Wolves of the West

HAVEN

“Well, this has got to be the most eventful lunch we’ve had all year,” Cecily said, staring blankly after Logan, along with the rest of us.

I appreciated her attempt to break the ice that was quickly forming, but I was already lost to it, stranded on some glacier as I replayed the last few minutes in my head.

Rachel was the first to lose interest. “I dunno, don’t you remember when those two girls started screaming at one another and one threw her chocolate pudding at the other?”

Jude laughed, but it was forced. “That was entertaining.”

Cecily frowned. “Yeah, but this is Logan we’re talking about. Cool, collected, doesn’t-care-about-anything Logan.”

Rachel laughed, “Well at least now he’s proved that he has a human emotion besides ‘asshole’.”

“I don’t get why he was so angry…” I drifted off, not knowing how to voice my worries. I took a bite of my sandwich as I thought it all over in my mind.

It seemed like he’d been angry because of me. But I hadn’t done anything aside from look at him.

I felt the blood rush from my face. Did he think I had a crush, and was embarrassed by me?

Jude squeezed my hand. “I wouldn’t worry too much about it; it was probably something Dakota said.”

I shrugged and didn’t answer, taking another bite of my lunch.

Rachel sighed. “Well, whatever. I’m getting bored. It’s almost time for third period anyway, do you want to go and get ready for gym?”

I nodded and stood, then threw away my half-eaten lunch and wiped my hands on my jeans. “Lead the way.”

Rachel smiled and got up. I waved goodbye to Jude and Cecily.

“So, you ready for gym?” Rachel asked, sounding excited. “It’s going to be awesome having another w—friend in gym.”

I gave her a weak smile. “Yeah, I guess.”

We changed and walked out into the large gym, then waited for further instruction from our gym teacher, Mrs. Clarke.

Like all gym teachers, she seemed stuck in our school’s sweats and a perpetual ponytail.

“Alright, let’s start with some warm-up laps, five around the perimeter of the gym,” she said. “Please stay outside the lines, girls, no cheating, or you can start again.”

Rachel grinned and took my hand and then started to sprint. My wolf howled at the prospect of running and I had to fight to keep her in check.

By the end of the first lap I was huffing and puffing. “Please…Rachel…can we…slow down?”

Rachel—who’d been sprinting this entire time—hadn’t even started to sweat. “Why would we do that? You of all people should be able to sprint a few simple laps.”

I pulled my eyebrows together and tried to breathe regularly.

“What’s that…supposed…to mean?” I said in between gasps for air.

I had never been a good runner. I was the girl who was always last to complete her laps in gym, dragging my feet the whole way through.

Was there some stereotype about girls from Pennsylvania being super athletic that I had been missing my entire life?

Rachel shrugged. “I just meant, you look like you’re in shape.”

I laughed. “Yeah right.” We finished our laps painfully, and by the time we were done I was ready to pass out.

“Alright everyone, let’s do some simple stretches and then we’ll start.”

We did a few stretches to make sure we were ready for even more physical activity, and then we all regrouped in front of Mrs. Clarke.

“Alright class, we’re going to be playing dodgeball today, since someone decided it would be funny to poke holes into all of the volleyballs. We’re going to be playing a joint game with Mr. Bowman’s class.”

Rachel squealed and jumped up and down, “We are going to own this!” she whispered in my ear.

I smiled uneasily and nodded.

We watched as the door opened and a bunch of boys our age piled into the gym. Among the group were Logan and Deacon.

I groaned and turned away, trying my best not to flee from the gym. Why was I cursed?

“Now! I want a nice, clean game,” Mrs. Clarke said. “Any hit above the shoulders does not count and the person who threw it will get a penalty. Understood? Fantastic, let’s play some dodgeball ladies and gentlemen!”

Mr. Bowman, another gym teacher obsessed with sweats, blew his whistle and the game began.

Everyone ran toward the center, where twenty red balls were lined up. I lingered behind and bit my lip nervously as I watched the first few people go down.

In this version of the game, if you were hit you sat off to the side. The only way you could get back in was if one of your teammates caught the ball.

