"I'm taking her home."
"Please don't."
"But she's adorable." Laurie whines, cradling a cream-colored puppy to her chest like one would a baby. She was sitting cross-legged on the floor, happy to let the puppies climb all over her.
"You said that about the last eight." Dogs. The last eight dogs. The cats were another story. Kate was sure had she not been blessed with the reflexes she had, she would have several scratch marks on her body.
"She's so fluffy." Laurie coos lifting the puppy at eye level.
"God please don't let her get a dog," Kate mutters under her breath as Laurie picks up another puppy that had been pawing at her leg, setting the one she already had on her lap.
Kate was slowly regretting taking Laurie to the animal shelter. Seeing her mate with the little animals had to be the most adorable thing she had ever witnessed but they had been here for a little over two hours now.
They had been to see puppies, kittens, and this one bird that developed a weird attachment to Laurie. All of which scuttled away at the mere sight of Kate, much to Laurie's confusion.
Kate completely understood why but Laurie was shocked, to say the least. She kept trying to bring whichever animal she picked up close to Kate, only for it to start whining or hissing at her.
She stopped after the one cat tried to claw her face off.
Kate shuddered at the thought of the orange tabby who had no qualms with going for her face.
It was rare for smaller animals to like werewolves. At best, they tolerated them. It was something about their aura that frightened smaller creatures.
The only werewolves Kate knew who had pets were Lucas and Iris. Even then, Lucas's dog barely tolerated him and Iris often left her cat to its own devices.
"I don't know how you can hate puppies. Everyone loves puppies." Laurie says, glancing at Kate briefly before turning her attention back to the two puppies she had in her arms.
"I don't hate puppies. They hate me." Kate says from her place on the other side of the pen, having moved as far away from Laurie as the space would allow.
She knew she would scare the puppies if she got too close and was content to watch her mate play with the furry creatures.
"I don't know why. You're not exactly scary." Laurie mutters, just loud enough for Kate to hear.
"Excuse you. I am terrifying." Kate says, playfully glaring at the younger woman.
In reality, she was. When she was shifted into her wolf form, Kate looked pretty damn scary. She had an almost black coat that had some streaks of the same dark brown color her hair was. She was an alpha so she towered over most of her pack members, easily rivaling the size of a full-grown bear, and instead of maintaining her eye color as a wolf, like the others, her eyes often turned into a bright red. A mark of her power. Any werewolf would know an alpha by their eyes.
"No, you're really not. You're like, fluff. You're fluffy." Laurie nods to herself, sparing a glance at Kate.
"I'm what?" Kate asks, amused.
"You know, fluffy. Like a puppy. But a person because you're obviously not a puppy. But you're kinda like one. What I'm saying is you're like a puppy, Harmless. Cute. Fluffy." Laurie was rambling now, a slight blush coloring her cheeks.
"Okay," Kate says. She wasn't sure what to say to that. Laurie thought she was fluffy. I mean, technically she was kinda fluffy, as a wolf. However, harmless, she was not.
"So you think I'm cute?" Kate asks, teasing. If she had to stay in this god-forsaken shelter, she might as well have a little fun.
"Well yeah, I do," Laurie says nonchalantly, letting the puppies go and reaching for another one in her vicinity.
"W-wait, what?" Kate wasn't expecting that answer. She was expecting the usual flustered muttering Laurie did whenever Kate started to tease her.
Laurie turns her attention from the puppy and glances up at Kate, rolling her eyes at the woman's shocked expression. She had had just about enough of whatever weird thing she and Kate were doing.
Over the past month, Laurie would drop hints left and right, flirting with the other woman any chance she got and Kate would reciprocate only to pull back before anything interesting happened, leaving Laurie both flustered and confused.
Laurie thought Kate was pretty perfect. She helped Laurie with damn near everything and found the littlest of excuses to spend time with her.
She was still suspicious of the porch incident this morning.
Kate was with Laurie almost every day and was always happy to just sit and talk for hours upon hours on end. She liked Laurie's cooking, she sat through sappy romcoms, and she had no problem hearing Laurie 'talk doctor' as she described it.
Once, she actually listened to Laurie describe every step of doing a heart valve repair after Laurie voiced her concerns about maybe getting a little rusty (She wasn't). She was pretty sure Kate would watch paint dry with her if she asked nicely.
At first, it was cute. Kate always seemed so nervous and careful around her, always checking to see if she was okay with something as simple as holding her hand. Laurie appreciated it really. Kate was probably the most polite, caring, and gentle person she had ever met.
But Kate never made a move.
Never tried to do anything more than hold her, never noticed the boulder-sized hints that Laurie was dropping all over the place, and definitely never tried to kiss her.
Laurie was sure Kate would at least try something when they were out in the park, but she didn't. She walked all over the goddamned town for hours, met a bunch of strangers, and left her groceries in her car for the entire day. She even made sure to be extra touchy with the brunette. Still, nothing.
Quite frankly, Laurie was at her wit's end.
