Beneath the Alpha's Moon
Chapter 185: First Steps

Chapter 185: First Steps

Mai~

The lake shimmered under the fading afternoon light as I sat beside Liam, pretending not to notice the cautious glances he kept casting my way. His burn scars peeked out from beneath his blond hair, reminders of a history I’d rather forget—or at least pretend didn’t exist.

I couldn’t believe this moment was actually happening, I was sitting down beside Liam and not watching him from behind a tree or something. And he was talking to me. That made my stupid heart leap in a way I absolutely hated.

"So," Liam began, breaking the silence, "if you really want my help, it’s not going to be easy."

I rolled my eyes, leaning back on my hands. "Is this the part where you try to scare me off? Save your breath, Rivers. I’m not going anywhere. And besides," I scoffed. "You and Ollie act like I committed a crime."

Liam gave me a long, unreadable look, then arched a brow. "Didn’t you?"

I instantly caught myself, realizing how my words might have come across to him. So, I bit back what I really wanted to say and just rolled my eyes. "Alright, maybe I screwed up, or maybe a bunch of times. But I’m not backing down. So, what’s your plan?"

A flicker of amusement crossed his face before he smothered it. "Alright, tough girl. Here’s the deal. I do little tasks around the pack every day—helping elders, pups, injured wolves, that kind of thing."

I raised a brow, my tone dripping with skepticism. "You want me to be your... assistant?"

He didn’t flinch. "More like an apprentice. If you’re serious about becoming a better person, you’re going to have to prove it. Starting tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow?" I repeated, horrified. "It’s Saturday!"

"Exactly. Meet me here by 9:00 am," he said, ignoring my protest. "And don’t be late."

I opened my mouth to argue but snapped it shut when his blue eyes locked onto mine. There was a quiet intensity there, an unspoken challenge that made my stomach twist. And besides, I couldn’t argue and end up making this golden opportunity Ollie had given me slip through my fingers.

"Fine," I muttered, crossing my arms. "But don’t expect me to enjoy it."

Standing up and dusting off his jeans, Liam smirked. "Wouldn’t dream of it, Blackwood."

That night, I couldn’t sleep. Not a wink.

Not because I was excited about whatever ridiculous chores Liam had planned. No, absolutely not.

I was just...

Okay, fine. Maybe I was excited, but not about the work. I was excited because Liam wouldn’t be ignoring me. He wouldn’t be looking at me like I was something to be avoided, something disgusting.

I didn’t want to think too hard about why that mattered so much.

At the crack of dawn, long before I was supposed to meet Liam, I found myself sneaking out of my house. Not to go to the lake—oh, no, that would be too reasonable. Instead, my feet carried me to Liam’s house, to the familiar trees outside his bedroom window.

I had spent months ever since he came back to the pack, sitting in these branches, watching him from afar, pretending I wasn’t waiting for some kind of sign that he didn’t completely despise me.

Old habits die hard.

For three hours, I watched him sleep like a creep. His face was peaceful, his breathing slow and even. The burn scars on the left side of his forehead caught the early morning light, and for a brief, fleeting moment, I felt a strange kind of guilt coil in my stomach.

Then he stirred, stretching lazily before getting up and starting his morning routine.

I watched as he went through the routine, brushing his teeth, taking a bath, pulling on a plain white T-shirt, and raking his fingers through his hair. When he finally left the house, I scrambled down the tree and sprinted to the lake, trying to act casual.

He arrived a few minutes later, raising a brow at me. "You’re early."

I crossed my arms, masking my nerves with a scowl. "Yeah, well, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about waking up this early to follow you around doing useless tasks. I could still be in bed right now."

"Right," he said, smirking. "Well, if you’d rather be in bed, you can still go back."

I stiffened. "I’m here now, aren’t I? Let’s just get this over with."

He smirked knowingly, but mercifully didn’t say anything. Instead, he just gestured for me to follow him.

And so began the worst day of my life.

Our first stop was the elders’ quarter, a cluster of small, weathered cabins tucked into the woods. The moment we arrived, I regretted everything.

"Seriously?" I groaned, glaring at Liam as he handed me a basket of herbs. "You want me to play delivery girl for some old people?" I stared at him like he’d lost his mind. "The same elders who constantly nag and complain about everything?"

