Aspen Lance, a driven lycanthropy hallucinated teen, meets a lonely Arctic wolf that seems to find a fascination of staring at her as her life takes a wild turn of events.
Now, she's the threat and his weakest point, in which his destructed pack ta...
The morning lights streams in between the tall, hollow trees as the rush of cold air rustles the leaves on the ground. My back is on the tree trunk, my scar pains me even more, to the point where it's excruciating, and I have to bite down on my teeth to battle through it.
It doesn't help that a team of wolves just begins to double up, each with a snarl enough to cover the trees, their knife-like canines glints under the jaded sun.
Their incisive onyx eyes gleam, they are inches away from me, and for the first time, I completely remain idyllic. I don't breathe, I don't move, and I just pray that the Arctic wolf comes to warn them in his mind link. This is real life, and it's way different than the group of papers I read.
"Aspen, where are you?"
My idiotic brother can be heard from a mile away, and the wolves growl annoyingly, their booming sound almost deafens me.
As long as they are paying attention to me, they won't bother my brother. That's if there are more wolves on the hunt for him. I have a terrible gut feeling, and my protective instincts gets in the way when I stand up instantly at the thought of my brother getting hurt.
The substantial wolf, the leader I assume by his terrorizing stance, and his malicious yellow eyes that differentiates him from the entire pack, walks in circles around me, sizing me up as if he doesn't like me.
My heart hiccups, and my hands shake in fists on my side. If I make a run for it, I can easily be eaten by them, they outnumber me as another five wolves display their multi-colored fur to everyone.
They cross over sanguinely to the leader, and he halts his circular movements around me as one of the colored wolves growls lowly at him.
As much as I feel trapped between their kingdom of beasts, my eyes wander at the arrangements of exquisitely different furs; they are impressive with their sizes, some are bulky and frightening, while others are pups compared to the Alpha, Beta, and Omega.
I validate that the one near to me is the Alpha, it takes a challenging stare to the diverse wolf for him to cast his head downwards in submission. The Beta, as dark as midnight, joins his Alpha, temporarily forgetting about me as their whole pack watches the Alpha and the multi-colored wolf.
It feels surreal, it's every werewolf fanatic's dream to watch these creatures fight.
But the pain-stricken scar on my forehead cuts in through my fun as I wince and clutch my head. A shrill scream flows through my mouth, and my vision becomes blurry as I try to push harder on my scar in hopes that it can relieve the torment.
It's a calling for the Arctic wolf, and from my shaky eyes, I see him, as they all submit to him. Even the Alpha, and I get bewildered to seek his identity.
But that is before darkness folds around me.
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"What happened?"
"Is she awake now?"
"Look, mom, she's moving."
My cracked eyelids flicker dangerously, my vision in a complete daze, then it steadies by itself through a couple of flutters like snapshots.
Mom and Holland are towering over me, and I feel. . .energetic as if I am on crack. As if I am a reborn once again. I sit up fast and I don't feel anything sore in my body or head. Mom's hair is all over her face, and she has tired wrinkles on the corner of her sleepless eyes.
The last thing I remember is the Arctic wolf being submitted to. Holland might know something more.
"She's fine, she got dizzy, that's all," mom disregards after she checks my head with her hand. "Is that right, Aspen?" She asks.
"Yes, mom, I feel good." I utter strangely, before looking at a confounded Holland, who is looking at me with soulful eyes, like he is daydreaming.
"I told you so, it's all in your imagination Holland." Mom chastises my brother before she walks out, probably back to sleep.
The distant guy shakes his head slightly back to real life, and he zeroes his eyes on me like he wants to talk about whatever he saw. I grip his shoulder, he is crouching on the bed beside me.
"When I saw you laid on the grass, eyes closed and lifeless. I almost lost it, I have been crazy worried looking for you." He dauntingly speaks, and I squeeze his shoulder to comfort him.
His traumatic eyes gazes at me. "I brought you back here when you were mumbling like you're asleep, but I remember that you mentioned something about a wolf helping you, what was that about?" He demands.
Holland and I have been through a roller coaster with dad gone, Holland hasn't been the same ever since. He is extra possessive when mom and I's safety is on the line. He takes it hard on himself to be the fatherly figure in the house. Especially with me.
"I just meant that the wolf wasn't going to hurt us." I lamely excuse, and his jaw becomes more prominent as his eyes darken into deep brownish hues in his irises. He does that because I am a bad liar and he catches my bluff easily.
A look of hurt flashes through his eyes. "Why are you lying to me?"
He doesn't wait for me to answer, he grips the back of my neck and moves my hair from my forehead. I look confusingly at his flabbergasted eyes, and I push him aside to see the mirror.
The scar isn't there. Just my pale skin. I try to dab on where the scar is, but there isn't anything coming out.
My brother watches my craziness and crosses his arms. I let out a soft smile and exhale in relief.
I twist around to my brother as my smile widens.
"I won't die, don't worry."
His eyebrows disappear into his hair at my answer, and I know what happens next.
"What do you mean?" He interrogates as he comes closer, grasping my wrists in demand. My brother is impatient for answers, but I know that he won't believe.
So, I tell him everything. From the start of the Arctic wolf to what happens in the forest.
He rolls his eyes on me. "Do you expect me to believe this stuff?"
"Well, that's all I know." I tell him honestly.
"I think mom mixed me up with you. You are definitely hallucinating," he scoffs after what he says, then he warns, "but never go into that forest again."
He goes out of my room, and I stare out at the forest to the other side. More so, to the Arctic wolf on the other side.
