Chapter 32: New friendships

Elize's head was throbbing painfully as she slowly started opening her eyes. She could hear people argue around her. The loud noise was making the pain worse.

"But I didn't-"

"I don't want to hear this bullshit Mikail! I told you clearly to stay close!" Zack's voice boomed.

Elize groaned in irritation. She squinted, trying to see beyond her blurry vision.

"She's awake! Nina look!" a familiar voice squealed.

"Water." Elize croaked.

Suddenly a cool object was pressed against her lips and her head was lifted slightly. A sweet smell was emanating from the container. Elize didn't think much as she gulped the liquid down. She couldn't resist the thirst anymore. As the liquid slowly made its way down her throat, she could feel her energy rising bit by bit. Elize grabbed the container with both her hands and emptied its contents. Feeling rejuvenated, she opened her eyes. So many familiar faces were looking at her and smiling, a sense of relief plastered on most of their faces.

"Baby?" Zack's voice came out much softly near her ears.

Elize looked back, suddenly feeling rejuvenated. She turned her torso slightly to get a better look at her mate.

"Zack." She whimpered.

Tears slid down her eyes as she saw him crouching before her. She was relieved to see that he was unharmed, but he looked as if he aged so much in a day. It pained her to see him like that. But at the moment, she was thankful to be alive and near him. Zack leaned in and pulled her onto his lap, sliding his arms around her body. His body shook as he held her.

"I was so scared Elize. I was so scared that I'd lose you." He whispered frantically. His hold on her tightened as he drew her closer.

A feeling of warmth washed over her as Elize snuggled into him. She placed her head in the crook of his neck and breathed him in. The scent of forest and honey emanated from him, making her feel at ease.

"You smell good." Elize whispered, rubbing the last remnants of her tears on his skin.

Zack chuckled and leaned in to kiss her wet lips. Elize kissed him back passionately. She cherished the feeling of his lips sliding in between her lips and gently sucking at it. As heat built up inside her body and became a raging fire, she pushed him back, all the while not breaking off their connection.

"Ehm Ehm." Somebody coughed near them, startling Elize.

That's when she remembered where they were. Embarrassed, she quickly slid away from her mate and sat up next to him. Elize heard a faint laughter from ahead and looked up, her face crunched in frustration.

"I'm sorry, but your reaction was-" Agatha laughed louder this time, without bothering to complete the sentence.

"I know right?!" Nina joined in, her head buried in Agatha's hair, muffling the sound of her laughter.

Elize's eyes widened in surprise. She didn't understand what was happening before her. The last time she saw the two, they were at each others throats. Why were they acting like they've always been best friends? She looked towards Zack in confusion. He smiled, sitting up. He reached out to Elize and drew her closer to him. Elize obliged happily.

"A lot happened when you were sleeping baby." He whispered into her ears.

"My lady." A familiar voice drew her attention. Elize turned towards the direction of the sound only to see Mikail standing on his knees in front of her.

"Your lady?" Elize asked, confused. What was behind this sudden change of heart? For all she knew, the man hated her more than anyone else, Elize thought as she watched the man in front of her, who kept his head low.

"I-" he paused for a while and looked up. A look of embarrassment was plastered on his face as he continued, "I'm sorry for misunderstanding you. Thank you for saving our Alpha."

"I didn't do it for you." Elize replied with a smirk on her face.

"Boo! Give the man the benefit of doubt!" Agatha said, butting in.

Elize shot her a look of warning. She didn't want her to interfere in this. The man had always been mean to her. Why should she forgive him?

"I- I will prove my loyalty to you through my actions. You don't have to trust me yet. My life is at your hands from today Luna." Mikail said desperately.

"Luna? I'm not-"

"Get up Mikail. Your Luna will forgive you." Zack interrupted before Elize finished her sentence.

"Fine." Elize said, rolling her eyes, "But I'm watching you." She said, narrowing her eyes.

Mikail stood up, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Drama queen." Nina said, pushing his shoulder.

Mikail looked taken aback at first, but quickly recovered.

Elize chuckled seeing them.

"Just what exactly happened while I was unconscious?" She asked, turning towards her mate.

"Not much." Zack said, as he stood up. He then extended a hand towards her with a smile.

Elize grabbed on to his hand and raised herself up. As soon as she stood, she felt dizzy and her body swayed. Many hands reached out to steady her, but Zack quickly pulled her into his arms before any of them made contact with her body possessively.

"Steady there." Zack cooed as he held her close.

Elize nodded, holding on to him. The warmth that radiated off of him, slowly calmed her. She looked up and smiled at him, regaining her balance.

"What would I do without you?" She asked.

"We wouldn't know, because I'll always be with you." Zack replied with a blindingly beautiful smile. Her heart skipped a beat seeing the slight arch of his lips.

"Smooth talker." She accused, pursing her lips.

The sound of the Alpha's laughter lightened the mood in the clearing. Elize looked around her and saw many friendly smiles. People from the pack who displayed animosity towards her earlier, came forward one by one and bowed slightly in front of the couple, paying their respects to the witch who they now recognized as their Luna. A feeling of contentment filled Elize, seeing all the love she was receiving.

--------------------------------------------------------

It was early morning when they reached back to the pack house. Soft rays of the sun illuminated a group of people which consisted of witches and werewolves as they entered the premises of the pack house. When Zack's Rover took a turn towards the parking lot, this group was already standing in the front yard of the pack house, talking in groups and laughing loudly.

"I hope it stays like this." Elize said, looking at the gathering.

Zack turned off the ignition and leaned towards his mate. Elize eagerly leaned in and planted a short kiss on his lips.

"As long as you stay by my side, I'm sure that we can fix everything baby." Zack said, caressing the side of her face.

Elize closed her eyes and enjoyed the feeling of his warmth on her skin. Suddenly there was a knock on the window. Elize sighed, and slowly detached herself from Zack, irritation clearly written on her face. Zack chuckled seeing her reaction.

"Yes Agatha?" Elize asked, lowering the window.

"I'm sorry to disturb your moment but we have a situation." Agatha said with an awkward smile, pointing to the entrance of the building. Aileen was standing there with her hands tied over her chest along with Meiling. Disappointment was written all over their faces. A few women stood around them, peeking at the direction of Zack's Rover.

"Great." Elize rolled her eyes as she quickly opened the door.

Agatha moved forward to stand next to her as Elize got off the car. Zack followed suit and swiftly came to stand on her other side. He took her hand and squeezed it a bit.

"It's going to be okay. We can do this." He whispered into her ears.

Elize nodded, putting on a fake smile.

"Children," Meiling's voice resounded in the quiet front yard, "grandfather is waiting for you in the study."