Dumped at a Rest Stop In a Christmas Blizzard

I was the middle child of my family, and the Omega with the least presence in the entire Blackstone pack.My older sister, Ava Hale, and my younger brother, Jamie Hale, had their birthdays circled in red on the calendar. Our parents always went out of their way to celebrate their birthdays each year.But not a single person in the family remembered my 18th birthday.It was only three days later when Mom, having flipped through the calendar, hurriedly made me a bowl of venison stew in belated realization."Here, to make up for your birthday that has already passed. Eat up," she said.Her eyes never left the werewolf combat championship playing on the TV.For Ava's birthday, the whole family went to her favorite amusement park, Winter Paradise. She also got a custom-made cake with the words "Our Pride and Joy" written on it.For Jamie's birthday, Mom and Dad invited all of the wolf pups in the pack over for a party, and he got a mountain of gifts that day.Since we were young, Av

I stood frozen, still holding the phone. Tears finally slipped down my face, landing on the cold phone screen and almost instantly turning into ice.Felicia patted me on the shoulder and sighed. "It's okay. Why don't you come with me for now? My car is right outside, and my place is just off the highway. You can wait there and call your parents to come pick you up."After recalling how annoying Mom and Dad sounded, I shook my head and rejected her kind offer. "It's alright. Thank you. Dad said my uncle will be coming to pick me up soon. I'll just wait here."Since it was the holidays, I knew Mom and Dad weren't going to turn around just to pick me up, not when they only ever considered me a bother. Uncle Cole wasn't close to me either. He wouldn't be pleased if he had to make a detour just to pick me up.It looked like Felicia wanted to say something, but her phone started ringing. Her family was urging her to hurry up.Looking at me in concern, she pulled out an energy bar from h

When I opened my eyes again, my body felt unnaturally light, like a feather drifting in the wind. I thought I would see Mom's anxious face and feel her warm embrace. Whenever I fell as a pup, she would always be the first to run over and scoop me up.But the sight before me was still the cold, empty rest stop. The snow swirled in the blizzard and piled thick on the ground.I lay curled up in the snow, the beige blanket now buried beneath the white snow, almost impossible to see.I tried sitting up, only to find myself floating weightlessly. Looking down, I saw the petite body still lying in the snow, curled up and completely motionless.My cheeks had gone blue from the cold, so had my lips. My eyes were shut tight, the long lashes frosted over.That was me.But here I was, hovering in the air.I reached out to touch my body, but my fingers passed through it, like a fine mist.I was dead. It took me a while to come to terms with that.Strangely, I didn't feel fear or sadness,

Just as the festive atmosphere settled over everyone, Dad's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and frowned. "A call from an unknown number at a time like this?""It might be Lyra. Quick, take the call," Mom urged him.Only then did Dad accept the call, but soon, what the speaker said made his expression turn serious at once."Yes, this is Lyra Hale's father, Kane Hale. You're with the Pack Territory Patrol? My daughter is probably with you, right?"Turning to Mom, he muttered, "It's a call from the Pack Territory Patrol. I guess someone must've seen Lyra alone at the rest stop and taken her to them."Mom nodded, feeling a lot more reassured now.However, when Dad heard what the speaker said next, his entire body stiffened. "What? A body? That's impossible! Are you sure you're not mistaken?"The fork in Mom's hand clattered onto the table.Everyone in the dining room fell silent. Only the sound coming from the TV could still be heard."Yes… Okay… We'll be right there."Th

Even after my soul dissipated, life went on. After my funeral, our home was shrouded in a heavy, unshakable gloom for a long time.Mom spent most of her time crying, often staring at my photo for hours on end. She began to lose sleep, and even when she slept, I haunted her dreams. She dreamed of me, waving at her from the rest stop. She dreamed of me crying, saying that I was cold.Every time she woke up, she cried uncontrollably.Dad became silent and withdrawn, often distracted even while handling the pack's affairs. He avoided any conversation about pups, and when our relatives' pups visited, he would find excuses to leave the room.He no longer participated in family discussions or made any holiday plans. He often sat by the fireplace for hours on end, alone.Ava seemed to have grown up overnight, too. She no longer fought with Jamie or pestered our parents for anything. She threw herself into her studies.Her room was filled with my belongings—that old sweater, my favorite b