~ E V E R E T T ~
‘Who was that, sweetheart?’ My mother asked as I approached her.
Rolling my eyes, I shook my head, ‘Nobody important.’
‘I’ve not seen her around before, is she that new wolf everyone is talking about?’ She peered over, staring at her inquisitively.
Running my fingers through my hair, I huffed, ‘Like I said, she’s nobody important.’ I looked back to see Amelia wandering around the village, her eyes glistened as she gazed upon her surroundings. Those innocent-looking eyes are hiding a dark secret, I just know it.
As I turned back around, Mum raised a brow at me and shook her head, ‘You need to stay focused, now more than ever, Everett,’ she clasped her hands together and kept them low, h
~ A M E L I A ~It’s warm. No, it’s hot. Scalding.Fire.There’s a fire.Oh god, not again…My eyes fluttered open and, as they came to focus, my entire surroundings were engulfed in flames. Don’t panic. Do not panic.I couldn’t move. I can never move. The flames were inching closer and closer. The heat of the flames stung my skin, though not yet touching me. A deafening scream plunged my eardrums. No. Screams. Many others were screaming.What is happening?As the flames came closer to my skin, my body felt like it was ready to shut down, even though all I wanted to do was fight, but I was helpless, motionless. Suddenly, a shadow-like figure appeared in the distance. It appeared to scan the entire room, before setting its gaze towards me. I couldn’t determine whether it was a man or a woman; was it human? At that instant, it rushed towards me and my heart sank into my stomach.The surrounding screams continued…~ ~ ~ PHREEEEEEEET!Jolting up and gasping for air, I sat up and res
~ A M E L I A ~The universe is out to get me. That was the only reason I could think as to why I was forced to be taught by Everett-bloody-Shaw. His eyes were still locked onto mine, but in a slow blink he focused his gaze elsewhere, as if he didn’t care for me being present. He pulled off his jacket and threw it behind him on the ground, revealing himself in a black compression shirt and dark grey jogging bottoms. The shirt wrapped around his defined muscles as if it was made specifically for his body, he was even more ripped than I thought. His abs do poke through his shirt. Trying to focus my gaze elsewhere, I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of staring at him since he was already full of himself enough, but my attention went to his arms, which I had no idea were fully tattooed. I couldn’t catch the details of it all, but I did get a glimpse of what looked like a deer skull on one of his forearms; he kept moving, so I couldn’t see it all, but it definitely looked like t
~ A M E L I A ~Sprinting towards him, I tried to pull together the knowledge I had for fighting. I felt so thankful that my parents had me in so many different extracurriculars growing up, which included kickboxing, Karate and Taekwondo. However, my fear was casting a shadow over all my knowledge. I couldn’t recall what to do. I couldn’t strategise. Everett raised a foot lightly, dragging it back just an inch, ready to make his move, ready to analyse me. Wait, he did that before, with Kenneth. Kenneth pulled his right—no—his left fist back, which made Everett pull his left foot back to counter-attack. I can do this. I just need to think tactically. Pulling my left fist back as I approached closer to Everett, who had pulled his left foot back further. His eyes were locked on me, like a hungry predator watching his prey, waiting for me to fall into his trap so he could make the kill; but I was ready. I had a plan.As I approached him, I swung my fist towards him, just as Kenneth di
~ A M E L I A ~Last night, as promised to Sammy, after dinner, I went straight home and rested. Well, I sat in bed and read one of the books from the library until about 1 a.m., which was still better than what I had previously done, so it counts as an improvement. The school had been pretty tame during the morning, and the head teacher had sent all of Year 13 home at lunchtime to allow the new wolves to prepare for the full moon in the evening. Sammy dragged me to the local diner where she and her group of friends liked to hang out. Our group, I guess I should say, seemed to have made my way to being a part of the group without even trying. There was Theo (the guy she totally had a crush on), Gabriel and Kaylee, who was Gabriel’s girlfriend and mate. ‘Amelia, are you excited about witnessing our crazy full moon ritual?’ Theo asked. ‘Uh,’ I cleared my throat, ‘yeah, it still surprises me that the pack can’t shift whenever you want, but I’m interested in seeing how tonight pans ou
~ A M E L I A ~The evening arrived swiftly, just as I did at the night’s event. The village looked stunning. I was in awe. Surrounding the area were numerous stalls of food and games, the stage on the left was huge, where the band were preparing to play their music, and there were floating lanterns all around to light up our surroundings as the sky darkened.It was like a carnival, but better!A grin grew across my face, admiring the people of the village—of the pack—chatting and laughing away, celebrating what was a joyous event for them all.Wandering around, searching for any of my friends, I finally saw Sammy in the distance talking to her mum with a huge grin on her face, looking utterly beautiful in her dress. She was so excited about shifting for the first time she wouldn’t shut up about it for weeks—debati
