Seven

Things with Marleyare going great. We've hung out a few more times since the beach incident. We haven't hung out with her friends again, and I"m kind of glad. Not that her friend, Stacy, isn't nice and all. I'm just not too sure about the rest of them.

I like having Marley to myself. When it's just the two of us, I feel like I can be more open, more myself. The only other people who make me feel that way are my friends.

Getting along and connecting with Marley is a big deal for me. I want to tell her tonight that she"s my mate. But I'm terrified that she's going to get freaked out and leave. I know we've only known each other for two weeks, but something that humans don't understand is how powerful a mate bond is.

But before I do anything, I need to talk to my dad. I'm dreading this conversation, but the past few times Marley and I have hung out, things have gotten intense. And as much as I enjoy feasting on her perfect pussy or having her wrap her sinful lips around my cock, I want more. The need to be inside her, to watch her fall apart for me, is overwhelming.

What"s keeping me from taking that next step is the fact that she's so tiny. The idea of hurting her, of causing her pain, makes me sick. I don't want my first time to be tainted with the memory of hurting my partner.

The only person I know I can talk to who has a human mate is my dad. God, this is so messed up. I'm going to try not to think about the fact that I'm about to ask my dad how he has sex with my mom without hurting her. I shiver in disgust just thinking about it.

"Hello?" my dad's deep voice answers the phone call.

"Hey, Dad," I say, wishing it was easier to talk to him like it is with my mom. "How are you?"

"I'm good. Work's good. I should be asking how you are. Your mother told me you found your mate. That"s wonderful!" He genuinely sounds happy for me and that settles my nerves a little.

"Thank you." I smile to myself as I think of my mate. "Marley, she's … she's amazing."

"I'm sure she is."

"So, the reason I'm calling," I say, scratching the back of my head. God, kill me now. "I wanted to ask you about something. See, she's human and small. I'm bigger. In a lot of ways."

"Yes," he chuckles. "I'd assume so."

I groan, running a hand down my face, my ears twitching. "Things between us have progressed. But, we haven't gone… you know, like all the way."

"Sex, boy. You can call it what it is. You haven't had sex." He sounds way too amused with this. It's like he was expecting this phone call.

"Yes. Sex," I sigh. "We haven't had sex because, well. I don't know what to do!"

"I think it would kind of come naturally. You know where body parts go, right?"

"Oh god, Dad. No!" I say in utter horror. "I may be a virgin but I know how to have sex. I just don't know how to have sex with a human girl without hurting her."

"Ohhhh," he says with a chuckle. "Had me worried there for a moment." I roll my eyes. "Well, I'm not going to go into detail because the only experience I've had with a human is your mother, and I'm sure you don"t want to hear all about it."

"You would be very correct about that one," I insist.

"The most important thing is that you acknowledge your size difference. That will stick with you through everything. Make sure you keep communication open. Always ask her how she"s feeling, ask her if she wants to stop, if it's too much."

"Okay." I nod, taking mental notes.

"You want to make sure she's relaxed and feels safe. Make her ah…. feel good… a few times before any penetration."

I could literally go a whole lifetime without hearing him say penetration again. Cringing, I keep listening. "When you finally… enter her, take it slow, touch her… ah … sensitive spots to make her feel good."

I'm glad I'm not the only one feeling awkward.

"For the love of Pete. Give me the phone." I can hear my mom in the background. "Hi, honey."

"Hi, Mom."

"Look, what your father is trying to say is before you stick your penis in her, make her climax a few times, help loosen her up, make her body feel good. It will help her take you inside more easily. When you do enter her, make sure you play with her clit, her nipples, and add some pleasure with the stretch she's going to get."

"Okay, I'm done. Thanks, Mom, Dad. Bye!" I say, rushing to press end. I'm officially traumatized for the rest of my life and will never be able to look my parents in the eyes again.

But, I have to admit, their advice was helpful.

Running a hand through my hair, I pocket my phone and head out of my room. My uncle is gone again, doing what? I have no idea. That man lives an eventful life, that"s for sure. But that means the house will be empty, and if our date tonight goes well, I want to bring Marley back here and be with her in every way possible. That is, if she doesn't freak out about being my mate. I don't want to take that next step physically before I know this can be something long term.

It would hurt me if she rejected me, but because she's human, thankfully, she won"t feel that pain. Me, however, it would take a long time for me to get over her, if I ever did. I won't force her to do anything she's not comfortable with.

I leave next week to head back home before the new school year starts. I'm still not sure where I'm going to be going. Going to school at Coral Springs and enrolling in their medical program, or working and learning alongside one of the best hybrid surgeons in the world?

