I didn’t know where we were heading and neither Josie told me about how we were going to spend the night. Whenever I questioned her about it, she silenced me and told me it was a surprise and that I could only guess.
I grew frustrated after ten minutes and kept checking on my phone. The fear of my Mom waking up and finding me not at home forced me to stay attentive and awake.
Timothy drove fast and hard, he swerved across the empty roads and reached the highway that led people out of Shakville.
“Why are we leaving town?” I asked Josie, jumping forward and in between them both. My heart stuttered and began ramming hard in my chest. We couldn’t leave the town.
“Because the town is boring. Trust me, you’ll have a lot more fun where I am taking you.” She giggled a bit while turning to me. “Don’t stress. You want to have fun and not worry about your mother?”
I nodded, “Yeah.”
The only thing that stopped me from having any fun was Mom. She wanted me to study hard and get the top grades across the town. She wanted me to enter some good college and get at the top of that as well. She wanted me to over-achieve. She had spent her entire life forcing me to become the best and for the most part I did.
I got amazing grades throughout high school. There was a drawer in my house dedicated to all the certificates I had won. I had excelled in everything and Mom helped me for the most part but when she learned about the nightmares and the hallucinations, she became as terrified as I was.
But for her, it was like a dent in a new car. She tried to find anything to explain whatever was happening with me but after a year of trying hard, there was still no explanation.
I took my medicines, went to the therapist, and followed her orders for the most part but it didn’t change anything.
Maybe this was going to.
Maybe Josie was right and that I needed to see the world than being cooped up in my bedroom and studying all the time.
It was dark outside. Barely any cars or headlights could be seen from a distance. Timothy drove for miles and miles, taking us somewhere I didn’t know. I tried not to worry much about it. My parents were asleep and they weren’t going to wake up until later in the morning. I had plenty of time on my hands to do whatever I wanted, with my friends, and return back home without being caught.
“Can someone please tell me where we are going?” I asked out of complete curiosity rather than fear. My head turned toward the window of the car and outside, I found us passing by a forest before entering a residential area.
Where were we?
“Someplace. You’re going to love it!” Josie claimed, twisting her neck a little. “We are going into Wolfwater. It’s a bigger town with much more things to do and places to go. Plus, it has one of the best scenery in the morning.” She spilled a bit more.
Hmm. This was certainly interesting and something new. I couldn’t wait to explore this.
I had never left Shakville, my hometown, so this was a new adventure for me. The farthest I had reached was with my parents. We headed over to this lakehouse near the town perimeters and crashed there for a while with our cousins when I was young. I didn’t have much memory of it since it was all a blur for me.
Timothy crossed by a large board, entering another town called Wolfwater. I drew the windows down, feeling the air against my skin, and then I realized it was a lot colder here, somewhat threatening. There was a tightness in my chest that appeared and no matter what I tried, it didn’t go.
I grew nervous and checked my phone over and over again, keeping count of every minute we were.
It was thirty minutes past midnight. We had been on road for thirty minutes before Timothy bought a halt to his car in front of a…club.
I blinked once more, readjusting my vision before my eyes wandered over the name of the club and the neon headboard on the top that flashed repeatedly.
The Night Wolf Club.
I couldn’t believe that Josie had bought me here, “You are taking me to a club?” I asked her with my eyes as wide as they could be. “I can’t drink!” I exclaimed in disbelief while shaking my head and giving her a death stare for what she had just done.
“Come on,” She slammed her hand around my wrist and tightened it. “It’s just one night and you’re definitely coming with us. No one is going to know and we are not going to force you to drink. Just party.”
“My Mom’s going to murder me…” I trailed off, hoping she would remember who my Mom was and what she would do with me if she knew that I had come to a club, after sneaking out of the house.
She wouldn’t let me live for another day.
My heart thudded hard and my frown deepened. Josie continued to make sense with me. “It’s just one night. No one’s going to know. We won’t tell your Mom and we will be out of here in just an hour. You need to have fun.” She continued before her lower lip puckered out and she began pleading. “Please. Please.” Her hands rose, collecting into a ball in front of her chest.
“Okay.” I rolled my eyes and sighed. “Just an hour. Promise?”
“Yes. Come on now and lose that jacket.” She hopped out of the car along with Timothy.
Lowering my head, I glanced at my gray cardigan and furrowed my brows together. What was wrong with it? I pulled it closer to myself, feeling warmth crawl into my skin. It was cold enough here to not go anywhere without a jacket or cardigan.
Once Timothy killed off the engine, we began walking toward the Club that was wide open at this time of the night. There was music blasting inside and even some of it outside. Hundred’s of people were walking in and out, some sweaty and some drunk but all of them exhilarated.
It was a different vibe here—a rough, wild one.
I could feel the beat of my heart quickening at the thought of stepping inside the club and going against all Mom’s rules.
“But I’m not even twenty-one,” I whispered to Josie as we slipped into the small line outside of the club. “How are we going to get inside?” For the longest, I thought we needed to be an adult to get into a club.
“You just need to be eighteen. There aren’t many restrictions here. Timothy and I come here every other week and it’s fantastic.” She replied.
I swallowed hard and waited for the line to come to an end. Meanwhile waiting, I felt a strong wave of wind pass by me. It chilled me down to my core. My hair flew ahead and I quickly grabbed it before rolling it behind my head. Something felt odd here and I couldn’t understand what it was.
Josie and Timothy weren’t worried as I was. Instead, they were all prepped to party and dance the whole night away while I was tightened up and concerned about every little thing.
When I rose my head and looked up at the sky, I found hundreds of heavy clouds scattered in the sky, and when a few of them moved, the full moon illuminated and lit the night sky.
Tonight was going to be different.