Kissed by Destiny

The Queen's Prophecy

Kissed by three.

Raise or raze.

Mortals or Gods.

Their Queen.

She will save them, she will destroy them.

To follow, to parish. A battle not easily won.

Lose life, lose love.

The Queen's choice.

***

The sun peaks into my room through the window, creating a halo around my curly, strawberry-gold hair. I slept peacefully, so I smile while blinking, still a bit sleepy. Today is going to be a good day. The last day of summer, then I'm a senior. I throw the covers off my body, stripping out of my pajamas. Jeans, a tank, and a light jacket are laid out on my desk chair from the day before and I dress myself in them. I put slippers on before padding toward the kitchen of my family's home. My parents and brother are already seated at the table.

My mother smiles at me, and begins speaking in Arabic, her native tongue, "Sloane, you're up early today."

I reply in Arabic, "It's the last day of summer mom, I've got to make the best of it."

"English, please. I'd like to join the conversation."

I turn toward my father and laugh. If it had been most anyone else, I would have been offended, but I know he just feels left out. Mom is bilingual, Arabic being her native language, but dad only speaks English. My brother and I grew up with them each speaking their prospective languages and learning them both at the same time, so we really have two native languages.

I switch my tongue to English so he can understand me, "If you learned Arabic, you'd understand papa."

He grumbles under his breath and I sit next to him, kissing his cheek, "I'm just teasing." My father is a sweet, brown haired man with street smarts he uses to run his own mechanic shop employing young kids from the city. This is all to say that he is not book smart, he could never learn two languages that are so vastly different.

"Daddy's girl." My brother, Nico, jokes in Arabic, earning a glare from me and our father. Of course our father doesn’t understand, but I know he’s annoying.

"Shut up, Nico." I squint my light eyes at him, "You're such a mommy's boy it's not even funny. Dad needs attention too."

I see the gears in my brothers brain turning and I know he's about to start off on a tangent about how horrible it is he didn't get a nice, sweet-mouthed, and loving sister. "Sloane-"

Our mom interrupts him in English, before he's even began, "You two are too much. Kiss, make up, and eat."

I scoff, like we could make up until he tells me whatever he's hiding from me, and I know he's hiding something. He's my twin, he's never hidden big things from me before. So, when he started acting different a couple months ago, I knew. We were so close, and he pulled away. I hate him for leaving me alone in a time of need.

Mom ignores me and continues, "What are you doing today, children?"

I smile at her, "I don't know about this loser, but I'm hanging out with Ryland."

My brother grunts, "Summer fling?"

Nico has been acting like this for the past few months, saying rude remarks under his breath or small comments to push me away. I’ve been returning the favor, albeit in a little bit of a confused state. I don’t know what’s wrong with him, I don’t know why he’s acting like this. There was no fight, there was no argument, one day he was fine and the next he was treating me like that.

Seeing a chance to shock my secretive, annoying brother, I smirk. He's always been extremely protective of me, yet he's been so distant lately, saying stuff like that. I haven't confided in him since my ex and I broke up, and he didn't comfort me. "Yes, it is."

I watch as shock, confusion, and protectiveness flash in his light blue eyes. He glares at me and I glare back. Moments like this are when we look the most like twins. Our hair and eyes are the same color, we also share a gentle slope to our button noses, which is a sharp contrast to our jaws. Our features are well defined, like our father. However, our tan coloring is just like our mother's, though a little lighter.

"Why couldn't I have a sister I actually liked?"

An unladylike noise emits from me and I flip my curly hair, "You love me, fucktwat." And I know he does, but he's lying to me or omitting the truth, I don't know but he's hiding something and it's all the same to me. I should be asking why I can’t have a loving and trustworthy brother. I’d like to actually know that answer considering I used to have that kind of brother.

"Sloane!" Our mother screeches, "Watch your mouth!"

Internally I sigh, frustrated. Outwardly, though, I flutter my eyelashes and apologize. There has been tension in more than just my brother and I, it's been throughout our whole family since summer began. I didn't know why. I felt like I was lost, in the dark while the rest of them knew the way out. Something I didn't. It put more stress on me than I'd have liked, and I could even admit I'd been acting out. Starting with my summer fling, Ryland Bryne. But I was hurt in more ways than one.

