Where Do I Belong?

Hey everyone,

Here's another little story for you. Again, there are no chapters to this piece. Hope you enjoy.

~Night

********

It all started over a letter. A simple piece of paper with a college header addressed from far, faraway. A letter from some fancy professor that would change everything Dane knew. It meant that Kobe was leaving soon and there was nothing Dane could about it, the letter proof of his best friend's decision to go to school. Pushing the document back under Kobe's bed—without bothering to read the rest—Dane continued vacuuming their shared room with a dangerous grip on the household appliance.

Dane wasn't applying to college. He was never good in school, but mainly because he knew he'd just end up a Beta anyways. What had he expected? Kobe was everything he wasn't, smart, good looking, and popular in the pack. The blonde belonged at the fancy Lupe College on the West coast. A big, dumb lug of a best friend couldn't hold him back from a real future. Dane sighed and turned off the vacuum. His grief over losing the only person who understood him took a step back for the anger that was rising out of nowhere. He had to get out of here before he did something stupid.

Once the room was clean to Kobe's mother's specifications, Dane showered and shaved in the small adjoining bathroom before Kobe got back from helping the older males. Dane wanted to be gone before he had to face his best friend. He wasn't in the mood to hear Kobe chatter away about the summer projects or hear him laugh. The pack was building a fishing dock down at the lake for obvious reasons, as well as something for the young to jump off of in the summer.

This place was more like a family resort than a compound and all the happy, fluffy crap made Dane bitter. His father had been killed in a Beta challenge when Dane was ten. After that, his mother wasn't really up for the job of handling her own child. Therefore the Alpha had taken him in, offering him a real home when his mother vanished into thin air. They knew she wasn't coming back.

It sounded ideal, but it was absolute torture to live in someone's home as if you were their family knowing that you weren't theirs at all. Even worse was to know that you were in love with the Alpha's son—your best friend—but you couldn't touch the future leader of the pack. Kobe was straight and Dane knew being with another man would be frowned upon by the others.

So he just existed amongst them. The big, muscled, dumbass living in a pen of beautifully content creatures was the story of Dane's life.

He threw on some clean clothes, grabbed his dad's old rucksack from under his bed, and headed out. The only thing he really owned in life was the old red truck that had been his fathers. It wasn't much as it was rusted here and there, the seats had seen better days, but it was his. When he drove it, Dane felt a connection to the father that he barely knew. He'd even kept the picture of his mom that was shoved in the rearview mirror. The truck

was

his family.

"Dane!" He heard a familiar voice shout. Quickly, Dan started the ignition—his escape roared to life.

Glancing out the window, Dane cringed at the sight of the lean male running towards the truck. The lightest blue eyes he'd ever seen, white blonde hair glinted in the dying sun. Fuck, Dane shuddered at the guy's beauty. Men shouldn't look that way, he scowled.

"I have to be somewhere, Kobe. Don't wait up," Dane shouted out the window and backed up to avoid any further conversation. If he stuck around, he'd just end up more pissed off, spouting off things he didn't want to ever admit.

"Dane, hey wait!" Kobe frowned. He stopped running. What the hell was eating him lately, the Alpha's son pondered. They were best friends, but recently there was a wall up between them. Kobe couldn't for the life of him figure out what was going on. He missed Dane terribly and ever since the big ass had decided to start ignoring him. Kobe had tried busying himself with the pack summer projects.

Was that what Dane was upset about, Kobe hanging out with the older males, excluding him? Well hell, Dane was stronger than any of them put together. If he wanted to hang, the guys would love it. But Kobe had a feeling that wasn't the problem. Maybe he'd figured out how Kobe felt...

Kobe took a step forward when Dane didn't make a move to drive off just yet.

"Hey, sexy," Lana laughed, coming out of nowhere to put an arm around him.

In the truck, Dane growled under his breath. From the rearview mirror he watched Lana with her arms around Kobe. His best friend looked on his direction, but seeing that female with her hands on Kobe was more than Dane could handle, and he slammed on the gas—leaving a trail of dust in his wake.

Raising a brow, Lana shook her head. "You two are

so

clueless it makes me sick. I may like girls, but I still know a thing or two about boys, and you're all dumb as a box of rocks."

She flicked Kobe's ear with her blue fingernails. "Earth to Kobe, hello?"

