Prelude:
Dakota Hill, that's my name.
Life use to be normal for me. I use to feel safe in the Abenaki reservation in Maine. It felt like my life was perfect. My parents were happy, my brother and I were as close as two siblings could be, and all my friends were drama free.
However, when one certain summer started, things began to change. Not because of love, luck, or desire for happiness.
It all started when I was born; in addition to someone's thirst for more powerful in another world.
Chapter 1: Walking from Home to Him
I woke up in the morning to the sun shining into my window, making my pink curtains cast a light that changed my walls into a hue of the sunrise that had just pasted. I groaned as I sat up to look around my room, in a morning daze. My room needed to grow up. It was a room that an 11 year old would love to have. It was as colorful as a rainbow, bright as sunshine and, was a pain to slowly grow up into. But it was my room and I loved it… to an extent.
Sitting up, taking in my familiar surroundings, I caught a scent of only one thing that could make me move in a fast motion in the morning.
"Strueberry" I said smiling to myself.
My mom had to be making breakfast, meaning she was in the best of moods this day.
I got up from my bed and saw my dog, Hache, sleeping at the end of my bed, peacefully on guard.
"Hache, wake up." I whispered to Hache to wake him up.
His dark gray fur waved around as he stretched and yawned. My dog was what many people call a mutt. He was mixed with a husky dog and a wolf. Hache looked more like a wolf, because of his genes. He had the powerful structure of a wolf, but the happy heartedness of a dog.
"Hache, it's time for breakfast."
He woke up with excitement to hear my voice and the mention of food. Hache and I raced down the stairs to see my mom working her magic in the kitchen.
My mom had long curly dark brown hair that looked like waves of dark chocolate, flowing almost past the small of her back. Her skin was like the color of almonds, just like the rest of my family. Her skin was always smooth and never had any imperfections. I loved the way my mom looked; it made me think she was a model in her spare time. Her face had sharp, beautiful features; high cheek bones and little signs of aging that made her look more like a normal person. Her emerald green eyes were like gem stones that twinkled in light. Her smile always made her look better. The term, "her smile could light up a whole room" always came to mind when she smiled. Anytime the corners of her mouth in a smile, it brought happiness to my heart.
"Good morning, Mom" I said kissing her on the cheek.
"Morning sweetheart, are you ready for breakfast? I made your favorite." she said showing the delicious pancakes in the pan.
"That's why I got up so quickly." I replied, filling Hache's food bowl full of dog food for him.
"Of course, since we don't see you until noon." my brother stated, sitting at the table, fork in hand. The playful smirk on his face made me see his sarcastic side was kicking in early this morning.
"Good morning to you too, Brandon." I sighed, walking into the dining room.
My brother looked very similar to our Dad. He face was in an oval shape with an edged jawline, dark-brown eyes that could show his true emotions and the same long raven hair that came down to his shoulders. Compared to him looking exactly like our father, he also had the same features as our mom. He had the same smooth, silky, russet brown skin as our other and a smile that could overtake any unhappiness. However, his appearance has changed since the summer before. He now had a set of new founded muscles that made his arms look like brown hills carefully created for a perfect landscape.
"How did you sleep, D.K.?" He asked as I sat down across from him at the wooden circular dining table we had since we were born. The marks from when Brandon was being taught how to use a knife were still etched into his place at the table.
"I slept fine. How about you, Brandon?"
"Perfect." he said smiling a fake smile that would fool a normal person into thinking he was perfectly fine.
"That's a lie. I heard you moving around last night."
His nights were filled with growling and thrashing around before jumping out of his bed. I would peek out of my bedroom to see Brandon doing a midnight crawl around the house to escape his night terrors.
"I'm fine you don't have to worry about me. You are the youngest."
"We were born the same time."
"No, we weren't. I was born 11:58 and you were born..." He said pointing towards me to finish his sentence.
"12:03" I mumbled through my lips.
"Exactly, so you don't have to worry about me, little twister."
He always enjoys pointing that he is older than me by one day, even though we are twins.
"You know you can't handle yourself." I retailed back.
"I can handle myself better than you." he said getting louder.
We went back and forth instinctively, like two siblings usually do. It was routine to have at least one sibling fight in the morning.
"Stop fighting. No need for you to get angry" My dad said coming downstairs. It sounded like the comment was more towards Brandon than me. Dad has been doing that lately.
My dad had a very rounded face, with jet black hair that grew very fast and long. His eyes black brown eyes were like Brandon's but his never really showed emotion easily. His skin was rough since he worked long days in his garage shop. My dad never talked much but knew when to talk at the right moments. We sat down at the table silently looking at my dad like we were 6 years old in trouble again.
Dad sat down at the table and opens the newspaper. My brother and I both straighten up and wanted for mom to finish. We both manage a few faces at each other without our parental figures seeing us.