We'd been fooling around since school ended for the season. I wasn't his only girl for the summer, he was also seeing my least favorite person in the school. I knew that and I was okay with it, the other girl did not know and I was okay with that too. He wanted someone he might be able to start a relationship with later, and I was not it. I'd told him that from the beginning, he was sex on legs. I'd told him he was a rebound from my ex, and it was true. He was good enough in bed, and I was able to screw over Jazzmin. If he ever tried to start something real with her, all I'd have to do was leak our activities. I was truly looking forward to it, Jazzmin deserved what she got in my eyes.

It was still quiet at the table when my thinking was cut off by the sound of my phone buzzing. I sneak a glance at it and smirk at my brother after I see it is a text from Ryland. Then I turned to our parents with a grin, "I'm going out, love you!"

Quickly putting my plate of barely touched eggs in the sink, I run to the door and subsequently into Ryland's black car. He kisses me and I smile into it, "Hey."

"Hi." He replies, looking at my body, "My house?"

I only nod in reply to him, a twig of disappointment sparking in my heart. Pushing that disappointment down was easy, I wasn't looking for anything complicated like disappointment about a simple hookup.

The drive to Ryland's is not far, only fifteen minutes. He lives in a small two story home with his parents. They are both lawyers, gone for long stretches of time, and he is an only child.

The second I close Ryland's front door, he's on me. His mouth pressed against mine and he moves his hands to my hips, digging his fingers in. I take the opportunity to jump up and wrap my legs around his waist, my hands moving to his shoulders. His palms find my ass, keeping me on him so he can push my back against his door. Heat blossoms in my gut and I moan as he begins kissing down my neck. All thoughts of my disappointment, and my ex, are gone from my head. He presses his waist into me, securing me against the door, so I take his shirt off. His body is sculpted muscle, broad shoulders and a delicious v-line leading down his stomach. I groan at the sight, smashing my lips back against his. This is our thing, physical. His hands go back to my ass and he moves us away from the door and toward the couch.

As soon as we hit the couch, both our clothes came off without a second thought. I was hurried, as usual, for the release he gave me. I feel myself becoming wetter than ever as soon as I see his throbbing cock, "You're ready, aren't you, Ryland?"

He slides on a condom, positions himself at my entrance, and nips my earlobe as he plunges inside me. He knows I love when he does that, the areas around my head like my ears and neck are extremely sensitive. Tension built inside me and I hiss at the pleasurable sensation.

"Harder," I moan out the word and Ryland groans against my neck. He buries himself in me as my inner walls squeeze him comfortably, and begins pumping faster. The knots in my stomach build up, screaming for release. I move my legs around his waist again, arching my back so he can go deeper. One of my hands plunged downward, rubbing circles against the most sensitive part of my myself while my other hand tangles in his hair.

Ryland does not relent against me, as always, and I moan as the tension inside me releases, coating us in my juices. He pumps three more times before burying himself in my neck, grunting as he finds his own release. "God, you're so fucking amazing."

"God has nothing to do with this." I joke, before chuckling and saying, "I know."

"How did Chase let you go?"

I tense slightly beneath him, memories of Chase and my ex-best friend fill my mind for a split second, "Jazzmin was apparently too tempting."

"You are so much better." Ryland traces his hand against my face. I wonder in what way he's talking about. My looks? My sex? My personality? All of the above? Or does he tell Jazz the same thing?

"I know." I say again, a little more uncertain. "Now just go and tell him that."

Ryland blanches, "Tell my best friend I'm fucking the love of his life? Hell no."

"I'm obviously not that important if he-"

Ryland shushes me before I can give myself a chance to become emotional, he doesn't want that, I know. "Let's do something today." He uses his thumb to follow the lines of my plump lips, then traces my jawline and moves to my collarbone.

"We are doing something." I whisper, tingles erupting around my sex as I think about it, watching his precise movements.

"Something different. Let's go out."

My eyebrows practically shoot off my head, "Out?"

"Yeah, to the park. The arcade. Somewhere."

"You and me? Me and you?" I continue questioning, distress beginning it's journey in my brain. Ryland had never taken me out anywhere, we only found new places to screw. I couldn't figure out why he'd want to go out with me, Jazz was the one that went on dates with him.