"Why does he do that? What did I do to him to make him that angry?" Kobe turned to Lana who pouted, a small sigh of frustration.

"It's because he likes you

too

much that he's angry."

"That doesn't make any sense. How could he like me too much? We're practically bonded for crying out loud. He's like my brother Lana."

"Brother?" She snorted. "Do me a favor and don't ever tell him that."

Kobe screwed up his brows in confusion. "What? Why?"

"Like I said, you're so clueless." Lana kissed Kobe's cheek then turned around with a flip of her bright red bob. "Later pup."

"Hold up, Lana! What do you mean?"

She threw him a small wave, swishing her way back into the house.

Kobe stood there and felt his stomach twisting with grief as he watched Dane's truck become smaller and smaller down the main road—eventually disappearing into nothing.

~~~~~~

Two nights later, Dane slipped into the bedroom as quietly as he could. One of the older males had given him enough Southern Comfort to kill a horse, and he was having a hard time walking, let alone being silent about it. He walked right into the bathroom door and hissed as pain bloomed across his forehead.

"Fuck," he whispered, reaching out blindly to steady himself. So much for drinking his troubles away, Dane thought. This was so much worse.

Not sure what he was doing, he spotted the bed and stripped his clothes off as best he could. Proud that he hadn't fallen to the floor when his jeans trapped his ankles, Dane climbed into bed and wrapped his large body around the warm mound of pillows under his chest. Damn these pillows smelled good, Dane smiled and inhaled—burying his nose deep within their softness, nuzzling as close as he could.

The next thing he knew a loud alarm was going off—his phone on the floor telling him to wake up—and his eyes fluttered open. Light assaulted his irises. Dane turned into the pillow to avoid going blind. Man his head hurt and his mouth tasted like...yeah gross. When he felt a small arm tighten around his waist and heard a groan of protest somewhere near his chest, Dane stiffened. No, no, no, he thought madly. Please no.

Reluctantly, Dan looked down and felt his life slip away in horror. Kobe's face was pressed into his chest and his naked body was pressed...everywhere. Dane was already hard against Kobe's stomach—the erection of shame a sure sign that he had to get the hell out of here. He had to leave this place to spare Kobe any embarrassment or grief. If someone found out about this or his love for the Alpha's son, Kobe's status would most likely be ruined and he'd be an outcast. His best friend had to go to college, had to make something of himself. He couldn't ruin that for Kobe, no matter how much the thought of leaving hurt.

Very slowly, Dane slipped out from under Kobe's embrace and got dressed. He turned off his alarm, packed up his rucksack with a few essentials, and put the wad of cash left over from his last job at the bottom before tying it up tight. The time came when he finally stood over Kobe's sleeping form and a tear ran down his face.

Quietly, he knelt beside the bed and kissed Kobe's cheek. "I'm sorry I have to leave you because, shit, I want nothing more than to stay with you forever. But I love you enough to know what's right and you're better than me. You've always been better than me Kobe, and maybe now...maybe now you'll realize it. I love you, Kobe. Maybe one day you'll forgive me."

Realizing he was crying, Dane sniffled into his jacket sleeve and wiped his face. He gave Kobe one last look before he turned and left the main house—he passed all the unassuming pack members going about their morning, passed a small group of children playing in the hall, passed his people that he would never see again.

Walking to his truck, his feet had suddenly turned to stone, heavy and sluggish. His body knew what he was doing was wrong, his wolf was screaming inside to stop this, but he had to leave here. He couldn't sit by anymore and watch Kobe become this beautiful man, this Alpha who would take a female—this man that would have young and eventually leave him behind. The idea tore Dane up inside and his wolf had to agree on that, but then the damn beast started howling again. Quiet on the outside, loud as hell on the inside—Dane couldn't satisfy his wolf no matter how hard he tried.

"We have to go," Dane whispered, looking back at the house one last time. "You know we can't stay. I am so sorry."

He ran a hand over his truck as if to memorize the dirty grit that covered the half-ass paint job. His family, he was really leaving them behind.

"And where are you off to this early?" Lana walked out of the tree line in mesh shorts and trainers, fresh from a morning run.

Dane kept his growl of fury for the female under wraps, his red rimmed eyes lowered. "Out."

"If you keep running, it'll only get worse Dane. Even I can feel your wolf about ready to snap. I know I'm not much to you, but you

can

talk to me if you want. Sometimes it's better to get it all out." Lana shrugged and took a step closer.

Dane turned his now yellow eyes over his shoulder, a slow spin of his body as his chest heaved with a pervading anger. "And

why

would I want to talk to you? You're nothing more than a slut, a slut who only wants Kobe because he'll be Alpha one day. Making plans to raise your status already? Trying to take him from..."

He couldn't say it, she would know then. She would tell the Alpha and the others, ruin Kobe forever. Instead Dane bared his teeth with a lip rippling growl. His nails grew on his fingers, tearing into his backpack that he clung to. His body began to tighten, his muscles defining in a formidable way.

"Whoa. What? Hold up there big guy. First off I am not a slut and..."

"

Enough

!" Dane roared with a step towards the female. Lana's eyes widened, her trainers backing up over the growl in fear. Her wolf was present in her mind, trying to calm her, but even the beast within was frightened.

"Holy shit," Lana whispered and went to her knees—her head immediately falling low to him. She was shaking, her fingers digging into the dirt. Lana couldn't look at him. She knew if she did that he would...

Dane didn't even ask what the fuck her problem was. All he cared about was that she had shut her damn mouth. The anger didn't break as he looked down on her shaking form. His wolf was in a mood that he'd never felt before. Scared of what he would do to Lana—even if he didn't really care for her—Dane took off at a dead run into the woods.

As much as it hurt to leave his truck without a final goodbye, he knew he couldn't drive it around with registered plates and escape being found by the pack. With a rage that scared even him, Dane kept running. Tears blurred his vision. His wolf guided him around the thick trees and over the fallen logs. Scents, colors, and sounds became nothing more than static to Dane as he felt his wolf's heart breaking. At the moment, the beast had no choice, but to give in to the boy. They were leaving their pack, the boy they loved, and everything they knew behind.

