Molly POV

Beep... Beep....... Beep..... “UGHHHH” is all I can make out when I hear the alarm going off on my cell phone. I groaned loudly as I reached for my cell phone to turn it off. I sat up in bed and stretched my arms up above my head and yawned. I gave myself a pep talk and got out of the bed and walked into the bathroom. I flipped the light switch and faced the mirror while rubbing my eyes. I looked into the mirror and saw my unruly auburn curly hair that comes down to just below my shoulder blades and placed it in a top knot. I splashed some water on my face and brushed my teeth. I got changed into a sports bra and leggings and placed on my favorite running sneakers.

The one thing I need to do every day is run; it helps me clear my mind. I'm 5’7” with athletic build and run between 8 to 10 miles a day to help me keep my sanity. It’s the only time of day that I can just zone out and let all my worries go away. I head downstairs and look at the clock and it says 5 am. I have to get an early start this morning as I will be leaving today to head to my grandparents for the summer. I put in my Bluetooth ear buds and head outside after stretching and go for my run.

People may wonder how a 17-year-old girl can go running alone in the dark however I live in the Crescent Moon Pack. Which is a gated werewolf community where everybody knows everybody. Our pack consists of about 500 werewolves. We have everything we need inside the gate from housing, stores, hospitals, and schools. It is one of the safest places to be. Sometimes it can be a little boring and redundant but I have felt safe here my whole life.

It’s still dark out when I start my run. I usually run partially on the road until I hit the outskirts of town then there is a great dirt running path through the woods. Nothing is more peaceful then running in nature. By the time I get into the woods the sun is peaking in the sky and you can hear the birds chirping. There is a slight breeze and I can see the leaves rustling on the trees. I usually just zone out when I run but today it’s a little more difficult. I’m nervous about spending the summer with my grandparents despite asking to go there. I am trying to run away from life at this point.

You may ask why? I had a boyfriend for the past two years named Nolan, who is good friends with my brother, and is going to be the future Gamma of this pack. He is one year older than me and after he turned 18, he found his mate who just happened to be my best friend, Olivia. Nobody was more surprised than me to find out on Olivia’s eighteenth birthday she was mated to my boyfriend. It felt like the wind was knocked out of me. I can remember it like it was yesterday. I was with Nolan at my locker at school. We were making out like usual and then all of a sudden, he pulled away from me and I see him start sniffing the air. His eyes turn black and I see his head turn and he makes eye contact with Olivia and I hear “MATE” from both of them. At that point I felt like my heart was going to be ripped out of my chest. He ran over to her and they were in each other's embrace and I was frozen in place.

During the two years of us dating Nolan would constantly tell me how he thought I was his mate. He swore he could feel the connection between us get stronger and stronger every day. I always told him that I was going to wait to have sex until I found my mate. Looking back, I guess I was a naïve teenage girl who thought her boyfriend loved her but really, he just wanted to get into my pants. Which whenever we were alone, he would try.

After that happened, I asked my parents if I could spend the summer away once the school year ended and they agreed. I just couldn’t see my ex-boyfriend and my best friend be all over each other this summer, it was still all too raw to me. I know I can’t stay mad at them forever since they are mates. The mate bond is an important thing and we are all raised in the pack to take it seriously since this is the one person the moon goddess has selected for you to be your match. I just need time away so it won’t hurt so much when I see them together. That is one of the downsides to the mate bond, once you find your mate it’s hard not to want to spend every minute with them and let’s not forget the incredible sexual desire between the two. I’m hope soon after my birthday I find mine so it won’t hurt so much. I turn 18 in 5 months. Fingers crossed I will.

I get back from my 10-mile run in about an hour and a half. I got to watch the sun rise while running as I got to the edge of the woods, so that was one positive of today's run since I never really got a chance to clear my head. I live in a modest 2 story house, nothing too fancy. It’s a white house with black shutters with a pretty flower garden in the front. There is a nice size porch the length of the front of the house with a porch swing on it that I like to swing on when the weather is nice. Since my dad is the Beta of the pack, we live close to the pack house. Our packhouse was big mainly because the whole first floor was used for pack meetings and a big hall room to hold events but only the Alpha’s family lived there. From what I hear other packhouses are more like mansions or castles and a majority of the pack lives there. We are about an average size pack that lived pretty modestly.

