The Wolf

Ch. 5: Alex's Determination

~Alex~

That night, after visiting Nico's abandoned house, I couldn't sleep. It was as though the ghost of his memory was haunting me. In the gloom of my dark room, I toss and turn, my body entangled in a knot of blankets. After what seems like an eternity of staring up into the darkness, I shove away the irritating blankets. I sit on the edge of my bed and run a hand through my hair. I need to go for a run.

I change into running clothes and pull on a pair of tennis shoes. I ignore the fact that it is 12 a.m. No one would bother me about where I was going, I was an alpha and a male; I could protect myself. The entire house was dark and when I get outside I could see the surrounding houses were the same way. Everyone was either asleep or on their phones laying in the dark.

I jog out of the clearing and down a well-trodden path. I pump my legs harder and feel my lungs heaving. I feel great. The cold morning air soaks into my lungs and whips at my face. When my breathing turns heavy, I slow my pace down. I could feel the wolf in me begging to change. He wanted to run around as well. I let him have his way, having not let him free in a while.

My body changes from human to wolf. Bones popping out of place, shrinking, rearranging. I'm now on all fours. I feel the dirt beneath my paw and feel the air differently. Everything is sharper, my hearing, my eyesight, and my sense of smell. My wolf revels in the feeling of being free and having control. We run through the woods, jumping over logs, dodging trees and their branches.

I pick my way through the woods to my secret spot. It was a cave covered by vines and moss that made it blend in with the rest of the scenery. I walk through the cave's hidden mouth and through the dark passageway to the light at the other end. I burst out of the other end of the tunnel and come into view of my hidden place.

A waterfall rushes to my left and a big lake sprawls over the terrain of the hidden valley. The reason why not many people have found this is because it is really well hidden, and two if you didn't know the hidden spot, you'd have to climb the mountain to get in from above.

I change back into my human form with ease. My clothes cling to me from sweat. I strip them off and lay them by the side of the lake. Over the sound of the waterfall I could hear the sound of the wildlife; crickets, frogs, etc. I look up and I see the stars displayed nicely over the black-velvet sky. It was a captivating place at night, and breath-taking by day. I wanted to show this to my mate; when I find them.

I dip myself into the water that is shockingly cold. I dive under the water to adjust to the temperature. I swim a few laps before realizing that I was exhausted and ready to go home.

***

"Alex, wake up! It's time for you to get your lazy bones up and out of bed." My mom scolds me from the doorway.

I groan as I roll over and sit up. I shouldn't have done my little journey; I feel exhausted.

I pick up a T-shirt off the floor at random and pull it on along with a pair of jeans. I really had to clean my room, it was a mess, and I never heard the end of it from mom.

A couple minutes later I was stuck sitting in the car with mom as she gossiped about her friends. I just lay my head against the cool, glass window. I'm tired. I wonder if anything cool will happen at school today. I still had to sign up for football. Maybe I'd run into that mystery kid who was feeling ill yesterday. If he was a werewolf and didn't have a pack, it was my job as an alpha to recruit him into ours.

Apparently, I looked like I was sulking to my mom, because she stopped her talking and asked, "Sweetheart, is everything OK?" She glances to me out of the corner of her eye in concern.