Chapter 5 A warning

Blood splashed her vision, causing her to wail from the taste of salt and iron on her mouth, along with the cold and wetness scattering through her face. Followed by the image of a giant beast lunging towards her.

It was only when brawny arms wrapped around her body, alongside a deep yet subtle cooing, did her nerves calmed. She did not fall on the ground, instead laid comfortably on firm muscles.

She was having one of those visions again. And this time, the scene was so real; she became unable to distinguish it from reality. Until she had this warmness covering her, mixed with that relaxing aroma of cedar wood.

She took a few more moments to fully regain her composure, understanding that she was safe in the arms of someone strong and protective.

But the minute she got a glimpse of the person holding her, everything turned topsy-turvy when, once again, her visions became a blur.

An odd glow radiated from the guy when her sights gaze upon those alluring sets of eyes staring straight at her. She couldn’t move, mesmerize by the beautiful shade of black looking down at her. It was both captivating and frightening. Especially with those sharp, angry brows added to the mix.

“Are you okay?”

The man’s deep voice reverberated throughout Selene’s body, making her tremble. It awakened something within her, causing an intense heat to flow through her veins.

She swallowed hard, enthralled by the movement of the guy’s mouth, showcasing what seemed to be sharp teeth. She had to blink a few times before things returned to normal.

Was she having another vision? Or perhaps a hallucination from all the adrenaline pumping through her brain? Whatever it was, it did not take long.

“Yes, thank you.”

These were the first words she can come up with, after being saved from what was after her. She gave a glance to where she last heard it, but same as before, she couldn’t see anything because of the pitch darkness.

She flinch hearing a low growl, forcing her to turn to the person holding her, realizing the sound came from the fellow. Her brows furrowed, watching how the guy stared into the forest with a murderous gaze.

Because of this, Selene could not help but glance back, again trying to see if there was anything there. But like before, it was too dark for her, so she ended up baffled by the man’s action.

But because of that, the surroundings seem to have become serene, with the sound of the crickets chirping and owl hooting returning.

It was then the man let go of her, after helping her stand after losing her balance a while ago.

She can’t help but remain ogling at the guy, unable to remove her sights because the fellow look so dazzling with his uptight composure.

“Come on. We’ll take you home.”

He says, nudging his head for her to follow.

“You don’t have to do that. I think everything is all right now.”

Selene felt her cheeks heat, not expecting such a gesture from someone. Especially the guy who she thought was angry at her from the start. Also, her mind suddenly went blank for a moment, causing her to stutter halfway through her sentence.

But the man did not seem to hear her, as his arms were once again wrapped around her shoulders, leading her protectively.

Silence took over them for some time, as she did not know what to do. It was as if her tongue suddenly shrunk, not being able to find the right words to say.

“There’s no moonlight, Its dangerous to walk alone tonight. My friends and I will escort you to your house.”

The guy says, his voice more authoritative, sensing Selene’s uncertainty.

The truth was, she got shaken not by what happened, but by the person’s current demeanor towards her. So it made her steps slow and trembling.

She only raised her head when she caught sight of a three more young men waiting for them, waving with a smile on their faces.

“Are you sure it’s all right?”

She says, not wanting to cause issues, or worst, another outburst. And she didn’t want that, not after Lucas went to the trouble of fixing that problem.

“Just think of it as my apology for what happened yesterday.”

The man muttered with a straight face, throwing an icy stare.

Yet even with that, Selene sense something else beneath those stony gazes the person was giving him, telling him that there was a meaning behind them.

“Thank you and sorry for the bother.”

In the end, all she lower her head in embarrassment, unable to grasp what the guy was thinking.

Even with her innate senses, she couldn’t read or explain the guy’s actions.

She remained silent, especially when they got closer to the others who were waiting for them.

“Duncan, what was it?”

One of them immediately asked the minute they were at ears shot. The person’s expression had this mix of worry and foreboding etched on him.

“I don’t know. I didn’t get a good look.”

Duncan answers with a grim face.

The two nodded at each other before turning to their other companions.

Selene remained quiet, observing how the group seem to throw meaningful glances at one another as if they were communicating with their eyes.

“I’ll take the boys with me, see what it is.”

The guy then bobbed his head to the others. Both were keen to nod their heads in agreement.

“All right. I will leave it to you then.”

With that, all three rush off without saying anything. Their movements were quick, rushing straight into the bushes, unafraid.

“Are they going to be okay?”

Selene can’t help the dread creeping down her spine, thinking she’s the reason they were doing such a thing. She regretted screaming aloud a while ago, not knowing it would lead to this.

“Don’t worry about it. We’re used to these kinds of things.”

Duncan waves a hand to dismiss her concern. He then gestures at her for them to move on.

“Was there something there?”

Selene can’t help but glance back at the woods. Afraid that she might have brought bad luck to them. As her third sense has become messed up after arriving there.

One moment she’d get these extreme visions, the next she literally has no occurrence of any kind of premonition.

“Can’t be sure. It’s a forest, after all.”

Duncan shrug his shoulder, frowning in a bored look.

Selene’s face heat from the blood rushing to her cheeks. She hadn’t thought about that, having gotten comfortable with the fact she was in a small town.

“Of course. I forgot about that.”

She force a laugh, feeling so stupid and awkward for asking such an obvious question.

They remained silent the rest of the way, as the guy continued to be observing their surroundings, looking left and right with a furrow.

“You should be careful around these parts. This place gets dangerous at these hours.”

Duncan finally spoke the moment they reached the rows of houses.

It was brighter there, thanks to some additional lighting coming from the nearby homes. This put both of them at ease, as the man’s tensed shoulder also loosened.

“What about you then?”

Selene couldn’t help herself, since the man was left alone, because the guy’s friends ended up leaving.

“I know how to protect myself.”

Duncan’s tone was stern, deep, and confident.

There was no ounce of fear in it which made Selene shut up, remembering her blunder a while ago.

Again they got engulfed in an awkward silence.

“By the way, I heard you enrolled at our school.”

It was Duncan.

Selene’s eyes lit up upon hearing that, her heart racing, aware of the few days left before it starts. She nearly jumps from her place if she hadn’t controlled herself.

“Yes, I’m actually excited about it.”

She held her voice as much as possible, almost squealing from the thought of it.

It was one thing she was looking forward to, after arriving there, since it was the sign her life was finally turning for the best.

“Well, you better watch yourself when you’re around Lucas.”

Duncan heaved a sigh. His face becoming more straight even with the frown upon mentioning the person.

“What do you mean?”

Selene can’t help but furrow, confused why that person’s name was being included in the conversation. She was now intrigued and concerned because it keeps getting mentioned.

“You’ll understand soon enough.”

Duncan’s tone had this sense of foreboding.

His voice caused another uncontrolled shiver to run down her spine, dread clawing unto her for reasons she cannot foresee anything wrong.

But before she can say or ask again, they stop. She did not realize that they were at the front of the house until she saw the familiar fence.

The man nudges his head for her to go inside. She stares at the now darkened abode for a few moments, still taken aback. When she turned around, the fellow was already walking away.

“Thank you.”

She murmured and receive a quick wave of the man’s hand without looking back.

That put her at ease. Even with the warning and all the incidents that happened, there was this happiness inside of her, fluttering in her stomach like butterflies.

She can’t fully understand what it was, but she enjoyed every second. As it seems, it only happens when he’s with that guy.