“Hey, newbie! This one’s for you!” Deacon winked at me before sending a red ball flying my way. The ball was knocked out of the air by another ball and I looked around wildly to see who had saved me.

I landed my sights on Logan who was gazing at me sheepishly.

He protected us! My wolf rejoiced, ~Kiss him!~

I told her to shut up before refocusing on the game.

Rachel was a powerhouse. She threw balls at every member of the other team, never missing a target.

And not only was she getting the other side’s people out, but she was also saving our team members by catching every ball that came toward her.

But Logan and Deacon were on the other team. And the two of them together was too much for even Rachel to take on.

Logan whipped the ball and hit Rachel’s leg. She turned and glared at him before stalking off of the court, pouting.

“Come on Haven! Get me back in!” she shouted as she clapped.

I had been hiding behind a girl named Katelyn for about half of the game due to my complete lack of athletic talent. Getting Rachel back in seemed like an impossible feat.

I tried to catch a ball, but I had horrible hand-eye coordination and missed every single one. I started to grow frustrated with myself.

I could change into a goddamned wolf, but I couldn’t catch a rubber ball in gym class? What kind of werewolf was I?

“Catch a ball, Haven!” Rachel shouted, growing annoyed. She kept shouting at me to catch something, as if I had forgotten what I needed to do.

The boys had gotten out all of our best players and had left the weakest for last. A moment later, Katelyn was out, and I knew I was done.

Soon, it was only me and four other girls against fifteen boys. A ball came flying my way, and without thinking, my hand flew out and caught it before it managed to nail Beth in the stomach.

Rachel squealed and ran back on the court.

“I’m coming for you, Deacon!” she screamed, grabbing a ball and whipping it at one of the boys. “I knew you could do it, Haven,” she added quietly as she passed me.

“Thanks, Rach, I—” I was interrupted as a ball hit the side of my face, causing me to fall backward and onto my butt.

I blushed madly and blinked a few times, waiting for my vision to stop spinning.

“Haven! Are you okay?” I heard Mrs. Clarke ask. I ran my tongue over all of my teeth, making sure they were all accounted for. Then I nodded and held up a thumb.

“What the hell, man?” I heard Logan shout. I looked over to see him fuming at Deacon, who had been smiling smugly at me.

“What? She wasn’t paying attention, and now she’s out. I warned her that I was gonna get her,” Deacon said, throwing his hands up in defense.

“No one said you had to nail her in the face!” Logan practically screamed. Everyone was silent as they watched the two best friends fight.

“Deacon, you’re out of the game for unfriendly conduct; this is supposed to be a fun game, not some sort of smackdown.” Mr. Bowman shook his head, disappointed in his student.

Deacon scoffed and sent me a glare before walking off to the side and sitting on the bench, looking pissed.

“Maybe you should sit down for a second, Haven, you look a little pale,” Mrs. Clarke said.

I nodded numbly and went to take a seat on the far side of the gym.

To be honest, the hit had just stunned me. It didn’t hurt as much as it would’ve if I were a human. I just wanted an excuse to stop playing.

“Are you okay?” a rough voice asked. I jumped in surprise and saw Logan glaring down at me. For someone who was asking if I was okay, he seemed awfully mad.

I averted my gaze from his face and focused on my shoe. “I’m fine.”

He grunted and shuffled on his feet. “Good.”

I looked up and watched as he stalked off and returned to the game.

I spent the rest of gym counting the tiles on the floor and trying to look anywhere but at Logan. When Mrs. Clarke said we could go get changed, I didn’t even wait for Rachel.

“Ugh, I can’t believe that scumbag! I’ve always hated Deacon; he thinks he’s all that just because he’s bet best friends with Logan. So annoying!” Rachel ranted as she walked me to my art class.

I was relieved when I saw Jude waiting for me, and I said a quick goodbye to Rachel before running over to join him.

“How was gym?” he asked, giving me a warm smile.

“I’d rather not talk about it.”

He chuckled. “That bad?”

I nodded grimly and entered the classroom, where everyone was setting up their stations in front of their easels.