"Yeah, why not?" Ryland stares with calculating eyes, stopping his fingers, "Are you nervous?"

My eyes widen in shock, "Aren't you? You're the one that doesn't want Chase to know."

"We can go out as friends."

"With benefits." I say on instinct, that's what we are. Friends like us didn't go out together. I wanted Ryland for revenge and orgasms, revenge orgasms I would say. He wanted me so he could cum, he'd said so himself that he didn't want a relationship with me and I'd agreed. He didn't want to go out together, neither did I. It works for us both.

"It'll be fun. It's the last day of summer. I want to do something with you."

I think of all my worries, everything that could go wrong. What if Chase saw us? He could go fuck himself. What if Jazz saw them? She could go fuck herself, in fact, if she saw us I'd feel pretty happy. What if rumors started? Then they could blossom, they wouldn't be wrong. What if we hated each other and stopped sleeping together? I would able to find someone new. There was nothing really stopping me except myself.

Decision made, I nod, "Okay. Then let's go to the arcade."

We get dressed and leave.

***

"Got you!" I exclaim excitedly as my puck slid easily into Ryland's goal. "At least put a little effort into it, Ryland. It's like you're letting me win."

He snarls at me, "I am not! You're cheating somehow.

I laugh, meeting him in the middle to grab some tickets. "No, I am not."

"That thing bounced off the corner into my goal. No way that should have happened."

I shrug, if I wanted things like that to happen, they just did. It wasn't cheating, I was good. I look up at him so I can smirk on his face, "You're a sore loser."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are. That's where being a football star gets you."

Ryland's face changes, he smiles. Then, out of absolutely nowhere, he leans down and captures my smirk with his mouth. He kisses me, lightly, it's different from our usual rushed, heated make-out sessions. He pulls back and looks at my shocked face, "I knew that would shut you up."

What the fuck? I think, confusion filling me. Did he really just kiss me? In public?

I feel eyes on me, looking around the arcade for anyone we knew but saw no one, until the very end. Chase stood, arms crossed, staring at us. I quickly grab Ryland's hand, dragging him toward the exit. "You idiot." I mutter, "You didn't want Chase to know!" My second statement is a bit louder, and from the look on Chase's face, he heard me. Fuck.

He is furious, and I didn't want to have anything to do with it.

Cheater. Liar. Cheater. Liar. I chant the words in my head. Cheater. Liar. Cheater!

The rest of our time is spent drama free. We were able to eat lunch, window shop, and head to Ryland's house for a movie with no more coincidental run-ins.

***

Ryland lays back vertically on the couch with the leg up, my head in his lap and my body stretched along the rest of the couch horizontally. We are watching a horror movie titled "Us", which I think is more of a comedy.

"I'm sorry Chase saw." Ryland breaks the silence as the movies mother chains herself to a table.

I say nothing for a minute, contemplating, then look up at him, "Why?"

"I know you still have feelings. I was a rebound, remember?"

I laugh lightly, "I don't have feelings for him anymore."

"Sloane, be honest."

I look right into his eyes, "I am. I am always honest. I told you what I wanted the second we started this. I told you why and I have been truthful this whole time. I will continue to be so, as I say that I do not have feelings for Chase. They died with our relationship."

Ryland looks down at me, shock evident on his face, "But... you guys were together since eighth grade. How could you not love him anymore?"

"Did Chase tell you how I caught him?"

"No."

The memory flashes in my mind.

"It was Chase's New Year's party, I'd been looking for my boyfriend before the clock stuck midnight. I checked every room in his house, then I walked to the last place I could think of. When I opened the basement door, I heard moaning. Something told me it wasn't some random people going at it to start the New Year off good, so I walked downstairs knowing I shouldn't have. The sight of my best friend riding my boyfriend will never be forgotten. It broke my heart immediately, even though I shook my head in disbelief. I couldn't believe Jazz, I couldn't believe Chase, I couldn't believe them. They looked like a deer caught in the headlights. They stopped, but they didn't move. Then, I was angry. The tears that threatened to fall seconds earlier retreated, and I wanted to kill them. That, too, was gone within a matter of seconds and I was numb. I felt nothing for either of them. Maybe I'm holding it all down, maybe I'm just different from other people. I just smiled at them, tangled up together, and I wished them the best, then I walked away."

