bound to the moonlight

8.Matt

Matt

I sighed brushing the collecting raindrops from my forehead before I shuffled slightly pulling my coat collar up a little higher.

"I found you." I said as I spotted Amy lounging around in the rain outside a burger bar soaked to the skin in just her uniform with no hint of a coat as though she was oblivious to the rain soaking her. She lifted her eyes to mine and smiled in a way that seemed to be completely genuine,

"Good I'm hungry." she said jerking her head to towards the burger bar we were stood in front of. "Still? You've just eaten a snickers a mars bar and a crunchie." I said incredulously. "How can you still be hungry?"

"How do you know that?" she asked frowning, I nodded at the three wrappers protruding from her pocket. She smiled and shoved the wrappers harshly away into her pocket. "Well you took my ice cream." She smiled at me and moved a small step forwards, I was close enough that I could feel the warm body heat radiating from her and across the small barrier of cold air between us. I didn't flinch no matter how much I wanted to I locked my eyes on hers with an intense sort of curiosity. She reached out across the tiny space and brushed a single lock of hair back from my eyes. I reached out and grasped her hand my fingers wrapping around her wrist firmly but not tightly.

"Amy" I said gently, but I knew the desperation was sliding across in my voice, "how did I find you?" "You tracked my scent." she said simply.

"Oh of course silly me." I snorted,

"It's going to take a while to explain." she said brightly pushing the wet hair back from her face "Burger?" Matthew snorted a laugh,

"You're insane." I said but still followed her inside and stood passively beside next to her as she ordered two meals, and in seconds we were seated at a small table well away from the windows (as after all It was still school hours). I don't have a clue why I was here really, I mean I was weird but this girl had some serious issues even compared to me, but I couldn't seem to shake the feeling that she might in fact be able to give me some answers or maybe it was just that I was so desperate for someone anyone to help me. Or as I slightly suspected did I just want her?

"I hope you're not expecting me to share this because if you try to steal my fries I will bite you." Amy said leisurely.

"So" I prompted passively, but Amy seemed disinclined to answer as she stared unhurriedly at the food leisurely as if pondering where to begin.

"So....what?" she asked finally digging into her burger. I gave her a flat stare, "what is it you want to know?"

"What... your the f*****g one who brought me here" I said incredulously.

"Well technically you followed me here." She said calmly I could feel myself grinding my teeth in irritation but I couldn't think of a comeback to that and it just annoyed the hell out of me.

"What the f**k do want from me?" I asked suddenly feeling tired, Amy smiled

"Now there's an offer." She said playfully smiling in a way that I know was making me blush to beyond the colour of a tomato. I opened myself to say something but nothing came out so I mutely just closed my mouth. "Sorry." Amy said gently. Slowly in took a deep breath, unsure of the best way I should approach this,

"What." I hesitated, "what's your deal?" Amy just frowned,

"My deal." She said honestly seeming confused,

"You are going to make me say it?"

"What?"

"Fine what's a joke without me playing along so everyone can laugh at the punch line," I muttered under my breath,

"What do I have to convince you I'm not trying to trick you?" damn she had good ears, I sighed

"Fine what are you trying to convince me? You're claiming to be what?" she smiled it looked dangerous,

"Okay I'm a ....werewolf."

"Of course you are." I said somehow not allowing myself to laugh

"Well more like a shape shifter than a traditional view of a werewolf because I can choose to turn, except I do have to turn on the full moon and that is... difficult. But I do shift into wolf form." a light bulb suddenly turned on in my brain,

"Are you like playing one of those role playing game things?"

"What?"

"You know what's it called ...larping? You know. "

"No I don't have a clue what you're talking about. " she said slowly honestly looking confused.

"So your telling you were bitten and now you turn into a wolf every full moon?"

"Well I wasn't bitten but basically ...yeah." she said slowly.

"I'm leaving now." I said calmly pushing the chair noisily back and walking out of the burger bar without a word. I don't know if I was surprised or not when Amy reappeared at my side, though I was surprised that she had brought the remains of her second burger meal with her.

"The biting thing can happen but I was born this way and I think maybe you were too." Amy continued as if she hadn't noticed my attempt at storming out.

"Will you shut the f**k up" I snapped turning to glare at her anger boiling out of me from nowhere. "This is f*****g ridiculous you're trying to convince me your some f*****g monster from a fairytale.

"I am not a Monster." she said gently in no way responding to my anger, "I'm just different and I didn't ask to be born this way and it's not Easy trying to fit in when your different and I just want to help you with that."

"I'm just sick."

"Well if you believe that why did you come here?" I bit my lip not knowing how to answer that without sounding like a sap or a perv.

"I don't know." I snarled, rubbing my forehead as my head throbbed painfully,

"You need my help and you know that."

"No because your making fun of me." I said loudly just allowing my anger to rule, I planned to stride away but found myself unable to it was as if my feet were rooted and my mouth was on autopilot "You're insane and ...I....I'm just sick that's it. And this stupid role play thing your doing its...you might need some therapy." I threw out desperate to cling to something rational.

