Chapter 1: Picnic Gone Wrong

She believed in what they always said, plan out your life ahead as soon as you can or else everything will fall into shambles the saying got stuck in her mind and now she lives by it. Her obsession with planning ahead started when her mom gave her a journal for her eighth birthday. Since then she would write down what she would do daily, weekly and on a monthly basis. She figured out what her life would be in the next 5 years pretty much. She had made her master plan that will surely bring her ultimate goal– to be a novelist. 

Three days from now and it will be her 18th birthday and she couldn't be more excited to watch her life unfold according to plan. 

"Mauve, darling will you be okay? I've prepared food in the fridge, just heat them up and you'll be fine for the next three days." Her mom asks as she finishes her glass of milk. 

"I'll be fine mom, I'm not a kid anymore." She reassures her worried mother. 

"It's just three days love, I'm sure she'll be fine, right kiddo?" She glances up to her dad who gently pats her head as he grabs his coffee mug. 

"Of course dad, I'm an alpha archer, remember?"

Her dad laughs and almost spits out his coffee and replies. "Yeah right. I'll probably get beat up again on our next archery match next week." 

"Hurry and finish up your coffee honey, we have to go now or we will be stuck in traffic." Her dad gulps down his coffee mug as her mom grabs her purse off the counter. On their way out she hugs Mauve and kisses her on the cheeks. "I'm sure you'll love it, we'll be back early so we could cook you something special, tell your friends to come okay?"

Mauve rolls her eyes. "You know I have no friend mom."

"You still have three days to find them. Just be yourself and you’ll be alright. Okay, be good sweetheart, we love you.”

“I love you too mom.”After her parents left, she hurriedly finishes her breakfast and cleans up the kitchen counter before she gets ready for school. 

Her mom’s words haunt her as she picks her clothes. She never had friends, so why bother trying to have one now? She had been doing great without one for seventeen years already, this sudden pressure is so unnecessary. She grunts as she goes through the pile of clothes in her wardrobe. After so much contemplating and fitting her fancy looking dresses, she ends up choosing her usual plain comfy white sweater and a pair of faded blue jeans. She grabbed her waterproof boots and her black winter coat and headed out for the bus stop. 

"Three more days and I get to drive mom's car. Three more days and I get to drive mom's car. Three more days, three more days..." She said this in a loop trying to hype her up as she marches through an ankle thick of snow. 

Mauve loves winter but hates having frozen fingertips. Regardless, the warm streaks of sunlight that kisses her cheeks reminds her of the tickling pinches her dad used to make when he walked her to school during days like this one. 

Her winter memories growing up would always bring her warmness in her heart. Her parents are always there filling her up with warm hugs and freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. 

Just as she is about to reach the bus stop a few feet away from her view, a guy dressed in a long white coat abruptly approaches her. 

She noticed he was looking at a small blinking device before locking his bright ocean eyes into hers. 

"Hello, you're Mauve right?" She immediately picks up his British accent. It might be the reason why he looks so different. She was stunned just by his presence, and took a moment to process what was happening. 

"Uhm, why are you asking?" His eyes gleamed with fascination.

"I need to know if I'm speaking to the right person." He curtly replied.

Mauve starts to feel her fingertip freeze and it doesn't help with the awkward jitter bubbling up inside her. "O-kay, uhm can you give like-like a bit of context at least about what this is about?"

A subtle smile forms on his lips as he replies. "I was ordered to escort you. You are being summoned to attend an important event. I can't disclose further details right now. Regardless, I am asking you to cooperate and follow me."

Despite his authoritative presence, she can't ignore the major red flag waving at her face. Rule number one, never trust strangers! No matter how charming they may be! 

"Uhm, sorry I have classes today. I can't." Her excuse did not faze him at all. He doesn't move but gives her a reassuring smile. 

"Please reconsider. I mean you no harm. If you would just come with me I will explain everything."

