Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Wolfblood.

A/N: I hate leaving ANs at the top of chapters but just a subtle heads up because this story is rated T for a reason, so...don't get mad if you don't like what goes down here. But don't worry, it's literally nothing graphic or in detail cus I don't write that kind of stuff:')

Episode Four, Part 1 - "Returns"

Now that Maddy and Rhydian had been back for just over two weeks, things were starting to settle back to normal. It was now September 1st and summer had passed by all too quickly.

Rhydian had been in contact with Mr. Jeffries. He sorted out that Maddy would be taking her GCSEs this next academic year starting in two days, completing independent study alongside Rhydian and Shannon in their A-level classes, making it easier for Mr. Jeffries to teach her without having to organise more lessons. Of course, Jeffries knew the truth, but their explanation for the rest of the class was that Maddy and her family had had to go to look after a sick family member and now she was back to finish school.

Maddy still didn't know about the fact Mr. Jeffries now knew their secret. Rhydian wasn't sure why, but he was procrastinating telling her; he was scared of her reaction. He'd tell her one day. When the time was right.

When Rhydian had told her how easily and quickly Mr. Jeffries had let her back in to school, Maddy was confused.

"Why did he let us back in so easily?" Maddy had asked.

Rhydian couldn't quite meet her eye; instead, he had just laughed nervously and kept his eyes down. "He's a mystery." He'd settled for saying, hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

The first day back at school was going to be a full moon; Rhydian never thought a night in the den would look so good. For the first time ever he didn't even care about the fact he was locked up in there when the wolf should be able to run free; all he cared about was the fact that he was back home again, with his Alpha, on a full moon.

But now, Maddy was up in her room getting ready for their first date – finally – and it felt weird not to be nervous. Usually a first date is something filled with nerves and butterflies, something with an uncertainty about it, but it was different for them.

Maddy and Rhydian had been best friends for two years before they realised their feelings for each other. And they had always been each other's Alphas; they'd always been close, which kind of took away the intense nerves that both Maddy and Rhydian should have been feeling before their first date. Instead, they felt excited to be spending time with each other.

Maddy wore some black skinny jeans and a lilac top with loose sleeves that occasionally slipped down on to her upper arms, revealing her black bra strap. The T-shirt had a pattern on the front featuring butterflies and it was one of Maddy's favourite shirts. On her feet she wore dark purple ballet flats and her hair was as it always was, long and straight, with a tiny bit more makeup than usual around her eyes.

Rhydian wore blue jeans and a smart-casual grey button up shirt. Even though he wasn't nervous, he still wanted to look nice.

Maddy walked out of her room just as Rhydian walked out of his, and they almost collided in the hallway. She'd been hoping for a romantic reveal as she walked down the stairs to greet him at the bottom but, looking back, that wasn't very likely when they lived together. (Living together. That sounded so grown up and mature and Maddy wasn't sure that she was okay with it; back when her parents were here, it seemed more normal).

"Hey," Maddy laughed as they almost walked in to each other.

"Hey," Rhydian grinned at her before looking her up and down. Her top showed off her frame perfectly and her long, straight hair looked so beautiful. The left sleeve of her top had fallen slightly leaving her shoulder and strap on show. His eyes were wide before he could stop them and the grin on his face had faded in to a shocked smile.

"Would you stop looking at me like that?" Maddy asked with a smile, her voice low and her cheeks blushing. He'd looked at her in a lot of ways – a lot of ways that showed how much he loved her – but he'd never looked at her quite like this; a slight sparkle in his eyes and a glint she didn't recognise.

"Sorry," Rhydian shook his head as if shaking himself out of a trance and then he smiled at her. "You look beautiful." Stepping forward, he put his hand on her waist and kissed her forehead.

"Thanks," Maddy smiled. She reached down for his hand before leaning forward to give him a quick kiss on the lips. When they parted, they could tell that they both wanted more, but Maddy managed to pull herself away. That could wait until later.

"Shall we go?" Rhydian asked as they started down the stairs.

"Let's go."

"Are we running there?"

"Yeah. But let's walk for a bit first."

When they got to the Kafe, Maddy was very surprised at how different it looked in there. She wondered how Bernie's had never seemed this big before and straight away she could tell that the Ks had decorated this place. It was multicoloured – everywhere – and featured a mix of different patterns and tables and booths.

Maddy and Rhydian chose a table in the corner. She tried to avoid looking at the three girls standing behind the counter, even though both her and Rhydian were aware of them watching intently.

Katrina gasped.

"So it is true…Maddy's back with Rhydian!" Kay whispered to her friends, not realising that Maddy and Rhydian could hear them perfectly clearly.

"I honestly thought that was just a rumour that Rhydian made up just to make himself feel better." Kara commented, earning a giggle from the other two girls.

Rolling her eyes, Maddy sat down at the table and watched as Rhydian glared at the girls over his shoulder, a light growl emerging at the back of his throat.

Maddy squeezed his hand. "Rhydian, leave 'em. They're not worth it."

After a few minutes, Katrina strutted towards their table and smiled all too sweetly, a small notebook in her hands.

"So, Maddy, where did you and your family run off to all that time ago?"

