CHAPTER ONE: THE DREAM THAT BECAME A NIGHTMARE

Alisa's stomach growled and her hands gripped her stomach, her mouth turned up at the corners.

She had been at college all day, and was now walking home alone so she would get ready for her evening shift at the grocery store she worked.

It was already evening, and the setting sun was pouring its orange glow on everything, the autumn leaves falling from maple trees on either side of the lonely path Alisa trod on. The path cut through the woods and was the only place that lacked green in Palm Springs City, carrying more brown in it than anywhere else.

Her mind was on a secret apple tree she had found years back, and she wondered if she would find apples to eat there, and maybe even pick some for her younger brother, John and her friend, Stacy, the two most important people in her life since her parents death in a tragic accident some years before.

She cut from the path and went deeper into the woods, a compass in her head guiding her towards the apple tree, the woods getting thicker and darker as she saw it in the distance. Her stomach growled again as her eyes fell on some red apples lying under the tree, and for a quick second she thought of baking some apple pie.

Her shoes crunched the drying leaves that lay in her path, and she picked as many apples as she could, squeezing them into her backpack.

She took two more to eat and went to wash them in a crystal clear spring-fed pond a few feet away from where the apple tree stood. A bunch of large piled-up rocks stood on one edge of the pond, casting a shadow over the water, seeming to announce for how long they had existed at their solitary post.

At the pond, she bent over and stared at her reflection, her blue eyes gazing back at her. Her blonde hair flowed down her shoulders, touching her flawless white skin, and her sensuous red lips quivered as she put her hand into the water and felt for its temperature.

No one needed to tell Alisa she was beautiful— all the male attention she received from almost every boy she knew was proof. But she craved romance, and none of the boys made her feel that way, not even Elliott, a charming classmate who tried to get her gifts all the time. She liked him, but just as her friend.

And it scared her because she could tell Elliott was in love with her.

Alisa shook her head, trying to stop thinking about people. She loved being here because it was often lonely, and it offered her a sense of peace and a touch of nature she rarely got. The only sounds she could hear were those of chirping birds, the coolness of the lake inviting her in.

She so badly wanted to swim.

Alisa pushed her bag now filled with apples aside, and unbuttoned her shirt, taking it off and letting it fall on the bag. Her brassiere went next, and her beautiful perky breasts fell out, her pink nipples standing out like twin towers.

She took her skirt off and next went her panty, and she smiled as she felt the trimmed golden triangular bush between her white legs. She took an apple and jumped in the pond, and the cool water soothed her body.

Alisa was in love with nature.

She kicked back in the water, her naked legs pushing her back as she took a bite from the apple, wondering if this was what the Garden of Eden would have felt like. A small goldfish swam by, and she could hear a duck quacking somewhere close by.

A childish laugh escaped her, her soft musical voice echoing and resonating with the chirping birds, and then she dove deeper into the water. Her head popped out again, and she took another bite from the apple.

She saw it was getting dark, and she needed to go.

Alisa swam out of the water, tossed away her half-eaten apple and wrung her hair before turning around to see the most chilling sight she had seen in ages.

Maybe all her life.

A wolf stood about twenty feet away, its eyes fixed on her, watching. It was big, black and menacing, almost the size of a horse, and she was terrified.

She had never seen a wolf this size before.

She shivered, momentarily forgetting she was naked. She wanted to run but lacked the presence of mind to, her heart thumping in her chest.

The wolf turned away and left, its black tail disappearing into the darkness of the woods.

Alisa was still horrified, and her body shivered as she quickly put her clothes back on. She ran as fast as her legs could with all the load she was carrying in a different direction and did not stop till she found her way to the path. She was very scared and swore to never come back again.

She got back on the lonely path, her hands still shaking as she remembered how the wolf had just watched her and turned away, and she wondered how close she was to being dinner on a wolf's menu.

She hurried up, her steps quickening, until she came to a junction where she could now see more people, all hurrying to get home before it was too late. The streetlights were coming on, and cars sped past as she moved slowly on the sidewalk.

She still had to go give Stacy some of the apples she had picked, and luckily, Stacy didn't live far off. Her home was close to Stacy's too.

Alisa finally made it to Stacy's house, the quiet atmosphere making her wonder if there was anyone at home. Stacy lived alone and was mostly alone unless she had a guy over.

Alisa pressed the doorbell and waited, but heard no footsteps from inside. She pressed it again and was about to leave when the door was thrown wide open and Stacy's head popped out, her eyes groggy from sleep.

"Alisa?" The groggy eyes widened. She definitely wasn't expecting anyone.

"Were you expecting someone else?" Alisa asked, a beautiful grin on her face.

"That's why I'm glad you were here. I was losing it over the boredom."

