The Frozen Melody

01.Tyson.

20 Years Ago

"You have such mesmerizing eyes," the lady said with a sly smile. She flipped her curly brunette hair back casually as she leaned against the door frame and studied the handsome man in front of her. His body seemed strong and delicious enough under his clothing, and his healthy tanned face sported a set of crystal clear blue eyes. The lady pegged his age to be around eighteen to nineteen, which was perfect considering she liked younger men more anyway. His messy black hair looked like it would be really soft to the touch, and she had to resist the urge to pet him.

Tiger blinked nervously at her words; he was pretty sure his eyes weren't glowing at the moment since the hallway was so well lit and he wasn't using any magic. Plus, judging by the slight scent of lust in the air, the lady probably just had a thing for guys with blue eyes. He returned her smile with an uncertain lopsided grin.

"Thanks ma'am. Here's the parcel for Mr. Oka from Louis," he replied and handed her the small box he had been holding. The lady took the brown parcel with both hands and read the labeling.

"Oh, I've been waiting for this! You must be Tyson."

The boy nodded in confirmation while wondering why she was told of his nickname. A lot of people have made fun of him for being a wolf shifter named Tiger. So although it was his real name, he does use Tyson in order to blend in with the crowd.

"I've heard a little of you from Louis; you're cuter than he said. Thanks for delivering this." The woman giggled and took the parcel.

Tiger's hands went back to his pants pockets as soon as they were free. "No problem. Any message you want me to take back to Louis?"

The woman was just an ordinary human, but for some reason she made Tiger nervous. He hadn't been in contact with humans for a while, so maybe it was her flirting getting to him.

"No, it's fine. Would you like to come in and have a drink?" she asked stepping back to welcome him into the room.

Tiger grinned apologetically and shook his head. "Sorry ma'am, I gotta go. Thanks for the offer though."

"Aww... Well, feel free to come visit me when you're bored."

He laughed at her suggestive wink and waved good bye to leave. "I will ma'am."

He didn't like the woman.

Yes, she looked nice, sounded nice, and acted really nice. But Tiger still wanted nothing to do with her. Plus, she smelled like hospital mixed with caramels, so that was sort of weird. Maybe it had just been too long since he left the comforting wilderness to join the crowded human society. He missed running with a wolf pack already, and it hadn't even been two weeks since he left the wolves.

The exhilarating feel of his strong paws thrashing through the forest as they chased down their prey; the soothing feel of belonging as they howled together in victory or grief; the warm and calm feel of waking up in a furry pile filled with the scent of safety and pack... Tiger shook his head to clear his longing thoughts, like a dog shaking its fur into place. He will join another pack after he was done here.

Tiger walked down the dreary looking hallways, allowing his thoughts to drift freely. He thought about how uncomfortable he felt right at that moment. They had forced him to stay in his wolf form for more than three hundred years before he was finally allowed the freedom to shift between his two forms whenever he wanted to. And by then, he was so used to being an animal that he decided to stay in wolf form whenever he could. In fact, Tiger had spent the last fifty some years as a beta in a wolf pack because it felt so natural.