The Rumored Half

Bitten

 I was part of a family that loved throwing a good party or two, or at least my mom does. Did I mention my birthday is on New Year’s Eve? My mom goes all-out this time of year. Yippee!

“Nic!” a familiar voice shouted from behind me. I turned around, shocked that I’d managed to get to the edge of town so soon. I was at the border of town, where the woods begin. How on earth did I manage to get here without realizing it?

For some reason, I wanted to go deeper into the woods, as though someone was calling to me and I had to answer it. I quickly shook off the stray thought and looked at the boy coming towards me. “Jake!” I said, smiling at him.

Jake was one of my brother's best friends and we grew up together. I even had a crush on him when we were kids but I quickly grew out of it. He was most definitely heart-throb material, with his  chocolate brown hair and dark brown eyes. Mix that with a Quarterback’s physique and the personality of a teddy bear and you get an irresistible package, but he was more like family than anything else. 

“What’s going on with you? Your mother’s looking for you and so is Ed. I just happened to be the only one who found you,” he said, looking down at me. He was 6 feet tall and that meant I – only 5 foot 5 – had to crank my neck to look up at him. 

“I called you at least five times before you answered. And you know better than to be around here,” he said looking warily towards the woods.

 The woods were dangerous now, or so my parents keep reminding me, after a wild animal attacked someone. It happened recently so I wasn't used to it yet, but they were off-limits until they found the thing. I'd heard rumors about it being a bear or some kind of wild dog, but the police aren't giving out any details so I don't know for sure.

But I've always loved nature, with its open spaces and its freshness. It was the one place I could think without someone interrupting. So I missed being able to walk there. During this time of year, there are rare white flowers that blossom, making the trees look as if they were covered in snow. It was simply amazing.

“Yeah, I know, I know,” I said, rolling my eyes, having already gone through this conversation before. Then I frowned, “You were calling me? That's weird, I must've been daydreaming.”

 “As usual,” he said, with a wry grin, and then he picked me up and twirled me around like a 4-year-old, “Happy birthday, Nic!”

 I laughed and replied, “Thanks. Now let me go, you freakin’ giant!”

 He chuckled and put me down, but just as he was about to say something, Ed, my elder brother, came running towards us.

“And the birthday girl finally graces us with her presence,” he said, and bowed with flare.

Ed wasn't bad looking, or so my friends say. I honestly couldn’t get the appeal. Well, I have been around him most of my life, which makes me immune to whatever ‘charms’ he apparently possessed. And let's not even mention the way he eats. I swear to God, he eats like he's a starving pig or something. And mom only encourages it by making sure that the fridge is always stocked. I still have no idea how she never gets fat, even though I have to fight just to stay on this side of size 8.

 “Ha ha. Now what do you want?”

 ”Come on,” He said, dragging me along with him, “It’s already 8 ‘o clock. Mom wants to go shopping with you. Now.”

 Spending time with my mother at the mall... Dear God have mercy on me.Ed practically dragged me to my mother, who had her hands on her hips and said, “Nicola Avery, you are in big trouble, missy! You almost gave me an aneurysm! You know better than to go out with all those attacks going on! Now get dressed young lady, we have so much to do.”