“Hi,” was the genius greeting that came spewed from my mouth.
“Hey,” he said and stood with a smile. “Stephen is heading back over and we’re all going to play Star Wars Monopoly if you’d like to join us.”
I laughed. Jane and I played Nintendo Monopoly all of the time. I’d never lost.
“That sounds like fun. I’ll meet you down there.”
He flashed that smile that made me weak in the knees but instead of heading to the door like I’d thought he would, he walked up to me and cradled my face in his strong hand, leaned in and gave me a quick kiss on the lips like it was the most natural thing in the world. He left me standing there and I wondered if my face betrayed my bewilderment at the act. It took several minutes for my nerves to calm and for my blush to fade before I descended the stairs. Stephen wasn’t there yet but Jack, Trina and Kodi were seated at the kitchen table with the board game already set up. A tray of cookies and a variety of sweets also adorned the table along with a canter of milk and several glasses. As I sat, I couldn’t help but notice a slice of cheesecake that was extremely tempting now that I knew I could eat it without getting sick. Cheesecake had always been my favorite treat. Even without the risk of getting sick, I chose to ignore the thing’s existence because I would probably embarrass myself in front of Kodi with noises of pleasure at being able to enjoy it for the first time in a long time and I also wanted to watch what I ate. Just because I wouldn’t get sick eating junk food, that didn’t mean I wanted my waist to expand any further. I took a seat next to Kodi which left the other side of him open for Stephen, who walked into house from the back door in the kitchen. He wasted no time in grabbing a plate and loading it with sweets including slices of chocolate cake and apple pie long with several cookies. Trina had poured him a glass of milk before he was finished stocking his plate and no one acted as if it was out of character. It was clear to me that the Barretts were very aware that Stephen loved food. I found myself wondering if he was just a hungry growing boy or if he didn’t get much food at home. I know he wouldn’t want me to feel sorry for him any more than I would, so I pushed the thoughts from my mind and looked at the game setup. Trina had the money tray in front of her.
“Are you going to be the banker?” I asked her.
Kodi spoke before his mother could answer. “She thinks Dad and I cheat,” he said with a grin.
I raised an eyebrow at him, “Do you?”
Trina laughed and Kodi looked at her while he said, “No, we don’t. She just doesn’t like to lose.”
She gave him a mock dirty look and bit into a cookie. It looked delicious. A glass plate clinked down in front of me and it had a slice of cheesecake with a small pile of chocolate-chip cookies. I followed the arm connected to the hand that held the plate and found that Kodi had put the plate directly in front of me. He said nothing and loaded his own plate with the same. I began to decline it, but he interrupted me.
“Go ahead, it’s delicious. Mom’s desserts are the best.” I believed him; I’d tasted her food after all. Also, since he’d basically called me out about it, I didn’t want to insult Mrs. Barrett by declining. Besides, my resolve to decline the cheesecake had been weak to begin with. I picked up a fork and took the first bite of the slice and my earlier fears were confirmed. I couldn’t help the moan that escaped my lips and I quickly covered my mouth with my free hand.
“I’m sorry. It’s been a long time since I’ve been able to eat anything this wonderful.” Realizing what I’d said, I rushed to correct myself. “Not that your stew wasn’t delicious too, I just meant as far as desserts go. Cheesecake was always my favorite.” Everyone laughed at my vocabulary stumble and Trina was the first to recover.
“It’s alright, Meghan. Cheesecake is my favorite as well. Jack prefers chocolate,” she smiled at her husband who could only nod in confirmation as his mouth was busy chewing and there was a dab of dark frosting on the side of his mouth so it was clear that what she said was true. As I took a few more bites, Kodi paused in eating to speak to me.
