Being in collage was something she enjoyed. Being away for awhile made her relax a bit. There wasn't anyone keeping an eye on her all the time. There wasn't anyone watching her every move. Winter felt free to say the least, she felt like a bird that had been freed from its cage. Don't get her wrong she loves her family but she felt like she would suffocate if she stays there longer.

After her classes she usually hanged out with her friends, but she haven't talked to them. Maybe she didn't had to run away from them. Winter didn't want to admit it but she was terrified of them walking away from her, so she wasn't sure why she did it to them. She sat in her dorm room watching tv but found herself not focusing at all. Her mind kept drifting back to the night she walked off on her own. Not completely alone and maybe that was why they were angry. Maybe if she didn't walk away with Arculus they wouldn't be so angry. She just wanted to talk it out look mature humans would do but Winter couldn't push her pride at the side.

Her roommate barged in with a bag filled with food. Isabelle smiled at her and gestured her to eat with her. "Come bella my mom made some food for us." She said happily and placed the food on the table. "I swear Winter you would never taste better food than this." A smile plastered across her face, Winter loved her smile. "Mexican food is the best." Winter sang happily and Isabelle laughed. "Always mami always." She told her and pulled her brown hair up in a bun.

They at in silence and she enjoyed the silence, but she didn't want to be left alone with her thoughts. Winter stared at her screen for what seemed like 5 minutes.

"Are you going to call or stare at it until sunrise?" Isabelle asked her and took a bite off her food.

"It's not that I don't want to call Isa, it's just that I don't know if I should." Winter told her honestly and kept on staring at her phone screen.

"Argument?" Isabelle asked with raised eyebrows and Winter nodded. "Maybe you both need time to think it through?" She told Winter unsure since she didn't know what the argument was about.

"If you want to take your mind off things, there is this party later at night. If you want to tag along you can." Isabelle's smile always found its way back on her face. It was like she was always happy no matter what. Winter liked that about her, she could use some positive energy around her.

Isabelle later on left her room since she and her boyfriend had made plans. She found herself being all alone in her room once again. Until something hard hit her window. Winter looked trough her window to see if a bird broke its wing, but she was shocked when she saw his eyes staring back at her. Brown eyes that could be mistaken for black, she didn't know how to react. She hadn't seen Arculus in a while too.

"Why didn't you take the stairs and knocked at my door like normal people do?" She asked him jokingly and he ignored her statement completely by looking around her dorm room. Her heartbeat raising every second that went by. Winter still found herself being a little scared.

"W-why didn't you just teleport or something?" She asked him and a small smile made its way into his face. "You're able to teleport right? What are you again?" She asked him with raised eyebrows but his lips remained in a thin line. "You need permission to enter other people territory?" Winter kept asking questions and it made him laugh how humans came up with stories about them.

"I didn't want to suddenly appear in your room." He told her truthfully without removing his eyes from her. Winter nodded her head at her and sat down on her bed. "Arculus." She called out to him and smiled again. "You can come in." She told him and took her phone in her hands again.

The silence that surrounded them made her feel some type of way. The way he was staring at her made her feel some type of way too. Maybe being in a room with something that isn't even human and that could easily kill her off wasn't a smart idea. In fact Winter never made smart ideas. Arculus rose up from her bed and looked out the window. She could see the way his eyes switched again. The way his brown eyes switched to its original color. She tried to brush it off and focused on her phone again. Arculus sat back down on her bed.

"Are you feeling okay?" Arculus wasn't even facing her but stared at the brown door that would lead you to the hallway.

"What?" She asked him completely confused.

"Your thoughts are all over the place." He told her simply and looked at her.

"What do you mean all over the place? Wait-" Winter stood up from her bed and took a good look at him. "Y-you can read minds?" She asked him scared.

"I wouldn't put it that way." Arculus wasn't sure if what he was doing was okay. Letting her know what he was capable of wasn't a smart idea. He was supposed to be hidden, to stay in the dark. Yet here he was in a bright room with a bright person. The spirits wouldn't approve of this and he knew that, but he couldn't just walk away from her.