"Had it and still having It." she said plainly "and if you think your sick, good because they'll try to

convince you of that pretty soon. They tell me I'm sick too." she said pulling her bag open and flung a tatty leather book at me that I caught on pure instinct. "my therapy journal, she thinks I'm sick, probably due to abuse. " she flipped out a pack of pills on the top, "those are my sleeping pills to make me sleep through my nightmares." she flipped out another pack and another, "my stimulants to keep me awake in the daytime, my anti anxiety medication, my anti depressants, my anti psychotics. Yeah I'm obviously sick because they have been trying to cure me for a very long time." "I'm leaving now." I said acidly shoving the pile back into her arms "don't try to help me again." I strode away,

"I can prove it" She said loudly I hated myself but that phrase made me freeze, "I can show you what I am and what you'll become if that's what it takes for you to believe me." she said I turned and she slowly took a step towards me. "I can. But you have to wait until I've finished this." she said holding up her bag of unfinished food."

"Are you always hungry?" I asked flatly, she nodded

"Generally, But of course." she continued reaching in the bag and pulling out a handful of fries, "you do know this is more than just gluttony right? I mean I have an incredibly fast metabolism apparently."

"Apparently?" she shrugged

"According to Scott."

"Who's Scott?" I asked she froze and dropped the rest of her fries back in the bag scrunching it closed again as if she suddenly didn't fancy it anymore. Her face clearly showed a belief that she had just said too much.

"Um...he was a...friend," she sighed clearly fully aware of how lame that ending was,

"A friend," I echoed my voice heavy with irony. I smiled

"translation you were f*****g him."

"No." She said but weakly I didn't believe her at all.

"You didn't know what you are to him and clearly weren't happy calling him a boyfriend."

"Look it doesn't matter." I gave her a flat look but she didn't say anything else. She finally sighed and broke eye contact it felt as if I'd been robbed of something. "So you want me to prove I'm not lying, I need a private place is your house going to be empty for another half an hour."

"Well...yeah." I gaped looking lost.

"Excellent lets go Matty." she said clapping my shoulder.

"Its Matt," I said walking away, "just Matt not Mathew I hate that and Matty really isn't better." "Sorry." she said scampering along beside me, "I...I just had a brother when I was little he was called Matthew and I called him Matty."

"What happened to him?" I asked softly as we strode along the dull drizzly streets. Seeing her expression I instantly regretted asking but I honestly was curious.

"He...he died." she said softly

"I...I'm sorry." I said pathetically,

"It's alright it was a long time ago." She said but her dark eyes looked as haunted as if it had happened yesterday.

"Is that how you ended up in care?"

"No well... yes I guess I mean my family, my parents and my three brothers were all killed when I was four. Matty and Martin died trying to save Me." she bit her lip; "and then I... Well I ended up living with Scott he... he looked after me." I felt like an ass now about my comments "I guess my Guardian is the best term I can give you." I again felt the sting of my 'you were f*****g him' comment, she was a child and he had been her carer. "he ... he "I could hear her voice c***k with emotion I felt my hand move instinctively falling onto her shoulder gripping it lightly to silence her. I leaned over just feeling the need to comfort her my nose lightly brushed across my hair,

"I'm sorry." I breathed, "How did it happen?" I whispered, the more we talked the more I wanted to hear her talk the more I wanted to know.

"No." she said pushing herself out of my embrace, "I can't tell you that and have you say that I'm lying about it, not when I've never." She bit her lip and I could see her fighting hard to push down her tears, it made me just want to wrap my arms around her again but I could see she wouldn't let me,

"I wouldn't say that."

"You already have." She said gently,

"Well I ...I can see that you're not..." I stammered feeling like an ass.

"It's alright it's pretty unbelievable what I'm asking you to believe." she said gently " but I've never told anyone in the world about what happened well nobody but Scott," she whispered, I nodded, "It's Okay" I said gently, I and reached across and gently brushed the pads of my thumbs across her cheek brushing off the tears which were flowing down them. I saw her tremble as she fought the tears I shocked myself as I gently wrapped my arms around her and held her gently pressed into his chest. I felt her give up trying to fight these tears and just sob the tears making her entire body shake with the emotion. "Shhh." I whispered into her hair and just tightened my hands and held her mote tightly and rubbed my nose into her hair. She shuffled around in my arms to press her forearms to my chest. Eager to take this hint I released her. "Are you alright?" I asked as she looked around absently,

"Where did my other burger go?" My face burst open into a wide smile; she smiled back quickly rubbing the tears from her face with the air of someone who was thoroughly embarrassed by her momentary lack of control. "Come on I guess we better get moving so I can demonstrate." she said simply,

"No you don't have to." I said not moving, I had upset her and right now I hated myself for it. She gripped my hand.

"Yes." She said simply "I do."