Page 4 of His Fated Luna

"Rose! Wake up!" Auntie Hilda’s voice jolted me awake.

Groaning, I rubbed my tired emerald green eyes and turned to check the time on my digital alarm clock. It was already eight a.m.! Seriously? I was supposed to wake up an hour ago! I must have slept right through my alarm. Then again, it wasn’t surprising—I hated waking up early.

Dragging myself out of bed, I rushed through my morning routine, grabbed a piece of toast, and moved to hug my aunt good-bye before heading out. Today was huge—my eighteenthbirthday—and I was planning to have my first ever girl’s night out with Erica. But I still hadn't asked Auntie Hilda yet.

Auntie Hilda grinned, hugging me back. She placed a kiss on top of my head before pulling out of the hug and wishing me happy birthday.

“Rose, darling, be home on time today!”

Her words made me stop halfway out the door.

“Why?”

“We have some people coming over for your eighteenth birthday party tonight!” Auntie Hilda exclaimed, ushering me out of the house.

I froze.

People? Who? My parents had died in a tragic accident when I was little, leaving me in my aunts care. We never had company.

Shaking off my confusion, I said,“But I was planning to have a night out with Erica.”

Stark displeasure wracked her features. Auntie Hilda didn’t like me going out much. She was paranoid I’d get kidnapped or something.

“Come back on time. It's important,” Auntie Hilda stated emphatically.

I wanted to argue, but there was a panicked look in her eyes that made me give pause.

I parked my car at school, lost in thought.

“What’s up, Rose?”

My eyes to landed on Jake leaning against his sleek red sportscar, surrounded by his friends.

Jake had sandy blond hair, light blue eyes, and that effortless confidence that made every girl swoon. He was one of the most popular guys in school. Meanwhile, I was the bookworm with only Erica as my best friend. The only thing we had in common was that we were both seniors and shared a few classes. Sometimes, he would ask me for help with his homework.

As a consequence of my social life being non-existent, I threw myself into school work. And while Auntie Hilda was thrilled I was in Advanced Placement College level classes, it did nothing whatsoever to help my popularity or luck in the romance department.

Faltering slightly, I took a breath and gathered my courage before walking toward Jake.

“Hey!” I called, forcing my voice to sound casual.

He scanned me from head to toe.

Was he checking me out?

“How’s your paper coming along?”

I winced at the nerdy question.

In my head, it had been an easy conversation starter.

“It’s going alright,” he said, then added, “Hey, maybe later we should get together and go over a few ideas?”

I almost choked. Was Jake actually asking to hang out?

“Yeah… let’s do it!” I blurted, probably way too enthusiastically.

His gaze flickered to my upper arm, and he squinted slightly.