Page 80 of The Sins of Noelle

If she had no one, then no one could reject her, no? If she kept herself aloof, then no one could hurt her.

Noelle came to a sudden halt as realization dawned on her.

At some point, she'd stopped trying because every time she put herself out there, she put herself at risk. Every time she opened herself up, it was to be left bleeding and blistering.

Even now, that was her biggest fear.

Rejection. Abandonment. Being…alone.

She was petrified of letting people in only for them to shun her. If she was alone from the beginning, then she'd never know the opposite. But if she…

"If I tasted happiness, then how could I ever go without?" she murmured to herself, bringing the back of her hand to her face, wiping the tears.

She didn't get to ponder it further, as a deep, growly sound traveled through the forest.

Startled, she jumped back, looking around in bewilderment.

Where was she?

How far had she walked? She'd been so lost in her own thoughts that she hadn't paid any mind to it, carelessly marching ahead.

Just as she turned to trace back her steps, her entire body tensed, awareness pricking at her skin. Slowing her movements, she dumped her bag to the ground as she gripped her rifle tightly.

Whatever it was, it was close.

The bushes rattled as something stomped its way towards her. The ground vibrated with the force of it, and Noelle had no doubt that it was somethingbig.

A coyote? A fox? No, bigger.

Her theory was confirmed as the small shrub collapsed under the weight of a heavy body right before a loud grumble made her take a step back.

She blinked.

Maybe she'd been joking before, but now she was face to face with an actual, real-life bear.

One that was quite possibly triple her size and over ten times her weight.

Noelle froze.

"What…" she gasped as the bear turned towards her, his head rotating just as his jaw popped in a loud sound that woke her from her reverie.

For God's sake, she hadn't been killed by a delusional girl, she wasn't about to become a bear's victim.

The bear took a few more steps towards her before it stopped, its eyes seemingly looking her over right before another loud moan erupted from his throat.

Noelle's eyes widened just as she swallowed. Hard.

Was he going to charge her or was he going to leave her alone? Regardless, she needed to prepare herself foranyoutcome.

Taking a small step back, she made sure her rifle was loaded before she aimed it at the bear.

One second passed. Then two. On the third, the bear moved, propelling himself backwards to his hind legs and raising himself in the air.

"Good God," Noelle muttered.

On all fours he'd seemed gigantic compared to her. On his hind legs he looked to be close to seven feet.

"I'm dead," she blinked, gulping down as fear spread through her limbs.

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