Ryland stares at me intently, pity in his eyes, I know exactly what he's thinking. He's not paying attention to the movie anymore, probably thinking my experience sounded much more horrific than anything "Us" had to offer. "I'm-"

"Don't apologize. I'm not sorry. I am so glad I went with my instincts. I'll always listen to what my gut tells me, it's proven trustworthy."

***

The next morning, I sleep in the same fashion as the night before. Hair splayed along my pillow, one leg tucked underneath my stomach and an arm under my pillow.

This time though, my alarm wakes me at six-thirty. I groan, slapping the snooze button and look up. The sky is still dark, my room shrouded in that blackness.

I stand, putting on a sundress and sandals before brushing my hair. When I arrive in the kitchen, my parents are nowhere to be seen, only Nico remains. For a second, I wonder where my parents are, they usually send us off on the first day of school.

"They went to work." Nico answers my unasked question and I nod. Grabbing cereal, I sit next to him, nudging him playfully.

"What did you end up doing yesterday, little brother?"

Nico scowls at me slightly, "I spent the day with Mom and Dad. Stop calling me little brother."

"But you're my little brother!"

"By twenty minutes!"

"Twenty minutes is a long time."

We both laugh together and I feel light, like I'm on a cloud. Our relationship has always been hot and cold. Love and hate is a fine line between siblings. It's been a lot more hate lately, and I didn't know why. I felt separated from my family, even though my parents were arguing more than usual. I could hear them sometimes at night, my father begging and my mother saying no to whatever was so important to him.

"Ready for school? I'm driving." I ask as I put my bowl in the sink. We share a car as co-owners and both have driver's licenses, so we share equally. It's a trait we were raised with, sharing between each other without jealousy.

"Duh, and fine but I'm driving home."

I shrug, not very well caring. As long as we kept everything equal, we'd never had problems.

The ride to school is silent, the rift between us becoming more obvious to me. I wanted to fix it, but I had a nagging feeling it was Nico's to repair and I trusted my intuition.

When we arrive, I turn away from my brother, calling out behind me, "See you later fucktwat!"

"Whatever, dipshit!"

Our nicknames draw attention from some of the other students in the parking lot. Both of us ignore the glances and walk away from each other. Nico joins his regular group of football players Chase and Ryland included. I find my two friends, Rethabile and Lesedi. They’re the only exchange students in the school, and I enjoyed their presence.

"Reth, Lessie, ready to be seniors?" I ask in Arabic.

Both girls stare at me with dark eyes that compliment their dark skin. They are from the same town in South Africa and they are frighteningly similar. They knew a lot of English, and I helped tutor them in it. Fortunately for me, they were extremely smart. I only spoke three languages, English, Arabic, and Italian. But, they speak four and one of them is Arabic. So, I'm able to teach them English in Arabic. Though, most of the time, it is easier to transverse in simply Arabic as it is a language we all know.

"Yes," Reth answers cautiously in English, "We are very excited to learn things."

"That's very good!" I reply in English also, "You, Reth, will surpass the master of English in no time. Lessie, how are you doing?"

"I am well."

I shake my head, speaking in Arabic again, "That's a bit formal sweetheart. You could have said something like, ‘I'm cool’ or ‘I'm doing good’," These two phrases I say in English, "Just speak in whatever language you want today, I want to have good conversations on the first day."

Lessie nods happily, her mouth moving faster than lightning as she speaks fluently, "I'm excited! I can't believe we have even stayed in America this long. I can't wait to see what else I'm going to learn."

We walk into the school together, with me leading. I talk to them about their trip home and they tell me about how their parents are doing.

Someone in the hall yells out, "Speak English!" A couple of people snicker but I just glare at everyone, and tell my friends to ignore them. The two girls behind me can't ignore the stares of others though, so they begin to speak in choppy English. I sigh, refusing to give into peer pressure.

"My father is trouble. He wishes us thanks during the visit." Lessie stutters, trying to speak as quietly as possible.

