CHAPTER 13

Max picked out a dress that fit her perfectly. It was a white dress that she paired with Converse. He did her makeup carefully too.

"I don't know how you can put makeup on me so well," she said, looking at him in the mirror. He made her even more beautiful.

"When you have a cousin like Eleanor and a mother who is in love with fashion, well, you learn to," he smirked as he finished braiding her hair.

He had high academic scores, was nice, and was the captain of the soccer team. He was really good at treating her well, and he knew about all the things that a woman loved.

"He doesn't deserve a freak like me," she thought.

"What are you thinking about, Jay?" he whispered and pushed the braid aside to kiss her shoulder softly.

"Nothing. I was just thinking about how amazing you are," she said with a smile.

"Oh, baby, you are more amazing than me," he cooed and pecked her on the cheek. He didn't want to ruin her makeup. He didn't put on that much makeup anyway. She was naturally beautiful.

"If you think so." She shrugged and grabbed her bag.

"Thank you, Max, for this." She blushed and licked her lips. Max grabbed her chin softly and placed his lips on hers, unable to control his urges.

"You're welcome. You better thank me in another way," he said, thinking of the bad things he wanted to do to her. Even his wolf was getting hard.

"Well, that will be later. I have to go. Eleanor is waiting for me." She winked at Max and went downstairs with him. The house was quiet for the first time. Darby went back to his campus, and her father went to work while her mom was sleeping.

"Where is the music festival? Maybe when I have time, I can join you," Max suggested.

"Eleanor said it's next to the forest," she said, worried. She had heard about glamours, which were creatures that killed innocent people when they were partying. But she didn't know if they were fake or not.

Max tensed up beside her. He was worried about them going to the forest. He would make sure that a warrior was behind them, or maybe Keaton should be here. He would call him later.

He sighed and looked at his mate. "Alright, be careful, baby."

"Don't worry. There will be no trouble," she said confidently. He chuckled and cupped her cheek.

"I mean it, Jayla. Don't you dare do things that will put you in danger. If you sense any danger, please call me or Giovanni, alright?"

"Don't worry, Max," she said, shrugging it off.

"I'm serious, Jayla," he said sternly.

"Okay, I understand," she said quietly.

"Good girl," he said and kissed her on the forehead.

"Hey, Max. Mother was worried about you," Giovanni said behind them. They turned to him and gasped as they saw what he was wearing.

"Seriously, man, you don't have fashion sense," Max insulted him.

"How dare you? I look good," he said, flashing Jayla a smile. She laughed. He was wearing brown pants and a flashy yellow shirt.

"I tried to tell him that he doesn't look good, but whatever. He didn't listen to me," Eleanor said as she stepped out of the driver's seat and rolled her eyes. She was so pretty. She wore a grey bodysuit with glitter, and her hair was in a tight bun.

"Exactly," Peyton said from the backseat.

"Oh, my goodness! Honey, you look so good. Ready to snatch some boys?" She snapped her fingers in a sassy way, which Max didn't like and growled.

"Calm down, possessive man. I'm not going to let her do that," Giovanni said, huffing.

"I hope so, or else," he threatened, glaring at Eleanor, who only smiled.

He looked at Jayla. He couldn't help but kiss those pouty lips. She blushed instantly and pushed him away after he was done kissing her.

"Anyway, caveman, let her go." Giovanni gestured for Jayla to get into the car.

"Alright then. Have fun, baby, and be careful," Max said as Jayla rolled down the window of the car.

"See you later, Max." She waved goodbye, and Eleanor started to drive.

"Bitch, it's time for fun!" Eleanor yelled.

"Don't fucking yell while driving!" Giovanni scolded.

Jayla chuckled at their bickering.

***

"Are you having fun?" Giovanni asked Jayla as she danced.

"Yeah, I'm going to grab a drink," she said in his ear.

"Alrighty, come back quickly!" he replied, and she nodded, going back to the bar.

The festival was fun like she imagined. She was enjoying her time with Giovanni, Eleanor, and Peyton. She couldn't stop laughing about Eleanor spilling her ice cream on someone's pants.

She sighed happily as she looked around at her surroundings. Everyone was having fun and enjoying the music. She smiled when she spotted Eleanor, Giovanni, and Peyton recording a TikTok. She laughed when Giovanni bumped into a girl. He tucked his hair behind his ear, flirting with the girl.

Jayla cringed and looked away from him. She looked at the forest that was behind her. It was beautiful, dark, and mysterious. It captivated her. But then, she remembered the glamours and Max's words. She didn't want to worry Max.

Nonetheless, it still captivated her.

It was like someone was calling her to go into the forest.

"Jayla!" a voice yelled, cutting into her thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm here!" she answered, turning her head to the voice. She smiled when she saw Nolan and Tanner.

"Hey, guys!" she said.

"Hi, Jay! What are you doing here?" Tanner asked as they hugged each other.

"Well, I'm here with my friends. What about you guys?" she asked.

"Same. I'm happy that you finally found friends." Nolan smiled softly.

"I'm so happy. Sorry that I don't hang out with you guys," she said, scratching the back of her neck.

"It's alright. At least we have one dumb person out of our group," Tanner chuckled.

