* * *
I waited until five minutes till midnight before I left the dorms and headed to the woods for fight club. Walker wasn’t back yet. He’d met Paris earlier, and I imagined the two were doing exactly what he’d insinuated Tori and I should be earlier today. Most nights, I hated when he came in late, but tonight it had worked out perfectly, considering I had someplace else to be and would rather not have to explain where.
I said hey to a few people in the small lounge area as I made my way to the stairs. While it was true there were curfews in place, the house was never locked down. I’d learned that early last semester. We were allowed to come and go as we pleased. The only curfew-related rule I’d seen enforced was the one about there being no members of the opposite sex in dorm rooms past midnight. However, like Walker, there were a few who didn’t abide by this rule.
As I walked, no one stopped me to ask where I was going or what I was doing out so late. When I made it outside, the cold night air felt good against my heated skin. After a few steps, I passed the faculty and staff building without anyone saying a word, and then I was almost to the woods. The closer I came, the more intense the feeling of eyes being on me became. I wasn’t alone, but I was okay with that. It was probably Bryant, watching as all of the members made their way to the first fight of the new semester.
I inhaled a deep breath. Damn, it felt good to be out here.
I slipped into the woods and my wolf paced with anticipation. Partly because he was ready to run. To give into his fur and pound his paws against the damp earth as he pushed himself through the night. He also was eager to see me go head-to-head with someone again. There was a level of pleasure he took in seeing me beat someone’s ass.
The half-mile trek into the woods felt like it took forever, but I knew it was a trick of the mind. Both my wolf and I were excited to be here. Excited for a fight. When I finally stepped into a clearing, I relaxed. And, so did my wolf.
Bryant wasn’t standing among the others, but I knew he would be soon. I nodded to everyone. Some shook my hand. Some slapped me on the back. Here, there were no houses dividing us; there was only an ability to fight and a certain level of respect that came with it.
As soon as Bryant came into the clearing, he made his way to the center of the group.
“Evening, everyone. I hope you’ve all had a good break. Same as I hope everyone here is ready to fight. I’m sure you’ve all got some pent-up energy, same as me. How about we get that energy out?” His eyes scanned over each of our faces. “Pair up. I don’t care how. Biggest man against smallest. Girl against guy. Hell, I don’t care if it’s against someone you’ve already fought before. Find yourself a challenger. Now.”
Electricity hummed through my veins as I scanned those around me. Who did I want to go against? Who wanted to go against me? My gaze paused on Axel Stone.
“Down for a rematch?” he asked, popping his knuckles as the curve of a smile twisted his mouth.
I stepped forward. “Absolutely.”
“Everyone have a challenger?” Bryant asked.
“No. Not everyone. I don’t have someone to go against,” someone said. When his voice cracked, I looked to see who the poor sap was.
It was Lee Twain.
He was dressed in one of his stupid comic character t-shirts and looked like he was about to hyperventilate. What was he so scared of? His last fight he’d creamed the guy. One punch was all it had taken. Granted, the guy was smaller than Lee, but still. He’d taken him down and seemed to have gained a hell of a lot of confidence because of it.
Where was that confidence now?
“Guess you’re with me, Twain,” Bryant said.
My stomach bottomed out. Immediately, I felt awful for Lee. No one wanted to go against Bryant. Not even me. He was one scary looking guy. The only person I’d say who might revel in the thought of going against him was standing across from me. Axel Stone. He could take Bryant easily.
His roommate, though? Not a chance.
Lee blinked. “Uh, are you serious?”
“Deadly,” Bryant insisted.
Lee swallowed hard. “Okay.”
I grinned at him. Maybe he had bigger balls than I’d given him credit for.
“Okay,” Bryant said with a smirk. “When I count to three, I’m gonna push this button on my phone and everyone can begin fighting. The fights stop when one of you taps out, passes out, or the bell rings.”
I glanced at Lee. His face looked a little pale. I was positive it was because he knew he was about to get beat.