~~~~~~~~

"Kobe, wake up! C'mon son, get up!"

Large hands shook Kobe out of his perfect slumber. Startled, his eyes shot open. His dad and mom were directly above him and in the doorway was a terrified looking Lana. Immediately Kobe thought of Dane. They would never wake him up this early if it wasn't important. To Kobe, Dane was the most important person in the world. With a quick glance to the other side of the room, he noted his best friend's empty bed. The rucksack that Dan always kept right under his bed was gone.

"Dane..." he whispered.

"Son, did you talk to him at all this morning? Did he say where he was going?" The Alpha looked down at his son with their shared light blue eyes. His gaze flicked to his mate, Kobe's mother out of concern.

"No, I haven't talked to him in a long time dad. He's been weird lately."

Kobe kept the sheets around his body, not because he was nude, but because he fought his hands not to pull the cotton to his nose and inhale with a stricken cry. The Alpha's son was barely containing himself in the bed as it was—his wolf crying out in desperation. He somehow knew Dane was gone, leaving him. The beast inside howled, bring him back. Come back to me Dane.

"Get dressed. You need to be up if he calls. I can feel him still in the area and his wolf his is

pissed

at him. The damn thing woke me up with the bond. We need to find him before he..." The Alpha shook his head and sighed before standing up.

"Before he what?" Kobe straightened. His mom put a hand on his shoulder.

"Honey this morning when Lana tried to approach him, he almost ripped her head off at the mention of..." She looked to Kobe's father for support.

"Well he should know, Kelly. He hasn't seemed to notice for the last nine years." The Alpha threw his hands up, pacing the room. His bare arms flexed, then relaxed in thought.

"Oh for crying out loud Kobe, are you fucking blind?" Lana stomped into the room with wide eyes. "He isolates himself from the others because he knows he's different, stronger, and he thinks way too damn much. Downplays how smart he is because he doesn't let anyone near enough to tell him otherwise. Sound familiar?" She gestured to Kobe's dad and the Alpha looked guilty as charged.

"There's the fact that you two are in love with each other. Jesus! How hard is that to say! I mentioned you this morning as he was leaving and he called me a slut who only wanted you for Madam Alpha status. Can you believe that shit? Oh

he

did though. About jumped me and made me submit. I am the daughter of the head Beta, Kobe. The only person that can make me submit is...the Alpha."