Stacy was now smiling too, and the two friends embraced. Her hand groped Alisa's bag as Alisa went in and her face echoed her curiosity.

"What's in your bag, Alisa?"

Alisa laughed and recounted her ordeal while handing some of the apples to Stacy in Stacy's dining room. The latter just stood there, mouth wide open.

"You're lucky, Alisa. What kind of a wolf is that?"

"I don't even know."

"You wouldn't have been picking apples in the woods if you had a man taking care of you. Stop wasting away, Alisa. You're beautiful, even prettier than me that looks like an A****n warrior, but I still keep men hungry for me." Stacy declared.

Alisa looked at her friend. Stacy was not the prettiest— big-boned and masculine with short black hair, her face easily reminding one of a baby, but men swarmed around her and did her bidding like programmed robots.

"That is the difference between us, Stacy. I believe in love's fire, and you believe in desire. I listen to my heart and you listen to your body. You know how to make men obsess over you, but I don't. I am obsessed with romance."

Stacy exhaled, her eyes locking with Alisa's, and the friends locked each other in an embrace.

"I just want the best for you, Alisa. I hate watching you live like this." Stacy whispered, her chin on Alisa's shoulder.

"I know you do Stacy. And even though we are two different people. I still love you just the way you are."

"Me too. But don't let it get emotional," Stacy sniffed out of pretence, and they both laughed.

"I've got to be going. I want to keep the rest of the apples at home for John before I leave for the grocery store."

"And I'll be seducing a few patients at the hospital." Stacy grinned evilly.

Alisa walked to the door and remembered something.

"Come over for some apple pie tomorrow. John loves them and I'll be making them for him."

"I'll be there," Stacy promised as Alisa shut the door from outside.

She still shivered a bit from the terror of a close call with such a large wolf, but talking to Stacy had loosened her up. She now only needed to get home and then go to work.

Alisa's house was empty when she got in, breezing through the two rooms as she passed, and she figured John would still be at his job. She checked the time and saw that it was almost 7 PM, and left John a note that told him to expect her before midnight.

She had another bath, changed her clothes, and took her old rickety bike to Maggie's Veggies, the grocery store she worked at. It had turned out to be a good time for her. Her boss was happy, she got many large tips from admiring male customers and closed at exactly 11:30 PM, riding her bike as fast as she could once she left.

She made it home, checked on John who was up playing games on his computer and crashed into her bed for the night, forgetting everything else, including the big black wolf.

***********************************************

Alisa could see her parents standing in front of a closed door, and there seemed to be a bright light on the other side of that door.

“Goodbye, Alisa.” Her mother said.

“We are coming back for you.” Her father echoed.

They held each other’s hands as they walked to the closed door and opened it, and the light poured in, covering her parents and blinding her.

“No! Please don’t go.” Alisa screamed, reaching out to hold them, but she never did. She felt nothing as her grip closed, and then fell backwards into what felt like an infinite darkness.

A wolf's eyes stared at her from above.

She opened her eyes and screamed, falling off her bed.

Her younger brother, John rushed into her room but he could barely see her. It was pretty dark, a bit of the light from the moon pouring in, dimly illuminating everything.

“Alisa?” he called, his hands feeling the wall for the light switch. “Are you okay?”

Alisa blinked, trying to understand what had just happened before realization hit her.

“Oh. It was just a dream. It felt so real.”

“I heard you scream, Alisa,” John said, finally switching the light on.

She got up from where she had fallen on the floor and sat on the edge of her bed.

“I guess. I just saw Mum and Dad in a dream.”

John exhaled and then sat on the other edge of the little bed. They were both silent, but they knew what they wanted to say to each other, and it was a lot.

“You miss them, don’t you?” Alisa asked, breaking the silence.

“Yeah. I do. But I know I can’t bring them back, and I’m more focused on trying to make life easy on the both of us.” John answered, his face brooding.

Alisa exhaled deeply. She admired John’s strength, despite him being just sixteen. He had been forced to grow up so fast when their parents died, and that fact hurt her.

“I’m sorry I woke you up, John. Please go to sleep now. I’m fine.”

“Are you sure you don’t need me to scare your demons away?”

"I am six years older, Johnny."

They both laughed and then John kissed her hair before wishing her goodnight once again that night.

Alisa was looking forward to turning the light off to talk to the moon as she did when she felt alone, because the moon looked so peaceful, so graceful, so silver, so much so that speaking to it soothed her. It felt like her dead parents were there, listening to her pour out her sorrows and tell them how much she missed them.

And above all, the moon was a part of nature.

She was about to ask John to turn the light off when she heard her name escape as a groan from his lips.

“Alisa."

And he fell to the ground with a heavy thud.