Puppy Love!

by Sienna Mercer

  Halfway to Riley’s desk, he stalled, panicking. Maybe if he waited until later . . .

  No, he told himself firmly. Daniel asked Debi, so I have to ask Riley. Plus, anything had to be better than being Mackenzie Barton’s King! The thought was so gruesome, its force pushed him all the way to Riley’s desk.

  There, there was the final barrier: the piles of stacked papers and files that formed a gate between Riley and the world.

  Just be cool, Justin ordered himself. Be cool, be cool . . .

  ‘Justin?’ Riley looked up at him, blinking. ‘Is everything OK?’

  ‘Uh . . .’ Oh, no. How long had he been standing – no, looming – there without saying a word? Looming is probably not cool! ‘I – I just – I mean . . .’ Aaagh!

  Justin slapped himself mentally. Come on! You do know some words in the English language!

  The words blurted themselves out in a rush: ‘I wondered if you wanted to help Debi’s campaign to be Homecoming Queen!’ Phew. That wasn’t so bad.

  Except that Riley was looking at him as if he was crazier than someone who was wearing paisley with plaid. Justin didn’t really know what that meant, but he knew it meant super-crazy.

  Re-group, re-group! ‘It would just be cool,’ he followed up, ‘if Mackenzie didn’t walk to victory, for once. Don’t you think?’

  Riley rolled her eyes at him. ‘Really, Justin?’ Riley was still looking at him as if he was insane. Had Justin scored the most depressing two-fer in Pine Wood history – ruining things for himself and his brother in one conversation? ‘Did you seriously think you even had to ask?’

  Justin’s shoulders relaxed. He gave her a grin. ‘You mean I didn’t have to?’

  She grinned back. ‘I’ve already come up with a strategy.’

  Justin shook his head. ‘That’s amazing! How did you know Debi would be campaigning?’

  She shrugged. ‘I didn’t. I just like to be prepared in case I am ever called upon.’

  Justin tried to keep the goofy grin off his face, but it was hard when Riley was being so . . . Riley. ‘When did you even have time to put it together?’

  ‘You’d be surprised what you can do when you ignore the need for sleep!’

  Justin pointed at her piles of paper. ‘Can I see it?’

  Still smiling, Riley tapped her head. ‘It’s all up here – oops!’ As she tapped, she knocked a hairpin loose. One side of her long blonde hair tumbled free, all the way down over her shoulder.

  Justin stared, his throat suddenly feeling as dry as if he hadn’t drunk any water for days.

  Riley laughed as she scooped up her hairpin. ‘I’m not sure this new look is entirely working for me . . .’

  ‘Uhh . . .’ Justin tried to think of something – anything – smart to say as he watched her scoop up the wave of shining blonde hair from her shoulder.

  He couldn’t.

  All he could do was hope that she couldn’t hear his heart beating . . . very, very loudly.

  ‘Anyway . . .’ Riley flashed him a smile as she settled the hairpin firmly back in place. ‘I’ll write my plans down later. You can see them once I’m done. OK?’

  Be cool. Be cool!

  It was a lost cause. ‘Uh,’ said Justin. ‘Uhhh. Yeah. Great! Super!’

  Then he turned and fled back towards his desk. He vowed that, if time-travel was ever invented, he would come back to this very moment and stop his younger self from saying ‘Super!’ in front of Riley.

  He had never in his life been so relieved to sit down. Unfortunately, Daniel was at the desk right in front of him. Justin’s twin turned and grinned at him. ‘So . . .’ he whispered. ‘That’s some techno rhythm your heart’s beating out right now, huh?’

  Justin scowled at his brother. Werewolf hearing sucks! But before he could answer, someone bumped hard against his shoulder. ‘Hey!’

  It was Milo, the guy who’d competed against Riley earlier that month for the position of lead singer for In Sheep’s Clothing. He bounced off Justin’s shoulder, landed almost right on top of Daniel’s desk, and finally fell headlong on to the ground.

  ‘Are you OK?’ Justin asked. He started to his feet.

  Daniel reached down to help, too. ‘Here, let me –’

  ‘Leave me alone!’ Milo shook Daniel off, wrapping his arms around his chest. ‘I’m fine, and I definitely don’t want your help, Packer!’