"That doesn't make much sense Lessie." I repeat the sentence back to her in Arabic, "Please just talk to me or have Reth translate, she's doing a bit better than you."

Reth jumps in, trying to clear it up more, "He's troubled, worried. He hopes we are okay and wishes us the best."

I nod and smile, trying my best to ease their nervousness. We'd only been friends since the middle of the last school year, so I hadn't had much time with them yet. They visited my house a lot, speaking freely with my mom in a language they knew better.

Us three girls don't have classes together so we part ways. I'm going to English 12, of course getting one of the worst classes to begin with. I pick a spot in the back so I can watch all the students file in after me. I've known most of these people my whole life and I recognize most as they enter. Of course, I unhappily recognize the last, Chase. I sigh and we lock eyes, but I don't back down. I know he made the mistakes, not me, and I don't have to feel bad about anything. Not even Ryland. Who cares if that's his best friend? He fucked my best friend, too.

Luckily, he looks away first and I smile triumphantly as class begins. Roll call begins and I raise my hand when it's my turn. I watch Chase raise his too, when the teacher calls his name.

Class is boring, just going over the agenda for the year, like senior portfolios. I hate the senior portfolios, it's the most important project of the year and we are focusing on it for the last four months of school. We have to save all our important assignments for it, and even during our other projects we have to have it in the back of our heads. It's only got a rating of five out of five by the end of the year, but if we fail, we won't be allowed to graduate. The teacher explains the project to us, telling us every detail that needs to be in it from our family, to our struggles, to our school life. It's all bullshit, what's my family have to do with me graduating?

***

When I leave, Chase catches up with me. I'm angry, almost immediately. It's surprising, being anything other than numb when it came to him. I wanted not to care about him, I believed I didn't care about him anymore. But no, I was pissed. I was livid.

"What do you want?" I ask before he can even open his mouth.

"I just want to talk."

"No." I say simply, trying to tug my arm out of his grip. But he's strong, and he knows it. Because he grins, leering at me like I'm prey. I don't like being prey, in fact I hate it. And I only knew just now. I glare at him, and he seems to flinch, but keeps his hand firmly on my elbow.

"I want to apologize."

"I don't believe you."

"Please, Sloane, just wait. Let me explain."

"No." I finally release my arm from his hand and swiftly walk away, getting lost in the sea of students around me. I take a chance glance back, to make sure he isn't following me, and slam into a wall.

Except, it isn't a wall. It's hard, sure, but it's also warm. A hand reaches down for me and I look follow up its arm to its owner. He's gorgeous, like a God. His jet black hair is in a ponytail and he's got the greenest eyes I've ever seen. He's wearing a t-shirt that shows off how muscular his arms are, and his face is perfectly defined with a sharp nose and jaw. His lips are plump, the bottom bigger than the top, and perfectly kissable. Something in my chest flutters. I can feel it pushing on me, warm and safe.

I take his hand, allowing him to help me up, and smile. "I'm sorry, I wasn't looking. Completely my fault."

"It's okay," His voice is deep and makes me shiver, "I saw the fight with the boy."

I blush slightly, giving his hand a small tug, "I'm Sloane."

"Sloane. My name is Liam."

My name in his mouth makes my core tingle, and I resist the urge to jump on him and wrap my legs around his waist. It's the weirdest thing I've ever felt, I've never wanted to be with a stranger so badly.

"Nice to meet you, Liam. Are you new?"

"Yeah, transferred this year. My family and I had a falling out with... The mayor... Of our last town."

He hesitates with the word mayor but I ignore it, he doesn't know me well enough to explain everything. I'm okay with that.

"That's too bad about the mayor, but at least I got to meet you."

"Yeah," He pulls his hand away and my body chills from the loss. I ignore this feeling too, opting to watch him turn and walk away. Of course he wouldn't be interested in me, I'm just a random girl that fell on her ass in front of him. I follow him with my eyes for a moment more before making my way toward my Italian class.

Italian is my worst language. I can hold a decent conversation and conversions are a breeze, but I'm slower than English or Arabic. I've had the same grumpy, old Italian teacher all of high school: Ms. Rosella Schultz. I know she doesn't hate me, she's just a teacher after all, but hell does it feel like she does. Comparatively, I'm one of her best students, yet she continues to single me out.

