[title subtitle=”fiction Hunter Moon”]1st Place Teen Winner[/title]
I’m fifteen years old and attend Greenwood High School in Arkansas, as a sophomore. I started writing when I was ten, and my passion for writing has grown so much over these past five years. My inspiration for writing this short story was that I love writing about supernatural things (vampires, werewolves, witches, etc.). I also love reading about supernatural characters and human characters falling in love with each other.
— Hunter Moon
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I fell for Lily three months ago when I saw her at American Eagle, working the checkout counter. Her gorgeous green eyes pulled me into a trance that I didn’t want out of. But there was one thing that she couldn’t know about me: I’m a werewolf.
My name is Chance Sadler. I’m twenty-one years of age and I live in a small house near my pack members, in case anything bad happens and we need one another. I have short red hair (yes, I’m a ginger) with blue eyes that look like the ocean, a medium sized nose, a pinch of freckles on my face, and I have perfect teeth. Being a werewolf has its advantages, like being muscled and never gaining weight unless it’s muscle weight. I go to college with my pack members, except for Ethan – he’s a senior in high school. I know I keep referring to it as my pack and I really shouldn’t. I’m not the Alpha nor am I the Beta. I’m just a pack member, so I’ll start calling it The Pack.
We’re basically, I guess you could say, The Hot Boys on Campus. I’m the captain of our baseball team, Tustin is the captain of our lacrosse team, Ronny and Tim (our Beta) are captains of our football team, Toni is one of the captains of our basketball team, and our Alpha, Rich, is captain of our hockey team.
I closed my eyes as my annoying college algebra professor went on and on about the basics. I looked down at my phone as Rich sent all of us a message about our hunting trip tomorrow. “Yo, Alpha,” Ethan texted back, “I have tons of homework in calculus that’s due Monday.” I laughed at Ethan’s text and, hiding my phone from my professor, texted back, “E-man, we’ll help you with it.”
After the bell rang I went straight to my car and drove to my redbrick – four window – small walkway – no garage – house and pulled into my driveway and got out. Lily was coming over that night and I was so excited. We weren’t together yet but I would be asking her to be my girlfriend during dinner. I walked inside and threw my backpack near the door and went into my kitchen to clean and start dinner (A.K.A. order Chinese food).
After I cleaned and dinner had been delivered and was in the oven staying warm, I went into my room and threw a pair of white skinny jeans on and a button up, short sleeve red-and-white plaid shirt and red Vans. I brushed my hair and waited for Lily. I got some chick flicks out and put them on the coffee table.
“Hello? Chance?” she called as she walked in. She was dressed in short polka-dot denim shorts and a loosely fitted purple tank top with a pair of purple Toms. Her long red hair was pulled back in a fishtail.
“Hello, beautiful, how are you?” I asked as I gave her cheek a kiss.
She swatted at my chest, “I’ve been tons better, um, we need to talk.”
I walked into the kitchen as she said that and got the Chinese food out of the oven and took it into the living room. “About what, my dear?” I asked as I put in My Sister’s Keeper (her favorite movie) and sat beside her on the couch.
She took my hands in hers, “You know how I’ve been getting sick a lot lately?”
“Yes.”
“And you know how my hair has been slowly falling out?”
“Yes.”
“I found out today that I have cancer. Stage four cancer. I only have a week or so to live without radiation.”
“Why aren’t you doing radiation? You need to do that to be with me!”
“I want to be with God instead of being here and being sick all the time.”
That’s when I started crying. We hugged tight and cried together. I couldn’t lose her. I whispered into her ear, “Be mine?” She sniffled and slightly laughed then kissed me softly, letting our pain come through our kiss, “Yes,” she said.
I held her close as we ate Chinese and watched chick flicks. I could always change her into a werewolf, if she would only agree. I kissed her head and smiled as she kissed my arm. I loved her so much that even if she died my heart would always belong to her.
Losing her will kill me, I thought.
About a week later, Lily and I spent the whole day with The Pack. She was getting worse and she barely ate because everything made her sick. Her hair was completely gone, and she had lost so much weight you could tell she was dying. I’d broken down and told her what I am, and I even showed myself in wolf form. She’d met The Pack and The Pack had fallen in love with her. Rich, our Alpha, even gave me permission to change her into a werewolf, if she would only agree.
“She refuses to be changed. She said God needs her for something,” I told Rich, after pleading with Lily. I put my head in my hands.
“Tonight she will pass on, do you smell it?” Rich asked. I nodded as my eyes got watery, “Yes.” Rich squeezed my shoulder and nodded at Lily. “Take her to the meadow and let her pass in your arms.”
I held her close as we watched the stars, her oxygen tank close by her side. I made sure we were both covered up as she took the oxygen nose piece out. “Babe, please put that back in,” I begged.
“I want to smell the flowers before I go.”
“I love you, Lily, I love you so much.”
“I love you so much too, Chance. I will always love you. No matter where I go. You will always have my heart.”
“And you will always have my heart.”
She put her hand on my cheek as the tears poured down it. “Let me change you, Lily. You can be like me and The Pack. You will be able to stay here with me.”
Her breathing had become slower. She was leaving the planet, “Just kiss me and let me move on,” she said.
I held her and kissed her. After a few minutes, she stopped breathing and passed on. I held her body close and screamed into her chest.
After months of Lily being gone I finally visited her grave. The shape of the gravestone was an angel, just like her. “Lily Brandy Gorges, 12-8-1994 to 9-1-2013,” it read. “Beloved friend, daughter, and girlfriend.” I put a fake red rose in the cement vase that was connected to her grave and smiled, “When that rose dies, my love will be gone. Until then I will always love you. You are my mate forever and always. I never looked at a girl like I looked at you. I’m sorry I haven’t visited sooner. I haven’t had the guts. I love you,” I said, and started to cry.
Just then the wind picked up and blew across my face, and just as suddenly stopped. I laughed because I knew that was probably Lily tugging at me, “Happy birthday, Lily. I love you.”
With that I walked away, as the past flew into my head, filled with thoughts of me and Lily and her kisses. I’ll love that crazy, gorgeous girl always and forever.