I directed my attention back to Axel. My feet shifted apart, placing myself in a fighting stance as I continued to hold his stare. I’d learned a lot since the last time we’d gone toe-to-toe, and I was more than ready to show him.
A slow smile formed on Axel’s face. He was just as ready as I was for this.
We all were.
“Fight!” Bryant shouted.
I lunged forward, sending the first punch soaring through the air. It connected with Axel’s jaw. It barely rattled him, but I felt like it had nearly broken my hand. He was solid muscle. When he chuckled, I knew I was about to get my ass handed to me. He swung and missed. I’d felt the air off it; he’d been so close. My adrenaline spiked, and we began our dance of the night.
Tori
I paced the length of my dorm while I waited on Holt to come. I’d been waiting for this moment all day, but now my stomach decided to twist into knots the size of my fist. Summer had left thirty minutes ago to meet a guy from her Essentials class for drinks at Last Call, which meant there was no one around to talk me out of my panic.
My gaze fell to my watch. Ten minutes. He would be here in ten tiny minutes. My throat pinched tight. The desire to look through the photos I’d picked out for him to see shifted through me again. I resisted. It had taken me hours to dig through everything. Nothing had seemed perfect enough. I wanted to showcase my best work, the stuff that anyone would find beauty in, even if it was marginal, but it had been hard. I was too indecisive. Too critical of my own work. I imagined that was how every artist was, though.
We all knew exactly how to tear apart something we’d found beautiful while creating.
My gaze skimmed the pictures I’d laid on my bed. Since nature scenes were my favorite, and I’d been told they were a strength of mine, I decided to go with the few reels I’d had developed of the woods surrounding the academy. I’d also tossed in a few shots of the campus at sunset and sunrise. Now that I was looking at them, they seemed pretentious. Maybe Holt wouldn’t think so. Maybe he would focus on the sky being lit with all the vibrant colors behind the backdrop of the Gothic buildings. Still, my heart pounded. Showing anyone my photographs always had me feeling as though I were standing in front of them naked while they inspected every inch of my body.
My teeth sank into my bottom lip as I glanced at my watch again. Seven minutes.
My mind circled what I would say to introduce Holt to each picture. I played through different responses I thought he might give, and then tried to imagine where the night would go afterward. A person could only look at pictures for so long. I hadn’t pulled up many. Fifty maybe, but I didn’t think he’d actually get through them all.
I imagined he would make it through the first twenty before becoming bored.
A knock at my door startled me. I glanced at my watch. Five minutes. If it was Holt, he was early.
My mouth grew dry as I stepped to the door. I pulled in a deep breath, trying to steady myself, and fixed my expression into one I hoped came off as warm and inviting instead of nervous to the point of puking.
“Hey, you’re early,” I said as I swung the door open, coming face-to-face with Holt. He was dressed in a pair of jeans, a green plaid shirt that made his eye color brighten, and a pair of shoes that looked like ones a person would wear on a hike. There was a slight bruise under one of his eyes and a cut on the side of his chin.
Had he been playing basketball again?
I knew he played wi
th a few of the guys from our house sometimes. They were a rough bunch. At least, I thought they were, given the cuts and bruises that always seemed to appear on his beautiful face after a game with them.
Holt ran a hand through his dirty blond hair. The expression on his face looked boyish and cute. Immediately, my nerves relaxed, and my attention on the remnants of his latest basketball game escapade faded to the back of my mind. “Yeah. I know. I couldn’t hold out any longer. I’ve been pacing the hall for a good fifteen minutes now, maybe longer, trying to decide when I should knock on your door.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I’ve been pacing the length of my dorm for a while too. I wouldn’t have minded if you’d come earlier.”
He grinned. “If only I’d trusted my gut and knocked when I first thought, neither of us would’ve wasted so much time suffering.”
I stared into his eyes, loving what he’d said more than I should. “If only.”
