The sweet spot

The sun was low in the sky when Lupita finally woke up from her nap. Sleeping always helped her after her episodes. It was also easier to communicate with her wolf when her body was resting. So while she hadn't fully slept, her body had rested and her mind was slightly calmer after being able to cuddle and speak with her wolf for a few hours.

Lupita pulled her heavy arms under her body and pushed herself off the ground as if she weighed a ton. It took a while to get up to a standing position, but when she finally stood all she wanted to do was collapse back to the ground. Every move made her wince as everything still ached, though noticeably less than before. Normally it would take about 12 hours for her body to fully be able to function again.

Now it was time to find a place she could be able to stay at for the night. But where? She was too far away from Jazmyn and her family, and she wasn't very excited to see her any time soon. Alex and Karri maybe? No, it would mean going to the werewolf territories, and she was pretty sure she would be considered a rogue, and rogues that were found and captured were put down as quickly as possible.

A weird smell suddenly hit her nose and she looked up. When had she begun walking? And why in the world was she in the human part of town?

Lupita looked up and saw something move in the trees. A small face popped out and Lupita playfully growled at the small squirrel. Apparently, she found her familiar. What he had brought her to, she didn't know, but she would trust him.

Lupita continued to walk through the small town the squirrel had led her to, which was full of small shops on every twist and turn. There were shops for food, sweets, toys, stuffed animals, and something called... anime? There were also shops full of clothing and jewelry. A particular store left Lupita feeling light-headed and nauseous. Another one had some pretty weird clothing. Lupita had learned humans liked to cover up, so why in the world were these strange, white dolls showing clothing that would cover up absolutely nothing?

That led to another question, why had the squirrel brought her to the human part of the city?

People whispered where she went and pointed fingers at her. Was it really this uncommon to see a werewolf amongst humans?

Eventually, she reached a place that looked cozy. It looked like a bakery mushed with a restaurant from what she could see through the windows. It was called "The sweet spot". Maybe they served cakes? or candies? But something in the back of her mind was telling her it could be something else, she just couldn't figure out what.

Lupita shrugged it off and opened the two fogged glass doors. A thousand different smells hit her once she entered; all delicious.

After recovering from the shock of the many smells, Lupita finally took a look around. There were two round tables, with three chairs around them in the middle and two long tables by the windows with benches by the wall, and three chairs on the opposite side. Nothing much but it looked clean and someone clearly put a lot of effort and love into this place.

"Hi there!"

Lupita turned and was met with a smiling old man. He had a long, gray beard and the same hair. He looked very friendly and didn't give off any threatening smells.

"Hi," Lupita answered but kept her eyes away from the man.

"You looking for something?" he asked and Lupita felt his eyes on her.

"Just wondering if maybe I could buy something here," she said and reached into her bag and pulled out the little money she had. "Will this get me anything?" she asked while walking towards him and setting the money on the counter, still not looking up.

The man began counting the money she had given him and after counting it, he shook his head. "This won't get you anything here, or any other part of town for that matter," the man said and looked up at her.

Lupita just stared at the few copper coins on the counter. She had expected such a valuable metal to be worth at least something but apparently not.

"Ok, thank you," she said and took back the coins, and readied herself to head out.

"Where are you staying?" the old man asked.

"In the forest maybe," Lupita answered shortly, still keeping her eyes down.

"You have any family or...?"

Why was everyone here so set on prying into her personal life?

"No. They are dead," Lupita said and hurried towards the door.

"You could stay here if you want."

Lupita stopped as her hand held the door handle. When she kept quiet, the man continued.

"I could use a little help around here. And you would get a place to stay and warm food on your plate every day. You seem like a strong girl," he said and Lupita slowly turned around.

"You realize I am a werewolf," she began as she looked up, "do you feel safe with me here?"

"I would feel more than safe," the old man said with a bright smile, not at all taken back by her eyes. "Having my own personal guard dog and a little help wouldn't hurt..." he went silent as a deep growl filled the air around them.

"I am not a guard dog," Lupita managed through gritted teeth.

"I am deeply sorry. I didn't realize it was offensive," the man said hurriedly.

Lupita studied him for a while before realizing he really did mean it. "It's fine," she said and walked back into the shop. "Just know that calling a werewolf a dog is the worst thing you can do. And you seem like a nice guy so I want you to keep all your limbs."