Her heartbeat raised and she took steps back when she saw the way his eyes switched again. Winter thought she was prepared. She thought that since she had seen him that night in the forest, completely different from how he is know. That she wouldn't be so terrified. She thought that not much could creep her out anymore, but her heart was beating so fast. She was sure he could her it too. She wanted him to stay away from her.

"Arculus?" She whispers and was surprised that he even heard her.

"I know I'm already going." Arculus walked towards the window.

"Wait What? Why?" Winter tried to calm herself down.

"Because you wanted me too." He told her and glanced at her. His eyes a red shade glowing brightly and Winter was fascinated. "If you do want me around, just call my name." He grinned and than he disappeared.

It seemed like she stood a good 10 minutes in the same spot. Even when Isabelle returned and saw her standing there still in shock. Winter saw his eyes changing from brown to a red shade. It reminded her from when she was in the woods. The way he lost control of himself and wanted her to run away. It made her shiver and Isa noticed.

"You saw a ghost or something?" Isa asked her while looking through her closet.

"I think even worse." She mumbled under her breath.

"Anyway, If you are coming with me which you are. You better get ready." She told her simply while picking a dress to wear.

Winter looked through her closet and searched for something to wear. She had never liked going to parties, because it never ended well for her. There was always something wrong or someone to fear. Always on edge because she remembered how it ended when she wasn't paying attention to her surroundings. Running away had always been an option but she couldn't just turn around and go back home. She was here with Isabelle and they planned on leaving this place together.

She wasn't friends with many people but she knew the person that was trowing this party. It's the girl that used to date her friend Brian, and know she couldn't help herself but to think about them. The way Chris and Brian were always there for her. Harsh words often left their lips and it would hurt a lot, but they still were there for her.

Isabelle brought her out of her thoughts by handing her a drink. She remembered Andrea telling her not to accept any drinks from strangers, but Isabelle wasn't a stranger. She thanked her and looked around the house. Lights that hanged everywhere in the house. The speakers in the back of the living area. Outside you had the swimming pool and drunk students swimming all naked. Winter had seen mansions on tv but in real life they just hit her differently. It looked more like a dream than something realistic.

In the distance she saw two boys making out. Right next to them she saw the guy that she has been trying to call for the past days. Chris hands was all over some girls body with his face in her cleavage. Maybe Winter was wrong and she was the only one overreacting. Maybe they weren't angry at her. Winter tried to convince herself but why wouldn't they call? Why did she feel so forgotten all of a sudden?

"Hey love." Isabelle called out to her and she turned around to face the brown eyed girl.

"I think I saw some of your friends, you want me to call them over?" Isabelle asked her with raised eyebrows.

Winter shook her head. "No it's okay." She told her and deep down felt bad about herself again.

As if she was the party pooper, the girl that everyone labelled as 'no-fun'. She wasn't surprised that they all were here. She wasn't surprised that they didn't invite her. She wasn't angry about it either but somewhere she felt so unwelcome. Winter tried to forget about everything that went down some days ago. Just like she had forgotten what had happened last summer, she tried to forget about the rest too. Winter knew all of this was going to hit her in the face one day, because forgetting never was an option. However she didn't know any better.

Loud music started playing and Isabelle took her hand and led her to the dance floor. Winter wasn't a bad dancer. She just couldn't remember when the last time was she danced. Isabelle laughed and shook her hips like her life depended on it. Winter was still taken back by here sudden mood switch. Isabelle looked so happy in the moment. Probably because her favourite song was playing.

"Damn love, lossen up a bit." Isa screamed toward her, still not letting go of her hand.

Having fun wasn't something she did often. Leaving her dorm room wasn't something she did often. Most of the time she stayed inside and tried to distract herself from the world. Or she tried not to think too much. Perhaps Isa was right, maybe she needed to lossen up. However there was a reason why she had always been so on edge. She tried to forget that.

Winter danced for the first time in weeks and it felt so good. She let her guard down for a bit but she didn't really regret it. It felt so peaceful knowing she didn't had to worry about anything in this very moment. She finally found her temporary peace she had been looking for. Temporary

Someone's hand had made its way on her body and she froze. Just the way she had done that night as well. She tried to remember the breathing exercises her brother taught her. She tried to remember her moms encouraging words. Yet it seemed like everything left her senses and it brought her back to that dark night. The night were everything was supposed to be alright but it was so far from being alright. The night were she had screamed for her life and for someone to find her. She didn't want to go back, she didn't want to remember her own screams. Nor did she want to remember she had scars that fitted the story. A tear slid down her cheeks and for a moment the world stopped.