When I arrive at the classroom, Nico is sitting in the back with his friends. I cast my eyes downward at the thought of another class with Chase and still not a single one with Reth or Lessie. The farthest seat from their group is by the window, so I go there, eager to get as much distance between myself and my ex. Ms. Schultz stands at the front, writing a couple sentences of Italian on the board. I recognize most of them, some simple and some more complex. It's a poem or short story about a girl clouded by indecisiveness. She turns toward us, her graying hair in a tight bun and dark eyes shrouded by black rimmed glasses.

"Nico, read this."

Nico rolls his eyes a little, speaking, "In what language would you like that spoken in, Ms? Because we all know that you mean Italian but I can always say it in Arabic as I am now. Sister, what do you think? Should I read that in a language she knows, she's a rude old lady."

I hold in my snicker at his antics, I'm still upset with the way he's been acting, and say nothing.

"In English, Nico!" Ms. Schultz exclaims, I can feel her agitation already. To be fair, I'd be upset Nico started the first day off like that, too.

"She wars darkness and light. Dusk and Dawn. Kissed by three, choices unknown. Destiny or will. Heart of power, find her to conquer."

Ms. Schultz scoffs, running her eyes over all the students before lingering on me, "This is an Italian poem. This year, I'll be starting classes off with a new poem that a different student will have to read aloud each day. Now, open your books to page 346." I groan, how am I going to get through Statistics after this?

***

Lunch comes quickly after Italian and Statistics. I find myself sitting on the right next to Reth, with Lessie on her left. To my utter surprise, when I walked into the lunchroom, I found Nico and the new boy sitting at the couches with the football players and cheerleaders. The new boy, Liam, has his arm draped around Kally's shoulders. I glance at them again, rolling my eyes, of course the head cheerleader would immediately sink her claws into a hot new guy. The fluttering in my chest starts again, stronger this time. It pounds against my sternum. There's a breeze in the lunchroom, despite all the windows being closed, and I wrap my hands around my arms.

"What classes did you girls have while I was in mine?" I ask in Arabic, ignoring the burning feeling in my gut. The feeling intensifies as Reth answers, like someone is watching us.

"English studies, physical education, and algebra two."

"You had them all together?"

"Yes," Lessie replies, "Our schedules match just like last year."

"That's great. I don't think we have any classes together though, unfortunately. Maybe you guys can come to my house after school?"

"Yeah, that'd be great." Lessie continues talking about what we could do after school as I take a look around the lunchroom. No one is looking at us, yet I can't shake the feeling that we're being watched. My eyes land on the swaying hair of Liam, as if he'd just turned his head.

I keep my eyes on him as I speak quietly, "Did either of you meet the new boy?"

"No." They reply in sync.

I switch my tongue to English, "I met him, his name is Liam. He's kind of an ass."

Liam whips his head toward me and I smirk, he's caught. How he can hear me from our positions in the room is beyond me, but I'm not one to look into things. I begin speaking in Arabic again, watching his eyebrows furrow at not being able to understand me, "In case you didn't understand me, I said he was an ass. He's not actually an ass. But he can hear us, somehow. Well, he might be an ass. Look, he's already cozy with Kally."

Both girls glance at him quickly before turning toward me. Reth looks slightly irritated, while Lessie looks unnerved.

"How could he possibly hear us? Do you think he can understand?" Lessie asks, bringing her voice to a whisper.

Keeping my eyes trained on him, I speak louder, "I doubt it. Why would he know Arabic? Let's find out. Hey, Liam, new boy, Greek God, you know you're super hot. I would definitely have sex with you, if you're interested. Are you interested?"

Liam squints his eyes before turning away again and I look at Lessie, "See? I don't know how he can hear across the cafeteria. But I don't think he can understand. If he did, that'd be embarrassing."

I grin as her face flushes. She shakes her head, "What if he did? That was a big risk you just took, Sloane."

I laugh at her, "I didn't say anything that wasn't true. It was only more forward than I would have been in English. Speaking of, let's practice."

"Okay."

"So," I say in English, "What do you guys want to do after school? Full sentences, please."

"Perhaps we can go to movies? What do you think, Lessie?"

