Rougarou Girlfriend: Gisela 2 (special preview)

There were still no signs of hunters in Hearthway Hollow, but Adam insisted on staying vigilant just in case. In a way I agreed, they could be waiting for a moment where we seemed lax. Then again, part of me wondered if there wasn’t already someone here. Hearthway Hollow was a quiet place and it usually took care of itself. The pack kept the peace, but it was my job to assure it. Adam led the wolves, I led the humans, I was lucky that Adam saw us on equal footing.

Despite the peace, I had not seen Gisela in a long while. She had told me that the New Moon was the center point of her transformations. One was fast coming, so she was at the high point in her transformation. I kept messaging her, but she only sent the smallest replies.

“Are you okay?” I would ask.

“I’ll be fine.” She would answer.

After a while of this back and forth, I wanted to make really sure. “You don’t have to reply, but I just want you to know you can tell me anything. If you’re in pain, if you’re worried about your appearance, I want to know. But it’s up to you to tell me.”

I was surprised by how quickly she then texted me back. “It isn’t just that.”

“What’s happened? Did something happen in Louisiana?”

“No.” Those two letters suspended there on the screen for a long time before she started typing again. “Something a little more embarrassing.”

“I see. Anything you feel like sharing?”

“I would like to. But I’m not sure how I’ll react.”

I was a bit confused by her wording. “How ‘I’ll’ react, or, how ‘you’ll’ react?”

“Me. Even the slightest thing could set me off. Even just thinking about you sometimes makes me salivate.”

“Are you hungry?”

“Sort of?”

It takes longer than I care to admit for it to click into place what she’s saying but not trying to say out loud. “Busy month, I take it?”

“It happens. I just wish it didn’t when I am fully transformed. Makes it harder to, you know?”

“Even in Louisiana?”

“For me, personally.”

“Are you okay, though?” I ask again. “You can tell me if there is anything I can do for you.”

There’s a long pause before she replies to me again. “I miss you. I keep thinking about you. But I need to be careful.”

“I understand. I usually don’t have that effect on women, but I get it.”

“You have an effect on me.”

I smile to myself. “Offer stands. I’d like to see you again, it’s been a long time. But you know what’s best for you. So I’ll wait for your word.”

“Thanks, Alex.”

That evening at home, I’m sitting on the porch, enjoying the rain and the cool breeze it brings. I dread how humid it will be tomorrow, but at least for now it’s nice. I sip my beer, which is ice cold, and try to focus on the pages in front of me. 

The sound of the rain shifts, and it sounds like it’s falling on something soft in the woods. I hear breathing, it’s faint, but I can tell it’s there. After years of growing up with three brothers, I had grown very alert when it came to the dark. Anyone of them could be lurking with shaving cream or noogies to throw at me. I set my book aside and look into the woods. I think I see fireflies glowing in the shadows. But they are fixed and very still.

It is eyes.