Lana softened her voice as she watched Kobe absorb what he was being told. The blonde turned towards the window and searched the woods with an unholy need. He'd known it was Dane last night in his bed and he had craved the touch more than he was able to describe. Even if Dane had been drunk, Kobe couldn't say no. Now, Dane was out there all alone, raging mad, confused.

As he admitted his feelings to himself, how much he really loved Dane, Kobe silently let the tears fall. "Why would he leave me then?"

"Because he doesn't think he's good enough for you. He thinks that I'll rip him to pieces for loving you," The Alpha said. He sat on the bed and combed his son's hair away from his face. "But truth is Kobe, me and your mom have always known. How could we not?" His mom snorted and Kobe suddenly got antsy or rather his wolf did.

"Dane acted just like your father did around me. He's always walking circles with you, watching you, protecting you when you don't even see him. When it comes to the actual talking part, they don't know how to follow through." Kobe's mom rubbed a hand over her mate's back.

"I can follow through just fine." The Alpha growled, but it wasn't aggressive. It was the teasing growl he used just for Kelly.

Lana rolled her eyes. "Can we get back to the part where Dane is missing?"

"Okay, can I have a minute to get dressed? Then I'm coming with you." Kobe swallowed, looking his father in the eye.

"Son, you can't come with us. If he's transitioning, and I think that's what's happening, then his wolf will snap. Make you submit on the spot. You know what I'm sayin?" The Alpha pulled his lips tight, looked around as if embarrassed.

"So I have to submit, big deal? Now get out...please." He rephrased. The man that sat across from might be his dad, but he was also his Alpha, and you didn't tell an Alpha what to do.

"What your father means honey is that Dane will make you

submit

. Not as in on your knees before your leader, but as in

submit

to your

mate

. He won't care about anything or anyone around when he does either. Do you want that?" His mother gently explained and Kobe felt his face flush hot.

Mate? Submit and mate? The thought of Dane rubbing against his naked body and those powerful jaws locked onto his shoulder made Kobe hard under the sheets. Oh God, the nights that he had gone off into the woods just to touch his cock at the thought. What the real thing would be like? Now he had the chance to find out and with the guy he loved no less. Fuck, Dane...where did you go?

Looking to Lana who was waiting patiently in the corner, he sighed. His father cleared his throat behind him.

"How long until they bring him back?" Kobe crossed his arms.

"It could be an hour or he could prove to be a little harder to bring in than we thought. A day at the most," The Alpha replied. "Just try and relax, Kobe. We'll bring him back son. You have my word."

Kobe nodded and let his head fall forward to hide the tears that came back. Where are you Dane?

~~~~~~~

Dane's head was spinning, his breath coming harder and harder. His chest felt like it was going to explode—as if his wolf would leap right out it. Any minute now he was going to shift and for some reason, Dane knew this time was going to be different. Everything in his body ached and screamed in pain until finally he couldn't push on. He knew he wasn't out of pack lands yet, but he was far enough away for now. Slinging his pack off his back, he tore his shirt off, howling to his knees in agony. It was as if he was shifting for the first time, only worse. The pain so bad, tears rolled down his cheeks.

The sun was sifting through the tops of the trees—filtering in small bits of light here and there as Dane fell over, shaking violently. His wolf was charging in his head, growling its anger for leaving home, pissed that its mate had been abandoned. Mate, Dane thought in confusion before another ripple rendered him thoughtless.

The wolf was wanted out and it wasn't taking no for an answer. The beast was stronger than Dane at the moment. He didn't have a choice as his body obeyed the creature's demands. Dane screamed, his back bowed as he heard the bones shifting under his skin. His nails lengthened, pushing through his fingers, a cry on his lips.

Hair erupted on his hands, flowing up his arms in a blanket of thick fur.

His pants busted at the seams as his thighs thickened with hard muscle. Tufts of grey poked out of the breaking denim. With the last of his humanoid strength, Dane kicked off his boots and roared as his beast took over completely.

~~~~~~~

The other were close, the large grey wolf sniffed in the air and scented the Lupe pack coming for him. He was stronger now, stronger than all of them. They would not take his mate from him. The others would not separate them. He and his mate would be together whether this pack liked it or not. He would kill them to get back to his mate. Let them come, he growled, baring his sharp canines.