Chapter Text
The few glasses of wine Sakura had downed only twenty minutes prior buzzed beneath her skin as she tilted her face up to the sky and breathed the night air deep into her lungs. It filled her with summer warmth and comfort, but maybe that was just the wine making her feel that way. Her steps were light as she crossed the street and used a light post to swing herself onto the sidewalk.
In her mind, Ino’s words were still fresh but Sakura didn’t let the worry in her voice get to her tonight.
Be careful walking home, Forehead. I wish you’d just get a car already.
The blonde was always hounding her about walking everywhere. Sure, the city had its bad parts, but they weren’t close to the university and hospital where Sakura usually stayed. Police patrolled the area all night and besides, Sakura was equipped with the bottle of pepper spray she’d picked up several years ago in college.
Don’t worry, she had told Ino with a roll of her eyes. I don’t live far.
Still, call me if you feel unsafe. I’ll pick you up.
Sakura had left her best friend outside their favorite weekend hangout spot with a promise that she would text as soon as she walked in her front door. It wouldn’t take long for her to make it back to her apartment anyway.
Maybe half an hour—less than that if she took the shortcut.
Sakura came to a stop at the corner a few blocks from the bar and adjusted the strap of her purse on her shoulder. She had two options.
She could either go several blocks out of the way but stick to the streets and well-lit areas…or she could cut through a small section of woods that sat between her current location and her apartment building. It took so much time off of her walk that it would almost be stupid not to take the shortcut.
Sure, it was dark and the woods were creepy, but she’d walked it a hundred times back when she attended university. Not to mention, the moon was full tonight and would provide enough light to keep her on the well-worn path through the trees.
With a nod, she spun on her heel and left the sidewalk. The dew clinging to the grass tickled the sides of her feet and she wrinkled her nose, wishing she had thought to bring some better shoes.
Oh well, she thought to herself, hurrying up the small bank of grass to duck into the trees. I’ll be home in fifteen minutes and besides, a little wet grass never killed anyone.
The path cut through the underbrush the same as it always had and Sakura found it easily with the help of the full moon. It cast a glow around her, giving her enough light to see the thick, low-hanging branches of the trees and bushes that lined the path. A sweet scent hung in the air and again, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath of it, letting it caress her senses. Lilac bushes must have been close by. With each gentle breeze that blew the strands of her hair across her face, the smell of it grew stronger and stronger.
How wonderful it would be to wake up to that smell in the morning.
Sakura’s eyes slowly opened and she sniffed the air again, turning her head as it grew stronger back to the right. She narrowed her eyes and scanned the bushes sitting beneath the trees. A few of them were thin and squat but one, right in a relatively clear spot in the woods, was a lush thicket of lilac flowers.
The soft petals were nearly white beneath the glow of the moon and a tipsy grin stretched her lips. She stepped off the path and over a tree root jutting up from the mossy ground, her eyes never leaving the enormous lilac blooms.
In her head, she counted the steps she took away from the path. She wasn’t an idiot, after all. No matter how tipsy she was, she knew it was a monumentally dumb idea to leave the trail and could almost hear Ino’s shrill voice scolding her for being so stupid. But the bush was only twenty-two steps away from the trail and she was confident in her ability to find her way back.
Greedily, her hands plunged into the leaves and she snapped the stalks, leaving enough length that she could submerge them in a glass of water. She pressed her nose into the bundle in her hands and breathed in deep, unable to contain the soft moan that vibrated her throat.
Except…
Something else pricked her ear at the same time.
It was another low sound, a strange mix between a growl and a sigh.
She froze, staring into the bush as she waited and listened as hard as she could. There was nothing beneath the distant sound of cars and trucks on the highway overpass or the occasional swish of leaves in the breeze. Maybe she was just imagining things.
Gripping the bundle of lilac in her left hand, she dug her right into her purse and let out a sigh as she brushed her knuckles against her key ring. The metal clinked as she pulled it free of her purse and she clutched it tight to her chest to keep it quiet.
