Chapter Four

In the end, I did call my dads.

I couldn't just keep silence between us, and while they were seriously disappointed in my choice, they also told me they would make sure I got one more month at the apartment, at which point, although they loved me, I would have to make my own way.

Honestly, while it would have been nicer if they wanted me to follow my own dreams, I had no idea what they were. And while I preferred to make that their fault, I had friends with parents wanting them to go a certain way who had made their own choices and found their happy. My dads had supported me in their own way, and I'd blown a year floating and undecided.

A month was generous. Time to grow up and find my future.

"Son, we hope you don't think we're being harsh," my omega dad said.

I kinda did and wanted to pout and fuss, but frankly I was starting to embarrass my wolf. "I appreciate everything you've done for me, Dad, Father. But you're right. I'm a grown-up who should be more responsible. I want you to be proud of me."

"Son," my alpha father put in, "it's not a matter of us being proud. If you want to choose your own path, you're on your own."

Under ideal circumstances, they'd have let me pick my major, but under those same circumstances, I'd have known "what to fight for." Maybe doing it myself now would help me find my true strengths. My wolf was also fussing about wanting a mate, a family, but what did I have to offer a mate right now?

I didn't even have a job—and my living situation had a firm end date.

Time to get moving. The temptation to wait until tomorrow had already delayed my success. And I had to believe success lay at the end of all this confusion and chaos. Without that firm resolution, I stood no chance. I'd be living on the streets or as a wolf in the forest full-time. Alone. Neither option appealed. Too much time in my fur could leach away my humanity. We'd all heard the tales of those who took the "easy" way out and ended up trapped. My friends and I used to wonder if the stories were true or just cautionary tales, but it was not worth taking the chance. Not the end game for me.

After the enlightening conversation with my parents, I got serious about my attempt to find a job. But I did it with another goal in mind. I'd approached the internet testing site with the idea that I might find my passion, but even though they turned the internet back on, the beauty industry was not my direction. I had never fussed much over my own hair and skin. Why would I suddenly become fascinated with other people's?

But, the internet seemed the place to find my answers, if there were any, and low and behold, on a local social media page, I found mention of a job fair. Sounded like a great place to start, so I copied the information and planned to attend. Almost fated.

Like the mate I hoped I'd one day have.

The event was held at the local high school auditorium, and when I walked in, I recognized my mistake. Open to the public, it was clearly geared toward graduating seniors. All internships and bottom-level jobs, most of which would be perfect for someone who only wanted part-time work while attending college classes.

But I was there and not about to give up without at least trying. I'd been pretty good at doing that in the past, and it was a flaw I determined to get past. As I walked from table to table, talking with the company representatives and recognizing my utter lack of interest and skills, it became more difficult to not run for home and crawl under the bed.

What was wrong with me that I didn't have a dream or a plan? Didn't every cub know what they wanted to be when they grew up? Or at least have fantasies of being pack alphas or betas, firemen, captains of industry?

Everyone but me. If anyone asked, I would have had to say, I sucked. Utterly and completely.

But at least I'd managed to learn that I did not want to work in a bank, at a loan company, a gas station/convenience store, or spend my summer teaching children to swim for the local parks and rec department. The list of what I didn't want to do grew longer and longer. Surely that would make it easier to see what I would be good at? The process of deselection?

I left the building more frustrated and confused than ever. If I didn't come up with something else, at least that degree I'd given up on would provide a good living. I shuddered at the thought though. I parked in my slot at home and trudged toward my unit.

"Hey, I think I got a piece of your mail."

I looked up from my feet to see Clark holding out an envelope. "Oh, thanks. What is that?"

"Fancy, huh?" He grinned. "I never thought I'd see one for myself."

"One what?" The envelope was heavy parchment, sealed with actual wax, and the return address was from a place called the Bearclaw Inn. "It's got to be an ad." But even as I said it, I doubted that.

"Yeah…no. You've never heard of the place, seriously? You are a shifter, right?"

"Just like everyone else in the building. But quit beating around the bush. What is the Bearclaw Inn?"

He waved his hands at me. "You can look it up online. I'm so jealous!"

After he went into his unit, I unlocked mine and went inside where I opened and read the invitation to a free weekend at this inn. It still sounded like a scam to me, until I googled it and learned what an invitation to the Bearclaw meant.

"Holy cow. But I'm not ready for a mate!" Still…with no help from Fate in any other parts of my life, I could at least go and see what happened. It beat sitting around here watching the pages fall away from the calendar for sure.