Loving The Lone Wolf

I stood, bewildered and dumbfounded, in the plush way of the grand gallery at the Louvre.

I felt like a ghost amongst humans. I was invisible. Crowds swept past me like I was nothing.

I got hit a lot, but no one seemed to have noticed. I was either too invisible, or men were just too rude.

I was a werewolf amongst men. I constantly thirsted for blood. And now my hunger was returning.

But I had prepared for this. I wouldn't desperately need blood for at least two days.

I kept staring into open space. I was in the middle of the most famous art gallery on earth, yet I could not behold any beauty, at least for now.

I didn't like my life. I didn't like the werewolf world, and I didn't like humans either. Humans were rude and stupid and werewolves were; something I can't describe. I hated humans, except for someone; one girl: MAYA.

The thought of her made my heartbeat. She was the only reason I was still in the human world.

She always made my heart beat. It was okay for me to think I loved her. Surely, I loved her. She was beautiful, slender, and graceful.

She was the most beautiful girl I ever saw. And she was kind. We were kind of friends.

But there was a problem. I was a werewolf. And I felt guilty about it. She didn't know. And then, werewolves didn't mix with humans.

My pack of werewolves hated me because I walked and talked with a human. I wouldn't care if I could, but I had to care, as I was the smallest werewolf I kagedand simply did not have a voice of my own.

But I loved Maya. Occasionally, she was the only thing I thought and dreamt about. I wanted to be honest with her but I couldn't. I couldn't let her know I was a werewolf.

She would probably run away from me. I was an underaged werewolf, so it was deemed that I did not have the age and experience to relate with humans and even build serious relationships with them. Last night, I had a horrible dream. I was a human, on show in a zoo, held hostage in a cage. Many people were outside; women and children, especially some girls, were laughing at me.

On a large poster in the cage, there was a large inscription written in large bright bold letters "UNDER AGE WEREWOLF". I was a human in a cage in a zoo. And many humans I knew were laughing at me.

I didn't care, but what scared me the most was that Maya may have been there. I consoled myself that it was just a dream, but it seemed so real I began to think I had lost my memory.

I began to move slowly toward the artwork. I viewed a couple of them.

They were, of course, beautiful, but I did not see any beauty in them. Maybe it was because all I was thinking about was Maya.

My heart was beating fast and my feet were still. I wondered why Maya had not yet arrived. She was supposed to be here about half an hour ago and she still had not come.

She was, as I knew her, always keeping to her time. But I wanted her to stay a bit longer so I could prepare myself. I realized I had been lost, staring into open space like an idiot.

If she had caught me like this, I wondered what I would do with myself. I wondered what she would think of me. For a moment, I tried to fathom why she liked me.

Or maybe she didn't even like me, but why did she even talk to me? Because I was a werewolf, I was extremely thin and slender. I was always starving. I had muscles like I knew that girls wanted, but I had no intellect.

I wasn't extremely smart. I wasn't rich. I wasn't even handsome. Sure I wasn't ugly, but the last time I had seen myself in a mirror, I was the most average boy I knew.

In the werewolf world, I was extremely unattractive. I knew female human "girls" did not want average boys.

They wanted supermen, from what I knew. And I was the most average boy I knew. There was nothing in me above average. It had taken just one look at her and less than one conversation for her to win my heart. I had to win her heart too.

Just then, what I longed for the most and feared the most occurred. At a distance, was My Maya, approaching graciously like a princess.

I wasn't ready. I straightened my posture and tried to look confident. I tried to pretend I had not seen her, but she was too beautiful to behold. I kept on looking.

I wished I could turn back time a little. I wasn't ready yet. I realized my hair was undone and my ordinary clothes had been squeezed by the crowd. I could feel it even if I wasn't looking in the mirror. I had no taste and no style.

Nothing about me that was to be admired. Nothing to be adored. Nothing to be liked. Ashamed, I tried to slip away from her view, but at the thought of it, our eyes met each other.

At once, her face lightened up but I felt ashamed. It felt as if I was cheating her, like I was robbing her of what she deserved. She was a beautiful and nice girl and so she deserved much more.

She approached me, my heart beat with the utmost fear and speed. I knew I had to be careful.

I was a werewolf and she was human. I had to be careful. I realized I had nothing to love or die for apart from this girl.

And though it was stupid for me to think that, I realized it was kind of true. She was the only thing that gave my life some kind of meaning.

Fear rendered my legs like water, and I was determined. I was going to make it work for us, no matter how my werewolf pack felt about it.

I didn't care. If I had to be the strongest, then I would. If I had to be rich, then I would, but I would do anything to keep Maya.

"Hi, Damien," she said. " I'm sorry I was late but it is nice to see you again.

I nodded, not knowing what to say, and then I stuttered " thank you".

There was an awkward silence. I didn't want to be here now. I didn't know what to say to her. I was embarrassed.

I was at once aroused but intimidated by her sweet-smelling scent. I knew I smelled like grass.

"How is your family?" I asked awkwardly.

She smiled enthusiastically and nodded. "I can see that you are shy, but don't worry, let's go."

She grabbed my arm as I had seen many lovers do and led me along the hallway.

"Let me show you one of my favorite artworks," she said as she led me across the hallway. We passed through a lot of artwork.

She showed me the Mona Lisa and many other artifacts I didn't know about. We moved and kept talking. What I liked was the way she held me as if I was her lover.

People stared at us as we walked along the gallery. It felt as if I could read their minds. I felt strange to them all.

Maybe I was either too unattractive to Maya, or they were jealous of my gifts. But I didn't care. All you cared about was what Maya herself was thinking of me.

We kept walking, holding hands like lovers even if we weren't. I liked it.

But I knew something was not right. I could feel it. I could sense it with my werewolf sense. I didn't feel okay. Occasionally, I look around self-consciously. It felt as if someone was watching us.

I knew I was in trouble. Some of my werewolf pack members live in town too, and it was very likely that one of them would find me here too. The Louvre Museum is one of the most visited museums in France.

Not even in France alone, but the entire world.

"What is wrong with you? You are thinking about something," Maya said.

"What...... errr. I don't know" I stuttered.

"What's going on in your mind? I've been trying to show you one of my favorite artworks but your mind is somewhere else," she said.

I was still confused. I was a fool. I stood there mesmerized by her stunning beauty. She was a goddess.

I couldn't lose her no matter what. "Is there any problem? You can tell me if I can help you out. What is on your mind!" She asked.

"You," I said. "Uhhh? You said what?"

"It's you, Maya, I'm thinking of you," I said hilariously. She blushed and smiled and then she chuckled.

" Let's go," she said, holding my hand, and leading me along. I smiled too. The idea that I had brought a smile to her face made my day. I had said it spontaneously and with humor. And she liked it.

Maybe she didn't know, but I meant it. I wondered if she felt the same.

My joy was just a short bust as it only lasted a short while. My nerves began to take over once more. Something was lurking in the shadows. And then at once...