The pink bottle of pepper spray hung from one of the rings and she clamped it between her ribs and her elbow. But she was just being cautious. There was no reason to worry, really. No one had followed her. Not from the bar and definitely not into the shortcut through the woods. She would have heard them long before that strange growl sound she had imagined.
Sakura plucked a final bunch of lilacs from the bush and turned on her heel to face the path. Only twenty-one steps and she would be back on the trail and heading home.
Twenty-one.
Twenty.
Nineteen.
For the second time, a sound caught her attention, and this time, it sent ice through her veins, freezing her feet to the mossy forest floor. She held her breath, too terrified to even remember how to breathe, and her eyes darted from left to right.
Even with the generous light from the moon, she could see nothing but the trees and underbrush.
It’s just a dog…A dog that doesn’t want you to bother it so it would be best to get back to the path and get the fuck home.
Sakura crept onward, counting to sixteen in her head while she gripped the tube of pepper spray tight in her hand.
Her foot lifted from the leaf-strewn ground with the intent to step over a tree root and come down as number fifteen, but she never got the chance. To her left, behind a rather thick tree surrounded by a bush of thorns and prickly leaves, what she had previously decided was a dog, let out another growl that made her second guess herself. It was low and fierce, one that she could feel vibrate through her entire body. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end and she finally let out a breath that shuddered in her chest.
Not a dog.
Definitely not a dog.
A wolf?
Her eyes cut from one side of the bush to the other before darting ahead of her where the path was. Only fifteen steps away. Could she make it if she ran?
Movement caught her eye and she slowly turned her head to where the sound came from. Everything shifted into slow motion. What could have only been a single second, one beat of her heart, felt as if it passed by like hours.
It—because she had no other way to describe this thing aside from it—stood to its full height, towering above her even from several yards away. Silver fur, longer atop its head like a horse’s mane, glowed beneath the moonlight and as it passed through one of the moonbeams, its eyes briefly flashed green.
Minutes could have passed, possibly hours, as Sakura and this horrifying creature stared one another down. Terror seized her by the heart and clutched it so tightly, that her pulse thundered in its grip. She stumbled back on her heels, her gaze falling to the animal’s snout. Its lips curled showing sharp, white teeth and another deep rumble rolled through its chest.
Half of her wanted to succumb to the paralyzing fear.
The other half was screaming at her to run.
And it was that half that she listened to.
Sakura whirled around on her heels and took off as fast as she could go.
The keys hanging from the ring holding the pepper spray were loud, clanging against her wrist with every step she slammed into the ground. She’d abandoned the flowers, dropping them back before she had ever decided to run but the scent still clinged to her skin, haunting her. Would that be the last thing she smelled before she was ripped to shreds?
She pivoted to the right, ducking beneath a low-hanging branch but catching one of the limbs across her face. She screamed from the pain that erupted with heat from her cheek. Moisture trickled down the side of her jaw but she wasn’t sure if it was from blood or tears.
Risking a glance behind her, she scanned the woods and nearly cried out at the sight of a blur of silver close on her heels.
Oh, god! Why hadn’t I listened to Ino?
She dug her right foot into the dirt and spun to the left, hoping to buy herself enough time to make it out of the woods. Maybe it wouldn’t follow her back on the city streets.
It wasn’t long, maybe a few seconds, before she could hear its paws pounding into the dirt close behind her and she let out a sob. The animal let out a snarl that almost sounded irritated but that wasn’t possible.
Animals definitely didn’t voice their irritation.
Sakura couldn’t help looking over her shoulder again. She had to know how long until it caught up to her, how long until it sank its claws and teeth into her and ate her for a midnight snack. But unlike before, there was no silver blur racing through the trees.
It was just gone.
She skidded to a halt and gripped the trunk of a tree to steady herself, her breath hard and loud as she struggled to gulp in enough air. Her eyes darted back and forth repeatedly, scanning every possible place that thing could be hiding. There was no movement, no sound.
Almost as if it had just disappeared.