“Just a warning, although we don’t cheat, we don’t exactly play by the rules either,” I waited for him to elaborate, but he didn’t. However, an hour into the game I caught on to what he’d meant. Although it wasn’t in the rules, the Barretts offered trades of property for real-life favors. Jack had gotten a property he’d needed from Trina by offering to do the dishes for a week straight. She had accepted and Jack was that much closer in completing the set of orange properties. Another forty minutes later I was sure that I’d caught on to the name of the game. I couldn’t trade chores like Jack had because I didn’t live here, but I had a plan. I had two of the three light blue properties and needed Dagobah to complete the set, which Stephen currently owned. They kept to the rules in the way that everyone had to wait until it was their turn to make an offer to another player, so when it was my turn, I gave Stephen my best poker face. He grinned confidently because he knew I needed what he had.
“So, Stephen, I spoke to Katie about what she thought of going to Homecoming with you. I’ll give you Dagobah for her answer.”
Before I was even finished speaking the last words of my offer, Stephen had dropped the property in front of me faster than I could follow his movements and looked at me like I was about to read him a college acceptance letter and that his entire future depended on what I would say next.
“She’s going with you. I’m going to go dress shopping with her next week. I’ll let you know what color she picks so that you know what color tie to get,” I said with a smile as I picked up the Dagobah card and completed my set. Pleased with myself, I immediately gave Trina the money it cost to upgrade the properties. I looked up to check on Stephen, but he wasn’t in his chair anymore. I jumped when he appeared next to me pulled me out of my chair into the tightest hug I’d ever experienced.
“Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!” he jumbled excitedly, and I laughed as soon as he’d let me go when I could breathe again. Kodi clapped his congratulations and looked at me with a spark of pride in his green eyes and a devious smile. I gave him a look of suspicion as Stephen returned to his seat and Kodi chose that moment to hold up a pink property card. Hoth. I owned two complete sets already. All I needed to dominate this game was to complete my third set. I had two pink properties. All but Hoth. I had no juicy information to hold from him. I had no aces up my sleeve for this one. I had nothing to offer him. Also, my turn had ended, which made it Kodi’s turn. Since I couldn’t think of anything to trade him for it, I had no choice but to sit back and watch the game progress. Jack and I were in the lead, followed by Kodi, which left Stephen and Trina pretty close to being tied. Kodi upgraded his properties but before he rolled the die to complete his turn, he leaned toward me and displayed Hoth next to his face.
“I’ll sell this to you,” he said with a smile that was more playful than any I’d ever seen from him. I glanced at my money pile. I wasn’t willing to pay too much because I’d need a decent amount if I landed on any upgraded properties and everyone owned at least one set.
“How much do you want for it?” I asked cautiously.
He pretended to think for a moment before answering.
“I’ll trade you Hoth for a kiss.”
Heat stained my cheeks and I looked at Kodi’s parents with embarrassment. Trina just shrugged with a grin and Jack looked smug. These people played dirty. I turned back to Kodi and he waited expectantly while continuing to flaunt the pink card at me. I leaned forward slightly, and he met me the rest of the way for a sweet, deep kiss and I was halfway tempted to offer all of earnings for another just like it.
Kodi settled back into his chair looking incredibly pleased with himself while finishing his turn. I sat quietly willing my blush to fade and my heartbeat to return to normal. It was Stephen’s turn and he looked back and forth between Kodi and me before finally settling on Kodi.
Stephen sighed, “I need your Death Star, but I refuse to kiss you for it.”
Every
one laughed and the improvised game continued. An hour later I had won, keeping my title as Monopoly champion, but Jack had definitely come closer to beating me than Jane ever had. He took the loss well with only a pout aimed in my direction as he and Trina headed upstairs. Stephen stood and the three of us cleaned up the board game. Once it was put away, we looked at each other until Stephen addressed Kodi.
“How about we go running tonight? I don’t really want to go home yet,” he said. I removed myself by taking the dishes from the desserts to the sink and cleaning off the rest of the kitchen table. Even if invited, I would opt to stay home. There was no way I could keep up with these guys or anyone for that matter. I was a swimmer, not a runner. My attention was pulled back to them, however, when I heard my name.
“We should bring Meghan. It’s something she’s going to experience soon, this way she might get the hang of it better when the time comes,” Stephen suggested. Kodi looked at me but said nothing. I had no idea what Stephen was talking about and I couldn’t tell if Kodi liked the sound of his idea or not. Finally, he spoke.
