

Keilor entered the rooms he shared with Jasmine, careful to do so silently. If she were sleeping he didn’t want to wake her. She didn’t need to see him as he cleansed away the blood of battle. It would only upset her. 

He eased the door quietly shut and paused a moment, listening. Her respiration remained steady and deep, unmistakably that of deep slumber. Satisfaction brought a smile to his face. It pleased him greatly that she would trust him so well. 

She’d left a light on for him. It was a sweet gesture, and wholly human, for no Haunt would ever stumble in the shadows. Still, the thoughtfulness warmed him. He had a very good wife. 

It was just as he was finishing his bath that Terza lifted her head and growled. Keilor froze in the water, listening. His eyes narrowed. Something was scrabbling down the chimney. 

Still naked, he slipped from the bath, water dripping from his body to slick the tiles. A motion of his hand warned Terza to silence. He retrieved his blade, staring at the chimney above the still smoldering fire. 

A long reptilian head emerged from the chimney, its slit yellow eyes blinking to clear the smoke. 

Keilor didn’t give the poisonous lizard time to focus. One swipe of his sword and its head thumped into the fire, followed closely by its body. The coals sizzled as blood dripped and flowed over them, evaporating in a cloud of noxious smoke. 

He glanced at his sleeping wife, doubly glad he was here. Even Terza might not have stopped the reptile before its poison overcame her. Keilor looked at the fireplace, his thoughts grim. Even with the Haunt he’d send swarming up to check the roofs, it was doubtful they’d catch the culprit. Yesande and Tor Maphin were dead. Who was still alive who wanted Jasmine dead? 

*** 

The symbiont delegation left the next day, hurrying to get home before the storms began. They left none behind. 

“Maybe you’ll get to come back for a visit,” Jasmine told Leo, a little sad to see her go. 

Leo glanced at Jackson, who was mounting his symbiont cycle, her expression doubtful. “Maybe.” 

Jasmine stopped her with a touch to her suede swathed arm as she was about to mount. “A calling card, just in case you need a friend,” she said, handing Leo a dragonfly pin made of iridescent silver. “Things sound rough back in the swamps. Let me know if I can lend you a hand, or if you need a place to hole up for a while, ok?” 

Something suspiciously like tears sparkled in Leo’s eyes. “Thank you,” she murmured. She cleared her throat and mounted up for the short ride to port. 

She was the only one who looked back as they rode away. 

The hard rains came the next day, and continued without mercy for weeks, occasionally morphing into deadly hurricanes. No one was more relieved than Jasmine when they finally left. The hormones from her pregnancy had made her more and more irritable as each day passed, until even the indomitable Keilor began to keep a wary eye on her when he entered the room. 

Rihlia gave birth to a healthy baby daughter, and shortly thereafter she was back on her feet, just as the doctors had promised. 

“Glad to see they’re not born furry,” Jasmine teased, holding her charming little niece. 

Rihlia laughed. “Thankfully, they can’t shift for a couple of years. It’s going to be a challenge keeping up with this one as it is.” 

“Fortunately, she’ll have siblings to play with,” Jaymes said fondly. 

Rihlia shot him a look. “Maybe in a few years.” 

“Years? How many years?” he demanded. 

Jasmine rolled her eyes, but stayed out of the argument. He would be smart to wait a while before trying to tempt Rihlia into another pregnancy. Carrying a baby was hard, and childbirth wasn’t fun. 

She shifted, trying to ease the ache in her back. She couldn’t wait to be done with this. 

And then it was her turn. 

Shortly after midnight, Jasmine went into labor. Things progressed quickly, and she was soon in the maternity ward, immersed in the fiery hell of labor. 

After the first ten minutes of her high-pitched screaming, Keilor turned an alarming shade of gray and quickly found some ear protection (earning a glare from the medic) but bravely stayed to await the birth. “You can do it, honey,” he chanted, as if labor were a sporting event. 

“Shut up!” she screamed at him. He was getting on her nerves. 

Nearly ten months to the day of her return, Jasmine gave birth to a pair of twin boys. One was born with dark hair and his father’s eyes. 

The other, the second born, emerged wearing a tiny symbiont. 

The End 

About the Author 

Autumn Dawn Beaudreault writes futuristic, urban fantasy and paranormal romance. With nearly thirty books and seven series, she continues to thrill fans with her werewolves, dragons, elementals, gargoyles and trolls with a thing for Poe. 

She spent most of her life in Alaska, including several winters in a cabin in the woods, where she became intimately acquainted with outhouses, generators and woodstoves. Her years of snow machines, boating and mosquitoes convinced her to move her family to Washington, where she basks in the “tropical” winters. 

Connect with Autumn online at: 

autumndawnbooks.com 

Sneak peeks of works in progress: authorautumndawn.blogspot.com 

Friend me on Facebook 

Did you like this book? Positive book reviews drive sales and keep me working for you! Readers have the power to make the next best seller. Fans rule! 

Bibliography 

Spark Series: 

When Sparks Fly Amazon books 

No Words Alone Amazon books 

Solar Flare 

Anthology for the Mammoth Book of Time Travel Romance: 

Iron & Hemlock 

Iron & Hemlock Series: 

Iron & Hemlock 

Gargoyle Girl 

Gargoyles in the Attic 

Dark Lands Series: 

The Charmer 

Dark Lands: Homecoming 

Scent of Danger 

The Golden Bell 

Ghost in Her Heart 

Beast Wars 

Dark Lovers Anthology (includes The Golden Bell & Homecoming) 

Dark Warriors Anthology (includes Ghost in Her Heart & Beast Wars) 

Ladies in Waiting: 

The Woman Inside 

The Other Woman 

Through the Looking Glass 

Draconian Series: 

Ride the Stars 

Careful, He Bites 

Aliens Do it Better: Anthology featuring Careful, He Bites and Interstellar Lover 

Interstellar Lover 

Troll series: 

Under the Bridge 

Western Fantasy: 

Women, Whiskey & Gold 

Fire, Earth & Water Series: 

Scorched Earth 

One Night to Burn 

When the Sea Burned 

Wind Burn 

Convergence Series: 

Bramble Burn 

Breaker’s Ruin 

American Gluten Free Cookbooks: 

American Gluten Free

Jasmine didn’t realize her friend Wiley was special until they were drawn into another world. Here Wiley is betrothed to the ruler of the Haunt, a wererace both dangerous and proud.

Keilor is the master of soldiers, a man few would cross, yet he’d never met a menace like the little brunette his princess calls friend. Will Jasmine find the portal home, or will she find a werewolf of her own?

