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Blues and purples and yellows light the sky as you step out of your car. Dinner for one wasn’t really how you planned on today going, but you suppose it wasn’t going to get better by itself. You deserved this, even at the cheap burger place near your job. The bell rings as you trudge inside, feet cramping in your heels. Even though the cashier gives you a look, his voice is still Customer Service Cordial. “Evening ma’am, what can I get for you?”
As you look up at the menu, something catches the edge of your vision, and your head snaps down at the seating. A shock of blond hair sways a little as its owner turns their head away from you. Well. That was weird. Your hair stands up on the back of your neck, and the thought of prey realizing it’s being watched crosses your mind unbidden. You keep watching, burning holes into the back of their head, searching for something, anythi–
“Ma’am?” Your head snaps back to the cashier, who eyes you with something between confusion and exasperation. “Ma’am, what can I get for you?”
“Oh!” You shake your head a little to clear the feeling, and you give him your order. He puts it down, you pay, and you turn back to the dining area, walking past it to get your drink. As you pour your soda of choice, Dr. Pepper with cherry and vanilla, that feeling sweeps past your neck again.
Predator.
You whirl around, and finally lock eyes with the figure from before. It’s a woman, probably in her early twenties. Her jaw is a little uneven, and her eyes are startlingly blue. At the edge of her collar, hints of a scar peek out from the red jacket. When your eyes meet, her lips split in a lopsided, toothy smile. She’s in earshot, so she raises her hand in a short wave and speaks. Her voice is coarse, but the tone underneath is strong and clear, almost like the scratch of an amped-up guitar.
“Hey there.” Even those two words are electric, sending an arc of nervous energy down your spine. You feel a different kind of jolt as the cold, sugary drink spills over onto your hand, prompting a small string of curses. She laughs, and your ears ring with it, a mix of emotions washing through your body–fear, embarrassment, and more than a little bit of the warm, heady feeling you know all too well. Attraction.
Heat rising to your face, you wipe off your hand with a napkin and take a sip of your drink to lower the level. She watches you the whole time, gaze so strong you could feel it on your neck…and your back…and your…ah.
That heat isn’t getting any better.
“Did I scare you?” Yes, yes she did– does . There’s a tugging in your chest, a pull to run, to hide. But…as your eyes turn back to hers, your heart rate spikes. You walk towards her, unable to take your eyes off her form. Everything about her seems…sharp, like an overly-edited image that stands out from the screen around it. As you sit down, she leans forward a little, putting the two of you inches apart. “What’s your name, beautiful?”
You forget how to speak. What is your name? What’s hers? You stammer out a string of syllables that sound right. She smiles again, and that warmth, shot through and tangled up with icy fear, intensifies inside you. “That’s a nice name. Iit’s nice to meet you. I’m Lucy. Lucy Driver.”
She leans back, taking a sip from her drink. You take a sip yourself in an attempt to fix the dryness in your throat. The taste hardly registers. “It’s…it’s nice to meet you, too.” You swallow, gaining a little confidence back. “Why were you watching me?”
She tilts her head, and you could swear her ears tilted, too. “I know a beautiful woman when I see one.”
You reach to the back of your neck, trying to force down the goosebumps. You didn’t think you were that obvious. It’s not like this town is all that friendly to gay people, and you’ve done your best to stay under the radar. But then…she didn’t look like she liked men, anyway. Takes one to know one, you suppose. You glance around to see if anyone’s paying attention, and with no signs of being outed, you return to look at Lucy.
She raises one eyebrow. “What? Never met a lesbian before?” You raise your hands, trying to shush her as the conversation in the diner gets a little quieter. Heart racing, you sit back, feeling many more pairs of eyes on you, now.
She just smirks, like it’s all a game. “They can’t do anything to you, Y/N. Not when I’m here.” There’s that lopsided grin again. Her teeth…
Since when were human teeth that sharp?As soon as that thought enters your mind, the fear turns ice cold, dripping from your heart to pool in your stomach. You know this fear. You remember it as a child, looming behind you at the kid’s restaurant in the form of animal animatronics. You remembered it when watching a movie, the just-not-quite-human face of a robot simulacrum staring down at you from the cinema screen. You remember it as recently as two years ago, when you felt something, some one right behind you as you walked home from work, only to find no one there when you turned around.
