Cherie was back in Willow’s Perch once more. He couldn’t help himself. Cherie just really wanted to see Wolf again. He wanted to be near him, wanted to feel him. Holding the potion jar tight in his left hand, he ran into the forest, giddy. He didn’t know why he was feeling this way.

The cold forest air clung to his skin, making him shiver. The sound of his shoes hitting the earth was a low drum in his ears, beating in time to his thumping heart. However, he froze when the air’s temperature dropped, probably by a few degrees, but it was noticeable enough.

“Why the fuck are you here?” Wolf snarled at him. He was in his man form. He was sitting on a dangling tree branch, fingers gripping the branch tight; it turned his knuckles white. The wolf-man was naked—his dark skin glowed under the faint sunlight that shone between the spaces of the tree. Cherie noticed that Wolf’s dark hair was unkempt and tousled, which suited the hard, cold look in his silver eyes. “Didn’t I say you’ll regret it if you stepped foot in here?” He hopped off the branch and approached Cherie, locking his hand around Cherie’s throat. Wolf’s grip around Cherie’s neck tightened, which caused Cherie to stand on his toes. “What an insubordinate brat you are. Makes me want to kill you.”

Cherie couldn’t speak; the words squeezed out of his throat as Wolf choked him, nails digging into his neck. Cherie used his free hand to get Wolf to let him go, but Wolf didn’t budge.

“What? I thought you liked pain,” Wolf sneered at him, squeezing tighter. “Look at you, eyes bugging, tongue out. You’re turning a beautiful shade of red right now.”

Cherie’s lungs were giving out on him fast, and he weakly tapped the wolf-man’s hand around his neck. He felt his body going slack, and his vision was going dark around the edges.

Wolf let him go, and Cherie fell to the ground, coughing and hacking. He rubbed his hand against his neck, groaning. Wolf slammed his foot against Cherie’s back, knocking him flat on his stomach. Wolf kept his foot on Cherie’s back and crouched down to him, hissing, “Cherie, was it? Why are you here? How many goddamn times must I tell you to stay the fuck away from here? You don’t belong here, human. You’ll die.” He stood up and grounded his heel against Cherie’s spine. “Stupid boy, stupid, stupid boy.” He rammed the side of his foot against Cherie’s ribs, and a wave of sharp pain burst into Cherie’s body, causing him to yelp and curl up into a protective ball. Wolf didn’t seem to mind that Cherie curled up into a ball. He kept kicking him, growling, “Get the fuck up and fight me, kid.”

Cherie didn’t move. He made sure that the potion was tucked safely against his body and that he had his arms over his head.

Wolf paused his kicking. He grumbled something and pulled Cherie up, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt, causing Cherie to lose grasp on the potion, which rolled away from him on the ground. He looked at the potion, then at Cherie, scoffing. “You’re so fucking pathetic. Why do you keep coming here, you suicidal freak? I’m fucking serious. I will kill you. I will slam you against the ground and punch your face bloody. Then I’ll choke you until you pass out before I turn into a wolf and rip your organs out.” Wolf snarled.

“Couldn’t you fuck me before you killed me?” Cherie asked, more so pleaded. It was a stupid request, a random question he knew Wolf would turn down.

“I don’t fuck with prey.” Wolf hissed. “Why do you think I’ll make an exception for you, little boy?”

“Because I’m irresistible,” Cherie said, and Wolf gave him a miffed look, silver eyes narrowed in distaste.

“You look like you’re a screamer, and I hate noisy things,” Wolf growled as he fisted the hair on the back of Cherie’s head, tugging him away from his face. “Plus, I bet you wouldn’t keep quiet about this. You’d probably blab about it, and the whole village will know. Do you know just how angry I’ll be, then? Do you know how hard right now I’m fighting the urge to rip your throat out?” Wolf threw Cherie to the ground, and Cherie scrambled away from Wolf’s reach, snatching his potion back. “You’re just a child. A child with imprudent, lunatic, maniacal, suicidal thoughts. Makes me want to slap you into tomorrow.” Wolf spat on the ground at Cherie’s feet. “Fuck off, kid.”

“I’m not a kid,” Cherie protested angrily. “I’m eighteen—”

“And I’m fucking twenty-five.” Wolf interrupted furiously. “Last year, you were seventeen, right? Last year, you were only seventeen, still a child, while I was then twenty-four. The gap is too massive, kid. You’re delusional.” Wolf turned away from Cherie.

Cherie grabbed Wolf’s ankle, causing the wolf-man to stumble. Wolf rounded on Cherie, a savage look burning in his eyes as he knocked Cherie to the earth, fangs bared at him. Wolf rammed his fist against Cherie’s jaw, and Cherie felt pain burst into his mouth. Cherie spat out blood, instinctively trying to cover his face from another blow from Wolf, but Wolf ripped the potion out of Cherire’s hand and threw it before grabbing Cherie’s wrists with his hand and pinning them above his head.

