Forgotten Original

chapter 1

I sat straight up in bed, breathing hard. My pale blond hair was plastered to my forehead with sweat, and I looked around, terrified. Those wolves had been in my dreams every night for nearly a month. Each time was a different dream with the same five wolves. This time, I could smell the rain in the air. I could feel the chill wind blowing against my skin. I could feel the wolf's breath on my face as he pinned me to the ground. I shivered and looked at my alarm clock.

Great. That stupid dream woke me up at 4:09 am. I had two more hours left before my alarm was supposed to go off, and there was no way I was going back to sleep now. I sighed and got out of bed. I quickly made my way to my closet to grab my clothes before heading towards the bathroom to take a shower.

I was in the process of getting undressed when I heard a soft knock, leading me to believe it was probably my mom. I was proven right a few seconds later when she said, "Alex? Are you okay? Do you need anything, Sweetie?"

I sighed, "I'm fine mom. I just woke up and couldn't go back to sleep, so I thought I'd take a shower." I explained.

I hated this. Their fear that something would happen and I would disappear again. Like last time. I wished I could reassure them that nothing would happen, but I couldn't because I was secretly afraid of the same thing. Of being kidnapped from my room again. Of being tortured for weeks while being kept in a cage. Of the pain of a blade, slicing through the soft skin on my stomach and back. My breathing quickened again and I forced myself into the shower before my mom could say anything else.

"If you need me, I'll be downstairs, sweetie. Would you like some breakfast? I can fix you some pancakes, or French toast or something..." She said through the door.

Some days, I just wanted to scream. Don't get me wrong, I do love my parents. I love that they cared about me so much. That they spent weeks visiting me at the hospital, and even longer helping me become somewhat normal again. I would always love them. Sometimes, I just wished they weren't always hovering. I knew they meant well, but that didn't mean it wasn't frustrating for me. "Mom, I'm fine. Honestly. I'll let you or dad know if anything is wrong. I'd just like to take a shower and relax. Please go back to bed. I don't want you to be exhausted on your first day back to work." I told her.

It had been nearly six months since my attack. Five months since I had been found. Five months of never being alone after nearly a month of being alone in the dark all the time. Mom had taken a leave of absence from her job at the hospital once I got released. I had finally talked her into returning to work when I started school again, even though it would leave me home alone for two hours after school every day. I nearly panicked at the thought, but then realized I needed to start somewhere, and two hours really wasn't that long.

I finished my shower and got dressed before heading downstairs to get a bowl of cereal. I sat down at the table and crossed my ankles under my chair. I grabbed my backpack from the floor nearby and pulled out my class schedule as I tried to keep my nerves at bay.

The first day of school always made me nervous, but now I actually had a reason for it. We had just finished moving from New York to Oregon a month ago, and now I'd be going to a new school. I guess that was a good thing, since as long as I could hide it, no one would know that I was truly broken.

---***---

An hour later, my dad stepped into the living room, where I sat reading a book. "Hey, Kiddo. Ready for your first day of school?" His sandy blond hair had a touch of gray in it, and his grey/blue eyes twinkled at me.