Damn it! Mauve thought, trying not to look at his mesmerizing smile. God must've taken his time creating this one. Fair skin, raven black hair, chiseled jaw, perfect lips and even his teeth looks awfully perfect. She is convinced that there is no way this guy who looks like he came out straight from a magazine would just walk up to a random girl as some sort of an escort. But then again, she knew she wasn't random. He knew her name and her whereabouts. 

The cold seeping through her thick winter coat added with confusion and anxiety has forced mauve to think that she has to go now or something bad will happen. 

"It's just; I don't know you, and what you're really trying to do. I have to decline, okay? No offense though." She awkwardly replies, looking away from his gaze. As she was turning away from him he immediately got a hold of her arm trying to stop her. As a reflex, Mauve tries to yank her arm back but was surprised that he let her go instead of gripping onto her tighter. Both of their attention suddenly goes towards the school bus which stopped. Mauve glances back to the guy who was looking at her trying to read her emotions. 

"I'm sorry, I gotta go." The guy nods at her, letting her go without another word. 

As soon as Mauve sat down next to the window, she watched the guy wave her goodbye as the bus drove off. A lot of what if thoughts ran through her mind. But there is one thing she was truly sure of; she doesn't care whatever he was planning, she is safe now. 

Mauve's mind drifted away the moment she entered the classroom and sat on her little corner. Like usual, she spends the morning classes quietly doing seat work on her own. She is hyped up since she planned something special for lunch. Once the lunch bell echoed through the whole school, she brought her bag and walked toward the old playground at the back of the school. She marches through the thick tall shrubs hiding the hidden access to the river. Mauve finds a spot on the edge overlooking the river. It was a perfect day to have a simple picnic now that the sun is up and the river isn't completely frozen yet. 

"This is nice." She whispers as she sits on the blanket that she lay on the ground. It's a great place to have some time alone since the school encourages the students to stay away from the river due to its unpredictable current. Nevertheless, mauve comes here once in a while to bask under the sun or just chill whenever she can. 

Mauve poured down the content of her bag into the blanket. She takes the tumbler filled with hot cocoa and takes a gulp of it as she opens a bag of chips. She also grabs the peanut butter jelly sandwich she made earlier at breakfast. As she was about to take a bite she notices that she did not put enough strawberry jam. She looked for the jam she packed earlier, it must've fallen out of her bag too when she dumped everything on the blanket. It took her a moment to realize that it had rolled in the other edge of the blanket. 

Just for shits and giggles she extends out her hand trying to focus on the strawberry jam and make it go towards her. 

To her utter surprise the glass jar moves and flies towards her palm. 

"What the…"

She freaks out, throwing the strawberry jam away from her. She stood up quickly and a sudden nausea flared through her head causing her to lose her balance sending her toward the running river. 

The cold water stunned her as she tried to resurface against the current. Mauve felt numb and did all she could to wave her hand out hoping someone could see her going down the river. 

The current wasn't rapid but it was hard for mauve to swim up due to her thick winter coat which sponged up a lot of water weighing her down. 

For a second, mauve accepts her defeat and loses hope for her survival. She was about to let go of her last breath when she felt a strong pull. She thought that she got stuck on something but when she opened her eyes, she was already back on the ground laying up facing the blue sky. 

Mauve felt someone pushing down on her chest. Light flashes before her eyes as she tries to breathe. Water filled her airways and it was suffocating her. On top of the throbbing nausea that is pulsing on her head was the muffled voice from two people arguing.

“We should’ve stuck to plan Eliot, I told you something like this would happen.” A female voice argued.

                         

“She was scared, confused, I just couldn’t, just help me okay?” A familiar voice replied.

The pressure on her chest pushes out the water which finally forces mauve to spit it all out as she starts to catch her breathing back. Her vision starts to become clear as well as she focuses on the two figures in front of her.

“ Mauve, you’re awake.” He says looking at her with relief.

“You, a-again.”