Once Grayson and Axel leave, I can breathe a little easier. I'm still not completely at ease since I'm still with Cooper, but I feel way less overwhelmed. I let out a breath as I attempt to calm down. Cooper looks at me with caution, and I can't look away from him. I'm currently studying the way he moves- where his muscles tense, where his eyes are looking- in an attempt to assess the situation. I'm not sure if Cooper actually plans on taking me home or if he was just lying to me.

When the door to the room opens, I jerk backward and begin breathing heavily. Cooper sees my distress and walks closer to me to calm me down. However, when he sees that his action makes me more uncomfortable, he stays where he is and informs me that it's just the 'pack doctor' here to make sure I'm okay.

I shake my head back and forth as I hold my hands in front of me as a defense mechanism. The man stops in the doorway and doesn't make a move to come closer, which helps to calm me down a little.

"Hello, Thea. My name is John and I'm a doctor here. May I please check your wounds? Once I give you the all-clear you'll be allowed to go home," he says softly.

"Are you a- Are you one of them?" I whisper, but his increased hearing allows him to hear me from across the room.

"If you mean to say werewolf, then yes I am. I'm a doctor. I won't harm you, I only wish to make sure you're okay. It's my job and my duty," he says.

Without meaning to, my eyes drift to Cooper's, as if to check and make sure that the man, John, is telling the truth. Cooper gives the slightest nod of his head and a small smile to reassure me. With hesitation, I slowly nod my head, giving permission to the doctor to check out my wounds. If this is the only way I will be allowed to leave, and if they say they won't hurt me, what more can I do? It's not like I can fight my way out. Instead, I'm left to trust and hope they're truthful in their claims that I'm safe here.

John checks the back of my head and reminds me to be careful and try not to lay on it until it heals. He tells me to be cautious of my vision, and if I get dizzy to give him a call. He gives me his number, but I don't see myself ever calling him. If my concussion does get worse, I'd rather go to the hospital with human doctors and nurses rather than talk to a werewolf doctor who at any moment could wolf out and kill me in an instant.

However, I still nod, pretending to agree with everything he says. In reality, I'm hoping that by complying, he'll let me go. When John finally leaves, Cooper approaches me.

"I'm glad that you're okay. I was worried about you last night. That vamp really got you good," he says, walking over to me. Although I do tense up at his proximity, I'm proud to say that I remain calm the entire time. Cooper is my friend- was my friend. Is he still my friend? I have no idea what being a werewolf means for our friendship, and don't even get me started on what it means for my relationship with Grayson.

Right now I'm so confused. Just yesterday, my life was normal. Now, my life is so complicated with supernatural creatures, things that only existed in the books I read. I've read about countless heroines that overcome the beasts and supernatural creatures in their lives, yet when it becomes a reality, I don't know what to think.

"Would you like me to take you home now? Doc cleared you," Cooper finishes.

"Where's my phone? I'll just call an Uber. My mom's probably freaking out," I say as calmly as I can. However, inside I'm becoming more and more anxious about how my mother will react. It's mid-afternoon right now, and I've been out all night. I don't even know what she'll assume happened to me, but I need to get home now.

"Sorry, Thea. The orders were for me to drive you home," Cooper replies firmly, almost as if he were a soldier following the orders given by his commander. He wore a strangely serious face; I've always seen Cooper in a goofy mood, not like he is now. "And, your phone is dead anyways so that wouldn't be possible."

I don't really have any options right now, so I ask the only question I can. "Will I be safe with you?"

"Absolutely. You're my best friend, Thea. Just because you're aware of what I am, it doesn't change that. At least, not on my end," he says, making me feel slightly guilty. The guilt angers me. I shouldn't be the one upset! He is the one who lied to me about what species he is! How could he keep such a big secret from me if we were "best friends" like he said!

"Fine. It's not like I have a choice," I mumbled the last part, but I'm fairly confident he heard me by the slight frown he made.

The first five minutes of the car ride were filled with a tense silence. After we made it out of the mansion- yes, the hospital room I was treated in was just a room inside of a HUGE mansion- Cooper guided me to a black Range Rover, a car I had never seen before. I know that wasn't his car, and I didn't ask whose it was. In order to drive back to my house, we had to drive through the forest, which only had one cleared off pathway for cars to drive through. I guess the werewolves like seclusion.