Why did he have to be so cute? Why did I have to fall for him so hopelessly fast? And, why did I second-guess myself constantly for it? I wished I could be more like Summer. She always let loose and waited to see where the moments took her. Not me. I was a damn stick-in-the-mud.
“Are you planning on inviting me in? Or did you want to go someplace else? The dining hall or out for coffee maybe?” Holt crammed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans, his eyes never wavering from mine.
My hand slammed against my forehead. I stepped to the side. “Oh. Shoot. Yeah. Come on in. Sorry.” My face flushed through twenty shades of red. I could feel it. My cheeks were on fire. “I pulled everything up on my laptop, and set out a few prints. Nothing fancy. They’re just a few pictures I thought were decent.”
My heart pounded as he stepped into the room, closing the door behind him. Holt walked to my bed where the pictures were laid out, keeping his hands in his pockets. I exhaled the breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding and stepped to his side. I tried to remember the things I’d planned to say once he was looking at my pictures, but my mind was a blank void. All I could think about was him being in my room. Inches away from me… from my bed. His eyes were on my art, soaking in pieces of my soul. His opinion mattered more than I thought it would, and I waited for him to say something.
Anything.
“These are fantastic,” he finally said, but I couldn’t tell if he truly meant it. I couldn’t see his face because I was too much of a coward to lift my eyes and look. All I wanted to do was hide. Why had I agreed to this? “The way you’ve angled the camera to capture the full length of the academy and get so much of the sunrise behind it is breathtaking.”
Air filled my lungs. He liked it. I could hear it in his tone. Well, my wolf could.
“Thanks.” I moved to clasp my hands behind my back. If I didn’t, I’d reach out and touch him. He was too close, and with such a limited amount of space between us, it was hard for me to think.
“I love this one too.” He pointed to a photo I’d taken before winter break. It was of the woods behind the faculty and staff building. “The way the fog is rolling in. The clear sky above. The little dots of stars barely visible. And, those shadows where the trees stand. It’s haunting in the best of ways.”
My mouth dried up. That was exactly what I’d been thinking the moment I snapped the image. Holt understood art. He understood me.
That thought scared the shit out of me.
I licked my lips. “Uh, yeah. The contrast I was able to capture at the moment was definitely haunting. That’s what I was thinking when I took the picture.”
Holt shifted to stare at me. “Is this all you planned on showing me, or is there more?”
There was a hungry look in his eyes that excited me. It made me want to show him more. To bring him further into the world behind the lens with me.
“I have more pulled up on my laptop if you want to look at them. I wasn’t sure if my pictures would be your cup of tea. All art is very person specific as far as their tastes.” I stepped to where my laptop sat open on the desk and tapped the mouse pad, bringing the computer to life.
His eyes were on me. I could feel them. Heat crept up my neck, reddening my skin.
“I want to see as much as you’re willing to show me, Tori.” My name coming from his lips was everything. “You’re really talented. I mean that.”
“Thank you.” I pushed my bangs out of my eyes, and motioned to my laptop. When his attention drifted from me to the screen, I pulled in a breath. “These are from sort of all over. It’s an accumulation of a few of my favorites I’ve taken throughout the years.” I moved aside so he could sit at the desk and view the images at his own pace.
Minutes ticked by without him saying a word. I said a few things here and there in regard to each of the pictures that he seemed to pause on for longer than the others, trying to explain my motivation behind taking them or what I was attempting to capture. His silence made my stomach twist.
Maybe he didn’t think these ones were as good as the others. He was a hard person to read.
“Do you have a favorite?” Holt surprised me by asking once he’d reached the final image in the folder. “Not of the ones you showed me, but of all-time.” His eyes lifted to lock with mine, and it was clear he genuinely wanted to know.
“I do.” I bent at the waist to pull up the image on my laptop. The movement placed us closer to one another, causing my entire left side to tingle and pulse with his nearness. My wolf panted. I knew it was because she wanted him as much as I did. My teeth sank into my bottom lip, hoping he couldn’t sense her desire or my own. “This one.”