"The same ones who kept your father alive when he was a reckless young Alpha," Liam countered smoothly. "Think of it as a warm-up," he added, clearly enjoying my discomfort.

I grumbled under my breath but followed him into the elders’ quarters, where a group of ancient wolves sat in the shade, discussing goddess knew what.

The elders greeted Liam with warm smiles that quickly vanished when they saw me. Silence fell over them like a thick fog. Some looked suspicious. Others looked outright scared. One old wolf even muttered something about the "end of days."

"Don’t worry," Liam said, shooting me a warning glance. "She’s here to help."

I smirked. "Relax, I’m not here to steal your canes." The disbelief on their faces was almost funny—almost.

Liam elbowed me.

The tasks themselves were stupid. Fetching herbs, patching up their leaky roofs, and—worst of all—sitting and listening to their long, rambling stories about "the good old days."

Liam made me sit with one particularly annoying old woman who ramble on and on about her glory days as a warrior.

"Back then," she said, her voice quivering with age, "we didn’t have time for nonsense like chasing boys or playing pranks."

Liam smirked at me from across the room. "Hear that, Mai? No nonsense."

I shot him a glare but bit back my retort. Despite my irritation, I couldn’t deny there was something oddly humbling about the elders’ stories.

Not that I’d ever admit that out loud.

*********

Next, Liam dragged me to the infirmary.

"This is actually cruel and unusual punishment," I complained as I scrubbed blood off my hands.

"You’re helping wounded pack members," Liam said, handing me a fresh cloth. "It’s basic decency."

"I don’t do basic decency," I grumbled.

Liam just sighed, guiding me to another cot. The infirmary smelled like antiseptic and wet fur, and I hated every second of it. But the thought of Liam being disappointed kept me rooted in place. Goodness, I couldn’t understand what was wrong with me. Did Liam find a way to bewitch me? If yes, how could I break the spell?

To make matters worse, some of the wolves I had to help were people I had personally terrorized.

I stood over one of them, arms crossed. "I could just let you suffer, you know."

The nerdy guy looked like he wanted to flee, but his broken leg made that impossible.

Liam nudged me forward.

With an exaggerated sigh, I knelt down and started wrapping his wound.

After that, I followed Liam to a young warrior with a gash across his arm. When he saw me, his eyes widened in panic.

"Don’t worry," Liam said, suppressing a laugh. "She’s supervised."

I scowled at him but carefully cleaned the wound, my hands surprisingly steady.

"See? Not so bad," Liam said as we moved to the next patient.

"Speak for yourself," I muttered. "I feel like a nursemaid."

For the first time, I realized how vulnerable these warriors looked when they weren’t in battle—when they were just people, hurt and struggling.

I hated how that made me feel.

By the end of the day, I was exhausted. But something about the experience stuck with me—the way the warriors thanked me, the way their trust in Liam seemed to extend to me, even if reluctantly.

The final task for the day was, by far, the worst. It was like Liam was doing this on purpose.

"Absolutely not," I said, staring at the group of rowdy pups.

"You wanted to help," Liam said, crossing his arms. "This is part of it."

The pups immediately swarmed me, tugging at my hair and shouting questions.

"Are you really the scary lady?" one of them asked, his big brown eyes wide with curiosity.

I blinked, unsure whether to be offended or amused. "Uh... no?"

"She’s scary," another pup whispered, hiding behind Liam’s leg.

"Alright, settle down," Liam said, smirking. "Mai’s not scary. She’s just... misunderstood."

I shot him a look. Did Liam just say that about me? Did he really think that way or was he just saying it for the benefit of the kids? My heart leaped in my chest. No matter what the answer was, I couldn’t help the small smile tugging at my lips.

As the hours passed, the pups wore me down. By the time one of them fell asleep in my lap, I was too tired to complain.

As soon as we got back to the lake, I collapsed onto the grass, staring up at the sky peeking at me through the tall trees, while Liam sat beside me, looking way too satisfied with himself.

"You survived," he said.

"Barely."

He chuckled, and something warm settled in my chest at the sound.

"You know," he said, after a moment, "for all your complaining, you didn’t walk away once."

I scowled. "Because I didn’t want you whining to Ollie about me quitting."

Liam gave me a knowing look. "Sure. That’s the reason."

I threw a blade of grass at him.

For the first time in a long time, I felt... different. Lighter. And though I’d never admit it, I didn’t hate it.