The Rejected One

Chapter 3

When I entered into my old hometown, I tried to look for anything familiar, but at the same time, I didn’t want to see anything that would spark memories. Seeing the town was enough to bring out the waterworks. The gravel beneath me was cold against my bare feet and I tried not to show that I was in need of shoes. I stopped at the center of the square and looked up at a old abandoned building. It still had it’s windows open and I could still remember the look on my sibling’s faces when they saw me with them.

I could still remember the guilt I felt, even though I didn’t commit the crime.

How they didn’t believe me when I told them the truth.

My tears turned into a sudden rage of fury and I stormed into my old home, ignoring the dust that greeted me. It looked like nobody ever came in here after their deaths, they didn’t even bother taking the furniture out. I carefully made my way up the stairs, walking as quietly as I could, as if their ghosts would still be there, waiting for me. Once I was on the second floor, I sneaked a peek at my parents room. The door was closed. I guess it was more of a relief than disappointment because I didn’t know what I would do if I saw their bodies still there. Obviously, someone must’ve buried their bodies already, but I still wasn’t so sure. I tore my eyes away from their door and walked towards mine. I tilted the door open and saw that everything was exactly as I left it.

The window was open, symbolizing the frightening moment where I tried to end my life.

My closet was empty, and the luggage was gone, telling the tale of how I left to join the pack.

How easy it was for me back then, to pick up and leave everything behind. I guess I didn’t really think of that idea first. My siblings actually planted the idea in my head one night, and when they left to leave, I quietly stalked behind them. I hid whenever their wolf senses kicked in and sensed something moving behind them. I didn’t know what I was accomplicing by doing this, they found out that I was trailing behind them when they got to the heart of the pack, but they didn’t rage. As if I wasn’t even there in the first place.

“Hey you!” Someone shouted to me. It was from the house next to mine. There was a old man sitting in a chair, pointing a shaky finger at me. “You’re not supposed to be in that house!” Instinctively, I turned away and ducked into the hallway, but then it occurred to me that he probably didn’t notice me. As both human and wolf.

Was he a wolf too? I wondered as I tiptoed downstairs. Or was he just an innocent bystander that was just there at the wrong moment, at the wrong time. I paused at my doorstep.

Just like I was.

An innocent bystander that was just there at the wrong moment, at the wrong time.

“Hey you! What are you doing here?” The old man next door was still ranting when I walked across the street, in hopes of finding something comforting. Other people started staring at me but I kept my face tilted towards the ground and ignored Luna screaming: “Let me at ‘em! Lemme at ‘em!” Finally, when I couldn’t take it anymore, I ran into an alley and hid there. At least I was safe, for now.

The sun had already set and I was crouched down in an alley, starving and injured. I was beginning to feel cold so my wolf instincts kicked in and suddenly, I wasn’t Ava anymore, I was Luna. My human personality was far behind me and now Luna was only focused on one true goal: food.

My golden fur was bright against the dark night and I could feel the crescent forming along my eye. Luna sniffed through the piles of trash that lay beside the sidewalk and I could’ve sworn my human form was gagging in disgust. But I didn’t mind. I was a wolf now.

Luna kept digging through the piles of trash that we passed and then my head shot right up. I smelt it. That faint trace that was almost impossible for Ava to pick up, but it took seconds for Luna to track it down. As I got closer, I recognized that smell. It was the smell of freshly baked bread. Yum. I could feel drool creeping out of my mouth as I inched closer to the bakery. I was panting with anticipation and pretty soon, I was perched on the side of the bakery, waiting for the burnt pieces to be tossed out. My stomach grumbled and I growled with rage. Hurry up human.