I got bored after a while and stood up. "I'm going for a walk."
This dream was taking all night, and my butt was starting to hurt from sitting on the barely-there mat.
Rebel handed me the magazine page.
"You can keep it if you like," I told him. The information seemed more pertinent to him. I just liked to look at the picture.
"I've already memorized it," he smirked.
I stuffed it in my back pocket. Mine then.
I carefully pushed the door open. Rebel had used the bottle of water to keep the door ajar. The door was heavy, though, and I was careful not to crush the flimsy plastic bottle.
"Coming?" I invited Rebel.
He looked surprised, as if the thought of just waltzing out of his cell in the middle of the night had never occurred to him.
He growled a little, then stepped out of his cell.
We checked all the other cells, but they were empty. I guess he was the only one they were shipping out.
I was pretty glad for his company. Sure, he was growly and grumpy, but with him right behind me, I had no reason to be afraid. In my mind, Rebel was probably the scariest thing around anyway.
I happily tried out the number key to open all the cells. Turned out all the doors here had the same number lock. They were also all equipped with a metal pail and a mat. No food bowl or water, though.
One of them had chains linked to the wall, and for some reason, I didn't feel like going inside it. I backed out almost immediately. Rebel, who was at the door, didn't have time to make way, and I pretty much backed into his large frame. Without stopping, I squirmed and squeezed myself between him and the doorframe to get out.
I heard him growl before he took a quick glance to see what made me retreat.
Then I found a double door at the end of the room. There was a number pad next to it. I typed in the same number and it unlocked. I don't know why that still surprised me, but it did.
I can't believe after installing so much security, they put everything on one single number key and pasted it on their only prisoner's door.
I kept having to remind myself that they were clearly not expecting visitors.
Rebel tucked me behind him and pushed open the door. What happened to lady first?
Once he ascertained there was no danger, he opened the door wider for me to follow.
We were outside. There was a driveway with a few dump bins and trucks. They looked like refrigerator trucks.
Rebel was looking further out, into the trees ahead. "Do you want to run?"
"I..." I felt my face redden. "I can't shift yet."
He gave me a strange look and opened his mouth to speak, but I spoke first. "You go ahead. I'll hang around here."
He looked reluctant, but then he eyed the tree line again.
"Just go already," I told him.
He nodded curtly and left.
I know I was the one who told him to go, but when he did, I was super miffed.
Well, I'd never! Leaving a young girl all alone in this shady kind of setup. But I quickly forgot my ire when I noticed one of the trucks had a back door just a little ajar.
I pulled open the door. There was a large cage. Was this Rebel's ride tomorrow? The cage looked cold and uncomfortable. I went back into the cell area and rolled up a couple of mats from the other cells, careful not to lock myself in.
I'm sure Rebel would come save me even if I did, but... I am also just as certain the humiliation would burn.
I managed to carry two mats at a time. I climbed into the back of the truck and lined the inside of the open steel cage so that it would be nice and comfy.
Then I remembered that this was a dream. When tomorrow came, wouldn't it be like none of this ever happened?
Well, since this was a dream, and anything I did was inconsequential, then... I could do anything, right? It was like the realization dinged in my head! Lightbulb moment!
I scrambled out of the truck and slammed it shut, then I tried the driver's door. Oh joy! It opened.
Muahahaha, I had always wanted to drive a truck! (What? You never imagined yourself driving a huge truck really fast?) There were keys in the ignition. I turned it; the first time it started and stopped with a jerk. I tried again, harder. The engine hummed. Yay!
Then I stepped on what I hoped was the gas. The engine revved, but it didn't move. Hmmm... What was I doing wrong here?
A white wolf bounded in front of the truck, right on the hood. I gasped and let go of the wheel. Recognizing me behind the wheel, Rebel retreated back into the forest. He emerged again in his human form, running toward my truck.
I felt panicked. Were we discovered?
The door on the passenger side was pulled open. "What the hell are you doing, princess?"
I guess not.
"I wanted to drive the truck," I told him somewhat sheepishly.
He groaned. "I can't take my eyes off you for a second."
"Why, thank you, Rebel. You're not bad looking yourself!" Then I burst out laughing.
Rebel growled, his expression dark.
"Aw, come on, Bell, you had that one coming!"
Bell.
I liked the sound of that.
He sighed. "Do you even know how to drive?"
I shook my head but refused to let it get me down. Whatever I lacked in experience, I'd make up for with enthusiasm. "No problem! See, I got the engine started all by myself too!"
"You're a natural," he bit out sarcastically.
"Why doesn't it move?" I asked. I stepped on the gas a few times.
Rebel gave me an incredulous look, then he switched the gears and released the handbrake.
I stepped on the gas harder, since applying force had helped with the keys.
The truck shot forward.
I heard Rebel growl as he grabbed the wheel to steer us clear from the large dumping bins. Hahaha, this was fun. A lot like Mario Kart, where I had never felt like I was in control of the thing.
"I'm driving!" I insisted and grabbed the wheel. The truck mounted a curb. "Oops."
"Princess, step on the brakes!" Rebel hissed.
And then, "Oh no!" I let go of the wheel and covered my eyes.
I might have also stepped deeper on the gas. Rebel swore... In ancient Lycan. I kid you not. At the moment when his life flashed before his eyes, he couldn't just say "s***" like a normal person.
The truck rammed into a tree. It's a good thing we wore seatbelts... No wait, we didn't. But it wasn't as bad as it looked. Rebel had his hand on the emergency brake. I guess that had something to do with it.
We both sat in our seats, just breathing and looking at the tree in front of us. The hood of the truck was crushed, just a little.
"Princess," Rebel said quietly, "you will never drive again."
I thought, since this was a dream, there wouldn't be any consequences, but now I saw I was wrong.
No matter. "You've got to come stop me first."
Hahaha, by the time Rebel got to the Green Packland, I would probably have gotten my license...
Rebel opened the door on his side and hopped out of the truck. I tried to do the same, but my door wouldn't budge. I crawled over to his side. He stopped when he saw me at the door and walked closer, catching me before I landed and putting me down.
I pushed him away quickly. That was weird.
"I don't need help," I said.
"I know," he said.
Then I remembered how Shannon had always held open doors for girls.
Could it be that my mate was a gentleman at heart?
"Are you hurt?" he asked belatedly.
I shook my head. "What about you?"
Then I noticed his hand—the one he had previously busted punching the wall—was perfectly fine.
"Your hand is healed?" I took his large hand to check. Maybe it was the wrong hand. I tried the other.
Rebel smirked but didn't say anything. He didn't have to. Rebel's posture as he showed me his hands said it all. He was a natural show-off.
And then I woke up, on my own desk.
I sat up. The lights were still on in my room. And my homework! My homework was gone. My entire Lycan Study Group file!
I stood up and retrieved the magazine page from my back pocket. Then I searched my pockets for my post-it note to attach the reminder. I found it in the same pocket as the handful of dog food balls.
What sorcery was this?
And then, as it did every time I woke up from a dream of my mate, after a minute, my alarm began to ring.
Oh boy.
It's Saturday morning. I've lost my homework, but that's nothing. On Rebel's side, I think they would be missing an entire truck.