She felt how she completely shut down when the persons hand touched her butt. Yet she still wasn't able to find her voice. Instead she wanted to run away, but she couldn't bring herself to move.

Isabelle saw what happened and pushed to guy of Winters back. Curse words directed to the guy left her mouth. "You son of a b*tch. I swear I'm going to kill you." She screamed In her thick Mexican accent. Her accent was always present when she was angry.

Winters eyes couldn't bring herself to stop looking at the guy. Almost the same facial features, pale skin with Brown hair and light grey eyes, he even looked like him. Isabelle's hand made contact with his face and that brought a lot of attention towards them. The guys face turned red and he was furious ready to attack Isa, but he was held back by other guys. In the crowd that had made a circle around them she could see their eyes filled with disappointment.

Winter walked out of the mansion into the dark night. It was cold and she was only wearing a mini black dress, because Isa wouldn't let her wear her pants. The wind hit her skin and she shivered. She sat down on one of the stairs and watched the night sky. Her eyes was fixated on the black coated cat in the distance. Isabelle sat right next to her and wrapped her arm around her.

"You know I wanted to kick his ass but they were holding me back." Isa said annoyed and disappointed.

"It's okay Isa, I'm fine." She wasn't sure who she was trying to convince.

A group a people came out of the house and passed them by. She looked up and she wished she could disappear in this very moment. Chris was holding hands with the same girl she saw him with inside of the house. Andrea and Brian stared at her with wondering eyes.

"I'll go back inside." Isabelle informed her. "See you later." She told Winter and kissed her forehead.

Right when she leaves they all just look at her as if she had done something foolish. It hurts to see them all look at her in disappointment. At this point she was so done with them and just wanted to go home. The girl that was making out with Chris earlier walked back inside.

"You see this is why I don't want you at parties." Chris spoke and shook his head.

Winter was quiet and looked at everything but not them. Andrea sat down besides her and tried to cheer her up.

"Listen why don't you just go home and rest?" Andrea ment well and Winter was well aware of that but it didn't feel that way. It felt like they were trying to get rid of her.

She sighed and just stood up. Walking away from them like she had done days ago. She really wanted to talk to them but it seemed like they weren't really excited to see her. Brian grabbed her wrist and turned her towards him.

"You're not walking away from me." It had been days without hearing her voice or hearing her laughter. He just wanted her by his side. He always wanted her by his side no matter what. He expected her to answer or even roll her eyes. Brian expected her to push him back or something but she just looked into his eyes.

Winter wanted to say something but she didn't want to stay. She didn't want to be blamed again. So she just kissed his cheeks and walked away.

"Winter?" He screamed after her but she didn't respond.

Instead she kept on walking. She didn't stop when the first rain drops fall out of the sky. She didn't stop when one of her heels broke down. She just kept on walking because she didn't want them to see, the fact that as soon she turned her back she bit her lip to stop the tears from rolling down.

Her hair was a mess at this point but she didn't care much. She just wanted to go home but Winter suddenly stopped in her tracks. The black cat she had seen earlier was standing right in front of her. Everytime she tried to walk past the cat, it would block her way. Winter kneeled down to its level and looked into the cats eyes. She immediately regretted doing that since his eyes started changing colours. It reminded her of the way Arculus eyes switched colors too. Which brought her to the conclusion that the animal infront of her wasn't really a cat.

Winter stepped away from it and tried to run away but she froze again. All she could hear was cracking bones. It suddenly grew bigger in size. Its face twitched and shook heavily. Than suddenly it stopped. The black cat looked like a lion now. She had never in her whole 20 years of life seen a black lion. Than it hit her hard in the face.

Lions are carnivores which means it eats meat. Which could also mean it was about to eat her. She was about to sprint out of there with her broken heel, but it's piercing green eyes made sure she stayed in her spot. It took small steps forward and she found herself crawling backwards. She was trembling in fear and for unknown reasons she held her breath. It was inches away from her face with its mouth wide open, ready to bite her face off.