The Luna's Curse

CAROLINE'S POV The first thing I noticed when I gained consciousness was the smell. Antiseptic. Cold. Sharp. Suffocating. Different voices swam around me, all sounding anxious. “…she’s not responding—” “This makes no medical sense—” “What animal could have bitten her like this_” “Her vitals should be crashing, not stabilizing—” Medical sense? Vitals? Where am I? I forced my eyes open. Bright white lights welcomed itself into my skull. People on scrubs and hairnets hovered over me like I was some kind of experiment gone wrong. Machines beeped in uneven rhythms beside the narrow clinic bed. My body felt wrong. Not sick. Wrong. Just so wrong I could taste it Every sound was too loud. I could hear the nervous tapping of a nurse’s shoe against the floor across the room. I could hear someone whispering outside the door. I could hear a heartbeat that wasn’t mine. My throat burned like I had swallowed fire. They still didn't know I was awake. “Why does this animal bite look different?”. I heard the nurse ask the doctor. I knew why. But I couldn’t say it. Because if I did, I would be expelled from this college. Or worse—called insane. I had been bitten. By a wolf…not just any wolf, something I thought only existed in my fantasy books. In the forbidden forest. And now, I could feel something inside me trying to wake up. A deep ache pulsed through my bones, stretching, grinding, as if my skeleton didn’t quite fit under my skin anymore. “Miss Forbes,” one of the doctors said, coming to stand near me. “Oh you're awake, thank goodness. Oh boy, he's hot. “ Can you hear me?” He asked me when I didn't respond immediately. I knew I was crazy, but to be thinking of a hot doctor at this point?. I swallowed. My voice came out hoarse. “I’m fine.” I'm not. He exchanged a look with the nurse. “You’re not fine. Your body is rejecting every medication we administer. Your bloodwork is abnormal in ways I can’t explain.” Oh well, no surprise there, I assure you, because you’re not treating something medicine has ever seen, I thought. Because antibiotics don’t cure werewolf bites… at least not in my fantasy books and movies. “You might have to tell us what exactly happened at that forest dear”. Hot Doctor said. The memory of few hours ago slammed into me. “Caroline, this is crazy,” Gabriella, my best friend and roommate had said, standing at the edge of the forest with me, her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Eyes wide with fear. The trees loomed above us like silent judges. They were probably shaking their heads in pity. “My mom would not just leave,” I insisted. “The night before she disappeared, I heard her talking to a man. They were arguing. About this forest.” Gabriella sighed. “Or you’re grieving. You’re connecting dots that aren’t there, let's stop this insanity and go back please.” But then i felt it. A pull. More like a presence. Like something was waiting. Could it be mother?. The thought had me stepping into the trees, Gabriella hot on my trail. “Wait!”. She had called, but I couldn't, if this was mother, I definitely had to see her. Just then, a voice started singing. I froze. “Can you hear that?” I whispered. Gabby frowned. “Probably an animal.” “No, someone is singing” “CAROLINE FORBES,WHAT DO YOU MEAN…” “Shiiii Gab” The voice..voices rather, singing were getting closer at this point. Deeper. Next thing I knew white fog from no where came at us, with the singing voices getting too close for comfort. My heart slammed against my ribs. “Run,” I said. We took off down the trail. I could hear Gabby’s breathing ahead of me—fast, panicked— Then nothing. “Gabby?” I skidded to a stop, spinning around. “Gabby!” I shouted. The forest didn’t answer. She was gone. That was before I saw and felt the bite of something on my neck.. something that looked like..like a wolf. “Miss Forbes?...Caroline!”. The doctor’s voice pulled me back to the present. “I just need rest,” I forced out. “Please. I’ll come back tomorrow.” They argued. I insisted. Eventually, exhaustion won over suspicion, and they let me go—with strict instructions to return the following morning. I walked back to my dorm on shaky legs. Gabriella never came out of that forest. That thought hollowed me out. When I pushed open my dorm door, I stopped dead. There was a man standing by my window. Tall. Broad-shouldered. Dark hair. The moonlight framed him like something out of a nightmare. My heart pounded violently. “Who are you?” I demanded. “How did you get in here?”. Where was Gabby's pepper spray when you needed it?. He turned slowly. And I recognized his eyes. Golden. My stomach dropped. “You,” I dared to accuse. “Yes.” No denial. No shame. “You bit me.” “I did.” Rage surged through me, drowning out the fear. “Are you insane? Do you have any idea what you’ve done to me?” “I saved you,” he said calmly. “By attacking me?” “Touche.” I shook my head. “Get out.” He stepped closer instead. “The transformation has already begun. You can feel it.” I hated that he was right. My skin felt too tight. My senses too sharp. My pulse too strong. “There’s a way to control it,” he continued. “But you have to come with me.” “Absolutely not!,” I snapped. “My friend is still in that forest, even if she weren't, I don't trust you.” I honestly didn't know where this courage coming from. A flicker of something unreadable crossed his face. “She is not your priority right now.” The way he said it made ice spread through my chest. “What does that mean?” I demanded. But before he could answer, pain ripped through me. I screamed. It felt like my bones were splitting apart. Like something inside me was clawing its way out. My knees buckled, and darkness swallowed everything. *******