bound to the moonlight

11. Matt

Matt

It was a bizarre sort of day possibly because it was still dark when I had woken up and finding it impossible to go back to sleep I had given up and stationed myself in the kitchen, and here I still was. I sat at the breakfast bar glaring at the clock on the wall above me. The second hand continued to tick around but neither of the other hands seemed to move an inch. This was a startling contrast to the previous days where the hands seemed to wiz around at an insane sort of pace as I seemed to move as slow as though I was trying to wade through syrup. To be honest my night's sleep had been virtually nonexistent as I waited inpatient for the dawn. At five am I couldn't stand the tossing and turning anymore and was now sat grinding my teeth as I looked at the clock with an angry snarl. Amy had just run away from me last night leaving me stood in the street gaping at the spot where she had disappeared with the light scent of her lingering in my nose, I had wanted to run full pelt after her but I was already acting kind of creepy so I fought hard to get a grip of myself and walked home. Of course this wasn't fun once I got back I had to listen to my mom's ranting it seemed that me leaving like that had just gotten her more wound up and she completely gave up on her previous softly softly approach to just go for the yelling approach. I sat in the living room mutely knowing that anything I tried to say to her would just rile her up more. My father returned at about six o'clock and I was sent upstairs while the two of them discussed what had happened. I could tell from the fact that I could only hear my mom's voice that my dad wasn't seeing this as being that much of a horrific discovery. This was confirmed when he arrived in my room about half an hour later. I was laid out on my bed my hands interlocked behind my head as I watched the ceiling. My father entered of course without knocking strode across the room and sat himself down at my desk chair. I lifted my eyes to him and he smiled broadly.

"Well you pissed Alice off royally didn't you." He said calmly.

"It really isn't that big a deal dad."

"Oh I know that." He said gently, "I think your mother was just a little surprised I mean we never heard anything about this girl and then she turns up and the two of you are cuddled up in the living room, and of course that also made it clear that you've been cutting school again."

"You think she would have preferred it if I'd sent her a text or something?" my dad smiled, "So who is she?" he asked leaning forward with a blokey sort of glance at me.

"She's just a girl from school she's new." I said trying my hardest to be casual but my mind was conjuring up wonderful vivid images now that I was thinking about her, I could almost feel her soft fur running through my fingers her gentle warm breath brushing across my neck.

"Your mother says she's very pretty." He said with a small smile, I felt my eyes narrowing at my dad as I felt a very unnatural urge to growl at him!

"She's just a friend." I forced myself to say, my dad's smile widened,

"Oh she's that pretty huh?" he said getting up and moving towards the door. He sighed and turned his face back to the door, "just try to keep it subtle right mate, I know your Young and well you know you caught your Mother by surprise as I don't think she's noticed your not five anymore. but she's pissed so just try to avoid bringing the girl round for a bit and it'll die down I'll talk to her." He looked over his shoulder and gave me a little smile that seemed hopeful but after a few seconds that small smile disappeared and he looked a little sad he turned back to the door gripping the handle.

"Dad." I said and he froze "she's beautiful." I said gently, "She's probably the most beautiful girl I've ever seen." He turned back to face me and gave an honest smile,

"I remember when girls were that beautiful." He said gently leaving the room.

I pushed myself up off the stool with a growl I was just too impatient I couldn't wait to see her again. I don't know why as I had absolutely no idea what I intended to say to her but I just wanted to see her. Ten to eight it was still far too early if I left now I would be at school by eight am not tempting (I generally spent the absolute minimum number of minutes possible there) and yet I found myself getting slowly to my feet and grabbing my bag which I yanked it up onto my back and stamped out of the house. The morning air was still dank the air wet with morning mist, within seconds my hair was sodden with dew. I sighed and pushed the wet hair back off my face.

"About time." my eyes swept across to the garden wall at the end of my road, and my eyes settled on the most beautiful creature in creation.

"Hi." I said wishing I could think of something at least vaguely interesting to say, she snapped her paperback closed and hopped down off the wall. "How have you been?"

"Since last night?" I said blankly,

"Yeah you look tired." She said standing close to me and lifting her chin so she could peer into my eyes her gaze suspicious.

"I'm fine." I said, "

Okay." She said slowly, Amy flinched and then frowned at me and I was suddenly aware that I had gripped her hand and entwined my fingers in hers. She looked surprised but didn't pull away. "So are you grounded?" she asked playfully clearly keen to return to a more casual tone.

"Nah my dad's thrilled that I've started to act like such a guy." She smiled brightly,

"Well give it a few more weeks bro and you'll be up to your eyes in pretty girls." She said playfully, knocking my shoulder,

"Not as pretty as you," I blurted out and felt myself instantly blush as I averted my eyes and cursed at myself inside what an i***t less than a minute and I had already managed to put my overlarge feet right in my mouth.

