I don't know for how long I walked, but I suddenly felt heavy eyes bore onto my back. I turned around leisurely, gasping as I met bright yellow eyes.

-----------------------------------------

Fiona's POV

A deep voice was calling me.

There were people all around me and it was noisy, but I just can felt it.

I didn't care. Many people must feel the same way. As if at some time they have seen such a scene. I probably just remembered the sexy voice from a movie.

I made my way through the parking lot, ignoring the constant chatter that went on around me and exited the school's grounds. I turned right and began my usual walk home. Having a car would be ideal now, but seeing that there was barely any space to park inside the school, I preferred walking. And besides, it provided a great source of exercise that I was in dire need of. I wasn't getting chunky or anything, but I liked to stay active whenever I could. Active in the sense of simply walking long distances, not doing a sport that would eventually kill me due to the lack of agility I have. Hey, I am only human!

After about 20-30 minutes, I finally reached my home which seemed isolated from the others. That was the good thing about this neighborhood. There was always a large distance between each home so there was no need to worry about any loud noises that your neighbors would make. Especially the party that was apparently going to occur later on tonight.

I entered my house, surprised to find my dad sitting on his favorite couch watching TV. At the sound of the door opening, he turned around and gave me his heartwarming smile. I smiled in return and walked towards him, planting a kiss on his cheek before a puzzled look took over my features.

"What are you doing here this early?"

He laughed quietly as he sat up straighter, giving me his undivided attention, which was a surprise to me. He always seemed to have something to do so he rarely paid any attention to me unless it was needed.

"Well, this job doesn't require a lot of work and the boss decided to let everyone go home early today. There's supposedly this party that's happening later on tonight and the whole neighborhood is invited. He even went to say that if you and I wanted to go, that we would be welcomed." He paused, tilting his head in question.

"Do you know about this party? Has there been other kids talking about it?"

I couldn't help but roll my eyes as I remembered the constant chatter that never seemed to end whatsoever today. I slumped down on the couch opposite of him, letting my backpack slide onto the floor in front of me.

"Yeah. They wouldn't shut up about it today. I don't see why it's such a big deal anyway." I crossed my arms and looked at the TV, not even bothering to pay any attention to what I was seeing.

Silence erupted in the room, my dad's eyes still on me as I continued to stare at the TV. It wasn't long until his voice echoed around the room.

"Do you want to go, Fiona?"

Whenever he used my full name, I knew he was being serious. Did he see something in my expression that I was accidentally showing? He must've thought that I wanted to go desperately but in all honesty, I couldn't care less if I were to go or not.

"Of course not, dad. We had this fishing trip planned ever since you got that offer to work here. I rather spend time with you than go to that party." It was the honest truth.

He raised an eyebrow at me, not buying what I was saying. Ugh, I hated how he didn't believe me sometimes. This man was a handful.

With a heavy sigh, I turned my head to look at him dead in the eyes as I said slowly,

"I don't want to go dad. I prefer fishing."

"Says the vegetarian," he muttered playfully as he resumed his previous position on the couch. I glared at him mockingly before I stood up and grabbed my bag.

"I'm going to pack. At what time are we leaving?"

He raised his arm as he looked at the silver watch on his left wrist.

"About an hour. We want to be able to make it before sundown."

"Are we coming back by Sunday afternoon?"

He simply nodded his head, letting me know it was the end of the conversation. Some people would think that it was quite rude, but I had already grown accustomed to it. My dad has never been the same after my mom's death, and it was perfectly understandable. They were soul mates, and losing her had to be one of the greatest unfortunate events my dad ever had to encounter. His first was losing his father after he had come back from serving at war, but that wasn't as great as this one. My mom and dad had been going out since his senior year and her junior year in high school. They never once broke it off and even during his time where he had to leave the country, she was completely faithful to him as he was to her. Their love story was truly special and I always wished that I could find a love like that one day after my dad had told me their story when I was 13.

I made my way up the stairs and closed the door behind me once I entered the room. It was going to be easy to pack since I knew exactly what to bring. Since we were heading South, I was pretty sure that the weather was going to be a lot warmer than it was here. It wasn't like it was freezing where I am now, but you can tell that winter was on its way by the chill in the air.

I pulled out my suitcase from under my bed and proceeded to packing all the necessities I needed for the trip, which wasn't much. After packing in my underwear

hey, I wasn't going to wear clothes without anything under

, I entered my closet and pulled out two long sleeved shirts and two tank-tops to accompany them. They didn't cling to my body, which was perfect for the semi-hot weather I was most likely going to endure once I got there. Grabbing two pairs of shorts, I placed them all, neatly, inside of my suit case. Stepping inside my closet once more, I contemplated if I should bring my swim suit. Hmm, why not?

I was done in no time so I decided to grab a few books as well as my school work. I wasn't taking a vacation and it was only the beginning of the school year. I did have homework you know, especially since I was taking AP classes. I was already used to the piles of homework during the weekend, so it was nothing I couldn't handle.

Hours have already passed and we were already close to our usual cabin. The trees were a lot denser here than the ones around our new home, but I didn't mind. I found it quite extravagant as I stared at them while my dad went down the dirt road. The truck was filled with a comfortable silence as we neared our destination.

Finally, after a few more dreadful minutes of my bottom suffering the now hard leather seats below me, my dad pulled up to the cabin and I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. This was practically like my second home and the only thing in my life that still had not changed.