It was after the silent five minutes that Cooper broke the silence. "Do you know what mates are?" he asked. He kept turning his head to the side, looking at my face for a reaction to his words, possibly to see if I would choose to lie to him.

"No," I answered truthfully. "Although, I did hear Grayson call me a mate earlier. I didn't know what that meant though."

Cooper's laughter rang through the silent car, and it almost made me forget that he was a werewolf who could harm me- almost. "Thea, you're Grayson's mate. You don't even understand how much power you hold over him- over us all!" he exclaims. His excitement is confusing. How do I hold any power over werewolves?

"I don't understand," I ask, confusion written on my face with my scrunched eyebrows and my darting eyes.

"I probably shouldn't be the one to tell you, but I've never been good at holding secrets. Every werewolf has a mate, also known as a soul mate," he begins. I nod, hoping he'll finish his explanation. He smiles as he continues. "You're Grayson's soul mate. You guys were made for each other. You were meant to fall in love and live happily ever after and all that shit."

My eyes basically bulge out of their sockets as my heart pauses its rhythmic beating to freak out. The dots all begin to connect in my head. This would explain the intense feelings I have for him. It would explain why only a simple smile from him makes my day, and why I feel tingles every time we touch. Why I get butterflies every time he looks at me.

"That's not all," Cooper teases, and I don't think that I could take any more life-altering news. In the past 12 hours, I learned that werewolves and vampires exist, and that my friends were supernaturals. Now I'm learning that Grayson is my soul mate- what next?

"Werewolves live in packs. It's the only way to keep order. There has to be a leader, an Alpha of the group. Any guesses who Grayson is?"

My heart picks up speed as I try to process this new information. "Are you telling me that Grayson is the leader, the Alpha, of your pack?" I ask, praying to any God out there that Cooper is just messing with me.

"That is exactly what I'm telling you," he says with a grin. "Don't be so freaked, Thee. Grayson is the Alpha which makes him the strongest, fastest, and most protective male in the pack. That means that you are the safest person in the world for having his protection. He would never let anything happen to you."

"How do I know that he won't hurt me? You just said that he's the fastest and the strongest!" I raise my voice at Cooper, forgetting that I probably shouldn't be screaming at a werewolf.

Cooper gets serious all of a sudden, and I can feel the importance of what he's about to say. "You're his Queen, his Luna. Without you, he falls apart and so does the entire pack as a result. He would never hurt you. Think about all of the times you were together. Did he ever once give you any indication that he wanted to harm you? In any way?"

I remained silent, listening to Cooper's words. It's true- Grayson never tried to harm me- in fact, he was always overly cautious with me. He growled when someone got too close to me, he gave me extra long hugs, and he always asked how I was feeling. My fear for him is slightly dissipating, but I'm still hesitant to trust him.

"Thea, you need to put your human beliefs aside and accept him for who he is. Us werewolves are no different than you."

"Right," I chuckled. "Except for your sharp claws, pointy teeth, super strength, super speed, super hearing-"

Cooper cut me off with a soft punch to my arm. I laughed at him.

"Shut up. We may be animals, but we're human, too."

The rest of the ride is filled with a comfortable silence. I'm still very uncomfortable with the whole situation, but each minute that passes I begin to think more about it. As we get closer to my neighborhood, I remember something that I should have asked a long time ago.

"Cooper?"

"Hmm?" he hummed, focused on driving.

"Who attacked me last night? And why? Should I be worried that he'll come back to kill me and my family?"

Cooper jerked his head to face me, looking me in the eyes. "That vampire will never lay a hand on you ever again. He's locked up in the pack prison, where he'll stay until we decide he's lived out his usefulness," he growls.

Cooper finishes his sentence right as he turns onto my street. He pulls into my driveway, and I suddenly realize that I have so many more questions that I need to ask.

"Wait! Why did the vampire come after me? He knew that I knew Grayson! How did he know? And did he know I would be there? I-" My countless questions were interrupted by the passenger door being yanked open by none other than my mother- and she looks pissed.