Started When We Were Younger Novels & Stories

RUBY "Can you tell me how the story began?" There was only one person on the show I watched through the tablet. And she didn't say it, meaning that it came from someone else behind the camera. "It began in our childhood. Our families were friends so we could get close." The only person was smiling shyly as if she was a teenager talking about her crush. "We loved to play with each other. Maybe, that made our parents to arrange our futures." It was an acting, of course.

It all started when I was just five years old, at the pack’s annual celebration—a time meant for laughter and harmony. The memory surged through me like a relentless tide. The event hall was alive with music and chatter, the air thick with the aromas of roasted meats and spiced drinks. Children ran between tables, their laughter rising above the lively hum of conversations. Pack members clinked glasses, toasted to another year of blessings, and exchanged stories of their triumphs and challenges.

His voice, so tender as he spoke. He leaned forward and continued, "I've always wanted to see you happy, to see both of you happy, don't you remember what it used to be like? Before all of these?” I lowered my head, feeling the full weight of his words—the truth, that's what his words sounded like now, cause I do remember. We were young—probably between the ages of nine and ten. The evenings used to be chill and the air usually carried a familiar scent—the scent of pines and wild berries.

Of building up a client base that was right there when we opened and making sure to keep things going even through some of the rough spots. “Dude, you keep going off in your own little world. What were you thinking about this time?” “The Ward,” I reply with a grin and he shakes his head, practically beaming himself. “That’s a name I haven’t heard in years. Remember when we created that?” “We couldn’t come up with anything more creative for our parties,” I laugh and he sinks down into the chair across from me. “Man, I haven’t thought about how we got started in ages. But damn did we have fun, huh?”

Nothing like the stubborn girl I'd grown up with. I sat beside her bed and just stared at her face. Memories of our childhood came rushing back. Two little girls sharing stolen bread because they couldn't afford dinner. Laughing over things that weren't even funny until our stomachs hurt, The first time we almost got caught and we ran through the streets like complete idiots. The excitement on our faces when we finally earned enough to pay for our tiny apartment. We had always been a team for years and I believed we'd always have each other.

I hesitated, knowing this was the moment I'd been waiting for. My organic opportunity to open up and tell him a little more about my home life. I hadn't expected it to present itself so quickly and was a little annoyed as a result. "No," I began slowly. "I would have loved to have gone, but I was never included. When I was younger, they would send me to these shitty camps while they were away. As I got older, I started insisting they just let me stay home because the camps were so terrible. Of course, in my later years, that's when Jenna and I would get up to the most mischief," I recalled with a nostalgic smile.

Lee asked, mind-linking me, and I started to think about it. “I remember, and I wish that I had never listened to her, but you learn from your mistakes, and I definitely have; that’s for sure,” I replied to Lee, mind-linking him back. “I remember you started to get to know her when we were fifteen and had first shifted,” Lee said, and he was right.

he reminds me. “Those men I mentioned… They would say things about my ass when I walked by—and what they wanted to do to it,” I blatantly reveal. “And the women who were shooting up or whoring themselves out offered advice on how to get me started down either path. I was ten when all that began, Nick. Ten.”

Aviva POV Our old houses? My brows furrowed, confused,“Our old houses?” I repeat, “What do you mean?” “We used to live opposite each other, although our family had a feud, we became friends in secret, that's where it all began" "Our families had a feud?" I whispered, trying to recall. “Yes, but despite the conflict between our families, we found each other. We used to sneak out at night, meet in the park, and talk about everything under the stars.” A wistful smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

Silver was really better. That was how our friendship began and thousands of years have passed since. I miss those innocent times of youth. The time before the curse and what directly preceded it. I snuck away often to visit my friends. The times spent with them were the best memories I had of my childhood. We got into trouble, boasted about our prowess at just about everything, and challenged each other incessantly. Our friendship was built on trust and respect. That was before everything changed.