  ‘Ohhh-kaaaaay . . .’ Daniel sat back, shaking his head.

  Justin sighed as he watched Milo stomp off to his own desk. I guess he’s still pretty sore about not getting the gig in Daniel’s band.

  Really, though . . . Justin shook his head as he sat back down. What else could Daniel have done? Riley was a better singer than Milo. Riley was a better everything than Milo. Riley was better than everyone! She was just so . . . so . . .

  . . . So looking straight at me!

  With a jolt, Justin suddenly realised that he’d been gazing at Riley for at least a full minute . . . and she was looking back at him with a mixture of concern and confusion on her face.

  Justin jerked his head to look down at his desk. He had a horrible feeling that he’d been gazing at her adoringly. Argh!

  As embarrassment burned through his body, a small voice inside him wondered: why did it always seem so vital that the girl he liked never actually found out that he liked her?

  It was a question he still hadn’t answered three hours later, as he walked into his house after football practice. By then, though, he was starting to feel better about the whole thing. Slinging his jacket on to a hook, he raced upstairs to his bedroom, charged with excitement.

  Computers will save me!

  Maybe he couldn’t talk like a normal person in front of Riley, nowadays. But at least he could work with her online to get Debi elected Homecoming Queen. And best of all, when he was typing all his words online, no one could hear him saying ‘Uhhh’ over and over again, like he was a malfunctioning droid from a Cole Knightley sci-fi book.

  He flung his backpack on to his bed and hurried to the computer on his desk. Maybe he’d make such a good impression on Riley online that she would forget all about the weirdness at the Meat & Greet yesterday. And in English class today. And maybe . . .

  At the sound of a muffled crash, he looked around. Was that Daniel?

  ‘Aargh!’

  That was definitely his brother’s yelp, coming from the bedroom next door – and it was followed by a second massive crash.

  Justin hurried through their shared bathroom and opened the inner door to Daniel’s room. His eyes widened as he took in the sight before him.

  ‘Wow,’ he said. ‘Did you get burgled?’

  ‘Very funny.’ Daniel glared at him from the middle of the floor, where he sat on his knees surrounded by up-ended drawers, clothes and piles of paper. ‘I’m fine, OK? Everything’s fine.’

  ‘If you say so.’ Justin looked around the disaster zone that his brother’s bedroom had become. ‘So . . . can I ask why your room looks like it’s just hosted a kung-fu rumble?’

  ‘It’s nothing,’ Daniel said. He crossed his arms and tried to look casual. Any time that Daniel tried to look casual, it never came off.

  Justin shook his head. ‘Try again, Bro. No way would you destroy this place for something that’s “nothing”. Not to mention the yelping I heard.’

  ‘I wasn’t yelping!’

  ‘I’m still wai-ting . . .’ Justin sung.

  Daniel sighed and closed his eyes. ‘OK. So, you know Dad wants me to go to that “gathering” tonight . . .? I just wanted to find something before I went. But I’ve lost it.’

  ‘I’ll help you look.’ Justin stepped inside the room, closing the door behind him. ‘What is it?’

  Daniel looked away quickly, but Justin still caught the embarrassed flush on his brother’s cheeks. ‘I’ve been working on some song lyrics,’ he mumbled. ‘Private ones. I realised they were gone while we were still at school, but I thought maybe I’d left them here, so . . .
’

  ‘Don’t you have them on your computer?’ Justin asked.

  Daniel didn’t avert his gaze from the mess on the floor. ‘I do, but that’s not the point . . .’ Then his head jerked up. ‘Wait a minute. I remember now. I had them out at school . . . in English class! I was trying to figure out if I could rhyme ‘heart’ with ‘dark’ in the middle eight.’

  ‘You lost me at “rhyme”,’ Justin joked.

  ‘Doesn’t matter,’ said Daniel. ‘The lyrics must still be there!’

  ‘So?’ Justin shook his head as he knelt down beside his brother, starting to look through the piles of scattered papers. ‘What’s wrong with that? It’s not like you have anything to be embarrassed about. You’re a good songwriter, so . . . oh! ’ His mouth dropped open as he figured it out. ‘Wait a minute. Was the song about –’

  ‘Don’t say it!’ Daniel said. His eyes looked wild.

