Joshua's Secret

Eighteen

Joshua's Secret

It was a few weeks before my eighteenth birthday. And instead of being super excited about it (like everyone else is, especially my father- but more on that later), I was not. Every time someone mentioned that I was turning eighteen, I felt like running away. Everyone in the pack has noticed my mood swings whenever my birthday came up.

I used to love celebrating my birthday when I was a pup. My parents hosted the best birthday parties every year. They would invite everyone from the pack over to our house, and they would give me the best gifts. I remember one year where I got a video game console from the pack elder. It's old and beaten up now, but my eyes were sparkling when I recieved the present with my two chubby hands.

"Joshua, darling, wake up~" a soft voice lulled me out of my slumber. I rubbed my eyes and saw my mother standing at my bedside. She was smiling tenderly at me, her eyes becoming crescents and dimples showing. I smiled back. What a great way to start the day. I started thinking about doing something productive like doing chores or reading a book.

I was thinking about ways to spend the day when my mother spoke up. And completely ruined the day.

"So, Joshua, since you're turning eighteen, you're going to have to go for training now," my mother was still beaming as she said this. My face scrunched up at the thought of training. It was going to be a long day for me. I clenched my fists underneath the blankets, my blood suddenly boiling. I took in a deep breath.

"Mom, I told you, I don't want to go through training," I said, sounding quite calm despite the storm brewing in my head. Mother frowned and crossed her arms. She leaned against the door frame as she glared daggers at me.

"You don't have a choice in the matter, son. Your father and I want you to do this, so you're prepared," she replied. I swore I saw her eyes glinting blue for a split second. "Go down and eat. You're going for training, whether you like it or not," she grimaced before slamming the bedroom door shut. I groaned and buried my face into my pillow. After a few minutes of cursing and kicking, I got out of bed. I went to the bathroom and decided to freshen up.

As I was drying my face, I looked into the mirror. I stared at my reflection. The first thing I noticed was that my pimples from last week had finally disappeared. I grinned, winking at my reflection. "Looking better today~" I purred. The next aspect of my appearance I checked was my hair. My hair was damp from bathing, but what I saw suddenly was out of the ordinary.

"What on earth?" I mumbled to myself as I moved closer to the mirror. My eyes widened in shock as streaks silver started to grow on my ebony hair. What was happening to my hair?! I yelped in fear before backing away from my reflection. I pinched myself twice. I was wide awake. I took in a deep breath, trying hard to process what was happening earlier. I was certain that it was not soap suds- since when did suds grow all by itself? My second assumption that this was Jess' doing. I growled, going back out to get dressed. I put a beanie on before darting out of my room and into the kitchen.

I slumped my shoulders upon seeing my parents sitting on the dining table. They were talking about pack stuff over coffee and bread.

"Where's Jess?" I asked, skipping the greetings and getting straight to the point. My father pointed over to the living room before going back to talking to Mom. I nodded, going to the living room. Like my father said, she was there. Her eyes were glued on the book that she was reading (probably about witchcraft, that little midget!), wrapped up in a pink blanket. I crouched lowly before jumping up and pouncing on her.

Jess screeched before shoving me away and kicking me hard in the shin. Instead of being mad, she was laughing gleefully. I pouted before sitting cross-legged on the floor and pointing to my hair. "You did this, didn't you?" I hissed, pulling the beanie off to show her the streaks of silver in my hair.