Eyes of Light

shut my locker just as the bell rang, combing through my now messy hair with my fingers. I managed a ball to the head every now and then, and I didn’t think it was funny, no matter how many people laughed. I pulled my strap over my shoulder and smiled as Anna jumped up, turning with me down the hall. We headed towards the door in our silence, the voices around being enough of a disturbance, but my eye caught sight of something; someone.

Nick was heading down the opposite end of the hallway, his backpack strung over one shoulder casually as he took his fast, easy strides. His hands were shoved into his pockets and his curls bounced as he glided somewhat gracefully towards the back doors. I guess it wasn’t exactly odd, but he was the only one that was using those doors, probably because they led straight to a steep hill, that then lead somewhere into the forest, probably coming out by my house. I bit my lip, suddenly having the impulse to…

Nick’s head slowly turned as he neared the doors, catching my gaze, his eyes still cold. I felt myself freeze by the door, but the knowledge of whether that actually happened or not was beyond me; I just locked his gaze, my teeth scraping at the inside of my mouth. He quickly turned and pushed himself out the doors, the sound of the suddenly harsh wind filling my ears.

“So, you know, I was thinking that you could come over some day. You know? Like a sleepover?” Anna interrupted, her head cocked as she smiled thoughtfully. She was completely oblivious to what had just happened, if anything even happened. I let out a sigh and bounded down the concrete steps, beginning to move in my direction as she moved to hers.

“Yeah, that’d be fun,” I smiled, giving her a wave. She nodded enthusiastically and hurried to the sidewalk, making her way up the path that lead to a bunch of small houses all aligned. My eyes trailed after her for a moment before focusing on the shorter winding path, starting from behind the school and winding all the way until the trees took over, even farther. I strained to see anything, my eyes settling on a bush rustling in the distance. It fell completely silent as I backed up so slowly, keeping my gaze on the forest; that voice sounded off in my head.

“I wish she’d leave me alone,” it murmured, irritated. I froze for a moment, completely shocked. The voice… it resembled Nick’s; smooth, velvety, irritated. But I shook my head, knowing that wasn’t true. Of course it wasn’t Nick! How could someone I didn’t even know be in my head? That was a question for a psychiatrist, and I didn’t plan on asking it very soon.

I turned around swiftly, banging my knee on a car. I squeaked, almost tumbling backwards, but regained my balance quickly enough to see my dad’s face filled with amusement, his body shaking with silent laughter inside the car. I scowled and muttered to myself, opening the door and sliding in. He quickly cleared his throat and turned the key, the old car roaring to life.

“How, uh, how was your day?” he asked, holding in his laughter, thanks to my clumsiness.

“Fine,” I breathed, shifting my gaze out the window as the car began to roll away from the parking lot that was now becoming empty.

[&&light]

I sat on my bed, the stereo turned up some, blasting Rooney, and stared down at my homework sheet. Mrs. Holster had given it to us at the end of the period, writing it out sloppily and then copying it on the machine she held in her room. It was the lessen plan for the month. She had changed her schedule around swiftly because she was ‘intrigued with those old tales.’ The ones Nick had mentioned were the ones that had always intrigued me.

I smiled to myself and zoned out, remembering a moment I had with my mother.

I was six years old, sitting at a small table with my mother across from me. She was beautiful, graceful; everything I wasn’t. She held a teacup in her hand, playing tea party with me one of the many times I had asked. My father was usually at work by ten, our tea parties starting after he left.

She’d always tell me stories of the creatures Nick had mentioned; the witches, vampires, werewolves. She said they weren’t evil, most anyway. She had told me that they all lived together, that they were friends among the 'humans'. She also told me that there was black magic, and that a good witch couldn’t fight it alone, the same for any other creature.

I snapped out of my thoughts, not quite sure what the rest was. I was eager to learn about the tales my mom was fond of, and I smiled, seeing that I would be learning it next week.

I shivered suddenly, my eyes trailing over to the open window. The wind had picked up some, the cool air disturbing me. I crawled to the edge of my bed and turned the knob on the stereo, the volume setting at a low hum, and set my feet on the ground. Padding over to the window in my slippers, I reached out, completely freezing when that same howl sounded. It sounded like it was communicating, but I couldn’t hear a second howl; only the soft, distressed one.

I set my gaze as far as it would go, only reaching the first trees of the winding forest. It never really scared me, being this close to a woodsy area, but now I was starting to think otherwise with the constant howling and rustling of the bushes. I took a deep breath and shut the window tight as the mesmerizing howl sounded again.

I turned away from the window and grabbed my notebook, opening it to the math notes. I was never one for math, numbers being nothing more than plain and boring, but the work had to be done. I sat there for hours, looking over the problems I didn’t understand, hoping that the ones I did answer were correct. Was I supposed to be a mathematician when I grew up? That definitely wasn’t right. I considered asking my dad, but he was never any good with numbers. He was always so… oblivious. More of a Star Wars fan.

