I Am So Sick of Werewolves

Laney Williams flung herself onto her twin bed, smothering her face into the pillow; she released a scream, “Ah! I will never date again! I am going to die alone!”

A sarcastic voice spoke, “Well, that will be one long, lonely life. You’re only 16 years old.”

Laney kept her body still but turned her head, looking over at Annabelle. “Sorry, I thought you were asleep.”

“Is that why you so considerately announced your woes?”

Laney rolled her eyes. Annabelle was her 13-year-old sister, who was far too smart for her own good. She didn’t speak like a typical 13-year-old and her words always carried a pretentious undertone.

Annabelle was a savant of her generation, and while her intelligence was impressive, her social skills were lacking. It annoyed Laney that not only did she have to share a room with Annabelle, but she couldn’t even escape her when they were at school.

Annabelle had skipped several grades throughout her life, and the principal had encouraged her parents, Claire and Dan, to let her graduate and start college.

However, Claire insisted that Annabelle have a normal childhood. She allowed Annabelle to jump to the 10th grade, but there would be no more skipping ahead. Claire was determined that Annabelle would have the same social experiences as Laney.

“Why are you still awake, anyhow?” Laney asked as she checked the clock, confirming the lateness of the night.

“I finished my book about an hour ago, so I was reciting pi in my head, trying to fall asleep, but I just became competitive with myself and tried to beat my previous record.”

Laney stood up and started walking to their shared bathroom; she mumbled, “Why can’t you just count sheep like normal people?”

She could hear Annabelle snap back with some witty comment, but she ignored it and washed her face in the sink. Laney stared at her reflection, annoyed from her bad date, but distracted herself by brushing her hair.

She had long, mousey brown hair cut into layers, framing her oval-shaped face. Her eyes were hazel with gold flecks, which wasn’t common in humans. She was often mistaken as a hybrid, but she would quickly correct people because there would be grave consequences if the wolves caught anyone pretending to be one of them.

Laney and Annabelle lived in Lafayette, Louisiana, and, for the most part, had normal lives. They grew up on the stories from their parents and grandparents about what life was like before the wolves came out in the open.

For years, the story of the werewolves was just legends, and only a few humans bore witness to the wolves’ existence. It wasn’t until the civil rights movement in the 1960s that the wolves came out of hiding.

It was an easy transition in most states, but with the South being known for its unwillingness to accept change and diversity, it was a challenge.

With rumours of another civil war uprising, the President of the United States stepped in and spent time in the South to negotiate peace.

It took many years before the humans started to accept the wolves, and some still didn’t, but peace and compromises were made, and eventually, the riots and random acts of violence ceased.

Several different werewolf packs live in Louisiana, but Lafayette is home to the Bayou Pack. In the 80s, some humans still lived on the bayous, but as more wolves moved in, more humans moved out.

For many citizens, it was one thing to accept the wolves but another to be their neighbours. Now, the bayous are only inhabited by the wolves.

Some members of the pack live in town and are scattered throughout other places in the city, but everyone knows the bayous are wolf territory.

Humans can enter with no threat of harm, but few rarely do. For the most part, wolves keep to wolves, and humans keep to themselves.

They are forced to mix in schools, work and public places like restaurants and stores, but as far as socialising on a personal level, the species don’t typically mix, and there is a silent judgement when they do.

Humans aren’t the only ones who judge; some wolves don’t believe that humans and wolves should mix. They like to see it as an agreed-upon separation instead of a forceable segregation.

For Laney and Annabelle, coexisting with the wolves has been the only life they know. They grew up playing with the children wolves, or the pups, as they were commonly called.

Their grandparents marched alongside the wolves, protesting for their rights to be treated like regular citizens. Their father owns a lumber yard, and his business partner is Abel Boudreaux, one of the leaders in the Bayou Pack.

Abel and Dan grew up together and have been best friends since kindergarten. They even attended college together, and when Abel met his now-wife, Bianca, she introduced Dan to Claire, and the four of them continued to be best friends.

They were in each other’s weddings, celebrated their children’s births together, took turns hosting holiday dinners and even vacationed together. So, it’s no shock that Laney’s best friend is June, the daughter of Abel and Bianca.

June has her mother’s signature red hair, and all the Boudreauxs, like all full-blooded wolves, have sunflower-yellow eyes that glow depending on their situation. For years, when the wolves were in hiding, they had to use contact lenses to conceal their eyes.

June is only one month older than Laney, and they love sharing stories of how they have been best friends since they were in their mother’s stomach.

Claire and Bianca have pictures of them pushing their bellies together, joking about their kids being on a playdate. June has a brother, August, who is three years older than she is, and he treats Laney like a little sister; he is very protective of them.

