Chapter 3 Secrets In The Dark

Morning came way too soon.

I sat at the kitchen table, cereal going soggy in front of me, eyes glued to the same spoonful for five solid minutes.

"Not a wolf," I muttered to myself. "Definitely not a wolf. Wolves don't live in suburban neighborhoods. They don't pop out of the woods like some... discount horror movie extra. Nope. Great Dane. Big, scary, steroidal Great Dane. Case closed."

I forced the spoon into my mouth. It tasted like cardboard sadness.

Before I could spiral further, my phone buzzed. Riley's name. Of course.

"Why are you calling me before school?" I groaned into the phone.

Her voice came through, way too awake. "Because I couldn't wait. You're trending."

I choked on cornflakes. "I'm what?"

"Trending. Well, not online-trending, you're not that interesting. But school-trending. Everyone's saying you've got a thing for him."

I slapped the spoon down so hard milk splattered onto the table. "WHAT?!"

"Yeah. Apparently you and Mister Motorcycle had some... 'moment' in the hallway yesterday." She drew out the word moment like it was a dirty secret. "People swear he picked up your books like you were in one of those cheesy romance movies."

"He threatened me," I hissed. "There were no violins. No slow-motion spin. Just... glaring and terror."

"Uh-huh. And yet you're still obsessing over him. Interesting."

"I AM NOT-" I had to lower my voice before my mom barged in. "I'm not obsessing. I'm... confused. And mildly traumatized. Very different things."

Riley cackled. "Sure, Ivy."

I buried my head in my arms. This was a nightmare. I hadn't even made it to school yet and my reputation was already dead.

Riley was still talking, something about making out by the lockers, when my mom popped her head in. "You're going to be late if you keep yelling into the phone instead of eating."

I groaned into the table. "Maybe I'll just drop out. Save myself the humiliation."

Riley didn't miss a beat. "Yeah, good luck with that. See you in the cafeteria, lover girl."

Click.

I stared at my half-drowned cereal, wishing I could crawl into the bowl and never resurface.

By the time lunch rolled around, I'd suffered through three classes, two accidental run-ins with Riley whispering lover girl under her breath, and one very suspicious glare from a math teacher who definitely thought I was hiding contraband under my desk when really, I was just stress-texting Riley.

The cafeteria smelled like burnt fries and disinfectant. I dropped onto our usual bench with a tray of mystery pizza and tried to pretend life was normal. Spoiler: it wasn't.

Because two tables over, I heard it.

"She's totally into him," a girl whispered, just loud enough to carry. "Did you see them yesterday? She was blushing like crazy."

Her friend giggled. "Yeah, and he actually picked up her books. He doesn't do that for anyone."

My face went nuclear.

Riley, of course, perked right up. "Ohhh, the plot thickens!" She nudged me. "Did you hear that? They think you're, like, Beauty and the Beasting it up."

"Shut. Up." I stabbed my pizza. The crust fought back like rubber.

But it wasn't just those two. The whispers spread. Heads tilted toward me, then toward him. Because of course he had to be here too, sitting across the room like a storm cloud with a leather jacket.

He wasn't laughing with friends. He wasn't scrolling his phone. He was just... sitting. Watching. And when his eyes landed on me-

My heart did this stupid trampoline flip.

Riley gasped. "He's staring at you. Oh my God, he's staring at you."

"Shut UP," I hissed, gripping my fork like a weapon. "He's probably glaring at everyone. That's just his face."

"Nope. That's a directed glare. You've been targeted." Riley looked way too delighted about it.

Before I could tell her to stop, a voice cut through the cafeteria noise. One of the popular girls, of course - perfect hair, perfect teeth, the whole "future influencer" vibe.

"So," she said, loud enough for half the room to hear, "you're into dangerous guys now?"

Every head swiveled. Toward me.

I wanted the floor to open up and swallow me whole. Instead, I squeaked, "What? No! I don't- That's not- He's not even-"

Across the room, his chair screeched back. He stood, slow and deliberate, his gaze still locked on me.

The room went quiet. Dead quiet.

He didn't say a word. Just walked out. The doors banged shut behind him.

