1. Protest
1055 Words
IT was a sunny day. Joselito just finished his jog around the borders of the hacienda. This has become his habit ever since he was a kid.
"Pablo, hurry up. I don't want to be late for breakfast. You know how Mama is." he told to his little brother, who was struggling to keep up with him. Beads of sweat had trickled down his shirtless body. The sea breeze cooled off his skin. It was the perfect place to cool down from a morning jog.
"Wait up, Hermano Eli. (Older Brother Eli) How do you do it? I mean, we just had our training earlier, then you continue to jog after that. No wonder our cousins had stopped accompanying you." Pablo was a slim person, even for his age. Werewolves had muscular in body but not him. Years of training and never had he put on some muscles. Other than his lean body, they both looked alike. A constant swim in the sea caused the tanned skin. The soft brunette hair they got from their parents. Last, they were squared-face, which they shared with their Papa.
"Just let me be. This is how I calm myself for the whole day. It eases my mind and body after an intense training." he replied. His brothers gave him the nickname after finding his name too long for a toddler to say. It quickly became a hit with others as well.
"You know what? I give up. This will be the last time I would join you. I am not going again. This is too much even for my wolf, who had been cursing me for half an hour already." Pablo complained again.
"Suit yourself, Pablo. Maybe next time, I'll invite Lexa. She sure is a ball of energy just like Mama." he laughed at the thought. He was poking fun with his brother. Years of living with him gave him an advantage. He did not like to be compared with their youngest sister. She was cute and all but man, do not be deceived by her looks. As she was deadly both in training and school.
"Not her. Maybe Maria would like to join us. I am fine with her then Lexa. She is too competitive just like you." Pablo answered him. They turn back to the hacienda already. Some of the pack members they met along the way greeted them.
"Buenas Dias Señoritos." They told them.
"Buenas Dias." They replied in unison. The hacienda was buzzing with preparations. The royals and the Sultan would visit them. He did not know when or why, but his Mama had already scheduled a meeting after breakfast.
"What do you think would happen during the visit? Do you think I would finally meet my mate?" Pablo asked his Hermano. Both of them had already shifted a few years already. Yet the moon goddess had not been keen on giving them their mates. Maria, who had just turned sixteen last January, had found her mate already.
"I hope so. I wanted to take the Alpha role already, yet Mama insists I should find my mate first. The responsibility would be too much for me to handle alone. If only she were near. I could have found her already." he ranted.
"We're here. Stop daydreaming. Someone might hear you and report you to Mama. You know she never likes us to talk about it in public. She always believed mates are sacred." Pablo reminded him. He might be younger, but he was much wiser than him. Calculated, that was how Pablo lived.
"Ugh, fine. Race you to the dining table. The first one to finish cleaning up would be treated to a snack in town." he dared him.
He grinned, as he knew his brother took his sweet time bathing. "Oh, you are on, Hermano." he rushed past him and climbed the stairs.
His brother's steps left him in the dust. He leaped and reached the window on the third floor. He landed perfectly in the hallway, at which he saw his brother running towards his room.
They had extended the house to accommodate all of them. It was too small for the six of them and even smaller if you counted his cousins.
He plodded into the hallway. His room was on the other end. The floor was recently polished and so the light reflected upon it.
As he stepped closer to his brother's door, he jammed the lock so he would have a hard time getting out. They had been at this for quite some time already. Yet this prank never gets old.
Knowing he had the luxury of time. He went about his usual routine. He had finished cleaning up and changing clothes. Then he heard his brother shouting. It was loud and angry. He had pissed him off.
"I will strangle you when I get out of here!" Pablo screamed as he tried to take out the jammed doorknob.
"See you later, Hermanito (Little brother). I will ask an omega to fetch you." He teased him even more. He whistled as he went down the stairs, knowing that he had free snacks.
"Eli, where is Pablo?" His Mama was in the sala sitting and waiting for them.
He played it cool. "He was just finishing up changing clothes, Mama."
She raised her eyebrow. She knew something was up. The entire house heard Pablo. "Then why is it I could hear him yelling? Is this your doing?" She had a good intuition, but he refuted it.
"No idea on what you are talking, Mama. Maybe Lexa or Maria did it." He threw the blame on his younger sisters.
"Eli? Fix it. Or I will tell your Mama Claudia to send you to another convent for a month." Oh, she was good at scaring him.
He swallowed back his saliva as he heard her. "Mama. Porque? We are just having a bet. Don't let me go, please. I want to stay here where I can shift whenever I want." he sat beside her and tried to smother her.
"Then get him out of there. I want you all at the dining table this morning. I have an announcement." She reminded him.
He went upstairs slouching and murmuring curses. He never thought someone would catch immediately him.
- Writer
