[Pretty, pretty Silver on the right. (--->)
Vote and comment, please. Enjoy reading!]
CHAPTER ONE
Oh.
Hello there.
My name is Silver.
I'm gay.
BUT THAT DIDN’T MEAN I WANTED TO BE KILLED BY A HUNGRY FUCKING BEAR!!!
“AAAAAHHHH!!!” Well, excuse me if I just screamed like a girl. If you were in my situation, you too would do anything to distract that monster who was about to devour you. Flesh. By. Flesh.
And they said that you could just play dead and the bear would leave you alone? The hell with that! The beast would rip my head off before I could even lie on the ground, let alone control my breathing! Really, people? Really?
And so, being the amazing Silver I was, I climbed a tree. Oh wait, no need to give me a standing ovation. Because soon enough I was going to be inside that bear’s tummy if it continued vigorously shaking the tree I climbed up in. So much for my amazingness, yes. Was amazingness even a word?
With all my heart, even if I wasn’t religious, I prayed to all the gods and goddesses up above.
“Oh please, spare my life! I don’t want to die yet! Not in the hands of the beast beneath me! Unless it’s a beast named Chace Crawford, or another hotness walking on the face of earth, then I won't mind.”
Weren’t I so weird? I was about to get killed and I could still fantasize of hot guys and their yummy—
I let out another girly scream when the tree slowly started to fall. The bear replied with a roar that sent me shivers. I risked a glance below, only to see it giving the tree a one final blow with another eardrum-shattering roar. I hugged a branch as if my life depended on it when the tree itself descended to the ground.
And as if the situation was really mocking me, the tree fell in an almost painful slow pace. So fucking slow that I lost my grip to the branch and fell backwards. Good thing I managed to grab another one before I crack my spine if I fell onto the ground, but it just resulted to me hanging, my feet a meter to two above the ground.
I could have just jumped down and started running away from the bear again. But I was not given the chance to, for it held the whole tree with its claws. My heart picked up its pace when the bear started reaching me by moving the tree until I was about within its burly arms’ reach. I mustered all the strength and courage left in me and kicked its paws. I tried to jump when my kicking had no effect on him, but it was too late.
I screamed at the top of my lungs and chanced a few more kicks, but then I found myself being flown by its claws. I felt a lot of pain that I couldn’t even cry it out. The front of my shirt got ripped, along with my skin. I gasped as I felt a lot of blood gushing out of it. If ever I managed to live after this, I would never want to remove my shirt in front of anyone. I stopped in mid-air only when my back hit another tree, the sharp ends of the thin branches stabbing me, and I slid down until I finally fell to the ground with a loud thud.
I opened my eyes, not realizing I shut it close so hard, and saw the bear slowly making its way towards me again. I saw one of his claws dripping with my blood and by the looks of it, the smell of my blood just drew him wilder.
This time, I knew I couldn't afford even a whisper for help even if I tried to, so I just awaited my… death. Even with my eyes closed, I could hear the bear’s every step and it seemed to add to how painful my wounds were. I mentally bid goodbye to my family and friends, knowing that the percentage that I could get home alive, let alone in one piece, would be near zero percent.
I risked opening my eyes again, hoping that the bear would take pity on me and spare me, even though I knew that it would never happen, and saw it only a few meters away from me. I didn't know what had gotten into me, but I smiled with the sight. And then my smiled turned into a confused look when the bear suddenly stopped moving, like it became cautious of something.
As much as I wanted to make good use of the opportunity and run, I couldn’t. My legs already gave out with all the running I did earlier, plus I really felt so worn out because of these stupid wounds in my chest and back. I coughed and covered my mouth with my hand, in a feeble attempt to stop the coughing fit because my chest just hurt more, and saw more blood. Great.
I heard twigs snapping and dry leaves being stepped on, behind me. I tensed up more and started shaking, more like hyperventilating. My breathing became ragged, my ribs’ being damaged wasn’t helping at all.
God… what if what was behind me was another bear? Worst of all, the bear in front of me’s companion? After all, once a lone bear was spotted meant its group was just nearby.
You know what they say that when you were about to die, you would see flashes of memories of your loved ones like a fast forwarded film strip? It was so true. Because I was experiencing it now. My eyes felt warm until it stung. Tears started making its way down my face and I cringed when it fell on my chest, the saltiness of it adding to the pain. Geez, thanks.
I looked at the bear when it started moving again. If possible, it seemed more furious now and somehow… threatened? It let out a snarl, and I could’ve sworn we both jumped when a growl was heard not too far from behind me. The growl didn’t sound like it came from another bear. But it indeed sounded like it came from another dangerous creature that could also be after my flesh. Yay.
The bear ran towards me, and that was when the other one behind me appeared. The bear skidded to a stop, its eyes widening when it saw what was in front of me. No matter how funny this might sound, the bear looked like a deer caught in the headlights; the headlights being the new comer. I could imagine my eyes popping out of its sockets, too. I wouldn’t say the nearer animal to me wasn’t scary, but I concluded it was on my side seeing that it was facing the bear and seemed like defending me.
The two did a staring battle and I used the short time to take a closer look to my, err, savior? It looked like a dog, but it’s way too big to be one. Actually, it almost reached the height of the bear that was still standing in its two feet, but the first didn’t appear afraid at all. It actually looked calm. And, uhm, bored? Yet, alert.
It has black fur as dark as night. I bet it will appear bluish or something when struck by the moonlight. That was how much I could describe it, since all I could see was its back.