The next day, Monday, the twenty-sixth of June, was Echo's last day of being Echo. From this moment onwards, she would be known as Freya Michelle Wilson. Leaving the facility, she was driven to a random bus station. Freya caught the bus, not Echo. Echo had disappeared. The witness protection program had informed her mother of what was happening. Stepping into the bus, Freya paid the bus driver. It turned out she was near San Francisco all this time. Entering San Francisco International Airport, the first thing Freya did was to join the line going to Heathrow, London. Direct flight, luckily, however, once she would arrive in London, she would have a four hour drive to Manchester, if there was no traffic.
After going through luggage drop off, Freya went through security, luckily there wasn't any issues with her passport. She then got through to lounge area. There was a multitude of shops, Freya didn't buy anything, as airports are horrendously overpriced. Going to a food takeaway shop, she obeyed Inaya's advice against MacDonalds and bought from 'Burger Joint'. She wasn't sure how much better this was. Starbucks was difficult to find, as the terminal was huge. Eventually she found it, and ordered a medium sized caramel frappe with an extra shot of coffee.
An hour later, it was time for boarding, and Freya bought herself a bottle of water from one of the shops, so she could drink on the flight. The flight was awful, 10 hours and 25 minutes. And their flight was delayed as well. Luckily, the plane had mini movie screen on the back of the seats of the person in front of them. Freya particularly enjoyed watching Star Wars: The last Jedi ,  Jumanji: Welcome to the jungle, and Spider-Man homecoming. In the middle of Jumanji, the pilot made an announcement, all that Freya could gather was something about a delay, turbulence, and seatbelt signs. Apparently Freya was a Marvel fan, heck, she was even wearing a Marvel jumper, which was very comfy. Echo hadn't had too much time on her hands, and didn't want to waste money on films that she would only watch once, and instead had invested in books. She inwardly cringed at the fact that all her books were in her apartment. Perhaps she would never see them again. Desperately pushing those disturbing thoughts out of her mind, Freya started playing poker on the screen. To be extremely candid, she had no idea what she was doing, yet somehow she won. Most of the time she would randomly press the buttons and hope for the best.
Luckily for Freya she had a window seat, so she was able to sleep. Unfortunately for her, as she had drunk a caffeinated drink earlier, she desperately needed the toilet. The worse part of coffee. Now she had to awkwardly pass by her two sleeping seat mates, attempting not to wake them up, and failing when falling into one of their laps. She was a woman, however Freya was bisexual, so it didn't really help her embarrassment at all. Inaya and Aayan knew was was bisexual, however it didn't really bother them too much. Echo was a good woman who respected other, and respected them, even through the growing Islamophobia in their neighbourhood. Readily defending them at every turn. They didn't agree with the who bisexual thing, but they still respected her and were friends. After that eventful visit to the airport toilet, the flight had little excitement. She slept, and when she woke up, there was an hour left of the flight, according to the announcement, if she interpreted it correctly.
For the next hour, Freya began reading a psychology history book. Unfortunately she didn't get to finish it in time for the end of the flight, but it kept her entertained. Exiting the plane, she didn't have to gather anything from the overhead lockers, as her hand luggage fit under the seat in front of her. Passport control was extremely stressful, the man there scrutinised her as if she was a murderer with a gun pointing to his head. Eventually, he saw there was nothing wrong with her working visa, and let her through to baggage claiming. After standing there for fifteen minutes waiting for the suitcases, it finally started. Unfortunately it took another half hour for her suitcase to get through. Leaving the airport, she caught a black cab taxi- as she was informed they were the most reliable- and began the four hour journey to Manchester. It was seven in the morning there, and the roads weren't too busy. They arrived at her new address. She payed the driver, and exited the car.
 In Manchester, the housing was quite cheap, a lot cheaper than the housing in Los Angeles, so she was able to get a bungalow. She didn't want anything bigger than that. The house already had security cameras installed, and was in quite a trustworthy neighbourhood. On the way to her bungalow, Freya had seen the police station, and it was about a five minute drive from her bungalow, so approximately a fifteen/twenty minute walk. Of course Freya didn't know exactly how to get to the police station, as there were many twists and turns, but she felt safer knowing that there was a police station nearby. As it was approaching the end of the school year, Freya would start her job next year in September, starting with a staff meeting on the 27th of August. It was a public school that was about a forty minute walk from her bungalow, according to her information. If she had a bike it would be twenty five minutes. The first thing she did after packing was to look online where she should go to get pots and pans, bed sheets, and other necessities needed. After ordering them from Amazon, she accepted the free trial for a month of prime. Best thing about this new identity, another free month of Amazon Prime.
She also had no food in the bungalow, so Freya looked up where the next food stores were, and found a Marks and Spencers, and near it was a Tesco. Leaving the house with her trusty card, with both the money the program gave her and her savings, which were transferred sneakily to her account through numerous ways. She bought some fruit there, some bedding for tonight, and a pair of Harry Potter pyjamas (they were too cute to resist). Tesco was her next stop, in which she bought Coco Pop and Cornflakes, she also bought an electric kettle- one of the things she forgot to buy online- coffee granules, toothbrush, toothpaste and lots of other necessities that were needed by that night. 
Returning to her new home laden with bags, luckily the Uber driver had taken some pity on her and decided to help her. Freya of coursed tipped him extra, it was expected of course. She then finished organising her house.

Echo Antonina Carter is a highly successful criminal psychologist at the age of twenty-six. Even though it is an extremely fascinating job, it comes with it's dangers. Being on first name basis with a plethora of criminals, with the knowledge that if they ever escaped you would be one of the first people they would come after is not a settling thought. When one of her patients escapes from their cell, Echo is immediately placed under protection; having to relocate from Los Angeles to Manchester in England was a huge change. Different country, culture, accent, food, people and job.
Now working at a school teaching A-level psychology and sociology, Echo is trying to adjust to the enormous shift.
Furthermore, she now has more time to focus on her dating life- which previously was none-existent.
Will Echo be able to find love and stay safe in this new city, or will her not-so-distant past catch up with her before she has her happy ending.
Join Echo on her journey of adventure, mystery, romance and discovery.
Remember everyone, this is a first draft- I am planning as I write and I'm still formulating ideas and more. I may pause every so often and edit it. Please give constructive criticism.
Writing on Wattpad- am copying and pasting my own chapters from there. You can see on my story there. Same user name here as there.

Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Homecoming

"Oh my baby! You look amazing!" Lhauren and Lucas stood side by side at the foot of the stairs as Maiya walked down. She was three steps from the bottom when her two younger brothers came zooming down the rail behind her, almost succeeding in knocking her over. 


Thankfully she was blessed as she was with werewolf reflexes and was able to catch herself, no harm no foul. "Hey watch it you heathens!" 


Despite the look of anger on her face Maiya laughed and poked her youngest brother playfully in the ribs. "What do you two think?"


Clark looked up at his sister with adoring eyes. At only seven Clark pretty much worshipped the ground Maiya walked on. Their mother said it was most likely because he was going to be a Beta when it came time for his wolf to make his appearance. 


Maiya felt like it was going to be the other way around. She had a running bet with some of the other teen wolves in the pack that Jamison was going to be the Beta, and Clark was going to be the Alpha. There were some who thought that they were both going to be Alpha's. 

Whichever way events unfolded Lucas and Lhauren would be considered very lucky to have more than one child be an Alpha. Usually each mated couple would only produce one Alpha. 


"You look like a princess Mai!" Clark ran up and hugged Maiya around the legs. It was hard not to be won over by his innocence. She ruffled his dark hair that matched hers perfectly, and knelt down to wrap her arms around him as well. 

Maiya looked over at Jamison and arched one delicate brow in silent question. Jamison being the older of the two boys was a little more reserved when it came to showing affection towards his big sister. He didn't want to be seen as being mushy around anyone else, but he still grinned and ran over to give her a hug. 

"You really are pretty Mai!." Slowly disentangling herself from the boys, Maiya straightened and pulled her dress down a bit. The bright red silk really showed off her pale skin tone, and seemed to amplify the blue-black of her hair. 