When I glanced back out the window, it was pitch black, my stereo repeating the last track over and over again. The clock read 10 pm and I knew it was my bed time. I felt like such a child, my dad always coming in to check on me, to make sure I was in bed. Even during the night, he’d come wake me up out of my nightmares. He didn’t know what caused them, and sometimes he was more frightened than I was.

I slid off my bed and turned the overhead light on, the dullness only illuminating the middle of my room, my posters looking like black pages on the far wall. I pulled open my door and headed into the hallway, the flash of blue from the TV flickering against the wall, the sound of murmured voices coming from the speakers. I bounded down the stairs and spotted my dad on the couch, snoring away with his head turned towards the TV where and old Twilight Zone rerun played. He was for anything supernatural, I guess, and my mother was too… as far as I could remember.

I stepped forward and turned the TV off, pulling the bowl of popcorn out from underneath his hand and his glasses off his face, setting them on the table. I couldn’t help but smile down on him. I had most of my mother’s features; her eyes, bright green like a cat. Mine seemed dull compared to hers, but they were the same green. I had her pouted lips, my dad had told me once, and he said I had her smile. That was enough to give me some sort of confidence. My mother was beautiful, but I guess everyone could think that. I did have one of my dad’s traits: I was fascinated with otherworldly stuff, whether it was real or not.

I let out a deep breath and tip-toed over to the kitchen, pulling back the blinds. The darkness looked so peaceful, but the wind held an eeriness to it. I couldn’t explain what it felt like, even being on the inside. It was weird. My eyes scanned the trees almost obsessively, my breath catching as I spotted a large animal in the distance. It was the same golden brown color, the black surrounding it’s large ears. It was sitting by a lone tree, looking up at the sky, letting off a low howl that seemed to ring through me, sending tingles up and down my spine. The howl made my fingers tickle and my palms burn, like I was being electrocuted for a moment. I jumped, the blinds clashing against the window gently. Holding my breath, my eyes flickered to my dad; he barely stirred. But when I looked forward again, my eyes widened in surprise. The large and beautiful wolf seemed to… glow. Not it’s whole body, not even it’s head; it’s eyes glowed, bright like the sun. The golden color popped against it’s black furry head, sending a light brighter than the moon. The gold seemed to swim and my eyes met them, like they were right in front of me, the chocolate brown lining the gold holding a hint of caution. It drew me in instantly, my body moving closer to the window. I stood on my tip-toes, leaning over the sink to get a better look, my hand moving up to touch the window.

I gasped, tearing my gaze away from the animal to focus on my hand. It was golden, the same color as the wolf’s eyes. I backed up and opened my mouth in awe, only to be deceived. My hand was… just a hand, and it was illuminating no more. Quickly glancing up, my eyes searched frantically for the wolf, but it was gone, only the wind rustling the tree branches.

“What?” I muttered to myself, shaking my head. I glowed… in my dreams, and that wolf was from my dreams; the howl so captivating, it’s eyes so mesmerizing, pulling me in. was I dreaming now? I pinched myself, holding in a squeak. This was… real. Maybe I was hallucinating.

I turned around quickly and bolted for the stairs, taking them two at a time before finally reaching my door, sliding against the wood floor. I shut it quickly and turned my stereo off, shoving all the books off my bed and onto the floor with a clatter.

“Shoot,” I muttered, looking at the mess, but then I suddenly heard that same howl, my head snapping around to face the window. The wolf was walking so slowly, so gracefully towards the forest, howling lowly. And I could hear that same voice in my head suddenly.

“Hmm,” it hummed, the voice so calming. I felt my eyelids droop and a sleep come over me before I even hit the bed.

&&&

The breeze was warmer now, my body still. I looked around, my eyes slowly scanning over all the trees. Everything was so beautiful. The leaves were gold and bright green, some red. I could hear the water trickling in the background, the sun shimmering down, warming my skin. When I looked down, I was a light gold color, like I was actually tan, or I was part of the sun.

I heard a small rustling from the corner and I turned my head, the voice echoing through my mind.

“Happy?” it whispered, the wolf sauntering over to sit in front of me. The voice was so similar. I bent down slowly, my eyes connecting with the large, golden and dark brown ones. It stared at me, the emotions so very clear; it was happy. I could… feel it, tingles shooting through my body. I lifted my hand slowly, my eyes settling on the continuous glow, like a million lights were flickering through me, and sudden excitement ran through me.

I set my hand on the wolf’s head, a low whimper coming through him, making me smile as I pet it's soft, black fur, running my fingers down to it’s back where the golden and light brown hair sat.

