Too Much Fun

CHAPTER 2: Too Much Fun

~ WILLOW ~

I know he isn’t husband material. Eventually, my heart is bound to get broken by him. I shut the packhouse door and attempted to tiptoe through the dining hall and up the stairs to my room. I was halted in my tracks when I heard a voice call me out.

“Having a bit too much fun?” Beta Tanner. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“Oh whatever! It’s not like you haven’t partied too hard in your lifetime. I know you're old now, but I bet you were a hell of a lot of fun back in the day.” I held back my laugh. I know exactly how to get Tanner worked up. I looked at him sporting his almost ready to combust face.

“Back in the DAY! How old do you think I am? Don’t even answer that! Get your ass to bed before your father finds out how late you were out. If he asks, you got home at 12:00am.” I nodded my head to Tanner. He is more like a big brother to me. He covers for me a lot. I proceed to climb the stairs to my room.

I shut the door to my room and ran to the bathroom. I started dry heaving over the toilet. I shouldn’t have had that last shot. Drake insisted that I could handle it. He was wrong, and more often than not I wish I would have listened to my better judgment. I rinsed my mouth, then brushed my teeth. I’m not able to tolerate the taste of vomit. Stripping off my clothes I step into my shower. Hoping the hot flow of water would wash away the feelings of shame I can never seem to escape. I took a deep breath and sighed; my mind wandered back to earlier today when my mother reminded me about the trip tomorrow. My parents want me to go with them tomorrow to the Mythical lands. I haven’t been there in so many years. I didn’t want to go tomorrow either, but it is the prince's 23rd birthday. If there is any way for me to get out of it, I am going to though. Drake didn’t like the idea of me visiting the Mythical Lands either. I think he has a distaste for the dragons. Maybe it’s the fact that my parents have wanted me to date the dragon prince since we were teenagers. I haven’t even seen Jaxon since he was 12 years old. He was always a good boy. Goddess knows that I would only tarnish his good boy reputation. Not many guys can handle me, and I don’t find good boys attractive. I need someone who dares to defy, like me. I told Drake about tomorrow night being the prince’s birthday. He wanted me to just sneak out and come stay with him for a while. I couldn’t do that. If my parents really wanted to, they could have a witch track me.

~The Next Morning~

“Willow, come on we are going to be late!” My mother said through our mind link. I rolled my eyes and threw the covers off me. I don’t ever remember having a hangover this bad, my head is busting right now. I walk to my wardrobe and put on the first thing I could find, night pants, and a T-shirt that doesn’t match. I tossed my hair into a messy bun. I walked out my bedroom door.

“I don’t even know why I need to leave home to go with you two. I am more than capable of staying here by myself!”

“Because Willow! It’s the prince’s birthday and you haven’t seen him since he was 12! You refused to go with us to the Mythical Lands the last 10 times we have visited. You are going with us this time. They are great friends and allies, Willow. Your mother and I want you to get to know them better. You’re going to have too soon rather than later.” My father said to me,

“AHHH! I don’t even know what this guy looks like! It’s going to be completely awkward!”

“Enough Willow!” My dad used his Lycan voice on me. I hate when he does that! I crossed my arms and tapped my foot. “You are going and that is final!”

“FINE!” I slammed my bedroom door and walked out to get in the SUV that was waiting for us at the packhouse entrance. I didn’t even bother to take a much-needed shower. I don’t even care right now. My dad pulled out of the driveway and my mind wandered back to a time I had long forgotten.

*** Remembering, 10 years ago ***

~ Young Willow ~

“Come on mona! I wanna go swimming in the river.” I said, looking over at her.

“I’m coming, Willow. I just need to finish changing.” She replied to me.

“Willow, make sure Jaxon goes with you two. He is older and I trust him to know what to do if something happens,” my mother said to me.

“I’ll take care of her, Harper. No need to worry.” My mother smiled at him. I rolled my eyes. I wanted to sneak off to the caves, but I knew that was out of the question now. There’s no way that Jaxon would let us go without telling my parents.

