Unwanted Mate

Summer weekend. The afternoon sun outside the window seemed less blinding now, but it was still strong enough to make the morning glories droop and nod in the occasional wind.

Celeste Sherwood looked up from her book and eyed the sluggish flowers outside. Her cookies were almost done. She could smell it. Five more minutes at most.

She decided to enjoy the view from her window and relax her sore eyes while waiting, though the sweet, sweet fragrance already drew her attention to the oven. She took a deep breath. Yeah… Sweet. Her favorite. Now that she was home, she could make cookies as sweet as she liked … as long as the said cookies hadn't turned into piles of heated and cooled sugar.

Celeste was notorious for her brutal and offending sweet tooth. That explained why she had to make two kinds of cookies. One with the normal-people amount of sugar, and the other with the lethal dose. Apart from the abuse of sugar, her cookies were surprisingly good and popular, which was why she was compelled to make different cookies these days. Even her twin brother Jeremy, who hates sweet foods in general, found her cookies fantastic … or "tolerable", quoting from him.

Speaking of that twin brother of hers… She saw Jeremy trot into the yard, his back straight, sweat dripping down and wetting his T-shirt. His long legs were in tight rolls of muscles, supporting the tanned, wide-shouldered body. His biceps bulged when he moved them back and forth. His hair looked almost golden in the summer sun, under which were those eyes with the color of the indigo sky.

Celeste snorted at a pang of unfairness that hit her all of a sudden. Despite being twins, she and Jeremy were quite the opposite. Things were not so different when they were kids, but now, Jeremy was not only taller and bigger than her, he towered over her like a mountain. The color of their eyes was the only thing they shared. Even so, her eyes were lighter than his.

"I'm starving! What smells so good?" Sure, that was the first thing he said after he came back from a run. Celeste rolled her eyes.

"I just don't get it. Why do you bother to work out if you eat right after it?"

Jeremy walked into the kitchen, still sweating. "I told you. That's not a workout. I'm training myself for my wolf. He will be proud of this strong, beautiful body of his human."

Celeste made a face. "Eww… Save that speech to your wolf."

Jeremy shrugged. He took a deep breath and eyed the oven in anticipation. "You're making cookies?"

Sweets were never his favorite, but he would make do with whatever he got since he was literally starving right now. Besides, the cookies did smell good.

"Yup. These babies will be ready in a few… Ugh! You stink!" Scowling, Celeste wrinkled her nose and tried to shoo her twin brother out of the kitchen.

"Hey! Don't shoo me like I'm an unwanted puppy! I'm sure you wouldn't mind me checking your black magic over there." Jeremy ignored her protest and ventured closer to the oven on purpose, keeping an eye on Celeste in case she caught him off guard and launched any attack. He almost laughed at the nervous look on her face.

He and Celeste were no longer kids, but somehow they just couldn't stop getting on each other's nerves. He knew she always insisted on keeping a holy and undisturbed environment when she cast her black magic. Okay… In translation, she was a neat freak when it came to sweet foods. And of course, the bad smell was strictly forbidden in the process of cookie making because even the slightest would obviously and viciously eat away the fragrance of cookies.

"You wouldn't dare!" Celeste shrieked in horror and pointed a finger at him, "Don't you pollute my cookies, you reeking ass!"

"Ouch! Look at what you've done to my self-esteem! Pollute? That's a whole new level of insult! I feel hurt! Now prepare for my revenge!" Jeremy whipped the hem of his tee up and down as he jumped at her.

"No!" Celeste ran away with a short cry. But before that, she caught a glimpse of her brother's abs. Holy shit! Since when did Jeremy get so ripped?

Jeremy laughed behind her like the evil villain that he was. Just as he was about to launch the second attack, the oven let out a ding, saving Celeste's life.

Celeste banished Jeremy to the table and went to the cookies. They were hot, but the smell was rather mouth-watering. Jeremy's stomach growled when receiving the signal from his nose. Although the cookies were burning, he managed to steal one away immediately when Celeste put a plate on the table.

When the cookie was cool enough, Jeremy took a huge bite. Hunger must have taken over his brain because he would have detected Celeste's wicked plan from that suspicious grin on her face. It took a while before the shock buzzed into his brain.

Then he grimaced and gagged at the cookie-shaped sugar in his mouth. He dropped to the floor, coughing and clutching his chest. "How … how on earth do you force this thing down your throat?"

Celeste rolled her eyes and laughed, "Don't be that dramatic! It's actually good."

"Yeah, sure. And not too sweet at all," Jeremy added.

"Asshole. Now get up and get yourself clean." She reached out and tried to pull him to his feet. But Jeremy knocked her hand away and curled up on the floor. Celeste knitted her brows.

"Hey! Knock it off! This is not funny, Jeremy!"

But the man didn't respond. His eyes were tightly closed as he panted for breath. His face was pale, and his body was shivering. Jeremy seemed to be in pain. Celeste started to worry. She had never seen him sick or this helpless.

"Jeremy…? Jeremy…! Jeremy!"

Now Celeste was freaked out. She yelled at the door, "Mom! Dad! Something happened to Jeremy!"