The Werewolf Lottery

CHAPTER 4: Gifted or Ghosted?

EMBERLYNN'S POV:

This feeling was all so overwhelming. A groaning in my head developed into a loud yawn, and then I heard her voice.

"Hello Emberlynn Willow. I am your wolf soul, Clover. It is very nice to finally talk to you. I know we will do incredible things together!" She announced herself.

It took me a moment to really comprehend what was happening. I stood there blinking and starring aimlessly into the night, much like the expression constantly plastered onto the face of a goldfish. I imagine I probably looked quite funny to anyone witnessing this brain fart of mine.

After a moment or two of this, I finally composed myself. Unsure of how to reply to Clover, I decided to trial and error it and just think as if I was composing a thought and then directing it towards her. To my amazement, it seemed to work!

"Clover! I am so glad to meet you. I can't wait until the full moon for our first shift!" I greeted her giddily in my mind.

"Beautiful Ember, the full moon is a sacred moment for us wolves. Whilst you are correct about the full moon being the first time a new wolf can shift, this won't be a problem for us. We are able to shift whenever we want. However, I sense there is an awful lot going on this evening, so how about tomorrow we head to the lake for our first shift?" Clover replied.

Whilst this new information confused me slightly, Clover seemed to know exactly what she was doing, and I trusted her completely.

"Yes, I think that is a lovely idea, Clover. I cannot wait to see you for the first time!" I squealed in excitement. The initial shock of meeting Clover had just started to die down when she started to excitedly jump about in my head. The only way I can accurately describe how frantically she was jumping is to compare her to a race horse jumping the hurdles. She was clearly very excited about something.

"Girly, calm down! What is the happy wolf dance about? Clue a girl in." I laughed.

"MATE, MATE, MATE IS HERE! HE IS CLOSE BY!" Was all she could manage to get out.

I froze in my spot. Stood with my hands on the balcony rail and my head tilted up looking at the moon, I probably looked calm. Little did anyone know, panic was flooding through my body.

Ever since I was young, I have always dreamed of finding my mate one day. A wolf's mate is their equal in every way. A mate is the person who is a perfect match for you, gifted by the goddess herself. The moon goddess chooses our mates and she never makes mistakes! However, us wolves are not always as smart as she is and so sometimes the goddess will bless us with a second chance or even third chance mate should we make mistakes in our lives or suffer the loss of a mate. The moon goddess really is a gift all of her own. She loves all of her wolves here on earth so much that she does everything in her power to provide us with happy, fulfilled lives. Whoever she had chosen for me was sure to be a force to be reckoned with.

This was it! The moment I had been waiting for.

Turning so slowly it could be compared to a snail's speed, I saw him! His beautiful green eyes were locked on mine, the emerald depths of those beautiful orbs pulling me into their orbit. Everything else in the world seemed to disappear. He was all I could see, and beyond that the rest of the world seemed to be a silent blur. Forcing my gaze to break from his, I let my eyes take in the rest of his body. His body was lightly muscled and his curly brown locks were the most gorgeous gift I could ever have asked for. He was perfect.

Taking slow, deliberate steps towards him, I stopped, possibly only a few inches in front of him, when Clover came to the surface, and through my mouth, she shouted "MINE" for all to hear.

The room fell silent, and everyone turned their attention towards us. I stood in front of this beautiful man, waiting for him to claim me as his own. The seconds ticked by, the silence of the room almost deafening as the swirly feeling in my stomach consumed most all of my attention as the truth became evident.

He doesn't want me.

The swirling in my stomach became too much to handle, and I fled to the bathroom. As I passed by the crowd of people, I could hear their hushed whispers of pity. As if I had any other choice, I chose to ignore them. How embarrassing.

As I entered the bathroom, I threw myself into a cubicle, making sure to lock the door behind me. At that moment, my knees gave way, and I fell to the floor as the tears I had been suppressing started to fall down my cheeks.

Clover's whimpers were echoing around inside my head as we heard the bathroom door open. Two sets of footsteps entered the room, but I already knew who it was. I recognized their smells now that my wolf senses were even more heightened. It was Abby and Harley coming to check on me. Undoubtedly, Winnie probably didn't even notice anything was going on as she always seemed to find herself pre-occupied at the young alpha's table at these events.

"Ember? What happened out there?" Abby asked through the door of the bathroom stall.

"Emmy, is something wrong? All we saw was you running away from the balcony. Did you get your wolf?" Harley asked sympathetically. This knowledge actually eased my anxiety slightly as it was clear no-one truly knew what had happened out there. However, my mate clearly had no interest in me, and that hurt more than I could possibly explain right now, so I decided to lie for now.

"Guys, I'm okay." I managed to stutter out. "Just too much wine I think." I lied. "I will see you both out front soon. I just need a few moments to myself."

I could hear them muttering between themselves, trying to decide whether they should stay or head back to the party. They need not have bothered whispering, since we wolves can hear a pin drop. After a moment, I heard them slowly shuffle their feet towards the door, clearly uncertain if they should leave me alone.

"Okay, girl, but we're just outside when you're feeling better." Abby sounded hesitant to leave, but I heard the door click closed behind them, so I knew they had left.

Wiping away my tears, I sucked in a deep breath and pushed allo my emotions out of my head. Hardening my heart and painting an indifferent expression on my face, I pulled myself up off the floor. As easy as that was to do in private, I knew the facade would crumble if I had to face anyone right now.

I started scanning the bathroom for any other doors that would lead me out of here. Coming up empty, I scrunched my face up in a grimace, realizing the window was my only option.

With one last deep breath, I kicked off my heels and stepped up onto the toilet seat and then onto the window ledge. Sticking my hands and head out of the small window, I began to shimmy and shake until I became wedged in the frame.

Fabulous!