After making sure that no one was following behind her, Annabelle slowly pushed the door to the old empty gym room open, before she sneaked in.
Her eyes scanned the room, searching for a comfortable place to seat, before she saw a secluded desk at the end of the room.
She slowly walked towards the floor to ceiling window of the room, and watched the different activities happening around in the school.
She couldn't move freely like how the other kids were, and it brought back the painful memories of how she has always been billed in her former school.
She turned back to the door, checking if anyone had walked in, but there was no one in the room apart from her. She just needed to take a breather, to exempt herself from everyone.
She was living with dangerous people, and needed to be careful if she wanted to survive.
"I just want to go home," she sobbed, sniffing and cleaning away her tears with her sleeves.
"I miss you daddy, please look for me and find me. I'm not safe, they aren't humans, they are not like us, they are vegetarians. I haven't tasted meat either…." She cried, her shoulders trembling, but that wasn't the sole reason for which she was crying.
The pain she was passing through from the marking was severe, and all she wanted was to be in Alvin's embrace, but she refused to admit it. She was stubborn enough, but how long would she be able to restrict herself from the power of the marking?
With her hands still covering her nape, her legs folded up to her chest, she continued sobbing silently, her heart aching from the pain. The room was so quiet that the sound of her cries echoed, filling the room.
"Emily… Come take me home," she cried, feeling severely hot, her body temperature high, making her get drenched in sweat, her forehead covered in beads of sweat.
She immediately loosened the buttons of her coat, before taking it off and using it to fan herself.
Even after opening the windows, she still felt incredibly hot, and all the thoughts that were coming into her mind was about Alvin, and it made her groan.
She remained laying on the floor, her hair spread all over, and half of the buttons of her uniform shirt opened.
Picking up her phone from the floor where she had kept it, she tried dialing Emily's contact, but she wasn't picking up.
"Pick up, please…." Annabelle cried, continuing to call Emily's line, but she wasn't picking up.
After dialing Emily's contact severally without receiving any response, she gave up.
"Why are they all doing this to me? I want to go home," she cried, and helped herself up, before staggering to the desk at the end of the room sitting on it.
Some animals are poisonous, and when they bite Humans, they transfer their poison to them, so as a student who was still studying zoology, she thought that to be her case. Since Alvin was an animal, he could have transferred his poison to her when he bit her, that's the only explanation she had for this.
Staring at Alvin's contact in her phone, she hesitated calling him, but if she didn't seek help, she could die anytime.
With that thought in mind, she sent the call, before placing the phone on the desk beside her, listening as it rang, waiting for him to pick up.
Her cries intensified when it rang and ended without being answered.
Was this how they planned on killing her? She thought, and still tried calling him again. She prayed silently, hopefully waiting for him to pick up, but he didn't.
"Is he still angry at me? But I'm sorry. I shouldn't have poured water on such a VIP. I had really looked down on him because he was a werewolf, but I'm sorry…" she whispered to herself, choking through sobs, feeling dizziness consume her. She gave up, and wouldn't call anyone again, already deciding to die with the pain.
The sudden ringing of her phone made her raise her head, and immediately grasped her phone in her hands.
Staring at the caller's ID, her face paled when she realized that it was Alvin who was calling. She suddenly became scared of picking up, but she had to, this was the only opportunity she had to live. Besides, it seems the pain stops whenever he is around.
She pressed the answer button and waited for him to speak, so that if he was still angry at her, she wouldn't bother asking him for help.
"Annabelle, are you okay?" His tone was laced with worry, and that wasn't what she had expected. She expected him to be cold towards her.
"Alvin…" she cried his name, contemplating through sobs if she should ask him for help.
"Annabelle, what is it? Where are you? Where is Emily."
"I'm in school," she replied, wincing, the pains intensifying.
"Why did you go to school, Annabelle? You could have stayed at home. Your condition wasn't good when I saw you earlier," he scolded through the phone, pacing in his office.
"The pain ceased after you left, that's why."
"Is it the pain from the markings?"
"Yes, it's very intense. I think I might not survive it."
"Tell Emily to bring you to my office, I'll help you with it."
"Emily isn't here."
"Where is she?"
"She didn't come with me."
"Annabelle, don't tell me you're alone in that school," he asked, and she could hear the anger and frustration in his tone, so I kept quiet, not saying a word, but it seems it only confirmed the truth.
"Annabelle, can you hear me?" He asked in panic, and she nodded.