  It was definitely about Debi! Justin realised. He forced himself not to let out the snort of amusement that was building inside. He was a good brother: he’d wait until after Daniel was safely gone before he gave in and guffawed.

  Biting back his grin, he said, ‘Look, I’ll help you clean up here, and I’m sure you’ll find the song at school tomorrow. I’m sure there was nothing . . . identifiable . . . about it, right?’

  Daniel’s expression looked anguished. He let out a groan.

  Uh-oh. So it’s totally identifiable. Justin bit the inside of his cheek. ‘But these lyrics only matter because you were going to use them for your big, important Homecoming audition, right?’ He blinked at his brother, trying to look innocent. ‘Because we all know how much you lo-o-ove . . . Homecoming!’

  The door opened before Daniel could answer – which was probably a good thing, because Justin had a feeling that his twin might just have launched himself at him at any moment.

  ‘Daniel!’ Dad bounded into the room, his hair rumpled and his face glowing with excitement. As he came to a stop in the middle of the chaos, he didn’t even glance at the mess covering the floor. ‘Ready to get howling?’

  Daniel just groaned and laid his head on his hands.

  ‘Come on, kiddo!’ Dad aimed a playful punch at his shoulder. ‘Up and at ’em! Time to show all those wolves just what you’re made of !’

  ‘OK, Dad.’ Daniel heaved a sigh. ‘If I have to.’

  As Justin watched, trying not to look amused, Daniel dragged himself out of the room like a prisoner on his way to his last meal, while their father growled and punched the air with excitement.

  ‘Have fun!’ Justin said. He waved them off cheerfully.

  His twin might be a werewolf . . . but he looked more hangdog than Lupine tonight!

  Poor Daniel, Justin thought. He shook his head as he went back to sorting out the piles of clothes and papers on the floor. Personally, Justin couldn’t think of anything that sounded more fun than a werewolf gathering. It was just too bad his werewolf brother didn’t feel the same way.

  Wait a minute! Justin came to a sudden stop. He stared at the band shirt he held in one hand and the pad of sheet music he held in the other. OK, this is just plain wrong.

  How had he ended up being left alone to tidy up Daniel’s room?

  How did I ever end up here? Daniel wondered. I think I’d prefer to be tidying up my messy bedroom.

  As darkness fell, the whole werewolf community of Pine Wood gathered around a group of small fires in the middle of a forest clearing. The smokiness of the burning logs mingled with the tangy smell of the pine trees that stretched high around them . . . and the musky, wild scent of about two dozen werewolves getting more and more excited.

  Daniel could feel an itch of the same excitement starting in his veins . . . but more than that, he felt sheer disbelief. This was so not his scene! No one was wearing black. Everyone was dressed in loose-fitting, athletic clothing, ready for a quick transformation at any point. He didn’t even know anyone around him except . . .

  ‘There you are!’ Kyle came swerving out of the darkness, followed by the rest of the Beasts from the football team. Firelight flickered across their faces, casting shadows across their feral grins. ‘Come on, Packer! Are you ready to run ?’

  Next to Daniel, his dad laughed. ‘It’s like they think you’re –’

  ‘Oh, I’m ready,’ Daniel said, speaking over his father to make sure he didn’t reveal the secret he did not know he was keeping. He stepped hard on his dad’s foot as he finished, ‘I just hope I don’t wear myself out here and forget myself on the football field!’

  ‘Football field?’ Dad repeated. It came out as a squeak.

  ‘I just need to talk to my dad about something first. OK?’ Daniel said to Kyle. ‘Don’t get started with all that really fun running without me, OK?’

  ‘Not waiting.’ Kyle shrugged. ‘You’ll have to work hard if you want to catch up with us!’

  Hooting and hollering, the Beasts turned and pounded off into the darkness.

  It seemed to take forever before they were finally out of earshot – which, for a werewolf, was pretty far. While Daniel waited, he watched his dad’s expression shift from confusion to shock – and outrage.

  ‘Let me get this straight,’ Dad said, when it was finally safe to speak. He lowered his voice to a whisper, but it sounded as loud as thunder in Daniel’s ears. ‘Are you actually pretending to be Justin?’

