Chapter 15 Alive
fifteen
Alive
*FELIX*
“Do you need any help?” Charlie asks me for the umpteenth time.
“No thanks,” I grin. “You and Dario just make it worse. Keep some water and food ready for me, but other than that, I am better off doing this on my own.”
We have travelled through several places so far, and even stopped in a pack where one of our former school friends is currently living.
His alpha was happy to invite us to stay a couple of days, which gave us a chance to wash our clothes and stock up on necessities again.
Now we are driving along the coastal road – a part of the country we don’t see a lot, as Silverlake is not near the sea.
“Start the engine again,” I call towards Dario.
He does as I tell him. The car jolts slightly but then stills. “Hm.” I bend my head over the engine and cylinder block again, trying a few more tricks I learned, from watching videos whenever I felt annoyed about the lack of progress with my studying.
“Again,” I say.
This time, when Dario starts the engine, it runs smoothly. I close the hood again and take the bottle of water Charlie hands me. “Thank you,” I beam.
“No, thank you!” she exclaims.
“For real.” Dario peeks out of the window on the driver’s side. “That was amazing, Felix. I had no idea you could do that.”
Charlie and I get back into the car, with Charlie leaving the passenger’s seat to me. “Me neither,” I admit.
“Wait, is this the first time you worked on a car?” Charlie asks.
“Yeah. I just love watching DIY repairs,” I admit. “It’s a guilty pleasure. And I've watched some about cars and bikes.”
Dario sends me a sideways glance and smiles. “That’s a real talent.”
“No, it was just luck.”
“Luck?” Charlie blinks. “I don’t know about you, but I never accidentally repaired a car.”
“Me neither,” Dario says. “How does it work to repair a car by sheer luck? Do you peek under the hood, knock against something and magically repair it with your presence?”
“Maybe he sings them a song?” Charlie offers.
I roll my eyes. “Very funny.”
Charlie laughs. “Just accept the compliment, dude.”
“What’s our next stop?” I ask, trying to deflect their attention from me.
By the way Dario rolls his eyes, my plan didn’t work, but he still decides to indulge me. “We are stopping at that coast town you had on your bucket list.”
“Right! I wanted to hit the waves there!”
“Don’t forget you promised to show me how to surf,” Charlie points out.
“I’d never forget!” This whole trip is probably the best time I’ve ever had – there is no pressure from school, nothing to worry about, just my brother, my best friend and me. I wasn’t aware of how much I needed this break.
But I guess my parents knew.
Dario is a lot lighter, too, and less gloomy.
“You could join us, too, Dario.”
“I am not sure if it’s something I’d like, but I guess I could try,” he says, much to my surprise and joy. “Just don’t expect too much.”
“Awesome! I will make sure you have a good time.”
I gaze out of the window, watching how the landscape changes slightly. We have been driving through forests until now, but the coastline is truly stunning. “What do we know about the town?”
“I read up on it,” Charlie says. “It’s really small. No packs around, and I don’t think they have many tourists either. Just a typical small town, but they do have a nightclub.”
“Why does every tiny town have a nightclub?” Dario muses.
“I don’t know, but I am certainly not going to find out,” Charlie says.
“Anything else we know about the place?” I ask.
Charlie shrugs. “I don’t have anything else. What about you, Dario?”
“Well, aside from what Charlie said, it’s not a particularly wealthy town. They struggle economically. They do have hiking treks and some nice restaurants. We can check those out.”
“So, overall, just enjoy some calm days,” Charlie adds.
“Sounds good,” I agree. “Oh, any news from home?”
“You mean aside from the group chat Mom spammed yesterday?” Dario asks.
That piques Charlie’s interest. “Why, what happened?”
“Seems like Titan, our sister’s cat, transformed into its demon form again, but only briefly,” I explain.
Charlie snorts. “Never a boring day in our packs.”
“What about you? Any news?” I ask her.
“My parents keep me updated with pics of my little brother,” she says, smiling softly. “Ceddy is so cute! Oh, and it seems the Luna wasn’t feeling well.”
That immediately attracts Dario’s and my attention. “Why? What’s wrong with Annie?”
“I don’t know,” she admits. “From what I know, she was feeling a bit sick but is better now. Oh, and one of my friends,” she pauses. “You know Livia?”
“She is with that human guy, right?” I ask, trying to dig through my brain for details. A warrior in Charlie’s pack. She befriended Charlie when she was new to the pack and trained her. Her mate happened to be a young human man who was originally blackmailed into spying on Charlie.
