High School Bites

by Rachael Alcobia

  “Get some rest, we’ll talk again later. And Meghan…I’m really glad I found you too.”

  I smiled to myself as he left. The more I thought about everything, the less concerned I became for missing school. I’d almost died. I did have to call Jane later and at least let her know I was alright. Besides, if I was going to get into trouble, spending the day in Kodi’s bed didn’t seem like a bad way to go.

  Seven

  I was dreaming. I saw the campfire and the log, but Maggie was nowhere to be found.

  “Maggie?” I called. There was no answer. I turned and came face to face with the golden-eyed wolf. She was snarling at me and snapping her jaws. I looked around and found that the fire pit was gone. Turning back to the wolf, I discovered it gone as well. Simone stood in its stead, in all her vicious glory. If it wasn’t for my aching shoulder, I’d have almost preferred the wolf.

  “See what your mind is trying to hide from you.”

  I jumped at Maggie’s voice as she suddenly appeared beside me.

  “What?” I asked.

  She sighed. “Sometimes, our minds play tricks on us where we think we’ve seen something we haven’t. Even rarer, are the tricks that do the opposite. We see something that our minds lock away from us, to protect our sanity, perhaps.” She nodded toward Simone and when I turned, Simone was getting up from the dirt, just like she had when I pushed her. I also observed that we wore the same clothes, were in the same place as that night and that Maggie was gone. Everything was as it had been last night. I was horrified at the possibility that I’d have to relieve any of it. Simone’s face was twisted into anger like before, and this time, I never took my eyes off of her. What I saw next, nothing could have prepared me for. Her eyes glowed gold. Her face elongated as her body collapsed. She writhed on the ground for a moment before moving to all fours. Fur sprouted from her body as her clothes ripped apart and fell away. Within a minute, I was staring at the wolf that had attacked me. I opened my mouth and screamed. Someone was shaking me.

  “Meghan! Wake up!” I woke gasping, Kodi’s hands gripping my left arm and the back of my neck. I sat up and he moved to sit on the bed next to me. My eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness and I noted a worried Kodi sporting sweatpants and a white beater tank top. On instinct, I ignored my self-consciousness and launched my good arm around his neck, pulling him into a hug that I so desperately needed. Safe. I was safe in Kodi’s arms, which had automatically wrapped tightly around me. Using his strength that I had yet to understand, he carefully pulled me into his lap. He murmured comfortingly into my ear and massaged one hand into the tangled mass that was my hair while his other hand rubbed my back. He was really good at this comforting thing. I told him so out loud with a cracked voice.

  He laughed. “Are you okay?” he asked, his concern palpable.

  I nodded, “Yeah, I think so. I’m sorry you keep having to save me.”

  “I’m not,” was his reply. I didn’t know how to respond to that, so I said nothing. Judging by the darkness, night had evidently fallen again.

  “I should be getting home,” I said, hiding how sad the words made me feel.

  “Don’t worry, it’s all been taken care of,” he said.

  “What do you mean?” I asked, clearly confused.

  “You know how my father is this hotshot lawyer?” I nodded and he sighed before continuing. “Well he called your group home and got the number for your social worker. Dad called her and she agreed to meet him at the courthouse today, where he convinced her to replace your attorney with himself.” He watched me warily and I could tell he was expecting a reaction out of me. All he got was a look of confusion.

  “Your father is my new lawyer?” I asked, bewildered.

  “Is that a problem? Did you like the old one?” He frowned.

  I shook my head, “No, Catherine was a bitch, but that’s not the point. I’ve been through this before and it takes months for lawyers to change. It requires approval from several people, lots of waiting and paper pushing. Also, the state would never agree to pay your father’s fees.”

  It was Kodi’s turn to shake his head. “He’s doing it pro-bono.”

  My mind reeled. “So, what does this mean?”

  Kodi scratched his head. “He and my mother are registered as supervising adults on your file, which means you’re allowed to be here.” My mouth hung open in mindless wonder.