If I was to choose the mentorship, would Marley still want to be with me, if she accepts that she"s my mate? Would I even want to be away from her at all?

I can't let myself overthink anything right now because I haven't even been accepted to either program. My friends all applied to the school as soon as they found out about Coral Springs accepting Monsters, but I had a lot of hesitation because I didn't know if I'd fit in with one side or the other. But my friends wore me down. I applied a few months after they did, and because there were so many applicants, I got put on a waitlist.

So now, I'm waiting to see if one of them accepts me or hell, maybe I get rejected from both, and I'm forced to stay at my current school.

Trying not to think about it and ruin my mood before seeing Marley, I push it to the back of my mind and head out of the house. She told me to meet her at work and we could hang out there for a while, play some pool, and dance a little. As long as I'm with her, I don't care what we do.

The tiki bar is busy as usual. But this time I don't feel so out of place as I step inside. I look around, trying to find Marley, but I don't see her.

"Hey," Kenna gets my attention. "Are you looking for Marley?"

"Yeah. Is she here yet?" I ask, sticking my hands in the pockets of my shorts.

"She just went outside with a few of her friends, but she said she would be back in a few if you wanted to wait for her at the bar."

"Thanks," I nod. Her friends. Wonderful. I don't sit at the bar, but head back outside and look around.

A big smile covers my face when I see her a few feet away at one of the picnic tables. But it falls away as soon as I pick up their conversion.

"Come on, Marley. You've spent half the summer with him," a brown-haired girl I've never seen before says. "It's like you forgot who your real friends are."

"I didn't forget," Marley replies. "I can hang out with other people, too."

"Yeah, but you chose a freak over your best friends!" Another girl I don't know, with black hair, shouts.

The hair on the back of my neck stands up. I'm frozen, waiting to see how this plays out.

"You"re making a big deal out of nothing. So what, I'm having some fun. It's summer, it's what we"re supposed to do."

"But you"re forgetting about us, and what, all to get laid? And with him? God, Marley, there are normal fucking guys who would jump at the chance to sleep with you."

"It's not like that," she says, sounding annoyed. "Look, summer is over and soon things will go back to normal. Just drop it, okay?"

"Good. The sooner you lose that freak, the better," the girl with brown hair says.

"It's just a summer fling. Some fun with a cute guy."

Marley's words are like a kick to the gut. It's not just what she said, it's what she didn't say. Not once did she defend me to her friends when they were calling me names. Calling what we shared a summer fling. Like she only wanted me for a fun time before tossing me to the side.

Pain fills my chest, my heart is breaking. It feels like someone has taken a sledgehammer to my ribcage. The overwhelming hurt makes it hard to breathe, my lungs constricting as if refusing to take in air. I can feel my pulse hammering in my ears.

She's rejecting me.

"It's nice to know that"s all I meant to you," I say, trying to hold back how much I want to fall apart right now. I know we just met, but she became something so meaningful to me in a short amount of time. And hearing the fact that your mate didn't want you for anything but a bit of fun is crushing.

Marley spins around, shock forming on her face when she sees me standing there in the shadows. "Luci," she whispers.

Shaking my head, I turn around and start to leave.

"Wait!" she shouts. "Please, wait. It's not what it seems like."

"Save it, Marley. I get it. You had your fun, but who would want to be with a freak like me long term, right?" I scoff, shaking my head.

"I'm sorry!" she shouts as I run away from her. Maybe I should stay and hear her out, let her defend herself. But how she talked to them when I wasn't around compared to when I was right in front of her and those guys' cracked jokes were completely different. It's like before she felt the need to because what else could she do with me standing there. If she didn't, she would come off as a bad person. But without having me there, is this how she feels? She said it herself. It was just meant to be a summer fling.

My heart is pounding, breaking as I get into the house. I need to leave, go home, and get some space. If I told Marley right now that she was my mate, it would be a fucking shitshow. I can't risk getting hurt more than I already am.

Grabbing my bag, I start to shove my clothes inside. My phone dings, making me pause. Looking at it, I see a text message from Marley. But under it are two emails. One from Coral Springs University and one from Dr. Matt Barlow.

The two answers I've been waiting for. I should feel excited and nervous, but I feel sick. Ignoring Marley's text, I open the one from the school.

The first line reads "Congratulations, Lucius Epona. We at the admissions departments of Coral Springs University are pleased to accept you to join us…"

I don't read the rest, my head spinning. I've been accepted.

Exiting out of that email, I click on the next, and it starts off as "Dear Mr. Epona. Dr. Matt Barlow would be honored to offer you a position as his…" I stop reading, needing to sit down as the room starts to spin.

Both. I've been accepted to both. But with everything that's happening, what do I choose?