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Before I get a chance to respond, he turns and walks off at a brisk pace, leaving me wondering what he means by that.
I will get answers from my father. Hopefully he’ll get to come home at some point tonight. When he does, I will not let him get away until he talks to me. I need answers—about me, about Parker, and how my dad has anything to do with it.
After locking the front door, I head to my room to change out of my school clothes and get into something comfortable for the night. I head to the kitchen for a snack, then settle into the living room for a long night alone.
Sometime in the middle of the night, I wake up with a crick in my neck. A sock that is still on my knitting needles sits on my lap. I push it aside, getting up front the couch. I’m about to head up the stairs when I hear something outside—shuffling in the leaves. I make my way to the window, peeking out.
I gasp as I see a lone wolf, standing at the edge of the driveway. Its amber eyes are looking right at me. It stands absolutely still as it watches me. I look back, curious about what it’s doing here.
Are wolves even native to this area?
The wolf has a black coat. If the wolf wasn’t standing under the pole light in our yard, I wouldn’t even see it. The wolf would blend into the shadows.
Part of me wants to go outside, but that would be really dumb.
Before I can contemplate it too long, another wolf walks up beside it. It nudges the first wolf. Finally, the wolf looks away from me and the two wolves run off together.
Okay, that was really strange.
I let the curtain close and then head upstairs to my bedroom. It takes me a while to go to sleep, but when I do, I dream of wolves.
The next morning, I wake up early, unable to sleep. I look out the window and am disappointed when I see that Dad’s SUV is still gone. I quickly get a shower and head downstairs, hoping he’ll come home soon.
As I’m making some toast, I hear the front door open.
“Dad?” I yell, then run toward the living room.
Dad walks in, looking completely worn out. There are bags under his eyes.
“Are you okay?” I ask him.
“Yes. It was just a long night,” he mumbles.
“Okay. Well, maybe we can talk after school today?” I ask.
“You’re not going to school today,” he tells me, then heads toward his room.
I’m not going to school today?
I pull my phone out of my pocket to text Parker when I see that I already have a text from him.
PARKER:I’m not going to school today—neither are you. I’ll see you this afternoon.
This is weird. Then again, my whole life is weird.
I head back into the kitchen to grab my breakfast. I’m disappointed that I won’t be seeing Parker until later, but at least I get to see him.
After I put my plate in the dishwasher, I head to the living room. I pull out my headphones to listen to an audiobook so I don’t disturb my dad and I start knitting Parker’s socks again.
I mindlessly knit, passing the time. It isn’t until my stomach growls that I realize it’s after one o’clock.
I wonder if Parker would mind me showing up at his house. I was going to wait to get answers from my dad, but he’s been in his room, sound asleep. He was likely up all night at the hospital, so I don’t want to disturb him. But Parkerknows. And I’m tired of waiting for answers.
I slip on my shoes and start walking toward Parker’s house.
I pull my cardigan tighter around myself as the wind blows. In New York, it’s still hot this time of year. But I love the mountain air, even if it’ll probably be cold this winter.
As I walk, I consider what Parker will say. If he decides to talk to me—and that’s a bigif—what will he say? He can’t read minds, I know that. But what if he tells me I’m an alien?
