Claws

Chapter Twenty-One

My consciousness slipped in and out for what felt like forever. I had dreams about my time training, strengthening every muscle in my body to perfection, refining my hunting and combat skills, and cramming as much knowledge as I could in my brain until I was dizzy while on the mainland. Then came dreams of my childhood with Robin, the fights I had with Zale, and all the way up to the moment I left Erewhon when I was sixteen. They came in blurs, like a strange movie skipping back and forth to different scenes. 

I halfway regained consciousness when I was set in an infirmary bed. I only remember the nurses and doctors checking my vitals at the very beginning. I didn't remember how I got there, nor who brought me. I just remembered that everything ached. 

I passed out not long after I was rolled into an examination room. 

Then, I began to dream the same thing over again. 

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My eyes opened to the sound of a steady rhythm of beeping and the hum of a soft snore. My neck was held in place with a brace, and my ribs ached. It hurt when I swallowed. My vision was blurry. I blinked a couple of times, moving my eyes around until I could see properly. I was in one of the infirmaries' rooms. Why was I in the infirmary again? All my memories were still fuzzy. I looked to the side of my bed where the snoring was coming from and exhaled with a following wince. Ugh. My ribs. 

Robin was on a chair by the foot of my bed with his head resting on the white sheets by my ankles. His red hair was completely disheveled, his face was paler than usual, and he had bags under his eyes. It looked like he hadn't slept in days. What was going on? 

I closed my heavy eyes, trying to remember what had happened to me. Just like a movie, pieces of what I hoped to be last night flooded my head...I broke down at the party that Beck brought me to, was assaulted by those two Southerners, and then...Zale saved me? Was I remembering right? He gave me his blood, and I passed out. No. I didn't pass out. I was still awake, just in a daze.

Then I remembered everything, and I mean everything. Clinging to and biting Zale as he tried to push me away. Telling him he smelt good. Calling him my alpha. Whining as he moved away from me to shift. I had even growled at my parents, calling him mine right in front of them! I wanted to die.  

My breathing grew heavier as the steady beeps of my EKG monitor sped up. My hands moved to my neck brace, and I tugged on it. 

"Mae! No," Robin's voice surprised me, speeding up my EKG monitor. My eyes widened as I saw him above me, pulling my hands away from my brace. He looked even worse awake. It was almost scary. "Breathe. You're okay. You're safe. Don't try to move."

I closed my eyes, a sharp pain shooting through my head. I opened my mouth to try to ask where I was, but only a horse squeak came out, followed by searing pain in my vocal cords. I clenched my teeth together and looked up at Robin. He sighed, stroking my hair with a weary look on his face. My EKG monitor began to slow down. "Don't try to talk either. Your vocal cords are swollen, and you've broken three ribs on your right side. You've been out for three days, but you still haven't fully recovered...No one would tell me what happened. All they told me was Zale carried you out of the woods after you guys fought and took you to the infirmary. You were already passed out when you arrived."

I looked up at my friend--who looked like a rabid version of Peter Pan--and sighed. "Paper and pen," I mouthed. 

Robin's tired eyes widened as he eagerly looked around the room, finding a pen and a spare piece of paper by the nurse's counter. He handed it to me after carefully pulling out the retractable table from the side of the bed. The pen felt wobbly in my hand at first, but once  I got some of the strength in my hand back, I wrote three short sentences. 

Ran into Southerners. Don't want to talk about it rn. Maybe later.

Heck, I didn't want to go into details ever, let alone then. I didn't want to remember almost being raped or that I was all over his brother while in my heat, the one guy I would never cozy up to sober. Come to think of it, I had no idea how I got rid of the pain. All I remember was taking in the scent of Zale's pheromones and then feeling really good. Maybe he gave me an inhibitor or a pheromone shot? All humiliation aside, he did save me. But he was also the one who caused me to go off the rails in the beginning, so it was technically his fault. I was conflicted about whether he deserved a thank you or not. That is if I ever talked to him again. I didn't think I could ever face him again after what I did to him. 

After Robin read my note, curiosity instantly washed over his face. "Sadly, I'm not surprised. They've been causing problems for a while, but it's just been minor things like hunting in our boundaries and stuff. I never expected them to escalate an attack so soon."

So soon? I wrote with a frown. Did you expect it later?

"Unfortunately, yeah. There have been rumors that a rebellion in the South pack has been put to order. I don't know if this is actually true, but there have been so many signs proving everyone right lately," Robin sighed, scratching his nose. "I'm not sure if I should even be telling you this. Your dad may want to update you himself. He knows more than I do, of course. For now, all you need to focus on is getting better."

I'll be fine. I heal faster than normal. What you need to focus on is getting some sleep. You're terrifying to look at. I scribbled, raising my eyebrows.

Robin weakly laughed after reading my suggestion. "I've barely gotten any sleep for the past four days. I've been worried about you, and on top of that, Zale has been causing extra trouble. He's been with three different girls in the past four days, and his mood swings have been a nightmare. He's more grumpy than usual, and I haven't seen him sober once. It's like he's trying extra hard to rebel."

"That's probably my fault," I thought, biting the inside of my cheek. "He must be pissed off at me." But I was pissed off at him too! He trashed my night with Beck, sent me into some sort of emotional breakdown after butting into a conversation that wasn't even his, started to criticize me, and then began to fight me, which led to my incident in the woods. Everything would have been fine if he'd just minded his own business. 

I'm sorry you have to deal with that. I meant what I wrote. Can you get a nurse? I might need more pain meds. I'm starting to ache, and my neck feels weird.

"Of course. Angelica, Beck's older omega sister, became a doctor. You know, the one that got married right before you left? She's been taking care of you. She's good at what she does," Robin nodded with a gentle smile as he brushed some of my hair out of my face and stood up. "I'm going to go get some rest, but I'll be back in the morning to check up on you. Get some more rest once those pain meds kick in. It's getting pretty late."

"Thank you," I mouthed to him with a small smile. I couldn't do much with my face with the stupid brace in the way. 

"No problem, Maemae. I'll see you later," Robin gave me another tired smile before he walked out of the room.