Little One

Cursed

Five years later...

"Wake up, Amara!"

Amara shot up in her bed with bloodshot eyes trying to come into focus. She shook her head and jerked it to look at Janine.

"What? What's going on?" Amara asked hurriedly.

"You overslept! We need to get to school!" Janine exclaimed.

"Oh crap!"

Amara hurled herself out of bed and ran to her dresser to pull out clothes. Janine giggled at her as Amara yanked out a pair of blue jeans. She was about to pull out of her pajama bottoms when she glared at Janine.

"Do you mind?!" she shouted.

Janine laughed loudly and exited the room, closing the door behind her. Amara hurriedly took her pajamas off, changed underwear, put on a bra and slipped up her jeans, bouncing on one foot to hurry it up. Clothes flew about as she searched for a proper shirt.

"Aha!" she said as she grabbed a black Metallica shirt and put it on.

She ran to her bathroom and brushed her teeth, then she worked on her hair. She didn't have time to straighten it from its wavy locks today so a simple brushing would have to do. Running from the bathroom, she grabbed socks and put them on.

"Amara, come on!" Janine shouted from behind the door.

"I'm going as fast as I can, Janine!" Amara yelled viciously, hopping on one foot to pull a sock on.

She managed to get it on then she put on the other sock before grabbing her blue and white tennis shoes and slipping them on. Amara swiped her phone from the nightstand, pocketed it, grabbed her AC/DC backpack and hoisted it on her shoulder. She burst through the door and ran with Janine down the stairs.

"Girls, don't you need breakfast?" Sonya shouted from the kitchen.

"Nope! We're too late for breakfast!" Janine shouted.

"What? Hell no! I require sustenance!" Amara laughed as she ran to the kitchen. "I'll just grab something simple!"

"Amara, we're late enough as it is!" Janine scolded.

Amara quickly ravaged through the cupboards, grabbed a chocolate chip granola bar, thought for a second, grabbed two more, kissed Sonya on the cheek and ran out of the kitchen.

"Okay, let's go!" Amara exclaimed happily.

The girls rushed to grab their coats and barged out of the house only to bump into Benjamin. Amara immediately took a step back from him.

"Great, just what I need," she thought.

"What's your hurry?" the 6'3" boy asked them both.

"We're gonna be late for school!" Janine screeched.

"I can drive you," Benjamin offered with a casual smile.

Amara lifted her gaze and their eyes met. Benjamin was a tall, muscular hunk of a werewolf. His hair was short and blonde in a crew cut and his eyes were violet, just like his mother. Today, he was in a black leather jacket, a tight black t-shirt and straight blue jeans with tan work boots adoring his feet. Amara thought he was...quite the specimen, but she didn't waste time on a crush. The boy was a complete manwhore. He'd snuck countless girls into their home at night to have s*x with and some of them weren't exactly quiet about it, either.

Besides that, her and Benjamin didn't really get along. All because she had a black wolf. He didn't like having a black wolf in the pack and he made sure Amara knew it, but she bounced right back and let him know she didn't like an asshole like him in the pack.

However, for the last couple of weeks, he'd really toned down on the hate and he just blatantly ignored her. But now...now he was studying her, eyeing her like she was actually interesting to look at.

And it made her extremely uncomfortable.

"No thanks," Amara said, brushing past him. "Janine, let's go."

Amara heard a growl behind her and she quickened her pace to Janine's car. Janine followed but was giggling the whole way. Amara didn't know what the hell was so funny.

"Amara, c'mon. Let me drive you," Benjamin called after her.

"I'd rather get drop kicked into a pool of acid than to have you drive me around in your stupid car!" Amara snapped loudly.

"Well fine then!" he yelled.

Janine and Amara got into the car and drove off. Amara scowled as they drove out of the housing area and onto the main road.

"What the hell was that all about?" Janine asked.

"I have no friggin idea," Amara huffed. "He's been acting strange these last couple of weeks."

"Yeah, I noticed." Janine suddenly gasped and looked at her. "Maybe he likes you!"

Amara laughed and started chomping down on a granola bar. "Oh, don't make me puke! I'm eating!"

Janine cackled loudly and looked back at the road. "Oh come on! That's gotta be it! He was ogling you like you were candy!"

"He was not!"

"Was so!" Janine guffawed.

Amara took another bite of her granola bar. "Whatever, can we just not talk about it anymore?"

"Oh fine, party pooper." Janine was quiet for a few moments before speaking up again. "Speaking of parties, are you ready for your birthday this weekend?"