It had taken hours to style her hair, but Lhauren was nothing if not patient. She had curled her hair into tiny ringlets, and pulled it up off the nape of her neck in a regal looking version of a ponytail. Two ringlets framed each side of her round face, and a rope of pearls wrapped several times around the slender circumference of her neck. 

The dress itself was just above her knees, and was held in place by a ribbon around her neck. Tiny pearls beaded the entire dress in a criss-cross fashion. Charlotte had found the perfect pair of shoes to match her dress. They were pearl  studded silver stilettos that added a good four inches to her height, leaving her at six foot three easy. 


Sometimes it was hard to be as tall as she was, especially mixing with the human kids. Little things like her height reminded the humans that she wasn't really one of them. The girls were jealous of her body, and her looks. Even though Maiya found nothing special about her physical appearance. 


The boys desired her for her body, but were intimidated at the same time. And like with most things that humans were afraid of or intimidated by it made them distrust her and hold her at a distance. Often coupled with open hostility. There were days she wished her ancestors had not been open with the humans of Luna Bayou. 


"Charlotte is here chér, let me get a picture of the two of you!" Lhauren rushed to the living room to grab her camera while Lucas opened the door for Charlotte. 


"Oh if only I were twenty years younger Charlie! I would ask you to run away with me as soon as we graduated." Charlotte laughed and hugged Maiya's father. "Now Papa Lucas you know as well as I do I could never hold a candle to Maman. You wouldn't even look at me twice."


Lhauren walked back into the foyer at the tail end of the conversation and laughed at her husband. "I don't know Charlie, you and our Maiya are sure to be the most beautiful girls at this dance. Anyone who doesn't think so need to go have their eyes checked chér." 


Charlotte stood next to Maiya and posed for their picture. She looked truly splendid in her emerald green taffeta mermaid dress. The color of the dress matched her eyes making them brighter. Her shoes couldn't be seen unless she was moving, but they were Maiya's favorite part of the whole outfit. 

They were emerald silk, sharp toed, and stamped with a fleur de lis design edged with emeralds. Charlotte seemed to just attract amazing shoes. Maiya broke from her mental reverie and posed with her best friend. Senior year had turned out not to be so bad after all so far. 


"Okay, okay Lhauren let the girls go. They'll be late." Lucas smiled lovingly down at his wife and grabbed her hands still clutching her camera. Lhauren wiped at her eyes and nodded. "If I am this emotional over her last high school homecoming dance I can only imagine what kind of mess I will be at her prom." 

Maiya smiled and hugged her parents as she made her way to the door. "Goodnight Papa, goodnight Maman. I will be home around one, Charlie and I will probably cut out from the dance early and go grab a bite at Bo's." 


Going to Bo's Diner after school functions had been a tradition in Luna Bayou since the diner had opened. Bo stayed open late on nights when there were ball games, dances, or any other big event in town. He wanted to give the kids a safe place to hang out locally instead of riding the roads into the bigger cities. 


As they settled into Charlotte's VW Bug Maiya couldn't help but wonder if any of the other wolves would be there tonight. They might have been from the same pack, but Maiya wasn't really close to many of them. She had always just been closest to Charlotte, and being a female Alpha she knew that she would most likely go to her mate's pack when she found him. 


"Oh no no no Miss Thang." Charlotte deepened her Southern drawl and elbowed Maiya in the ribs. "There is no overthinking tonight. I don't care, I don't care. Whatever it is it can wait." Without another word she reached over and cranked up the volume on her radio. Before long they were riding with the windows down and singing at the top of their lungs. 

It felt nice to let loose for one night. To not have a care in the world, and just be a normal teenager. As they pulled into the parking lot of the school Maiya looked over the crowd and tried to pinpoint the few others they were friends with. Everyone seemed to be there, unfortunately that included Hannah and that weakling of a wolf she was with. 


That last thought was all Freija, although Maiya was inclined  to agree. [Freija: How could you disagree with the truth? You are a smart girl Maiya. He is weak, and cruel. I could smell it on him.] Maiya frowned and wondered if she should try to warn Hannah. [Freija: Go on child, enjoy your night. Don't think on such things tonight.] And with that she fell silent. 

Charlotte was barely able to contain her excitement as they waited in line to hand over their tickets. Maiya even found herself swaying to the music and chatting with everyone around them. Everyone was still giddy from the night's win against their football rival, and had left them all in high spirits. 


Maiya was all but dragged onto the dance floor once inside. They danced for four straight songs, and only after begging Charlotte for a break did they make their way to the refreshment table. She quickly drained one cup of punch and was filling her second one when the hairs on the back of her neck stood up. 

Someone was standing close to her, too close. Slowly she turned around and was prepared to give the person invading her personal space a piece of her mind. Until she saw who it was. Pure joy raced through her veins and she almost dropped her glass of punch. "Henri!"

Charlotte reached over with a smile to rescue Maiya's glass before she dropped it so that her friend could launch herself at the tall boy in front of her. Henri wrapped his strong arms around Maiya and held her close. "I had to bribe Mr. Hinderson to let me in without a ticket." Henri's warm, honey eyes twinkled down at her as he spoke. 

"Oh yeah? What did you bribe him with?" Maiya couldn't help but laugh and gently elbow him in the ribs. 

"One of my momma's peach cobblers." Charlotte and Maiya both burst out laughing and each took a turn hugging Henri. "Well that'll definitely do it." 


Maiya found herself feeling breathless as she looked at the boy who held her heart. Was it shameful of her to hope she was one of the few who had been born without a mate? So that she would be free to love this boy freely? 

"Charlotte can I steal your date for a dance? I asked the DJ to play something for me before I came over here."Henri knew Charlotte would not object to him stealing Maiya for a dance. She knew how much the two of them cared for each other. Charlotte also knew how miserable Maiya had been when he had left. 

She waved the two of them off as the song started to play. As Henri held her close Maiya's eyes welled up with tears as she recognized the song. It was their song, the song that had played when he had told her he loved her the first time. The song that played  while he begged her not to turn him away.

Neither of them spoke as their bodies swayed to the music. They just held each other close and gazed into the depths of the other's soul. So wrapped up in each other the two of them were that neither of them noticed the hostile glares from Hannah and one other in the room. 


*************************************************************************************************************

Hannah wanted to walk over to Maiya and rake her nails through the girls face. Rage, pure and white hot flowed through her as she danced with Julien. How dare Henri show his face here again. After he had dropped her like she was nothing.

And for what? A plain Jane, Amazon like Maiya?

Honestly other than Henri being utterly in love with the other girl Hannah couldn't pinpoint the exact reason she hated her so much. One day they were classmates that were casually civil towards each other, and the next they were mortal enemies. 


Hannah caught Henri's eye and pulled away from Julien enough to shove her tongue down his throat. She was a little rougher than she had meant to be, and was rewarded with a warning growl. 

*************************************************************************************************************

While it was true he was using Hannah to get close to Maiya, Julien felt a little put out by the fact that Hannah now seemed to be using him to get back at some human schmuck that was dancing with Maiya. 

As she forced her tongue into his mouth he nipped at her lower lip in warning, and added a warning growl for extra emphasis. She needed to be reminded of her place, and that she was attending this dance with him for whatever reason. So for the time being she was HIS and needed to act as such. 