"Breakfast is ready" mom stated placing a big plate of Strueberry pancakes (Strawberry and Blueberry) in the middle of the table. Brandon attacked the pancakes until my mom smacked his hand.
"You need to wait. Your father and I have to eat first. We have to leave early this morning." My mom kissed my dad on the cheek and he looked at her with a loving smile.
I stuck my tongue out at my brother and he returned the favor. Mom looked at us with a stern stare. Brandon and I stopped to avoid any more haze.
"So pop, what is going on in the world?" He said finally be able to take his multiple pancakes.
Dad flipped through the newspaper, looking for a big event. Nothing really happened here except car accidents and rain. Nothing exciting happens in this part of Maine.
"There are many people gone missing. They think a serial killer is around here. But there is also a lead to a bear going around. About ten people have been gone missing. Bodies have been found, hardly any blood left in the bodies."
The story made me shiver. Any word about death made me scared and anxious, just to visualize the horror of the person must of have looked.
"Are you scarred Kota?" Brandon said teasing me.
"Shut up"
"Stop messing with your sister Brandon. No one really enjoys death." My mom said, her face having a sad serious feeling on it.
My dad grabbed my mom's hand and kissed it, giving her a warm smile to make her feel better. My mom wiped the look off her face and got up.
"You two, be safe, ok? No going into the woods." she said standing up and takes her now clear plate to the kitchen.
"You're leaving now?"
"Yes, early shift at the hospital. I need to be saving lives today." she said getting all her things together.
My mom was a doctor in the ER. She would always do her best to save someone's life.
Once she was done she kissed our heads but stopped at Brandon.
"Brandon, you are burning up." She said feeling around his face and neck.
"I'm fine mom." he said pulling her hand away. My dad was frozen looking at my brother's face, like he was worried.
"I don't care I want you to stay home, don't want you to be sick."
My mom kissed my dad and left out the house. The rest of breakfast we were eating in silence, with my dad eyeing my brother the whole time like he was going to change against us. Once finished I felt Hache rubbing his body against my leg.
"Aw Hache, you want to go for a walk?" I said rubbing his head.
I got up and quickly washed the dishes and Hache came with his red leash in his mouth.
"Just give me a minute ok boy?"
He ran into the living room and lay in the middle of the floor.
"You better hurry; you know Hache can get very impatient."
"Whatever you say, Brandon."
I went upstairs to wash up, put on a pair of jeans, blue t-shirt and my black tennis shoes. I came back downstairs to see my dad gone and Hache waiting by the door.
"I told you he doesn't like to wait." He said now laying on the couch.
"Thanks for telling me Brandon. I already knew this." I grabbed the leash out of Hache's mouth and put it on his collar.
"What are you doing today anyway?"
"Uhhh it looks like I'm going to be hanging around the house."
"Just like mom told you too"
He hated being told what to do, no matter who it was. He sat up from the couch and walked over to me.
"Or I could do what Dad told me to do."
I didn't see the difference from what mom told him to do and what dad told him to do, but I guess there was.
"What do you have to do? Maybe I could help you out."
"No" he said in the most angry type voice I ever heard come out his mouth.
"You can't, only boys can do this." He said rustling my hair, with more warmth in his voice.
"I'll see you when I come back?"
"I don't know. I don't know how long it will take."
"Ok, then just be careful Brandon." I said leaving out the door.
Mostly during the walk Hache was pulling me around. I noticed that we lived in an area that was nothing but mostly trees, houses and long pathways to houses behind trees.
At one long path way, Hache stopped right in the middle of it.
"Come on, we have a little more walking to do."
His ears became alert like he heard a sound coming from the path. He shot up, running onto the path.
"Hache, Wait!"
He kept running but went even faster. I ran after him and lost sight of him when the path did a curve and he went into the trees.
"Hache, Stop! Come Back!"
I kept following the path, eager to find Hache at the end of it. Instead I found a medium sized house with dark blue shingles on the roof and a white porch hugging the house for a comfortable feel. The look of the house seemed tell a little story about the house; the owner hasn't had the time to work on the exterior of the house. The walls had a wear and tear of years of rain, snow, and other natural disasters. I felt that the house was perfect in the location it was in. It didn't have to be talked about by anyone with the trees giving its well-used privacy.
I walked closer and saw a small garage the style of the house, sitting quietly in its own little place away from the house.
"Hache! Where are you?"
The visible place I could see seemed to be only holding air. Hache was nowhere to be found. Why is Hache doing this?
My second thought was that Hache was in the forest around the house. I looked on the outskirts of the trees surrounding the house, but Hache didn't return my calls with his barking. The forest was no longer on the list of places to look.
I came back to the house with a sense of defeat. Finding Hache felt like it was taking forever in the small area that it we were in. My emotions pushed me into a sense of exhaustion and loss. My legs gave way and laid themselves onto the front steps of the house. I sighed heavily. I couldn't lose Hache. I buried my head inside my hands, wanting to give up on my search.
