Wolf's Essence Chapter 9 - Theo

Chapter 9- Theo

“You should've seen it, dad. It was huge. At least twice the size of a normal wolf.” I said as I grabbed a bottle of Gatorade from the fridge. I took a couple big gulps before I set the bottle on the table. “This wolf was black and gray, and its eyes, they were so blue and almost seemed to glow. But I'm sure it was probably the moonlight reflecting in them.”

“Is that so?” Dad said as he continued to scramble the eggs for breakfast. “Are you sure you weren't dreaming last night? You seemed really tired when I found you.”

“I thought I might have too. But I’m sure, dad. I was wide awake and it was right outside. It just stared at me, and I don’t know why, but I felt as if I recognized it. I felt sort of drawn to it. Which sounds insane, I know.” I took another several big gulps, emptied the bottle, and threw it away in the trash can next to the counter.

“Maybe it was a magic wolf,” dad said. He was turned away from me, attending to the sizzling of the eggs on the stove, so I couldn't tell if he was joking or not. “There have been stories about large wolves roaming the surrounding woods. Spirits and Guardians of the forest.”

“Seriously? Are you still going on about magic being real? Come on dad!” I threw my head back, annoyed as ever. “I'm not a child, you don't have to play with my fantasies like you used to. Can you just let it go? It was a wolf, nothing more. I just wish you had seen it.”

He shrugged as he scraped the now cooked eggs onto a plate. “Maybe you should keep an open mind.”

That was when I felt the all too familiar tug directing me to the door. I couldn't control the smile on my face. I didn’t need to open the door to know who the visitor was, but I rushed to the door and threw it open anyway, to see Luke standing with his hand raised to knock. He slowly lowered his hand, returning my smile with his own.

“How did you know?” He asked with a tilt of his head.

Not wanting to sound crazy, I decided it was best not to mention that I had this odd sense about him and just knew. So, I shrugged. “I don't know. I just had a feeling there was someone at the door, and poof, here we are.”

I didn't understand why I felt so drawn to this man. Like I mentioned at dinner last night, we barely knew each other and had only just met. But I felt complete when he was around. For the last several years I've felt a sort of nagging emptiness in my chest that just longed to be filled. But with him around, that nagging feeling just melted away, and the hole in my chest felt complete. When he had dropped me off last night, I practically felt the spot in my chest grow more and more empty the farther he drove when he left.

I had thought I felt him nearby last night while I had been getting ready for bed. I had hoped that he had decided to come back and kiss me. But, when I had gone out onto my balcony, I had found the massive wolf just laying in the yard by the treeline just staring at me. It was beautiful. It had looked so majestic with its black fur and gray chest, its large strong paws had looked as though they were the size of a grown man’s head, and its eyes. Oh god, it's eyes. They had been so blue, almost like glowing sapphires. I was a little disappointed to see it and not Luke, but I had felt the same excitement, the same comfort, the same everything I felt when I was around Luke. But why? I just hoped that I would find out soon.

Luke gave his amazing deep chuckle. “I was hoping we could go for a walk, or something, this morning.”

That was when mom came walking into the room, and to the door. “That’s sweet of you, Mr. Mitchell. But we were going to take Theo to visit our friend Swan, and her son Azur, after breakfast. Perhaps later. Okay? Okay, bye.” She began to close the door, but I stuck my foot in the way.

“Wait,” I half grunted and half winced as the door smashed my pinkie toe.  “Ah, shit. How-uh- how about you give me your number? That way I can text or call you later?” I had forgotten how strong my mom was, and could only wonder if she had been raised by Amazons, because the door might as well have been a boulder as it continued to destroy my foot. Though my mother didn’t seem to be using much effort in her attempts to close the door.

“That's a good idea,” he said as he pulled out his wallet, then pulled out a card and handed it to me. “That has my number on it. I'll be waiting to hear from you.”

I gave him a smile as I pulled back and let mom close the door. I limped back to the counter as I put the card in my pocket. “That was rude, mom. I thought you were okay with me seeing him. I thought you changed your mind. And where did that strength come from? Were you a professional weight lifter or something? I think you broke each of my toes.”

“I am okay with it,” she snapped before calming herself. “I'm sorry. You're right, I did say I’m okay with you seeing him. I just don't want that mut ruining the fun day we have planned. And I’m sorry about your foot, I’ll get you some ice.”

I instantly knew I was in trouble. Whenever mom said the words “fun day” and “planned" in the same sentence, it usually meant an evening with someone she just wanted to talk to, while my father and I sat there bored out of our minds for hours. I didn't know who this Swan woman was, but I suddenly had a soggy feeling in my gut and worried how long we'd be visiting her, and the ice now on my foot wasn’t improving my mood.

