Wolf's Bane

Chapter Three

So hungry.

Despite it being already past two in the morning, a rumbling could be heard from inside Zayne's room. It was low yet intense, making one wonder if the young man had not eaten anything at all for a week.

"I can't sleep with this stupid growling," Zayne muttered to himself as he was forced to get up from the bed so that he could get something to eat from downstairs.

As made his way towards the door, the young man caught his reflection in the mirror and what he saw disgusted him. Immediately, he threw a punch towards it, breaking the glass into hundreds of pieces and letting them all fall onto the floor. Despite what he just did though, there was not a single scratch on his fist as he opened the door and left his room in a foul mood.

Immediately, he made his way towards the kitchen and there, he saw the food that Jack had prepared for him to eat, with a note telling him to heat it up inside the microwave. And so, he did what he was told and chucked the plate of pork and sausages, along with the fried rice, inside and set the time to two minutes.

Alone, the only thing Zayne could hear right now was the sound of the microwave working and the intense screams of people crying out for help inside his mind.

"To think it has been twenty years since I last came across a place with such an intense smell of dead bodies," Zayne muttered to himself, crossing his arms in front of his chest as he thought about everything that he had been through.

"You can't sleep?" Jack's voice interrupted his thoughts as he looked up and saw the large man walking down the staircase, making his way towards him.

"I was hungry," Zayne replied simply as Jack made his way towards one side of the kitchen and proceeded to grab a box of cereal from the pantry, along with a bowl and a spoon, before taking a seat at the table.

"You can talk to me if it would help," Jack said as he began pouring some cereal into the bowl, before asking Zayne if he could get the milk carton from the fridge for him.

"It's nothing Uncle Jack. It's just, it reminded me of some bad memories of when I was a kid," Zayne said as he handed his uncle the milk carton.

When the microwave turned off, Zayne proceeded to grab his meal from inside and sat down at the table across from his uncle, taking huge bites out of the grilled sausages.

"Is it good? I thought it would be nice to splurge a little so I made sure to get some premium sausages for you to enjoy," Jack told Zayne with a smile as he began eating some cereal.

Zayne didn't respond and merely nodded, wolfing down as much food as possible in order to make his hunger go away. But, no matter how much meat he stuffed into his mouth, he could feel that his appetite wasn't getting sated at all.

"Uncle Jack, why do you keep doing this for me?" Zayne asked.

"Do what? Make you food?" Jack asked curiously.

"No, not that. Just, this in general. Why do you care about us monsters so much?" Zayne asked curiously.

"You just want to hear my answer again to that question huh? You already know why but if it makes you feel better, I'll tell it to you over and over again no matter how many times you asked me," Jack said with a smile as he put his spoon down.

"It's because I believe that we are all created as equals. Vampires, werewolves, humans and all the other existing species out there, I believe that we all are equals that deserve a chance to be understood. Besides, you and Alice are not monsters. You two are people," Jack said.

"But I am a monster though. Right now, I'm doing all that I can to not jump at you and take a huge bite out of your neck. Not only that, I have taken so many lives with these bare hands of mine and I still plan on taking more in the future until I find those responsible for murdering my family and friends," Zayne said.

Upon hearing that, Jack could only give the young man a sympathetic look and repeated that he wasn't a monster. "The proof is in the pudding. You could have easily satisfied your hunger by taking a bite out of me right now and, all the more earlier when you were out doing the request given to you. But you didn't," Jack said.

"I believe what sets apart a monster from a person is self-control. Both you and Alice are exhibiting large amounts of it every single day," Jack said. "Denying what your instincts tell you two, that's pretty hard to do. Not everyone is capable of that."

"Still, that doesn't change the fact that I take lives," Zayne countered.

"It's no different from administering the death penalty on those people. That's your job," Jack replied. "Sometimes, the law isn't enough to bring down justice to those families who had suffered. You know that as well."

Hearing that, Zayne could only clench his teeth as he stared at his empty plate in front of him.

"Like I said, if you really are a monster, why go through all of this? Why even try to blend in society? You have the strength to do what you want and only a handful of people would be willing to try and stop you. And yet, here you are, doing your best in order to live a normal life while trying to be someone who could give back to the community," Jack continued.

"Thank you," Zayne replied simply as he stood up, carrying the plate and utensils in hand before bringing them over towards the sink to wash them.

"No need for that. It's my job as an adult to help guide you. Besides, I know that you don't recognize me and Alice as your parents but, we look at you as our son. So, it would be weird of me if I don't try to do my best and worry about you," Jack said with a smile as he continued eating his cereal.

"Anyways, Alice told me that you'll be taking a few weeks off from these activities. So, why not come with me to work tomorrow?" Jack asked.

"Why? I don't think there's anything for me to do there," Zayne said.

"I want you to take photos around the hospital. The social media team wants to update the hospital's website and so, I recommended you to them as a photographer," Jack said.

"Alright although, I'm not very good. I just took this up because you two wanted me to have a side job," Zayne said.

"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll do just fine. Besides, this would be a nice change of pace for you. I'll even introduce you to some of my personal clients if you want," Jack said but Zayne immediately shot him down, telling him that he was not interested in the affairs of the heart.

"You're wasting your good looks, you know. Besides, you don't have to worry about hiding yourself from the ones that I know personally. It's time for you to think about starting a family on your own in the future or at least, something else that doesn't include your revenge," Jack said.

"I'll think about it. Thanks Uncle Jack," Zayne replied as he proceeded to turn the faucet off and make his way upstairs.

Watching his retreating figure, Jack could only smile and hope that Zayne would find peace soon.

If only others can see the good in people like Zayne and Alice, then the world might be a better place to live in.