My dad parked the truck and I immediately got out, grabbing my backpack and suitcase before dashing to the house. I didn't even bother to look back as I entered the front door. I went ahead and ran upstairs to the small bedroom I had here and laid out my clothes in the small dresser that came along with the cabin. Once I was done, I headed downstairs and out to the front porch. My dad was already getting settled in his room as I passed his door. He didn't bother to say anything after he saw me walking to the lake that laid out in front of the cabin. Isn't that awesome?!

Taking off my sneakers, I walked towards the still unfrozen lake

it did get frozen throughout the winter you know

. Beneath me, the short green grass turned into small pebbles as I made my way towards the small dock that hovered over the water. It was my favorite place to be while we were here. The calmness and silence of the lake always made me feel at peace.

Seeing as I was still wearing my long jeans that I had worn for school today, I rolled them up to my knees and sat on the wooden dock, splashing the water beneath me. I was quite short for my height, but my legs were still able to touch the water's surface without a problem.

I stayed that way for the next few hours, enjoying the sun as it hit my skin until it began to disappear behind the forest trees. I pulled my feet out of the water, shaking them to allow the water to fall on the deck. Jogging back to the cabin, I grabbed my shoes along the way before sitting on the small stool beside the front door. A towel laid beside it, no doubt it being placed by my dad at some point. After a moment of drying off, I headed inside and began to make us a small dinner.

It had been a few hours since we had eaten and I was quietly reading a novel I had brought along with me in the back porch that overlooked the forest. I had changed my clothes to one of my long sleeved shirts and shorts, despite the chilly air that was now starting to give me goose bumps throughout my entire body.

I shivered slightly, ignoring the sensation as I continued to read. I could hear my dad lightly snoring in the living room, the TV still audible to my ears. For some reason, he always seemed to sleep a whole lot better with the TV on. I don't know for how long I had been sitting here reading, and I didn't realize it until I looked down at my watch. It was already 1:17 in the morning. Holy crap!

I hated how I would get so caught up in a story that I would lose track of time and that would make me lose some sleep every now and then. I'm surprised I'm not sleep deprived yet. Just when I was about to stand up and head inside, I heard something shuffling against the bushes, causing my body to jump on high alert. Placing the book on the railing beside me, I searched the trees with wary eyes. My heart was beating at a fast pace, pounding loudly in my ears.

Jumping off of the wooden railing, I stepped around the small column that connected with the roof of the porch and onto the soft grass below. I don't know why I was even doing this, but my feet didn't hesitate to go towards the source of the sound.

I continued to walk until I reached the bushes. I jumped as high as I could, trying to get a better view of anything behind it, but my eyes only met darkness. I let out a frustrated sigh as I pushed the bushes aside, stepping over them and onto the dark forest. I know, stupid me, but I couldn't help it.

I didn't want to wander off too much in the woods, so I kept myself at a safe distance from the cabin. I'm pretty sure my dad was still sleeping soundly on the couch, so he wouldn't have even noticed my brief disappearance. I didn't plan on staying out here too long, the forest was starting to give me the creeps anyway. I looked around, trying hard to not make a sound as I cautiously made my way through the deep undergrowth of the forest grounds.

I don't know for how long I walked, but I suddenly felt heavy eyes bore onto my back. I turned around leisurely, gasping as I met bright yellow eyes. It didn't seem as if that were their natural color, but since it was dark, I could only assume that's how they seemed to be. Odd right?

I took a step back the second I noticed the large creature emerge through the trees. It was huge! It was pitch black and the only thing visible were its eyes. They seemed to darken in color as the creature approached; and that's when I caught sight of what it was.

My mouth gaped open as recognition dawned on me. It was the same wolf I had seen the first day I had arrived at Black Forest. What the heck was it doing here?

As it continued to stare at me, I couldn't help but feel safe in its presence. I felt no danger emanating off of the creature before me. But I was more surprised to get a random sensation where all I wanted to do was close the small distance that stood between us. I yearned to touch its fur and cuddle against its large form until I fell asleep. Wait, what the heck was wrong with me?

I shook my head as I tried to clear my mind that was running at full speed. Here I was, standing in front of this abnormally large wolf, and yet I wasn't running away screaming at the top of my lungs. I think I have officially gone insane.

Cautiously taking a step to the side in the direction from which I came, I made sure to never look away from it. It watched me carefully, taking in my every move as I made my way towards the bushes near the cabin. Just when I was about a few feet away, I heard it whimper softly before taking a step in my direction. The sound of it nearly broke my heart and I wanted nothing more than to go to it and comfort him as best as I could. If it even was a him.

But reality struck me just then and I turned around and ran towards the cabin, ignoring the book I had been reading just minutes before. I rushed towards my bedroom upstairs, not caring about the loud thuds my feet made as it collided against the wooden floors beneath me. I didn't care if I woke up my dad just then, I just wanted to distance myself from that wolf and bury myself beneath my covers before I officially lost my mind. I don't know what had come over me. I wanted to go to it, to comfort it the second I heard that sound. I wanted to comfort a beast that could easily take my life with a single swipe of its enormous claws. And yet, here I am, my body begging to go back to the woods where I last saw it and never leave its side.

Why was I feeling this way? Why did I feel such a powerful connection all of a sudden for a creature that was meant to be in the wild?