Second Chances: Lucas

Elena Pov Life has a funny way of playing dirty tricks on you. You could be living a happy one and then all of a sudden it is taken away from you in one fell swoop. I lost my parents last year. It was sudden, surprising, and quick. The only family I have left is my grandma who lives on the other side of the country. I didn't hesitate when she offered to take me in but I was reluctant to just bombard her with another mouth to feed. She said, " we are family and family looks out for each other always and especially when the waves get rough." So I packed my things and moved to the countryside. "Elena," I heard my grandma call me from inside her cute countryside home. I didn't have many things but it still required a moving truck. Most of the large things, furniture and such, I sold. "Wow, gran I still can't get over how nice this place is," I told her. She had a cute little white stone two-story house. It had cute shutter windows and pink blossoming flowers boarding the brick fence surrounding the property. She even had a pool but she never uses it, she told me. She does have a cute little garden in the backyard she tends to daily. I wasn't actually going to stay with her in this house though. She has a smaller house a few feet away. It's a cute little lakeside home. The backside of the house was covered with climbing vines. It looked rustic but cozy nonetheless. I got settled in quickly and had lunch with my gran as soon as I was done. "Did you unpack everything?" my gran asked. I giggled. "No, not even close," I admitted. "Oh dear, well, it's okay, we have time," she smiled. "Thank you for everything gran," I took a bit of the chicken pot pie she had made for us. "It's nothing my dear Elena, I love you and I know you miss your parents dearly," her expression changed. "How are you doing?" I asked. She also lost a son the day I lost a father. "I'm fine dear, I'm glad I have you here with me," she said. "We have each other," I replied. She smiled kindly and grabbed my empty plate and went to go wash it in the sink. "So, any plans for tomorrow?" she asked. "I need to find a job," I told her. "You could always work at my bakery," she said. "I know, I know but I want to stop relying on you, if I don't find something in a week, I'll come back groveling," I laughed. She laughed a bit too. I went to give her a hug and told her I would try to finish packing. I slowly began to walk back to my little home. I looked around at the trees and leaves changing colors already. It was early autumn and a bit windy already. This place was so beautiful. I knew I was going to like living here. I have only ever lived in the city with my parents. We came to visit my gran during thanksgiving and stayed until after Christmas but this was going to be different. Living every day here was going to be a new adventure. I went back inside and began looking for my cellphone. I put on some music and started to unpack some boxes. "Never had much faith in love or miracles Ooh! Never wanna put my heart on the line Ooh! But swimming in your water is something spiritual Ooh! I'm born again every time you spend the night Ooh!" I think my favorite thing to do is sing and dance. Oh and write, I could write in my journal all day and night. I mostly write poems, short stories, and songs. As I got through the boxes of clothes and shoes, I practically danced my way through the entire small house. I started to unbox some pictures and as I looked at them my heart began to sink in my chest. I was only able to set two on the shelf above the fireplace. I stopped and decided to go for a walk. There was a nice trail that led into the small woods behind our houses. I was humming to myself as I walked on the stone steps that led deep into the trees. I didn't notice when I started to dance a bit but my movements came to a halt when I saw the most beautiful animal I had ever seen up close. It was staring right at me. "s**t!," "Darn it," I hated myself for cursing. I knew how much my gran hated when I did that. "Oh no." I looked at the wolf and it was still staring back at me. Its eyes almost looked angry. They glowed an amber yellow. Its fur was a blondish brown. I gulped down my saliva and began to walk backward. I was too busy admiring the creature to be worried for my own safety. "Nice wolfy," I said softly. The wolf slowly started to come towards me. "Oh no, I can't run, you will just run after me." I looked around but of course, there was no one to come to my rescue. And here I thought I was going to love living in the middle of nowhere. "STAY!" I put my hands out trying to stop the wolf. I didn't know why I thought that would work. "Please don't eat me. I don't want to hurt you and I will never come back here again." The wolf suddenly stopped and laid down. It never stopped staring at me. "Um, good wolfy," I said. I started to turn around but it howled scaring me mid-step. "I'm sorry." The wolf ran towards me and stopped in front of me. "HOLY s**t!" "No!" I fell to my knees and felt the tears fall down my face. The wolf bowed its head a bit and then pushed its nose into my thigh. "Um, okay,"