y father's recent passing left a void that seemed impossible to fill. My mother, always the

ng in the air. But beneath the surface, I sensed something off. The townspeople's furtive glances and whisp

igating the unfamiliar roads. "Mom, do you fe

expression unreadable.

se gnawing at me. "It's just... everyone seems

masked it with a reassuring smile. "It's probably just be

if the entire town was sizing us up. I turned my gaze ba

ng tall trees. The sight of it brought a glimmer of hope amidst t

er me. Each item held memories of my father, a painful reminder of his absence. But I p

low, my mother suggested we take a walk to explore our new surroundings. Eager

he gentle breeze. We passed by a few locals, who nodded politely

iver down my spine. I glanced at my mother, expecting to se

I asked, my voice b

d into a small smile.

kind of town did we move to, where wolves roamed fr

nto a world far stranger than I could have ever imagined. And little did I k

ed. "why don't you continue without

I sighted a nice coffee shop from across t

forting me like a warm embrace. I found a table near the window and settled into the pl

waitresses whispering to each other, their eyes darting in my direction.

, a hesitant smile on her lips. "Hi there, sorry for the wait," she said, her vo

r smile. "Just a black coffee, please," I

eling that something was amiss. Why had everyone been avoiding

o address the elephant in the room. "Hey, Lara," I began, trying to keep my tone light despite the unease gnawi

mfort. "Oh, it's nothing, really," she replied, her voice falt

to her explanation than she was letting o

hind her ear. "Yeah, sorry about that. It's just that, well, yo

surprise. "Re

it's not every day we get a transfer student, especially not in our small to

feeling both intrigued and apprehensive. What

d with genuine warmth. "Anyway, don't worry about it too much. You'll f

or her attempt to ease my concerns

met the eye. But for now, I pushed aside my doubts, focusing instead on the warmth of the coffee cup