The whispers doubled.

Riley leaned across the table, eyes wide, grin feral. "Ohhh, girl. You're doomed."

I lasted exactly ten minutes after the cafeteria fiasco before deciding I was officially Done™ with school. Not that I cut classes-no, I suffered through them-but my brain wasn't absorbing anything.

By the final bell, I was already plotting escape routes. Straight home? Too obvious. Main road? Too crowded. So I went with the brilliant option: the alley behind the gym.

Dark. Narrow. Definitely not sketchy at all.

I hugged my backpack straps and muttered, "Perfect. Totally safe. Zero chance of being murdered. Five stars."

"Talking to yourself now?"

I yelped so hard I almost dropped my bag.

He was there. Leaning against the wall like it was his throne, arms crossed, eyes gleaming under the shadow of his hair.

Motorcycle Bad Boy, in the flesh.

I scrambled for words. "What are you-are you following me?"

He tilted his head, slow, deliberate. "Why would I follow you?"

"I don't know, maybe because half the school thinks we're, like, starring in some tragic romance novel?!" My voice cracked, which was very helpful to my argument.

His jaw flexed. "You should stay out of it."

"Stay out of what? I'm not in anything! Do you think I asked for rumors? Do you think I want people thinking I-" I cut myself off before I blurted like you. My dignity was hanging by a thread.

He pushed off the wall, closing the distance between us in three steps. Way too close. I backed up, spine hitting the bricks.

His voice dropped. "You don't get it. You don't want to get it. Stay away from me, before you regret it."

I tried for sarcasm, because humor was the only shield I had. "Wow. Very dramatic. You practice that in the mirror, or is it just natural talent?"

For a split second, his mouth twitched, like he was fighting a smirk. Then his expression hardened again.

"You think this is a joke? You have no idea what you're messing with."

My throat went dry. I wanted to push him away, to shout something snappy, but the way his eyes glowed faintly-just faintly-in the shadow made my stomach twist.

He leaned closer, close enough I could feel the heat rolling off him.

"I know where you live."

I froze. My heart kicked into overdrive. "Excuse me?"

He straightened, unreadable. "Go home. Stay inside tonight."

And just like that, he turned and walked away.

Leaving me plastered against a brick wall, heart doing somersaults, brain screaming WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN?

I spent the rest of the walk home replaying his words on a loop.

I know where you live. Stay inside tonight.

What was that even supposed to mean?

Threat? Warning? Creepy pick-up line?

By the time I got to my room, I'd convinced myself it was all just intimidation tactics. Bad boys love their cryptic speeches, right? Probably in the handbook somewhere. I shoved my backpack into the corner and flopped onto my bed, face first.

My phone buzzed. Riley, obviously.

"Did he talk to you after school?" she demanded the second I answered. "Because people are saying he stormed out of the cafeteria for you. Like, dramatic swoon-level stuff."

"He glared at me, Riley. GLARED. That's not swoon material, that's... restraining order material."

"Uh-huh. And then?"

"And then nothing! We didn't even-" I paused, teeth worrying my lip. "Okay, fine. He maybe said some things."

Her gasp nearly shattered my eardrum. "WHAT THINGS?"

"Not the fun kind, alright? Just... threats. Weird, vague... warnings."

Riley squealed like this was the best gossip of her life. "Girl, you're living a Wattpad story and you don't even appreciate it."

Before I could snap back, something cut through the call.

A sound. Long. Low. Drawn out.

Howling.

I froze, phone slipping against my cheek. Riley's voice crackled, "What was that? Did you hear that?"

The howl came again. Closer this time. Too close.

Heart hammering, I crept to the window. Pulled the curtain back just enough to peek.

And there it was.

At the edge of the yard, by the tree line, something moved. Big. Too big. My stomach dropped.

Eyes. Glowing. Gold, locked directly on mine.

I stumbled back so fast my phone clattered to the floor. Riley's voice shouted from the screen, tinny and far away: "HELLO?! WHAT'S HAPPENING?!"

But I was already yanking the curtains shut with shaking hands, pressing my back against the wall.

Because whatever that thing was... it was watching me.