With his arm firmly wrapped around Hannah's upper arm Julien dragged her towards a darkened corner of the room. Away from prying eyes and out of line of sight of the boy dancing with Maiya. "You would do well to remember who you came to this dance with tonight Hannah. Don't anger me, or ever disrespect me like that again." 


Hannah flinched and leaned back from Julien. Up until this moment he had never shown any sign of anger to anyone, especially not her. He could tell by the look on her face that she had been under the impression that he was the one wrapped around her finger. 

"Do you understand me Hannah?" Julien dropped his voice as he leaned in close to her and placed his cheek against hers. He growled low in his throat and inhaled the scent of her neck. Her fear was intoxicating. 


Hannah nodded and gulped nervously. "Yes baby I understand. You don't have to worry about him, he means nothing."


Julien glared at her and turned away to scan the dance floor. He found Maiya quickly. How could he miss her? She exuded power, desire, and confidence. Qualities that Hannah would never be able to possess. He felt his wolf awakening and urging him to go to the female Alpha. She might not have been their mate, but both of them wanted her. 

[Julien; Soon Hessian, soon we will have her.]

He smirked and continued to watch as Maiya and her little group of friends, including the intruding boy, made their way to the exit. Apparently they were done with the dance scene for the night. Oh well, it had been nice to watch the way Maiya moved while he could. Maybe when she belonged to him he would make her dance for him. 

*************************************************************************************************************

He stalked  the shadows of the parking lot as he waited for her. There was something about her that drew him to her. She haunted his dreams, and even his waking moments were now hers. 

He ducked further into the shadows as her and her friends piled into their cars. He would follow them and ensure her safety, but he wanted more than that. He was tired of being patient. 

He desired nothing more than to be able to talk with her, go for runs, or even sit in silence together. Her scent pulled at him, and teased him throughout his days each time he caught even the smallest whiff. 

He was patient though. 

The group filed into the local diner, laughing as they sat at a table near a window. As the new addition to her normal group of friends slid his arm around her shoulders, the wolf had to fight the instinct to go and rip his throat out. The boy had no right to touch what wasn't his.

A growl tore from his throat and he threw his head back to let a howl loose. The sound carried so much anger and frustration in it. 

He had to slink further into the shadows once more as Maiya turned her head to look out the window. Her wolf hearing had picked up on his howl. He needed to be more careful. 

It wasn't time yet.

*************************************************************************************************************

Maiya had heard the forlorn howl outside the diner. There was such emotion, such longing that it pulled at her heart strings. She couldn't help but wonder who had felt such emotions so strongly. 

Henri pulled her from her thoughts with a kiss to her temple. "Always thinking little wolf." Maiya couldn't help but laugh at his nickname for her. He had seen her shift, he knew that even in her wolf form she was the furthest thing from little. 

"I was just thinking about how appropriate it was that you came home tonight. It's homecoming, and you came home." She smiled brightly at Henri and nestled her head in the crook of his neck.

Senior year is supposed to be the best. Right? For Maiya it's full of events coming up that she wants no part of. People she wants no part of. As an Alpha herself she should get to choose what to do with her life right? Isn't that how this whole Alpha business works?

Julien had been helping his father take over smaller packs for quite a few years now. As the Luna Bayou pack's eldest Alpha child approached her nineteenth birthday they fund their way to the pack's home under the guise of hoping for Julien to be her mate.

Henri, the human boy who held Maiya's heart, has returned for her senior year. Even though they had parted on bittersweet terms Maiya cannot seem to stay away from him. Despite the fact that both of them knew it could lead to nothing but heartache all around. 

With everything going on, and Henri's  surprise return Maiya finds herself feeling guilty for her midnight runs with a mysterious wolf in the woods. How much more complicated could things get?

My girls and I decided to go to the mall this weekend and go shopping. No, not for clothes for boys. What can you say we all need a boyfriend this year. We have Homecoming and Prom. We need someone to be our dates. The real reason we're going to the mall is to to get homecoming dresses. Janeea, Jordan, and Emily have dates already. The only problem is that i am the only one without a date. Rumor has it that Darnell was going to ask me but he hasn't asked me yet. 

Even though we have first and second period together every time he looks at me. He just looks away tries not to give me eye contact in the hallway. It's like I have a sign on my face that says try me I dare you to ask me to homecoming. He looks at me with those puppy dog brown eyes. Wait why am I thinking about him. i don't need a boy to take me to no stupid school dance I can take myself. Cause I am a boss like that . So I asks my mom if she can drop me off at Emily house on homecoming night .she said she'll take me to her . Now all I have to do is find the perfect dress for homecoming. To make all the boys wish they asked me out homecoming especially darnell. 


" ah emily what about this dress right here" I ask her she looked me up and down " yassss that is the dress right there it say ' you wish you were my date to this dance but to bad and slut but not no thot' we all got our dress and left the mall. I got home and my mom was on the couch reading a book. And I showed her what I got from the mall told her goodnight because homecoming is Tomorrow night.

Crescent bit back on her words. She was not expecting the student council kids to listen to her blabbermouth. The student council was allowed to roam for the night of Homecoming and suddenly everyone was going crazy. That meant Mint going full out on asking someone to homecoming. You should've seen how big things were. Balloons, confetti, even the whole circus was there.

"Go to Homecoming with me? I can't imagine it without you" Mint bowed in front of the girl.

"I-" She was crying. " I would be honored Mint"

"Why do I feel like he's proposing?" Crescent mumbled. It didn't matter, this was the lifestyle rich people had. Spending money on simple things like that. Wandering to the last class of the day, she pulled out her notebook to check if she had the budget for Homecoming. nope. Not even the budget for a ticket lmao. Crescent laughed, fully aware that she would probably be helping out at home that day.

Strolling out of her last class, she was surprised to see her locker have a note sticking out. Opening her locker for the first time, she was shocked to see an assortment of expensive chocolates in a box. Grabbing it, she decided to save the chocolate for home. Opening the note, she smiled to herself. 

Dear Crescent,

This wasn't how I planned to ask you out to Homecoming but yet here we are. Meet me in the abandoned tower at lunch tomorrow? I know you probably don't want to meet up today haha. Hope to see you there!

Much love,
;)

Crescent wandered out the school, heading back home. The thought of an admirer didn't cross her mind, and she wasn't exactly curious. She didn't have the budget for it but she was thankful.  A sweet something to share with her parents.

"Mom! Dad! I'm home" Crescent called.

"Welcome back baby!" Her mom smiled.

"I smell chocolates!" Her dad opens the door their shared room. "The expensive kind!"

"Yeah. Someone left these in my locker today." The girl smiled softly. Her mom and her dad both flinch at the thought of a boy.

"I'M nOT READY FOR YOU TO HAVE ANOTHER MAN IN YOUR LIFE" Her dad wailed. He drops to the ground dramatically.

"Calm down. It's not like I'm going to date him" She rolled her eyes. She opens the box, and hands one to her mom and then dad. Her dad takes one happily and her mom shakes her head in denial.