Had it gotten tired of the chase?
Sakura clamped her teeth around her bottom lip to keep from sobbing and stumbled away from the tree. She scanned the thick underbrush of the forest once again before she spun around with the intention to flee as fast as she could.
But as she did, she nearly slammed into the broad chest of the creature directly behind her. It snarled, the rumble of it pulling a scream from her throat. She threw her hand up, thumb pressing into the top of the pepper spray as she tried to scramble backward.
The heel of her sandal slid through the wet grass and she went down hard, the back of her thighs slamming into a tree root jutting out of the ground.
Sakura’s scream was cut short as the back of her head cracked against the tree trunk and stars exploded across her vision. She slumped back and squeezed her eyes shut, desperate to stave off the dizziness that sent the world tilting from side to side.
The pepper spray was gone, dropped somewhere in the grass and all she had now was her hands to fight off the very real threat of death staring down at her from above. Though her vision was doubled, swimming in and out of focus as she blinked up at the creature above her, she could see it standing there.
It wasn’t moving.
Just staring down at her as it caught its breath.
She could see its chest rise and fall as it panted through clenched, bared teeth. And maybe it was the concussion making her hallucinate, but she could only watch as the creature slowly lowered itself onto all fours between her feet and dragged in a breath through its nose. It inhaled slowly and followed the scent all the way down to her left foot.
Her sandal was gone and she sucked in a sharp breath at the cold press of a damp nose against the curve of her sole. She tried to scramble away but the creature was too quick. It moved like lightning and she screamed as its hand—did animals even have hands?—snatched her around the ankle and pulled.
As she slid across the ground, rocks and leaves, twigs and grass, scraped across her backside and Sakura tried to keep her skirt around her thighs. It was a pointless attempt. The fabric bunched around her waist and she sat up on her elbows, staring down the length of her body.
Now that it had dragged her closer to its body, her legs were on either side of it and Sakura screamed again as it gripped her other leg with its free hand, right beneath her knee.
It continued sniffing up the length of her body, leaving damp spots from its nose along her shin and the side of her knee, all the way to the inside of her thigh. Sakura gasped and tried once again, in vain, to get away from it and its fingers again tightened around her ankle.
She stared at the long silver fur that stretched down its shoulder blades, almost as long as her hand from fingertip to wrist. Maybe if she pulled it hard enough, the pain would distract it and she could stab a stick in its eye.
Sakura scanned the ground around her in search of something sturdy and sharp enough to stab with. There wasn’t much but she found a particularly long branch that could—
“Ah!”
The creature buried its nose between her thighs, pressing as close to her center as it could get. Her eyes widened and she gripped a handful of fur at the back of its head, pulling at it with all her strength. The creature didn’t budge.
“Stop, you stupid—AH! OH, MY GOD!”
Something hot and wet and thick slid up the length of her center and she abandoned her attempts at pulling the thing’s hair. She slammed her fist down on the back of its head, smacking it twice before gripping one of its ears. Each blow she delivered went ignored but she really didn’t want it to lick her again!
The hands that had been gripping her ankle and knee slid up to her thigh and she felt sharp claws dig into the soft flesh there. It could easily pull her legs further apart and that’s precisely what the creature did. She screamed as it pulled her further beneath its body and squeezed her eyes shut. Terror had completely taken over her by now.
It slid through her veins, pushing out any useful thought she might have had. There was no running, no fighting this thing. She could only shut her eyes and hope her death was quick.
One of its claws left her thigh, sliding up the length of her torso until it found her chest.
The strap of her dress had fallen down to her elbow and the material bunched around her ribs.
She felt claws brush along the underside of her breast and she sucked in a breath, squeezing her eyes shut so tightly that stars burst across her vision. It was going to tear her to shreds, rip her apart, and she could do nothing but lay beneath it and let her life flash before her eyes.
It was depressingly pathetic.