"Alvin, please take me home. I can't stay here anymore. Please take me home," she pleaded, her grip on her neck becoming tighter.
"Annabelle, you know I can't do that. We've already discussed this earlier–"
"It's not that. Take me back to the mansion, I can't stay here anymore, if not I'll get bullied."
"Annabelle, can you take a cab and come over to my office? I'm very busy now, and the elders won't let me leave. Just get into a cab, and I'll send the location to you."
"I can't leave here. They might be looking for me by now."
"Who would be looking for you? Just come over now, you aren't safe alone there."
"That's the thing. Immediately I leave this room, they'll come for me."
"Does anyone know that you're human?"
"No, they think I'm a late bloomer."
"That isn't good either. But how did they come to such a conclusion?"
"It's our lecturer. He forced me into saying what I was, so I couldn't tell the class that I was a human."
"Which of your lecturers?" He asked, but she felt too exhausted. She remained silent so she wouldn't die earlier, but it seems to have made him more worried.
"Annabelle, are you still there?" His worried voice came, and then she heard him communicating with someone else.
"I… I don't know who he is. Alvin, I'm sick, please help me. I don't want to die, it would only worsen my dad's mental health."
As she spoke through the phone, she kept crying silently, not wanting to disturb Alvin too much, because he seemed too worried.
"I'll send someone to you, don't worry. Just stay where you are, and be safe."
"Okay," she replied weakly.
"I need to hang up now, I'll call to check on you later," he said before the call ended.
She remained seated in the empty room, the pain from the mark overwhelming her, her sobs dying down, while she prayed silently for whoever he'll send to arrive on time because she knew that the news had spread all over the school, and the bullies would be in search of the late bloomer.
Suddenly, she heard the sound of the door creaking open, followed by the steps of people walking in.
Being too weak to find out who they were, she assumed it was Emily's friends, and remained seated without turning back.
But then, cold water poured over her, drenching her hair and uniform, and water ran down her back to the floor.
Groaning as the water helped reduce the burning sensation she felt all over, she raised her head weakly to see who had poured water on her.
She was startled to see the girl she had met the other day while looking for her locker.
Staring at her drenched uniform, Annabelle remained silent, still in shock from the unexpected drenching.
With her hands trembling due to how sick she felt, she squeezed out the water from her hair, and stood up, about to leave the classroom, but she got pulled back with a great force, causing her to lose her balance and fall roughly to the floor.
She yelped, another round of tears welling up in her eyes, while she cleaned off the dirt which was sticking to her wet uniform.
The pain from the markings prevented her from retaliating, despite her urge to beat the girl up. No one messes up with her to such an extent without being beaten up to pulp.
"Where do you think you're going, late bloomer?" the girl asked, while her side chick chuckled wickedly.
The girl's comment about being a late bloomer made Annabelle feel like the girl knew more than she should about her identity. She spoke with so much disgust, making Annabelle entertain the thought that she knew she was human.
Weakly, Annabelle asked, "What do you want from me?"
She wasn't in the mood of fighting, because if she was, she would have beaten the girl up to nonsense without caring if she was a werewolf.
"Bring the other pail of water, let's bathe her before we go straight to business," the girl said to her side chicks and they immediately passed her another pail of water which she took and emptied it on Annabelle.
Students were already gathered around the empty old gym room, recording with their phones and chatting, murmuring about taking over the once quiet room.
While staring at the floor, Annabelle heard when the girl still requested for another pail of water, making her frown.
What was she taking her for? It seems she needed to make someone understand that she was better than a late bloomer, and also better than her, a she-wolf.
Ignoring the taunts, within a swift movement, Annabelle slapped the girl hard on her cheeks, and the room fell silent, turning to a cemetery.
It felt as though the slap she gave her kept echoing in the room and ears of everyone.
"Like seriously?... what do you take me for?" Annabelle said, giving her another powerful slap, making the speechless students gasp.
"Did you just slap me twice?" the girl asked, holding her cheek while staring at Annabelle in rage and bewilderment. It seems she had expected Annabelle to be wussy.
"Oh, you don't believe it? Don't worry, I'll make you believe it," Annabell said before giving her another slap that was harder than the other slaps she had given her.
In retaliation, the girl pushed Annabelle against the wall, banging her head, and causing her to groan in pain. Annabelle hadn't expected such a quick move, and it made her feel as though she died and resurrected, because everything seemed blank to her for the moment.
Touching her head, she felt liquid on her hand and when she stared at it, it was blood.
Chuckling with pains clearly visible in her eyes, she stared at the girl who was holding her to the wall.