"He might offer you a better life than we can." Her dad sniffled. "And maybe you'd leave the house for your own benefit"

"I've lived in this humble home for 16 years already. It's not like I'm going to leave suddenly." Crescent huffed. "Have some faith in me dad"

"Sorry." He sniffles. His hand reaches for another chocolate but gets denied when her mom smacks his hand lightly. 
"So about homecoming..." Her mom started.

"I can't afford the expenses. I'm going to have to turn the boy down." She sighed. She didn't exactly want to go either.

"Awww. I was going to say you should go! I could sew you a nice dress and you could join them! Homecoming with your dad was really fun! Especially when you win homecoming queen and king" Her mom beamed.

"Chaotic but fun!" Her dad grinned. "Many things can happen at Homecoming. We'll try our best to save on this month's rent."

"I know. But it isn't the easiest. We can only afford so much" Crescent smiled. "It's ok. I know this is my first year though! I still have 3 more"

When Crescent finally gets admitted to The Academy of the Elites, she’s more than ready to take revenge on them for kicking her parents out. Her plan is simple, become champion, become principal, and start the reform. The school system was corrupt and there were so many things to change. What happens when her plan doesn’t work? Simple, you improvise.

-✿-

“Molecule bending, particle bending, gravity bending, and oxygen bending. Please teach me!” The girl bows.

He peers at her in curiosity. Those bending types were banned in the school. Why did she want to know?

“What’s the point of learning something you can’t use?”

“I want to defeat the champion”

-✿-

Update schedule: On pause

"Wow,that was so beautiful! This is absolutely amazing,Fumiko!"Aiyana exclaimed in awe,looking the poem on the poster she just read written by Fumiko for her.She still couldn't believe Fumiko would do all of this for her or even thought about doing all of this for her in the first place.Especially knowing that Fumiko isn't a big fan of romantic gestures,whether it be planning them or having them thrown for her.

Aiyana understood that Fumiko was a more pragmatic person than she was romantic person and never really understood the appeal of a lot of romantic things.Fumiko liked small,subtle acts of affection from her friends and family,but that never surprised Aiyana too much given Fumiko's personality.She has always been a reserved,introverted,and low-key person unless she is hanging with her friends or she is very perturbed about something.

While thinking about how and why Fumiko's homecoming proposal shocked her,Aiyana realized she made an assumption about the context of Fumiko's homecoming proposal.A assumption that could really blur the lines between their relationship with each other.

"Maybe I shouldn't have assumed this was necessarily a romantic gesture,she could've meant the word "date" platonically."Aiyana thought to herself,not understanding the context or intent on Fumiko's part.Aiyana decided she shouldn't think too hard about it because at the end of the day,she was going to be hanging with her best friend doing something they both want to do together more than anything.Just the two of them alone together,a dream come true if you asked her.

"Eh,it doesn't really matter...I still want to go to the homecoming dance with her."Aiyana said to herself,closing her eyes and shrugging her shoulders.Content or no context,it's not like Aiyana would regret anything hanging out with her best friend.Besides,Aiyana was comfortable with her sexuality...she didn't need anyone telling how to feel about it.

Straight,Lesbian,Bisexual...only she could define who she was and Aiyana was vindicated knowing she had that freedom.

Aiyana turned to face Fumiko again after getting lost in her thoughts,wanting regain her focus.She wanted to tell Fumiko how she felt about everything she did just to ask her to the homecoming dance.Aiyana knew what she wanted to say,but she felt a little weird saying it aloud.She didn't want Fumiko to think she was weird or overly eager about all of this,if that was even possible in this situation.

Nevertheless,she was going to say it anyways and just hope for the best.

"You're amazing...you know that?"Aiyana said,looking at Fumiko with her softened eyes.Aiyana felt her heart beat out of nervousness and she started to regret what she had said.She waited a few seconds for Fumiko's response,but her anxiety made the time feel longer.

Fumiko's eyes widened a bit and she blushed,her cheeks turning a shade of bubblegum pink.She felt all warm and tingly inside,which felt very nice yet unknown to her.Fumiko smiled softly and a small "hmm" sound,forming a verbal response in her head before doing anything else.

"You are amazing,Aiyana."Fumiko responded,smiling softly at Aiyana and giving Aiyana's thigh a small squeeze.Fumiko quickly removed her hand from Aiyana's thigh and placed it in her lap,worried she had gotten too engrossed in the moment.She wanted to apologize,but she thought that make things very awkward.

Aiyana was shocked,but she wasn't upset and she definitely wasn't weirded out by Fumiko's touch.Whatever it meant,she wanted Fumiko to know it was okay and maybe that was meant to happen.Aiyana placed her hand over Fumiko's hand and gave it a slight squeeze,gesturing that she didn't mind what had just happened.

In fact,Aiyana actually liked it because Fumiko was rarely physically affectionate with her.Unless,Aiyana initiated affectionate gestures like hugging or other simple touches.

Fumiko looked down at Aiyana's hand that was still resting on her own hand and was genuinely surprised."She's reciprocating my embarrassing gesture by holding my hand?"Fumiko thought,still looking at Aiyana's hand on top of hers.

Managing to stay cool under pressure,Fumiko looked up into Aiyana's eyes and smiled at her.She met with Aiyana's big,dark brown vortex shaped eyes staring back into her eyes.Aiyana also returned Fumiko's smile with one of her own,hoping this would make her feelings clear.She wanted to be by Fumiko's side no matter what and that's where she wanted to stay.

She took her hand off of Fumiko's hand and placed it on her cheek.Her cheeks felt really warm again,but she couldn't tell what it was from.

Was she getting cold sitting outside?Maybe.

Was the wind brushing against her cheeks in an uncomfortable way?Possibly.

Was she feeling uncharacteristically nervous around Fumiko from a minute ago? Not something she took the time to dwell on,but maybe that could be a reason.

But,why would she feel nervous around Fumiko? She's her best friend and that hasn't changed,so that didn't really add up to Aiyana.

She felt a lot of things about Fumiko,but why would warm and nervous be two of them? She didn't understand the sudden hot flash sensations she felt earlier tonight and a minute ago,but that could be chalked up to anything from Aiyana's perspective.

"I don't have time to think about this right now..."Aiyana thought,crossing her arms and looking at the bush next to the steps she was sitting on.Then,it dawned on Aiyana.She could distract herself by talking to Fumiko about the homecoming dance.Hopefully,that would take her mind off of things a bit.

"So,what kind of dress do you want me to wear and what color should the dress be?"Aiyana asked Fumiko,even though she probably already knew the answer.

"A floor-length,golden yellow gown would be the best."Fumiko responded,practically having blueprints of their homecoming attire ingrained in her mind."So,we could be the sun and moon together."Fumiko added,voice drifting off out of slight embarrassment.

She was very excited about going to the homecoming dance with Aiyana,but she didn't want it to show in fear of embarrassment.

"You're gonna wear a white gown?"Aiyana asked,slightly in shocked.

"Yes,I think it will be a very classy and elegant look."Fumiko said,matter-of-factly.

"Not to mention beautiful."Aiyana said practically in awe,glancing at the ground while trying to imagine Fumiko in her homecoming gown.

"I'm sure your gown will look beautiful on you,too."Fumiko responded,smiling and touching Aiyana's shoulder in assurance.

Aiyana rested her hand firmly yet gently on the hand Fumiko has using to touch her shoulder,letting her touch on Fumiko's hand linger for a few seconds before taking it away.

