Tension coiled and tightened in my stomach in the middle of the night. I tore the sheets away from my body and forced myself away from the nightmare. As soon as my eyes clicked open, I remembered nothing but felt a sharp pain spreading through my abdomen. Slapping a hand over my mouth, I silenced my scream and forced myself off the bed.
What was happening?
The pain continued for minutes while I walked around in circles. It was the bite. I reached my dresser and the bandaid on my waist became undone. My skin around the wound was slicked with sweat even when it was freezing cold inside the house.
"Shit." I cried as my eyes fell upon the wound that had been infected.
Panting for breath, I tore away the rest of the bandaid and threw it aside. Right before falling asleep, I changed the dressing and I was assured the wound was healing. However, after waking up, it had gotten worst. The holes in my flesh from the wolf biting into it were bleeding again and there was a disgusting red mark surrounded by it.
I grabbed clean cotton pads and dipped them into alcohol before cleaning up the bite once again. Instead of covering just my waist with the dressing, I wrapped my whole stomach and sealed it tight before putting my shirt back on.
Why wasn't I healing?
My ears perked at the howl outside of my house. I quickly sprinted to the window and pushed aside the curtains before taking a glance at my surroundings. It was the middle of the night and it was raining heavily when my eyes landed on the same beautiful, massive wolf that had bitten me earlier. A gasp forced itself out of me in fear.
I stared into the wolf's eyes that stood nearby the house. He didn't move nor made another sound. What did he want? My brows furrowed and I closed the curtains out of fear. Did he want to bite me again?
I sprinted to the door of my room and locked it as well along with the windows. It was a terrible mistake to visit the cemetery that night.
But how could the wolf follow me to my house?
Something didn't seem right. Suddenly, I was alert about everything in my life. A lot of things didn't make sense. A wolf couldn't just show at my doorstep, right in the middle of the town when the forest was miles away from here.
My heartbeat quickly and I chewed on my dry lips while pacing around my room and wondering what was wrong. A few minutes passed and I decided to check the windows again. I drew aside one of the curtains and the wolf was no longer there on the wet roads across my house.
I sighed out of relief and pressed my head against the cold window.
What was happening with me?
Something was changing inside me and I couldn't understand what it was. I was overwhelmed with emotions and confused ever since the night at the cemetery.
The next few days went by in a blur. I lost track of time and even when I did nothing, I found the days passing by. The bite worsened. It turned into an infection and drove me straight to the bed. I barely moved from it and when I did, it would the midst of the night where I would peek outside my curtains again and find the wolf waiting for me to come out so he could attack me again.
It repeated for three days straight before Aunt Carol came and forced me into a hospital.
"A wolf bit you?" She screamed at the top of her lungs after the doctor spilled the truth to her. It had been only a minute. "Why didn't you tell me, Eos? I was concerned all along. How did this even happen?" Worry flashed over her face like never and she rubbed her forehead while sitting down beside me.
I laid over the hospital bed with an IV attached to my skin. "I don't know how it happened. I was just around, walking that evening and suddenly a wolf came and attacked me." I explained, giving her the barest of it so she couldn't worry too much. "It just happened. I didn't want you to be worried about me so I didn't tell you. I thought I was healing fine." I placed my free hand over my stomach while a tear fell down my cheek.
I thought.
"Oh, baby, I'm so sorry." She clasped me in her arms as I cried on her shoulders.
The pain was almost gone. The painkillers really helped along with the IV's the doctor had given me. He informed that the bite had turned into an infection and it would take a while before it could completely heal. I needed to be careful about it. There was also something odd the doctor mentioned.
The wolf's bite would cause your mood to change a few times in the next couple of weeks.
I couldn't well understand what he was trying to mean. It was just a wolf's bite. That's all.
"I'm feeling a lot better now," I said, moving back and wiping my tears. "I think I can go home and rest. I don't really like the atmosphere of hospitals." I continued while keeping Aunt Carol in my thoughts. I didn't want the hospital bill to rack up. It would cause a whole other tension.
"Are you sure?" She asked.
"Yes."
"Well, I will try talking to the doctor. If he can discharge you then we can go home together. But, you have to promise me you'll rest until the wound is completely healed and there is nothing left except for a scar." She held my hand tightly and waited.
"I promise."
"Good."
As she left the room, my phone began ringing. I waited for the door to close before attending to the random call. It was common for me to get calls from strangers. Most of them were people I had owed money to.
Building up courage, I attended the call and said, "Hello?"
"Hello." It wasn't a stranger. It was King Emerson.
I pulled the phone away from my ears and glanced at the number. It wasn't the same one he hadn't given me at the event I worked at three days ago. It was a different one. Curiously, I placed the phone back on my ear and continued.
"How are you?"
I looked down at myself and then stared back up at the white walls of the hospital. "Been better," I rubbed my forehead and shook my head. Where were my manners? "I'm sorry. I've been feeling a little cranky for the past few days. You were right about taking rest."
"Just checking up on how you're feeling since our last interaction." He trailed off.
"Better now." I said the truth. Coming to the hospital and getting checked up one more time was a great decision and I couldn't thank Aunt Carol enough for dragging me here.
"I got carried away with a few things but if you're feeling fine now, I hope we can continue where we last left off. I know I was abrupt in leaving and I apologize for that. Wounds—blood—they sort of make me nauseous." King explained, his voice strong and intimidating. Just listening to it made all those feelings from that night return back to my stomach.
"I would love to!"
"Really?"
"Yes." A smile appeared over my face and I couldn't control it.
"Well if you're free tomorrow evening—" He was asking me on a date. "I could show some places around here that you have never seen." He continued, his tone full of hesitation. It caught me off guard. Why did he want a date with me? With a town girl? It was odd.
I didn't think much about it. "Of course. Though, I believe I've seen everything around here."
"Not the hidden spots." He argued.
Even those.
"Maybe." I shrugged, not knowing what he was talking about.
Throughout all the years I had stayed here with Aunt Carol, I had explored the entire town with my bare feet. I rolled my eyes. Maybe there was something I hadn't seen.
"Well, I'll pick you up at five."
"You don't have my address." My cheeks had now turned into a dark shade of red. Little tingles spread through all over my body and I couldn't control the excitement of my heart. Ugh. Why? Why was I feeling like this?
King was a billionaire who was visiting the town to merely find something. He couldn't like me or want me in any way. We had a little connection at the Mayor's house but it was gone as soon as he saw the awful bandaid on my waist.
"It's a small town, Eos. I can get everything I need." He stated in a strong voice.
What if he was married?
I gave my head a quick shake to brush away the thoughts that had conquered my curious mind. "Fine. I'll see you tomorrow. Goodbye."
Read up to Chapter 45 on Patreon; www.patreon.com/miakerr