My Destined Werewolf Mate

(Phone ringing)

It was already past evening.

While walking back home, holding the file clutched in her arms and humming a mellow tune, Eva seemed happy from her gesticulations. But soon enough she was distracted by the noise of her phone ringing all of a sudden. Her pace halted and quickly, she picked it out from her handbag. The call was from Clara and it was quite unexpected at that time.

"Hello, Clara?" 

"Eva, where are you? Have you head back home?" Unusually her voice sounded a bit perplexed as if she was bothered by something.

"Umm, yes I am heading back home. But, why do you ask--"

"Eva, d...did you meet any weirdo or...umm, I mean...any strange person on your way back home who...who was talking about irrational kinds of stuff?" 

"What?" Her inquiry seemed quite unusual to her as she understood it well, it was not her usual self at all. "Clara, what are you talking about? Are you unwell?"

"No...I...I just wanted to...confirm it... Ne...Nevermind..." This time her tone seemed a bit relieved and she took a heavy sigh off, speaking in a low voice. 

"Clara, if something is bothering you, no matter what happens you can always come to me. I am your best friend after all." Eva sounded a bit concerned as her anxious tone was making her quite perplexed.

"Ye...Yeah... I...I know Eva... You would never abandon me, no matter what..." She whispered in a glum noise and breathing out in a huff, she further concluded. "Go back home safely. I...I will talk to you later."

"Wait, Clara, I got a job---"

BEEP BEEP!

The phone call got disconnected before she even got to complete her sentence. Standing alone with a frown face, glancing at the screen she started wondering on her own, "am I overthinking or...her voice did seem unusual? She even hung up on me so fast... What's wrong with her now?" 

...

"Are you worried about someone?"

"Huh?" Immediately hearing a sudden, low whispering breath closer to her shoulder, she almost jolted back facing the person in a flash of a second. She was too startled then while turning behind, her feet slipped off and unable to hold back her balance, she was about to fall on the ground hitting hard.

But the mysterious person standing behind her was no one other than Czar who without wasting a further second grasped her waist and pulled closer to his broad chest when she was about to trip over. Saving her from the awkward fall, he was lost in her deep ethereal eyes holding her in his arms tightly while she was too startled and baffled for a few seconds with the sudden confrontation.

"Mr. Czar? Gosh, what you were doing behind me silently? Your voice did scare me so bad!" Regaining back her senses, she whined in a sulky tone trying to restrain herself from his embrace. The position was a bit uncomfortable for her as they were standing in the middle of the subway with people all around, hovering their curious gaze on them. 

"I didn't mean to scare you, little duckling." Unwillingly he removed his arms away from her waist as she seemed to be struggling to restrain herself. Whenever they were brought close together by certain unplanned incidents, Eva seemed quite clumsy and uncomfortable which somehow had always irked him. The reason behind it was probably because she already had Zeus treasured in her heart.

"Thank you for saving me. Or else...I might have gotten hurt." Moving a few steps away from him, she responded in a considerate tone, with a small grin curved on her lips.

"That's fine. I didn't want you to crack your skull hitting the ground hard." Clearing his throat with a clumsy cough, he tried to conceal his true intentions regarding her, changing the topic. 

"By the way Mr. Czar, we are meeting for the second time today. What were you doing here at this hour? Umm, don't tell me, you were still following me since I left the park?"

"You are wrong little duckling. I came back here because I had forgotten earlier to give you something." Smiling with a sly eloquence, Czar took out a small white envelope from the front pocket of his black hoodie and swung in the air mischievously towards her. Instantly, she groped the envelope tightly and looking all baffled, kept glancing at him.

"What's this?"

"It's your compensation paycheck for your sudden termination. Just as I had promised." 

Startled at his bold answer, immediately Eva took a small peak at the envelope and indeed it was loaded with money which she was in desperate need of! Bewildered and grateful, a broad grin appeared on her pale face as she raised her eyes above to stare straight at him.

"I can't believe... Why am I turning out so lucky all of a sudden today? Ahh, th-thank you...Mr. Czar."

"C'mon, you don't need to thank me. It's your money after all. You didn't ask for the termination, so it's obvious to reward you with the compensation amount. And..."

"And?"

"Thank you for the...tan... tangerine earlier. It was sweet." Scraping his neck holding a small bashful smile, he murmured in a mellow tone.

"Pffttt!" Suddenly she chuckled out watching his shy face as it was a quite rare view to watch such a person like him getting nervous around anyone. As she smiled out, Czar raised his chin and continued gawking at her deeply.

"Little duckling...I would rather suggest you now...not to cross your paths often with the Romanos. Involving with us will never bring any good to you." His voice sounded thick and coarse, with his gesticulations a bit more anxious.

"Well, don't worry about me. I will make myself stronger enough to endure almost every hardship." Exhaling a heavy breath of fresh air out, she mumbled in a cordial voice watching him from close. "Well, are you heading back home now, Mr. Czar?"

"Home?" All of a sudden, the mellow expression on his face faded completely, tainted by a sullen, sad smile as he lowered his gaze down from her. 

"Umm, yes, your home?" She however didn't expect such a heavy-hearted response from him and seemed confused.

"Little duckling, you had told me earlier to be a bit honest with myself. So... I will honestly tell you my answer, I...don't have a home." Raising his gloomy eyes upwards, he tossed a painful smile.

"Wh-What?"

"That mansion is just the place I stay in...or other words, I need to stay in... A home is a place where your heart feels safe and belonged... But sadly, I don't have any such place in my life." 

Hearing his heart-wrenching response, somehow her heart throbbed a little in agony. Even though he seemed to be a mischievous person liking to toy around with others, but indeed he too had a dark painful side of him concealed in the shadows... It was evident for her that nothing could've been more painful than not even having a place or a person to be called as his own...

"Then... Why are you staying there till now? Why don't you leave the place and go somewhere else?" Frowning her eyebrows with a distressed look in her eyes, she inquired.

Czar lowered his head down momentarily for a few seconds and then answered, "a promise... A promise keeps me bound there..." 

"Mr. Czar--"

(Phone ringing)

As she was about to soothe his wounded heart with her words, all of a sudden it was interrupted by the loud ringing noise of her cellphone. Perplexed and concerned, she quickly checked the screen and noticed that it was from an unknown number that had never called her before. Scrunching her eyebrows in anxiety, she picked it up.

"He-Hello?"

"Am I speaking with the most beautiful woman who has stolen my heart?" The voice seemed extremely familiar to her and in a fraction of a second, she recognized it with a wide blissful grin on her face.

"Zeus?" Blurting out grinning from ear to ear, she sounded extremely happy clenching the mobile tighter in her grip. From her facial expression, it seemed that as if she was eagerly waiting for this moment only.

"Wow, you recognized my voice pretty quickly!"

"How can I not recognize your voice? Do you know how much I was wondering about you? And...how did you get my number, Zeus?"

"Nothing seems impossible for me when it comes to you, Eva. I missed you a lot, too." His voice sounded a bit relieved and pleasant which immediately put a wide chuckle on Eva's puffy red lips.

Watching her speaking with Zeus in such a blissful tone, somehow Czar felt a bit agitated inside. He frowned his face and without uttering any word turned back away from her retreating in the opposite direction. Walking away all alone, he felt irked and bothered by their happy chattering and squirming in agitation, he wondered on his own, "why am I feeling so perturbed with his phone call? Why...Why do I feel bothered? I guess...It still irks me to...watch people being happy..."