"It depends on what shade of golden yellow the dress is,the right dress will look great against my skin!"Aiyana exclaimed,referring to how certain shades of yellow and golden yellow colors look good on black people.

"I also plan on wearing on a silver and white pearl hair clip to match the moon aesthetic I'm going for."Fumiko said,thinking the accessories would make all the difference in her homecoming outfit.

"Then,I'll wear a gold sunflower headband or two gold butterfly hair clips to match the sun aesthetic."Aiyana responded,not having decided on which hair accessory she will wear with her gown yet.

"Let's keep any other modifications we add to our homecoming aesthetics a surprise for homecoming night,I want the rest of the details to remain a mystery for the imagination for the both of us."Fumiko said,hoping to surprise and surprised by Aiyana on the actual night of homecoming.

"But,that's 4 days from now!"Aiyana exclaimed,feeling like the days leading up to homecoming would be a drag.

"I know,but the days will go by faster since we have homecoming to think about."Fumiko explained,still wanting the rest to be a surprise.

"We'll just have to wait and see,I guess."Aiyana replied,knowing that's all she could do until homecoming night.

"I should probably go home now...unless there's anything else you need to talk about?"Fumiko informed Aiyana while she stood up,getting ready to walk back to her mansion.

Aiyana stood up and walked towards Fumiko,having a few more things she wanted to say.She grabbed Fumiko around her midsection and hugged her tightly before she spoke.After doing that,she looked Fumiko in the eyes to signify the importance of her words.

"Be safe on your way home and keep my jacket for the time being."Aiyana said,still hugging Fumiko.When Aiyana said that,Fumiko hugged her back almost as tightly as she was hugging her."I will,I promise...just make sure you go inside shortly after because it's getting late and cold outside."Fumiko responded,wanting Aiyana to be safe as well...even if she couldn't watch over her.

Aiyana released Fumiko from her hold,turning back around to go back inside.Once she got back to the stairs,she picked up the poster Fumiko made for her and was about to go back inside."Goodnight,Fumiko!"Aiyana called from her front door before stepping into her house and waiting for a response from Fumiko.

"Goodnight,Aiyana!"Fumiko called back from the driveway,looking back at Aiyana.With the night basically ending for them,Aiyana closed the door and went inside right after that.Fumiko took out her mini remote controller & turn off the lights on the driveway and the top of the roof above Aiyana's front door.

She put the mini remote control back in her mini purse and walked back to her mansion,more ecstatic than she could have dreamed to have be after tonight.Everything was looking bright for Fumiko and she felt like she could already see the figurative lights beaming down around her.The homecoming dance,her relationship with Aiyana,and even the literal lights around her as she walked down the street were all indication signs of the bright future ahead of her.

She was finally finding the confidence within herself to show more of her innermost desires to Aiyana,even if it was a little embarrassing at times.The affectionate touching,the delivery of compliments,etc.Aiyana seemed to really like it when she just let herself be more open about her feelings and desires towards her.Fumiko didn't know that she would be so understanding about everything that happened tonight,which made her feelings of embarrassment and shame even stronger.

Especially since Fumiko has an extremely hard time being her true self around other people in fear of abandonment if they don't like the real her.Or if they can't handle the real her since Fumiko knows she can be a lot to deal with in her most vulnerable moments.That's why she only has a few close friends who truly know her,understand her,and accept her for who she truly is.Not everyone would do that if they saw who she truly was and how broken she was on the inside.

Aiyana is one of the only few people who can accept and handle Fumiko at her worst.She has made it abundantly clear that she won't abandon Fumiko,even if it means getting indirectly hurt by her for staying.Aiyana always tries her best to comfort in any way possible Fumiko when she is hurting,an action that placates Fumiko's emotional triggers.

Sometimes,Fumiko wonders if she even deserves the affection and attention Aiyana gives her.That's why Fumiko wanted to give Aiyana everything she possibly could,so she never feels taken for granted or underappreciated.Fumiko wants to give Aiyana everything she has ever given her for always being there and never giving up on her.

Affection,Attention,Comfort,Happiness,and Love were all the things Fumiko wanted to give to Aiyana...if she is lucky enough to be able give all of that to Aiyana one day in the way she wants to.

"Thank you for being in my life and never giving up on me,Aiyana...you're a very special part of my world."Fumiko thought,not wanting that to ever change.

Ever since Fumiko was two years old,her father made a promise to himself that Fumiko was going to be the perfect daughter for him and the perfect wife for her future husband.

Fumiko was taught from a very young age that her main goal & priority in life was to be a perfect daughter for her father and a perfect wife for her future husband.Her hair was always expected to be kept long & healthy and it was never to be cut besides having a small trim to keep her hair healthy.Short hair on a woman was considered "unladylike" and "ugly",according to her father and most men preferred women with long,beautiful hair.

Fumiko was only allowed to wear dresses and skirts because any other form of clothing on a woman was considered to be "unladylike",a characteristic her father was completely against.

She told misogynistic messages on a regular basis like her thoughts,feelings,and opinions don't matter nearly as much as her father's opinion and her future husband's opinion.

Due to Fumiko's traumatic and misogynistic upbringing,she was blinded by what would soon be the biggest catalyst to a paradigm shift to her ingrained trauma and wanting to live for someone other than herself:Being a closeted lesbian and having strong romantic feelings for her best friend,Aiyana Richardson.

Fumiko loves & cares about Aiyana more than any other potential love interest she could be with and Fumiko wanted nothing more than for her to feel the same way.She has grown so close to Aiyana over the years and loves her so much,Fumiko couldn't imagine a life without Aiyana not being her girlfriend.

They have played every other role in each other's lives:from rivals who resented one another for their differences,to casual friends who appreciated the differences between them & embraced what made them different,and eventually to best friends who mean the world to each other & make each other better by actively being the other girl's support system in a cruel,mean,judgemental,and demanding world.

However,she can't have the girl of her dreams and the acceptance of her father as well.Fumiko must sacrifice one for the other and deal with whatever consequences that may come from it.

Will Fumiko choose to live her own life instead of the one her father wants for her? Will Fumiko's love for Aiyana be enough to let her sacrifice the conditional acceptance of her father? Will Fumiko finally be able to live the life she wants as an uncloseted lesbian & by Aiyana's side and obtain her dreams of freedom?

