Chapter 24: Ignore Him

CALEB.

Helena was out too long. Way too long. She was gone for a full thirty minutes, and at this rate, she'd be very late for work. Veronica insisted that she was fine, but my inner wolf told me otherwise. I bolted out of the house before Luna or Veronica could talk me out of it. Tracking her down wasn't hard, her scent was forever imprinted into my memory.

The morning breeze was cold, misty. People were scattered sparsely on the road, and I wondered why. I think I walked a bit too fast, because people cast me weird glances as I walked by.

I turned around a corner and found myself in front of a store, the neon light still brightly shining in the misty morning air. I sniffed the entrance, the strong smell of plastic, metal, and food substances wafting into my nose. She had been here, but she wasn't inside anymore. I swiveled my head, following the scent again. Where could she have gone? I was on the verge of panicking, and my human form was slipping. I ran my hands through my hair in an effort to calm down.

Then, I heard her voice, a harsh whisper.

"I think you should leave."

That was it. I found her talking to a tall man, probably the same height as I was. He had a suit on, with a white shirt and slightly disheveled hair, and was leaning against a black car. The expression on his face clearly showed Helena didn't want him around anymore. And that was enough.

I took three long strides and closed the distance between us. He muttered something about making amends and Helena exploded. She yelled at him, and I pulled closer. He reached out to hold her, and I quickened my pace. He is not touching her.

Without thinking, I ensnared my hands around her waist, feeling her anger and frustration. Werewolves can detect certain emotions, some including fear and anger. Her cortisol levels were high at this point, and it was bad.

"I believe the woman doesn't want your presence anymore." I said, my voice low and rough. Helena stiffened at my touch, and tensed even further when she realized who was talking. I patted her back, telling her to relax.

The man she was talking to ran his eyes over my form, seemingly intrigued. He darted his eyes between me and Helena, before resting his gaze on me and said, "And who might you be?"

I would really enjoy ripping the flesh out of that smug face of his. I smiled, a little too sharply. "I-"

"Aaron, there's no need for this. Let's just go." Helena whispered, still in my embrace. The man looked at her, his expression conflicting between surprise and disbelief that she knew me.

"I'm Aaron, and you are?" I cocked my head at him, replying his initial question. He glanced at me, not saying a word.

I stepped from behind Helena, my fingers clenched behind my back. I dipped my face and repeated, my voice a little lower, "And you are?"

He held my gaze, and I flashed my eyes bright green slightly. Very slightly, but enough for him to notice. He clenched his jaws. Perfect.

"Caleb."

I widened my eyes in surprise. The Caleb? Helena and Veronica had always spoken about him, and most of the time, Helena never wanted to talk about it. She'd usually change the subject, or avoid him completely. I scanned his appearance. Not bad. But Helena didn't want him here, so he had to leave.

"Alright Caleb, our conversation is done. You should go." I said, walking back to Helena. She hung her head low, probably not happy with the situation.

"I have no business with you. I think you're the one who should leave." He replied, smirking. This would be fun.

"Aaron I'm heading back home, he's not worth the time. I mean it." Helena said, audible enough for him to hear. He shifted his gaze to her, his expression turning soft. I wanted to rip off that face, there and then. I stood in front of her, blocking his view. He walked forward.

I walked too. He moved again. I did the same.

"You have a boyfriend now Helena? Is that why you don't want to listen to me?" Caleb asked, looking at Helena from over my shoulder

"She doesn't want to listen to you. Thank goodness you have ears. Now fuck off. Stop bothering her-"

Smack.

A sharp sting on the side of my cheek. I responded instantly, my reflexes springing into action. I grabbed Caleb by the throat, lifting him up. I crushed him against a nearby tree, my mouth foaming with rage. It took a lot of effort to hold back before, but I wouldn't now. He struck a punch across my face, but it was merely a pinch. I put him down, instantly trapping my foot on his neck.

"Aaron stop!" Helena yelled, pulling my arms. Her touch sent shivers down my spine, and I relaxed a bit. I lifted my foot, and kicked him in the back. He spat, fresh blood spurting on the floor. My blood was pumping hard, and I needed to let off that steam.

"Motherfucker.." he muttered. My eyes flashed bright green and I lunged at him again, but Helena pulled me back and whispered, "You're causing a scene. If you kill him, you'll get into serious trouble. Let's just go." I turned to her, worry and anxiety filled in her eyes. There were more people on the streets now, and they all cast us suspicious glares as they moved past.

I stepped over him, adjusting my shirt, before pulling Helena by the arm. We walked back home, and she was eerily quiet. "Who is he?" I asked softly.

She flinched, staring at me with an inscrutable expression. "I….he was…" she closed her eyes, taking a deep breath, "... I used to love him."

 My blood ran cold. I knew she loved him, but hearing her say it pierced deep into my marrow. No wonder the idiot was so bent on talking to her.

"You were careless out there." She said, crossing her arms. She took frequent glances behind us, and only when I stood behind her did she stop.

"I wasn't careless, I was merely protecting you. Men need to learn how to respect boundaries." I replied, looking straight ahead. My blood was calm, but the image of the look he had on his face when he was staring at Helena made my jaws clench.

"What if you killed him? Things work differently here Aaron. He's gonna look into you."

I scoffed.

Yeah right, I'm a fucking werewolf. There's not a chance.

The rest of the walk was silent, and I pulled Helena closer, shielding her from the blistering cold. She opened the front door, where Luna and Veronica stood, waiting anxiously.

"Where have you guys been? Had an emergency make out sesh? Don't keep us worried sick for goodness sake." Veronica scolded the moment we stepped into the house. Luna sat, cross legged on the couch, eyeing us with a knowing glance. She probably already knew what happened.

"Vee, I'll…can we talk? We have a problem." Helena's voice was a whisper, and her head hung low. Veronica saw the seriousness in her tone, and relaxed a little.

The morning had been ruined, and everyone knew.

HELENA.

"What did you just say?" Veronica yelled the moment I told her what happened with Caleb.

"He's back Vee." I said quietly. She wheeled closer to me, watching my expression. "I don't know what to do…"

Caleb…..

When I first saw him, I felt a rush of emotions, surprise, anger, hurt, strange nervousness, all of it. I wanted to hug him, yell at him, curse him.

"You're gonna act like he's not here, that's what you're gonna do." Vee said, cutting off my thoughts. "He's an asshole." She muttered through gritted teeth.

Of course he is.

There was something strange in his eyes though, like a lost loneliness. Strange discomfort, and desperation. I always knew Caleb to be narcissistic, a little too proud because he always got what he wanted. It was a bad trait, but he was pulling it off flawlessly. I always warned him about it, always. But he never listened. My mind drifted to-

"Helena." Aaron's soft but firm voice sounded outside the door, sending shivers down my spine. Veronica glared at him for a sec, then softened her expression.

Yes, he saved me.

"Aaron I-"

"I'm sorry." He said, a little breathless.

Me:"..."

"For what?"

"For being careless." He hung his head, as if in actual remorse. The heck is wrong with him? He turned around when I didn't respond, and walked out of the room.

Huh?

"That is one strange man." Vee said the moment he shut the door. She was right. That was oddly weird. I'll ask him about it later.

"Where were we? Right, you need to pretend like he's not here." Vee continued.

"I don't know if I can…." I said, closing my eyes. This was too much. I needed to get to work. "We'll talk about this when I get back. I need to go to work." I said before Veronica could speak further.

This was gonna be one long week.