it let out a huff.

A couple of hours passed and it looked like you weren't even close to the exit of this overwhelming forest. Then suddenly the bear stopped. It turned around making your aunt get off of his back, confused.

You and Peter stopped in your tracks thinking he would attack you again. Peter clutched your sweater as if his life depended on it, waiting for the next thing to happen.

But what you didn't expect was for the bear to start sniffing around your stomach and trying to nuzzle his muse against it. Painful cramps rushed to your tummy as you worriedly wrapped a protective arm around it. Peter beside you was concerned yet confused. He didn't understand what was happening nor did he know how to react.

The bear stood still all the time until you looked up at it, only to lock eyes with him. Both of your pupils expanded as the animal was reaching deep into your soul with his hypnotising eyes. Unexplainable tears rushed to your eyes as they calmly fell down your warm cheeks.

Yanet who was just curiously watching the scene unfold in front of her rushed to the bear's side and closed his eyes with her delicate and slender fingers. She knowingly looked at you, and the bear calmly turned around bending down to your level as if inviting you to climb on his back.

When you finally got out of your trance, you wiped your tears away with the hem of your sweater and looked at your aunt. She nodded in agreement and that's when the three of you climbed on the bear's back before continuing your walk.

Approximately one hour later, a huge mansion appeared from between the towering trees, the fresh rays of the sun giving it a royal glow.

The exterior of the building was essentially big blocks of brick that had beautiful greenery and flowers dangling from the roof and walls. Large windows were adorning the walls, reflecting the sunlight. But what amazed you the most was the fantastic Gazebo built on the other side of the mansion.

Stopping in front of the huge wooden door, the ebony bear bent down once more to allow you off of him.

You hesitantly walked towards him and with trembling hands you caressed his muse, silently thanking him for his help. The bear only closed his eyes before slowly walking away from you and towards Yanet. She gave him one last hug and then he walked his way.

When Yanet opened the door, you held Peter's hand in yours and followed her without a word. She showed you where you would be staying with Peter for the time and told you to rest.

"Wait…"

"I'll try and heal your friend later. Get some sleep. You both need it. Your questions can wait." And with that, she left, closing the door behind her.

Looking around you, the room was simple. Two beds were placed on each side of it, one big window in between them that lightened the whole wood-accented room, and a desk was placed under it. A middle-sized wardrobe was standing in the very corner of the place.

Peter went to one of the beds with a limping foot, he pulled the light beige sheets off and climbed in it. He looked at you silently inviting you to join him. You answer his demand and carefully lay beside him, warry to not touch his ankle.

The bed was small barely fitting the both of you, but you nonetheless stayed. Your faces were inches apart and you both couldn't help but stare at each other, a hundred emotions were shared by just that one look. He was the first to break eye contact, closing his eyes and allowing the slumber to take him away.

You didn't know how or when you slept but when you opened your eyes and Peter wasn't on the bed or anywhere in the room, you panicked.

You violently pulled the blanket off you and rushed out of the room, frantically opening each door and looking in each corner for Peter. But he was nowhere in sight. Thoughts of him running away and getting attacked by some other dangerous creature started flooding your mind.

Please be safe. Please be safe.

You kept running in the hallways thinking you were lost when you bumped into someone making you fall to the ground with a thud.

"Oh my! I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there. Here, let me help you." The boy said, helping you to your feet.

Looking up you were met with a very good-looking guy and if it weren't for the circumstances you were in, you probably would've kept staring at his perfect features.

"You're new here? I'm Sam." The boy said, reaching out his hand with a friendly smile.

You hesitantly shook his outstretched hand and told him your name. "Did you by any chance see a guy with a sprained ankle? I need to find him." You asked restlessly.

The boy frowned upon seeing your worried stance and decided to help you.

"Follow me." He said, passing by you and leading the way.

You sighed in relief and followed him through completely different hallways from the ones you passed by earlier. He finally stopped in front of a big door and knocked twice before opening it.

Entering the place, huge shelves of books and whatnot welcomed you but you didn't pay attention to that. You only moved forward and when you saw Peter sitting by a table with your aunt you allowed your shoulders to relax.

You ran to him and wrapped him in a warm hug. "I thought you ran away." You whispered for only him to hear, as he soothingly patted your back trying to calm your pounding heart.

When you pulled away from him, the boy- Sam, called out to him.

"Come with me Peter, I'll show you around bud."

Peter stood up, ready to follow him out. But you stopped him by the wrist. Chocolate comforting eyes stared back at you. "Don't worry, I won't go anywhere."

You finally let him go and watched him as he walked with sticks out of the library, your gaze lingering on his back.

"Sit down Yn. We have a lot to talk about."

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A/N: Guys! I am so sorry. I know I told you 2 of 3 days and I'll be back but... It took more than that.

I was supposed to post last night but just as I finished the chapter, it magically disappeared. I was so pissed off. I had to rewrite it all over again.

I hope it still reached your standards and I promise there's more to come.

If you enjoyed please vote and comment. I really suffered with this chapter, so hopefully it was worth it.