“You’re right. She should know.” Although Kodi had agreed, I could see worry in his eyes. There was something he wasn’t telling me.
“It’s going to be cold out there, you might want to grab a sweatshirt,” said Kodi. His entire demeanor had changed but I chose not to comment on it.
“I don’t have one anymore. I was wearing mine when Simone bit me. Dr. Thomas said they had to cut it off of me,” I replied.
Kodi nodded as if he remembered. “I have a few in my closet. You can grab one of those.”
I headed upstairs without saying anything and heard the guys go out the back door. In the closet I found a blue sweatshirt and a grey one. The grey one seemed older and more worn, so I took that one. I was surprised at how well it fit. I descended the stairs and went out the kitchen door to find Kodi and Stephen standing shirtless in front of an old truck that looked like it was from the fifties. It matched the aged look of their house and I thought it was in fairly good condition. Its dark green paint barely had any chips or fading but any of that information barely registered for me when there was a half-naked Kodi in front of me.
I walked up to them and Kodi nodded to Stephen who took off into the woods far beyond my line of sight in the darkness. I looked to Kodi and he walked toward me, the worry still present on his beautiful face. He walked right past me and motioned for me to follow him. Pulling down the tailgate of the truck, I gasped when he suddenly picked me up and sat me on one side before hopping up onto the other and sitting down next to me.
We sat there for what felt like minutes in silence before Kodi finally sighed.
“We’re going to go for a run. I know that you’ve seen me shift before, but my guess is that you were in too much shock to actually focus on the shift itself. I want you to pay the best attention that you can because it won’t be long before you will be doing the same. I’m only wearing shorts because I think they’ll fall off on their own during the shift, or there’s a good chance I can just kick them off. While we’re running, you may see things that might upset you. It’s kind of like letting yourself go and giving over to the wolf. You’re still there and you are aware of everything, but you use the wolf’s instincts. Sometimes we wrestle each other but not to hurt each other. Other times, we chase down rodents or small animals. Not because we’re hungry but for the challenge of the chase. I want you to understand that no matter what you see, you will be safe. Do you believe me?”
I inhaled deeply as I took everything in. The prospect of watching him eat a bunny would not be high on my list of things I’d like to see, but it wouldn’t scare me away. I told him so.
“Also,” I added, “I’d be honored to watch you shift.”
Kodi smiled at me and whatever had been bothering him seemed to vanish. Was he worried about what I would think of him? Kodi slid off the tailgate with ease and stood before me. While waiting for him to change a wolf suddenly bolted from between the trees at the edge of the woods and its reflective gold eyes make me gasp and scoot further into the bed of the truck, panic rising in my chest. Kodi was suddenly in the back of the truck with me, holding me and I tried to focus on the words coming from him.
“It’s okay, Meghan, it’s Stephen. It’s just Stephen. Nothing’s going to hurt you, you’re safe,” he said softly into my ear.
Was Kodi the only damn wolf around here that didn’t have gold eyes? I looked over the edge of the tailgate and found that Stephen had lain completely flat on the ground and looked up at me with a tail wag and gave a small whine. I could tell he was trying to present himself as non-threatening and the wolf in me sprang forward. She had not been spooked in the least by Stephen as she had recognized him from earlier when I’d felt his wolf out. At that point, I just felt silly. I brought myself back to the edge of the truck and settled onto the tailgate once more.
“Hi, Stephen. Sorry about that,” I said sheepishly.
Stephen gave a quick bow of his great head and wandered further back, waiting just at the edge of the woods but still in my line of sight. Settling my gaze back onto Kodi who was standing closer to me than I’d thought, I was surprised when he closed the distance between us and rested his hands on my thighs. He wasn’t groping me or being inappropriate in the least, just simply resting them there. Leaning forward, he placed a soft kiss against my lips and drew back. The night air felt cold on my legs where his warm hands had been.
