I jumped up and moved away from the wall, scared of being alone with him.
"I promise I won't hurt you," he told me.
I huddled against the wall, wanting him to leave before Phyllis returned.
"Can you talk?" he asked. "I won't hurt you," he again said.
I nodded, wanting him to leave or I'd surely be in serious trouble.
He did not leave but stood there staring at me with his dark brown mesmerizing eyes.
"I'm Josh Hernandez and I'm twenty-three, and you?"
"Eighteen," I said softly. A name I could not give him, for I had none, and I didn’t want him to know what Phyllis called me.
"Wow," he said surprised. "You have a beautiful voice, but can I have your name as well?"
I froze, not answering him.
"Your name must be as sweet as your voice," he said.
I smiled. His voice made me feel strange inside.
"Yes, that's what I want to see on your beautiful face, happiness, not sadness," he said, cheering me up.
I was amazed at how he described me. Phyllis had never described me in such a way. Was I really beautiful?
"Beautiful?" I asked him.
"Yes, you are like a red rose," he said.
I shyly smiled at him, overwhelmed by his words.
I moved my right hand to my small, round face and touched it, wondering if his words were true, not paying attention to him anymore.
I felt a strong warm hand on my right hand. I raised my head and stared at him standing close to me. He moved his hand from my hand and gently ran the back of it along my left cheek.
"You are indeed beautiful," he said.
I smiled. He was different. He was kind and sweet. He didn't choose to describe me harshly, as Phyllis did. He was everything I expected the world outside of my cell would be—filled with love and not pain. I was excited to meet more people like him.
He removed his hand from my cheek and asked, "So aren't you going to tell me your name, beautiful?"
"Name?" I repeated, not having any name to give him.
I lowered my eyes, not knowing what to say. I wanted to lie to him and give him any name, but I didn't think that would be wise. If I lied, I would be letting myself down.
"Your sweet voice is tempting me to kiss to you," he said.
"Kiss?" I repeated, clueless about what he was talking about, but I was eager to find out.
"What is kiss?" I asked him.
"Really," he said, while he stared at me, surprised.
I lowered my eyes, feeling ashamed.
"No, no," he said, trying to cheer me up. "I'm sorry for how I reacted to your question. It's just that I'm surprised a beauty like you don't know what a kiss is. Haven't you ever been kissed?" he asked, and smiled shyly.
I smiled, loving the way he kept on describing me as being beautiful.
"Aren't you going to tell me?" I asked him eagerly.
"It would be better if I showed you," he said, and turned his head to look at the door, then returned his smiling eyes to me. He ran his fingers through his short, brown hair, and looked at me with his enchanting eyes.
"Can I show you?" he asked me, softly.
"Yes," I replied.
"Promise me you won't be scared," he said.
My heart started to beat fast, hearing him say that. What had I gotten myself into? I wasn't outside as yet, and I had got myself into trouble already. I wanted to tell him that I’d changed my mind, but I just couldn't do it. The words would not escape my mouth.
"Promise me," he said, as he moved his face close to mine.
I could feel his breath against my lips.
"Promise," I said shyly.
"Close your eyes," he instructed me.
I stared at him, wondering what mess I was getting myself up to.
"Come on, beautiful," he said, while his breath danced against my face.
I slowly closed my green eyes and waited nervously for what he was about to do.
Suddenly, I felt something soft touch my lips, slowly, caressing them. My lips trembled at his powerful touch. My entire body felt relaxed by the deep intense feeling his kiss gave me. It was the most wonderful feeling I'd ever felt. I hadn't felt so good in my entire life.
I slowly opened my eyes and there I saw the Alpha's nephew removing his soft lips from mine. He ran his tongue over his lips, enjoying the taste of my lips. I touched my lips. I’d enjoyed him caressing them.
"That is a kiss," he said, smiling and staring shyly into my eyes.
I continued to touch my lips, now knowing what a kiss was. Still, I was curious to know why werewolves kissed.
"Why did you do that?" I asked him.
"I wanted you to know what a kiss is," he said.
That wasn't the answer I was hoping for. I wanted to know the purpose of the kiss.
I looked sideways, staring curiously at the wall.
"That wasn't the answer you were seeking?" he asked me.
I turned my attention to him right away. It was as if he could read my mind.
"We werewolves kiss when we are in love, to greet each other, to say goodbye, and during intercourse," he explained.
"Intercourse," I repeated.
"Fuck. I'm sorry," he apologized. "Make love."
I looked at him, puzzled.
"You wouldn't know what that means, as well," he said.
I nodded.
"Don't worry. One day you'll fall in love with someone, and then you'll find out what it is," he told me.
"Is it just like a kiss?" I asked him.
"No," he said. "It is way different, and the feeling it gives you will cause you to cry out, feeling a great pleasure between your thighs."
I stared at him, curious about what to expect of the outer world. Suddenly, the door opened.
I quickly moved away from Josh.
Phyllis was astonished to see I was not alone.
"What is happening, here?" she asked me.
