by Tamara White
Despite being the start of a new school year, the teachers were pretty full-on.
Each one started their class by talking about how we’ll be getting harder assignments the closer we get to college. With this being our senior year, our grades must be kept above average if we expect to make it into the colleges we want. Some of it I listened to, other bits I tuned out.
I’m not sure whether college is part of my plans yet, but I will do my best to keep my grades at a level I’m happy with. Dad isn’t too concerned whether or not I’ll go to college. He said he would like me to, but we both know because of my nature, it may be an impossibility. Still, he created a fund for me in case it’s something I wish to pursue.
I weave through the busy hallways, looking at all the other students who will have no qualms about going off to college. Their smiles and excitement cause a little thread of jealousy to form in my heart. The talk of college is so damn suffocating. So many people have great plans for themselves. I guess that’s what happens in senior year, reality sets in.
They have no secrets to keep hidden from people. No need to disappear for days around the full moon. They can come and go as they please. Attend whatever college they want and have the time of their lives.
I, however, need to be vigilant. I’ll be sharing a dorm with humans and have my very own roommate. I won’t be able to hide my nature with someone living in such close proximity to me. If I get pissed off and shift, it only takes one bite to turn a human, and I don’t think I could live with that on my conscience. Besides, college just doesn’t make sense when I plan to be a hunter.
Sure, I’d love to take a class on zoology, maybe mythology, to try and find out answers about exactly what I am and where I came from. I mean, all myth is based in fact somewhere down the line. It’s just been exaggerated to make a great story.
Maybe I can contact people already established in those professions and pose my problem as theoretical to get my answers, while cutting out the part where I have to actually work for the information.
As I get closer to the cafeteria, the halls become more crowded, and students bump into me in their hurry to get inside and eat. I just ignore them, too lost in my thoughts about my future.
Realistically, I’ll probably just continue to work alongside my father to keep other wolves in check and stop them from hurting any more humans.
Whenever he gets word of a wolf close to us acting out, either by killing innocent humans or by turning them, he takes me with him to track them down.
I shift, and my father puts a collar on me with a tracker. It means he can follow after me and take the wolf out once I’ve found it. There have been the occasional wolves I’ve had to destroy before my father could make it to my location, but for the most part, he’s the one who does the killing.
He understands it must be hard for me to kill those who are essentially my species. We had a discussion once where he asked if I worried I might have killed my ‘real’ family, but as I told him, he’s my real family. All those murdering beasts are just animals to me now.
Once you see how vicious most of them are, you realize you are doing the world a favor by destroying them. It would be nice, however, to find out if I’m a freak of nature and the only one who can control those urges, or if I’m destined to be evil too, just like all the others I’ve encountered.
By the time I make it into the cafeteria, I’m ready to eat a herd of deer. The smell of cooked meat makes my mouth water as I survey the room and all the occupied tables. I guess I took too long to get here and find a seat.
The only empty tables are in the center, which isn’t ideal since it leaves me exposed on all sides—something my wolf doesn’t like—but at least there’s a small table with only one seat. All the other chairs have been taken by people at nearby tables, which means I can eat my lunch alone.
I pull out my burgers and start eating with relish, glad I had tons of leftovers.
For dinner last night, Dad and I made hamburgers, fried chicken, and slow-cooked pork belly. I’m sure if we had humans over for dinner, they’d marvel over the amount we made, but one thing Dad and I have learned about my wolf side is that she’s a hungry bitch. She wants meat twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. And if I don’t keep that side sated, I can become a grumpy bitch.
As I chew, I look around the room, the cliques clear from a mile away. The cheerleaders are all grouped together at one long table by the windows that look out onto the snow covered field. My guess is their spot is prime real estate because in the summer, the windows will be open, while in the winter, they have the heat just above them keeping everyone at their table warm. I can hear they’re all talking about me, but it’s nothing I care to focus on.
I unwrap my second burger, moving my gaze to the jock table, which is, of course, not far away from the lunch line. Guys who play sports always seem to need to eat a hell of a lot more than regular guys, so being so close to the food is an optimal spot for them.
Most of the jocks are fixed on their food and devouring it as fast as possible. They could give me a run for my money, and that’s saying something. The few who aren’t eating are glancing over at me, trying to be subtle about it, but the whispered slurs about my body don’t go unnoticed by me. I roll my eyes, ignoring them when they notice I’m watching them, and continue to inspect the layout of the cafeteria.
There are various other tables filled with people, some of whom appear to be long-time friends. This is the only downside of coming to a new school. The search for friends is hard, mainly due to the fact that the students have already formed relationships, so unless you happen to come across another new student, you’re not too likely to be allowed into the formed groups, and if you are, you are still the outsider.
I’m happily munching away on my fourth burger when the hair on my neck rises. A shadow falls over me, and without looking up, I know it’s the girl from my homeroom. The scent of her expensive perfume is a dead giveaway. Hell, even the humans would be able to smell her a mile off.