My eyes fluttered open, settling on the dull sunlight coming through my window, my eyes squinting. I didn’t know where I was for a moment, until my eyes settled on my cluttered room. It took me a moment to realize that I was halfway on the bed, my fingertips tingling, resting on the wooden floor. Then I remembered that my books were scattered everywhere. I quickly sat up with a groan, freezing; where were my books? I looked around the floor, seeing nothing until my eyes rested on a pile in the corner. The pile was made up of my spiral notebooks and text books, the pencil sitting neatly on top… right next to my backpack. I furrowed my eyebrows, wondering if I had put them away after all.

I rolled over so my back was on the bed and rubbed my eyes, licking my dry lips. That was the first dream that wasn’t a nightmare, but it still didn’t make sense.

“Happy?” I blurted to myself, letting out a deep sigh.

I was going off the deep end, wasn’t I? maybe I’d start talking to myself and end up on the side of the road one night, looking for some wolf. I shifted my gaze to the clock. The birds gently chirped by my window, proving that it was in fact 6:15am. Footsteps sounded and my door was suddenly pushed open, my dad blinking at me with surprise yet again.

“Is this becoming routine? You’re actually waking yourself up?” he chuckled, resting his head against the door. I smiled dryly and rubbed my neck, surprised when there was no sweat. I was so used to having nightmares, this dream actually scared me more than the black wind that glowed gray and would always push me away. “Did you have another nightmare?” he asked wearily. I paused, slowly shaking my head.

“It was… weird, though,” I whispered, trying to clear my voice.

He stared at me for a moment, his eyes soft, almost vulnerable. I caught him glancing up at the picture of mom before he looked down, sighing deeply. “Get ready for school, kiddo. Do you mind walking? I have a job interview.”

I laughed slightly but smiled, oddly proud of my dad. “Sure. No problem.”

[&&light]

I trudged up the big stairs after giving my dad a wave, struggling to balance the backpack on my shoulder with keeping my eyes open. I felt so drained. I let out a yawn, covering my mouth the best I could just as Josh and Anna reached me.

“Whoa. You look terrible,” Josh stated, my gaze flickering to him. Anna smacked him upside the head, scowling.

“Shut up, doofus,” she growled, giving me a small smile.

“What happened? You look so tired. Didn’t you go to bed?” she joked. I would’ve laughed, but I was slightly confused myself.

“Yeah. I don’t know, I think I stayed up too late… trying to get my homework done,” I sighed, flickering my eyes between the two as we entered the building. People were strolling down the hallway, laughing and playing around. Some were going to homeroom, but we still had a few moments. Besides, the three of us were going to the same place. “Math isn’t really something I’m good at,” I laughed nervously.

“Hey, I could help,” Josh offered quickly, my gaze meeting his. He opened his mouth, hesitating to find the right words. “I’m pretty good, I mean. I could help you with it… sometime… after school, you know?” he shrugged, smiling kindly. I returned it with a nod.

“Sure. That’d really help. Thanks.” He smiled and nodded, keeping his pace to stay with us as Anna spoke.

“Do you want to come over after school today?” she asked. We turned down the hall, reaching our locker bin. I bit my lip, stepping forward to unlock mine.

“I can’t. My dad has an interview so I have to watch the house,” I muttered, disappointed.

“Oh, that’s cool. There’s always tomorrow,” she giggled, freezing. I waited for her to speak again, turning around when she didn’t.

“What-” I started, getting a smack in the gut from her, telling me to be quiet. I followed her gaze over to the corner. There Nick stood, his hands in his pockets, his eyes focused on… me. Everything suddenly went silent, my slow heart beat echoing in my ears. My mouth dropped open and a chill ran up my spine as he stared, narrowing his eyes as if he were concentrating.

He stood up straight after a moment and slowly turned, his eyes flashing away from me, and he pushed himself off the wall, quickly making his way down the other end of the hall. I stood there for a moment, not sure what I was feeling. Why was he staring? Was he angry for me asking if he wanted to sit with us? I was just trying to be nice…

“Who was that?” Josh muttered, breaking our silence. All the voices of everyone around suddenly crashed back down on me, making me jump.

“That’s the new kid. What’s his name?” Anna replied, turning to face me.

“Uh…” I stuttered, shaking my head. “Nick, I think.”

“And why was he staring at you?” Josh questioned, raising an eyebrow, running a hand through his spiked hair.

“I… don’t know,” I shrugged, turning back around to take my binder out of my bag. The bell rang through the building and everyone began to scatter to their classes.

“Come on. We’ll be late,” Anna smiled, leading the way. I kept my gaze to the ground, glancing up once to see Josh’s eyes on me. But I had this weird feeling… like someone else was watching me.