Shift (The Neturu Chronicles)

by Sarah Kay Carter

  Kayla sets the cake on the counter. “You are so full of yourself.”

  “Well, I say it’s true.”

  Pulling out a knife, Kayla leans against the counter and looks at him. “You think you’re so hot.”

  “That’s what you say,” Jackson quips with a devious grin.

  With a click of her tongue, Kayla snidely replies, “The real question is, whose clothes am I more likely to take off? Oh…let me think about it…probably Damien’s.”

  Damien laughs. “Now, that’s what I like to hear.”

  Jackson narrows his eyes at her. Kayla raises her eyebrows back. “Well, that is probably a good thing,” Jackson says, “since I don’t particularly want you to take my clothes off.”

  “Wow,” Kayla snaps. “Way to take a good mood and ruin it, douche.”

  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Damien holds up a hand to each of them, cutting off any further argument. “Let’s not start a fight. We have chocolate cake; let’s eat it.”

  With heat in his eyes, Jackson spins around and strides out of the kitchen. Damien sighs and takes off the lid to the cake. “Just let Jackson be for a bit,” he whispers. Kayla stabs the knife into the cake, causing Damien to laugh. Kayla glares at him. “Oh sweetie, don’t be angry.”

  “I’m not mad…I’m hurt,” she says as a tear rolls down her face.

  “Hey,” Damien murmurs, pulling her into his arms. “Don’t let him get to you. You bruised his ego and he lashed out.” Kayla lays her head on his chest. “You don’t need to cry.” Kayla bursts into tears. “Wow, okay, you don’t need to get hysterical.”

  Kayla shakes her head. “It’s not him. It’s everything. He got my mind off of everything today, and now he's being a tool, so I have nothing better to do but think about it all.” She wraps her arms around Damien as the tears soak his shirt.

  He gently kisses the top of her head. “I know it’s a lot. If you need to cry and get it out, then I’ll hold you until you’re done.”

  Making good on his promise, Damien holds her as she continues to cry. Before her tears dry, they hear, “Is she seriously crying?”

  “Yeah,” Damien quietly replies.

  Jackson walks in. “Kayla, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

  “It’s not that,” Damien replies. “She’s just really upset about everything.”

  “I can turn into something absolutely ridiculous if that will put a smile on your face,” Jackson tells Kayla.

  Kayla sniffles. “Like what?”

  “Ummm, I don’t know,” Jackson replies. “Pick something.”

  She peeks at him from Damien’s arms. “I thought you were limited in what you can shift to?”

  “True,” Jackson agrees. “My family can usually change into roughly twenty things. I’ve only shifted into ten. See, it’s whatever forms you first pick. I could try for thirty, but it probably wouldn’t work.”

  “Fine,” Kayla mutters. “Turn into a baboon, because I think that’s what you remind me of right now.” She feels Damien laugh against her.

  Shaking his head, Jackson whispers, “All right.” His body begins to shimmer and suddenly a baboon is sitting on the floor in front of her and Damien.

  “Oh my gosh!” Kayla exclaims. “That is too funny.” She turns to Damien. “Can I touch him? He understands me right?”

  “Yeah,” Damien says. “Go ahead. Check him out.”

  Hesitantly, Kayla approaches him. She touches his head and then runs her fingers through the hair. “Dude! That is so freaky and awesome.”

  “See, shifting is kind of cool,” Damien says from behind her.

  “Uh-huh, this is amazing.” She spins around and looks at Damien. “Can you do this?”

  Damien laughs. “What a baboon?”

  “Yeah,” Kayla retorts.

  Snorting, Damien replies, “Not that I would particularly want to, but yes. I’m not as limited as Jackson’s family. I’ve turned into thirty-four different things so far.”

  A smile spreads over her face. “What’s the coolest thing you can turn into?”

  “I have no idea.” Damien chuckles. “I don’t have to limit size, but in your kitchen it may be a good idea.”

  “A lion,” Kayla giddily exclaims. Suddenly, Jackson is standing next to her. “That was awesome.” She turns back to Damien. “Do it, do it, do it!”