The old man burst out laughing and hit his knee. After his laugh calmed down, he came out from behind the counter and Lupita got a good look at what he was wearing; a white apron, a light pink t-shirt, brown pants with spots of white, and brown shoes. He was a few inches shorter than her as well.

"I like you," he said and ruffled her hair. Lupita didn't bother moving and figured out she could just tell the man she didn't like it another time. She didn't want him to think she was sensitive. "Are you hungry?"

Lupita nodded slowly and looked up at the man. He smiled brightly and beckoned her to follow him, so she did. They walked behind the counter and through a small door in the back which led to what looked like a living room. Lupita took off her shoes when she realized the old man did and looked around the room. There was a small, red couch in front of a TV and a small coffee table, behind it was a small kitchen and to the left was another door and a small hallway.

"Just sit down on the couch and I'll get you something to eat," the man said and pointed at the couch.

"Thank you," Lupita said and walked over to the couch before carefully sitting down. It was very comfortable.

The old man went over to the kitchen and Lupita peeked up from the back of the couch.

"What is your name?" she asked suddenly, realizing it would be mean to call him "old man", all the time.

"My name is John Flint, you?" the old man said.

"My name is Lupita Månelys,'' Lupita said and smiled. She liked this man, he gave off a very cozy vibe, and it helped a lot that he smelled like sugar and vanilla.

"That is a strange name. Where are you from?" John asked while taking something out of a big white cabinet.

"Norway," Lupita answered and tried to smell what he took out but got nothing other than ice.

"Ah. I've heard it is very nice over there," he said and began to unwrap whatever he took out and placed it in a small box. He then pressed a few buttons which made high-pitched noises and then the box lit up and made a rumbling sound.

"It is," Lupita said dreamily and her eyes averted to the floor. "I miss it."

"Why did you leave?" John asked and walked over to her. He took a chair by the back, placed it in front of her, and sat down, resting his elbows on his knees and intertwining his fingers.

"I was forced to," Lupita said shortly and played with her fingers as she felt her wolf trying to push through. "I really don't want to talk about it." If she got too emotional she would shift, and she couldn't handle that again.

"That is fine kid," John said and went to ruffle her hair again but she moved back, just missing it.

"Please don't touch my hair," she said, carefully studying the man's face as she did. He just smiled at her and instead patted her shoulder.

Something suddenly beeped and Lupita jumped. It was an ear-piercing sound and she covered her ears once she recovered from the shock.

"Oh!" John said and hurried over to the little box and opened it. He took out a plate of something that smelled a lot like meat and Lupita cautiously looked over. "I am guessing you have not been around microwaves a lot?" he asked as he came back and placed the plate in front of her along with a fork and a glass of water.

"Microwave?" Lupita asked while raising an eyebrow.

"The little box. It heats up the food and then it makes a loud noise when it is done," he explained and Lupita just nodded. She guessed it was some strange technology stuff and didn't want a long explanation of how it worked. She quickly took the fork in front of her and awkwardly stared at her food. "It is just meat and vegetables. I hope that is ok," John said and looked at her carefully. Lupita quickly snapped out of her small daze and began to eat. She could see John looking at her with concern from the corner of her eye as she ate, but she elected to ignore him. She wouldn't tell him. Not yet at least. She had to let her scars heal before she could show them.

Lupita finished her food and John came with a pillow and duvet for her to sleep on after taking her plate.

"Thank you," she whispered and hugged the pillow to her body while John laid down the duvet on the couch.

"No problem," John said as Lupita sat down on the couch while still clutching the pillow to her chest.

"I also have something to tell you," she said nervously and played with the pillow. "I go to a school here, but... I am not feeling very well. I really don't want to go tomorrow."

John smiled at her and crouched down to meet her eyes.

"Take as much time as you want, kid," he said and rubbed her knee. "If you need anything just ask."

Lupita smiled at him and nodded before she laid down on the sofa.

"Do you have any sleeping wear?" John asked as she got ready to get under the covers.

"No," she said and sat up with the covers covering her legs.

"I'll get you some. What do you prefer to sleep in?" John asked and stood up.

"Long sleeves and long pants," Lupita said.

John looked confused for a few seconds before he snapped his finger and ran into a room. Lupita faintly heard him mutter, "Pants? It's trousers."