I'm haunted by ghosts.

Not the Casper kind or even floating bodies of the deceased, but wolves of the past and present.

Every night they howl and beckon me to join them and every night, my wolf refuses to emerge. Before Dad died, he always said since I was a late bloomer my wolf might be too. Yet with my twentieth birthday only two months away, it doesn't seem like I'll ever be able to shift any time soon. If I can't become a wolf, the

community will reject me and I'll be on

my own. How can I leave though when

my father is buried here? When there

are a handful of good memories of my

childhood before the pressure to shift

and severely failing punch inside me

with every heartbeat.

I jog up the well-worn path in the woods from our town. Not even being out here in nature calls my wolf to the surface, but it doesn't stop me from trying.Wolf Heart

I'm haunted by ghosts.

Not the Casper kind or even floating bodies of the deceased, but wolves of the past and present.

Every night they howl and beckon me to join them and every night, my wolf refuses to emerge. Before Dad died, he always said since I was a late bloomer my wolf might be too. Yet with my twentieth birthday only two months away, it doesn't seem like I'll ever be able to shift any time soon. If I can't become a wolf, the

community will reject me and I'll be on

my own. How can I leave though when

my father is buried here? When there

are a handful of good memories of my

childhood before the pressure to shift

and severely failing punch inside me

with every heartbeat.

I jog up the well-worn path in the woods from our town. Not even being out here in nature calls my wolf to the surface, but it doesn't stop me from trying.Wolf Heart

I'm haunted by ghosts.

Not the Casper kind or even floating bodies of the deceased, but wolves of the past and present.

Every night they howl and beckon me to join them and every night, my wolf refuses to emerge. Before Dad died, he always said since I was a late bloomer my wolf might be too. Yet with my twentieth birthday only two months away, it doesn't seem like I'll ever be able to shift any time soon. If I can't become a wolf, the

community will reject me and I'll be on

my own. How can I leave though when

my father is buried here? When there

are a handful of good memories of my

childhood before the pressure to shift

and severely failing punch inside me

with every heartbeat.

I jog up the well-worn path in the woods from our town. Not even being out here in nature calls my wolf to the surface, but it doesn't stop me from tryingWolf Heart

I'm haunted by ghosts.

Not the Casper kind or even floating bodies of the deceased, but wolves of the past and present.

Every night they howl and beckon me to join them and every night, my wolf refuses to emerge. Before Dad died, he always said since I was a late bloomer my wolf might be too. Yet with my twentieth birthday only two months away, it doesn't seem like I'll ever be able to shift any time soon. If I can't become a wolf, the

community will reject me and I'll be on

my own. How can I leave though when

my father is buried here? When there

are a handful of good memories of my

childhood before the pressure to shift

and severely failing punch inside me

with every heartbeat.

I jog up the well-worn path in the woods from our town. Not even being out here in nature calls my wolf to the surface, but it doesn't stop me from trying.Wolf Heart

I'm haunted by ghosts.

Not the Casper kind or even floating bodies of the deceased, but wolves of the past and present.

Every night they howl and beckon me to join them and every night, my wolf refuses to emerge. Before Dad died, he always said since I was a late bloomer my wolf might be too. Yet with my twentieth birthday only two months away, it doesn't seem like I'll ever be able to shift any time soon. If I can't become a wolf, the

community will reject me and I'll be on

my own. How can I leave though when

my father is buried here? When there

are a handful of good memories of my

childhood before the pressure to shift

and severely failing punch inside me

with every heartbeat.

I jog up the well-worn path in the woods from our town. Not even being out here in nature calls my wolf to the surface, but it doesn't stop me from trying Wolf Heart

Once I chased a rabbit, hoping to bring out my animal side, and got a mouthful of dirt when I tripped over a tree root for my trouble.

My whole life, I've dreamed of becoming a wolf and not feeling like an outcast. To truly belong to the pack and not have mothers jerk their kids away if they venture too close to me. To find a partner who will accept and love me. Someone I can race through the forest with and have a family. Tell our children the same stories my dad used to tell me.

To finally feel like I belong as a member of a pack and fellow werewolf.

Would my wolf have blue fur, matching my hair? Many of the dark-haired people in our pack became dark wolves or at least have  parts of dark

fur on them and light-haired people are white or gray wolves.

Dad had named me Jessica as I was born with this turquoise-colored hair. Half of our people said it was a sign I would be a unique wolf and the other half thought it was a curse.

With the years flying past and no transformation, the majority of the pack sided with me being a bad omen. Their rejection makes me feel like I'm slowly suffocating inside. Like I'll never be whole, never be accepted, no matter how hard I try.

I swallow down the painful lump forming in my throat and head to the river. I spot five werewolves heading my way with the town's bully in the lead and my stomach drops into my worn-out sneakers.

"Hey, Jessie," Casey shouts. I'm already dreading what he's going to say.

His dark-brown hair hangs long, past his shoulders. His eyes, like the rest of us, are silvery-gray and not always friendly. He wears a T-shirt 

that shows off his muscles and jeans that are two sizes too tight. Like he's trying to make his dick look bigger by having the material pressing against his bulge. All it accomplishes though is making him bowlegged.

"You gonna shift tonight or stay on your two spindly legs like a moron."

Heat crawls up my neck, spreading across my cheeks. I hate the nickname Casey gave me; it makes me sound so... weak. I'd do anything to shift, even give up my humanity in a heartbeat if it meant knowing what it felt like to be a wolf.

I look past him, hoping I'll see someone who can help me out.

No luck. He's got his usual wolf-pup groupies with him who won't lift a tail unless he says so. I am so screwed. If he weren't so big, I'd throat-punch him for all the times he's made my life miserable.

"Come on, Jessie," he says. "I know you can do it."

I am so screwed. If he weren't so big, I'd throat-punch him for all the times he's made my life miserable.

"Come on, Jessie," he says. "I know you can do it."Maybe tomorrow," I call back. "I'm pretty tired."

"Come on," Casey's strides eat up the distance between us.

He's too close for me to make a run for it. Even in human form, he's faster because he's a werewolf whereas I'm a wannabe. My gut clutches and a blush prickles my cheeks. It's one more slap in the face that I'm lacking.

"Is it that you're worried your wolf will be scrawny like you? Don't be such a pussy."

"Why are you here?" I sound childish, but Casey has a way of bringing out the worst in me. "Seriously, if you're here to gloat, please leave."

"No need to be so defensive, Jessica . Casey chuckles and it's a devious sound. "You need to learn how to deal with the heat. Maybe you need a good fuck to bring out your wolf."

"Or we can just go back to our homes," I say, frustrated by his presence and trying to ignore his sexual taunting. Not like I've never been with a guy before. I lost my virginity at sixteen to a visiting werewolf from another pack. Then had sex again with two other guys