When The Wolves Come Out

Chapter 8

"Ethan, your eyes..."

"What about them?" He seems slightly worried.

"They..." I can't put my confusion into words,"...change colour."

Ethan nods his head in understanding as though he was expecting my question, taking a deep breath before turning to look at me, his eyes now back to chocolate brown.

"It's time I told you more about myself, Ashlyn. But what I tell you stays between us. I mean it."

I nod. "Tell me everything. Starting with your eyes."

"What colours do you see?"

"I don't know, they change. Most of the time they're a golden hazel colour. Sometimes I've seen them flash red or go a mix between purples and blues."

"Those colours symbolise my emotions."

"Why?" I feel the urge to laugh hysterically at the thought of Ethan being some sort of magical being.

"I'm more than a human." The seriousness of his face pushes away my need to laugh.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm a werewolf, Ashlyn."

Silence passes between us. This was ridiculous!

"A w-werewolf?" I can't believe what I'm hearing. I scoff.

"Yes. Do you believe me?"

I'm lost for words.

"Of course you don't believe me." He sighs and I feel a stab of guilt.

"It's just... werewolves aren't-"

"Real?" he cuts me off. "Please believe me, Ashlyn. It's really important that you do."

"Ethan, I want to believe you, I really do." I sigh. "But... can you please prove it? I mean, werewolves? That's absurd."

Ethan stands up and his jawline begins to move. His shoulder blades crack, pushing his arms forward as his hands become claws. Dark hair begins to cover his tanned skin, and soon enough, there is a wolf staring me in the eyes.

I stroke behind his ear, feeling the soft black fur between my fingers.

"I..." I stutter, lost for words, "I believe you."

**

We sit in the car afterwards, Ethan back in human form. So many thoughts tumble around my head and I feel dizzy from confusion. We haven't spoken much since Ethan told me, or rather showed me, his secret.

"What do the colours in your eyes mean? Like, what emotions?" I ask, trying to empty the car of tension.

"Red is anger, blue is sadness, purple is worry and grey is disappointment."

"What about gold?"

"Gold?" he repeats, slightly confused, his eyes are on the road as he drives us away from the river.

"You're eyes go a sort of golden hazel colour like honey, sometimes."

Ethan smiles, but his eyes don't change colour from the chocolate brown they've been since I asked about them.

"It means happiness."

"And what about pink?"

He doesn't answer me, keeping his eyes averted to the road. I try to shove it off.

"Can you see colours in my eyes?"

"Yes, but not in anyone else."

"What colour are my eyes right now?"

"Grey."

"Why is it only us two that can see colours in each other's eyes?"

He sighs, smiling slightly. "You like asking questions, huh? That's an explanation for another time, Ash."

We pull up to my house and I get out the car along with Ethan.

"Thanks for taking me home. I had a good time." I tuck my hair behind my ear, trying to ignore his intense gaze.

"Ash," he says, "thank you for understanding."

I smile, giving him what I intended to be a quick hug, but he holds me tightly and it's a struggle to pull away.

He finally releases me after ten seconds, and I laugh awkwardly.

"I'll see you tomorrow," Ethan says, getting back into his car. I wave him goodbye as he drives away.

I so desperately wanted to know more about him. As soon as he'd told me about being a werewolf, there were so many questions I had to ask him, as though he was a completely different guy than before. Like, why did he tell me such a big secret? Why can we only see each other's eye colours?

Why did he almost kiss me in the river?