  Daniel grimaced. ‘It’s not for me, Dad, it’s for him. All the guys on the team think he’s a werewolf. That’s why they’ve accepted him. If they ever find out he isn’t . . .’ He winced, thinking of the Beasts. ‘That would make things really, really awkward. Seriously, it would be a bad idea.’

  ‘Worse than lying?’ Dad frowned. ‘I don’t like all this secret-keeping. Neither of you boys should be ashamed of who you are. There’s nothing wrong with being a werewolf. And there’s nothing wrong with being a human, either.’

  ‘It’s not forever,’ Daniel said. ‘It’s just until Justin can show the rest of the team that he’s so good, he deserves to be there, werewolf or not.’

  ‘I’m not sure . . .’ Dad started. Then he sighed. The crackling fires nearby sent shadows across his face, and he looked suddenly tired, as if all the excitement was draining out of him. ‘This is my fault, isn’t it? I’m the one who told Justin that he would be the werewolf. I let all the other wolves in town know what I expected, too. If I hadn’t made that mistake . . .’

  ‘Dad, it’s OK.’ Daniel forced a smile. ‘It’s all worked out . . . kind of. I mean, Justin made the team anyway. Pretty soon, he’ll be able to tell the other guys the truth. We just have to cover for him until he’s ready.’

  ‘If you’re sure . . .’

  ‘I am,’ Daniel said. ‘You know he’d do the same for me.’

  ‘That’s true.’ Dad’s expression lightened. ‘And in that case . . . you have some running to do, don’t you?’ He then turned and cupped a hand to his mouth, calling in a voice that was half-shout, half-howl: ‘Hey, Kyle, wait for Justin!’

  Dad gave Daniel a wink.

  ‘Great,’ Daniel groaned. Taking a deep breath, he turned and jogged into the darkness, leaving the fires and the light behind.

  It didn’t take long to find Kyle and the other Beasts. They’d stopped by a river bank, less than a quarter mile away from the fires of the gathering. As Daniel jogged down the bank towards them, he saw Ed and Chris having a push-up competition, while Kyle played judge.

  When Kyle looked up, though, he whistled for the exercise to stop. ‘Hup! Twenty-nine! Thirty-three! Fifteen! Carolina!’

  What?! Panicking, Daniel froze, even as he saw the others start to take up set positions. He didn’t know any of the team’s formations! Then Kyle bellowed with laughter and swiped a hand through the air to stop everyone in their tracks. ‘Kidding! I’m just kidding. This isn’t a training session, cubs. We’re here to run !’

  The Beasts roared with excitement. All around him, Daniel could scent hair turning into fur. I
t’s time.

  Closing his eyes, he let the transformation happen. Waves of heat swept across him as hair sprouted across his skin, covering his face and his hands. His nails lengthened into claws, his teeth lengthened into fangs . . . and every pulse of the surrounding woods seemed to find an echo in his body.

  He had changed.

  With every one of his senses intensified, he felt the others begin to run even before he opened his eyes. He breathed in their excitement, the fierce rush of their competition, and felt an echoing rush in his own body. Then, he started to run.

  He sprinted like lightning. He had never run so fast in his life. He hadn’t even known it was possible!

  ‘Whoa!’ Ed Yancey roared his approval as Daniel raced past him. ‘Go, Packer!’

  With his senses on full alert, Daniel dodged and dived past trees and fallen logs, pushing himself until he and Kyle were neck-to-neck. Do Justin proud! he ordered himself . . .

  No one could say he wasn’t trying now, or wasn’t doing his best to be a ‘real’ werewolf . . .

  But seriously . . . Daniel gave a mental sigh even as he leapt over a tangle of tree roots. Is this really all there is to it?

  OK, so when these guys turned wolf, they could all run really fast and jump really high – well, whoopdidoo! Could any of these knuckleheads hold a good conversation? Or write a song?

  And speaking of songs . . . What had happened to his song lyrics? He’d definitely had them in English class – or at least, in the beginning of English class. He’d set them down to watch Justin approach Riley. But what happened to them after that?

  And – uh-oh – what had just happened to the ground?!

  Snapping out of his thoughts, Daniel looked down – and saw empty air under his feet. He had sprinted right off the edge of a cliff !

  Before he could even scream on his way down, a strong, clawed hand grabbed him by the collar. Kyle hauled him up and on to solid land.