Maddy rolled her eyes again. "Nice to see you too, Katrina."

"Can we just order?" Rhydian asked impatiently, giving Katrina a look.

"Sure. What can I get yous?"

"Um…I'll have a steak." Maddy said.

"I'll…have the same."

Katrina raised her eyebrows. "Wouldn't kill you to say please."

"Wouldn't kill you to have some tact." Rhydian countered.

Katrina just rolled her eyes and stalked off again in the direction of the counter.

Maddy turned to Rhydian. "Since when are you so snappy?"

"Sorry," Rhydian apologised, putting both of his hands over hers. "I've just…I spent so long missing you, and I wanted to spend some decent time with you back home again. And I'm sick of people being nosy. It's nosy people like her that drove you guys away…"

"Hey, stop talking about that, okay? I'm back. I'm not going anywhere. And…even if I was going anywhere, you would be coming with us."

He looked in to her eyes for a minute; his eyebrows furrowed together, and then sighed through his nose. "You're right. Sorry. I won't bring it up again."

"Good."

Maddy was smiling now, and Rhydian brought her hands up and kissed her knuckles, still looking in to her eyes. His lips lingered on her skin for a minute.

"I've missed you being here." His face was serious, and sad, and sort of regretful.

"I've missed it too," she replied sincerely, taking his hands and kissing his in return.

And then they slipped in to casual conversation, as usual. They had no trouble finding things to talk about; things were always so easy and natural between the couple.

Even though school was starting really soon and Rhydian didn't particularly want to go back, they just enjoyed the time as it was, because for now it was perfect.

Until Liam walked in.

Rhydian's head snapped up when Liam came in through the café's front door and immediately he became anxious. He had one tiny shred of hope that Liam wouldn't see him and Maddy sitting here but, of course, he did.

He did a double take when he looked at them. And when he spotted Maddy sitting there, he stumbled back slightly in to the counter and Rhydian tried to catch his eye.

"Maddy?" Liam stuttered out incredulously. His eyes were wide and his breathing had increased; Liam hadn't seen Maddy since the incident with Dr. Whitewood, and it was weirder for him now because he knew her secret. He had been right all along.

Rhydian's heartbeat increased rapidly. Liam couldn't stutter out that he knew the secret now. This was not the time.

"What's the matter, Liam?" Kara started, her tone already mocking. "Still worried that Maddy's the werewolf of Stoneybridge?" The three Ks fell in to laughter but Liam, Maddy and Rhydian didn't.

Liam just simply glared at the girls. Maddy stared at Rhydian, confused as to why Liam was reacting so strangely. And Rhydian had been trying to catch Liam's eye, but now he was letting out little growls from the back of his throat at the joke Kara had just made.

Katrina continued. "Yeah, especially since that family down South have been killed reportedly by a 'lone wolf'. Maybe it was Maddy."

The Ks continued laughing.

Rhydian squeezed Maddy's hands supportively as if to say she's only joking, and Maddy seemed to understand. But she still didn't feel any less confused.

"Shut up, Kara." Liam said, his eyes narrowing. He looked back over to Rhydian warily, very tentatively stepping towards the couple sitting at the table.

"Hey, Liam." Maddy said, completely and utterly uninterestedly. She looked down at the table, her hands still in Rhydian's.

"You're back," Liam said cautiously.

Rhydian let out a not-so-subtle cough, getting Liam to turn his nervous eyes to him. Attempting to get what he was trying to say across with just a look, he widened his eyes slightly, shaking his head subtly. Luckily, Liam seemed to understand.

He tilted his chin up in understanding for a second. Then he managed to snap himself out of his weird daze and he looked back to Maddy, a nervous but sincere smile on his lips.

"Nice to see you, Maddy." Liam said, patting her once on the shoulder before turning and walking away.

Maddy glared at Liam from behind the curtain of her brown hair, not moving her head up.

To Maddy, Liam was purely the guy who had started up the whole Dr. Whitewood thing, meaning that he was the root cause of why she had to leave all those months ago.

And she wasn't sure why he had had that reaction to seeing her again.

"What was that all about?" Maddy asked once Liam and the Ks were all out of earshot.

Rhydian, now mostly recovered from the tension and anger he had felt a moment ago, shook his head quickly. "Just forget about it."

Maddy looked at him suspiciously, but chose to shake it off.

It was probably nothing. And both of them were sure that what Katrina had joked about was all just made up; after all, the Ks did love to wind everyone up, Liam in particular. Some things never changed.

Maddy and Rhydian returned home at about 8.30pm. After their dinner, they had decided to go for a longer walk before heading back home.

It was still light outside but not particularly; the sun was setting on the horizon.

Rhydian held Maddy's hand tight as they approached her house. She was pressed in to his side, holding his arm with her spare hand. Something about the atmosphere between the two just made them want to be closer; closer than ever.

The incident with Liam had been long forgotten by Maddy – not so much by Rhydian, but it had mostly slipped his mind – and the date had come to a smooth, content end.

When they got inside, their hands didn't break contact once as Maddy closed the door and locked it behind them. She turned to Rhydian and he was smiling softly at her, blue eyes looking right in to hers.

