When the time came to leave, the first instance of how much independence Isabelle would lose was shown. Isabelle reached over to pick up one of the lightly packed boxes but Alex pulled her back and forced her to watch guiltily as others from Alex's pack did it for her.
Isabelle knew that for once it would be nice not to be working so hard, but she was so used to doing everything on her own that she didn't think she would ever get used to living this sort of life with Alex. It was only as Isabelle took a moment out of her thoughts that she noticed the position she was in, with Alex being so tall, he had sat down on a chair and even stood up, Isabelle was still leaning just against his chest with his chin on her shoulder.
Alex could already read Isabelle like a book; it was almost as if the cogs were turning in her brain, and he could see it. A rare smile tugged at his lips as he soaked her in. She was finally his; the years searching for his mate suddenly melted away, and he didn't care anymore because she was finally here, and he was never letting her go.
"I know this isn't normal behaviour for you... to stand back, watch and not help, but this is your life now", Alex whispered in Isabelle's ear, feeling his soft lips brush against her ear was enough to make her shiver and a blush creep up her neck. A small part of Isabelle wanted to argue back that she would never get used to this life and yet the years of being conditioned by her old pack made her keep her mouth firmly shut.
"C'mon, it's time to go" Alex starts, he looks around the room until his eyes stop on something, he pauses then sighs "Grab the cat"
There was a clear look in his eyes that showed the last thing he wanted to do was to spend time with a cat he couldn't even say its name out loud. Yet Alex knew Isabelle would never leave Tobias behind. This cat was the deal breaker, and not only would Alex do whatever it took not to lose his precious mate, but he also wanted nothing more than for her to be happy... and if that meant having a cat living with them, then he knew that's what he had to do. Isabella scoops Bulkoso up into her tense arms. The unfamiliar tight feeling against Bulkoso causes him to try to scratch and fight his way out of her arms, causing Alex's dislike of him to grow even more.
"Bulkoso please" Isabelle begs into his fur before looking up at Alex whose face was full of disdain "He isn't usually like this, he's not used to experiencing changes like this so he doesn't know how to react" Isabelle mutters stumbling over her words awkwardly, not even able to meet Alex's eye.
Alex shakes his head without saying a word and walks out of the room towards the front door. They all walk out to the car in silence.
It was now made aware to Isabelle the sheer number of people Alex was travelling with, there were rows and rows of cars parked up along the road waiting to go. When Isabelle walked outside, everyone waiting was giving her, bulkoso, and even Alex strange looks due to the whole cat situation and the fact that Alex was allowing it. It was a well-known fact that Alex was a stern, unforgiving man who had strict rules that nobody could break.
This was also because he only travelled with werewolves with no mates; those with mates were involved in protecting the castle that Alex lived in, but that was a far less dangerous job than bringing them on his travels with him. He didn't want yet another person relying on him to keep their mates safe. Alex also never wanted to tell another woman or man that their mate wasn't coming home; he had seen the destruction that had been caused too many times. This meant that all the men he had travelling with him couldn't understand the pull he had to do anything to make his mate happy, they couldn't even begin to imagine what lengths Alex would go to. The only person who could come the closest to imagining how he felt was Alex's best friend and Beta, Jackson. Although he was unmated, even since they were children, finding a mate was all Jackson ever spoke about and at one time, Alex would tease him about it. Who wanted to be tied down to one partner for the rest of their life, especially when you were the King's Beta, you had women all over you.... All the time.... And yet, in that moment having found his mate, Alex had never felt freer.
Once they had climbed into the car, Jackson, who was sitting in the passenger seat of the car, turned round to face them.
"Hello Isabelle, I am the wonderful Jackson - I'm sure you've heard lots about me" he winks playfully with a kind smile that made Isabelle smile back much to Alex's annoyance "Ready to go?" Jackson asks, and Alex nods back curtly.
Jackson had never been happier for his best friend. At one time, there had been a rift between the two friends - Alex couldn't understand why Jackson would rather be searching for a mate than out drinking and partying with him.
There had been playful teasing from Alex too; he couldn't understand what he was doing wrong. He would ask Jackson what he would do if he never found his mate, not realising the real pain Jackson would feel at the thought of spending the rest of his life alone.
As Jackson sat there and thought about all those times, of course, he felt a pang of longing as he still hadn't found his mate, but he was happier just that his friend finally understood.
Oppositely, as Alex thought about his past with his best friend, he couldn't help the sinking feeling in his stomach at how he had let his friend down and how much he had hurt him because Alex finally understood what Jackson had been yearning for, for all those years.
Alex rests his head against the glass window, preparing for the long journey ahead, while Isabelle sits in a completely rigid position, with Bulkoso lying a little more relaxed now on her knee. The soft lulling of the car was enough to make Isabelle's eyes feel heavy, and as she struggled to keep them open, Alex clearly had no worries about falling asleep because soon enough his heavy breathing filled the car. "You can go to sleep if you like" Jackson smiles comfortingly, turning around in his seat to look at Isabelle. The nerves seemed to be radiating off of her.
"I'm okay, thank you", Isabelle says in a meek voice. Although this girl was the complete opposite of what Jackson expected to see when he first saw Alex's mate, he had the feeling that she was going to be perfect. Jackson looks from Isabella to Bulkoso with a fake smile on his face despite trying to cover it up
"You can barely keep your eyes open", he smirks teasingly, but Isabelle knows there is no malice behind it, and she still finds him comforting like a big brother, something she never had the pleasure of experiencing. Of course, she had thought she had found it back in her old pack, but it had all been lies, so it was nice to see it in him, especially since she didn't have any concerns about him not being genuine.
"Maybe just for five minutes", Isabelle says, letting out a yawn almost instantly before doing the same as Alex by leaning her head against the window before letting her eyes flutter shut.