Chapter 144: Part Ways
The cars were parked in a ragged line after Shelly led us to a place called Baywood. It felt like the edge of the world out here. Her senses pointed straight toward the thick, dark line of the woods, so we had to stop the engines and continue the rest of the way on foot.
I stepped out of the car, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. My skin was prickling. I kept glancing back at Princess, and I was sure of it now. She had been oddly calm the entire drive, nothing like her usual self. There was no teasing, no sharp remarks, no dominant energy radiating off her. It was like the volume on her personality had been turned all the way down.
Before we started walking into the trees, Malo signaled to me. He was standing slightly apart, leaning beside Sasha’s car. I walked over, my boots crunching on the dry dirt.
"I think this is where we part ways," he whispered. He was staring down at his phone, his thumbs moving, clearly trying to avoid drawing any attention from the others.
"Why? We’re all searching for Uncle PP, and that’s the direction Shelly is pointing," I said, nodding toward the woods.
"This is Baywood, Faye. According to my research, the chameleon shark lives here, not too far from this specific area. So we have to split up now. Because if you follow us, Princess will too... and I can’t have her hovering, asking questions that we can not answer," he explained.
"I still don’t understand how a tiny fish can have the power of a chameleon. It sounds like something from one of your games. And if it’s invisible, how are you even going to see it?" I asked. We had been researching that creature for a solid week, and the book said it was mostly invisible to the naked eye. Sometimes I wondered how these Beast Morphs even existed in the first place, and why they were always sea creatures. Why couldn’t it be an invisible squirrel or an actual chameleon?
"That’s why I brought Kali with me. Snakes have different ways of seeing the world than were-wolves. She can help locate the chameleon shark through heat signatures... and she can also protect me, just in case we run into any bandits," Malo said.
I looked around the clearing, confused. I didn’t remember him bringing Kali along for the ride. Then I spotted her. The snake was coiled up inside the car, resting comfortably inside her transparent backpack. Her scales caught the light as she shifted.
"Well, you should have told me you were bringing her! What if I also need her? What if we get attacked by bandits in the woods.. who’s going to eat them?" I said, feeling a little left out.
"Dude, look at your squad. You have an Alpha, an undefeated MMA fighter, a literal witch, and a GPS officer. Any Bandits will be stupid to come close. I only have Sasha and her clingy girlfriend... I can’t risk my life on them. I need Kali in case they themselves turn into bandits themselves," Malo said, glancing over at Sasha and Haley. They were busy clinging to each other like lovebirds, whispering something and laughing.
"Wow... they really are clingy..." I muttered, watching them for a second. It was almost sweet, if it wasn’t so annoying given the situation.
Then my gaze shifted back to Princess. She was leaning against the side of the car, her arms folded tightly across her chest. She was absentmindedly dragging her heel against the ground, drawing lines in the dirt over and over. She looked like she was a million miles away.
"Malo... what’s really wrong with your boss?" I asked quietly. The unease in my stomach was growing. This wasn’t her rut, I knew what that looked like. This was something else entirely. Was she in that other state?
Malo glanced over at her, his expression turning a bit more serious.
"Oh, she’s been like that for days now. It’s probably because she hasn’t been taking her meds..."
"Meds?" I frowned. I had never seen Princess take anything. She was always the one handing things out or taking charge. I’d never seen her so much as swallow an aspirin.
"Princess has a prescription... you know what I mean. Most people swallow medicines or take it as a liquid, but Princess is different. She smokes hers. And for days now, I haven’t seen her smoke a single thing. These are the side effects of going cold turkey. She gets quiet, bored, calm... almost numb. Like the lights are on but nobody’s home."
I hit Malo hard on the shoulder, my temper flaring.
"Ouch! What was that for?"
"I can’t believe you didn’t tell me this earlier! I’ve been raising my voice at her since the car ride started, thinking she was just being difficult. Why isn’t she taking them?"
"I have no idea. She just stopped. Now come on, you two star-crossed lovers, let’s go."
Malo hopped into the car, and Sasha and Haley followed him, still giggling. He started the engine and drove off, leaving a cloud of dust behind.
"Where are they heading?" Shelly asked, walking over with a suspicious look on her face.
"They have something they need to take care of. School project thing. They’ll meet us back here once we find Uncle PP," I said, trying to sound convincing.
But Shelly didn’t look like she bought it. She kept looking at me like I’d done something wrong, her eyes lingering on me before she turned and walked back to join Aunty Sali.
My gaze shifted over to Yuki. She was standing by her car, and I realized immediately that she had been eavesdropping on my entire conversation with Malo. She didn’t even try to hide it. When she noticed me looking, she just smiled and nodded at me, crossing her fingers over her heart as if to say she wouldn’t tell anyone what she’d heard.
I rolled my eyes, feeling a flush of annoyance, and walked over to Princess. She hadn’t moved an inch.
"Princess, do you want to wait in the car while we go find Uncle PP? It might be a long walk," I asked.
"No. I’m going with you," she said. Her voice was flat, lacking its usual honeyed vibrance.
"You doing okay? Really?" I asked, concern finally creeping into my voice. I hate seeing her like this.
She nodded, trying to give me a reassuring look, but I wasn’t convinced. Not at all.
My mind kept racing as we prepared to move out. I had seen her smoke before, of course, but I never once thought it was medication. I thought it was just a habit, or part of her image. Was she trying to change herself? Was she stopping her meds because of that type thing? The thought made me sick. She was going way too far, even after I told her a thousand times to stop trying to be someone else.
I didn’t care who was looking. I stepped into her space, leaned in, and kissed her. She wasn’t expecting it, I could feel the slight tension in her lips, but then she melted into it and welcomed me.
"Look..." I whispered. I placed my hand at the back of her head, my fingers tangling in her hair, and rested my forehead against hers so we were breathing the same air. "I don’t want a type, Princess. Please stop trying to be one. Stop trying to be Yuki. I don’t want Yuki, I want Princess. I want you, exactly how you are. I need you to be yourself... please end the type shit..."
Then I kissed her again, slower this time. I tried to put everything into it, trying to give her all the reassurance I had... that she was the only one I wanted, the only one I needed, ignoring the several pairs of eyes I knew were watching us.