Three excruciating hours later, I sat bored out of my mind on a brown leather couch, in between my mom and dad. The couch was soft and I probably could’ve easily fallen asleep, had the entire house not smelled as though an old lady had dumped buckets of her perfume on the carpet. The walls were covered in wallpaper littered with dogs, along with way too many framed inspirational comments, which all looked to be hand knitted. Across from me sat a heavy set woman with the typical brown “Karen” haircut, complete with blonde highlights. Mom had mentioned that this woman was the same person who had taken care of the house while mom and dad were away. The woman held a teacup with pink dog designs, and it was still full of tea that had run cold because she wouldn’t. . Shut. . Up. My mother had barely been able to introduce me before the woman started jabbering on and on. All she would talk about was how her dog, a little pomeranian which was nowhere in sight, had won at the local dog competition four years in a row. That, and how the book club was reading the most amazing novel about dogs traveling the country to find their owners. It was as if she was obsessed with dogs or something…. Being that her dog, and competition medals, were nowhere in sight, I had a hard time believing her about how many times she had won. All I wanted in this moment was to be wrapped in Luke's big strong arms and breathing in the smell of his musk. That, along with many other things I could imagine him and I doing.

The woman's son sat next to her, with short brown hair close to the same length as mine, his eyes were hazel, and he looked to have a sort of off-seasoned athletic build. I was honestly relieved to see that he looked as bored as I felt, and that I wasn't just being an annoyed guest. We locked eyes at one point and I gave him an exaggerated eye roll, which made him silently chuckle. He returned it by faking as if he were falling asleep.

It was odd, but while I sat in their presence my body tingled with the same sensation I usually received from my mom and dad. It was the same tingling feeling that I had when we had entered the town, the yard to the cabin, and when meeting Luke's brother. I couldn't explain it, I had thought it was unique with my parents, but the past few days had shown me that it wasn't unique at all. The only person with a different tingling sensation was Luke. His was more soothing, and yet more exhilarating. It made me want to be in his presence at all times, he was like my own personal drug. But that would have to wait until later.

I pulled out my phone, and subtly gestured for the woman's son to do the same. Once he had, I began using my fingers to gesture my number to him, being extra careful to do it in such a way that his mother didn't notice. God forbid we distracted her from talking about her dog. Within moments my phone vibrated with a text.

Azur:

Hey. Sorry about my mom.

We don't get many visitors.

Apparently your mom and

mine went to school together.

I'm Azurohra btw. But

everyone calls me Azur.

I typed out a quick reply, while I did my best to act as if I was listening to his mother as she continued to ramble.

ME:

Nice to meet you.

I know I introduced myself

earlier. But, I'm Theodore.

Everyone calls me Theo.

So… where is this prize

winning dog of hers?

Azur:

Yeah um about that.

It died…four years ago.

Wild animal in the woods

I guess she's just never

got over it.

ME:

That sucks. I'm sorry.

Azur:

No reason to be sorry.

I love my mom but

that dog was older than

dirt. Mom never left it

alone. I'm certain it

ran into the woods

shouting “she’s crazy please

eat me!” LOL

I guffawed and instantly realized I was too loud when Azur's mother, Swan, snapped me a glance. I did my best to make it seem as if I coughed rather than laughed. I think she bought it, because she turned back to my mom and continued to babble about her dead dog, which she swore had won the contest last month. Poor woman. Either she couldn't get over the loss of her furry friend, or she had completely lost her mind and thought her dog was lying next to her.

I turned back to Azur and gave a smile.

Me:

So, got anything better

to do than sit here all day?

Azur smiled at his phone before he spoke up. “Hey, mom. With Theo being new to town, I thought I'd take him around and show him some sites.”

“That's a sweet idea, Azurohra,” his mother said as she gestured to her cheek. “Give your mother a kiss before you run off.”

I heard Azur give a barely audible grumble as he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek. “You know I hate doing that in front of people.” He said.

“It’s not something to be embarrassed about,” I said as I stood and kissed my mother on the cheek as well. I made sure to whisper to her, “so much fun" in the most sarcastic tone I could before I followed Azur out the door, catching a small glimpse of my mother as she hid a chuckle at my words.

Azur led the way into the woods, following a trail that had obviously been trekked quite often. As we walked he spoke first. “Sorry about that.”

I shrugged, “eh, it’s no biggie. I love sitting and listening to people ramble for 3 hours. It’s my favorite pastime.”

“Right, isn’t it the best?” He said sarcastically.

We shared a laugh before I continued. “She's just obsessed about a dog she loved. The more you care about something or someone, the more it affects you when they’re gone."

