Chapter 22
Flora’s P.O.V
“So…you and Trevor?”
“So…you and Clay?”
Ruth gave me a wide grin and a wink as she sat up against the headboard.
I’d come over to her house after school the next day and she had immediately insisted that I have a shower before doing anything else.
“You smell like Clay.” She’d told me straight up. “And my mom’s a huge gossip.” Which was a very true statement. Mrs. Summers always had the latest pack gossip and the Asian cooking classes she taught the other pack mothers three days a week, was just an excuse to exchange even more gossip. I would NOT want to be the centre of that attention.
So I took a quick shower and changed into a pair of loose comfy T-shirt and sweat pants. Since I came over at her house often, I always had clean clothing over at her house as she had in mine. And today, after two whole weeks, I finally got to sit down and have a proper conversation with my best friend, while enjoying some scrumptious Asian egg rolls.
“Can we exchange moms?” I batted my lashed at her, giving her my best puppy dog look.
“And lose all this?” She pointed towards the food. “Sorry honey, but this tummy is just not made up for boxed Mac and cheese.” She rubbed her tummy for better effect.
“Meanie.” I rolled my eyes while taking another bite. The sweet chilli sauce did blow the roof of my head, but it was worth it.
“You’re stalling, aren’t you?” She caught on. “I can understand if you don’t want to talk ab-”
“We’re not mates.” I cut her off abruptly, not really understanding why I told her such a crucial details, but in a way, I was glad to get it off my chest.
“Oh…Huh...HUH?” Her eyes widened when she finally caught on to the meaning of my words. “Why? How? When? Oh my God! I’m not making any sense am I?”
Her expressions and gestures were too comical for me not to laugh. “Yeah. We found out after we slept together.”
“Oh dear!” She suppressed a gasp by covering her mouth with her hand dramatically. “Did I just hear my beloved child utter the words ‘slept together’?” She proceeded to wipe fake tears from her eyes. “Children. They grow up so fast these days.”
“My goodness, Ruth!” I slapped her leg as my cheeks heated up from embarrassment. “Stop it!”
It was one thing while I was with Clay, actually enjoying the deed and another discussing it with my best friend.
“Look, I’m not asking for details. I’m just saying go enjoy yourself! You got yourself a hot man!” Ruth rolled her eyes. “And besides, we all have fated mates, so it’s totally fine to have fun before getting tied down forever. And you never know, his mate might not even be in this pack! Look at Ms. McKellar…speaking of…”
“Yes, I asked him.” I rolled my eyes. “He said it was a rejection kiss. She wanted him to be her lover and he rejected but she wanted just a kiss.”
“So first there’s this crap about an honour code and now rejection kisses?” Ruth blinked rapidly. “We got stuff to learn, girl.”
“Tell me about it.” I turned so I was now sleeping on my back instead of my stomach and looked up at Ruth. “As for Clay and I…it feels…different…”
“Different how?” Ruth frowned as she too came to lie down beside me.
“Don’t you feel anything with Trevor?” I asked her instead, since it would be better if I could explain this feeling to her with her help.
“Well...” Ruth blushed. “Trevor’s really nice and sweet and he likes me a lot. And when we are together, it’s just-”
“I get the point.” I stopped her before she went into the gory details. Sometimes, Ruth did like to over-share stuff. “But you get what I mean, right? It’s really intense.”
“Yeah…” She sighed dreamily. “It is.”
“Do you think you’re mates?”
“No idea.” Ruth shook her head. “But we’re only twenty so we have plenty of time.”
Time.
That word got stuck in my head like a ticking time bomb. But I refused to let it ruin my moment with Ruth and with Clay.
“Ruth…have you ever thought about why the Moon Goddess had assigned us mates?” I asked her, staring blankly at the ceiling. “Why don’t we have the right to chose our own mates? Or the people we love?”
“I asked my mom that question once.” Ruth laughed, probably at the memory. “She just frowned and told me how much more work did I want? I think she said something along the lines of: ‘The Moon Goddess had been kind enough to grant us mates and save us the worry from cheating partners but these ungrateful children still want more! If you want to find work, come help me in the kitchen!’”
I gave Ruth a wide eyed glance. “Wow…really? I thought only my mom was the scary one.”
“Oh, Asian moms are even worse. You need to like with one to know one.” Ruth grinned. “Still want to exchange moms?”
“I’ll pass.” I laughed nervously. “Thank you very much.”
However, the thought kept circulating in my mind. Was it really a gift from the Moon Goddess? The way we were all given a destined mate? Or was it a curse in disguise? Because nowadays, I was really starting to feel like it was more of a curse…a cage.
“You know, my mom also told me that there’s a legend behind the whole mate thing.” Ruth said thoughtfully. “I think it was because she too has a loved one but can never be together with him. Like a star crossed lover kinda scenario.”
“Really?” I frowned. “Why aren’t we taught all the interesting stuff?”
“To learn about the Mood Goddess, you will need to become a Lunar Maiden. They’re women who worship the Moon Goddess and are completely devoted to her.” Ruth shrugged. “They’re like the werewolf version of the Nuns. They’re also called Moon Maidens or Lady of the Moon. They are pretty hush-hush about what they do and all but I’ve heard they worship the Goddess and keep her satisfied.”
“If they’re so hush-hush, how do you know so much about them?” I raised my eyebrows.
“One of the men from my old pack came back from Lindersay and told people about them. But then he just disappeared one day.” Ruth shuddered. “We later found out he became a rogue and so did some of his friends. Whatever happened, the whole incident was pretty creepy and it led to the shifting of the entire pack.”
“Wow.” A shudder ran down my spine as well. And it wasn’t the good kind. “That’s really creepy.”
“Tell me about it.”
After that, as Ruth dived into how her day her been and about boys and how she was learning this new dance routine for the upcoming college festival, my mind was wandering in a completely different direction.
What was this legend about the Lunar Maidens? And why did the same guys who confess about their existence suddenly became rogues? I got the gut feeling that these two incidents were somehow connected and there was way more to the legends of the Moon Goddess than what met the eyes.