"Meh. Maybe."

"You'd think you'd be more excited considering you're gonna turn eighteen," Janine observed. "It's when you get to find-"

Amara rolled her eyes. "Yeah, find my mate and blah blah blah."

"What, you don't want to kiss a boy?" Janine teased.

"It's not that. I just find the whole thing...constricting."

"You won't think that when it happens."

"That's easy for you to say. You already found yours."

"Yes, and it was the happiest moment of my life."

Amara couldn't help but do another eye roll. By the time they reached the school, Amara had consumed all three granola bars and she was still hungry. They got out of the car and Janine immediately ran over to see her mate, Logan Hughes. Another one of Amara's bullies, she avoided him like the plague. That didn't do much help, though.

Amara quickly went into the school to her locker. It wasn't hard to miss considering "CURSED" was written on it. She opened it, grabbed some stuff and shut it before heading off to math class. It was the only class she truly dreaded with every fiber of her being. Why?

Because not only was this the class she was bullied the most, the teacher also hated her and pretty much allowed it.

As she walked in, Mrs. Johnson, the short brunette of a woman, sneered at Amara. Amara ignored her and went to her seat. Someone stuck out their foot and she almost tripped but she caught herself and sent the kid a glare.

"Really? It's too early for that crap," Amara said before sitting down.

"Oh it's never too early for me, Cursed," the boy said.

Amara flipped him the bird and the school bell rang. Mrs. Johnson asked for everyone's homework assignments and Amara passed hers up. Unfortunately, one of the kids ripped Amara's sheet in half.

"Oops," the girl mocked.

Amara did a face palm but the teacher grabbed the ripped pieces anyway and put them with the rest of the papers. She then immediately started writing about their next lesson on the chalkboard.

The class surprisingly went by fast and before Amara knew it, the bell rang. Everyone got out of their seats and went for the door.

"Miss Jenson," the teacher said. "A word?"

"Crap," Amara thought.

Amara walked to Mrs. Johnson's desk. "Yes, Mrs. Johnson?"

"I've noticed lately that you've been making a lot of mistakes with your homework. Are you not able to follow the lesson?"

Amara frowned and lowered her head. "No, I'm able to. I've just...been distracted lately, I guess."

"Have you not been sleeping well? You look tired."

Amara blinked. Since when was Mrs. Johnson concerned about her well being?

"I suppose I have had trouble sleeping lately, yeah."

"The anniversary of your old pack's demise was this past weekend, yes?"

Amara's jaw clenched at the mention of it but then she quickly relaxed. "...Yes."

"I thought so." Mrs. Johnson adjusted herself in her seat. "Well, if I was responsible for something like that, I'd have a hard time sleeping too."

Amara's eye twitched and she let out a low growl. "Excuse me?"

"Well, you're a black wolf. You're cursed. Obviously that had something to do with them all being slaughtered."

"Oh, that b***h," Dakota said. "I'll tear her apart!"

Amara had to fight back her wolf from coming out as well as hot tears. "...Is there anything else, Mrs. Johnson?"

Mrs. Johnson gave her a fake, toothy smile. "That'll be all, Miss Jenson. You may go."

Amara turned on her heel and stormed out of the classroom. She suddenly didn't feel so well. She immediately ran to the front doors and burst through them with tears in her eyes. She didn't want to be in school for the rest of the day. Amara needed to go for a run and go home.

When she reached the forest, she changed out of her clothes and shoes, put them in her back pack and shifted into her black wolf. Amara was a pretty large wolf, considering her Alpha blood. She picked up the back pack in her mouth and went running through the woods.

"Amara, it wasn't our fault," Dakota said. "We need to go back to school."

Amara ignored Dakota and kept running. She ran for miles until she reached the front steps of her house. As she was about to shift, the door opened to reveal Gabriel and he looked down at her with a surprised look.

"Amara? What are you doing home?" he asked.

Amara, in her wolf form, bolted past him and went running up the stairs, ignoring Gabriel as he called out for her. She ran to her open room and shut the door with her nose. Amara jumped on the bed and whined, covering her face with her paws.

"Amara?" Gabriel said, slowly opening her door. "What's wrong?"

Amara whimpered and whined, not wanting to shift just now. She felt the bed dip.

"Amara, what happened?"

She didn't want to talk to anyone. She felt him stroke her fur and she instantly relaxed.

"Amara, talk to me."

Amara got up and buried herself underneath the blankets, making Gabriel laugh a little. Amara shifted back into her human form and poked her head out from underneath the covers, frowning up at the Alpha.

