章 12: All I Want Is Sleep

[TAMIKO]

"I shouldn't have agreed to this," Tamiko whined for the hundredth time when they reached the entrance of the mating ceremony.

He could see wolves dancing the night away, and they looked genuinely happy, it was almost impossible to tell that these very people were the ones who had made his life a living hell more than once.

He wondered if they were always this different, or if they were just cruel to him and him alone. It was disheartening, and a cruel reminder that no matter what Tamiko did and no matter what happened, he would never belong with them.

"Don't be a party pooper Tamiko. We agreed you'd be happy tonight," Danny said, even though he knew his words were a little selfish.

Dragging Tamiko to the ball when he didn't want to was probably a cruel thing to do, but it was way better than letting Tamiko go back to the lonely woods and to a cabin that didn't exist anymore. He would be attacked by mosquitoes and certainly fall sick by morning.

And that would be quite the dilemma given he never stepped into the clinic

The cold weather wouldn't be any kinder to Tamiko either. There were just so many downsides of Tamiko being alone in the night, and that itself was enough for Danny to remind himself that at least, his best friend would be warm for the night, right?

"I'm just saying. It's not like I want a mate anyway… Alright, fine, I'll stop whining. Happy now?" Tamiko said when he saw Danny glare at him.

If looks could kill, Tamiko would probably be on his way down by now because of Danny, but at least with Danny, Tamiko knew he was never going to hide away or pretend to be something he wasn't.

"Thank you, now let's go in, and enjoy, alright?" Danny said and Tamiko was about to make another sarcastic comment, but figured that he would get a smack on the head.

"I hope you find your mate tonight, Danny. You deserve to be happy," Tamiko said sincerely and warmly, making Danny smile at him. The temptation to wish Tamiko the same was intense, but just like Tamiko and his sarcastic comments, Danny held back.

As if to protect Tamiko for the night, Danny held Tamiko's hands as they walked into the ceremonial hall. It was filled with wolves, both mated and unmated, who had come to have fun while the unmated ones hoped to get their mates and live happily ever after, if ever that existed.

The music was so loud and enjoyable, even as the wolves glared at Tamiko among them.

"Don't worry, this is the one night that no one is allowed to bully anyone or even try fighting So you're safe," Danny reassured Tamiko who just smiled stiffly. He wasn't sure what he was doing here, because he could tell that he was never welcome in these.

If the law hadn't forbidden him from getting kicked out, he would have long been booed out of the hall and everyone would have turned him into a laughing stock for the hundredth time. But maybe, just maybe tonight would be different right?

Oh, but Tamiko could only hope for that. There was no guarantee, and that itself was reminding him of the possibility that he would regret coming to this ball.

"Go mingle, Danny. That's the only way to get a mate," Tamiko said, as he pushed his best friend into the crowd, not even giving Danny a chance to say anything. And so with Danny mingling, Tamiko chose the farthest and loneliest corner in the ceremony to go sit at.

He didn't want trouble and he didn't want any attention on him. Well, the latter would have worked perfectly, if he wasn't dressed like he was about to take all the men and women here with him to bed.

He looked like a sex god, with his hair neatly brushed. Of course, Danny had trimmed it so it would fit the event, and that made Tamiko look even hotter tonight. The tux on him was perfect, and if he hadn't been Tamiko, he would be the man every girl wanted tonight.

But unfortunately, he was Tamiko the freak, or the outcast, or even the orphan. To them, he was a lot of things and he had gotten used to it.

Tamiko was careful with his smiles and gestures even as he walked to the farthest corner.

He had never seen himself smile and thus didn't know the first thing about how he looked like. Even when Danny had been fixing him up earlier, Tamiko had closed his eyes, because he didn't want to see his reflection.

He didn't want to be reminded that he was different and stood out like a sore thumb. But who was to tell the hot outcast today, that he looked like a sexy powerful Greek god, with the smile that would lure so many to him?

He looked like a magnet and even though no one would admit that to him, Tamiko the freak, looked perfect tonight. He looked a little too good, without his scars and the wounds he had earlier.

It was almost like tonight, the goddess had decided to give him a taste of what beauty and perfection were. It was just a pity that he didn't know it, and wasn't even bothered to try and look on the positive side of things.

Then again, he couldn't be blamed, because the Grealor pack was Tamiko's personal hell.

'Well at least one of us is happy, yeah?' Tamiko said as he watched his best friend dance on the floor. Danny had some good moves and he would easily find a mate at this rate. And so Tamiko watched with a smile on his face, like a proud brother.

He loved this for Danny, but as it was, Tamiko hadn't gotten enough sleep in the past few days and probably months, so here had no, at his lonely corner, Tamiko figured he could use the music to soothe him to sleep.

Besides, this was the only day that he wouldn't have to worry about his safety or even that Gabe would come after him to make his life a little too much harder than usual. This was his chance at peace and just like that, Tamiko gave into his sleep.

"Should we wake him up? He's so lame for sleeping at a party," Judd said when he spotted Tamiko at the corner sleeping. He hadn't expected that Tamiko would even show up and now that he had, he was itching to cause him some trouble.

"No, let's wait for our mates. It's already midnight and the moon is at its peak. Let him be, besides, we can do with him whatever we want tomorrow," Zakhar said to his friends, like he was reminding them to focus on what had brought them here.

"Fine, you're no fun. Let's go mingle and wait for our mates," Gabe said dismissively as he and his friends went back to the crowd, ignoring the freak who was having a really peaceful nap amidst the loud music.

Tamiko was strange, but wasn't he also a strange darling?