“I know you will Jaxon, you’re a good boy.” Tired of this conversation, I walked toward the front door. Jaxon ran past me and grabbed the door to open it before I could. He was always trying to be a gentleman. Even though he is only a preteen. He was always a little too nice, and it just annoyed me. He always wanted to follow the rules and stay out of trouble. I am the complete opposite. I like to press my luck, and rules are made to be broken.

“This way my lady.” He said as he held out his elbow for me to take it. I kept walking past him. I heard him sigh.

“Jaxon, how many times have I told you not to call me that? It makes me feel old!” I said.

We all walked outside and mounted the dragon who was waiting to fly us to the river. Because I am not as experienced at flying as Jaxon, he sat behind me to make sure I didn’t fall off. I always love when I get to fly on the back of a dragon. It’s such a rush! One day, I want to stand on one’s back and dive off as we are high in the sky. I would have to trust the dragon I was with to catch me though. I am a dare devil, but I am not suicidal.

Once we arrived at the river, Mona and I didn’t wait around. We pulled our swimsuit covers over our heads and ran for the water. Jaxon didn’t follow us. He just watched us from the riverbank. I have so much fun playing with all the unusual creatures we don’t see back at our pack territory. Some are really funny; I love the stories Beta Tanner tells me about the time he and father ventured out to meet the dragons for the first time. I notice that Jaxon is distracted by something, and I motion for Mona to follow me. I dive deep and hold my breath. I want to swim as far away from him as I can without him seeing me. Mona and I resurface on the other side of the river. I looked and saw Jaxon pacing back and forth on the riverbank shouting our names. I giggled and proceeded to make my way to the caves.

“If he could shift already, we would be in trouble.” Mona laughed. It took us about ten minutes to reach the caves. Everything was dark here. “Willow, I don’t think we should go in there.” Mona said while grabbing my arm.

“It’s fine Mona, don’t be such a baby.”

We slowly made our way into the dark and dank cave. Water dripped from the ceiling, and I could smell decay. Something must be dead here. I wasn’t paying attention when my foot struck an object and I tripped. I landed on the ground. When I opened my eyes, I was face to face with a lifeless woman. Mona and I both screamed, I quickly jumped up and we ran back to the cave entrance. Before we could exit, we were blocked by what looked to be a vampire. Mona was shaking next to me, but I was no coward.

“Let us pass!” I shouted. The vampire grinned at me. His sharp fangs were already bloody from his most recent kill.

“Now why would I do that? Your blood smells…” He paused. “Delicious.” He licked his lips and approached us. I only started training with my parents last year. I know there’s no way I can take on a full-grown vampire myself. Mona doesn’t know how to fight. Oh, how I wish I would have listened to my mother. The vampire reached me in the blink of an eye. He lifted me by my throat. Mona screamed, and I shut my eyes. If I die, I will not give him the satisfaction of letting him hear me beg for my life. He was going to suck me dry regardless of my pleading. I kicked my legs and clawed at his hands in an attempt to force him to release me. It was no use; he was much stronger than me. Suddenly, the vampire let me go and I fell to the cave floor. I opened my eyes to see Jaxon facing off with the vampire.

“Willow, Mona, run now!” I can’t leave him. This is all my fault. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Jaxon moved like a warrior who was well seasoned in combat. One that wouldn’t be easy to take down. He is only 12 or is it 13 I can’t remember. The vampire launched himself at Jaxon. Jaxon leaned down and the vampire rolled over his back. Jaxon swiftly raised up and slid through the vamp’s legs and kicked him in the back. This caused the vampire to land face first on the ground. Jaxon didn’t hesitate, he ran over and placed his hands on each side of the vampire’s head and quickly snapped his neck. I looked at Jaxon in awe. Where did he learn to fight like that? Mona ran to her cousin and threw her arms around his neck. She looked back at me.

“Well, what else did you expect from our future dragon king?” I shook my head.

“Not that! Thank you, Jaxon.” I said as I slowly and shamefully walked past him. I knew I was going to get severely punished by my parents once they heard about this.

“Willow?” I looked back as Jaxon spoke to me. “I won’t tell your parents, but please don’t ever do anything like this again. You really don’t know what kind of trouble you can get yourself into.” I smiled at him. This time I couldn’t help it. I ran toward him, and he grabbed me up and gave me a protective hug.

*** END FLASHBACK ***