  “Why would your parents do all of this for me?” I was overwhelmed with awe but still, a hint of uneasiness remained. He looked down before raising his eyes back to mine and there was guilt or sadness on his face. Perhaps both.

  “We owe you. What happened to you was our-my fault.” I pulled him into a tight hug.

  “Kodi, it was an animal attack that happened in the woods at night. Nothing about that was even remotely your fault.”

  He shook his head in denial, “You don’t understand, Meghan. There are things you don’t… you just don’t understand, not yet. But you will. Soon, I promise.”

  His face was so strained and for an instant, he looked so lost. My stomach chose that moment to growl and I was mortified that it happened while I lay against him. There was no way he hadn’t felt that.

  “I’m sorry,” I said while scooting off of his lap and back to the head of the bed. He laughed.

  “Don’t be. Food would be a good thing. You need it. I’ll be right back.” Before I could protest, he was already out the door and headed to the kitchen, I presumed. Hopefully, he came back with something small and non-acidic. Strangely, now that I thought about it, my stomach felt fine. No cramps, no nausea. The only thing really bothering me was my mangled shoulder, which was understandable. I made a mental note to ask Kodi if Dr. Thomas had left any pain meds that wouldn’t knock me out.

  Meds! I’d forgotten about my cancer meds. Frantic, I looked around the room for my backpack but didn’t find it. Kodi walked in carrying a tray with a steaming bowl and though my stomach growled again, the food barely registered.

  “Kodi, my backpack. I need my backpack.”

  “Why, what’s the matter?” he asked, concern etched into his features.

  “Feminine hygiene products,” I rushed out.

  His frown deepened. “You’re lying.” It wasn’t a question.

  “You don’t know that” I replied defensively. His pointed look however, said otherwise.

  “Look,” I sighed. “It has to do with what you want to know. We can’t spoil our deal; the dance is still months away.” Kodi grabbed my hand and held it in his.

  “Meghan,” he said. His pause lasted so long that I began to think he’d say nothing else.

  “You were sick, weren’t you?” I froze at his words. Retracting my hand back, he caught it again and squeezed it gently.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  Kodi shook his head and looked at our joined hands.

  “Let’s make a new deal. From now on we will be completely honest with each other. No more lies, no more avoiding questions. Deal?”

  I was shocked at the proposition. Had he known the truth all along, or just that I’d been dishonest? I tried to think of any negative outcomes to this deal but could find none. After all I would still get what I wanted, which was to know what was up with the super-smell. Also, the super-strength and the lie detecting skills.

  I squeezed his hand and shook it. “Deal.”

  He smiled at me and for the first time since he’d left my tent, I felt myself smile in return. His smile faded however, and mine followed. I knew what he was going to ask before he opened his mouth.

  “Were you sick?”

  My first instinct was to lie, but I honored our deal. “Not was, am.” I paused to steel myself before continuing. “Ii have stomach cancer. So, it’s a good thing, this deal. I may not have been able to go to that dance anyway.”

  He reached his head out and cradled my face in it. I responded by nuzzling into his touch and felt instant comfort, which I believed was his in
tention.

  “You will still be my date to Homecoming, Meg. This deal doesn’t change that unless you want it to.” He looked at me and I gave him a sad smile.

  “Of course, I’d love to go with you, Kodi. But my cancer—”

  “You’re not sick anymore, Meghan. The scent of it is gone.”

  I balked at his words. What in the world was he talking about? Before I could express my confusion to him, he held up a hand to halt me.

  “I know what you’re thinking. Before I get to how this came to be, I need to convince you that it’s true.” He paused to think. “Is there any food that you loved, but couldn’t have because it made you sick?”

  I really didn’t like where this was headed, but our deal was total honesty. “Pepperoni pizza. I love the stuff. It was actually what caused me to get diagnosed. My staff, Jane, had bought one for us to share to celebrate my birthday. I was halfway through the second slice when I vomited. There was blood in it, so Jane rushed me to the Emergency Room. I’d never been in so much pain.” I looked down at my mangled shoulder. “Until last night.”

