36. Chapter Thirty-Six

Chapter Thirty-Six

C ourage

The energy in the air is electric, the crowd a pulsing, shimmering sea of light and sound. I stand at the side of the stage, my heart full to bursting as I watch Candy command every eye, every ear with the sheer force of her presence, her radiant, unbreakable spirit.

She's stunning, incandescent, a shooting star in a vast and endless sky. Her voice rings out, clear and powerful, every word, every note imbued with raw emotion, with hard-won truth and soul-deep healing.

It's the last show of the tour, the culmination of this wild, wondrous, life-changing journey. And as I listen to her sing, watch the way she pours her whole heart into every moment, I'm struck once again by the immensity of my love for her.

She looks so different from when we met. That hard edge has smoothed, though she still has the pert mouth I fell in love with. I was stunned when she came out of the bathroom this morning with gorgeous sunshine-blonde hair.

"My natural color." Her tone was bright, and she tossed her shining locks as though that was all she had to say. Perhaps my wide-eyed expression begged for more, so she added, "I think the trademark pink was just another fa?ade, something to hide behind. This is one more way to tell myself and the world that the genuine Candy Wood is calling the shots."

"You're beautiful to me, no matter what. But I'm glad you like this new version of yourself, my love."

This woman is my everything, my reason and my rhyme, my guiding star and my home. And I want nothing more than to shout it from the rooftops, to let the whole world know how proud I am to stand beside her, to call her mine.

I've been lost in thought and missed her last song. The audience is on their feet, whistling and shouting. It's time for her encore. She usually sings "It's All I Can Give".

She puts her palms up. On her face is an impish grin as she silently asks the crowd to hush. Candy turns to me, her green eyes overflowing with profound, soul-deep affection. She beckons me forward, holding out a hand in invitation.

My heart stutters, my breath catching in my throat. We've talked about this moment, about what it would mean for me to step out of the shadows and into the light beside her. To unveil who we are to each other and who I am, to remove my hoodie in a big public venue and not just roadside diners. It was never the right time. Until recently, she said she wasn't ready, though I thought I was.

But now that the moment's here, a flicker of hesitation, of genuine fear jolts through me. Fear of the judgment, the scrutiny of the unavoidable otherness that marks me as different, as separate. I don't want to taint everything she's worked so hard for.

But then Candy smiles, her face filled with such love, such unwavering acceptance. My fear disappears like smoke in the wind.

I take a few steps toward her and she pulls me the rest of the way onto the stage. The crowd goes wild, a roar of surprise and delight rising to greet us. I keep my hood up, my tail tucked carefully away, a last-ditch effort at anonymity.

But Candy, my brave, beautiful Candy, reaches up and pushes back my hood, her fingers gentle against my fur. A gasp ripples through the audience as my ears, my fangs, my distinctly wolven features are revealed.

For a heartbeat, the audience seems to hold their breath. And then, to my utter shock, the cheers intensify, a swell of support and acceptance that makes my chest tight with emotion.

"This," Candy says, her voice ringing out clear and strong, "is Courage. My love, my partner, my protector, my soulbound mate." She does that thing where, though she's talking to a huge crowd, it's as though she's taking them into her confidence. "Lucky me, right?" She waggles her eyebrows. "And he's going to help me sing this last song, if that's alright with all of you."

The answering roar is deafening, a tidal wave of approval that sweeps over us, through us. Candy squeezes my hand, her eyes shining with pride and adoration.

"Go get your flute, baby. I brought it tonight. It's right there." Her smile is brighter than the stage lights as she points to the stagehand who is holding it up in the wings. "And let that gorgeous tail of yours breathe. You're a wolven, my wolven, and you don't have to hide anymore."

My heart feels like it might burst as I hurry backstage, shedding my confining layers, freeing my tail, and grabbing my flute with shaking hands.

When I return, Candy is beaming, her hand outstretched once more. I take it, letting her pull me close, our foreheads touching in wolven greeting for a single, shining moment.

"I wrote this song recently." She squeezes my hand, not hiding her affection from her fans. "It's called ‘Courage to Love'."

Air explodes out of me as my chest tightens. I've hear snatches of it, but she never told me the title. I know humans give mating gifts. She couldn't have given me anything more precious if she had gifted me a million dollars.

And then, we play. My flute and her guitar for the intro. Then I keep the flute in my grip as our voices rise and twine together in a harmony so pure, so perfect, it feels like the universe itself is singing through us.

I lose myself in the music, in the magic of this moment. In the love shining in Candy's eyes, in the acceptance and joy radiating from the crowd.

In the knowledge that I am seen, I am cherished, I am home.

As the final notes fade away, I clutch my flute too tightly, my heart too full for words. But Candy, my incredible Candy, says it all with a single look, a single touch.

"I love you," she whispers, her microphone forgotten. "Forever and always."

"Forever and always," I echo, pulling her into a kiss that feels like a promise, like a vow.

A kiss that tastes of hope, of healing, of a love so vast and true it could light the world.

As we stand there, wrapped in each other, the crowd cheering and the confetti falling like stars around us, I know with bone-deep certainty that this is just the beginning.

The beginning of our forever, our always.