Jude and I sat side by side and we all waited for the teacher—Miss Rose—to tell us what we were going to be painting today.

I looked at the clock and frowned; class was going to officially start in one minute.

I kept waiting as Miss Rose told us we were to paint an outdoor scene, and only ten minutes later was I able to relax. No Logan in this class.

“What are you going to paint?” I asked Jude.

He laughed. “It’s a surprise.”

I shrugged, not interested enough to pursue an answer. Halfway through the class, I realized I was not good at art. To be honest, I have no idea what made me sign up for the class.

I looked at my painting, which was supposed to be of a marsh, and frowned. It looked more like a baby had puked all over my canvas.

“Wow! That’s…er…interesting,” Miss. Rose said, peering at my work. “Very abstract.”

She moved onto Jude and gasped, then brought her hands together in applause. “Fantastic, Jude! Just brilliant!”

Curious as to what was so amazing, I peeked over at Jude’s canvas.

He had painted a forest, but not from the point of view of a person. It was more like from the eyes of an animal.

The work itself was breathtaking, but something about the picture gave me a weird feeling.

“Wow, if I had known you were that good, I would’ve sat over there. You’re making me look like I’m finger painting,” I joked.

Jude laughed. “What do you mean? Your puddle is great!”

I frowned, squinting at my painting again. “It was supposed to be a marsh but I guess that didn’t really work out.”

Jude looked uncomfortable. “Well, it’s only your first class, I’m sure you’ll get better.”

I just shrugged and dabbed some more paint onto the canvas.

“Hey, I know what might make you feel better! Why don’t you come to my house after school? We can watch a movie or something.”

I smiled. “That sounds great.” I was happy that on my first day of school, I had already made friends.

“Great, I’ll let Rach know she gets the back seat today.”

We continued to paint, and by the end of the class, Jude had an award-winning masterpiece, and I had a canvas that looked as though paint had just been spilled onto it.

We made our way to Jude’s car, which was a large, green Jeep, and piled in. Rachel and Cecily were in the backseat, gossiping away.

“You should have seen Haven in gym. She actually caught a ball! I was so proud.”

Rachel pretended to wipe away a fake tear and grinned at me. “It was great until that jerk Deacon nailed her in the face.”

Jude looked over at me. “He did what?”

I squirmed, feeling uncomfortable. “It’s not a big deal, it didn’t hurt that much.”

Rachel laughed. “You must have a face made out of steel then!” The rest of the ride was quiet until we pulled down my street.

Jude parked in front of the mansion, and we all got out. I let out a low whistle of appreciation, and Cecily laughed.

“It is something isn’t it?”

I nodded and turned to Jude and Rachel. “You guys actually live here?”

They nodded. “We’re not the only ones, though.” I followed Jude inside and was instantly bombarded with different scents.

No, they definitely were not the only ones.

I followed Jude to the kitchen, where he entered a large pantry and came out with a bag of popcorn. He put it in the microwave, and we watched as it began to pop.

“Can you get a bowl, Haven? It’s right under the sink.”

I followed his instructions and got out a large bowl. Once the popcorn was ready, Jude grabbed my hand and pulled me over to the living room, where he put on a movie called.

I snuggled into the comfortable sofa, enjoying the feeling of sitting close to Jude. Although I could hear other people in the massive house, no one approached us.

Until…

“There is no way that is better than—”

I looked over at a voice to see Deacon and Logan frozen in the doorway.

Jude gave them a slight wave, then turned his attention back to the movie. I kept staring at Deacon and Logan, feeling completely jarred.

“They live with me,” Jude explained, his eyes narrowing as he waited for my reaction.

I couldn’t ignore the weirdness. Jude’s arm around me was no longer comforting, but a vice grip.

“That would have been nice to know,” I whispered in his ear, somewhat furious.

He smiled weakly at me. “I thought that if you knew, you wouldn’t want to come.”

I frowned and tried to ignore Logan’s gaze on my face. Who the hell would keep that sort of information to themselves all day?

Especially considering the number of times Deacon and Logan had come up in conversation.

