Alpha Noah

~Abella

There’s no reasonable explanation for this.

I’ve spent my entire evening pouring over these drawings, trying to decipher what any of it means, but not being able to come to any conclusions that don’t frighten me. I’ve considered that maybe he’s just lost, alone, and these are a dark representation. Or maybe he is struggling with the loss of someone close to him, or maybe he has terrible nightmares each night and is looking for an outlet…I’m truly reaching at this point.

Perhaps some of these explanations would make perfect sense, if it weren’t for the uneasy feeling in my stomach. The drawings are just so… unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Is Noah really like this? I can’t imagine he would be, from the times I’ve met him, but how could I gauge from those small moments what he is truly like?

He’s drawn demon like creatures emerging from a smudge of darkness. Each have eyes void of all feeling, of all mortal like tendencies. Dark hooked claws reach out, almost completely off the page, like they could reach into my soul and tear out any goodness I might have inside of me.

“Or maybe you’re just overreacting.”

Loosening a breath, I glance up at the rather cynical voice that is addressing me. Of all people to trust with information like this, I chose to confide in Cian. He hates Alpha’s, and only wants to be here to talk to me about our mate-bond, which I have successfully dodged the topic of this entire time. I can’t get these drawings out of my head, so someone else needed to hear about this.

“I’m not overreacting,” I say pointedly, setting the few wrinkled drawings atop my desk. “No one in their right mind should be depicting such images. I don’t know what it is, but it rubs me the wrong way.”

Cian lounges back in my bed, resting his head on his hands. At least today he has dressed to fit in appropriately, instead of that immortal attire he adorns so regularly. If there is one aspect of his life I cannot adopt through being his mate, is the often brightly coloured, eccentric outfits. He’s gone for darker colours today, which I can appreciate.

“The guys insane, let me tell you. What business do you have personally rummaging through his personal belongings? He’s your boss, not your best friend, so why the visits?” He asks. There’s a hitch to his voice that suggests this entire situation bothers him.

I scramble for an excuse, even if I don’t particularly care for how he feels about it.

“I needed to talk to him about work, and this promotion, okay? That’s beside the point. The point is, why do you talk so bad about Noah, and what else do you know about him?” I question. I’m sick of hearing him act like he knows Noah so well, when he won’t reveal their relationship. What business does an Immortal Sin have with an Alpha?

Cian rests his head back against my pillow. “I’ve met him here and there. He’s just a dark, depressed man who you should just avoid at all times. If anything, I wouldn’t take the promotion. It’s not like you need the money. Now that you’re my mate, that is the last of your problems.’

Problems. It seems they are never ending.

“If you can take anything from us being mates, I’m not going to rely on you in any sense,” I mutter, taking one last glance at the paper on my desk, before I come to sit down on the neck.

Cian sits up, moving right next to me, until our hips are touching. My stomach flutters, even at the smallest amount of contact. As apprehensive as I am about being mated to a Sin, I will admit that I’m feelings things for him that I shouldn’t be. As much nature tells me otherwise, falling for him will mean I have to adopt his way of living. Right now, I want to stay my mortal self…

“Everything mine is yours. I want you to come to my realm and live with me, where I can keep you safe, away from all this,” he tells me, swiping a hand back through his black and golden locks. I make a mental note to ask him if that’s natural, or his personal style.

“That’s exactly what I’m afraid of. I like it here-“

A knock at the door interrupts my sentence. Cian and I exchange glances, and I can see the wariness in his eyes. I somehow doubt he wants to deal with any of the girls who live in this building.

“Hey Abella, it’s Noah. I heard you came over earlier, and I just wanted to come and apologise for not being in at the time. Maybe we can talk about what you came over for,” the Alpha says through the door. I panic, immediately jumping up to grab the papers on my desk. Cian watches me fluster, as I quickly shove them under my pillow.

“Give me a second,” I call out to Noah, before I concentrate on Cian, lowering my voice right down to a whisper. “You need to leave. Use your magic powers and get out of here, please.”

Cian stands up, motioning toward the door dramatically. “Do you really think I’m about to leave you alone in a room with an Alpha? I’m sure him and I could have a conversation. I have a feeling he might be very happy to see me.”

Sarcasm clearly drips from his voice.ConTEent bel0ngs to Nôv(e)lD/rama(.)Org .

I push him toward the window, as if he’s going to hop out and disappear. “Please go. I’m sure we can maybe sort out this out over dinner some time soon.”

Cian gives me one more lingering look, as if ensuring my works are true, rather than a false promise. With a sigh, he suddenly disappears, right when I blink. He leaves nothing behind but the faint smell of metal, leaving a bad taste in my mouth. Waving at the air, I lean over to open my door, trying to make myself appear as though I was hard at work doing something at my desk rather than shooing my mate out of my room.

“Hi, sorry about that,” I say smoothly, brushing a piece of hair behind my ear. Noah stands at my doorway, expression blank for a moment, as if he’s forgotten why he has come here. Has he been getting enough sleep recently? Dark circles plague his under eyes, making him look sickly. Concern flutters in my rib cage, as my heart rate accelerates.

“Did I interrupt something?” He questions, looking around the room. He heard me, clearly. My throat goes dry, as I scramble for an excuse.

“I was on the phone with a friend, sorry. Ah, why are you here again?”

Noah blinks a few times, before snapping back into reality. “Oh. I heard you came by when I wasn’t around, and I just wanted to apologise, and ask if there was anything you wanted to speak about? I hope you know you’re always invited to come over at any time you please.”

I want to lie and say I just came by to talk about the promotion, but it feels pointless. I’m too shaken up by what I witnessed inside his house to make up any more excuses. I want to talk to his assistant again, and question her on why she demanded me to speak a narrative that was untrue, as if some sinister entity was listening. There’s no doubt I’ll be able to sleep at night without thinking about it.

“I wanted to come see you, talk to you. Things in my life have kind of been hectic recently and I have no other friends here. So yeah,” I admit. At least it feels good to get that off my chest. Noah looks surprised, but he doesn’t smile.

Does he know I stole his drawings?

“Why don’t you come to dinner at my place tonight? I know it’s a bit late, but if you’re still willing to talk, I would be very much pleased to,” he tells me, his tone rather formal for the Noah that I know. It makes me shiver, but I put it up to me being overdramatic. He’s being kind and inviting me to talk like I wanted to.

So why do I feel so uneasy? This has to be Cian’s fault. His words have gotten to me, even if he is just as shady and mysterious. Not once has he told me how he knows of Noah, when I’ve asked a few times now. Maybe tonight I can get that out of Noah, although I’m still wondering whether I should bring up my mate bond to a Sin in front of the Alpha. Would he still trust me to work here?

“That sounds amazing,” I say brightly. “I would love to talk about my promotion, also.”

Keep it business like.

Noah smiles softly. His smile always warms me up, right from the inside to the surface of my skin. I’m not sure how he does it.

Tonight is going to be important. I can feel it.