Change of Plans - C.L. Blackwell Page 0,3

off any digital camera. It was like my mom- original, hard to find, and missed dearly once it’s gone.

Most of my photos were pinned on the wall above my desk, but the important ones were in boxes hidden under my bed. They contained every moment of my life building up to now. Photography wasn’t something I boasted about to others, but the photos under my bed were something I shared with no one.

Most of the photo on my wall were from the woods behind my house. The woods had become my sanctuary, my small place of peace in a crazy world. The way the light peaks through the trees and the animals scurry off, their tracks covered by the dense moss, created the perfect place for photos, but more than anything it’s the wolves. Their narrow eyes, stealthy steps and beautiful fur occupy most of my recent photos. Surprisingly I’m not scared of them if anything I’m curious.

Contrary to belief of the town, they were benign. Even when I breached their personal space, they never threatened me, well except the white furred one, I had learned to avoid that one. There were only ten or so that I’ve seen and never more than two together at a time. Most of the time they came to me before I sought them out. They were drawn to me just as much as I was to them, like a moth to a flame, especially the big wolf with pitch black fur and green eyes.

After wasting most of my day avoiding Caleb downstairs and finishing homework, I called it a night. Lucky for me, I had school tomorrow.

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Ugh, Mondays. Yeah, I know, how cliché, a teenager hating school, but I have a good reason. Wolf Creek High School, located right outside of the town square with only a hundred or fewer students in the graduating class and a football team who thinks they're the coolest things out there because they won state once. Ten years ago. Of course, our mascot was the Timberwolves, and our school colors were blue and silver. Two stories of bland hallways with one gym and a football field with more dirt than grass made up the school. The awful teachers and the legendary make-out spot under the staircase weren't even the best part. The ten or so students who acted as if they were God’s gift to the world were my favorite part, especially since Brody was in that group. And who was the ring leader? The one and only Caleb Winters with Sierra Griffin sticking to his side like a bumper sticker. The blonde Barbie doll would have to be surgically removed from his arm. Luckily, Brody and Caleb were seniors whereas I was a junior, so I only had to put up with them for one more year.

I pulled up to my usual parking spot in my little black and red 1970’s Mustang, a birthday present from dad for my sixteenth birthday. Surprisingly enough, he picked out the perfect car for me, even if it was a muscle car. A sudden bang on the hood of my car startled me and I almost jumped out of my seat. I looked through my windshield to see Matt standing their with a huge grin on his face, dimples shining at full blast. I was happy to see him since I hadn’t seen him all weekend, but if he put a dent in my baby, I was so going to kill him. I grabbed my backpack and slung it over my shoulder as I stepped out of the car with a frown on my face. Before I could jump down his throat, Matt’s arms were locked around me in an awkwardly long embrace.

“Well, aren’t you just a little ball of sunshine this morning? Did you miss me?”

I rolled my eyes. Oh, Matt. He never fails to put me in a good mood. He’s been my best friend since third grade when he gave me half his Twinkie at lunch to cheer me up after Sierra told me I was worthless. He was the definition of the boy next door, golden blonde hair, chocolate brown eyes that always had a boyish sparkle to them and of course, two dimples that winked every time he smiled.

His comment about my mood even brought a smile to my face. He knew that my weekend was ruined because of a certain someone over at my house with Brody all the time. We texted all weekend