  Kodi watched me for several seconds before he spoke. “I don’t suppose you’d trust me enough to eat a pizza if I were to order one?”

  I wanted to say yes. I would trust him with almost anything. But sadly, I shook my head and he accepted it as a truth.

  “Meghan, do you believe in magic?”

  The question caught me so off guard that I choked on a breath. After coughing a few times, I took a moment to analyze it. I sensed that he wasn’t talking about the kind of magic that came from magicians. I thought of Maggie. Choosing my words carefully, I responded.

  “I believe that there are things in the world that we don’t understand.” Did I believe that he could use superpowers to heal me? No. He nodded, seemingly happy with that answer.

  “That’s good, that’s definitely a start.” A start? What was he talking about?

  “Kodi, I know you’re trying to tell me something. I’ve always been a ‘rip the Band-Aid off’ kind of girl. Just spit it out.”

  He looked at me in stunned silence and I briefly worried that I’d been wrong, and he’d really just wanted to discuss magic.

  “Meghan, the truth is that I have many things to tell you and there is just no easy way to say them. I’m going to tell you things that no ordinary person would believe, and I may not have time to slowly convince you or ease you into everything. Right now, I really need you to trust that I would never lie to you.”

  The intensity of his words burned in his eyes as well. I was speechless. I hadn’t the faintest clue what he needed to say, but I could tell it was urgent. Kodi had saved my life. I trusted him. I nodded and he took a deep breath.

  “Earlier, you were right. I did say that they were hunting Simone. They’re going to find her, and she will answer for what she’s done to you.”

  That seemed a little extreme for a stupid prank. I said so out loud and Kodi shook his head.

  “She tried to kill you, Meghan. The wolf is Simone. They are one and the same.”

  I laughed and opened my mouth to tell him how ridiculous he was but then Maggie flashed in my mind’s eye. The Irishwoman was telling me about how our minds trick us. Then I remembered the rest of the nightmare. How Simone’s eyes had gone gold like the wolf’s and her body had twisted and contorted. I felt the beginnings of a panic attack and Kodi must have sensed it because his arms were there, rubbing my arms for comfort. It stopped the panic where it was but didn’t distinguish it.

  “No,” I shook my head in denial. “That was just a nightmare.”

  Kodi smiled sadly. “I wish it had been, but it’s true.”

  My mind reeled. How the hell was I supposed to respond to this? “How is that possible?” I asked when I really wanted to scream that it wasn’t. I’d seen it. I don’t think I could dream anything that detailed that didn’t exist.

  “Simone is a werewolf. She’s not alone, there are more. But they won’t hurt you. I promise.” His face pleaded with me to be okay. Before I could say anything this time, Kodi gripped my hands tightly in his.

  “Meghan, do you trust me?”

  I wanted to say no, but it would have been a lie. Strangely, I did trust him. It was hard not to trust someone who was the reason I was still breathing. I took a calming breath and upon opening my eyes, I nodded. He smiled at me, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Releasing one of my hands, he brought the other up before laying the softest kiss on the back of it. My heart pounded with warmth. Kodi slowly rose from the bed and stood before me. He watched me as he grabbed the hem of his shirt and brought it over his head. For a moment, I thought I was in another dream. The cloth fell to the floor and my mouth instantly went dry. Seeing him shirtless without river water obstructing the view was almost more than I could take.

  “Meghan.” My name from his mouth snapped my attention back up to his face where I found a knowing smile that did reach his eyes. I liked that one better. Heat burned my cheeks as I tried to force the blush away. Kodi’s smile faded into a look of concern.

  “Please don’t be afraid. I would never hurt you.”

  Confused at his words, I opened my mouth to ask what he was talking about, but my tongue fell uselessly when his eyes suddenly turned silver. Fear and curiosity paralyzed me, and I was unsure which emotion dominated the other. Slowly, his body began to shift like Simone’s had in my nightmare and fear won out. Kodi’s last words rang in my ears and kept me from screaming. My pause gave me a moment of clarity and I saw that there was in fact a difference between him and Simone. As I watched Kodi, he dropped to all fours. Fur began to spread along his back and disappeared beneath his shorts. His change was…graceful. There was no ugly snarling or threatening nature in it. No sickening pop of bones, only smooth shifting from one being to another. A ripping sound echoed throughout the room and when his shorts fell in tatters to the floor, a familiar creature raised its head.