“That's true.” He said as he led the way over a hill which revealed a small creek. I watched him step carefully from rock to rock in order to cross it. Once he was across, I gave a quick run before I leapt across with ease. At least, it should've been easy, had I not landed on a small boulder buried under dirt and twigs, which caused me to sprain my ankle slightly.

“Ah fuck!” I cried out, more in surprise than pain, as I tumbled to the ground.

Azur just laughed at me as he reached a hand down and helped me up. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I'm fine,” I said as I brushed myself off while I bounced slightly on my injured ankle. Thank god it wasn't a bad sprain and I was able to walk again soon after. That was when a question came to my mind. “So, uh, what about your dad? Where's he?”

He shrugged this time. “He died when I was eighteen. He was visiting California and was shot when trying to help someone who was being mugged.”

“I'm sorry to hear that.” I said, and felt like a dick for asking. “Did they catch the shooter?”

I felt even worse when he shook his head. “No. But they haven't given up. The man has been tied to several more murders throughout the state. He seems to travel a lot. But, they got some good pictures of his face from surveillance footage. Now, it's just a matter of time before they catch him.”

I smiled at his conviction and gave a nod of agreement. “Just a matter of time. Speaking of time, we've been walking for like, ten minutes. Where are you taking me?”

He gave me a smirk over his shoulder as he approached a large boulder and shrub. He reached out and dragged the shrub aside, revealing a large cave that had been built out of not just one boulder, but several. If I hadn’t pulled the bush aside, I never would’ve noticed the makeshift fort. It looked to be about four large boulders laid out in four locations, all several feet apart. Connecting the boulders were several large slabs of stone, laid along the large boulders to represent walls and a ceiling. All together the stones and rock made a sort of stone hut, complete with moss roofing. I realized the shrub had been a sort of door as Azur ducked inside.

I followed him in. The inside was just as you'd expect. A little bit of gray stone here, a little bit of gray stone there, a little bit of gray stone everywhere. There was, however, furniture around. A couch, a chair, a small table, all of it made out of old branches found laying around and tied together with old rope. The way the stone slabs were laid for a roof left a perfect opening in the middle for the fire pit in the center, so the smoke would have somewhere to go and not fill up the interior. There were several, what looked to be, candle holders made of coconut shells stringed to the four corners. There was even a wooden shelf full of books, and a blue ice chest next to it.

I stood there awestruck, my head brushed the ceiling as I looked around. Eventually I managed to reel in my disbelief enough to talk. It was something along the lines of, “Holy shit! This place is awesome!”

“Thanks,” Azur said as he opened the ice chest. He produced a can of sprite and tossed it to me. He opened his own can, took a big slurping sip and smiled at the room as he sat on the couch. “My dad built it for me, before he died, obviously. Mom calls it my Fortress of Solitude. Which, she's not far off. I come up here at least three times a week and just ignore the world as I read or play games on my phone.”

“Well, it's a pretty cool hideout,” I said as I sat on the chair across from him at the little table. “I didn't even notice what it was until you moved the shrub.”

"He chuckled, “Yeah, dad didn't want anyone else to find it. Said he wanted it to be a safe place for me. Don't tell anyone, okay?”

I did the motion of zipping my mouth closed and tossed the key. “Mum’s the word. I might actually come out here sometime, if that's cool with you? My parents can sometimes be a bit much.”

“Yeah, it's no problem. I wouldn't have shown you if I didn't want you here.” He looked down and grew silent. He picked at the opening of his can before he mumbled. “All my old friends stopped hanging out with me after my dad died. They said I got too depressed for them to handle.”

“Well, now you have me.” I said as I gave him an encouraging look. “I know how you feel though. I don't know if you knew this already or not, but I'm adopted. Both my parents died when I was six, in a car accident. I was the only one to survive.”

“Wow, I'm sorry.” He said as he caught my gaze, his empathy was visible on his face. “I didn't know. That must have been traumatizing for you at such a young age.”

I shrugged. “Ehhh, not really. I barely remember anything about that day, and practically nothing before it. Supposedly because I hit my head too hard, or something, and had a severe concussion. But, I do get flashes occasionally, like crawling out the window, or a massive gray dog. But nothing else. It's all blank.”

“Wow,” he said while he just stared at me. “I don't know if it would be good or bad for you to recall those memories, but I hope you do, to remember your parents more.”

“Yeah, but who knows?” I said as I took another sip of my sprite. “I do have a picture of us three together, and my foster parents were great friends with them, so they tell me stories about them on occasion. But, it would be nice to have my own memories of them.”

Azur just nodded, “It is nice, but oftentimes it's hard. When I think about my dad, and all the fun we had, I just end up feeling depressed and miss him even more.”

“But that's the point,” I said. “It's important that you remember him, and important that you think about all the fun you had. It makes those memories more precious and makes you want to hold onto them even more. You're lucky you have that, Azur. All I have is a picture. A piece of paper. But I hold onto it, just so I know that they're still with me everywhere I go, even if I don't remember them.”

