ROSE The woman was shoved aside and thick fingers shot out to grab my neck. “Blake!” cried the baffled woman. My chin was lifted to the heavens, pushing my eyes together, elongating my neck, and the air grew thin. “You do not speak to her like that, puny human,” the thunder voice threatened. Then, my feet left the ground and I found myself clutching onto the wrist of the hand that was hoisting me by my neck. “BLAKE!” The woman screamed. “Put her down! She’s turning red!” But the fingers around my neck tightened. And I stopped breathing. I also stopped kicking my legs and closed my eyes. Let them… let them do what they want with me. I’m so tired. I’m so done with all this mess…. If this is how it’s going to end, so be it…. Goodbye—. THUD! I landed hard on the floor and started gasping and coughing hard, as fresh air gushed into my lungs like a tsunami wave. Then growls and groans of a fight jabbed my ears and I looked up, just in time to see the giant black wolf sw

RUM “YOU BETTER HAVE A GOOD REASON TO MISS YOUR PHOTOSHOOT! THE ENTIRE FUCKING TEAM WAITED FOR HOURS!” The CEO of B.A.D. screamed, forty years of his anguish towards the entertainment industry flushed out at once. Fuck…. I turned from the astonished looks of the Dark Moon couple and cleared my throat quietly before slapping the device back to my ears. Clipping my nose with my fingers, I croaked, barely letting my voice through, “Dan… I tried to call you….” I coughed as violently as I could. “Jesus Christ, you sound like shit.” The CEO groaned exasperatingly. “Why are you so damn weak these days?” That’s because you fucking rushed me around and my schedule feels like a million orgasms lined up one after another! “I’ll feel better tomorrow—I swear…,” I wheezed and coughed violently. “You better get an FBC,” he demanded, trying hard to disarm himself so as to not worsen my condition. “Will do… and… and I’ll take another… another commercial.” I squeezed my eyes in sheer di

ROSE I hate to admit this, but Rum is right: I am stupid. What do werewolves eat? Meat, of course! They are carnivores! But Rum loves beef the most. And since Blake and Tana isn't picky with the choice of meat (surprisingly), I ordered roast beef and ribs from a restaurant a few blocks away. Then, I was chastised for comparing werewolves to pigeons (which I didn't) and ordered some beef steaks from another restaurant a few more blocks away. While waiting for the food to arrive, Rum settled on the couch that I sleep in, again, taking the spot closest to the other couch and keeping me away from the couple, and motioned for Blake, Alpha of the Dark Moon pack, to begin the talk, which he had promised to do. And Blake began. "So we went on a trip—.” Rum exhaled. “Yeah. To disperse the dark whims.” Blake stared at the floor while Tana looked at him with worry and sympathy. “It was a rushed trip,” the low bass voice continued. “Ellis detected its energy increasing in folds,

ROSE "W-What about me?" I suddenly felt uneasy. As though I was naked before him. I tried to stand to clear the plates, but he grabbed my wrist and kept me seated on the carpeted floor. "Stop running away." He stared at me. "I'm not r-running away—. Wait. Why do you think I'm running away? I'm not running away from anything." I was puzzled—and flustered, because Rum was scrutinizing my face for flaws, and I felt like I had many because I had no time for a meticulous skincare routine. "Contact lens." Rum concluded in the tone of a doctor giving his diagnosis. I blinked furiously. Contact… lens? "You need to ditch those fugly glasses—." "No!" I pushed at him and stood. He swiftly followed suit and grabbed my wrists to stop me from going anywhere. "Did your parents get you those glasses?" "No," I replied almost instantly. "Excellent! They've got no sentimental value. You can lose them—." He tried to take them off me. But I swayed my face back, away from his hands. "No,

ROSE Jesus Christ… I look bad. “I’ll get change,” I remarked in a haste and spun around. “No, wait!” Rum cried out after me. I turned back to him and he was wiping the spillage with a grey cloth. “There’s no time for you to get change—is this one of your ideas you want to sell people?” “Yee-es….” I nodded with uncertainty. He slapped the damp cloth on the bar counter and glared at me. “This isn’t school anymore. People are going to pay you with their hard earned money so you better be sure.” I straightened my back, thrusting my chest forward and repeated firmly this time. “Yes. It’s a style I’m advocating—simple sophistication.” “Excellent.” “You really think it’s excellent?” I looked down at my outfit. “Why do you doubt me now?” He sounded annoyed. I lifted a sheepish smile at him. “You literally puked water when you saw me just now.” I don’t have the skin of a buffalo nor the honesty of a salesman. When people say my looks are plain, I won’t try to squeeze myse