  Eight

  My wolf! Kodi was my wolf. That sounded so strange, even in my head. My mind was in chaos. Too many questions and outcries of disbelief were at war and my head couldn’t pick a side. So, it had been Kodi that had come to the clinic in need of butterfly stitches. Wait…that meant that Kodi had slept on the bed with me in the tent. Mortification reared its ugly head and my blush returned full force. He watched me with a look of patience and hesitation, and I was sure he was waiting for everything to sink in. The guy that occupied most of my thoughts had just transformed into a wolf. Was I scared? Yes. I was scared because this wasn’t bothering me as much as I thought it should. Shouldn’t I be screaming? I should be screaming. Why the hell wasn’t I screaming? Was I in shock? That could be it. Wolves were powerful animals with incredible senses. This answered every question I’d had but created so many new ones it caused my head to spin trying to organize them. Tentatively, I reached out my good arm and waited to see what wolf-Kodi would do. Was he in there? Or did the wolf completely take over when he shifted? The wolf trotted over, and I tensed for a bite, but none came. Only several licks from a velvety-soft tongue touched my hand and I scratched him behind his ear. Kodi began to wag his tail and pant happily with his tongue hanging out and I laughed at how goofy he was acting. He seemed more like a lapdog than a ferocious wolf. I felt my smile fade. Kodi wasn’t ferocious at all. He was just as sweet as he’d always been to me. I just couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that this creature was Kodi. Someone I had feelings for. It was funny though, while in this wolf form, the comfort I felt around human-Kodi was still there but there was less anxiety. I wasn’t scared of saying or doing the wrong thing in front of him. Suddenly frantic, I thought back to whether or not I’d ever changed clothes in front of him. A giant wave of relief flooded through me as I recalled that the wolf had been a gentleman even then and had turned his head away. Kodi must still be in control then. I decided to see if he could understand me.

  “Alright, Kodi.” He perked up at attention and I took it as a good sign. “
Are you in there?” He gave one deep bow of his great, brown head. Okay. “Prove it,” I said. He gave me a dumbfounded expression that just looked silly on a wolf. For a moment, I believed nothing was going to happen but then he walked to the dresser where the tray he’d carried in earlier now sat. He stretched and stood on his hind legs and grabbed something with his mouth. Trotting back over, Kodi placed the object on my lap where I still sat on the bed. A spoon. I gave him a blank look and he motioned toward the bowl with his head. I’d never seen an animal motion at anything before. He growled at me for a moment and when he leaned in, I was sure he’d bite me this time. Wrong again, I thought as he wedged his head behind my legs which currently hung over the side of his bed. He nudged them again and I realized he was trying to make me stand up. I jumped to my feet and stood in the center of the room, unsure of what to do next. A bump to the back of my legs forced me forward and only when I stood at the dresser did Kodi stop. I looked at the bowl of what looked like chicken noodle soup, and then looked back at him. He watched me expectantly.

  “Wow, you’re like the dog nurse from Peter Pan.” He gave a growl and I grabbed the bowl of soup. “Can I sit on your bed while I eat the soup?” Another bow of his head. Careful not to spill the bowl’s contents, I settled into the same spot that I’d slept in and crossed my legs. Kodi hopped up as well to lie down next to me before settling his head down onto my thigh. I gave him a light pat and began eating. The soup was lukewarm now, but it still felt really good going down. Halfway through the bowl I felt stronger and more focused than before. I finished the bowl and still felt hungry. That wasn’t normal. I hadn’t been able to eat a whole helping of food since I got sick, let alone craved seconds. Had Kodi been telling the truth about my sickness being gone? How had I changed? Was I a werewolf now, too? I didn’t feel inhuman. I looked at Kodi and ran my fingers through his soft pelt.