Still, I expected her to make a move sooner or later. While I chose not to focus on her plotting while I ate, that didn’t mean I blocked it all out. Part of my nature means I’m aware of almost everything going on around me.
The girl has been sitting with her friends and talking about bringing me into their inner circle. Apparently some of the jocks have taken notice of me. Basically, she wants to own my soul so I won’t dare take her boyfriend.
I continue to eat, not acknowledging the fact she’s hovering over me. People sitting at nearby tables have stopped talking to watch what happens when the head cheerleader intimidates me into being her little pet—or bully me into staying away from her boyfriend. I’m not sure which route she’ll take yet.
She clears her throat annoyingly. “Excuse me. It’s rude not to look up when someone wishes to speak to you.” The girl’s voice is high-pitched and filled with self-importance.
I shove the last of my burger in my mouth and finally look up to the dark-haired beauty who is the complete opposite of me. Her black hair and green eyes are very much the epitome of gorgeous, along with her high cheekbones and neatly applied makeup. I’m a blonde, and my eyes differ in color depending on my mood. For the most part, they remain hazel, but they have been known to shift to an amber shade and sometimes even to a pale gray. While I know I’m decent to look at, I don’t put that much effort into making myself stand out.
I stare directly at her, refusing to back down under her attempt to frighten me with her glare.
“And did you know it’s rude to interrupt someone when they’re eating?”
The girl looks confused by my words, unsure what to say. Finally, she splutters out a response. “What?”
“Well, you came over to my table and got annoyed when I refused to acknowledge you. You called me rude for not looking at you when you were the one who was being rude by interrupting someone who was eating. Now that I’ve finished, you may speak.”
I grab my water bottle and take a sip while the girl seems to flounder for words. She straightens her back and glowers at me as I set my water down.
“Do you know who I am?” Her tone is filled with an arrogance that really gets on my nerves.
I smile brightly at her. “Of course I know who you are. You’re the queen bitch of this school. The pretty girl who thinks that because you’re a cheerleader and date a jock, you rule the school and everyone must bend to your will.”
I hear the people at the tables around us muttering to each other under their breath. I was right in my assumption that no one stands up to this chick. I bet if I looked around the room, most people would be watching the drama unfold.
Cheerleader girl slams her hands on the table and leans in close as if to scare me. “You better watch yourself, new girl. I run this school. I could make your life a living hell here.”
I throw my head back, my laughter echoing in the silent space. When it subsides, the murmuring around me grows louder. Everyone is getting an adrenaline rush from observing the queen bee get taken down a peg.
“What’s so funny? I mean it, I’ll make sure everyone in this school knows you’re to be treated like the trash you are.”
My eyes narrow on the girl in front of me, anger riding me. How dare she call me trash?
I get to my feet slowly, noticing the boy in homeroom has sidled up behind his girlfriend, looking at me like I’m a threat to her, and right now, I am.
“Let’s get something straight, little cheerleader. I may be the new girl, but I’m not trash. Most of all, I’m not someone who can be manipulated by your petty words or your little mind games. The only reason you came over here was to assert your authority over me because you got word of a few people taking a liking to me. You wanted to make me feel weak so I would be your little worshipper. But guess what? That’s never gonna happen. You leave me alone, and I’ll leave you alone. That’s the deal. However, if you want to try and make an enemy of me, then that’s on you. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I take my bag and begin to walk away before I turn back to the man who’s by his girl’s side. “I feel sorry for you. If she plays these games with people she doesn’t know, imagine what tricks she must be pulling on you.”
Her boyfriend doesn’t look surprised by my statement, which leads me to believe he knows just what she does to keep him around. I shake my head, utterly disgusted at the stigma this chick is giving other girls by her dick moves.
It’s people like her who make it hard for women to be trusted. I see it out in the real world all the time. Hell, I witnessed it with one of the girls Dad brought home once. She seemed like the perfect person on the outside, but on the inside, she was a manipulative bitch who only looked out for herself.
I leave the cafeteria, well aware of the people who are now animatedly talking about me. I’m sure such a scene hasn’t happened before, or at least for a long while. Most likely the last person to stand up to the head bitch got slammed for going against her royal bitchiness.
It’s going to be impossible to walk around the school now without at least one pair of eyes on me, either studying or judging me. Some people may approach me, but I doubt it. They’ll want to know which of us has more power in the school before taking sides. That’s just how high school works.
But little does queen bee know, I can handle anything she throws at me. The question is, can she handle how I retaliate?
The only thing I can do now, though, is to shove it all to the back of my mind for later. I’ve got more important things to deal with, like ensuring my grades stay high.
Chapter Three
Longest day ever.
I collapse on the couch, absolutely exhausted.
The stupid cheerleader had all of her little minions try to do idiotic, petty things to me for the remainder of the day.
Whether it was tripping me, spilling water down my back or on my bag, whispering horrid names under their breaths, or people just generally bumping into me, trying to agitate me, they did it and more.