I stood frightened, afraid to answer her. "Nothing," Josh said. I turned my attention to him right away, terrified, hoping he could get me out of that mess. After all, it was he who had started it. I didn't call him into the laundry room. He'd come on his own, desperate to know who I was. "Nothing at all," he again told Phyllis. "I just came in here to see if she was fine and she is." He looked at me and smiled. I lowered my eyes. "And what could be wrong with her?" Phyllis asked him, upset. "I'm needed in the living room," he said, and exited the laundry room, ignoring my evil grandmother. Phyllis watched him while he left and until he closed the door behind him. She impatiently twisted her right hand, wanting to punish me. The two of us were left standing in the laundry room, eyeing each other. "What were you two doing in here?" she snapped. "Nothing," I quickly answered her. "Nothing?" she asked sarca
I dug my hand into the ground, grabbing a handful of dead leaves and twisted and turned my head. "Hah!" I screamed, my voice strange to my ears. It was as if I could not control the sounds that were escaping my mouth. "Josh!" I screamed his name, not knowing what else to do as he sucked between my legs. I felt a strong feeling between my vagina and lower belly as if my entire body was going to explode. I removed my hand from the ground and grabbed him by his hair, lifting his head from between my legs. He pushed me back to the ground and started sucking on me again. My entire body stiffened, while he squeezed one of my breasts and played with it. I couldn't handle such a strong feeling. It was too much. I pushed myself backward, removing his mouth from me. I sprang to my feet and ran toward a tree. My entire body shook while I held on to the tree. Josh got up from the ground, wiping the wetness from his mouth. I pushed myself bac
I couldn't stop crying, knowing Josh was no longer with me. I'd only met him that day, but deep down it felt like I had known him for a long time. Even though he was a stranger, I felt safe with him and trusted him with my life. I had to find him after the storm passed. I had to escape and go in search of him. A strange smile appeared on my sad face while I sank my hand in the soft bed, grabbing on to the white sheet and thought about him. If I found him, he would take care of me and teach me what I needed to know about the world. First, I had to find out where he was. I wiped the tears from my eyes and sat up on my bed. "Are you finished crying now, Reds?" Cindy asked, while she sat on her bed with a book in her hand. "Reds?" I repeated. Suddenly, I looked up at my hair, realizing the reason why she called me so. I nervously turned my head aside, and stared at the room. It consisted of two pieces of furniture—the two beds. "Wh
Wait a minute. A son? I kept on hearing those words ringing in my ears. She had a son? All those years I had lived with her, I had never heard her say anything about having a son. She was always talking about her dead, beautiful daughter—my mom. I didn't know why it upset me so badly to hear that she had a son. She didn’t love me or ever held a decent conversation with me. She was always hitting me or telling me bad things about myself. I started to wonder if her son knew about me, whether he knew she had me locked away in a cell and was treating me badly. What if he didn't and could have given me the life I had wanted? I looked at my grandma with disgust as she wiped away the tears from her eyes. "A group of people is heading to Spicy Groove after breakfast. You can go with them," the tall man told her. I felt Cindy hold my hand. She smiled at me when I looked up at her. "Let's see what they have prepared for breakfast," she s
Locked away in a cell by my grandmother for eighteen years, I wanted to be free from her and go outside where people were different. Every move I made kept me trapped. The people I met were just like her, evil and cold. Tears ran from my eyes when I remembered Josh’s words. He didn't know me, he'd said. Was he ashamed of me and how I looked? I knew I should never have believed him. I knew I was not beautiful. Everything about me was ugly, including the ugly bright red hair on my head. I hated that it reminded Phyllis of my rapist father. "We're here now," the two men said as they placed me down in front of a large white house. The house was the largest house I'd ever seen. The men held my arms, preventing me from trying to escape. The door opened and I saw an old gray-haired lady. "Why are you holding her like that?" she snapped at the men. "She tried to run away," one of the men answered while they led me inside. The old lady closed t
I took small steps behind her, not wanting to walk into her as I followed her. "It's a very large house, but right now I first want to show you your room before I'm asked to run off to do something," she said. Her footsteps echoed on the floor of the house. While she continued to talk, tears filled my eyes when I remembered the way the Alpha had talked to me, as if I was nothing. "Here's your room," Francine said, stopping at a door on the left side of the hall. I quickly wiped away my tears and followed her into the room. The room was very neat. It only had a small bed, covered in a light pink sheet. "The door next to the bed is your bathroom," she said, pointing to it. "Well, that's it," she said, and turned to face me. "Since we will be working together, what is your name?" I was beginning to get annoyed by everyone wanting to know my name. I was tired of trying to hide the reason why I didn't have a name, so I gave her the
"Yes, he will be able to save you from Alpha Pharaoh," Francine assured me. "He helped me by bringing me into this world by raping my mother," I told her while I sobbed, "so how would he want to help me again?" Francine stared at me while her bottom lip jumped as if she wanted to tell me something, something that she shouldn’t. "If I do decide to go to him, how will I find him?" I asked her. "You don't know him?" Francine asked, surprised. "No," I said, shaking my head. Francine held her cheek, the same spot where Alpha Pharaoh had hit her. She lowered her head sadly and stared at the floor then back at me. "I want to help you, but I am scared," she told me. I stared at her until the tears in my eyes prevented me from seeing her. I understood that she too feared the Alpha. I also didn't want to get her into any trouble anymore for I seemed to have that effect—destroying people's life as I had done to my mom's. T
I continued to stare at the ceiling as I headed toward the kitchen, almost missing a step and falling on to my face. I caught myself in time. Francine turned around as I entered the kitchen, before going back to finish preparing dinner. "Is everything alright?" she asked me, while she stirred the pot. "Yes," I said, lying to her. Telling her what Apollo had called me to do would be a total waste of time, for she could not save me. All she could do was to show her sympathy. I removed my eyes from Francine and started to worry about doing it again. Would he call me to give him a bath every day? Looking back to see if Francine had finished dinner, I was startled to see her watching me. "Are you sure you're alright?" she asked me again. I nodded, lying to her again. "Okay," she said, and returned to her duty. "Please pass me the plates for dinner," she said. I went for five plates and passed them to her, knowing the A