After hearing about this incident, Zhong Yitian made a phone call to Old Mr. Mo to apologize. Mr. Mo was an old friend of his and especially invited Wen Xinya to his birthday party. Zhong Yitian assumed that Mr. Mo would take good care of Wen Xinya in the party based on their friendship. 
However, no one expected the incident to happen. It even got Wen Xinya involved. If Wen Xinya had not dealt with it calmly and rationally, it was very likely that her reputation would be destroyed. Consequently, Zhong Yitian would feel mortified when he saw his old friend.
But this watch incident made Wen Xinya famous in the social circle. Unlike the previous scandal which made people afraid of her tough acts, the wisdom, composure, and rationality she displayed this time made a good impression on many.
This incident had a direct and positive influence on her homecoming party. More and more people would reconsider and pay attention to her homecoming party and were anticipating the grand banquet.
Zhou Tianyu visited Wen Xinya the next day. "I heard what happened last night. Did you have a bad relationship with her in your previous life? How come you run into her on every occasion? And something bad will happen without fail."
Wen Xinya couldn't help but laugh. "She was my sworn enemy in my previous life. I died because of her, so I'm here getting my revenge."
Everything she said was true.
However, Zhou Tianyu didn't believe her at all. She stared at Wen Xinya and said, "Well, I believe you two were enemies in her previous life. But I guess she died because of you. That's why she tried so hard to get back at you."
In her eyes, Wen Xinya was way smarter than Xia Ruya.
Wen Xinya smiled and said nothing.
Zhou Tianyu laughed and said, "I heard you performed calligraphy at Grandfather Zhong's birthday party, and he spoke very highly of you. People praised you for your talent and said that you lived up to your identity as Old Mr. Mo's biological daughter."
She emphasized "biological" to insinuate that Wen Xinya was different from Xia Ruya. Old Mr. Mo had never brought Xia Ruya to the social circle. This suggested that Xia Ruya had not been recognized.
Wen Xinya gave Zhou Tianyu a nudge and said, "Don't make fun of me. Unlike you, I wasn't born to enjoy all the compliments. I had to be embarrassed to make a name for myself."
Zhou Tianyu burst into laughter. "Speaking of fame, those rumors about you have died down recently. Xia Ruya suddenly posted on Weibo saying that the incident was a misunderstanding. She dropped into the lake by accident and you saved her, so Wen Yuya deleted the video on Weibo. Wen Yuya also said that she misunderstood you for hurting Ruya."
She worried that as Xinya's homecoming party approached, those rumors would ruin her reputation and jeopardize the homecoming party. Never did she thought that the rumors would go away so quickly.
Wen Xinya smiled secretly. She got her reputation cleaned without much effort. Furthermore, this made it difficult for them to slander her in the future. People in the social circle were not idiots, they won't believe a liar.
Zhou Tianyu looked at her and came to a sudden realization. "So you knew it the whole time! I was wondering why they came to your defense. Wen Yuya hates you, and Xia Ruya takes every opportunity to harm you. They even spread rumors about you. There must be a hidden agenda!" Suddenly, she sank to a whisper. "Spill it! What did you do to get them to change their statement?" she asked in a voice that only the two of them could hear.
Wen Xinya pushed Zhou Tianyu's face away and said, "I didn't do much. I just mentioned my homecoming party when Xia Ruya, Ning Shuqian, and Ning Shuqian's mother came to visit me."
Zhou Tianyu was in the social circle long enough to figure out the whole story almost immediately. She stared at Wen Xinya in surprise. It took her quite a while to come back to her senses. "Brilliant… that's brilliant!" she gave Wen Xinya a thumbs up and said, "This is the highest level of manipulation."
She found Miss Wen an interesting person when they first met in Xu Zhenyu's birthday party, so she took the initiative to befriend her. After that, Wen Xinya continued to surprise and impress Zhou Tianyu. Most importantly, Wen Xinya was a woman of integrity who would not scheme against other people.
"My homecoming party is around the corner. In order to become the Mrs. Wen of the Wen Family, Ning Shuqian will definitely try everything to ruin my party and me. She is insidious and unpredictable. I cannot afford to make even one mistake in the homecoming party, so I'm going to trick her into believing that her plan worked. At least, she won't create any trouble before the homecoming party, and I can prepare my homecoming party with a peace of mind." Wen Xinya said plainly.
After two lives, Wen Xinya knew Ning Shuqian better than anyone. Ning Shuqian had a poor background, and hence, was looked down by others in the social circle. A formal title like Mrs. Wen appealed to Ning Shuqian more than anything. She could even put aside her hatred for Wen Xinya temporarily. This was because she clearly understood that after she became Mrs. Wen, dealing with Wen Xinya would be a piece of cake.
So, this was a scheme to kill two birds with one stone. If used well, it may even kill multiple birds with one stone.
"How can you be so smart? Tricking cunning old foxes like Ning Shuqian and her mother with only a few words." Zhou Tianyu exclaimed with her eyes wide open.
Wen Xinya grinned and said, "It's easy to trick someone when you know her weakness."
Zhou Tianyu was impressed. "Do you really want Ning Shuqian to organize the homecoming party and allow her to become the Mrs. Wen of the Wen Family?" she said with a frown.
The grin on Wen Xinya's face disappeared in a flash. "That's impossible. I'm not stupid. It's only a trick." Wen Xinya said with coldness in her eyes.
Zhou Tianyu nodded as she came to a sudden realization. "You have the initiative, and Ning Shuqian is at your disposal."
Wen Xinya sneered and said nothing. Since it was a trick, she must perform it to perfection.


Originally born from a wealthy family, she ends up leading a vagrant life for fifteen years. However, when she is eventually found by her family, she falls into another devious plot and eventually dies tragically. 

Fifteen years after her rebirth, ravenously raging for revenge, she tears down the hypocritical mask of the foster daughter who had taken her place, and reduces her greedy stepmother and stepsister back to their original sorry states. 

To the jerk's profession of his deep love for her, she only has one thing to say, "Get the hell out of my life. The love you speak of humiliates love!" 

Regardless of the appearances of you monsters, I’ll take in it my stride with my capability, building a business dynasty of my own, sitting in the depths of my riches, bathing in the glistening limelight of the world. 

A certain rich empire's CEO: "Don't mind me. I'm just leaving my mark here to declaring my possession rights; I’ll wait patiently for you to grow up!" The queen's mighty return with commercial warfare fully within her grasp, she navigates the power struggles with skill and verve. When it comes to scheming conspiracies, all she has to say is, "Who are you again? Don’t even bother!"

"That is not true.  It also has nothing to do with me going or not going.  I told you I don't want to go Illa.  I'm sorry!"  Mýa said.

     "Mýa, I know you like him,"  Illa said gently.  "You should act on it, I think he might like you too.  You guys would be so awesome together, give it a shot.  He is going to be at the game tomorrow and he wanted you to be there."  

     Mýa sighed, "You are correct.  I do like him, however, it is just a crush.  Hormones or whatever, I always push these things aside and they go away.  The little crush I have for Zeke will pass and I will end up being just his friend and I am fine with that.  I just want these feelings to go away because I know he doesn't reciprocate my feelings, and things will be less awkward for me when they pass.  Let's stop talking about this for now.  Please?"  

     Illa groaned, "When you give me those puppy dog eyes I can't resist.  It's not my fault you will be single forever and will never experience teenager fun."  She humphed.  

     Mýa laughed at her friend's childish behavior.  They then continued talking for a while before Illa had to go and they ended their video call.  After the call Mýa started thinking.  Even though she told Illa that Zeke wanting her to go was not true and it didn't matter to her, it kind of did matter to her.  She knew it was silly and stupid but she did think it would be fun to see Zeke there, however she wasn't going to go to something she didn't like just for a guy.  So she decided to forget about homecoming and do as she wants to tomorrow.

  •~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•

     During school Mýa was annoyed with all the homecoming buzz.  Everyone was so excited.  All the teachers were wearing school spirit things and one of Mýa's teachers even ended the class half an hour early so everyone could talk about the game and such.  Plus to top it off, Zeke had texted her during that class period as the teacher and students were talking about homecoming.  

     She glanced at the text and it read, 'Are you still not going to homecoming?  I can save you a seat.'  She hadn't responded yet when her teacher saw the text and smiled at her.  