She didn't know what to do, short of taking Kate home and just stripping in front of her. Even then, Laurie was half convinced Kate would give her a jacket to keep her from getting cold or something.
"I said, I think you're cute. Beautiful. Hot even. You're adorable." Laurie says, not bothering to look up from the ball of fluff she had on her lap.
"What."
"Honestly Kate, I'm not blind. You're gorgeous. I mean, at this point you must know I like you." Laurie says to a dumbstruck Kate.
"What."
"You do know I like you, right?" Laurie asks, twisting her body to fully face Kate who was still leaning on the wall opposite her. She was still sitting cross-legged on the floor but she wasn't about to let go of the puppy she was holding.
"Well, y-yeah I guess. You probably wouldn't be friends with me if you didn't." Kate manages to get out after shaking herself out of the shock-induced state she was in.
"Frie-Are you kidding me with this woman," Laurie mutters to herself, releasing an exasperated sigh and moving to stand up.
"Kate. I like you. As in, like like you. I have feelings for you. Romantic feelings. Not friend feelings, okay? And I'm pretty sure you like me too." Laurie says, standing up and brushing her jeans, the puppy still in her arms.
"What."
"I like you, Kate. In a gay way. Like, very gay. Extremely gay. So gay, I'm pretty sure rainbow-colored hearts are gonna shoot out of my eyes." Laurie's voice was slightly raised now and she was standing less than a foot away from the other woman. She wasn't sure there was any other way she could explain.
"What." That seemed to be the only word the taller woman could get out.
Kate was pretty sure her brain was short-circuiting. She was definitely not expecting Laurie to go off like this. She had been so focused on doing everything at a glacial pace that she hadn't even thought about the possibility of Laurie actually wanting her back in that way.
Kate had spent a lot of time trying to condition herself for the possibility of Laurie only wanting to be friends and nothing more that she was not prepared to have her mate openly saying she had feelings for her. Romantic feelings. Very gay feelings apparently.
She was so awestruck that she couldn't seem to do anything other than stare wide-eyed at her mate who was looking at her expectantly.
"Are you okay? Did I break you? Are you broken?" Laurie asks, putting the puppy down and placing her hands on Kate's shoulders, shaking her lightly.
"I uh I just, Huh." Kate was silently cursing herself for being a stuttering mess. Here her mate was, all but throwing herself at her and she couldn't even get a word out.
She was never like this. Kate prided herself on always being confident and straightforward. She never faltered. But it seemed that anytime Laurie did anything she became a stuttering fool.
"I should have just gotten naked," Laurie mutters, exasperated and Kate almost chokes on her own spit.
"What?" Kate's words come out in a quiet squeak.
After almost a full minute of silence, Laurie drops her hands from the brunette's shoulders, taking a small step back. She had expected a little bit of shock, maybe some of the cute stuttering she usually did whenever Laurie got a little flirty. She was not expecting nor was she prepared for the full-on gay panic Kate seemed to be experiencing.
"I need a drink."
That seemed to snap Kate out of whatever trance she was in. Laurie sighs heavily, moving to turn around only to be stopped by Kate's hand on her arm. "Wait. Sorry. I uh-I just, that was a lot."
"Yeah. I think we scared the puppies." Laurie says letting out a giggle and nodding towards the small creatures playing on the corner farthest from where they were standing.
"Maybe." Kate knew it was her close proximity to Laurie that deterred the puppies from jumping all over her.
"Hey, Laurie."
Laurie looks up at the taller blonde. "Yeah?"
"I like you too. A lot."
Laurie smiles, leaning closer towards Kate. "I know."
Before Kate could say anything else, one of the volunteers, a younger-looking woman from the shelter walks towards them.
"Hey, sorry to interrupt but we're just about ready to close for the day." The woman says, smiling apologetically at the two.
"It's okay. Thanks for letting us stay so long." Kate says, following Laurie as she started towards the shelter's door.
"It's no problem at all. Come in anytime you want."
They both smile at the younger woman before walking out through the door and out into the street, noticing immediately how dark it was.
"You wanna get that drink you wanted?" Kate asks, glancing at her mate who was standing beside her and nudging her gently.
"Mhmm. I pick the place though." Laurie says, playfully nudging her back before grabbing her hand and starting to walk.
