Chapter 2: The Imprint

As I locked eyes with the mystery man, the rest of the world seemed to fade away. I forgot where I was and all the steps that had brought me to that exact moment, but somehow I knew like a spiritual being was telling me, I felt it in the depths of my soul that this was the man I was going to spend the rest of my life with. I took in his features, he was a tall man about 6”5, his muscles were very defined in the tailored tuxedo he was wearing, he had a chiseled jawline, and his mouth was set tight like he was trying not to give any sense of emotion away. His hair was pitch black and it was set in a rough style that only the most handsome of men could pull off. The pupils of his eyes were pure black and his stare had a piercing sincerity to it. He looked very dominant and he gave off the aura and charisma of a real man.

I looked into his eyes and found it so alluring the way he was staring right back into mine. Neither of us said anything, but I was sure that whatever this sudden rush of emotions was, the feeling was mutual. He was staring at me like he saw something in my eyes; it seemed like our souls recognized each other and knew something we didn’t.

My pulse quickened and my heart started to pound, a spot just underneath my collarbone was throbbing like crazy and I felt a strong urge to bare my neck to this man. I was more than willing to do that because all I wanted at that moment was for him to kiss me. He began to move closer towards me and I thought that was what he was about to do when I heard a very low and animal-like growl coming from him and I saw a weird flash in his eyes.

I was very much taken aback by that and I immediately snapped back to reality because I found that it was a very strange thing for a person to do. I didn’t understand what was going on and I started to look confused. As the man saw the look in my eyes; he took a step back from me, he gave me one last glance and then he just walked right out of the apartment like we did not just share the most intimate gaze.

Reine ran out after the man giving me some time to come back to my senses. I sat down on the couch and recounted everything that had gone down since I walked into the apartment building in my head but I could not seem to make sense of any of it. I remembered the way the man growled at me and how he walked away from me and I started to feel very angry at the whole situation.

I was practically steaming from anger when Reine walked back into the apartment looking like a lost puppy. As soon as I saw my best friend I screamed out “What the actual f^ck just happened Reine? Who was that man, and what did he just do to me??”

Reine looked surprised by my outburst, I was usually the calm and collected one but I understood that the events of the day were enough to trigger such a reaction in anyone. I calmed me down, got a glass of water for me to drink and sat down beside me on the couch.

I stared at her waiting for an explanation, I saw that I was struggling and didn’t know how to answer my questions so I asked more calmly this time “Reine who exactly was that man?”

Reine finds her words to respond this time, and she says “That was my older brother and only sibling, Lucien Duvall. I know you have a lot of questions as to what just happened and I know that you would be shocked about some things I will reveal to you about myself and my family but I beg of you, please remain calm and know that I kept all of this away from you for your good, you remain my best friend regardless of anything that happens and I hope you know that I love you as the sister I never had.”

I was surprised at that response from my best friend, I thought I knew everything about Reine, I thought we had shared everything about each other and I was still confused as to how I felt all those things for Lucien in such a short period, We never even uttered any words to each other.

I decided to stay calm and hear my friend out although I was anxious and curious inside. I eagerly waited for this revelation from Reine but just as she was about to talk, she got a phone call. I watched as my friend jumped from her seat and went to take the call in another room.

Shortly after, Reine emerged from the other room and she seemed to be in a rush. She told me that she needed to leave immediately as something had come up back at her home and she had to be there. She begged me to trust our friendship and promised that she would either be back home as soon as possible or she would send word to me as soon as she could.

I remember that I sat on the same spot and watched as my best friend left the apartment, I felt distraught at the events of the day and I felt somewhat betrayed that Reine had been keeping things from me. I remained in the same spot long after Reine had left and even late into the night. I felt extremely exhausted and I eventually ended up sleeping off on the couch.

Deep in slumber, I began a dream that I had come to recognize all too well. I found myself strolling through a forest under the moonlight; the trees were unlike any I had ever seen, with a silver light that shimmered from their leaves and lit up a small path in front of me. I felt a gentle cool breeze against my skin and I ultimately felt at peace in that strange place.

As I walked the small well-lit path, I started to realize that I was not alone, there was a creature lurking in the shadows. It didn’t seem evil or like an enemy though, in fact, it felt like this creature was a friend, one I was already familiar with. This was the point I usually woke up on other days and I had never actually gotten to see what the creature looked like but that day it was different. I heard a howl and the moon seemed to shine brighter in that instant. The creature slowly emerged from the shadow and for the first time, I got to take a good look at it. It had a pure white fur and it stood tall, it looked like it wasn’t going to hurt me but as it stared at her I saw that its eyes were a cobalt blue shade just like hers.

I screamed and jumped from the couch, it was the fifth time in a row I had been getting these dreams but this was the clearest one so far and I was pretty sure about it this time. That was a wolf!