     Before Mýa could apologize the teacher said quietly to her, "You aren't going to homecoming?  You should, it is awesome and your boyfriend wants you to go."  The teacher then walked away leaving Mýa embarrassed.  She didn't reply to Zeke.  

     At lunch time Mýa had to help some people work on their half time booth, which she actually had fun doing.  So she didn't get to talk to her friends and they also didn't bug her to go because she texted Illa and told her she couldn't make it to the lunchroom.  

     The booth she was helping to make was for the drama club, the club wanted to have a booth at halftime so they could raise money for the club and maybe gain some new members or fans.  They decided to make the booth look like a puppet theatre, they even had the signature two drama masks on the top of the booth near a drama club sign.  They were going to give demonstrations of some of the plays, dramas, and musicals the club was planning to put on later in the year.  They also sold cookies that had been decorated like music notes, costumes, scripts, and such along with little souvenirs to do with famous plays.  Mýa helped decorate the booth and cookies.  They got done early and Mýa wanted to try to make it to the cafeteria.

     However, as she headed to the cafeteria one of her friends from chorus needed her help with a float.  She still had 10 minutes of lunch left and a pass from her teacher that excused her from being late if she needed it, so she agreed to help.  The float they were making didn't have anything to do with chorus, it was actually a float one of the nominated homecoming queen and king contestants would be in.  The base structure was a car with a convertible top, so they made a seat above the car and decorated the seat and the car.  They used school colors and banners to decorate it, and even wrote the school's logo on the side of the car using a type of washable car paint.  After they finished the float they rushed back to class and gave their late passes.

  •~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•~~~•

     At the end of the day Mýa, Hailey, and Mia walked from their last class to the bus area in the parking lot.  They talked about meeting up at the homecoming parade before the rest if the friends excluding Mýa went to the game.  Mia also wasn't a fan of homecoming but she was going to help her older sister work a half time booth.  Before Mýa got on her bus Hailey tried one more time to ask Mýa to go to the game with them, Mýa hesitated and said, "We'll see."  

     This made Hailey content and so Mýa said goodbye to her friends and got on the bus.  When she got on the bus she sat at her seat and started talking to her friends, Zeke who sat near the back of the bus looked up at her when she got on but didn't say anything or go sit near her.  She was disappointed but she shook it off, she realized it was a good time to start distancing herself from him a bit so she could lose the feelings she had for him.  

     The rest of the bus ride they sat away from each other and Mýa had a good time talking to her bus friends.  She forgot about him.  When it was time to get off, Mýa got off first and started walking to her house.  Zeke got off a few moments after her and quickly ran up to her before she got to the start of the woods.  

     "Hey,"  He said as he grabbed her arm stopping her.  

     She turned around, "Hey."  She said, wondering what he needed her for.  

     Zeke let go of her arm and asked, "Are you avoiding me?"  

     Mýa looked at him, he was looking at her very seriously.  "No, why would I be avoiding you?"  

     "Well, you didn't reply to my text earlier, you didn't come to lunch, you didn't say anything to me in the bus, you haven't communicated with me since this morning, and you started walking off to your house without saying anything."  He said.  

     Mýa laughed, she had done those things.  She wasn't trying to avoid him, well she sorta was.  She wanted to forget her feelings for him but not ghost him.  She also found it hard to forget about him when they were neighbors and he for worried when she didn't talk to him much for a day.  "I didn't reply to your text earlier because the teacher saw me look at my phone and I got embarrassed.  I didn't go to lunch because I had to help make a half time booth and then a parade float.  I didn't talk to you on the bus because you sat in the back today and I thought you wanted to be with your other friends.  I didn't text you or anything because I didn't think you wanted me to, and I just walked to my house like I normally do.  I'm sorry I did not say anything to you."  She said.  

     Zeke looked relieved.  "Why didn't you text me though, or say anything to me when you got off the bus?  Even if the rest wasn't on purpose, you still weren't acting completely normal with me today."  He stated.  He did not know why she seemed to be getting more distant but he didn't like it.  "Is it because I bugged you about homecoming?  Did I do something wrong?"  He asked.  

     Mýa sighed, "No none of this is your fault and I just didn't realize that I hadn't talked with you much.  I'm sorry, I have to go now I have some stuff I need to do before I go to the homecoming parade."  

     "Alright, I'll see you at the parade.  Bye."  Zeke said.  

     "Bye" Mýa said and left.  

     She clutched her bag, if Zeke got worried after she didn't interact with him as much as she usually did then ignoring him some more would be hard.  She needed to get a grip.  Zeke on the other hand still felt like something was off and wanted to figure it out.  

     When Mýa got to her house, she was alone.  Her dad wouldn't get off work until 6:00 pm. it was only 4:07 pm. now.  The homecoming parade started at 5:30 pm. and the game officially started at 6:30.  Mýa had to complete a mini paragraph for Science (a Claim Evidence Reasoning Paragraph), complete two paragraphs for Language Arts, and start a poster for Chorus.  She finished all of her homework and had a snack by 4:55 pm.  Mia's mom was going to pick her up to go to the parade at 5:20 pm. so she was able to get done a small workout.  

     After exercising she quickly freshened up, changed her clothes, and grabbed her little bag that had some money, her phone, and some emergency supplies.  She then fed and took care of her animals as she waited for Mia and her mom to arrive.

     They arrived right on time and took Mýa to the parade.  Once her mom dropped them off they went to find Illa, Hailey, Mabel, Payton, Tilly, and Illa and Mabel's mom.  (Did I mention that Illa and Mabel are sisters?)  When they found them, already standing by the parade route, they set up their stuff and waited for the parade to start.

15 year old Mýa has lived in the woods with her family for her entire life. She lives with her dad in the first house in the woods, her uncle lives in the second house deeper in the woods, her great grandparents used to live in a house by the opening of the woods and owner a trailer they rented out, and her cousins live the farthest in the woods closest to the river. Her mom died giving birth to her so she lives with her dad and their pets/animals. Her life has always been pretty simple, she would play in the woods, fish, hike, tend gardens, take care of her animals, go boating, have bonfires, play softball, go to school, and always hang out with her family. Things changed, however, when her great grandfather passed away and something needed to be done with his property. 

 After a lot of clean up and repair, it was decided that it was time to sell his house, sheds, and trailer. They happened to find the perfect family of three who wanted to buy all of the property and fix it up. That is where this story starts.

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 I had been planning to make this novel for some time but decided to make it now because it fit this contest entry needs. It is a Sweet Love romance that has some funny parts, a modern teen view point, and a independent feminist female lead. I also am working on Sealed With Blood, and I have a book called Coincidentally Fated that is at a bit of a stand still. There are no major misunderstandings or abuse or any type of suggestive parts. This is not my cover, all rights go to the original creator. This is a fast paced book.

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Sneak Peaks 

 "I think it would take a very long time for the neighbor girl to fall for him."

 He stared at her intensely before asking "So you really have never had a boyfriend before?" 

 "I haven't let any other guy be close to you. I wouldn't want anyone else to have this with you." "Me Too..."

amazon homecoming novel

HOMECOMING

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Volatile Elements

The Hidden Alpha

A day in my shoes

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Reborn Aristocrat: Return of the Vicious Heiress

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