Kate led Laurie towards a booth, hand resting on her lower back as she eyed the bar's occupants.Out of all the places they had passed, she hadn't been expecting Laurie to choose this particular establishment.It wasn't that it was bad. It was nice. Great actually. The drinks were amazing and they served decent food. Kate had been here countless times with her friends.That was the problem.The people who frequented this bar weren't exactly the most human. It wasn't glaringly obvious if you weren't looking but she knew that staying here with Laurie probably wasn't a good idea.She had tried to steer Laurie away but her mate was set on going to this particular bar and Kate couldn't refuse her without looking suspicious."What do you want? I can go get it." Kate says as Laurie settles herself on one side of the booth. Kate had picked the one in the bar's line of sight, wanting to be able to see Laurie even when she left to get them their
The drive back to Laurie's house was quiet as neither one of them said a word.Laurie sat in the passenger seat of her car still reeling from the events that transpired less than an hour ago, not quite believing what she had just witnessed.Kate had thrown someone across the bar without so much as breaking a sweat. The way she did it made it seem like it took no effort at all. Kate who she had only ever known to be calm and gentle had nearly killed someone for trying to make a move on her. Yes, she was admittedly in a bit of trouble but Laurie had not expected Kate to react the way she did.Her strength surprised Laurie. No matter how hard she had tried, she couldn't get Kate to budge. It was like trying to move a brick wall. Laurie knew Kate was strong but what happened was different. Kate should not have been able to do what she did. It just didn't make sense.There was also the fact t
Laurie walks into the bathroom and takes her time changing into the significantly softer clothes.She takes a moment to look at herself in the mirror and lets out a disgruntled sigh when she spots a bruise forming on her right arm. There was some light bruising that went around her upper arm that Laurie knew would darken come morning. She hadn't been paying attention to how hard the man, Darren, had grabbed her but now that she wasn't wearing the sweater, she could see it was apparently hard enough to bruise.She inspects herself further and groans in annoyance as she sees another on her wrist. "Great. That's just great."She had been too busy being in her own head to feel anything and now that she had the time, she was making sure she had not missed anything, stopping only when she was satisfied at having found no other injuries.She looked over the bruises she did have and deduced that the one on her wrist looked far worse than the one on he
Laurie finds herself unable to say anything. She understood what Kate was saying but she just couldn't find words to say. Everything Kate said, no matter how foreign the concept was to her, made sense.Laurie let herself think of how Kate always, always without fault, did everything she could think of to make Laurie happy. She almost never refused Laurie anything. She helped with everything she could think of, she was gentle and kind and she made Laurie laugh more than she ever had in her life; not to mention she almost killed someone trying to protect her.There was also something to be said about how Laurie felt about Kate. No matter how she tried to look at it, Kate made her feel things she had never felt before. To an extreme. Laurie was never one to let anyone get as close to her as she let Kate. But there was a sense of need to be near her and an almost longing feeling when she left. It was one of many re
Laurie leans back in shock, both eyebrows raising. Out of all the things Kate could have said, she was not expecting that. "You need to do what?""I need to bite you," Kate repeats herself, eyes trained on Laurie's face as she tries to gauge her reaction.Laurie blinks twice before asking, "Like, bite bite?"Kate nods."Why?"Kate shakes her head, "I don't really know why, but a connection is formed when it happens. I'm not quite sure how it works."Laurie takes a breath to center herself before speaking. "What if I don't want any of this? I mean, do I even have a choice? Do you?" She asks.She wasn't trying to hurt the other woman but all of this was starting to feel like a lot and she needed to know.A sad smile makes its way onto Kate's lips. "I don't have a choice, no. But you do." Kate knew
Laurie looks up, startled from her baking when she hears the doorbell ring. She drops the cookie cutter in her hand, leaving the cookie dough she had been shaping in favor of running towards the door in excitement and scrambling to get it open.As soon as she swings the door open, Laurie is sent stumbling back as she's tackled into a hug by an enthusiastic, energy-filled Lydia Summers."Laurie! Oh my god, I missed you!" The other woman mumbles into her neck, arms wrapped tight around her best friend."Hey, Lyd.""It's been almost two months and I had no one to talk to." The woman says, exaggerating as she keeps her arms around her friend."Ouch." Laurie hears the mildly offended tone and looks over Lydia's shoulder to see Casey Lane standing about a foot behind Lydia.An amused smile makes its way to Laurie's lips as she notices how 'bundled up'
Kate was tired.It had been two weeks since she had seen or even heard from her mate and she wasn't doing too well.The first few days were somewhat manageable. She snapped at almost everyone about the smallest issues and she felt constantly on edge, but it had been manageable.However, the longer she went without any form of contact with Laurie, the more she started to lash out. She was short-tempered, aggressive, and just plain exhausted. After a week, she chose to see her pack members as little as possible to avoid saying or doing anything in her current state that she would regret later.Two weeks in and Kate had not left her house in seven days. She had Iris and sometimes Isaac Or Connor take over most of the duties she had, having them report to her instead of going out. She trusted them the most and they were the ones who understood the unique situation that she was in.
Laurie gives Lydia and Casey one last hug before letting them leave with the promise that they would be back as soon as they had the time.Her friends had stayed for three days and as much as she missed them and loved having them with her, their presence did nothing to quell her need to go to Kate. The woman was all she could think about and the longer she stayed away, the more she felt the need to see her.Laurie stands by her door watching as her friends drive away, leaving her alone with her thoughts once again. She enters her house as soon as their car is out of sight, heading for the kitchen to make herself some tea; needing something to calm her racing mind.Laurie had done a lot of self-reflecting over the last few days and she had yet to come to any sort of decision. Laurie was stumped. She didn't know what to do. It had been well over two weeks since she had asked Kate for time to think and in that