I knew it was all her doing because her little followers ensured the bitch was watching when they went through with their schemes.
Rather than avoid her spiteful friends, I kept myself under control and paid attention. I needed to learn more about her. And it paid off. For instance, I now know her name is Hannah, that the guy she was with in homeroom is her boyfriend, and that no one likes her. Sure, they will be nice to her face, which I’ve witnessed, but she’s not winning herself any lifelong friends with her snotty attitude.
She took great joy in watching each of her little minions do something to me, but my lack of reaction pissed her off. Other than usual surprise and annoyance, I endured everything thrown my way. Even if I could have used my enhanced abilities to stop it, I didn’t. But it doesn’t mean I won’t get revenge on her. Bitches like her deserve to be taken down a peg or two.
Dad walks out from his bedroom, looking much more relaxed now that he’s changed out of his black uniform. He managed to get a part-time job as a bartender and cook at the local bar. It doesn’t pay much, but my dad can be one hell of a sweet talker, which means he’ll bring in a decent amount of tips most nights, and since we never stay in a place more than a year, it’s probably the only job he could actually get.
“How was your first day?” He sinks into the couch beside me, resting his feet on the coffee table.
I roll my eyes. “Well, would it be vengeful of me if I hid behind a cheerleader’s house on the night of the full moon in the hopes of making the brat shit herself?”
“Ah, that good then.”
“Could have been worse, I guess. But the girl tried to assert her dominance over me. It didn’t go down well after that. She kind of made a scene in the middle of the cafeteria.”
“Are you sure she was the one who made a scene?” Dad inquires with a barely restrained smile. He knows me too well.
“Okay, maybe she didn’t make a scene, maybe it was me. But I hate girls like that. They make all of us look like bitches.”
“As long as you don’t shift, then I support you. Hopefully tomorrow will go better though.”
I love him for not being the typical parent and telling me to make friends with her, but I doubt tomorrow will be any different.
One thing I’ve learned from previous schools is that the longer you leave something like this unresolved, the more chance it has of festering and becoming a very hostile situation. Especially if it’s someone important in the status quo, like the head bitch or jock.
While I would prefer to avoid violence, there will come a time when the cheerleader will resort to it. It’s the downfall of most school systems. With teenagers of all ages charged with hormones that change every day, sometimes people will make choices they shouldn’t. It’s why my dad always tries to remind me to be better, saying my hormones are more intense than a human’s.
“What are you thinking for dinner tonight? I’m already hungry again.” My stomach rumbles, echoing my sentiment. It’s only been three hours since I ate, but I’m already starving. The joys of being a different creature, I guess.
Dad rubs his neck nervously, doing everything he can to avoid looking directly at me.
“Ah, actually we were invited to a BBQ by a fellow hunter. Duncan and I have a long, complicated history. I kind of hoped he’d moved by now, but he’s still in town. He saw me at the bar earlier and invited us over.”
“What kind of history?” I inquire. Dad hasn’t told me about any long-term relationships with other hunters, but he’s making it sound like he knows this guy really well.
“Well, we grew up together. He and his wife became some of the closest friends I had, but we drifted apart on his wedding day, which was a few months before I found you. I still went on an occasional hunt with him when he asked, but I never told him about you. He found it interesting that I hadn’t spoken of your existence before now, so he insisted we come around for dinner so he could meet you, and
even offered to help train you.”
I blink slowly, unsure if I heard my father correctly. It sounded like he said he told his hunter friend what I am, and that’s something he’s drilled into my head never to do, so why would he?
“You told the hunter I’m a wolf?”
He snorts, laughter in his voice as he responds. “Yeah, because that’s the best way to start our stay in this town. Tell another hunter my daughter is a wolf. Like I’d be that stupid.”
I throw my hands up in annoyance. “Well, how the hell am I supposed to know that? You said when you told him about me, he wanted to meet and train me. What else was I supposed to think?”
“Oh, yeah, I guess I didn’t word that all too well.”
It’s my turn to snort. “Ya think?”
He spears me with a glare, but I just roll my eyes. He’s a giant wuss when it comes to punishing me.
“I’m guessing you told him I was a hunter then.”
“Yep. As far as Duncan knows, you’re training to be a hunter to continue the family legacy. I also had to give him a fake backstory, Eliza. He asked where your mother was. I said she had unfortunately passed away giving birth to you. It was the only thing I could think of on the spot, sorry.”
He appears uncomfortable by the subject, but it doesn’t bother me. We always make up some kind of story for people. Something to stop them from prying. Usually, I just say she’s gone. Most people will just let it drop and not press, though there are a few people who will still ask questions, and I try to keep my answers as vague as possible, or I’ll just be a rude bitch and walk away from the conversation.
“Dad, it’s fine. I’ve never known a mother, only you. And you’re all I’ve ever needed.”
His eyes begin to water, and I feel horrible for reducing him to the point of tears, but I meant it. He has been more to me than any mother possibly could be. He’s taken on the role of both parents and has made me the strongest person I can be.