“Just in case that was the last time,” Kodi said before stepping back a few feet. I don’t know why that would’ve been our last kiss and I prayed that it wasn’t. Kodi closed his eyes taking a deep breath and when he opened them, they were as bright silver as the moon. I sat, mesmerized by the majesty that was Kodi Barrett. He was truly an amazing creature to behold. His body began to shift, and that soft, brown hair began to sprout along his neck and upper body as it had before. He dropped to all fours and I watched his ears and mouth extend. A tail appeared from behind him. It seemed to go slower this time but was just as graceful, nevertheless. No more than a minute later, Kodi’s wolf, so familiar to me now, stood panting before me. Tonight, I had witnessed a man turn into a beautiful animal with captivating eyes. Tonight, I had witnessed magic.
Fourteen
Kodi trotted away a few feet and looked at me before continuing on his way to Stephen. I took this as a sign to follow him and hopped off of the truck, pushing the tailgate closed. Once we reached Stephen, I got another look from the wolves that I read very clearly. Keep up if you can. The animals bolted to the woods and something snapped awake inside me. It was familiar and I realized it was remarkably similar to what I’d felt earlier when I’d searched for Kodi. It was like a giddy adrenaline from my wolf and just like earlier, I gave her the reigns and let the animal inside take control.
I could swear that I was even faster than last time, whipping past trees and rocks to follow Kodi and Stephen in their pursuit of what, I didn’t know. The cold air soothed my skin as it grew warm from exertion. Suddenly, the wolves darted in another direction and I barely made the turn without smacking into a tree. As my wolf and I were one, I relished the chase as she did, for she was me and I was her. We had the same feelings, the same goals and right now, ours was gaining speed away from us. Puddles, overturned logs, critters and boulders were no obstacles for the wolves but were most likely the cause of them pulling further and further ahead. Earlier, I had simply drawn back and allowed my wolf to take control whereas this time, I pushed her forward and immediately felt my senses come to life. I could suddenly see them more clearly, hear anything and everything and then I knew, they had found something to chase. It was something small like a rabbit or perhaps a squirrel. Whatever it was, it was giving Kodi and Stephen a run for their money. Who would catch it? I wondered. Stephen’s wolf was lean which seemed to make him a little more agile whereas Kodi’s sheer strength allowed him to push his muscles well past the limits of others. They were both utterly amazing creatures.
Just when I was about to lose sight of them, the small critter was caught. It turned out to be a squirrel and Stephen gave a triumphant bark as he continued to gnaw at it. Only a few quiet minutes went by before Stephen was finished with his snack and only fur and bones remained. While I tried not to be grossed out, my wolf whined in jealousy inside my head. I looked at Kodi, who seemed to be watching me for any kind of reaction. I gave him a nod to let him know that I was fine. He trotted over to me and I ran my fingers lightly through the fur on top of his head. He leaned into my touch and for a moment I was excited that I’d soon be what he was. I wanted to know what it would be like to run with him and communicate with him in the form of a wolf. I had a feeling that as such a creature, I wouldn’t be so afraid to let him know that I wanted him to be mine.
Kodi walked to Stephen and looked from me, to the open woods, then back at me. I understood.
“I’ll see you back at the house,” I told him. “Goodnight, Stephen,” I added to the other wolf. They took off at full speed and then I knew they had gone easy on me. As I turned and began walking in the direction where I believed the house to be, I was suddenly glad that Kodi had made me grab a sweatshirt. The cold air froze my face and when I exhaled, I could see my breath. Realizing that the last time that happened, I had been bleeding and crawling out of a river, I increased my speed. A noise from behind caused me to turn around but I saw nothing. I began to run. I started to panic when my wolf urged me to move even faster. The disharmony around me felt like it had when I’d found Kodi in the river. There was a sound that didn’t belong. Something large was in the woods with me and it wasn’t either of the wolves that had just left my side. The lit lamp that hung outside the Barrett’s back door came into view and my relief was palpable. I skidded to a halt in front of the door and bent with my hands on my knees in an attempt to catch my breath before I went inside.
High School Bites Page 13