"Don't laugh at me," she said, tears filling her emerald eyes again.

Gabriel frowned as he looked down at her. "Sorry." He reached out for her and stroked her head. "Tell me what happened."

Amara sighed and wiped her eyes. "Mrs. Johnson. She blamed me for my old pack's death because I'm cursed."

Gabriel's eyes filled with anger. "She said that to you?"

"Yeah."

Gabriel growled and narrowed his eyes. "Oh, she and I are going to have words."

"Well, I would hope so. I hate that woman so much and she's always had it out for me."

Gabriel bent down and kissed Amara's forehead. "Don't you worry. I'm gonna have that woman fired."

Amara giggled. "I'd love to see that."

"Would you? Well, get dressed and let's go back to the school so we can get her fired."

"Wait, seriously? You would do that?" Amara asked with raised eyebrows.

"Of course. No one messes with my kid," Gabriel replied with a smile before getting up. "I'll let you get dressed."

When he left the room, Amara got up and grabbed her clothes from her back pack. Once dressed, she raced down the hall and stairs with a newfound pep in her step. Gabriel was waiting for her at the front door.

"Alright, let's get this show on the road," he remarked.

The two left the house and went towards Gabriel's car, then they got in and drove off.

X===================X

"I do apologize for her actions, Alpha Forrester, but we can't just fire her. She's one of our best teachers," Principal Anderson explained fearfully.

Alpha Gabriel leaned across the desk with fury in his sapphire eyes. "Yes you can. And you will because I said so. What she said to Amara is inexcusable!" he growled. "As your Alpha, I demand her removal!"

Amara shifted in her seat. While she was pleased that she would no longer have to deal with Mrs. Johnson, she also felt a little bad for her. A little. And seeing Gabriel's anger was never pretty.

Principal Anderson sighed. "Yes, Alpha."

"Good," Gabriel said. "Now call her in here so we can get this done."

"N-Now?"

"Yes! Now!"

Anderson frowned and picked up the desk phone, dialing in Mrs. Johnson's number. Amara bit her lip and looked up at Gabriel who gave her a wink.

"Mrs. Johnson? I need to see you in my office immediately," Anderson said.

Amara gulped and lowered her head. She felt a hand on her shoulder as the principal hung up the phone. After a few minutes there was a knock on the door.

"Come in," Anderson said.

The door opened and Mrs. Johnson walked in. "Yes, Mr. Anderson?" Gabriel turned around to face her and she blanched. "Oh, hello Alpha Forrester," she said with a head bow.

Gabriel growled at her and turned his back to her. Amara watched Mrs. Johnson fearfully walk up to the desk. She must've known she was in trouble.

"Mrs. Johnson," Anderson said, clearing his throat. "I'm afraid we're gonna have to let you go."

Mrs. Johnson gasped. "W-What? Why?"

Amara rolled her eyes. "She's seriously asking that?" she thought.

"Because of your words to Miss Jenson this morning," Anderson explained. "What you said was highly inappropriate."

Mrs. Johnson glared down at Amara. "You little-"

Gabriel took a step towards Johnson with a low growl, as if daring her to finish that sentence. "Be careful what you say next, Mrs. Johnson, or I'll have you exiled as well."

Amara's eyes widened at Gabriel's words. She didn't think he would go that far. Would he?

Mrs. Johnson bowed her head in submission. "Yes, Alpha."

"I expect you to have your desk cleared out by the end of the day, Mrs. Johnson. See to it now," Anderson said.

Mrs. Johnson gave Amara a small glare before leaving the office. Amara let out the breath she was holding in and gave Gabriel a small grin.

"Well, now that that's over...Amara, I apologize for what Mrs. Johnson said to you," Anderson stated.

Amara shrugged. "No need. It's not your fault she said it."

Anderson nodded. "I appreciate your understanding."

Amara and Gabriel left after excusing themselves and Amara sighed in content. She was finally going to be rid of that witch of a math teacher.

"We're you really going to exile her, Gabriel?" she asked him.

"If she said anything else bad, then yes. Like I said," Gabriel started, throwing an arm around her as they walked to the front doors. "Nobody messes with my kid."

"Thank you," she said meekly.

"You're welcome. Now, let's go home."

"You're gonna let me stay home?"

"Sure. You had a rough morning and I don't want you around that ugly little mutt while she's stewing."

Amara cackled loudly and kissed Gabriel's cheek. The two got into the car and left the parking lot.