That– she is not human. Somehow, you know it. Deep in your gut. Some primal instinct, millions of years old, is screaming at you to get away. She is faster than you. She is stronger than you. She is dangerous, run, run you idiot, run–
But…at the same time…her eyes. There’s a softness in them. Behind the sharpness, behind the danger…those eyes are captivating. Her smile, despite, or maybe even because of her teeth is beautiful , cute, even. You chance to look down, and even though her jacket obscures most of her torso, you like what you see.
Your trance is broken completely when the waiter arrives with both your food. She puts burgers down in their proper places, giving both of you a bit of a look. As she leaves, Lucy makes eye contact with you as she picks up her burger. It’s loaded with meat, bacon and beef piled high. Even though the food is all typically greasy, her patties are pink, almost dangerously so. Hardly any grease drips off of it as she lifts it to her mouth, until her teeth slowly sink through the bun.
She eats agonizingly slowly, tearing away at the meat. Normally, you hate the sound of people eating, who doesn’t, but instead you sit transfixed, every bite sending lightning through your bones. Somewhere, deep inside, you know exactly what those teeth could do to you. That should be terrifying, and yet…
Why do you want that?
She looks up, wiping a bit of grease (oh god it’s red) from her mouth. “What’s wrong? Aren’t you hungry?” The question seems so obvious, yet you can’t answer, mouth dry from what feels like an eternity of watching. “Aw, come on. I don’t bite.” Yes, she does. Your face begins warming up, reaching numbly over to the soda and taking a drink. She watches you as you do, her eyes looking over you like before. Honestly, you can’t decide whether she’s into you or picking apart how she’ll hunt you down and tear you apart.
She reaches past her own half-eaten burger and lifts yours. “Come on, you look hungry.” Remembering your hands, you take it from her and take a bite. As you do, she tilts her head, leaning on one elbow. “How is it?”
Finally, you manage to speak again. “It’s…it’s good. Tasty.” God, is that all you can say? Tasty? You’ve been eating here for months, almost a year! You’ve talked about these burgers at length before! A hot flush rises to your face. “I-I mean, it’s great. Th-they always do well.”
“Good.” She makes eye contact with you again, then tears the rest of the burger apart, putting it away in seconds. It’s quick, efficient, and almost violent. Jerking back, you let out an involuntary squeak of surprise, hoping no one around you heard or at least cared. This time, she barks out a laugh. “There’s more where that came from–”
She speaks your name for the second time of the night, and this time, it’s a red-hot ember in your chest. The possible meanings of her words play around in your head, and it’s hard to pick just one. Noticing your rising blush, she smiles. “Okay. I think I’ve made up my mind.” She scoots out of the booth, standing. “Have you?”
Night has almost fallen, and the moon hasn’t risen yet, probably won’t for a little while longer. The lamplight catches her eyes, and you finally see something that confirms all of your suspicions. The backs of them light up green, the same reflective tissue that lots of animals have and humans don’t.
Panic builds in your throat and you stand, stammering an excuse. Your legs start moving on their own, carrying you away from the danger. Trying to ignore the building pain in your heels, you’re halfway to your car when your hair raises again, but by then it’s too late.
She’s already right behind you. Her voice, still catching your body between extremes, asks, “Something wrong? You look nervous.” Stupid heart, stop being in your throat! Slowly, you turn to meet her eyes in the dimming light. She’s shockingly close to you, a little smile playing across her face. She leans in, her breath hot on your lips as she growls , “Am I scaring you?”
You can’t stay silent any longer, but you can’t lie, either. “Oh, god , yes.”
Maybe you didn’t mean for it to come out like that.
She looks surprised for only a moment, before her grin widens. “Good.”
The sun has completely set, now, and the moon is on the way. She glances at your car. “Maybe we should go back to your place. Don’t have a lot of time, after all.”
Yeah, you’ve made up your mind. If you die, you die. You unlock your car and invite her into the shotgun seat, which she takes happily. It’s not a long drive back to your townhouse, and thank god your housemate is gone for the weekend. She’s watching the horizon steadily the whole time, unnaturally still in the seat next to you.