"Asshole." Nolan flicked Tanner's forehead with his fingers.

"Fucking dick," he snarled.

"Seriously, Tanner, don't you have anything other than dick insults?" Jayla asked, interrupting them.

"Well, dick is more appropriate for insulting someone." Tanner smirked, and Nolan rolled his eyes.

"Thank God, I'm not around you guys," she muttered.

"Anyway, we are going to play hide and seek in the forest. Wanna come with us?" Nolan asked Jayla sweetly. She shook her head with a smile.

"Nope."

"Why not? Are you a scaredy-cat?" Tanner retorted.

"No, dummy. You guys are supposed to be seniors, and you want to play hide and seek in the woods. Are you five?" she asked with a hand on her hips.

"Exactly. It's our last year in high school. So let's have fun," Nolan suggested.

"I don't think so. Besides, apparently, there are creatures in the forest waiting for a human body to eat," Jayla said with a glint of mischief. Tanner shuddered.

"Man, you're not scared, right?" Nolan asked Tanner after seeing him shudder.

"No, dude. I'm cool," he said and glared at Jayla, who only smiled.

"Anyway, we are going. If you want to join us, we are in the middle of the C section, alright?" Nolan said, and Jayla nodded.

"Have fun in the woods," she smirked and waved at Tanner slowly as they walked into the woods with some other seniors.

She smiled and laughed.

"It was easy to scare him," she thought.

The woods were divided into three sections: A, B, and C. The A section was the entrance of the woods, the B section was where the music festival was held, which was the safest place, and the C section was the most likely to be dangerous.

"You want to go to the C section? Apparently, there is a hide and seek game there," Jayla heard a girl saying to her friend.

"I don't know. I'm scared, to be honest," the other replied. The girl that was saying this looked at Jayla, and she smiled.

"Hey, want to go with us?" she asked. Jayla remembered her; she was in her art class.

"What about the glamours?" Jayla said.

"What glamours? Please don't say you're scared," she mocked her and went to follow the other seniors.

"Do you want to go with me?" the other girl asked Jayla, who nodded silently. She couldn't help but follow them since that girl only made it worse for her.

"You can follow me. I know where the C section is." She smiled kindly, and Jayla wondered why she was hanging out with that other rude girl.

They walked in and followed the seniors who were gathered in the middle of the C section. The girl went to her friends when she found them. Jayla walked over to Nolan and Tanner, who were talking with their soccer mates.

"Oy, oy, look who we have here," Tanner sang.

"Shut the fuck up, Tanner. One word out of your mouth, and you are dead." She glared at him.

"Hey, calm down, feisty princess. I'm glad you are here with us," Nolan said with a kind smile.

"Yeah." She shrugged.

"If everyone is ready, then let's play the game," Nolan's friend yelled to everyone. There were 20 people ready to play the stupid game. Usually, Jayla wouldn't play a game like this, but curiosity got her attention.

"Alright, there will be two seekers, and everyone else is going hide. Anyone who is found needs to go back to the music festival. Put your names on the board so that we don't lose you," a guy said, handing out a board.

"The seekers will wear a red headband so that you will recognize them. When they find you, tell the organizer your name. The winner will be the last person left in the woods, and they will win $500," he continued with a smile. Jayla felt safe since the game was controlled. She was relieved that it wasn't a bunch of idiots who organized this. But still, it was dangerous to play this game in the woods.

"You can go and hide anywhere. There are no limits since the C section is very large," another man spoke up.

"Let's get into the rules!" the first man yelled. "So basically, there are no partners. Everyone is on their own. If the seekers catch you working together, you are out of the game. This is just a game, not a survival game, alright? We don't want anyone to go to the hospital. We will send you a signal when the game is finished, so the winner can come back to the festival with a proud smile."

Jayla nodded as she listened to the rules. It was okay and safe since a bunch of morons wouldn't hurt anyone for 500 bucks.

"We already chose our seekers. The game starts now, so you can go hide!" the man shouted as he shot a gun up into the sky.

Jayla and the others started to run. She knew the surroundings very well, so she would find a place where no one would find her.

She wanted the money to buy an iPhone case for her phone and AirPods because she was broke, and nobody wanted to buy them for her. Also, her mother forbade her from working since she was only 16 and needed to focus on her studies.

As soon as she found a place, she jumped into the tree and watched the scenery of the woods. It was beautiful. It looked dangerous but also gorgeous.

She hummed a song softly while nodding her head along. The spot that she was hiding in was her secret spot since kindergarten. She remembered that she always used to go fishing here with her brother and father.

One day, when she was six, she got lost in the woods and found this spot. She was crying and frustrated because she was alone, but suddenly, a dark midnight black wolf came into the woods. It was a big wolf with a mark of the moon on it. He was beautiful, and Jayla fell in love with the wolf.

The little girl trusted the wolf, and he guided her, helping her find her parents. The wolf let her sit on his back, and the wolf ran at full speed to the spot where her brother and her father were fishing.

Jayla gasped as she remembered kissing the wolf's cheek for helping her. In return, the wolf licked her cheek. She giggled and waved at the wolf with a sad smile. As the wolf reluctantly left her, she whispered, "I love you."