  Damien shakes his head and then shifts. Kayla starts laughing. “So cool. So freaking cool!” She practically runs over to Damien and tackles him. “You’re a lion! There’s a lion in my kitchen.” The lion rolls over onto its side. Kayla runs her hands across the fur and bends over. Putting her face against him, she smiles. “This is excellent!”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah he can turn into a lion,” Jackson grumbles.

  “You can’t make this uncool, no way.”

  Without warning, the lion disappears and she finds herself lying on Damien’s stomach. “So, see, we can shift.”

  “I want to do it!”

  “Oh, no, no, no, no, no,” Damien says, shaking his head. “We need to train you and take it really slow.”

  Pouting, Kayla says, “You guys suck.”

  “Come on, we have chocolate cake,” Jackson reminds them with a smile. He looks at it and frowns. “A chocolate cake with a big knife in the center of it.”

  Damien chuckles. “My girl here needed to expel some pent-up frustration.”

  “I see that.” Jackson sighs. “I'm sorry Kayla. That was every shade of wrong.”

  “Jackson,” Kayla snaps. “I don’t want to hear it again, just leave it alone.”

  Damien chimes in, “You don’t want him anyway, I’m much better: better fighter, better gentleman, better kisser, better…yes, well, I’m just better.”

  Jackson groans. “Whatever, Damien.”

  “So, weird question,” Kayla says, sitting up. “What sex do you turn into when you turn into an animal?”

  “The same as whatever you are,” Damien answers.

  “Okay, kind of a disturbing question…we don’t do anything as animals…right?”

  Damien rolls over in hysterical laughter. “Oh, that is gross. No. I am all for experimenting, but no!”

  “Don’t laugh at me!” Kayla yells, trying not to giggle herself. “So that means we can’t do anything with humans. Thank God I never tried.”

  Both guys fall silent. Finally, Damien replies, “No, we can.”

  “How? We’re from another planet.”

  “We took on the shapes of humans. Our bodies naturally adapted,” Damien says as he stands. He sticks his hand out to Kayla and she takes it. “Though, it’s not supposed to be the same. We can go to a different level of existence and almost mentally connect when we are with our own kind.”

  Kayla blushes. “Have you guys been with humans?”

  The silence returns before Damien finally says, “I have, though we kind of covered that already.”

  “True,” Kayla whispers. She looks at Jackson. “What about you?”

  “Do I really need to answer that?” he asks.

  Shrugging, Kayla says, “I guess not. I’m a virgin, so my experience is non-existent.”

  “That isn’t a bad thing,” Damien states as he walks over to the cake. He takes the knife and starts to cut pieces. “Just because I’ve been with girls, doesn’t mean it meant anything.”

  “That’s horrible,” Kayla yells.

  Damien turns around. “I’m not going to lie about it. I have never been in love, or close to it.”

  “Then why in the world would you sleep with girls, if you didn’t care about them?” Kayla snaps, slightly annoyed.

  He turns and starts searching the cupboards for plates. When Damien finally finds them, he pulls three out. “Listen, I’ve had girls of all ages throw themselves at me. It’s hard being my age and…rejecting that.”

  “Can we please get on a different subject?” Jackson exclaims. “I do not want to talk about Damien’s sex life.”

  “Sorry,” Kayla mutters.
“Just curious, I guess.”

  Damien puts a piece of cake on a plate and hands it to Kayla. “I will always be honest with you, and you can ask me anything. Maybe we can save it for when Jackson isn’t around.”

  “I think I like you; at least you’re open.”

  Bending down, Damien kisses her. “I really would like to get to know you better, so honesty is the best policy.”

  Blushing, she walks over and gets forks for everyone. When she gives one to Damien, he carefully puts a bite of cake on it and holds it out for her. She can’t help but giggle. Leaning forward, she puts it in her mouth.

  “You guys are going to make me throw up,” Jackson snidely remarks.

  Damien bends over and kisses her again, laughing against her lips. “My plan is to make you vomit so that you’ll leave us alone, and I can seduce her.”

  Kayla shoves him away, giggling. “Remember, you have to take me on romantic dates and buy me awesome presents.”

  “I did bring you cake, like you asked,” Damien notes. “What does that get me?”

  “A kiss…later…when we’re alone,” Kayla teases as she continues to giggle.

