Chapter 98: Never Letting You Go
After the massive feast was over, the heavy food coma hit the camp hard.
The younger pups completely dozed off in cozy piles of fur, the elders retreated to the deep warmth of the main dens, and the hunters lazily patrolled the moonlit territory borders to digest their meat.
Amara and Zuri had quietly ambled off toward the western river to quench their elephant-sized thirst.
By the crackling fire pit, only Kael, Selka, and Nuan remained.
Nuan threw her arms up into the cool night air, twisting her torso with a wide grin. "Man, I haven’t felt this good since the day I landed in this crazy jungle! I can walk, I can run... and oh, I missed having working legs!"
Kael, however, didn’t share her joy. Hearing her celebrate that she could now walk and run so easily made his golden eyes narrow with a subtle, deeply anxious look. If she can run... she can run away from me, he thought, his ears pinning back slightly.
Selka let out a dramatic, exhausted chuckle. "Seriously, Furless, you put me through so much trouble! My poor joints are still screaming."
"Hehe, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!" Nuan giggled, pressing her hands together in apology. "But really, how did those elephants even end up here? Miss Selka, did you actually drag them all the way from the plains?"
Selka nodded heavily, poking a stick into the glowing embers. "Yes. I traveled all the way across the border lines completely alone. And let me tell you, that journey was officially the single worst experience of my entire life!"
"I’m so incredibly sorry you had to go through all of that just for me," Nuan said softly, reaching over to give Selka’s rough hand a genuine, grateful squeeze.
"Well, I’m just glad you actually managed to uphold the value of my words in front of those elephant sisters," Selka said, letting out a lingering, worried sigh as she thought about the dinosaur drawings. "I thought for sure we were toast."
"Haha, how could I not? You literally went through a death march across the plains for me! I had to back you up," Nuan said with a witty wink.
Nuan’s gaze then drifted to Kael, who had been sitting completely mute, staring aggressively at the dirt. "Hey, what’s wrong with him?" Nuan asked, nudging Selka’s shoulder. "Why is he sitting there looking like a brooding gargoyle?"
"Well, he seems to still be holding a massive grudge against Lyra and Tala, even though you already forgave them," Selka explained, rolling her eyes at her son’s stubbornness.
"Hmm? Seriously, Kael? You’re still sulking?" Nuan sighed, turning her full attention to the grumpy Alpha. "Did you not see Lyra and Tala while we were eating? The exact moment I hesitated to take a bite of meat a while ago, they literally dropped straight to their knees and started sobbing their eyes out. And honestly, how can you stay mad at anyone right now? Those two literally saved my life! Right, Miss Selka?"
Kael let out a low, defensive growl from the back of his throat, his golden eyes flashing in the firelight. "That doesn’t change anything! Those two are the exact reason you felt so bad about eating pack meat in the first place, which made you go out to hunt alone, which led to that cougar attacking you!"
"That’s really not how I see it, though," Nuan countered, waving her hand dismissively. "Yeah, sure, I went out to hunt because their mean comments hurt my feelings, but that cougar? She attacked me because I made the mistake of sparing her life back in Bramor’s territory. She came entirely for revenge. It was a personal grudge."
"Whatever the reason, it doesn’t matter!" Kael snapped, leaning closer, his tail twitching with raw frustration. "If you were safe with the pack, with me, right here in the center of the camp nothing would have happened to you! The whole pack would’ve torn that cougar woman to shreds!"
"Oh, you silly wolf, you really need to learn how to let things go," Nuan teased, reaching over to playfully tap his nose. "Otherwise, you’re never going to be happy. Stop sulking now. They apologized to me, and I could genuinely feel their sincerity. Don’t be harsh on them anymore, got it?"
Kael’s heart gave a sudden, violent thump against his ribs at her words. Learn to let things go. His golden eyes locked onto her face with an intense, unyielding possessiveness, and he murmured under his breath, "I am never letting you go from me."
"Hmm? What was that?" Nuan blinked, missing his quiet whisper. She stretched her legs out comfortably. "Well, look, I’m perfectly fine now, which means I can eventually continue my solo journey. But don’t worry, I’m not going to just pack up and leave tomorrow. I still have to return the massive favor you all gave me. You guys literally saved my life from the brink of death."
"Why do you even have to leave at all?!" Kael suddenly burst out, his voice rising as his tail began to lash against the dirt. "The pack loves you! Everyone loves you now! Even Tala and Lyra love you! So why do you still want to leave?! Just stay with us forever! We can hunt together, we can build things, and we can have a grand feast like this every single day!"
"Hm... honestly, that doesn’t sound entirely bad," Nuan teased, a mischievous glint in her eyes as she watched him panic. "But you see, I really value my privacy. I have always preferred living completely alone. It’s more like... I’ve always been fiercely independent. A solo act."
"But alone, predators can easily hunt you down out there!" Kael argued aggressively, desperate to find a reason to keep her pinned to his side.
"Yeah? Well, predators don’t usually kill for no reason either," Nuan said, her unhinged, confident smirk returning full force as she stared into the dancing flames. "Either I accidentally invade someone’s territory, or I’m viewed as prey. And let me tell you, from now on, I am absolutely not sparing any potential threats that cross my path. Next time a cougar shows up? I’m making a rug."