I head into the kitchen to grab a water and a banana. My parents are in the kitchen sitting at the table eating breakfast and holding hands when I get there. They have been together 22 years and they are still in love as the first day they meet. That’s the kind of love I want to find with my mate. My parents meet when my dad was visiting my grandparents pack for a work meeting with the Alpha and Beta there. While they were going through the town dad said he smelled the most intoxicating scent of fresh flowers and rain. He followed it till he saw my mom. They stared at each other for a minute and they have never been apart since. My mother packed up her bags and headed back that day with my dad to this pack.

My Dad, Mike, is a tall at 6’3” and muscular man with dark features. He has black hair that he keeps short with dark eyes and tan skin with some scars here and there. A lot of the pack members show him a great deal of respect because of his position. He has proven to be a valuable beta to the pack. He is strong and fierce, never backs down from a fight, and can see issues in a straight forward manner to resolve them. They have always been strong fighters and devoted to the Alpha family. Don’t get me wrong though he may be fair but he is one heck of a fighter and I wouldn’t want to be the rogue who goes against him.

I take more after my mom, Jessica. She is smaller than me but I get my auburn hair, blue eyes, and fair skin from her. She is a wonderful mom and I can go to her with any of my problems. My mom has always been caring and steps up to help other families in need and takes her role as the Beta’s wife seriously. She was raised in her pack with her dad as the Gamma so she was aware of the responsibilities before she moved to this pack with my dad.

My parents say good morning and ask if I'm all packed to get ready to leave. I shake my head yes as I chugged the water.

“I plan to leave in about an hour that way I can get there around lunch time.”

“Ok honey. We will miss you this summer but at least you get to spend some time with them since next year you won't really have the availability to leave for the whole summer.” said my mom.

The reason next summer I won’t get a chance to leave is because the summer after you graduate from high school and you are 18 and have a wolf you go thru and intensive training program in human form and wolf form.

“It will be nice. We never really get a chance to spend more than just a couple of days with them. I just hope I won’t get in their way there.” I say.

“Oh, I don’t think that will be a problem. I talked to them last night they are excited to see you and to get a chance to spend time with you.” My mom replies.

I tell my parents that I'm going to head upstairs and start getting ready. I ascend the stairs and head into my bedroom. I untie my shoelaces and placed them in my bag and placed my dirty clothes in a plastic bag so I don’t leave dirty laundry in my room all summer. I head into the shower and let the hot water just run all over my body and enjoy the steam. I wash my hair, shave my legs, and then use my loofah to lather up my body. After my shower I dry off with my towel and lotion up my body. I wrap myself in a towel and pack the last of my toiletries into my bag.

After I dry off, I get dressed into jean shorts and a halter tank top with flip flops and start carrying my bags downstairs. My dad makes some lame dad joke about my luggage but I don’t really pay attention. It’s completely a guy thing to say. After I get my luggage downstairs my two brothers are up in the living room and I ask them to carry it out to my jeep. I have one older brother Jacob who is 19 and will be the future Beta of the group when my dad retires. He is the spitting image of my father just younger looking. We have always been close. My ex Nolan is good friends with him. I also have a younger brother named Flynn who is 14 years old. He’s more of a combination of both my parents. He has my mother's curly hair and fair skin but he has my dad's dark hair and eyes. He’s still young but I think he will take after my dad for height and build too. Since there can only be one Beta Flynn’s plan is to become an ultimate warrior for the pack.

We all walk outside and make our way to my jeep wrangler that’s parked on the street. My mom says with a worried facial expression “Make sure you call when you get there so we know you made it alright. Also, if you have to stop anywhere on the way there call us to let us know. We want to keep tabs on you. Are you sure you know how to get there?”

I sigh and roll my eyes. “Of course, mom I will call you and I know how to get there. If I don’t, I still have GPS on my phone as a backup. Don’t worry about me. I will be fine.”