Passing

Audra

The weeks passed in a blur, and before I knew it, we were in the final quarter of school. The days stretched longer, the air growing warmer, and the scent of blooming wildflowers carried on the wind. At lunch, I sat with Isla, chatting idly when she suddenly nudged me with her elbow, nodding toward the table. "So, Audra, have you met Malik yet?" I followed her gaze, my breath hitching slightly as I took in the boy taking a seat across from us. Malik, his name was, familiar. Brining on a sense of peace. He was tall and toned, but not overly muscular, he had a sharp jawline that only accentuated the smooth caramel of his skin. Thick curls tumbled into his deep chestnut eyes, warm and unreadable. His presence was magnetic, the kind that commanded attention without effort. My heart fluttered against my ribcage as my eyes locked with his, and when I realized I had been staring, heat rushed to my face. He chuckled, the sound deep and rich like rolling thunder before a summer storm. "Like what you see?" he teased, flashing a grin, his full lips parting slightly. My face burned hotter, and I scrambled to form a response, but the words tangled on my tongue. "It's okay," he said smoothly, leaning in just enough to make my breath hitch. "You alone, can stare all you want." I could only nod, my thoughts too scrambled for anything coherent. Isla shot him a glare, to which he only raised his brow. "Don't pay attention to him," she muttered. "He thinks he's funny." Conversation flowed around me, but I barely heard it, my thoughts still spinning. Only when the lunch bell rang did I snap back to reality. Isla and I walked to Advanced Trig together. "So, Audra, do you want to hang out this weekend?" she asked eagerly. "Sure, I can, on Saturday." Her face lit up. "Then let's make a sleepover out of it! We'll have fun Friday night and hit the mall on Saturday." I smiled. "Okay, but I can't really buy anything—I'm saving for a car." She waved me off with a sly grin, pulling a sleek black credit card from her purse. "Don't worry, I've got it handled." I gawked. "Isla! Where did that come from? Are you secretly rich?" I whisper-yelled. She smirked. "Shh, keep it down. I stole it from Malik." I furrowed my brows. "So, his family is rich?" She gave me a look. "Oh dear, do you not know?" She said slipping the card back into her purse. "Know what?" I reply confused, "That he's the prince?" She said. Her words echoed out into the hall being drowned out by the chatter of the other students. I gasped. "You're kidding." As we took our seats, she pulled out her phone and typed something quickly, then flashed the screen at me. A simple search: Who are the royal family of Eldoria? And there he was. Standing in front of who I assumed to be his mother and father. Their hands rested on his shoulder. His perfect teeth flashed a smile on the screen, he wore a navy-blue tux with a ruffled white shirt underneath. His hand was casually tucked into his pocket. Malik, an actual prince. I barely had time to process before our teacher barked, "GIRLS!" Isla spun around so fast her hair slapped her in the face, and we both wore sheepish grins as the class snickered. That evening, Kai picked me up, and we had dinner together before I retreated to my room to finish my homework. When I was done, I grabbed my book and headed downstairs. The sun had just dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in swirls of violet and ember. The porch swing creaked as I settled into it, pulling a blanket over my lap. The warm night air carried the scent of pine and fresh rain, and I let myself melt into the moment, rocking gently as I flipped page after page. Until—to my horror—I reached the last one. To be continued... It read. I huffed, snapping the book shut and glancing up. The world had turned black around me, the porch light casting a dim glow onto the dirt path leading to the forest. The trees stood tall and quiet; their silhouettes motionless in the still night air. A strange pull, a whisper in my bones, beckoned me toward them. Before I realized what I was doing, I stood, my phone flashlight in hand. My feet moved as if following an invisible thread woven deep into my subconscious. Off the path, deeper, deeper still. The trees stretched high above me, their branches tangled like the fingers of ancient giants. Then I heard it. Water. A soft, endless murmur of a stream. My breath caught as I pushed past a few branches, and there it was—the waterfall from my dreams. It was real. Every detail was the same. The way the moonlight shimmered against the cascading water, the precise placement of each rock. And there, perched on a smooth stone slab near the riverbank, lay the wolf. His speckled fur shimmered under the night sky, his massive form rising and falling with deep, steady breaths. His ears twitched at my approach, and then his golden eyes snapped open, locking onto mine. A flutter stirred in my chest—the same sensation I'd felt when looking into Malik's eyes. The softness, the warmth, the quiet understanding. He rose to his full height, his head level with mine. He was enormous, but somehow, I felt no fear. Slowly, he stepped toward me, each movement powerful yet graceful. His paws pressed into the earth with a quiet strength, his presence commanding yet reassuring. He stopped in front of me, his muzzle just above my head. I swallowed, watching as he shook out his thick coat, sending tiny droplets of water into the air like scattered diamonds. Then, lowering himself to the ground, he stretched out in the grass, his fur brushing against the blades. Hesitantly, I sat beside him. His warmth radiated against me, and when his massive head settled in my lap, a familiar comfort spread through me, as though I had known his touch before. I ran my fingers through his fur—coarse, yet soft—and he sighed under my touch. The world melted away. The only sound was the steady rush of water and the quiet rhythm of his breathing. My own eyelids grew heavy, my body sinking into his warmth. And as the stars blinked overhead, I drifted into sleep, wrapped in the gentle presence of the night.