But the images of her childhood, teenage years, and the start of her adulthood came to an abrupt stop as soon as the creature found her breast. Except, the claws she had been so afraid of were gone, there was no fur tickling her skin, and the palm that spread across her flesh, quickly finding her nipple, felt strangely…human.
Sakura didn’t dare open her eyes.
A breath was sharp between her lips, nearly stinging her chest as she sucked it in.
The claws digging into her thigh lifted away and found her waist and again, there was no pain except for the slight pressure from smaller fingers tightening around the fabric of her dress.
W-what’s happening? Where’s the monster?
She had managed to keep her grip on the creature’s hair, right at the crown of its head, and she flattened her fingers over it, slipping through the strands and expecting to find more as she moved. But the fur came to a stop and the soft, sweat-dampened skin beneath her palms made her eyes snap open.
Overhead, the woven branches of the trees were black, barely letting any moonlight filter through but she had enough to see a curtain of silver hair draped over her chest. It tickled her neck and chin as it moved up her body. A warm breath panted against the flesh between her breasts and she blinked in surprise at the press of kisses.
A tongue, much smaller, but still slick and hot, found her nipple and traced the hardened bud it found. Her breath shuddered and hitched and she stared down at this new creature crawling between her legs.
She found her fingers in its hair once more, gripping it tightly before pulling. When the monster lifted its head, she found it wasn’t a monster at all.
It was a man.
His eyes were black, which was terrifying enough, but desire clouded them and left them half-lidded and Sakura could only stare at them in horror. What was happening? Where was the animal that had chased her through the woods?
With another inhuman growl that vibrated between their bodies, the man shook her hand from his hair and returned to her breast. He sucked her nipple into his lips and let out a breath, hot and trembling against her slick flesh and she gasped.
“S-stop!”
He ignored her, crawling along the length of her body until she could feel his hips line up between her thighs. He pushed them into her and Sakura cried out at the feel of his cock along her center, with nothing but the thin fabric of her panties separating them.
“Fuck…Please, stop…I-I don’t want this.”
She pushed his shoulders with all of her strength but it was fading fast. The adrenaline was starting to wane and she was already exhausted.
The man turned his attention away from her breast and blazed a trail up her throat to the underside of her jaw. He smelled of sweat and pine and dirt and Sakura shut her eyes at the feel of his teeth nipping her chin.
With one hand on the ground beside her head and the other pawing at the material of her dress at her waist, the man lifted his head just enough to align their mouths together and then—
Sakura sucked in a breath and snapped her eyes open, staring up at him as he kissed her. His lips were warm and the stubble on his chin scratched her with every move of his jaw. He kissed her hungrily, devouring her and consuming her.
She gripped his shoulders, her nails digging into his skin. If it hurt, she couldn’t tell. He made no noise, no hiss of pain. All he was focused on was kissing her.
Until he rolled his hips into hers, grinding his cock into her center.
Sakura whimpered against his mouth and scraped her nails down his shoulders, knowing she was drawing blood. Still, he never so much as flinched.
One hand slid beneath her back and lifted her from the ground, holding her flush against him as he tilted his head to the side and kissed her deeper. Sakura didn’t know what to do. Every rational thought in her head had vanished and she was left with nothing but her instincts.
Wasn’t it best to play along in situations like this? Pretend as though she wanted it until he let his guard down and she could make her escape?
There was no other choice.
She kissed him back.
Their lips fit at a different angle and she found it easier like this, his stubble no longer rubbing her chin raw and now, he was able to use his tongue. He lapped it against her lips and she realized she had opened her mouth to let him in before she could stop herself. Their tongues met, gently exploring the other, tasting and savoring their different tastes.
This time, he reacted with a deep moan that sent heat pulsing through her.
He rose up and pulled her with him until he sat back on his heels and she straddled his lap. From there, his cock sat between their bodies and she sucked in a breath as his hands fell to her hips, gripping them tightly. He took control, rocking her back and forth, forcing her to grind into him. It would be so easy for him to slide her panties to the side and push into her.
So easy and so…
Sakura shook her head before that appalling thought could even finish forming.