As you arrive, she steps out, shedding her jacket to reveal a black tank top. You see more of her scars now, a widespread, raised mess going from her neck, over her shoulder, and down her side. The fabric of the tight top, which hugs most of her torso, seems to be loose along the left side of her abdomen. Before you can question any more of that, she motions you towards the door. “Come on. Don’t have much time.”
“Before what? What’s coming?” you ask, unlocking the front door. Lucy glances over at you, barks a laugh, and follows you inside. Immediately, you kick off your heels, looking around the silent house. Lucy asks, “No pets?” You shake your head. “Never had time to take care of one.” What looks like relief flashes across her face, and she nods, reaching for the hem of the top. “Bet you’ve been wondering about me.”
Your breath leaves your lungs as she pulls the shirt off, revealing the tissue not covered by her sports bra. Her…her side is missing. A terrible chunk of her abdomen is gone on her left side, with ugly, raised scar tissue left at the border to open air. She actually blushes a little, putting a hand to her hip at the bottom of the gap. “Pieced it together yet?” She turns to you, slowly helping you take off your suit jacket. Her lips are so close. So close you could…
“Not yet, huh?” She frowns, reaching up to the back of her neck. “You’ll get the picture soon. But, before then.”
She leans in and kisses you, long and slow. Her lips are warm, almost hot, and suddenly, she smells like the forest, pine and fur and campfire. She closes her eyes, and after your surprise wears off, you return the gesture, pressing back with your hand cupped behind her head. As you pull away, she smiles warmly, not the cocky grin or teasing smirk of before. “That will keep you safe.”
Safe?
The moonlight breaks over the horizon, bright and full.
Instantly, everything changes. Her expression twists in pain, grabbing at herself and pulling her clothes off. “Gh-back away, back away… ” she snarls, throat tearing as it widens. Bones crack and grow, muscles rip and reform, organs move to their new locations. Fur sprouts across her body while her arms lengthen, and her hands and feet find new angles. The scar expands, too, but does not heal over. As her tail breaks free from her spine, her jaw dislocates and lengthens, forming a long snout. Finally, as the risen full moon illuminates her, a huge, seven-foot werewolf towers over you, chest heaving.
And then her eyes meet yours. That feeling, stronger than ever before, rises to your throat. She leaps on you before you can even turn around, huge weight pressing you into the ground. There’s nothing you can do, nowhere to go. This is how you die. You shut your eyes, unwilling to see the teeth that were surely coming, giving you a wound like hers–
A warm, wet feeling rolls up your cheek. You open your eyes and look up. She’s panting, her ears tipped forward as she kisses your cheek. “L…Lucy?”
She boofs, making you jump. “Yeah, that’s me.” You reply, “H…how?”
She starts wagging, and her eyes narrow a little. “Maybe in a little bit. For now…” She kisses you again, and you never imagined wolf lips could feel that good. You need it again. And again. Everywhere, forever.
“You get to know how a werewolf loves you.”
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When you are both spent, your body sweaty and exhausted, Lucy sweeps a great paw underneath you, pulling you close to her fluffy chest. She licks a bit of hair away, earning a soft chuckle from you as she breathes your name. “I think I might love you.”
You blush and stammer. “Y-you can’t mean that, not after one night.” She huffs, licking your hair again. “I do. Most people would just…run. Or fight me. You…you stayed. You stayed close to me.”
Looking away, you feel the ice of fear clench around your heart again. “I’m not sure if I knew I could leave.” Her ears shoot up in surprise. “What?” You bite your lip. “Well…I wasn’t sure if you were going to kill me.”
She huffs, tail stopping. “Guess I overdid it, huh?” She kisses your neck. “That wasn’t my intention. I just wanted to intimidate you in, like, a sexy way.”
You laugh, burying your face in her chest. “That, too.” She reaches up and slowly strokes over your shoulder with her pads, and you kiss her jaw. “I’d love to do this again.” She starts wagging again, ears forward as you continue. “I don’t know if I love you quite yet, but I know that I’m in love.”
She kisses you again, warm and sweet with passion. “Me too.”