It was weird not having anything to worry about except for school. Graduation was coming up in just a few short weeks. The year had flown by in a way. In other ways, it had seemed to drag on and on.
I had been accepted into the online college program of my choice, which was exciting. Most of the rest of my packmates that would be graduating at the end of May had also made their selections and gotten accepted. Ben was going to a different college than me, but Joshua was in the same freshmen online program as I was in. Starla had decided to take the year off. She wanted to spend some time with her parents and explore the country a little bit before she started college. I didn’t care what she did, as long as it meant she wasn’t going to be in my way anymore. I was hopeful that she’d find a new pack to join. There really wasn’t anyone left in my pack who wanted her to be there anyway.
A few days before high school graduation, I got a call from Kayla. We’d been talking quite a bit for the last couple of months, trying to sort out what was going to happen when the rest of my pack joined us. I had plans to add on to the house again. We’d need it with six more people coming to live with us. I had plans in my head, but I hadn’t done any of it yet. I figured I’d had enough experience with architecture now that there was no need to hire any contractors. It would probably make me really tired, though, so I planned to do it after school was over with.“How are things in France?” I asked her.“They’re good,” Kayle replied. I had her on video conferencing so that I could see her face. “But there’s something I need to tell you about.”
“You can’t be serious!” Melanie squealed the second I brought up the topic of all of us moving to Europe as soon as graduation was over. “I wanted to spend the summer back home with my family.” Real, actual tears sprang to her eyes. I was stunned. I’d just thrown it out there for us to talk about, I hadn’t committed to anything yet. I certainly wasn’t expecting anyone to cry about it.“Mel,” I said, trying to stay calm and not escalate the situation even further. “I’m just asking. It doesn’t mean that we have to do it.”“I wanna do it!” Brice said, his voice full of enthusiasm. “Running around all over Europe, fighting evil mages, storming castles…. All of that sounds really amazing to me.”Most of the
“He’s lying?” I asked Sam. “How do you know?” He seemed so certain that Alec was lying when he said that he was scared. “Maybe he is legitimately scared that something is going to happen to him, you know? It can get dangerous out there.”Sam was shaking his head. “No, that’s definitely not it. He’s just a mooch. A giant mooch who just wants to be part of our pack so that he can take advantage of all of the stuff you can make for us for free.”I shrugged. “Maybe you’re right, but I honestly don’t care if he goes with us or not, as long as Brice does. I want them to stay together if he still makes Brice happy, but I don’t think it’s gonna work out between them. I think they’re just too different.”“You&rsq
After Joshua made his statement--that he didn’t love Melanie, and he had feelings for someone else, someone that was in a relationship already--he didn’t stick around. He took off, out the door, and I figured it was to go for a run.I turned around and looked at Sam, my eyes wide. “What the hell just happened?” I asked him.He was shaking his head. “I don’t know. I’m really not sure. But… I don’t think it’s you, if that’s what you’re concerned about.”I wanted to ask him why he was so sure and be offended that he didn’t think that Joshua was in love with me, but then I realized that was a good thing. I didn’t want Joshua to be in love with me. We’d tried that a bit last year and discovered we were much better off a
That night, I laid awake on my back in my bed, alone, staring up at the ceiling, wondering why I’d said that to Sam and what I was going to do about it. Outside of my window, I heard familiar howls and knew that a large part of my pack was out there roaming around, doing whatever it was they do at night.A thousand thoughts ran through my head, but mostly, I just kept thinking about what I had said to Sam and what it meant. I’d told him I loved him. I’d said it in a joking way. But I knew in my heart that I meant it.Did that mean I didn’t love Ben anymore?I couldn’t say for sure. But I felt like the more space Ben tried to give me, the more I found myself learning to live without him. That also scared me. I didn’t want to have to live in a world without Ben in it, and I di
The next few weeks dragged on, and then it was time for our big day. Graduation. A day I’d been looking forward to for as long as I could remember. As much as I enjoyed school, I was ready for it to be over with. I was ready to close this chapter in my life and start a new one. Even though I still wasn’t completely clear about what was going to happen next, I knew I was ready to get on with it.My parents were coming for the event of course. When they arrived at the house a few hours before we were due to arrive at the high school gym, where the ceremony would be held. My mom rushed up the porch steps before Max even managed to get the van in park, her arms open wide. It had been too long since we’d seen each other.“There she is!” Mom gushed, wrapping me up in a tight hug. “Oh, how I’ve missed you!”
I wanted to concentrate on all of the graduation speeches, but it was hard. I kept touching my earrings, twirling them in my ears, brushing my hair back behind my ears so that everyone could see them. They were a distraction, but so was the fact that I knew Sam was sitting in the bleachers with my parents. I wanted to turn my head and look at him, sitting there all handsome in his tie and suit pants.I kept my eyes focused on the dais in front of me, though. We were out on the football field that was never used for football because the town wasn’t big enough to have a team. I think they may have used it for soccer, and they used the track around the outside for the track team, but it probably shouldn’t have been called a football field. Nevertheless, the graduates were all sitting facing the stage, and the family members and guests were in the bleachers to our left. Eventually, all of the speec
Being out of school felt weird. I’d missed a lot of days of school that year, but knowing I never had to go back to high school, that I might never have to go back to a school building again to attend classes, seemed almost unbelievable to me.The night of graduation, I had spent alone in my bed, even though I wanted to be with Sam. My parents and Grayson were spending the night, and it just seemed weird to be sleeping with a guy while they were there. Especially since Sam wasn’t even my boyfriend.Saying goodbye to my parents the next morning was difficult. I wasn’t sure why it seemed so sad for them to be leaving this time any more than it was any other time, but I had to hold back tears when I hugged them goodbye. I hate crying because I think it makes me look weak, and I don’t like to look weak in front of my pack--or anyone else for