The bear growled and put up a stance that said it was about to attack. The dog answered by positioning its head lower, its tail sticking up so stiff and its ears perked up, the furs in its back were raising as well, and landed its right front paw so heavily I could’ve sworn the ground shook a bit. That made the bear yelp and hang its head so low, and too much to my amazement, the bear ran away after looking at me as if its chance of having his food was now gone.
Maybe my thinking capability was being affected by my loss of blood. Or maybe, I was just seeing things.
Speaking of my wounds, I whimpered when I accidentally rested a hand over my chest. That made the dog turn around and my eyes went wider.
Firstly, because of how mesmerizing its glowing pair of red eyes, with a ring of gold in it, was. I guessed it was a he judging by what I was seeing between its legs. Secondly, I was more afraid now compared to when the one who was about to eat me was the bear. I didn't know, the dog seemed more capable of turning me into minced meat in less than a minute, plus the fact that the bear even backed away from him. Thirdly, he was looking at me with eyes full of hunger. But it was a different kind of hunger that I couldn't put a finger on.
I was kinda looking up at him, and that was when I felt the back of my head stinging, too. A muffled cry came out of my slightly closed mouth and I gasped for breath, with me biting my lower lip to lessen the pain but was clearly failing. I leant my also wounded back against the tree more, when he started walking towards me. He stopped when he was close enough that his nose was in front of my very face.
“You're a nice doggie, right?” I asked. That seemed anger him because he bared his teeth to me and let out a very low growl. He stopped it when he saw me flinch.
I coughed out more blood and this time I groaned in pain, feeling lightheaded. I heard the dog whimper and the next thing he did shocked me.
He licked my face; the blood on my face. I sat there completely frozen, my eyes wide and glued to his as he continued what he was doing. Like it was the most normal thing to do in the world. His tongue was kinda rough and his saliva was slightly sticky, but I didn’t do nor say anything to stop him. It seemed like he was cleaning my face. His breath didn’t smell bad like I imagined it would be, seeing he was surely a meat-eater. Actually, it smelled a lot more like… nature. That was the easiest way to describe it. He sniffed my neck when he was done, looking satisfied as he inched closer, almost as if he wanted me to praise his supposedly well-done work.
What's with this dog, really? Leaving the fact the he was very large for a dog, he was acting like he wasn’t one. Wait, maybe he was a wolf? Oh yeah! I was in a forest anyway so it’s not that impossible. But were wolves capable of growing this… big?
Ugh, now I regretted more about joining this stupid mountain hiking my family conducted every summer vacation. That was how I ended up being chased by a bear, and having a staring contest with a wolf in the first place. I got separated from them and now I was lost. Hah, I told you I was amazing!
I outstretched a hand and tried if he would let me touch him. He didn’t show any sign of negativity. I stroked his fur behind his ears and he looked like he liked it. He even rubbed his head against my cheek. And I was surprised that I could still laugh with that. I winced in pain after, though.
When his gaze fell down my chest, he wildly growled that his sharp teeth showed and his eyes became a pool of desire to kill. He quickly turned around and looked like he was about to run to the direction where the bear went off. Weird. He didn’t notice the wounds in my chest before? Well, now that I thought about it, he was kinda just looking straight into my eyes all this time.
“Hey!” I shouted when he started sprinting off. He stopped and glanced back to me over his shoulder, swinging his tail impatiently. “Come back here!” To my surprise, he actually did, even if it was obviously against his will.
I reached out my blood-free hand and he almost seemed glad to come back near me. I stroke his fur again as he laid in his stomach beside me, still eyeing the wounds in my chest. He tried licking it but I stopped him and shook my head.
I knew I should be alarmed that my life was still in danger. After all, a vicious animal was here beside as if he had been with me all his life. But that was exactly the point. I felt exactly like that, despite the fact that he could murder me with a mere poke of his sharp nail.
He was… cute.
Right, Silver, call a wolf taller than you even when you were standing, cute. Because that was not wrong at all.
“Thanks for saving me, by the way.” I knew that he probably couldn’t understand me, but I still felt the need of saying it. I felt like talking to him. Even just stroking his fur was calming my frantic heart.
I clutched my head when everything started spinning, my vision blurring, and blinked a few times. That made him stand up and watch me with, I wasn’t so sure, worried eyes? I started seeing black dots that seemed to combine with each other, until they appeared larger and larger, blocking my vision. I closed my eyes so hard for about ten seconds and when I opened them again – I might just be hallucinating – but I saw a gorgeous guy’s face about an inch away from mine.
He looked so worried that I felt the urge to caress his cheek, so I did. He touched my hand and he looked like he was saying, shouting, something but I couldn't hear any of it. I was never good at lip-reading. His eyes were what confused me the most. It kept changing from icy blue to flaming red and back.
I passed out with me whispering words to him I couldn't even comprehend myself.
***
I woke up with a gasp and shot right up from where I was laying on, only for my head to spin so painfully because of the sudden movement. I had to lay down again and felt something heavenly soft against my back that seemed to lull me back to sleep.
I forced my eyes to open even for just a short while, and I swore there was that guy again; the guy I saw before I passed out. He was sitting crossed leg Indian style with his arms folded over his chest at the end of where I was laying on. It also gave me enough chance to notice that I was inside an unfamiliar room. And I was also sure he chuckled when he saw what happened to me, before darkness once again engulfed me.
I mumbled something, this time aware of my words. “Need more… air… take me… out of here… please…” And then I was out.