1. BEFORE DAWN BREAKS

VIVIAN'S POV

I couldn't stop thinking about my first day at school as I nestled in the covers of the velvet colored bed sheet. The rays of light from the morning sunrise shone brightly on the window frame.

I woke up to the whistles of a hummingbird as I with my toothbrush heading towards the bathroom door.

I hated this very day. I was kind of nervous and not sure of the type of people I'll end up meeting with. Horrors of my parents' brutal death haunted me every single moment. I was disturbed with my eyes filled with fear and terror. Their screams will sometimes echo in my ears that I found it difficult to concentrate.

Stuck in the middle of a metropolitan city after fleeing from the woodlands things never got better but I needed to keep calm and try to adapt. But it was a very difficult thing to do……………

"Hop in the car let's get going,"

"Never mind, I'll use my bike instead," I replied

"Just listen to me Vivian. Must you always be a jerk? I'm gonna drive you down there by myself,"

Nicholas said with arched eyebrows.

"Can you give me some breathing space? I don't enjoy being caged, okay? I'm old enough to drive myself," I told him.

"You can't drive down there alone, they're a lot of roughnecks in downtown Carson street."

"Nicholas, you don't have to worry about me, I'll be fine."

I sped off on the motorcycle, looking forward to the beginning of a new day at school. Putting on my headphones as I blasted loud music down the highway driving at an incredible speed as I made my way towards Carson's Bridge.

Few moments later, I showed up at my new school and pulled up at the parking lot before turning off the steaming motorcycle engine.

I alighted, taking off my headphones, relaxing for a while before taking a deep, heavy breath to help me recover from the crazy morning drive. I was apprehensive about enrolling in another school. Particularly since this is another school with a totally different set of people and I didn't actually have friends over here.

Nobody really took me seriously because my brother Nicholas was always restrictive. I mumbled a few words to myself before stepping out of the parking lot.

"Hey" I heard a voice calling from behind. I hopped in shock and twirled around to see an exceptionally lovely young lady with radiant pink hair standing before me.

"Hi there" I said

"Hi sweetie, I'm Elena Sage"

"I'm Vivian" I said smiling

"It seems you're new to this environment?"

"Yeah, Just moved in a few months ago". I nodded trying to avoid direct eye contact. She looked stunning, I was certainly not her match.

"Can I show you around?." She winked

"Yeah for sure," I screeched energetically. I was in an excessive amount of shock at her flagrancy to even acknowledge what was going on.

She showed me around and the next spot was the reception. The place was calm and quiet with only some five to seven workers pacing back and forth.

"You must be the new girl?".

"Yes, Ma" I replied

"I go by the name Mrs Latifah. I'm the receptionist, as may be obvious. Here is your class to-do list and your locker number. If you ever need anything, just inform me". she chuckled and I smiled back.

"Much thanks to you," I said and took the files she gave me prior to leaving the reception office.

Elena, in a flash, got the papers from my hand and read over my timetable before screaming loudly….

"Jeez! We're having almost the same schedule, except for one particular subject." She frowned. I giggled not finding it appealing either.

"This is perfect. We're definitely going to be a perfect match and you know you might be the best thing I've ever come across."

"Really? Are you serious?" I questioned.

"Definitely, I'm not joking," she said with conviction

"What if we have a hangout at my place tonight? I got enough space. You need not worry about comfort and accommodation," she boasted.

"Not to sound discourteous Elena, but don't you have cronies?" I inquired.

"Obviously I do. However, none of those folks can deal with the level of brilliance and intelligence that I possess". She said, and I burst out laughing. Was she really as brilliant as she claimed?

Although I have known her for the past 15 minutes, I really enjoyed her company. It was a good sign that she's going to make a good friend.

Elena took me on a tour around the school, causing us to miss the first lesson scheduled during that hour, however we made it to the subsequent session of the class.

"Good morning all, it appears we have a newbie among us today, or should I say a new entrant. Vivian, would you like to make a formal introduction to the class". The instructor said,

Thinking how awkward it was to have such countless eyes on me and yet still had to go up to the front in order to make a formal introduction.

"Hello everyone, I'm Vivian Blackwood, 19 years of age, and I moved here as of late with my sibling.," I shrugged, feeling flustered.

"You can now take a seat, Vivian," the Instructor said. I was smiling uncontrollably as I returned to my seat. It was as if a burden was lifted up my shoulders. I'd finally done the newbie introduction and it wasn't actually a big deal at all.

"Vivian, I'm here with my twin brother, Tyler. He's sitting just behind us."

I glanced to see who she was talking about. He had spiky hair and looked more like a street urchin.

"Tyler, meet my friend, Vivian," she introduced me to Tyler. I smiled at him and he smiled back.

"Hello Tyler," I waved

.

"Hey Viv," He replied while looking straight into my eyes, but I looked away immediately. I giggled and peered down at the book on my desk.

As Tyler, Elena and I fell into deep silence, out of nowhere I heard a group of voices muttering unintelligible sounds before one of them said in a hushed tone.

"Wow! It seems the new young lady will sit next to him. " I heard some students converse in what should be silent whispers, yet because of my werewolf hearing instincts, I heard them loud and clear.

I glared at them and turned towards Elena and Tyler, who looked somewhat awkward.

"Who will sit next to me?" I asked Elena. Her face abruptly went pale, and I realized something was definitely wrong. Although I haven't known her for long, I realized something probably frightened her enough to persuade her to be so quiet.

"Elena? Tyler?" I inquired. They stayed quiet.

"I need a reply, please!" The answer was what I wanted. I was excessively inquisitive.

"I'm so happy you didn't sit on the other side of the desk. He would have been so irate," Elena muttered.

"I can remember a random guy who sat there one fateful day. The boy was gone forever. Nobody holds him up".

" Who the hell is this dude you're talking about?" I asked, befuddled.

"He frightens me," Elena grumbled, her head trembling.

"He frightens everybody. His wolf is so strong," Tyler spoke softly. I sighed in disappointment.

"Who folks?! Who's this guy that is dreaded by everyone?" I snapped, getting irritated with them.

Elena and Tyler both look around the classroom, back and forth. They did this twice, which got me questioning their sanity before both saying exactly the same thing.

"The Alpha..." They chorused

Suddenly, out of nowhere, came a bloodcurdling howl that echoed over the classroom block, one of grief and heartrending sorrow.