“Yep, she is pregnant with their baby. She is super excited.” Charlie grins. “And she told me her mate is going insane with worry and trying to cater to every one of her whims. He is such a cutie pie.” She sighs. “I want a mate like him.”
“Do you?” I deadpan. “A mate who pampers you?”
She furrows her brows. “You might have got me here. I am not sure. I guess I’d feel suffocated.”
“I wouldn’t mind,” I admit. “What about you, Dario?”
“I am not sure either,” he says. “But I guess I wouldn’t mind being the one doing the pampering.”
I chuckle. “We are a weird bunch. How come we became friends?”
“We are twins, meaning we are stuck together anyway,” Dario says.
“Shared trauma,” Charlie offers with a grin.
“You two are really funny today,” I tease.
Dario just smiles while Charlie and I continue bickering back and forth.
Eventually, we all fall silent with Charlie dozing off and me gazing out of the window, watching the scenery.
It’s late afternoon when we arrive in the town.
We’ve booked a cheap hotel here. At first, we planned on camping again or finding a hostel, but then Dario found this super-cheap place.
“Not bad,” I muse.
Dario nods. “Very clean. And they offer breakfast for free.” He turns to Charlie. “I hope you don’t mind sharing a room with us, Charlie?”
“Not at all,” she says. “And it isn’t the first time, anyway.”
“Are there any plans for today?” I ask.
“I don’t know about you, but I am really tired,” Dario admits. “I would like to have a slow evening.”
“Me too,” Charlie says. “I want to call home and chat a bit with my family, then update my travel vlog.”
“Fine with me,” I say. “I’d like to head out and go for a walk. Probably check out the beach.”
“Just don’t get lost,” Dario says promptly.
I snort. “When did I ever get lost?”
He looks a tad flustered. “Right. I forgot who I was talking to. Have fun.”
He really has a protective side to him, probably more than anyone else in the family.
I make my way out of the small hotel, chatting a little with the receptionist, before putting my headphones on, switching on some music and jogging down the path ahead of me.
On this road trip, we obviously don’t have the opportunity to train like we usually would, but I try to stay fit.
And running has always given me the chance to let my thoughts run free as well.
While we drove to the hotel, I used an app for finding good hiking trails, and checked out a path that would lead me away from the town center and more towards a rural area. There is a small forest, which further opens up to a path leading down the hill to the coast.
Once down there, I tug my headphones off and simply look at the sea, amazed. This is so breathtaking. The way the waves wash against the shore, how the seagulls flutter above me, the wind in my face. I feel so free here, and on this trip in general.
I try to enjoy the moment and live in it, instead of thinking about tomorrow, because I know it can’t and won’t stay like this. Eventually, we will return to the pack, and I will have to go back to college. The thought alone makes my stomach churn.
A sign at the beach tells me it’s safe to swim here, so I shimmy out of my clothes, glad that I thought about putting on my swimming trunks beforehand and jump into the cold water.
I don’t swim out far and keep in the range of the shore.
I am just enjoying the physical activity and being one with nature.
Once I am done, I sit down on one of the rocks at the shore, letting the setting sun dry me.
It’s moments like this that I feel so thankful for how my body has recovered. Now all of my outer wounds have healed, just one large scar on my abdomen remaining.
I am just thankful to be alive.
I am alive.
Maybe this is why my parents sent the three of us on this trip. We were all part of the same incident and shared the same trauma.
Goddess, I am so stupid. I spent the last months trying to prove to myself that I could study like Dario, so much so that I completely forgot what I can and want to do.
Maybe I am not too deep, but at least I am alive and have a chance to become happy.
The sun has set, and I get up to dress myself.
Once done, I take one more moment to look at the ocean, taking in a deep breath.
That’s when I smell it. A hint of jasmine.
I know shit about plants, but I would recognize this scent anywhere.
When I spent months in a wheelchair, Mom and I often sat in her favorite part of the garden right next to a jasmine bush.
My gaze wanders from the shore upwards to the hill, and then along to a cliff where an observation deck is located. I can make out the silhouette of a woman with long curly hair. She looks magical in the way the wind dances around her, and she brushes a strand of hair out of her face.
Kiran stirs in my mind, suddenly so much on alert that my whole body tenses up.
Find her! he growls. We need to find her!
As if I am possessed, I rush off to the path leading upwards and then across the field, to the area I spotted the woman. Her scent is still lingering, but she is nowhere to be seen.