The Wolf's Song

The Mysterious Stranger

Diana

I couldn’t believe I just told him that. I chided myself. And he was on his way here. For what, talk about it? That probably wasn’t the best way to express my feelings, but at least it was a step better than sending a text. Though, despite the panic of having to face him, I felt so much better telling him.

“Will it change anything?” I had no idea, but now it was in his hands, as he now knew where I stood, officially. I hoped my kisses had counted as evidence of this declaration, but one never knew, do they?

I glanced down at my phone and checked the time. “How long will it take him to get here? I can’t remember how long it usually takes us to return to town.”

I jumped when my phone went off. It was Maya, she said she was out front and had water for me. My mouth salivated at the thought, the liquor still affecting me despite already having a cup. I looked around the alley and found a path to the front. After skirting past a couple that definitely needed a room, I found her leaning against a pole, smoke coming from her mouth.

“You smoke?” I asked.

“Huh, oh no. I just pretended,” She laughed, handing me the cup. “Where did you go?”

“I needed some fresh air. I was getting lightheaded,” I answered, but I could tell she knew there was more to the story than that. “And I confessed, I think, he’s coming here,” I added.

“Here? How? You don’t even know where we are. How will he know?”

“He knows, trust me,” I raised my brows, giving her the don’t ask look.

“Well, that’s either very creepy or incredibly sexy. I don’t know which,” she chuckled. Neither did I, but it didn’t affect the joy and excitement that coursed through me at the thought of his arrival.

The song ended and another began, the drum solo reaching us through the club walls. Maya rolled her head toward me and smirked.

“What, not going to tell me you could do this too?” she teased.

I laughed but started looking around on the floor for makeshift drumsticks. I found two pens and grabbed them; I returned to the pole and listened for a bit. The rhythm entered my head and I started the count off, finding the beat as easily as breathing. I began tapping the pole in tune with the soloist, anticipating the beats and rest. It was not perfect, as he had a snare, multiple toms, and crash cymbals, but there was no denying they matched. Her cheering threw me off and I ended up laughing and tossing the pens, wiping my hands.

“Oh my god, you weren’t kidding. That was amazing and with only pens, I can’t imagine what you'd do with a whole set,” she gawked at me.

“I’m more of a violinist, but the drums were fun. My neighbor hated them.” I laughed. She joined in and then said she was ready for another drink. I stayed behind and told her I would catch up with her soon.

I checked my phone again and groaned, that was only five minutes.

“That was impressive,” I turned as an imposing silver-haired man swallowed up my space, unintentional and still somehow purposeful. “Are there any special classes for pen drumming? Think I could be accepted with my air guitar?” He smiled as he thumbed the air, exaggerating the motions.

My chuckle was forced as the air shifted at his arrival. I eyed him as he lighted up a smoke, his full lips pulling a deep drag. He exhaled, making smoke rings, and caught my eye, his cocky smile exposing his pearly whites, his emerald eyes trying to dominate me.

I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze before clearing my throat and sending him what he had been giving me. Using his blatant beauty to distract me from how troublesome his aura felt, it made my skin crawl. Admitting he was prettier than I was hard to swallow, but he didn’t hold a candle to Michael and if I could glare into those blue eyes, those green ones wouldn’t overpower me either.

Sensing what I was doing, he laughed, his Adam’s apple going into overdrive. He took another drag and flicked the rest, wasting it.

“Touché,” he smirked. “So, what brings you south Bamberg, the forgotten city of Germany?” His look intensified, watching me closely.

I nodded to the club. “Girl’s night out,” I answered.

“American I see,” he pointed out. “Glad to see Germany has been treating you well,” he said in German and smirked at me. His words didn’t match his expression, almost like he knew what I had been through.

“It has, the time of my life,” I replied in perfect German as well, gaining a satisfied smile from him.

“Musically inclined, linguist--what other talents do you possess?” he asked, flashing that smile at me again.

I started to answer when I felt a familiar sensation coming from him and one trying to escape me. On his end, his attraction to me was apparent. I had been standing there naked this whole time, I could see it in his eyes and on my end. I felt myself wanting to answer his question. I felt that before, with Michael. Though opposites, they were similar in that when they asked a question, they expected an answer.

“Anything you can do; I can do better,” I resisted his call for my compliance. He scoffed and licked his lips, then held his hands up in mock defense and stammered back.

“Oh, ho ho, sounds like a challenge.” Then his demeanor returned and I was once again prey and he was skillfully hunting me. He raked his medium-length silver hair and caught my eyes, proving his words true as his gaze dared me to challenge him back. He flicked his head toward the club. “First one to get a stranger to buy drinks reveals a secret?” he asked, testing me, but it felt like he was taunting me instead.

I couldn’t figure out what he wanted, nor could I dismiss him, however. I chuckled harshly but didn’t get a chance to respond as he added to his challenge.

“Come on, what do you have to lose? Except for maybe pride?” He smiled, his arrogance showing.

“I have a drink,” I said, holding my water, hoping he couldn’t smell the lack of alcohol. “And my boyfriend wouldn’t like it,” I added.

Finally, his humor faltered, as I noticed his lips twitch in a snarl briefly. He quickly shrugged it off, then smiled back firmly in place again.

“I can take the hint,” he clicked his tongue, looking me up and down. He pulled out another cigarette and placed it on his ear. He worked his back and started to pass me. He paused next to me and inhaled.

“Freesias?” he caught my eye. “My favorite.” His slow smile came off as a warning, and his laughter as he departed was a promise to enjoy whatever that warning was meant for.

My heart throbbed in my chest, but I couldn’t pinpoint the cause. He stopped and talked with the bouncer, his mannerism personable while maintaining a layer of deceit. He was danger rolled in a pretty package. He must have felt me looking as he glanced back at me and winked.

I turned from him but couldn’t flee into the club without passing him, risking another jarring encounter. I pulled my phone out and checked the time again. It was unrealistic to think Michael could reach me in ten minutes; still, knowing the watched pot didn’t boil, I couldn’t help but tap my phone to keep the clock from fading.

He must know I needed him; he always knew and if there was ever a time I needed an overprotective boyfriend, now fitted the bill. I glanced back quickly to check the stranger’s location. He nodded his head at me, having been looking while my back was turned.

He commanded my gaze, holding me frozen as he assessed me a final time before turning to walk down the street, whistling a tune. Who the hell was that?