Claimed By The Hyde - Prologue
I hated Tyler Galpin.
The smirk, the cocky attitude, the way he always acted like he knew me better than I knew myself. He was the boy every girl in Jericho had liked at least once... and the one I wanted to strangle.
But Tyler didn't just notice me-he watched me. He pushed and teased and cornered me until I couldn't breathe without thinking of him. And no matter how many times I told myself I hated him, my body betrayed me every single time.
Because the truth is, Tyler never hated me. He wanted me-always had. And he wasn't going to stop until I was his. In every way.
Enemies. Rivals. Obsession.
~~~
"You're obsessed with me."
"Maybe I am. What are you going to do, sweetheart?"
"I hate you."
"Funny... your body doesn't seem to agree"
~~~
Master list:
Prologue
One: Through The Mist
Two: Coffee Complications
Three: A Face I Never Wanted To See Again
Four: The Boy I Refuse To Think About
Five: If She Wants War, She’ll Get It
Six: The Game Begins
Seven: The Storm Breaks
Eight: Collision
~~~
ALL CHAPTERS AND NEW UPDATES ACCESSIBLE ON WATTPAD @authorhopeswriting
~~~
Prologue
I've lived in Nevermore my entire life. Some people call it small-town charm, but I call it a cage. The streets are narrow, winding, cobblestones slick with rain or frost, the buildings leaning like they've been watching me since I was a child. The fog rolls in early, curling between the trees and over the rooftops, leaving the world quiet, muted, like it's holding its breath.
Most people see Nevermore and think peaceful, think quaint, think safe. I see something else. Shadows that linger too long, windows that stare back, and whispers that slip through the cracks if you know how to listen. I've grown used to it. I've learned to keep my eyes down, my pace steady, my voice small when I need to be invisible.
School is no different. The halls of Nevermore Academy echo with footsteps that don't belong, with eyes that watch a little too long. The students all have secrets; the faculty even more. I've learned to navigate it the way I navigate the streets outside: carefully, cautiously, never looking for trouble. Trouble always finds you anyway.
Some nights, I lie in bed and think about leaving, about escaping, about finding a place where the shadows don't follow. But those nights are rare. I've always been tied to this town, to the streets and the rain, to the unshakable feeling that something waits just beyond the edge of my vision. I've learned to live with it.
It's not that I'm lonely. I'm not, exactly. I have my routines, my small circles, the places I go and the people I tolerate. But there's a hollowness that creeps in when I'm walking home at night, when the fog presses against my coat and I can't see more than a few feet ahead. That's when I feel it most: the pull of something I don't understand, the thrill of danger I've been taught to ignore.
I've convinced myself that's enough. That I'm safe, that my life is ordinary, that nothing could possibly disrupt the fragile balance I've built. I walk the streets, keep my head down, and pretend I'm untouchable.
And yet, I've always known the storm is coming.
It doesn't matter that I don't know when. It doesn't matter that I don't know what form it will take. Storms don't announce themselves, and this one is no exception. I feel it in the way the wind stirs at night, in the way the mist curls through the trees like it has a purpose, in the way my pulse races for no reason I can name.
Tonight, I'm in my room at Nevermore Academy, sitting by the window with the rain sliding down the glass in silver ribbons. I've finished my homework, I've read the chapters I needed, I've checked my phone enough times to know no one has messaged me. And yet I feel restless. I feel something crawling under my skin, something impatient, waiting.
I glance at the street below, at the empty courtyard beyond the dorm, at the fog that rolls through the treetops. Everything is still. Everything is quiet. Everything is too calm.
I shouldn't want excitement. I shouldn't want chaos. And yet, I do. I feel it like an ache in my chest. I don't know what form it will take, who it will come with, or what it will demand of me. I just know it is coming, and that one day soon, my carefully constructed world will tilt. I will be forced to see what I have been hiding from and what I have been waiting for without knowing it.
And when it comes, I will remember this night. I will remember the quiet, the fog, the rain sliding down my window. I will remember thinking that maybe, just maybe, I was ready.
But I'm not.
~~~
This story was originally posted on my Wattpad account: @authorhopeswriting. Go there to see regular updates and the full, complete story!
Recommended for 18+ readers. This story contains mature, dark, and explicit themes that would likely be rated R or MA15+, depending on your country.
This is a fictional and transformative work inspired by the Wednesday series. All characters, names, and events are fictionalised interpretations and do not represent real people, situations, or the official canon.
Wednesday and all related characters, settings, and source material are the property of Netflix, MGM Television, and the creators of the original series. I do not own or claim any rights to these materials. No copyright infringement is intended.