“You really don’t know when to quit, do you?” Wolf seethed, bristling. “You’ll keep at it until I actually kill you, huh?” Wolf dug his nails against Cherie’s jaw, tilting his face upward. “Why do you keep chasing the impossible, kid? Why do you keep putting your life in danger just for a simple, instinctual impulse? Why do you think I’ll give that to you?”

“Why wouldn’t you?” Cherie asked him, and Wolf gave him an incredulous stare.

“Kid, I’m a fucking wolf hybrid, and you’re a human boy. You’re going to wind up dead. And like I said before, I don’t fuck with prey.” Wolf snarled as he let Cherie go, stepping back. “Either you get your ass out of this forest, or I will murder you.”

Cherie scowled as he stood up, dusting himself off. “One, I’m not a kid. Two, you might wind up dead. Three, you keep saying you’ll murder me, but you don’t.” He strode up to Wolf and jabbed a finger against the wolf-man’s chest. “Why won’t you fuck me? Are you scared? Are you a virgin?” He mocked him. “How am I supposed to know whether you are a virgin or not? After all, it’s not like you ever told me, and you seem to be running away from the idea of fucking me.”

Wolf’s grin was incredulous as his silver eyes widened with mocking understanding. “Oh, I see how it is.” He sneered. “You think you can shit on me because of what I say or don’t say? Are you that fucking stupid? Are all humans as stupid as you?” Wolf grabbed Cherie’s wrist and hissed at him, “Get the fuck out of Willow’s Perch.”

“So, you won’t fu—” Cherie began, and Wolf interrupted him with a harsh spat: “No. Not until you’re nineteen. That is, if you live that long.”

The muscle in Cherie’s jaw twitched and he glared at Wolf. The wolf-man was definitely taunting him, challenging him. He wanted to push Cherie’s buttons and get him to bend to his will, which Cherie wouldn’t. At least, not in the sense that Wolf would believe.

Wolf appeared entertained by Cherie’s aggravated expression. He had a lazy smile, a cheeky smile, and it made Cherie want to slap the wolf-man. Cherie’s fingers twitched by his sides as he studied Wolf’s annoyingly handsome features, watching it twist into a gleeful expression.

Fuck him, Cherie grumbled to himself. Maybe that was Wolf’s goal—to annoy Cherie to his limits and get him to leave Willow’s Perch. But Cherie was stubborn—and a brat. He wouldn’t let Wolf have his way so easily. Why would he? What fun would that be? If Wolf could push his buttons, he might as well push Wolf’s and get him to snap.

Snap? No, get him to go completely berserk. After all, that meant more fun for both of them. It’d keep them both on their toes, walking on glass. Feel their hearts stutter as they wait for the other to breathe. A push and pull. A tug and push. Cherie could see the dark calculating look in Wolf’s eyes, could see him eyeing him like the fucking prey he was.

It made his head spin, a bubbly, fiery feeling clinging to the depths of his throat. His hands were buzzing—he fought the urge to wring his hands around Wolf’s neck and beg him to fuck him up. He saw a flicker of warning in Wolf’s eyes as if he knew Cherie’s immoral thoughts, and Cherie couldn’t help but titter.

Wolf fucking knew. Of course, he did. Why wouldn’t he? He was a fucking hybrid, a mutation between a wolf and a man. A beast so powerful and so fearful that even his late parents didn’t stand a chance against these hybrids. It was a taunting, in-your-face type of joke. So why did Cherie think he had the ability to tame this feral monster? It wasn’t instinctual—it was anything but that. Was it ignorance? Oblivion? Desperation? Lust?

“Nineteen, you say?” Cherie asked Wolf, and Wolf canted his head. “And why is that?”

“So I can feel more at ease, knowing you’ve been an adult for at least a year,” Wolf grumbled dismissively, silver eyes hard. “Now, please. Get out.” Wolf shoved Cherie roughly. “Or I’ll send my pack on you.”

Cherie pouted, but he couldn’t help but grin. “Well, well, well, no need to get violent, hm?” He scolded him condescendingly. “I’ll leave, okay? I’ll be back when I’m nineteen.”

“Don’t,” Wolf hissed at him, but Cherie was already walking away, waving his farewells.

Cherie wasn’t one to make promises easily, as he felt bound to it and must carry it out. It felt like an oath—if he broke his promise, he’d be severely punished. That’s why Cherie never promised Wolf before. But now, he didn’t mind making a promise. After all, waiting a year was nothing. He knew that Wolf would be waiting for him in the forest despite everything.

I’ll be back—just you wait, he told himself, amused. I’ll be back before you know it.

It was a new moon later that night. Cherie found himself at a deep peace that he hadn’t felt in a long time. Perhaps it was the moonless sky with the billions of stars sparkling in the night. Perhaps it was the cold breeze from the opened window to his bedroom. Perhaps it was hearing a mournful wolf’s howl from the depths of Willow’s Perch. Whatever it was, Cherie had a peaceful sleep that night.