When The Wolves Come Out

Chapter 7

I walk down the school corridors, heading towards the car park to meet Ethan. I can't help but feel suspicious on where he's taking me.

I see him waiting by a faded light blue truck and he smiles when he sees me.

"Ready?" he asks, opening the car door for me and I get inside.

"Can't you tell me where we're going?"

"Nope." He gets in beside me and drives out of school. "Close your eyes," he tells me.

"Why?" I can't help but laugh, I closing my eyes anyway.

"So it's a surprise when we get there."

I smile. Ethan was being really cute at the moment, and I didn't want to ruin the moment by asking him the questions that had been running through my mind since I first saw him.

After a while, he stops the truck. "We're here. You can open your eyes now."

I look around and see that he's parked us right next to a river with trees surrounding it. I notice a rope hanging from one of the tree branches. We both get out of the car and stand next to each other by the river. The sun was just setting over the horizon, making the sky a beautiful peachy-pink colour.

"It's amazing," I breathe, and Ethan's eyes flash a mix of golden hazel and pink, which I'd never seen before.

"I knew you'd love it."

He opens the boot of the car, bringing out towels and a couple snacks.

We hang around by the river for hours, and at one point we climb up the tree with the rope on it.

"It goes right into the river." Ethan is close behind me seeing as there's little space on the platform. His breath tickles my neck when he talks, sending anxious shivers down my spine. "Try it."

"It's a long way down. You're sure it's safe?" I put my hands around the rope.

"I've been here tons of times. It's fun, just trust me." He presses his back against mine, and I gulp. "Ready?"

I nod and Ethan pushes me. I scream. The wind blows my hair out of my face and the world seems peaceful in mid-air. Everything goes in slow motion until I let go of the rope and fall into the river.

As I come up, I hear Ethan's laugh ringing through the trees. Within seconds, he's in the river with me. We both laugh, splashing water at each other. A few moments later, everything falls silent as Ethan swims closer to me, our faces inches apart. It's then that the rest of the world seems put away, like nothing matters except the swirling pinks and golds dancing through his eyes.

He begins to lean down, our faces now merely a centimetre apart, and I can feel my heart beating in my chest so loudly that I'm sure Ethan can hear it. His large, smooth hands touch my cheeks, his thumbs grazing my cheekbones. Then out of nowhere, I feel something swim past my leg and I pull away, squealing. I realise that I'd completely ruined the moment.

"Sorry, I thought I felt something—"

"It's okay," Ethan cuts me off, the pink and gold in his eyes slowly being replaced by grey, blue and purple. He swims back to shore and I follow him.

We sit on the bank wrapped in towels in complete silence. I feel an urge to say something, but what? 'I'm sorry for ruining the moment where we were about to kiss'?

I can tell Ethan is disappointed too as he gazes at the sunset, the light hitting his face and bringing out his features.

"Don't think it was your fault," he says, his voice barely above a whisper.

"But it was." I try to look at him but won't turn his head. I decide that it's time to say the question that's been bothering me since the day we met. "Ethan, your eyes..."