~ A M E L I A ~‘What the hell are you doing?’ I asked, infuriated.‘Sorry, did I interrupt something?’ he replied sarcastically, his usual calm egotistic face leering upon mine.Trying to push him away, I failed instantly. Whatever increase in enhancements I might have been feeling under the full moon, Everett was feeling it at an even greater level. Once again, I had no chance. I questioned if I would, even if I had my wolf.He moved one hand from my waist up to my lower back and pulled me closer to him.All I could do was stare into his soul-stealing eyes and arrogantly handsome face. Feeling a sense of unease and powerlessness, not being able to do anything. If he wasn’t such a jerk, someone could probably find great delight in being so close to him, being held by him, smelling his sweet and piney aroma…
~ A M E L I A ~As I watched Everett walk away, my line of vision was immediately taken over by Hudson speeding over to me.‘Are you alright?’ Hudson said, cupping my face in his hands, ‘You looked so upset at one point, I was—’‘I’m okay,’ I choked out, gripping his wrists, ‘I’m okay…’Hudson dropped his hands from my face and took hold of mine, taking me away from the dance floor and away from the crowds. We stood on the edge of the festivities, on the borderline of the forest, ‘What did he say to you?’Dropping my head, I couldn’t look at Hudson without wanting to just fall apart.Don’t cry. You can not cry.I had felt ready to tell Sammy, not everything, but enough to make her feel like she knew me. And, if all went well, I’d tell the rest of the group, including Hudson. Now Everett knows and if anyone else f
~ E V E R E T T ~A roar of hysteria boomed through the village. Murmurs of worry pulsed throughout the crowd and echoed through the forest as I dashed back to the village centre. Elders on their knees praying to the Moon Goddess, parents consoling their children who were meant to have their first shift this month, and others in the villages, screaming, crying and raging for answers. The moon had definitely hit the peak of the sky, yet we’re not shifting. I tried to summon the shift, hoping that, if we weren’t forced into shifting, it could have meant we’d gained full control back somehow, but alas, that wasn’t the case. We cannot shift. The curse was still in place, but it had changed.Why? My mother was being wrapped back in her shawl by her handmaiden, Gladis. Her face was pale, full of shock and betrayal.‘Mum,’ I called, buttoning up my shirt as I rushed over to her, ‘what the hell is going on?’She held her hand on her chest, trying to steady her staggering breath, ‘I don’t kn
~ A M E L I A ~The day before the full moon, everyone in the village was on edge about what may or may not come. All my friends were feeling extra agitated. The closer the full moon came, the more heightened their emotions and abilities were, edging closer to shifting, but not having access to do it at their own free will. It was devastating to see their struggle. I was even feeling the moon’s effect more in comparison to last month, as my eighteenth birthday was nearing. It only made me sympathise more with the rest of the pack, as what I felt was a mere fraction against everyone else.‘Can someone please tell me why we’re spending our Wednesday evening in the gym?’ Sammy huffed, sitting on the floor by the weights. Theo frowned, ‘I thought it would be a good idea for us to release some of the steam we’ve all got building up in us, and for us to hang out together.’Sammy’s eyes rounded, ‘Oh, babe!’ She hugged him tightly, ‘You’re too cute.’Kaylee and I rolled our eyes. Every We
~ A M E L I A ~He pushed me.He pushed me……off a cliff! A CLIFF.That bastard. The second he pushed me, my heart sank to my stomach and felt like it was going to fall out of my rear with the amount of anxiety and fear that consumed me. I knew I should never have trusted him. I gasped loudly, not having time to process my impending death, but… There was no splat. Why was there no splat? My eyes were squeezed shut so tight, I thought my eyelids were going to rip. A few seconds passed, and enough courage grew within me, I peeled my eyes open and saw Everett gripping my forearms. He was smiling. That arsehole still had that smug smirk plastered all over his stupidly handsome face. If he hadn’t been preventing me from sudden death, I would slap him silly. I snarled, ‘What the fuck are you playing at?’ I yelled, ‘Pull me up!’Everett’s head tilted to the side, his smirk growing stronger with each second going by, as my distaste for him also grew, ‘Now, now, where would the fun in