No!
She couldn’t do this!
It was too much!
She shoved against his chest and wrenched her head to the side, breaking their kiss and hoping he wouldn’t be too furious with her. Every breath shuddered through her and she was surprised by how flushed she was. She was ashamed that she had kissed him back, ashamed that for a few seconds, maybe he hadn’t been the only one that wanted more.
“Please,” she whispered breathlessly, not letting herself look at him. “I-I just want to go home.”
His hands stilled on her hips and loosened so quickly that she slipped out of his lap and landed on her backside in the dirt once more. A grunt left her lips and she shook the hair from her face, blinking up at the man in surprise.
He was completely naked. Though she had already felt most of his body against hers, it was still a shock to see his body so bare before her.
And when he stood to his full height, she couldn’t help letting her gaze drop to his waist. His cock was hard and thick and she could only see the outline of it in the moonlight, but it was enough. Not to mention, she had felt it up close and personal between her thighs.
Words sat on the back of her tongue as she stared up at him, frozen in place.
She wanted to beg him not to hurt her, to let her go. A small part of her she couldn’t wrap her head around wanted to beg him to stay.
She never got the chance to utter a single syllable before he finally spoke.
“I’m sorry.”
With those two words, mumbled so softly she couldn’t help wondering if she had imagined them, he took off into the darkness. She stared up at the trees where he had just stood and swallowed tightly, her breath trembling as it came out in quick puffs. Her lips quivered but no words came out.
She thought about screaming for help but what would she even tell whoever came to her aid?
A monster chased me and turned into a man who was a damn good kisser and we kind of dry humped in the woods. Yeah, right.
With a whimper, Sakura collapsed back onto the ground and pressed her palms into her eyes. She knew she should have been crying or sobbing, possibly throwing up from the terror of it all, but she could barely think at that moment. She could scarcely breathe.
Rolling onto her side, she sat up and glanced around, pulling the strap of her dress back up onto her shoulder to conceal her breasts once more. She found her ring of keys and the useless pepper spray barely an arm’s length away along with her purse and held them close to her chest as she rose to her feet, legs wobbling.
Her sandal was nowhere to be found.
Sakura picked a direction, hoping it wouldn’t be where she’d find another creature, and walked, her steps sluggish and slow. It was close to one in the morning by the time she found civilization again. There was no one on the streets this late, even for a Thursday night, and she was actually thankful for it.
The last thing she wanted was to have to explain to anyone what happened…mostly because she couldn’t even explain it to herself.
A familiar building loomed ahead and she let out a breath but felt no relief inside her. Nothing but confusion and shame and…heat.
Had it been this hot all night?
Sweat beaded up along her hairline and she wiped the back of her wrist across it.
A shower was definitely in her near future but she didn’t think she could stomach a hot one. Not tonight. Not after…that.
Sakura swallowed tightly and climbed the steps to her apartment, mindlessly searching for her key on the ring in her hands. It slid into the lock and with a slight jiggle, the door swung open and Sakura stepped inside.
Once she shut it behind her, she leaned back against it and stared into the darkness of her one bedroom. Not even the moonlight or the lights from the parking lot could reach her now. She stared into the inky black and let her keys and purse slip out of her hands and hit the floor.
She lifted her hand and brushed her fingertips across the tender skin along her chin. Flashes of a jaw covered in stubble, impossibly black eyes, and thick, silver hair raced through her head.
Her hand slid from her face down the length of her chest to where his kiss had pressed between her breasts and his breath had felt so hot against her skin.
Sakura closed her eyes, her breath trembling as she let it out, and let her hand slip down to her thighs. The hem of her dress was wrinkled and a bit muddy but she pushed past it and took her bottom lip between her teeth.
She already knew the answer to the question plaguing her mind.
She didn’t even have to look for it.
She knew long before she ever slipped her fingers against the dampness of her panties.
But another question took its place, one she didn’t want to know the answer to.
Was she wet because he—it—had slid its tongue over her…
Or because she had liked it?