He nodded again, but this time with a smile. “Yeah, I guess you're right. It does make it more special.” He sniffled and then wiped a tear from his face.

I sat upright as I turned to the shelf of books. “So, aside from playing games on your phone, what do you do for fun? What books have you been reading?”

Azur described the several books on the shelf; one being about Camelot and King Arthur, another was about dragons and adventures, going on mighty quests. There was even one about a kid that was supposedly the child of a sea god, and goes to a weird camp to learn about his god powers. I was honestly intrigued. But, my phone interrupted our exciting conversation. After hearing the small electronic device give its high pitched shriek, I took it out to see a text from my mom.

Mom

Where did you go?

We're getting ready

to head home.

My fingers flew across the keypad as I sent my reply.

Me

Went for a walk.

Be back shortly.

“Hey, I gotta go,” I said as I put my phone away and moved to the cave entrance. “My parents are getting ready to head home.”

“Alright, I'll walk you back.” He said as he put the books back on the shelf and followed me out. He moved the bush back in front of the entrance before we began our walk. “Hey, I know I said it before, but if you want, you can come hang out in the place, if you'd like. Even if I'm not around. Just be sure to put the bush back.”

“That would be awesome!” I said with a smile as I jumped over a protruding root from a nearby tree. “I'll definitely take you up on that sometime. I might even bring some objects or books for you to read, as well.”

He smiled. “I'd like that. Add to the collection.”

We continued talking as we made our way home, talking over nonsense like mountain lions jumping out and shredding us, or wolves deciding we belonged in their pack. We had a good laugh as we walked back up to Azur's house. Soon, I was in the car with my parents, heading back to our cabin.

The moment we pulled into the circular yard of the property my phone rang. I pulled it out and looked at the caller I.D. I instantly felt both panic and excitement as I saw who had decided to call me. But mostly dread, because I knew I was in trouble.

I swiped accept and put the call on speaker for my parents to hear. “Hey Cat, what's up hoe?”

My mom shook her head at me with amused disapproval as my best friend, Cat, answered furiously. “Don't you “What's up hoe” me! I can't believe you skipped town and didn't tell me! You inconsiderate son of a. . . Wait, am I on speaker.”

I nodded, knowing fully well that she couldn't see me doing it. I looked at my mom and dad, who were just staring at me and glancing down at the phone. Dad decided to answer Catherine's question. “Hi Cat. Yes, you are on speaker, we're both here.”

“How are you, Catherine?” Mom chimed in.

Catherine's tone changed instantly from her stern pissed off attitude to a sweet and gentle tone. “Hi Mr. and Mrs. Read. I'm doing okay, thank you for asking. But I'm a bit angry with your son. So, I must apologize for my language, and please Mrs. Read, don't take it personally, and please note that I do not mean anything ill to your sister Morgan, Mr. Read. May I have permission to continue yelling at your son?”

Both my parents looked at me, an entertained look was eminent on their faces. Mom raised a brow, “you may continue, Catherine.”

“Thank you,” Catherine paused for a moment to compose herself. She gave a feminine clear of her throat before her wrath was unleashed upon me. “YOU INCONSIDERATE SON OF A BITCH! How dare you leave town and not tell me! I've been worried as hell about you! I went to your apartment several times and you didn't answer! So I let myself in, only to see that half your stuff was gone! I thought something happened to you! I tried to call you but it kept going to voice-mail, and I thought you probably didn't have service in that valley! I finally managed to get ahold of your mom yesterday, and she explained everything! Glad you're not dead! Shit head!”

“I’m sorry,” I sighed, I felt as though a knife had been driven through me. “I should've told you we were leaving. But it's okay, it's just until the end of summer. I'll tell you everything when we get back.”

“When you get back? Ha!” She exclaimed. “No, no. You're going to tell me everything now. Well, at least when I get to the cabin. I'm driving into town now.”

“What? You flew all the way up here?”

“Damn right! No way I was gonna let my bestie go on a summer long vacation without me! Your mom said I could sleep in the spare bedroom. I'll see you in five.”

The line clicked as she hung up and I just sat there dumbfounded as I stared at the phone. Mom gave dad a kiss as she got out of the car. “I guess I'll start dinner, hope Cat likes tuna casserole.”

My parents closed their doors and headed inside, leaving me in the car clutching my phone. Why hasn't I told her about the trip? Catherine, my best friend, who had been with me since elementary school, was the best of friends that I could've asked for. But I had fucked up, and I knew I wasn't gonna get an even bigger earful when she arrived.

I just leaned my head against the passenger’s seat headrest and sighed. “Fuuuck me.”