~ E V E R E T T ~The morning air was much cooler than usual. It had rained for a couple of hours last night, but a few hours of sun had already dried up the ground, leaving the only evidence of rain in the refreshing, crisp air. Taking in a deep breath, filling my lungs with the chilled air, and enjoying the view of the lake. It was one of my favourite places to be. In the distance, I could hear steps approaching. Amelia.I could tell it was her immediately, not only because no one else ever comes to this side of the forest, and not even from the sound of her steps, but from her scent. A scent that was ingrained into my mind— floral and citrusy. Elegance and beauty with a twist and tang, it was a fitting scent for her. ‘You know,’ Amelia said in a subtle huff, ‘you could’ve just told me to pack my bag for a hike instead of sneaking a note into my pocket like a creep.’ A faint smirk peaked on one side of my mouth, I turned to face her, my arms crossed as I leaned against a tree, ‘
~ A M E L I A ~I knew I could speak for all my friends when I said that we were all grateful to have the first and second period free. It was put in place for revision in the lead-up to our final exams, but we took it as an excuse to go out clubbing on a Thursday night. What a wild night it turned out to be.The plan was to have breakfast at the diner before heading to school together. Hudson and I were already running very late, and as tempted as we were to be even later… we were both starving. So I quickly got myself together and we headed to the diner.As soon as we entered, a random group of people cheered and whistled at me.‘It’s the girl that stood up to Betty!’ One of them called.That made a bunch of other people in the diner turn and star
~ A M E L I A ~After dropping off Gabriel and Kaylee, then Sammy and Theo, the whole cab ride home, Hudson remained silent, staring out the window the entire time. We finally made it to my cottage and walked down the pathway, still hushed.I couldn’t take it anymore, I wanted to break the silence, but I had no idea what to say.As we arrived at the door, Hudson turned to face me, ‘Are you okay?’A nod, ‘I’m fine…’ I said in a questioning tone, wondering why he was being so weird.He tucked my hair behind my ear and smiled faintly, ‘You should rest,’ he said before planting a kiss on my forehead and stepping back, ‘I’ll come get you in the morning before we head for the diner.’As I watched him
~ A M E L I A ~I was crying.My head was pressed on my arms, which were resting on my knees as I was balled up in the corner of the room.‘Amelia, why are you crying?’ My dad’s voice echoed in the empty room.Looking up at him, my pre-teen eyes glazed with a thousand tears, my voice staggering trying to steady my breath, ‘Th-th-they shoved m-me a-and kicked m-me…’Dad, kneeling in front of me, huffed a suppressed chuckle, shaking his head, ‘Oh, sweetie, that’s what they do during these fights.’Shaking my head, ‘I-I don’t w-want to d-do it any m-more…’He frowned, ‘Really?’&nb
~ A M E L I A ~Eager to get out of the washroom, I faintly smiled and shook Betty’s hand, ‘Nice to meet you, it seems like you already know who I am.’ I shrugged, ‘Amelia. Hi.’Betty held a simpering smile, that coldness echoed through her eyes and entire body. She analysed me from head to toe, which only made me feel more awkward about the encounter. Turning her head to the side slightly, indicating her communication to her blonde friend, but her eyes stayed locked on mine, ‘What do you think, Ella?’The blonde, Ella, eyed me up and down, just as Betty did, ‘I don’t see it,’ she said in a condescending tone. Another innocent face hiding her true colours.‘No,’ Betty scoffed, ‘neither do I.’ She crossed her arms and gazed at me with narrow eyes,
~ A M E L I A ~Everett’s piercing silver eyes were looking right through me. His fiery gaze made me feel like I would just melt onto the floor.‘What? Why?’ My brows furrowed as I frowned, but then I pushed a faint smug smile, ‘Don’t tell me you’re against underage drinking? It’s okay, I’m 18 in…’ I counted on my fingers sluggishly, the alcohol was hitting me now, ‘two months! Oh, and a day.’He moved his face closer, and seriousness was painted all over him, ‘I’ve had a strange feeling all day like something bad was going to happen, then I see you here and that feeling has intensified.’I scoffed, ‘Everett, I promise I’m here to have fun, not to cause trouble like you always think.’Looking deep into my eyes, his face softened, ‘I didn’t say you wer
~ A M E L I A ~‘The others are already inside, I think Sammy and Theo were grabbing our usual table,’ said Gabriel, still gripping my shoulder.Entering the club, all eyes immediately darted towards us, towards me.My already heated cheeks burned more with a red hue. I hated all this attention.Kaylee walked over; her eyes dropped, locking on Gabriel’s hand on my shoulder before looking back at me. A knot twisted in my chest, I hoped she didn’t think anything was going on between Gabriel and me apart from a genuine friendship.I leant in towards Hudson to indicate that even more.She looked over to Gabriel and smiled softly, ‘Shall we?’Gabriel’s grip on me dis