When The Wolves Come Out

Chapter 11

On Saturday morning, Ethan comes round to my house and tells me he's taking me somewhere.

"It's a surprise!" he squeals when I ask.

We drive for quite a while before he parks the car in a very familiar place. There's a flowing river surrounded by trees, and one of the branches has a rope hanging down from it, along with a beautiful view of the horizon, A.K.A the place where Ethan and I almost kissed. Oh, the memories.

We swing on the rope into the river so many times, we're soaking wet right to the bone. Ethan brings food in a cute little picnic basket, and we eat it as we share a towel, sat gazing over the river as it sparkles in the sun.

"Ash," he says after a while.

"Yes?"

He hesitates. "I have to tell you something."

"Okay," I say slowly. "Let me guess... you can fly as one of the perks in being a werewolf?"

"No."

"You can read minds! Are you psychic?" I joke, laughing until Ethan interrupts me.

"Ash." His voice is firmer now, slightly demanding. "I need to tell you something."

My silence tells him to go on.

"The first time we saw each other across the road, did you feel something? Something deep inside you? Maybe telling you to run away, or something that intrigued you about me..." I know that it's a rhetorical question, because he's describing my feelings down to the bone.

I lick my lips, nodding slowly. He carries on.

"The thing about werewolves is, they're never fully complete. Not until they find that one anchor in life that the earth has made to be with them. Spiritual partners, in a sense." Ethan takes a deep breath. "Do you believe in fate, Ash?"

"Uh, I guess..." I mumble, unable to take my eyes away from the river, too afraid to look at him.

"I do. And, that makes me think: what if we were meant to be? What if we were made for each other?" He leans in slightly closer but I still refuse to turn my head. "What if we're mates, Ash?"

I can't find words to describe how I'm feeling. Mates. The word rings through my mind with an echo.

"Ethan..." I pause. "Look, you may think that we're like, soulmates or something, but I'm just normal. I'm invisible. That's the way it's always been for me... And as for being your mate—"

"Ash, please. You have to accept me. You have to. I'm not complete without you."

I shake my head helplessly, tears threatening to spill from my eyes and I don't know why. "I'm a  seventeen year old human girl, Ethan. Why do you want me?"

"Because we're mates." His voice cracks on the last word and my heart leaps. I jump to my feet and so does he.

"Ethan, I'm not part of your imagination. I have my own life ahead of me. I'm not ready for whatever this whole 'mates' thing is!"

"Please, Ash. I love you—"

"Stop it, Ethan. You've known me for five days."

"But I do."

"No, you don't." A single tear rolls down my cheek and he reaches out to my face but I wipe the tear away myself. "Find another mate. Please."

He places both hands on the small of my back and pulls me close. I struggle out of his grip, biting my lip to hold back Niagara Falls which was about to flow from my eyes.

He takes a slow blink, and when he looks back up his eyes are blue with large swirls of pink cutting through them. They look truly beautiful, until I realise it.

Those are his emotions.

"Pink symbolises love, Ash.0

My breath catches in my throat. Ethan's grip loosens for a fraction of a second but it's enough for me to slide out of his grasp.

I run.

I don't know how long I was running for, just that I needed to get away from Ethan. He couldn't possibly love me within five days. A week ago, I didn't even know werewolves existed, and now I'll never see the world in the same way again. Ethan had stolen part of me and I knew that he'd never give it back.

~~

I manage to get a cheap bus ticket home. People look at me with concern, muttering about my awful appearance to those next to them. I didn't have the energy to try and listen.

It's dark by the time I get home. I fall back onto my bed, the tears all dried up on my cheeks, and then I remember: I have a double date with Harry, Jasmine and Jack tonight. Great.

I check the time: 6:00 p.m. I still had one hour exactly to get ready.

I start by taking a shower, trying to wash away all memories of today, but even when I'm completely dressed in the tight red dress Ethan didn't like, with my makeup done to perfection and my hair curled and I look beautiful, it still feels like a part of me is suddenly broken, a part of me that was made out of him. And somehow, I knew that it wasn't over.