CHAPTER ONE

"Waste another second and you will be walking to school. I will make sure of that." Jared threatened fisting his car keys in his hand before storming out of the house. I rolled my eyes as I quietly uttered a snort. He glared at me.

Oops, I must have forgotten that he was a wolf. All thanks to his enhanced hearing.

I was ecstatic about the new term that was starting today. It felt good to know that soon, I would be done with highschool.

Another new term meant I was another step closer to freedom. Freedom of being able to train as an older warrior in the pack. 

I wasn't allowed to train yet since it would affect my schooling and focus.

My parents were born into the pack but they wanted my siblings and I to grow up as human and act less werewolf.

It was tough mixing the werewolves pack with modern day. Things that made us seem so divided but I was proud of who I was and so was the other young few werewolves in my school.

We knew ourselves and the pack where we belonged to. It was our territory and whenever another werewolf infiltrated, well, the pack warriors were good at kicking asses. 

And what the 'young ones' like they like to call us would do was to go and hide in the pack house. It was like a drill whenever a foreign wolf was on the loose.

Oops, I'm rambling, right?

Well I go by the name Umbrie, seventeen years old and the second of the three children of my parents. Jared, my older brother and Sky, my little brother.

We were a family of werewolves, living in Ice Valley all our lives. I wondered how the pack was able to keep this up — living among humans and not being figured out by lots of people.

There were elderly human folks that knew but had to act ignorant just to avoid problems. It was obvious that we had taken over the town.

"Umbrie, did you hear what I said?" Jared's voice broke through and I groaned in frustration.

I unconsciously swallowed down the piece of pancake I had been chewing on almost choking on it.

It's so weird that I forgot he had been waiting for me but my thoughts just happen to unravel at the strangest times. 

I downloaded the remaining piece of pancake into my mouth before rushing out of the house.

Mom and dad had left very early with Sky since he had a dentist appointment before school.

Jared was difficult to relate to. He grew up so fast and was practically letting his rage take over him more than his conscience. 

The one good thing he did for me was drive me to school whenever I couldn't ride with our parents and he also helped with my homework because he's very smart. But this still depended on when he was in a good mood.

His happy moods never lasts. There's always something that'd make his deep frown appear and you'd rather be far away from him in order not to get hurt.

I jumped into his car like I was in a race since he had already started the car engine and was about driving off.

"Did you lock up the house, dummy?" He asked stitching his gaze on me.

I nervously hit my hand on the dash board before scurrying back to the house.

After locking the door, I returned to the car, walking normal this time and not sprinting like a squirrel.

The car was going really fast and I was silently praying we don't crash into another vehicle. I would just ask him to slow down. I would but it might result to him refusing to drive me to school.

I can't wait to turn eighteen and finally get my own car.

"I'm going to a concert this evening. I need you to cover up for me." He suddenly said not sparing me a look.

"Why?" I quizzed.

"What do you want to know? Why I'm going to a concert or why you have to cover up for me?" He asked and I chuckled.

"You can tell me both." 

"I'm looking for my mate." He stated eerily.  

"Wow..." My words dozed off as I remembered someone I didn't want to think about. Someone i wanted to forget even. My skin prickled as his image formed in my mind.

No... Not today. Not the first day at school.

His memories can't keep tormenting me.

"Something in me desperately wants to find her. I mean, I deserve to have her in my life, don't you think?" He asked, his eyes looking so bored.

Wow, he is becoming weird.

"Of course, you do. But— but what about Tiana?" I questioned recalling her extra nice and sweet girlfriend. 

She was really good. Too good for him I guess but I really didn't understand their relationship. How a pretty dark guy like Jared would be able to have a girl like her for long.

"She doesn't have a place. The moon goddess didn't pick her for me so I guess, she's just an asset for now." He replied 

My throat cloaked at his words came into meaning. I felt pissed he talked about her like that. 

Well, Jared was yet to find his mate and it pisses him off that I've seen mine before him and he was older than me.

It was one of the major reasons he joined the warrior group of the pack so he could get chances of going to different places.

"I really can't wait to find my mate. I'd do lots of nasty things to her while we'd be in the shower." He said and I felt like closing my ears.

I can't be listening to brother saying such words.

Eeww!

"And I won't leave her hanging like your stupid mate left you. It's really not your fault" He mumbled, stopping the car and that was when I realized we'd arrived at the school drive thru.

"Say whatever you want to say, I don't care anymore. And I definitely don't feel hurt with your words, alright?" I said grinning. 

I gently got out of the car and shut the door like the nice lady I was growing up to be.

I sashayed towards the school building encountering a new faces on the way and I guessed a lot of students bad transferred this time.

Jared was right. It wasn't my fault and there was nothing I could do. He chose to leave. And I still didn't understand why..

"Hey cupcake. How are you doing?" A deep familiar voice greeted me and I looked up to see Noah, one of the school's football players.

I whisked my hair off my face before replying with a, "Fine."

He had a satisfied smile before walking away. We were classmates and he was very friendly with everyone.

I waved at Brittney, the girl that was my lab partner last term. She waved back and I kept on walking. 

I entered my classroom and headed for the middle row where the desk I liked sitting on was. I sat down noticing the girl next to me.

Her eyes were green. Yes, very green and her hair, talk about a super straightener. She let out a smile.

"Hello, I'm Daphne. Are you in this class? What is your name?" She asked sounding robotic.

"I'm Umbrie. Yeah.. This is my class." I chuckled as the effect of her voice nuzzled my guts.

"What's so funny?" She asked snickering.

"Just your voice." I smiled broadly. "You are a new student?".

She was human. I couldn't get a wolf scent from her. 

"Yes." She replied and I nodded.

The teacher soon entered, cutting our conversation from going further.

"Good day, class..." He started

My morning was not so bad after all since we started with biology — a subject that I enjoyed the most. 

The classroom looked fuller too. 

I was still setting out my drawing materials on my desk when I noticed a scent. Far too familiar and far too effective on me. 

Peppermint like mandarins or bergamot.

I haven't smelt this scent in six months and now it was right around the corner. That was odd.

The scent distracted my senses. Almost driving me to go in deep search for it.

I was starting to fidget when the classroom door opened fanatically. 

A cold air embraced the atmosphere as I saw him standing at the door with his hands in his pockets and his head up.

Has it really been six months? Yes, it has.

It has been six f**king months since I last saw him.

His brown eyes lingered over the class until it found mine. His brows seemed to relax a bit as he stared.

Oh geez. I couldn't feel any part of my body. It was like my spirit was floating on my seat.

My legs quivered and my breath hitched like I had seen a ghost. 

The whole class stirred with surprise and there were whispers.

"Oh my goodness. Well, if it isn't Keiran Diaz. It has been so long." The teacher remarked excitedly grinning so wide.

Keiran stayed mute and chewed on something quietly and I guessed it was a bubble gum. He took steps closer and as he walked past the teacher's desk, he caused a number of books to fall making Mrs Katherine to bend low and pick up the books. 

Gosh! Poor woman.

If he wasn't one of my biggest nightmares, I would rushed right over to help her. 

My breath was still uneven and beads of sweat was making it's way on top of my forehead. I felt so hot and strained. 

He started walking to the back row accompanied with Hillary, his human best friend.

Oh God. Why is he back?! Where on earth did he crawl out from?

And slowly, my muscles tightened.