I shifted back to standing, allowing him space so he could see the image for himself. It didn’t matter if he liked it or not, because it was my favorite. There were so many emotions attached to the memory of when I’d snapped the image that no words anyone ever said about it would be able to tarnish it for me. It would always be my favorite.
“Holy shit. I love it,” he said. “Wow. The way they’re looking at each other as they enter the woods. The dusky night sky as the backdrop behind them. I love everything about this picture.”
I folded my arms over my chest and shifted on my feet. “Thanks. Me too. The wolves in it are actually my parents.”
“Your parents are wolves?”
He shifted to face me. While we might have known each other since the beginning of school, we didn’t know every detail about one another. We each had our own stories about how we came to be what we are, and I guessed this was the moment where I told mine.
I wondered how Holt would react when he learned I’d went into this wolf thing willingly. There seemed to be so many in Wolf Bitten who wouldn’t have chosen this life for themselves had they been given the choice. I wondered if Holt would be one of them. While I didn’t know the story of how he’d come to be what he was, I figured there was probably anger attached to it because he often seemed pissed about things.
I flashed him a small smile and shrugged. “Yeah, they are.”
“How are you Wolf Bitten if your parents are wolves? Wouldn’t you be Wolf Born instead?” His confusion was palpable. I understood why.
“Um, well yes. Technically. If they were my biological parents, but they’re not. I’m adopted.”
Holt’s eyes widened. “Oh. Sorry. I didn’t know.”
“It’s nothing to be sorry about. And, you’re right, you didn’t know. Not many do. It’s not something I like to talk about. Summer knows, of course, but no one else. Not because it bothers me, but because it doesn’t matter. My parents are my parents. They raised me. They’re the only parents I’ve ever known.”
“How old were you when you were adopted?” he asked and then licked his lips. “I mean, you don’t have to answer that question if you don’t want to.”
“Four. I was with them for almost two years before that though. As their foster kid. They weren’t able to have kids of their own for whatever reason, so they decided to foster. I was the first foster kid g
iven to them. Thankfully, they said they fell in love with me quickly and wanted to keep me. They filed for adoption as soon as they could.” Warmth centered in my chest as I remembered the story.
“That’s amazing. I’m glad you had a good childhood and found a happy home with them, but how is it you became Wolf Bitten?” The question burned through his eyes.
“I found out what they were.” My gaze dipped to my laptop. “Actually, the night that picture was taken was when I found out they were werewolves.”
“How old were you when that happened?”
“Eight.”
His eyes bugged. “You were only eight-years-old, and yet you thought to take a picture of them in wolf form instead of running out of the house screaming?”
“What can I say, I’ve always loved photography. Especially when it comes to nature.” I chuckled. “It helped that they were always good to me too. I knew in my gut there was no reason to fear them. Not even while they were in their wolf form.”
Holt ran his fingers through his hair. His Adam’s apple bobbed when he swallowed hard. “Did you choose this life?”
“Yeah, I did.” I nodded, but continued to hold his stare. It felt important. I’d gathered the sense that he was trying to see if I was lying, and I needed him to know I wasn’t. “I love them. They had already brought me into their family. They accepted me. And, by choosing this, I accepted them. Fully. I have no regrets.”
The look that shifted over his face had me thinking he would never have chosen this life for himself had he been given the choice. Our paths were different, but we still ended up at the same place. Lunar Academy.
It was funny how life turned out that way sometimes.
“Would you have chosen differently?” I asked, knowing the tension in the room wasn’t going away until he’d said his piece.
His jaw moved back-and-forth as his eyes grew glossy. I wondered where his mind went. Had he gone back to the moment he was bitten? Or was he somewhere else?
“My story isn’t as happy as yours,” he said after another few seconds ticked away. “This wasn’t something I chose for myself. It was something forced upon me out of anger and blind rage.”
Wolf Bitten: Lunar Academy, Year One Page 7