Marked by my vacation fling

CHAPTER 6

As I walked through the forest, I saw speckles of daylight shining through the trees when I heard something behind me. I turned around and was faced with a massive dark brown wolf. It was the biggest wolf I had ever seen, but for some reason, I didn’t feel scared. Surprisingly calm, I watched as it began to walk closer to me. Its eyes were a beautiful golden color, and I slowly reached out my hand to pat its fur.

The wolf stood very still in front of me, allowing me to stroke it. But suddenly, it let out a ferocious growl and lunged at me.

**********

I woke up suddenly in a pool of sweat, my heart racing and my hands shaking.

It was just a dream. It was just a dream.

But it felt so real. I still felt its fur against my hand as I got up from the floor of the cabin, only to find the door wide open.

I looked around at my belongings to ensure everything was still there, but I was really confused about who had come in without waking me.

They weren’t here now, so why would they have entered last night? Was this some prank that Macy pulled on me? It was possible she had followed me from the library. I wouldn’t be surprised if she wanted to get back at me, but if her family was threatened, she would have to do it discreetly.

I checked all the usual things—ensuring they hadn’t cut my hair or shaved my eyebrows or anything like that. Everything seemed normal.

I walked slowly toward the door, grabbed the side of it, and opened it wide.

I walked onto the patio of the cabin, and it was empty. When I stepped back inside, I noticed the sun shining in just the right direction onto the dusty floor. That’s when I saw the massive paw print in the dust.

There were a couple of paw prints, definitely from wolves, and I followed them to where I had been sleeping. I leaned down to where the prints stopped and realized it looked like something had stood there, watching me sleep.

I reached down and picked up some dark brown fur from the floor, the same color as the wolf in my dream. “What the hell is happening to me?” I asked myself.

I then felt my face and realized I was unusually hot, like I had a fever. But I couldn’t afford to get sick right now; I had too much to do.

So I gathered all my things and headed to campus, where I went to the locker room and took a shower. After getting ready for the day, I sat outside in the quad, reviewing my schoolwork from the night before.

I heard yelling in the distance, so I looked up and saw Adam arguing with another guy I recognized from the party. The other guy stormed off, and Adam turned around, locking his eyes on me.

That's when I noticed the same girl from yesterday run up to him, hugging and kissing him.

Does he have a girlfriend? Is that why she's so angry about me?

I can't say I blame her.

Are all men the same? I never thought I would find myself in the role of the other woman. I never planned for this.

I tried to focus on my books, but it was becoming increasingly difficult.

When it was time for class, I entered the room and took the same seat I had the other day. To my surprise, Colton came in and sat down next to me.

“How’s it going?” he asked.

“Not bad. How’s the snooping going?” I replied.

“Pretty poorly. I haven’t found anyone as pretty as you yet,” he said. I just scoffed at him.

“That’s a pretty bad pick-up line,” I remarked.

“I know, but I thought I should give it a try,” he said.

“Well, I have to admire your confidence,” I acknowledged.

“Me too,” he smirked at me. I shook my head, trying not to laugh.

“I thought you said that mark would go away,” he stated.

“What?” I asked, looking at him.

“That mark on your neck—it’s worse,” he noted. I grabbed my phone to use the camera and check it out.

“Holy s**t,” I exclaimed.

It was really red now, and it was swollen. It looked hideous, so I reached into my bag and grabbed a shirt to put on over my singlet to hide my neck.

“You can’t just let that go,” he said.

“It’ll be fine,” I replied.

“I really doubt it. I’m taking you to the nurse,” he insisted.

“Not now. I can’t miss class,” I said.

“Fine. But straight after,” he agreed. Reluctantly, I accepted.

After class, Colton was prepared to take me straight to the nurse’s office. However, as we walked down the corridor, I spotted Abel standing ahead with a few other people. I grabbed Colton by the arm.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Is there another way? I don’t want to go past them,” I said.

“Oh, yeah, we can take the long way,” he said. I nodded, and we turned around.

However, that route didn't turn out to be much better. I spotted Adam again, but this time he was with his friends and his girlfriend. He stared at me as I walked with Colton, but he didn't approach; probably because his girlfriend was with him.

When we arrived at the nurse's office, unfortunately, she wasn't there. Colton stepped into the office and told me to sit down on the examination table.

“I can take care of it,” he said, grabbing some ointment and gauze from the cabinet. I sat down as he began to apply the ointment carefully. He then placed the gauze over the ointment and taped it down securely.

"So, are you going to tell me why you didn't want to pass those people coming here?" Colton asked while he worked on my neck.

"Abel. He's my ex, and he won't take no for an answer. He just won't leave me alone," I replied.

"s**t. Are you the one who kicked Macy out of the window at that party?" he asked.

"How do you know about that?" I inquired, surprised.

"Everyone knows about it. Her friends are the only ones who hate you for doing that," he said.

"Really?" I asked, astonished.

"No one likes her. Don't feel bad for what you did. I can't believe he cheated on you with her. He's more of a d**k than I realized," Colton stated.

"Well, thanks for saying that," I said.

"You're welcome," he smirked.

“You’ll just have to wear shirts to cover it until it goes away. And make sure to use the ointment. I don’t think she’ll miss it; she has plenty on the shelf,” Colton said.

“Thank you for this,” I replied.

“You feel like you have a fever,” he remarked.

“I think I’m coming down with something, but I’ll be alright. I’m starting my new job today, and I can’t call in sick already,” I explained.

“I guess not. But you do need to take it easy,” he said as I stood up from the table.

“Life isn’t easy,” I responded.

I arrived at work on time that afternoon, and I stayed until closing, which was quite late. I didn’t mind, though.

By the time I finished work, I was feeling really terrible, but I made sure my boss didn’t see how badly the flu was affecting me.

I slowly made my way back to the cabin, looking around carefully to ensure nothing was lurking nearby. Once I entered the cabin, I closed the door behind me, pushing it firmly to make sure it was secure.

However, when I turned around, I nearly jumped out of my skin at the sight of Adam. He was leaning against the wall next to the window.