CHAPTER 2
760 Words
"Zephyr, don't eat that!"
I turned from the kitchen and sighed. Here we go again. My son was holding a black rock he'd found outside, and he was trying to put it in his mouth again.
"But Ma, it looks like candy." he said innocently, frowning and looking up at me.
"Candy? That came from the ground, honey. Is that candy?" He shook his head and put the rock down.
Zephyr.
The result of a night I thought was just a replacement for pain. But now, he's the reason for every beat of my heart.
Tall for his age. Curly hair, fair skin, and the most captivating part about him are his eyes—deep blue, like that man.
Yes, I still don't know his father's name. But every time I look at Zephyr, I remember that night over and over.
Not because of the heat or pleasure but because of the connection. It felt like something deeper happened.
"Ma, why don't I have a daddy?"
I dropped the plate I was holding. It clattered in the sink, thankfully not breaking.
"W-what? Why did you ask that?"
"Because at school, they have daddies. They said maybe my daddy's dead, or maybe he left us because I'm a bad kid."
Suddenly my chest tightened.
I knelt in front of him and held his cheeks.
"Honey... you're not a bad kid. Don't ever think that, okay?"
"Then where is he?" I was silent for a moment.
"We don't know him. But if you're important to him, he'll find you someday. But even if he doesn't, I'm enough, right?"
He nodded. But there was a sadness in his eyes that I couldn't erase.
I noticed Zephyr had been acting strangely these past few days.
Sometimes, he walks quietly around the house, as if looking for something.
Sometimes, he'll stop and look at the sky while shouting, "Arf!"
Sometimes, he says he hears "voices in the forest" even when the windows are closed.
I just chalk it up to his wild imagination.
But sometimes, while he's sleeping, I notice he's sweating even though the room is cold. He's restless, as if having a bad dream.
One night, I was awakened by his scream.
"ZE-PHYR!" I ran to his room immediately. He was shaking and drenched in sweat.
"Honey!" I approached him and hugged him.
"Mama... there... there are eyes in the dark. They're watching me..."
I felt a chill. This isn't normal. This isn't just a made-up nightmare.
But I don't want to show him my fear. I need to be strong.
The next day, I took him to the pediatrician.
"His development is fine," the doctor said. "But... I'm just curious. Does his father have foreign blood?"
I frowned. "Why do you ask?"
"Because his bone density is higher than normal. And his reflexes, for his age... he's too advanced."
"How can you tell?"
"He punched my blood pressure machine earlier. Not only did it break, but it flew across the room."
I looked at my son smiling while eating candy. Seemingly unconcerned about what the doctor said.
"Ah. That kid's just really strong," I said, forcing a smile.
But deep down, my son isn't just strong. He's not normal.
Night after night, I'm awakened more and more by his screams. These aren't just simple nightmares anymore. Once, twice, I noticed he was saying garbled words that I couldn't understand.
Like... a different language.
Not Filipino. Not English.
One night, while I was rubbing Vicks on his back, he suddenly turned to me. His eyes were wide open but it was like he couldn't see me.
"Al'vaar en khal dra'sinn..."
I stopped. "What's that?"
He looked at me, as if waking from a trance.
"Ma?"
"Honey, what did you say?"
"I don't know..."
A few more weeks passed and I noticed a pattern. Every time there's a full moon, Zephyr's energy becomes more intense.
He runs faster, he shouts louder, his senses are sharper.
And one night, while we were eating, he suddenly looked at me.
"Ma... are werewolves real?"
I dropped my spoon. "Huh? Where did you hear that?"
"In my dream. There's a man with eyes like mine. And he turns into a wolf. He said I'm his son."
I gasped.
No... could this be?
I lay down that night but I couldn't sleep.
I got up. I opened the laptop.
I typed "Blue-eyed man. One-night stand. Possible werewolf traits in child."
I almost went crazy with the amount that came up.
But one word kept appearing again and again…
Alpha.
- Writer
