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CHAPTER ONE
THE GIFT
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JULIA HARTING KNEW THAT LIFE WASN'T FAIR. She wasn't stupid, not in the slightest. She knew more than most how unfair it could be. It wasn't hard to say that she hated, no despised, the circumstances life had handed her many years ago.

Her life was no longer filled with color, but with vague hues of darkness. Life had gone from being filled with brightness to pure and utter darkness in mere seconds. It was out of her control, there was nothing she or the doctors could do to fix it.

Her mothers continually supported her after the accident, and they made sure that she would be able to continue living her life, even if some things had to change. The once cluttered staircase that led to the second floor was now spotless to help make Julia's life easier.

The halls of the house were no longer lined with anything that could hurt the girl if she were left alone. Anne and Nicole Harting went out of their way to ensure that their home would be safe for their little girl. They knew she hated to be coddled, but it was the only way they could protect her in the world.

They would help her get ready every morning before dropping her off at school, where she would walk the halls with the hopes of not bumping into anyone on her way to class. She knew that there would always be a clear path for her in the halls once the student body heard the familiar click clack of her cane against the floor.

The halls of Beacon Hills High School parted like the red sea as she walked through them with her closest friend on her right side. Her left hand was wrapped around his bicep as he guided her through the hallway and toward their geometry class. The boy was talking about who was in the hallway and how his weekend was, especially after his neighbor was attacked by a wild animal at the Winter Formal.

"So you're telling me that she's at the hospital?" Julia asked, her voice filled with confusion. She turned her head so she could try to face Matt Doyle, her best friend. "And that a mountain lion attacked her?"

"Yeah," Matt replied. "I only saw her after she was attacked when Jackson carried her into an ambulance. She looked like she was on the brink of death."

"That's terrible," Julia let out a shaky breath, "I can't imagine what it must've looked like."

"You wouldn't want to Jules," Matt sighed, "Tracy was complaining that she had nightmares about it all weekend."

"Is Tracy meeting us in Chemistry later?" Julia felt Matt turn to the side, and followed him down the hall, knowing that they must be close to their classroom. "And from what you've said, Tracy has every right to have had nightmares."

"Of course," Matt sighed, knowing that the blonde was right. "It just wasn't what I wanted to listen to this weekend."

"Welcome to friendship Matt," Julia smiled to her left, knowing that the boy could see it. "You ready for geometry?"

"Not at all."

With that, the two teens walked into their class and listened to the lecture from their teacher, anxiously awaiting the arrival of the bell.

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Julia sat on her bed with her headphones in her ears. Her iPod was playing a playlist she had put together a few weeks prior. The music pumped through her ears as she ran her fingers through her german shepherd's fur, glad that she had some time to relax after listening to her class lessons before her nightly walk.

It had been two days since Lydia Martin had gone missing from the hospital, and Julia was unsure of how to feel. The girl had never been nice to the blonde, but Julia was not one to typically wish harm upon others who had wronged her. She hoped that the missing girl was okay, and she couldn't imagine what must be going through Lydia's mind.

Her phone began to buzz beside her, startling the blonde, who removed her hand from her dog's fur. She placed it down on her right side and began to feel around until she felt the electronic device. With a quick sigh, she pressed one of the buttons, knowing that it was the button to answer the call and brought the device up to her ear.

"Hello?"

"Hey Julia," Tracy's voice came through the phone, making the blonde girl smile. "Did you do the homework for chemistry yet?"

"I tried, but it was a bit confusing."

"I don't blame you for feeling confused. I guess you tried to do the readings with your audio book, right?"

"Yeah," Julia sighed. "But I'm done doing homework for the night, so I'm going for a walk with Chewie in a few to get out of the house before bed."

She felt Chewie perk up beside her at the mention of going for a walk, and knew that he was just as excited as she was to get out of the house.

"Why don't you call me back after your walk," Tracy suggested, "then we can talk a bit before we have to get to bed."

"Sure," Julia smiled at her words, hoping that she wouldn't be too tired after her walk. "I'll call you in like an hour Tracy."

"Bye!" With that, the blonde hung up the phone and placed it in her pocket.

She grabbed her cane from the side of her bed and stood up, grasping at Chewie's harness with her right hand. The german shepherd led the way down the stairs, only stopping to push a shoe out of the way to prevent the blonde from tripping.

"Mama, I'm going for a walk with Chewie!" Julia called out as she stepped off the final step of the main staircase.

"Okay sweetie," Nicole replied as she walked toward the teenage girl. "I'll be cleaning up dinner and watching a movie until the boss gets home from her shift at the hospital."

The blonde smiled as her mother kissed her on the forehead before opening the front door for the girl.

"Be home within the hour," Nicole said sweetly. "I want you back before your mom gets home."

"I'm just going for my normal walk, I'll be fine."

With that, the blonde and the german shepherd exited the house and began their nightly walk.

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Julia felt the cool late night breeze against her face as she walked alongside Chewie, who was keeping an eye out for any obstacles that could harm the visually impared girl. The german shepherd had taken the blonde on a slightly different route than normal due to some construction that could be dangerous for Julia.

The two walked along the unfamiliar route together, feeling a sense of relaxation as they listened to the crickets in the distance. There was another set of footsteps approaching the duo, and Julia stopped in her tracks.

"Julia," an unfamiliar voice called out, startling the blonde.

"Who's there?" The blonde called out, her hand slipping into her pocket to grasp her phone. Chewie began to bark at the stranger as he sensed his owner's nervousness. "Who the hell is there?"

"I'm a friend."

Julia knew that something was off. She heard Chewie stop barking, and her heart began to pound. Nothing was able to make Chewie stop barking, especially when he could tell that Julia was nervous.

"Who the hell are you."

"How did you know I was here?"

"Why do you care?" She snapped, moving her cane so she could face the direction of the stranger. "I'm going to ask you again, who are you?"

"You could hear me, right?" The stranger asked. "After you lost your sight, you had to learn to rely on your other senses, didn't you."

"Why are you talking to me?"

"Because you and I have a friend in common," the voice continued, "and I might have a way for you to see again."

"That's impossible," Julia muttered. "It's irreversible."

"What if I had a way to make it go away and make you stronger than ever before?" The voice continued.

Julia's heart was beating faster. If there was any chance of being able to see again, she would have to be stupid not to take it.

"What is it?" She asked, desperation evident in her tone. "How could I see again?  I'll do anything."

"You just need to trust me, and after tonight, you need to find me again." The man continued speaking as his footsteps grew louder.  "There will be people hunting us, but if you stay with me, I can teach you to protect yourself."

"I don't know who you are," Julia whispered,  "but do it."

"I'm Derek Hale."

She felt him take her arm into his grasp before feeling a piercing pain in it. She gasped, letting go of Chewie's harness before falling to the floor, her cane rolling away. The stranger, Derek, walked away, and in her last moments of consciousness, she saw the brown fur of Chewie moving away from her.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

Hello lovlies!  Welcome to today's edition of Daniella has no self control in which I post this chapter of this wonderful fic I adopted from dunbonnet (who is a queen, so go look at all her stories pls).  I hope you guys liked this intro to Julia and her life so far!  Please remember to vote and comment because that always helps me with inspiration!

- Daniella

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PUBLISHED: SEPTEMBER 6, 2020

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