Lessie pales slightly, the gears in her brain clearly turning, "I wouldn't understand. No fun for me. Perhaps a park?"

"The woods. Let's go to the woods. Just outside town, I'll drive." A plan forms in my head, I can take them to my meadow. Nico and I found it when we were younger, a meadow of gorgeous flowers surrounding a shallow lake with trees on every side. It's a perfect place to relax after our first day.” Now that I have a plan, I switch back to Arabic and critique their words.

***

"How much farther is it?" Reth asks me in Arabic.

"Not much, maybe five minutes." I reply in the same tongue, looking at our surroundings. We're deep in the woods, thirty minutes into our drive. The road has been reduced to a gravel path and weeds, and all I can see for miles is trees. The girls seem to be nervous, as if I'm leading them to their murders. I smile at the thought, that'd be ridiculous, they're not thinking that.

"Are you taking us somewhere remote to kill us?" Reth jokes, twirling her thumbs together.

Now, I laugh. Long and loud, my chuckling floats around the car, "I was just thinking that."

"What?" Lessie blanches, staring at me from the backseat.

"Oh hush child, it's just that you guys look like I'm going to kill you."

Lessie opens her mouth to reply, but I quickly shush her as I pull in between two large boulders, "It's just passed here. We'll walk the rest of the way."

All of us exit the car and the two girls follow me as I walk passed the boulders. I lead them to a trail of dandelions and lilies that follow the pond.

I walk into the meadow and toward the pond. The meadow is an array of colorful flowers, purples, pinks, yellows, and more all blooming. The pond is clear, and the deepest part is about six and a half feet in the middle. It's clear and clean, a Willow tree protecting it with its branches. I smile at the little gasps behind me and stretch my arms out into the sun, "Isn't it wonderful here?"

"Yes." The girls say at the same time.

"My brother and I found it a long time ago. We haven't come since last year ended, though."

"How come you never spend time with him?" Reth asks, sitting in the middle of meadow. I sit across from her, and Lessie takes a spot in between us.

"He's changed. I don't know what his problem is, but he needs to fix it or he's going to lose me."

"Can we swim?"

I’m thankful for the change of subject, my brother is still a sore spot. Until he fixes his behavior, he’ll probably continue to be so. "I don't know why you wouldn't be able to.”

The girls laugh and strip into their underwear. I watch them run toward the water together, white cotton a striking sight against their dark skin. I stand, slowly taking my clothes off as well. I feel a little uneasy, both of them are wearing cotton underwear and sports bras. I wore my lace, like I usually do. I don't even use cotton unless it's the end of the month. Shrugging off my self-consciousness, I push my pants off next.

Touching the pendant necklace my father gave me, I begin walking toward the pond, the girls look at me. I smile and wave, joining them in the water.

***

Reth laughs, pulling on her last shoe, "No way! You pushed your brother off a tree."

I nod at her and point, "That one specifically. He broke his arm. Totally deserved it."

Lessie laughs, grabbing Reth's hand and pulling her back to the meadow, "Let's go back to the car. I'm hungry."

"You guys want to have dinner at my house?"

"That sounds good." Reth calls over her shoulder.

I smile, reaching for my pendant. I touch my neck and trail down between my breasts, only it's not there. "I'll meet you guys at the car! I think I lost something in the pond." I turn back around, searching the clear water and praying I will see my necklace. Dad will be so mad at me if I lost it.

Leaves crunch around me as I search with my eyes. Freezing, I stare at my reflection in the water. Behind me, a wolf stands. It's gray with black on the tips of it's fur, making it glisten in the water. The greenest eyes I've ever seen meet my own as I slowly spin around. It growls softly and I startle backwards. There's never been a wolf here before, not at this meadow and not in these woods. Bears, foxes, coyotes, and smaller creatures, but no wolves.

"Well then, this is unexpected. What're you doing here?"

It cocks its head at me, as if it can understand me. Then, it growls again, louder and more menacingly. Baring its teeth, it take a step forward. I scream, closing my eyes. The sound of water flowing floods my ears, which is odd considering how still the pond is. A yelp follows and I open my eyes, greeted with the sight of a sopping wet wolf. It's eyes narrow on me before it turns and runs back into the woods.