"Wait, so let me get this straight," Mina put both her palms out protectively in front of her, as if asking the woman to just slow down. What the older woman was laying on her was way too much for her brain to handle, and Mina felt like she was going to get a headache soon. "You're telling me, that there has been a whole other world out there that was just," Mina paused to comprehend the situation. "living under my nose?"

"If you're putting it that way," the middle-aged woman stared at the younger one with slight amusement twinkling in her eyes. "Then yes."

Mina's eyes were widening comically, and the older woman decided not to speak further so that the young girl could collect her thoughts. She was the first human girl that she had asked, after all. All the previous ones were from the supernatural world, and obviously, already knew what kind of world they were living in.

The eighteen year old gaped at the stranger's confirmation, and she swallowed down her saliva before imploring more. "And you," the girl gestured to the woman before her politely, despite being in utter disbelief. Her grandmother always told her to be polite to those older than her, after all, whether or not they were bat crazy. "You're telling me that you're a..." the girl eyed the woman up and down, her pupils shaking. "A werewolf."

"I prefer she-wolf, but yes. Yes I am."

"And you have sons," the girl breathed out breathlessly. "That are werewolves."

"You don't expect me to give birth to vampires, do you?" The woman laughed at her own joke, although Mina did not find it the least bit amusing. Instead, it only reaffirmed her conclusion that the woman was mental. Seeing the young girl so stupified and frozen in shock, the woman sighed, a little apologetic that she was dumping so much on the poor girl. But her sons were so, so important to her, and she had to be a little selfish as their mother.

The stranger broke the silence. "All I'm asking is for you to spend some time with them, and maybe...fall in love," the woman took a whiff of the scent emitting from the young girl. "Since I can tell that you currently don't have a boyfriend."

Mina's cheeks flushed red at the exposure of her little secret, and tried to fight back weakly. "Yes I do!"

The woman hummed in response, mocking her. "I know what a taken woman smells like, my dear."

She can smell me?

Shudders went down Mina's spine before she stomped her foot on the ground, taking her stand. "Look. I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't want to. This whole thing is too crazy to believe, and I really have enough on my plate already. Just let me leave."

She still doesn't trust me. The older woman couldn't blame her, since it really was a lot to take in for a human. The faces of her sons flashed in her mind, and she decided she couldn't let this rejection sway her. This human girl felt...different. She felt like the young girl had old wounds that could only be healed by someone who would be there for her, and it was the same for her sons. This human felt...strong-willed, independent and unrelenting. She felt like maybe, this girl was the one. And if her instincts were right, both her sons and this girl could heal each other.

"I know you don't trust me, but please-"

"No," Mina willed herself not to raise her voice and attract unwanted attention. She ran her hands through her hair, and took steps back to leave. "I-I'm sorry. I can't do this, I can't believe this. My grandma needs me."

___

"Hi, grandma," Mina plopped herself down on the couch of her only family's hospital ward and let her head fall back into the couch. She hadn't managed to get groceries, and there was little time left to get them before she had to visit the hospital. She groaned at the whole fiasco from earlier, and rubbed her temples to soothe the dull ache that was threathening to worsen.

"Mina," the old lady greeted her granddaughter enthusiastically, before furrowing her eyebrows in worry at seeing her distressed state. "What's wrong, dear?"

The eighteen year old flashed the older woman a reassuring smile, not wanting her to worry in her condition. "It's nothing," Mina stood up walked towards her grandma's bedside, easily filling her hands with hers. "Just school, and work."

And some crazy thing about werewolves and mates.

"Oh dear, you have to stop working so hard, and take a break sometimes," the woman flashed a sweet smile at her only granddaughter, and Mina felt her chest grow warm. "I'll be alright."

No you won't. Mina wanted to retaliate. If she wasn't working hard to juggle school and work, how could she earn enough to support the old woman? It was only the two of them left, and Mina did not know what to do if her sole family left. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, better than ever!" the old lady tried to reassure her grandchild, giving her an almost toothless smile. "Your father came by the other day, and he said that we were going to move!"

The eighteen year old stiffened at the older's words, and only then did she know, that her grandma was actually getting worse. Her parents had abandoned her when she was just a child, as having an unexpected pregnancy in high school was too much of a financial burden on their part. They left as soon as she turned three, around the time she was supposed to be sent to preschool. It was then did her grandma take on the full responsibilty of raising her grandchild despite her old age.

"That-that's great," Mina breathed out, her heart aching at the absolute delight in the older woman's face. When she first started showing signs of deteriorating memory and health, Mina hadn't known what to do. The things the older woman said sometimes opened up old wounds that she wanted to hide, and there were times she wanted to just storm off. But overtime, she had gotten used to it, and the doctor told her to just play along.

Not long after, the doctor called her outside to talk about her grandma's condition, and Mina gave the bed-ridden lady a kiss on the cheek before hurrying off. They both stood outside the door of her grandma's ward, and the doctor's expression told Mina that he did not have good news to give her. Mina braced herself.

"She doesn't have much time to live," Mina's heart grew heavy at how direct his words were, and she closed her eyes in defeat. She only opened them when the doctor continued to talk. "The medicine and equipment we have here can only prolong how long she has to live," the man's words dropped into a whisper. "And there isn't enough to cover costs."

Mina knew that this was coming, as she had struggled for the past two years to save up as much money as possible to put her grandma in hospital. It was her final year in school this year, and workload was getting way more hectic, forcing her to drop one of her part-time jobs. She had a feeling what she was earning now was way less than wat the hospital required. 

"I know, I'm sorry. I'll figure out a way," her hands clasped together in front of her chest and she gave the doctor a pleading look. "But please help me for now. I'll get the money soon."

The doctor sighed and looked at the young girl in front of him sympathetically, before nodding his head. He then turned to leave, but paused and opened his mouth. "I can't keep this up for long."

Mina let out a deep sigh and let her legs crumble to the floor, her back pressed against the door. She looked up and willed herself not to cry.

In the distance, a woman peeked out from around a corner and stared at the girl that was a mess on the floor. She didn't need to go closer to hear what they were saying, thanks to her hearing abilities. 

I've got you now.