"I can't believe I can't find him."
"Who are you?" An unfamiliar voice said filled with anger and irritation.
I looked up to see a tall guy with short, black hair that spiked down around his head, beautiful tanned skin that appeared to glow in the daylight, blissful dark brown eyes and muscles upon muscles covering his perfect body. I became entranced by how incredible his body was. It seemed like his body was created by an unspoken of being who took their time to construct human with such detail. His muscles look sculpted into his body, willing to take in any powerful force that would dare try to challenge. His chest looked as if the perfect chest for defending all that was good and could also present a comfortable place where no harm could come.
In my eyes, I felt he was perfect. I felt my heart attaching to the image of him and hoping that I could one day have something like him. Or just have him in my life.
"Who are you?" He said more irritated. It snapped me out of the little trace I was stuck in. The feelings gradually vanished into my subconscious.
"Sorry, I'm trying to find my dog." I said standing up. I couldn't make eye contact with him. One second of me looking at him made my face feel a surge of heat overcome it.
"What gave you the right to come here?" he growled at me.
"If you're talking about me sitting here, I can explain-"
"Whatever, just hurry and get your dog." He said with an attitude, breaking me off, and walking away from me.
"Yeah, I don't need help." I stated sarcastically.
"Not my dog, not my problem." He said from his shoulder, still walking away from me.
My feelings for him to be in my life disappeared after that comment he made. His attitude sunk of anger and obnoxiousness. I told myself that I wouldn't want him to be in my life nor in the same country.
I found Hache sitting at the end of the porch like he was at home. A sense of happiness swept over me. It meant that I can go home and never see him, whoever he is, again.
"Hache, come on. A very mean person doesn't want us here."
I started to pull on the leash but he did not move. He held his ground and his stare at the forest surrounding the house.
"Hache, come on" I said urgently pulling his leash. He still didn't move.
I grabbed Hache's face; wishing that it would be able to snap him out of his wolf mode.
"Hache, whatever your wolfy senses are telling you, deal with them later. We have to go right now."
I shook his head for a whole minute, doing my best to pull him back into reality. I let go of his face, thinking he received the message. It was a failure. He only answered by laying his head down on the ground.
"What is up with you today?"
He brought his head back up when he heard something, and he wasn't the only one. It was the very nice guy I met earlier. But now he was speaking in a weird language that was consumed with multiple k sounds.
Hache left his post on the porch and ran towards the sounds. I followed as Hache made his way to a garage. Hache busted through the slightly open doors and moved to the exact place that I didn't want him to move to, right next to the guy. I trailed behind him as I entered.
"Get your dog away from me." He growled, not looking at me.
"I'm not the one who basically called him over here."
"What are you talking about?" He snarled.
"You were talking in some language and he ran over here."
"Your dog must be part wolf."
"I already know this. But thanks for telling me." I said with sarcasm.
I could not get why this guy could be so hot yet have a bad attitude. The thoughts of me wanting him was harder for me to comprehend them as I send more and more time listening to him, even though it has only been a few minutes.
"You found your dog, now get out." He said in his now familiar tone.
"That's really nice of you."
"Who said I was nice?"
"It must really kill you to be nice?" I said grabbing Hache's leash, this time he did not restrain against me.
"Do you think everyone is nice?" He asked. However, the way he asked made me feel if I was a little child.
"NO, I just think if I'm nice to someone, he or she should return the favor."
"Good luck with that."
I rolled my eyes and pulled Hache's leash for him to come along with me, away from this guy. He was irritating me to no end. The faster I get away from him, the better.
"Wouldn't it be nice to tell me your name?" He said as soon as I started walking away.
I turned back around to him. "Like I said, I'm only nice if that someone is nice to me."
He gave me a blank stare, like my words didn't register into his brain. I let out a sigh before I gave him what he wanted.
"My name is Dakota."
"Eric" he stated with a smirk plastered over his face.
I returned to walking onto the path, to the road, back home. Each step I took, I tried to push the thought about how rude Eric was to me. Also, I tried to forget how attracted I was to him and how I was encouraging his weird sense of flirting.
After I opened the front door, Hache raced to the living room with the leash trailing behind him. I sluggishly moved myself into the house. The walk and the encounter with Eric seemed to take energy out of me.
"What's wrong D.K.? Hache finally pulled you too hard?" He asked walking down the steps.
"I think Hache's mind needs to be we wired."
We both walked into the living room and sat on the couch. Hache brought himself on top our feet, his favorite place to be.
"Don't worry; he does everything for a reason."
"So that day when he threw up on your shoes, he did it for a reason?"
"Yeah, I always wanted green-brown shoes. It goes with my green-brown shirt."
"Whatever." I said nudging him playfully.
But was Brandon right? Did Hache want me to meet the mean, oblivious, handsome Eric? That's just a question that would be answered later.