Selene Terra Firma

Real

Selene jumped out of bed, drops of cold sweat rolling down to her neck. She breathed so heavily she thought she'd run out of air. She recalled everything that had happened.

Ares got mad at her and left her all alone. She then decided to visit the Central where she bought her favorite food, saw an odd pack of werewolves which appeared to have no Alpha. And before she knew it, some strange Alpha-looking food thief was cornering her.

I'm his Alpha?

She snorted."Who was he kidding?"

Selene wiped her own sweat with the shirt she was wearing. She was afraid her dreams were getting a bit more realistic in the sense yet harder to believe.

She looked at her wrist watch and it was passed 2 o'clock in the morning. She's been sleeping for two hours ever since they got home. As soon as she calmed down, she started unpacking her suitcase. She took out some clothes and went for the bathroom.

She decided she won't be sleeping for the rest of the night.

Naked, Selene stood under the shower and was immersed in the feeling of the lukewarm water running down her body. She closed her eyes and recalled a pair of deep grey orbs staring back at her. It was like a beautiful full moon in a starless sky-so tantalizing yet lonely. She immediately opened her eyes and used both of her hands to fiercely scrub her face.

Was she lacking of romance?

She realized she's been dreaming with regards to that matter a lot lately. How could she fantasize a person whom she never even met before?

"Look at your eyes! Didn't you sleep, Manang?" Her little cousin Mary asked, pointing at her dark eye bags. She just smiled and shook her head as a response.

"You should gather up your brother and your cousins now. We will be leaving soon after breakfast." Her mother said while preparing the table, which reminds her they have plans for the beach today.

The sun was still sleeping when she heard the elders preparing for a picnic at the beach. They were cooking food and preparing their necessities.

It seemed like her two months in the province would be jampacked of activities again and by activities, she meant fun. This year she did not wish for a grand celebration for her 18th birthday, but instead she wished for a year full of adventures.

"Ma," she called while supporting her head with her hand. "My head's been aching since this morning."

"It's because you lack sleep," her mother remarked on her complaint without glancing at her as she was busy packing the food. It will be a two-hour drive to the beach. Afraid to have another episode of her motion sickness, she was forced to take a nap.

Oddly, she dreamt nothing. She woke up and realized that the van was already empty and the beach is just outside the window. Her forehead creased as the pain in her head worsened. The noise was so loud she couldn't hear a thing.

Selene screamed trying to hear her own voice and it was driving her crazy! She hurriedly left the van and began walking to wherever her feet lead her to, until she had found herself all alone inside a dense forest.

All of a sudden, she could hear almost nothing she thought she had broken her ears. She tried screaming louder and louder, still she didn't hear a sound. Her tears started to well up when she recognized a small whimpering noise. She looked around and saw a white puppy—a wolf-like puppy—sitting on the ground.

She was drowning in confusion, repeatedly asking herself whether she was in a dream or in her reality. Moreover, her head was still throbbing as hell but she couldn't handle seeing the pup cry out of pain as her. She went towards the pup.

"Are you alright?"

She was taken aback when she finally heard her own voice. A bit relieved, Selene moved closer to the puppy but it ran away. She had no choice but to follow it. The puppy was slow enough as she could still catch up with her staggering feet.

"Wait up!" Selene yelled but it kept on running. "Wait! No!"

She dashed straight to where the puppy had jumped in. It was in a big dark hole just below a creepy large tree. This reminded her about the one on her dreams.

She took a step back, chills ran down her spine. She was about to step further away when she heard the puppy crying and thought it was stuck inside. So, Selene gathered up her courage and walked closer.

While she kneels on the ground, she entered on to the dark whole below the hollow tree. Selene shuddered at the darkness that was slowly enveloping her eyes. It was pitch black, so she decided take out her phone from her pocket to flash a light in it. But before she even did, a sudden force tried to suck her in. She had to let go of her phone to hold herself up, away from the sucking force.

"WHAT THE—!" She exclaimed as the force became stronger and stronger. She held tightly onto the corner of the tree and tried pulling herself out.

"s**t!" She heard the irritating noise again, causing her to loosen her grip on the rough side of the open whole where she was stuck.

Selene screamed until her lungs run out as she fell deeper into the darkness. She tried reaching out her hands but she could only touch nothing.

What is going on?

Why does she keeps on falling?

The darkness seemed to have no end. So she shut her eyes closed, forcing herself to wake up and thinking this was all part of her dream.

This is just a dream! She thought.

Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!

Creating a loud thud, she groaned as her body endured the pain from the long fall. At last she opened her eyes and saw a light, not that far away. Ignoring the pain, Selene crawled towards it and was relieved when she finally got off from all that darkness.

She looked around, examining her surroundings. Instead of the beach, she saw the same graveyard identical to the one in her dreams.

"No..." Selene murmured to herself.

The bright blue sky she had a while ago was replaced by a sky with a larger and blue bright moon that she could always see on the earth. There were no tropical trees, no beach, and no signs of her family yet she knew the place damn well.

"I am still dreaming." She uttered, pulling her hair violently. She bit her lip and flinched from its sting.

"Why can't I wake up?!" Selene cried, slapping her cheeks many times in an attempt to wake herself up before dropping on the ground.

Then, it finally hit her.

She was no longer dreaming.

She was awake the entire time and she still could feel the pain all over her body. It was driving her crazy!

What is really happening?

"Selene."

She heard a familiar voice, the one that would always greet her whenever she visits her dreams. She shifted her eyes to see Ares standing in front of her.

"Why do you look so scared?" He asked as he knelt close to her.

Selene's mind went blank—she couldn't process anything. She couldn't believe her reality became her fantasy while her fantasy turned to reality. It sounded so simple yet too hard to digest.

Ares took note of her flushed face and the injuries in her body. Seeing her sullied appearance, he took off his blazer and wrapped it gently around her shoulders.

"Who did this to you?" He asked in a serious tone. He was too worried for her he couldn't let her see his feelings.

Selene was never like this. She would always smile, even act domineering at times. It was the first time he saw her in this fragile state ever since he first met her.

"Ares."

"Yes?" He lightly responded.

"Ares," she called again. This time, her voice was trembling.

"What's wrong? You left early that night. Why didn't you come back since then?" He asked consecutively. "I'm sorry I acted like that—!"

"Ares," she interrupted. "Y-You are real."

She lifted her shaking hands to touch his pale face. Ares's eyes sharpened as he saw tears stream down her face. He was about to ask what was going on when she spoke first.

"You're not supposed to be real." She shivered as her voice cracked.

Ares first met Selene on this exact same spot, under the same tree. She was hiding in the darkness, crying softly. She was small back then, younger, weak but beautiful ever since.

"Yes, I am real." He said softly to her. He held onto the back of her head and pulled her close to him. He supported her trembling body and didn't say a word.

He just waited for her to calm down.