  “Okay, vomit coming,” Jackson exasperates. “Going to hurl…all over cake.”

  “Nooo!” Kayla yells running to Jackson. He bends over, looking like he’s going to puke, so Kayla takes her hand and shoves his face into the cake. Laugh hysterically, Kayla takes a couple steps back. “Don’t kill me, I’m too cute to die so young.”

  Jackson stands up and wipes some of the cake off his face. “You are in trouble.”

  “Leave the poor girl alone,” Damien says, “because this rules. I would have done it myself if I were standing there.”

  “Kayla,” Jackson starts.

  Giggling, she replies, “What?”

  “Come here.” Jackson grabs Kayla and kisses her, wiping cake all over her face. Jackson pulls away. “There, now that’s a kiss.”

  “You ass!” Kayla exclaims.

  Jackson takes a chunk of cake and swipes it across Kayla’s face. “No, now I’m an ass!”

  “Hey,” she yells. “Not fair!”

  “Come here, let me help you get it off,” Damien says, holding up a towel.

  “Okay,” Kayla says, reaching behind her. As soon as Damien is within arm’s reach, she throws a piece of cake at him...and misses. She gasps, stumbling back to the counter, knowing he’ll retaliate.

  Damien takes a piece of cake off his shoulder and eats it. “Good cake, too bad there won’t be any to actually eat.”

  Kayla whirls around and digs a big piece of cake out of the pan, but as she turns back, Damien is standing in front of her. Screaming, Kayla shoves the cake at him, this time hitting him in the face. “Got ya!”

  He shoves her against the counter and takes a plate of cake. “You’re in so much trouble.” Damien lifts the plate and smiles at her. She winces as she waits for it, but is shocked when Damien slams the cake into Jackson’s face.

  “What the hell?” Jackson shouts. “Damien, you traitor! That’s it, you’re both in trouble.”

  “Holy crap, run, run!” Kayla yells shoving Damien. He quickly turns and pulls her behind him. They dart through the kitchen and into the hallway. Cake slams into the wall next to them. When they turn the corner, Kayla pulls Damien to the right and enters the bathroom. She turns and slams the door shut, locking it.

  “You have a thing about hiding in bathrooms,” Jackson says through the door. “You don’t have a secret way out of this one.”

  Kayla giggles and says, “I have good company in here. I think we can keep ourselves entertained.”

  “I know we can keep ourselves entertained,” Damien says as he sits on the counter.

  “You two have fun in there. I’m going to sit here and eat this cake and wait for you to come out.”

  “You do that,” Kayla yells through the door. She starts to go through the cupboards. “Where did Mom put the washcloths?”

  Damien jumps down from the counter. “What do you need a washcloth for?”

  Giving him a look, Kayla says, “To wash this chocolate mess off.”

  “Oh, I would much rather lick it off of you,” Damien murmurs quietly. “Because that cake tasted really good, and I imagine the taste will only improve the longer it's on your skin.”

  “Damien, really, be serious,” Kayla scolds.

  He steps up to her and pulls her against him. “No, trust me on this one.” Damien tilts his head and gently licks cake off her neck, then with a soft press of his lips, he kisses her.

  “Okay.” Kayla gulps. “You did it. Now…umm…”

  “Mmm,” he hums against her skin. He does it again.

  Her knees buckle. “Damien,” she whispers.

  Bringing his head up, he is only inches away from her. “Yes?”

  “You need to stop.”

  Slowly, Damien brings his lips to hers and kisses her. It’s soft but electrically charged. Kayla falls against him.

  They kiss each other, tasting cake, until Damien pulls away. “That was probably a little too forward. You’re so beautiful.”

  Kayla exhales against his lips. “Uh-huh.”

  “I really want to take you on a date, but that may have to wait. You can’t be out in public for the next week or so,” Damien murmurs, wiping cake off her face with his thumb. He takes the washcloth from her hand and starts to clean her up.

  “What do you mean?”

  “We have to make sure you don’t shift again, so we’ll keep you indoors. Well, we may be able to take you to Jackson’s. You know what, I’ll cook for you, make us dinner. That can be our date.”

  “I kind of like that idea. Can we eat by candlelight?”

