Seeking The Past

I took a step forward. The ground under my feet felt warm. The air was thick and hard to breathe. My eyes burned as I tried to see through the black smoke. Then I saw it. The pack house engulfed in flames. Screams ringing in my ears as tears rolled down my cheeks. I squeezed my eyes shut, “Wake up! Just wake up!” My mind bellowed at me. My eyes open and I was there in my bed. I looked around my room. The four white walls adorned in posters and pictures. I slowly got up and opened the window. In the far distance I could see the pack house completely intact. A sigh escaped my lips. “Again you’re having that dream. Always the same stupid dream!” My mind used to keep my body up all night with the wild ideas of what the dream meant. It was always the same few moments. I always closed my eyes and awoke at the same time. Ever since my 13th birthday when my wolf emerged, I’ve had the same nightmare. I rubbed my eyes and grabbed my phone to check the time. “You have to be kidding me!” The clock read 6:13 am. “I don’t even have to be awake for two more hours!” I whined to no one but my inner self. I decided it would be ample time to get dressed and go for a jog. I tip toed to the bathroom carefully started my shower. I stepped out my front door popping in my iPods. I selected a nice song to jog to and get pumped up for my day. I start to stretch and take deep breaths of the pine trees all around me. This was my favorite part of living in Oregon. The forest always felt like home but being stuck in this pack life has never felt normal to me. My wolf longed to be free of falling in line. Normally after school, most wolves that showed promise were sent off to a training college. Others were left to figure out their places themselves. Most those were the low income families of the pack. The ones that weren’t particularly strong enough to be warriors but also not so weak that the pack had to take care of them completely. My family were lower income because my parents had always taken in the pups without parents. I was shown alittle more attention then my “siblings” as my parents were sure I was destined for better things. My abilities in pre-warrior training were marked high and the only reason I was transferred into the high school with the children of high breeds. The higher breeds were mostly pack house kids. Some families lived around or close to the pack house but most of them never came down to our neck of the wood. I started off down our street jogging at a nice pace and taking in the smells of the crisp spring air. Letting the sun fill my batteries as I thought about what I would make to take for my lunch at school today. Suddenly I smelled something different. I looked around and to my surprise across the street was a pack of men also jogging. I recognized them immediately. The alpha’s sons, the beta’s son, the delta’s son. All gorgeous men jogging up my street. Was this something I just never noticed before because I rarely jogged this early? Or were they just exploring the pack streets? As I watched their glorious bodies jog, I couldn’t help but notice the beta’s son Declan look over and give me a odd look. My cheeks flushed from embarrassment and I stopped and leaned over to catch my breath. I touched my face and suddenly was overcome with worry that Declan was going to tell the others how I ogled them! I calmed myself down, reminded myself that no one at the school knew who I was. I was just the new transfer girl to them. Just then my phone rang pulling me out of my trance and making me jump out of my running shorts. I looked at my phone to see my mom was calling. “Yes?” I answered. “Hannah! Where are you!?” Worry came from her voice. “Mom I only went for a jog! I’m not far from the house!” I didn’t mean to sound disrespectful, but I was just about to turn 18. I was practically a adult. She would no longer be able to talk to me like I was a child. “You had me worried that a pack of males came and took you or something!” She sighed. “Just come home as soon as you can. I was hoping to talk before you left for school today.” She seemed less concerned, but now I had a sinking feeling. “Don’t worry. It’s nothing to worry over.” She continued which still didn’t make me feel any less uneasy. “Ok mom, I’ll be home soon.” I hung up and stared at my phone. I had a uneasy feeling and I looked around. People were starting to emerge from their homes and get in their cars. I turned to walk towards home when suddenly the vision of the burning pack house flooded my mind. I froze and squeezed my eyes shut. What’s wrong with me? I took a deep breath and suddenly choked on what felt like thick smoke. I put my hands over my face. I took another deep breath and suddenly my lungs filled with the crisp air again. “Are you ok miss?” I heard a voice. I opened my eyes and turned to see a man dressed in business attire. “I’m fine! Thank you!” I took off in a sprint to home. The nightmare had never invaded my daily life before.