Whispers in the Steam.
1062 Words
The hallways were dark and empty.
Rough stone walls, untouched by time cold, silent witnesses of a past long forgotten.
The Academy was cruel. Merciless.
A constant reminder of who we were… or rather, who we were meant to become.
Mira and I were the only women here.
Mira came by choice the only child of a Beta in her pack. A daughter, not a son.
She didn't really have much of a choice.
Unfortunately, the others never understood that… or didn't want to.
Three years of training. Fighting.
Three years of becoming something more. Something better.
The males understood that.
They knew why they were here.
But we? We were a mistake. An anomaly that, luckily for them, would disappear in less than two years.
Tonight, we finally made it to the western wing.
The baths. The male baths, of course.
Over the years, we’d formed an unspoken truce if we stayed out of their way, if we stayed invisible, we wouldn’t have problems.
But that rule only applied here. On the battlefield, nothing was off limits.
Still, it didn’t matter now. We were here.
In the middle of the night, while everyone else was asleep.
Behind the heavy wooden doors, another world awaited us.
Roman-style baths, lit by flickering torches on stone walls. In the corner, glowing coals radiated heat, ready to fill the air with thick, steamy fog heavy with eucalyptus and sea salt.
Thin mist floated above the pools, and my body reacted instantly.
Aching muscles tensed with anticipation, desperate for relief.
Mira shoved me gently through the doorway.
“Come on. We don’t have all night.”
Then she locked the door behind us just in case.
We stripped quickly and, laughing like girls again, dove into the steaming water.
For a while, we stayed quiet, letting the warmth soak into our battered bodies.
After so many fights, so many bruises… we should have been used to it by now.
But each bruise healed slower than the last. Maybe because new ones were always waiting to take their place.
"Mira? Why are you still awake?" I asked softly.
A blush crept into her cheeks as she stared at the bubbles on the surface.
She didn’t need to answer. I already knew.
"Oh Mira," I sighed. "You know this won’t end well."
“I know, I know,” she said, glancing at me. “But what else am I supposed to do? It’s a secret no one back home knows. And my mate has to love me as I am. And I…”
She grinned. “I’m adventurous.”
I stared at her, shocked and then burst into laughter.
"Gods, I love you, Mira. I just don’t want you getting your heart broken.”
“So, what did he promise you this time?”
Mira smirked.
“Coffee. Real latte. Not that bitter black poison they serve us every morning.”
“I knew this place would be tough,” she said more quietly, “but I didn’t expect to miss civilization so much.
I don’t know what’s going on at home… how my parents are.
The first year, I told them not to write. Only for holidays. I’m not heartless… but it made things easier.
Trying to adjust here… while reading letters from Mom every day, pretending she’s okay, even though I could see her tears dried on the paper…
Some nights, I cried the whole night.
And then I met Kaden.
He wasn’t cruel. He didn’t make fun of me for being here.
At first, it was just little dares:
‘I bet you won’t catch that frog.’
‘I bet you can’t climb that tree.’
We found a distraction in each other.
Eventually, we found better ways to pass the time.
We’re just friends. At least for now.
Sex… it’s how we stay sane. Otherwise, we’d both lose our minds.
We talk sometimes about who we hope our mates are, what we want in a partner.”
She shot me a mischievous look.
And before I could blink splash. Water was everywhere.
As I flailed, Mira laughed.
“Come on, Savanah. I can’t be terrified of intimacy with my future mate, can I?
Poor guy… wait ‘til I tell him what cruel thoughts his sister-in-law had about him.”
We started splashing each other like children. Laughing.
Eventually, we just floated there, breathless.
The water was cooling.
As we rinsed our hair with rosemary soap, Mira suddenly asked, “So… the dream?”
I hesitated.
“I don’t know what to tell you.
It’s always the same.
I’m running through the woods.
I don’t know what I’m running from. Or where I’m going.
But I know that voice.
The one screaming at me to run…”
I swallowed. “I know it. But I don’t know how.”
“I’m always afraid.
I wake up full of fear like something’s chasing me.
But I never know what it is.
How can I fight something I don’t even understand?”
“And Dean… he still writes to me.
But since I got here, I haven’t written back. Not once.
Not because I don’t want to.
I miss him.
I just… I thought he’d stop writing. That he’d forget about me.”
Mira frowned.
“Do you want him to forget you?”
“No.
Of course not.
But it’s better this way.
For him. For both of us.
He has to forget.”
Mira tilted her head.
“I don’t get it, Savanah.
You two were best friends.
What happened? What changed? Why are you here?”
I didn’t answer.
“Savanah,” she said gently, “I’m your friend.
You can tell me anything.”
I looked down.
“Mira… I… I can’t.
I promise I’ll tell you everything. One day.
Just not yet.
It’s still too fresh. Too painful.
And these dreams… I’m confused.
How can I explain something I don’t even understand myself?”
Mira leaned over and hugged me.
“I know. I’m sorry.
You’re like a sister to me, Savanah.
Whatever happens… I’ll be by your side.”
I smiled at her through the mist.
“And I’ll be by yours.”
Later, I collapsed back onto my bed, letting the night wrap around me like a blanket.
This time, I fell asleep without dreams.
Just for a few hours.
- Writer