  “Sure,” Damien replies, wiping cake off her forehead.

  She grabs his shirt and pulls him down to her. Trying not to laugh, she licks his cheek. “Mmmm, good cake,” she hums.

  Damien chuckles. “See, that’s what I was saying.” He turns around and rinses the washcloth.

  Looking at him, Kayla says, “You’re really nice.”

  “Thank you, I try.”

  “Can I ask you a question?” Kayla whispers. “Kind of an awkward question.”

  Laughing, Damien retorts, “Uh-oh, go ahead. You can always ask me anything.”

  “You seem so nice, but you also sound like a player. Are you putting on a show for me?”

  “No,” Damien replies, meeting her gaze. “Listen, I have expectations from my parents. One day, I will take my father’s place. I have to do so many things before then. I’m supposed to behave a certain way. If I’m going to seriously date a girl, my parents have to approve her. It was really infuriating for a long time, so I chose to rebel in the only way I felt would hurt them. Sadly, they didn’t really care what I did with human women.”

  Kayla nods. “It’s awful, but it kind of makes sense at the same time.” She pauses for a second and then takes a deep breath. “One more question, because I have to ask.”

  “All right,” Damien says, wiping her face with a wet washcloth.

  “Have you been with one of our own kind?”

  He takes the washcloth away and looks down. “Well...yes.”

  “Ah, so it wouldn’t even be special your first time with your wife.”

  Damien looks back up at her with a kind expression. “No, it would because it would be the first time I would be in love, or so I hope.”

  “You’re only seventeen, you shouldn’t be this experienced.”

  “I know that.” Damien sighs, wiping the last of the cake away from her face. “It’s not a good thing at all.” He locks his eyes onto hers. “Is this going to make you view me differently, because I really hope it doesn’t.”

  She shakes her head. “No, I mean, I guess that’s how it is in this day and age, but I want you to realize something.”

  “What’s that?” Damien asks, starting to wipe cake off of his own face.

  Taking the washcloth away from him, she ret
urns the favor and cleans his face. “The thing is, I want you to realize I won’t just sleep with you. No matter how hard you try or what you do to try and change my mind.”

  “I wasn’t even thinking about that. Wanting to date you is a whole different experience for me. I want to take this seriously, for the first time in my life. I want to try and really get to know someone.”

  “Well then,” Kayla replies, smiling, “I think I’ll like that.”

  Locking his eyes on hers, Damien says, “You really are beautiful you know.”

  Diverting her eyes from his, Kayla shakes her head. “No, I’m pretty, not beautiful. Beautiful is for super models and great actresses.”

  “No, Kayla, stop. Take the honest comment for what it’s worth. You’re beautiful. Both Jackson and I think that, and I have a feeling, from what Jackson has told me, that Jude guy has a thing for you too.”

  With a huge grin, Kayla retorts, “I do have to admit, I loved that you punched him. I shouldn’t and it’s wrong, I know that, but it was hilarious.”

  Damien laughs. “I know, it wasn’t good, but I couldn’t very well have him say that to you. A guy should never talk to a girl like that, especially with what Jackson told me. Jude grabbed you; I should’ve knocked him out.”

  “No, that would be going too far.”

  A knock on the door interrupts their solitude. “You guys are really quiet in there, and I don’t think I want to know what you’re doing.”

  “Just licking the cake off of her,” Damien yells through the door.

  “What!”

  Kayla playfully smacks Damien. “Not even, we aren't doing anything.”

  “Now,” Damien whispers with a smirk, making Kayla blush.

  “Whatever,” Jackson mumbles through the door. “We need to get her ready so we can train her.”

  Damien reaches over and opens the door. Jackson’s body fills the doorway, still covered in cake. “You need to get cleaned up too.” Kayla laughs at him.

  Jackson smiles. “There will be payback.”

  “I don’t doubt that. I’ll go shower, so I can be trained, whatever that means. Do I get a prize if I do well? Like a dog?”

  “Sure,” Damien replies. “We’ll do something cool.”

  Kayla grins. “Awesome. I’m going to take a shower. Jackson, there are washcloths and soap in here. I’m sorry I don’t have clothes for you. I can put both your shirts in the washer.”