“What are you doing here?” Deacon asked, smirking at me. “Couldn’t get enough?”

I snorted. “I’m here because Jude asked me to come over.”

Logan’s jaw tensed. “You should have spoken with me first, Jude.”

Jude only shrugged. “I didn’t see the big issue. I will next time.”

Logan narrowed his eyes at Jude’s arm around me, but he nodded curtly and turned, leaving the room with a stiff expression.

Deacon smiled and sat beside me, a little too close.

“Sorry about your face.” He trailed a finger down my cheek and I felt Jude’s arm tighten.

I leaned away from his touch and glared at him. “It’s fine.”

Deacon smirked and got up. “Well then, I’ll just leave you to yourselves.” Deacon started to walk away before doubling back, grabbing our popcorn and leaving.

Jude shook his head, looking annoyed, but he didn’t make any move to get the popcorn back. He wasn’t really a fighter.

“Wanna go to my room? I got a sweet guitar.” Jude nudged my shoulder and I laughed, nodding.

We turned the movie off—it hadn’t been very good anyway—and headed for the stairs.

We walked down a long hallway filled with people. Kids, teenagers, and adults swarmed the halls, going in and out of people’s rooms.

I wondered what kind of place this was, and why Jude was living here. We reached what I presumed to be his room, and I was about to go in when someone grabbed my wrist.

Instantly, I felt shocks of electricity climb up my arm and through my body. The feeling made me gasp, and I spun around to see who caused that effect on me.

Logan looked at my face in shock and dropped my wrist, but it was a few moments before the tingles died down.

“What are you doing?” he hissed at me. Jude came back out, seeing that I hadn’t followed and stood over my shoulder.

“I’m going to see Jude’s guitar,” I said simply.

“Alone?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.

I nodded. “Is that a problem?”

I watched as his hands tightened into fists at his side. “Yes, it is! I will not have you going into his room with just the two of you! It’s unacceptable.”

I was blank-faced. Had I been sent back in time to the forties?

“It is unacceptable for me to see my friend’s guitar in his room?” I questioned.

Logan looked over at Jude and glared. “Yes.”

I threw my hands up in the air. “Why do you care, anyway?”

Logan glared at me. “You’re my—you know what? I don’t. Go with him and be a slut. I. Don’t. Care.”

Logan sent a hard glare at Jude before turning around and stomping off to the end of the hallway.

I started after him, shaking slightly with anger and hurt. More than anything, I was baffled.

That had blown right out of proportion. Had he really just called me a slut to my face? And over what? Going into Jude’s room?

“I’m sorry about him, Haven. He’s a little arrogant.”

I scoffed. “More than a little.” I tried to sound angry, but my voice was weak. “I don’t see how you can stand him!”

Jude shrugged and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “I’ve seen the other side of him. He can be a real cool guy, and he helped me through some stuff a little while ago. I owe him.”

I shrugged. “Well, he hasn’t done anything for me. Anyway, I think I should get going. My aunt will be home soon, and I have to make dinner. She can’t cook.”

Jude laughed and nodded, his eyes flashing to the door where Logan had disappeared. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. I’ll walk you home.”

A few minutes later, we were standing outside my aunt’s house, smiling at each other.

“Thanks for everything today, Jude. You have no idea how big of a relief it is to have someone I can trust already,” I said.

Jude’s lips curled into an effortless smile, something that he did so often. That’s probably what I liked most about him. Everything about him was effortless and incredibly warm.

“Well, you’re a special girl, Haven.” The way he looked at me made me think he was implying something more, but I ignored it.

“Anyway, you’d better get inside. Your aunt will be home soon,” he added.

I smiled and nodded before turning toward the house.

Jude caught my wrist, sending a wave of warmth through my body. It was nowhere near the electricity I’d felt when I touched Logan, but it was still nice.

“Would you like a ride to school tomorrow?” he asked.

I thought back to this morning, about how my aunt wanted me to drive myself so she could leave earlier.

“I’d love one. Thanks again, Jude.”

I leaned in and pecked his cheek, causing him to blush lightly, before going inside my house.