She then felt a dagger buried into her belly, and her eyes widened.
She froze, everything seemingly stopping dead, but a further side pull of the dagger, injuring her severely made her cry out in pain. All the students began screaming, some running away, making Annabelle feel weaker, and the pains from the marking weren't helping her either. Is this how she would finally die like her mum?
"Get off me!" Annabelle screamed and pushed her off her. She wrapped her hands around the dagger, and with a painful cry, she pulled it out from her belly.
She covered her bleeding lower abdomen, her uniform shirt soaked with blood and torn in the place she was stabbed, and she could see the cut on her bleeding stomach.
She loosened the buttons of her shirt, before taking it off and using it to wrap around her bleeding stomach, while crying silently. She does fight, but hasn't gotten such a grave injury. It was only Mirabelle that had stabbed her with a dagger before.
At the thought of a 'dagger', her eyes widened as she stared at the silver dagger she had been stabbed with. It was exactly the dagger that Mirabelle had used in stabbing her arms.
Could it be a coincidence, or could it be possible that Mirabelle was a werewolf?
Mirabelle was a new student in her school who was a bully. Was that why Alvin had told her that she wasn't safe in her human world?
Was that why Mirabelle had always been trying to pick up a fight with her? But why were they using the same dagger with red crystal in the middle of the handle?
Everything came to Annabelle as a blow, and her opponent sensing Annabelle distraction lurched forward, and pulled out the dagger from Annabelle's grasp, wanting to use it on her, but Annabelle was smart enough to evade it with pattern which she usually uses to evade the bottles thrown at her by her dad.
Standing properly, she rubbed the blood on her face as she closed her eyes trying to endure the pains she was feeling, since she was really in for a fight.
Opening her eyes, she glared daggers at her opponent who was coming dangerously after her, and she immediately knew that this wasn't bullying, it was more than that. She pushed her to the floor before she climbed on her and started doing what she could do best.
Ignoring the calls to stop, Annabelle fought back fiercely.
"This is for all those you've bullied," Annabelle said through gritted teeth as she licked off the blood from her bleeding lips, and continued throwing punches at her even when her fist was covered in blood.
Hearing a clicking sound, followed by a severe pain on Annabelles lower abdomen made her become at full alert and was quick to roll off the girl.
She was already in so much pain that she couldn't realize what had been done to her.
The girl's claws had elongated and she was about to scratch her.
Crawling backwards, she stared at the girl who was walking angrily towards her with her long and sharp claws.
The students around were really stupid not to hold that girl, seeing that she was a wild wolf and was about to kill Annabelle.
"Annabelle, run!!" she heard Jessica scream.
Turning to her left, she saw how Emily's friends were being held by other students from coming to rescue her from her already dug grave. It seems those were the community of bullies.
Staring in horror at how the claws of the girl were about scratching her, fearing for her life, Annabelle grabbed another wooden desk cover and hit the girl's hands, preventing a deadly scratch.
"I'll kill you Annabelle," she heard the girl hiss from her elongated fangs, and it frightened Annabelle.
It seems the wild she-wolf was in pain.
In pain and with a final attempt to harm Annabelle, picking up another wooden desk cover, Annabelle threw it at the girl and luckily, an unknown desk cover hit her head hard, making the girl groan before collapsing to the ground unconscious.
Getting up from the floor with the aid of the wall, Annabelle staggered out of the classroom with the students following behind her, leaving the unconscious girl laying on the floor.
"Annabelle, are you okay?" Jessica asked in fear as she followed the bleeding Annabelle.
"Isn't it obvious?" Annabelle replied as she walked out of the school exit door and was heading towards the main gate.
"None of you should follow me, If not I'll kill someone!" she yelled at all the students.
The teachers and security tried stopping her from leaving the school because it wouldn't bring a good name to their school if she is seen walking in such a condition with their uniform.
"If any of you touch me, I'll kill that person!!" Annabelle threatened as she staggered away, but the securities wouldn't still let her leave. Angrily, she took off her boots and threw them at them.
"Fools, that's what everyone I've met in this pack are!! None of you in this school are worthy to call on the name of the moon goddess," She yelled angrily at them, but didn't failed to notice the horrific expressions they had on their faces, and they suddenly stopped trying to stop her from leaving, and instead made way for her, before she walked out of the gate.
She also was startled by the boldness, it felt as though something else took control over her, but she had no idea that her pupils had dilated to a combination of colors, a rainbow color, which startled the securities.