"Thanks for tonight," Maddy smiled, stepping closer to him again.

"You're welcome. We should do it again…soon."

Nodding, she found herself leaning closer to him and he leaned closer too. Soon their lips were touching and they were kissing, softly and slowly, like both of them were scared anything sudden would break up this moment.

The evening had been so perfect; they never, ever got tired of being together. It was like they never ran out of things to talk about, but even if they did, they would just share the silence together.

Rhydian found himself wanting to pull her closer as they stood in the kitchen by the staircase; he had the overwhelming feeling of how much he truly loved her. He wanted to be closer; to touch her.

They were still kissing slowly minutes later. For a second Rhydian pulled away and took her hand in his, gently pulling her towards the stairs.
Smiling slightly, Maddy willingly followed. They didn't break eye contact all the way up to her room.

Their kiss didn't become heated or fast or rushed once they were up in Maddy's room, the door now closed behind them even though no one else was in the house.
In movies, this kind of scene would always be fast and heated. They would always act before they thought but with Maddy and Rhydian in this moment, everything was slow. Somehow it was even more passionate than the rushed scenes you see on movies; every ounce of them just wanted to connect. To show how much they loved each other.

"I love you," Rhydian mumbled against her lips. "So much."

"I love you too."

And then Rhydian gently guided her towards her bed, and Maddy didn't stop him.

When Rhydian woke up the next morning, he was effortlessly close to a peacefully sleeping Maddy. It took him a second to realise that he was in her room and not his; the light streaming through her red curtains gave the whole room a slightly red tint rather than the blue he was used to.

They had had to sleep really close to each other, their bare skin touching almost everywhere, because of how small Maddy's bed was. It wasn't ideal, and it wasn't particularly comfortable, but it was happening. And Rhydian wasn't going to complain. Maybe they wouldn't be doing this every night, but still, he loved it for now.

Maddy's head was buried in to his neck, under his chin. He could feel her breath on the dip where his neck met his chest and it felt nice to have her this close. Last night he had just wanted her to know how much he loved her; now much he needed her. They were inseparable now. Nothing was ever, ever going to break them apart again; they were a partnership now and their only true ties were to each other.
Sure, they had responsibilities within their pack, lives and families, but nothing could ever be as important as the responsibilities and ties they had to each other.

That was the only way they ever needed to be. Together.

Rhydian dozed off again after a few minutes of lying still; the steady rhythm of Maddy's quiet breathing had sent him back to sleep.

Maddy woke up with her face up against Rhydian's warm chest. He was asleep, she knew that much; his breathing was soft and steady and she could feel it moving the hairs slightly at the back of her neck. His arms were wrapped around her whole body as they lay dangerously close to each other. She felt safe and at home. It wasn't the most comfortable of positions, but she thought it was worth it.
Her bare skin was covered by the sheets and as she lay there, breathing in Rhydian's familiar scent, she closed her eyes and began to remember what had happened yesterday.

Rhydian had been amazing last night. She was astounded by the amount of respect he had for her; he had asked her if she was sure at least three times and taken things slow. The way he'd kissed her was so romantic and it showed her, every single second, how much he loved her.
Maddy had done the same for him and put every ounce of love in to every second they spent together. She hadn't wanted any of the moments to end and everything was ten times better than she had ever imagined it to be.

Feeling Rhydian's arms around her and breath tickling her skin now as they lay on her bed together, she felt like nothing could ever be that bad again as long as they were together. He was her Alpha, and she was his. Nothing would ever change that and nothing would ever be able to break them apart.

But Maddy was broken out of her happy trance by the sound of the doorbell ringing downstairs. She frowned to herself and Rhydian stirred, inhaling quickly and moving away from her slightly.

"Someone's at the door," Maddy whispered.

Rhydian brought his hand up and rubbed his right eye. "Who is it?"

"I don't know, I can't smell 'em yet. I'll go down…you stay here."

Maddy hastily but begrudgingly climbed out of bed and pulled on her jeans from last night and Rhydian's T-shirt that was sitting on the floor. Her hair was a mess, she knew that much, but she didn't have time to do anything with it.

When Maddy walked down the stairs, a familiar scent began to fill her nostrils. She didn't quite identify it yet, but a frown etched its way on to her features and she started descending the stairs slower.

She identified the scent in an instant now and her confusion worsened. That scent shouldn't be here, she thought.

And when her hand came down and opened the door, and she saw the familiar faces staring back at her, she froze. They didn't look happy, or surprised, or anything like that. No. Their faces were creased with worry and anxiety, and there was a sad, hurting glint behind their familiar eyes; their cheeks were streaked with dry tear stains underneath the dark circles.
Why on earth were they here, and why were they looking at her like that?

"Mam? Dad?"

A/N: Hola!

So, for some reason I feel like I'm going to get some bad reviews for this chapter. I guess I kind of left it up to the imagination, but people might have different opinions on what happened here.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter though! Do let me know what you thought. As always, constructive criticism only please. :)

Thank you for all your wonderful reviews on the last chapter too

Love :* xxx

UPDATE: Thank you to the guest reviewer for reminding me to put the episode title at the top of this chapter!