Laney and June’s friend group consisted of Tom Boisseaux, a reckless wolf who meant no harm but always seemed to find himself in trouble; Tammy McDonald, a shy human but fearless when it came to her friends; and Jimmy Welsh, a competitive sports fanatic human.

Annabelle didn’t have any friends, but she didn’t want any. She was rarely around kids her age. However, there were occasions she would tag along with Laney, only because their mother would pressure Laney to invite Annabelle and force Annabelle to join.

Everyone was friendly to Annabelle and didn’t mind when she would hang out with them, but Laney was always annoyed and had little patience for Annabelle’s know-it-all attitude.

Laney loved her sister, and if she ever caught anyone trying to bully Annabelle or talk trash behind her back, she would quickly stand up for Annabelle. Laney was the only one who could make fun of Annabelle or give her a hard time.

Laney finished in the bathroom and climbed back into bed. She sighed when she told her sister, “Annabelle, you’re smart. Why do I always choose bad guys to go out with?”

“It’s probably due to your body’s sexual desires, coupled with your emotional immaturity.”

Insulted, Lany responded, “My body’s sexual desires and my emotional immaturity?! Well, don’t sugarcoat it for me.”

Innocently, Annabelle said, “Oh, was this one of those social occasions where I just listen and say something like, hang in there, champ, you’ll get it right.”

“Yes, this was one of those times.”

“I’ll never understand why people ask questions but don’t want the answers.”

“And that is why you are not as smart as you think you are,” Laney said proudly.

Annabelle wasn’t ignorant that she lacked social norms; she didn’t deem them important enough to learn. She didn’t have empathy or express emotions like most people.

She could rationalise her emotions and move forward. She knew that she loved her family, and there were moments when she expressed it genuinely, but most times, it felt forced.

She never intentionally hurt people’s feelings, and she would become exhausted in social situations because of how much effort she put into communicating with people.

Annabelle had a good relationship with her mother, but she was closer with her father. He never corrected her if she said something insensitive, and he never put social pressure on her as Claire did; Annabelle felt most relaxed when it was just her and her dad. Dan’s father was like Annabelle, so Dan had a lot of experience dealing with someone of her calibre.

Instead of waiting for Annabelle to respond, Laney continued, “I went out with Mark Simmons. He seemed like a nice guy, and the night started promisingly. He opened the car door for me, and we had a great chat in the car, but when we got to the restaurant, he became obsessed with wolf talk. He asked all kinds of questions, and a lot of them were inappropriate.”

Curious, Annabelle asked, “In what way?”

“You know, like do they have sex as wolves or as humans. Sick stuff like that.”

Annabelle thought for a minute and then said factually, “Well, from an anthropology standpoint, he could want to compare the biology of humans and werewolves. Perhaps he is studying zoology and wants to understand the science behind werewolves and where they fit on the scale.”

Laney’s forehead wrinkled, and she involuntary shook her head, “No, Annabelle, he is not studying zoology; he is not asking this out of educational curiosity; he is a sick freak who wants to picture sex in his head.”

Stunned, Annabelle said, “Oh, that is gross. Why would anyone want to do that?”

Laney was becoming exhausted with their conversation. There were times when Laney had more patience for Annabelle and didn’t mind walking her through all the nuances.

Laney liked the idea that despite how intelligent Annabelle was, there were still things that Laney could teach her. It was the only time she felt like the big sister in the relationship.

Annabelle’s achievements were intimidating and frustrated Laney, but when it came to pop culture or socialising, Laney could share her wisdom and be the smarter of the two.

However, for tonight, Laney just wanted to vent in a compassionate ear, and as much as Annabelle tried, she could not give Laney the comfort Laney was seeking.

Laney laughed it off and said, “I know, right? It is sick. So, tomorrow I am going to the bayou; Mom wanted me to ask you to join.”

Annabelle groaned, “I don’t understand why Mom can’t just let me be. I am perfectly content with my life.”

“Trust me, I get it, but you know she’s going to keep making me ask until you agree. And tomorrow, we are just hanging at June’s, so bring a book, and we’ll give you your space.”

“That will be acceptable.”

Laney smiled to herself. Annabelle’s way of speaking always made her giggle. It was so formal and direct. If there was anything that Laney appreciated about Annabelle, it was her lack of ambiguity.

While, in most cases, Laney just wanted to have a superficial chat, Annabelle’s honest answers left no room for misunderstandings.

And Laney always knew that if she were searching for the truth, Annabelle would provide it to her. They had a complicated relationship, but at the centre, they were regular sisters who sometimes fought but loved each other.

Laney stretched her arms and legs and wiggled around until she was comfortable in bed. She pulled the duvet up to cover her body, with only her head sticking out.

While she yawned, she said, “Goodnight, Annabelle.”

Annabelle didn’t say anything back; she didn’t intentionally ignore Laney, but she had started counting pi again, so her mind was preoccupied.