My Beastmen Vol. 1

Ch. 1

I walk into my apartment, exhausted. My job forced me into a double again. Dropping my keys on the end table, I finally plop on the couch. I turn on the TV and flip through the channels. The local news appears, and they're covering the disappearances of two young women. They say they disappeared without a trace and have no reason to leave their lives behind. It's like they just dropped off the face of the Earth.

I flip through them some more and pull the couch blanket over me. Its softness lulls me to sleep in almost no time.

I wake up to the sound of birds in the trees. Once my eyes adjust, I look around. I'm in the middle of some kind of forest surrounded by trees. It seems like it's the middle of the day, and there's no sign of people.

How did I get here? Did I sleepwalk?

I shake my head; I don't sleepwalk. I pinch my arm to see if this is a dream. "Ow." It's not. I stand up and start walking towards a faint sound of water. "Hello? Is anyone there?" I call out.

There's no answer.

After walking for an eternity, my feet start to ache. It can't have been long since I worked. As I press on, I find a lake with sparkling blue water. I've never seen water so clear and beautiful. I bend down and dip my fingers into the water, it's cold. I wonder if it's fed through an underwater spring.

I take a long cool sip of the water. As I look up, I see a young man in the water. He might even be the same age as I am, but he has short spikey gray hair. Scars cover his back, glowing against his dark skin.

It takes me a moment to realize that he is naked and bathing in the water. I quietly move away as fast as I can, hiding behind a tree. My heart races, and it feels impossible to breathe. Did I just see a naked man? For the first time? I take a few deep breaths and peek out from behind the tree.

The lake is empty.

"I don't like being spied on." A deep husky voice says from behind me.

I scream in terror.

He turns me around and lifts my chin. "I'd never hurt a female so there's no need to be afraid." He comes close and sniffs me.

I push him off. "Ew! Don't sniff me, you pervert!" My heart races as he looks me up and down.

"Pervert?" He asks. "What clan are you from?"

"What do you mean clan? Where the Hell am I?"

He grabs my shoulder tightly. "Hm." Holding me in place he sniffs me again. His breath grazed the nape of my neck.

I get goosebumps from his touch.

Something catches my eye and as I look up at it, I notice their wolf ears on top of his head. They're just as gray as his hair with a small amount of white fluff inside.

I snap out of my trance and find him staring at me with dark gray eyes.

He's very handsome for as young as he looks.

I feel my cheeks heat up just as our eyes lock. I notice another scar just across his face. It's small and crosses over his right eye.

"I don't know what clan you're from. You smell different from others."

"That's concerning."

"Where are your spouses?" He looks around, then back at me.

"Spouses?" I ask confused.

"Do you know anything?" He asks irritated.

I take a step back, looking for an escape route.

He grips my wrist harder and yanks me toward him.