"Smooth talker." she said playfully lifting my hand to kiss the back of it, "but no matter how sweet the talk is it will take more than that to get me out of my knickers." I smiled glad she was ignoring my blushes and making light of my babbles, but I wished she hadn't mentioned her knickers.

"Don't need to I've seen it all already." I said with a brave attempt at Bravado which I regretted the second after it left my mouth, but Amy just snorted.

"Once is never enough." She said and I noticed a subtle shift in her walk it meant that her hips were swinging a little more than totally necessary and f**k was that simple action making my mind go to some dirty places.

"Well last time all I had to do to get you out of your knickers was ask." She just flicked her hair and didn't say anything. I found my eyes locked on her beautiful swaying hips, f**k I was in some serious trouble when this girl was around I couldn't seem to drag my mind out of the sewer and I had a sever fear that it wouldn't be long before I tried to jump her (even though that action would involve a full personality transplant) and that would NOT be appreciated I was pretty certain of that. "So how long will it be before I can you know do what you do?"

"I assume your talking about the shifts not the hip sway." She said playfully, I couldn't help but glare slightly she knew exactly what she was doing to my brain. She sobered and shrugged, "it took me two months from where you seem to be to be able to shift completely. And then it took me near six months to learn to control it."

"Eight months." I said in a deadpan voice "Brilliant. I have really started to enjoy them." Amy laughed and rested her head on my shoulder,

"It gets easier"

"Your lying." I said blandly,

"True." She said "it never gets any better it always sucks."

"I know this is probably a no but is there anything we can do to speed the whole thing up."

"Sorry." she said "short of getting over emotional that is."

"What?"

"Shifts are often triggered by strong emotional responses like when our adrenaline kicks in seems to trigger a shift." she said with a smile, "lucky for this town the shifters are the two most mild mannered unemotional teenagers there are. Scared will work do you want me to strip again because that seemed to work last night." I smiled,

"See told you I could get you out of your knickers without too much effort" I said simply, "but no thank you."

"Good I think in your perfect little suburbia running around without my knickers on might attract the notice of the curtain twitching neighbours."

"Hell I think it might cause a riot."

"Your actually quite a flirt under your shy exterior aren't you." She said again resting her head gently on my shoulder.

"Ummmm," I muttered my cheeks beginning to burn Amy chuckled again as we carried on casually walking towards school and I couldn't help but marvel at the ridiculousness of it two little werewolves just walking to school together. "Amy," I whispered as we stopped at the traffic lights. "Mmm" she said as I looked back over my shoulder at the neat little street I lived in it was so neat and tidy and right now it was just sleepy waiting for morning as if it was holding its breath.

"Am I going to have to leave?"

"What?"

"You know what I'm asking you do I have to leave here my family that sort of thing."

"I...I don't know." She said honestly. "I mean I've never really had a family so I don't know if you have –"

"Amy." I cut across her.

"Probably," she said with a little nod. "I mean... Scott had to . I don't think you'll have to but maybe it would be better for them if you do."

"Better for them?" I said gently as the traffic stopped and the annoying beeping sounded but neither of us moved we just stood and looked at each other. Amy's big dark eyes were intense and sad.

"You will be incredibly strong and we have problems intermingling with real humans anyway but imagine what you would do to those f*****g school bullies if you could break their arms with little more than a flick of your fingers."

"I won't do anything." She folded her arms and gave me a sceptical look,

"It's not just that anyway." She said flipping her hand "you'll be strong and so strong that it'll be hard for you to not innocently hurt everyone you know."

"You manage it." I smiled

"Yeah I do." Amy said gently as the traffic resumed its steady rumble around us. "But you forget I'm special I'm a real minority, a girl rogue. The rest of us well the pack are trying to kill us because we flout the laws that they hold so dear. I'm trying to keep on the straight and narrow but most of us don't bother and just live on the sidelines of life. The laws they choose to go against because what the pack see as essential and the base rule is learn to somehow suppress the wolf part of us. It's hard to be helpless all your life to suddenly have something that makes you strong and to have to give it up." Amy said with a sad smile before suddenly averting her eyes with a fetching pink tint to her cheeks as if she had said too much but I was all at sea as to what she had said that was embarrassing and I'm highly skilled at finding the embarrassment in all possible situations. "Oooh brake in the traffic." She said suddenly turning and running across the road, but before I could even blink a car screeched past me. I frowned at Amy who was stood on the far kerb rubbing her cheeks roughly as she looked at her feet. Half of me wanted to run across the road and grab her as she was crying but the awkward teenage geek that still ruled the majority of me (he was actually the one who still thought Amy was part of an elaborate joke on me that I was just waiting for the punch line of) that overruling part of me wanted to freeze here in horror and wait until Amy dried her tears before I even moved. Luckily for my inner geek the traffic was thick enough that it was several minutes before the lights changed and I was able to cross and by then Amy was looking as composed as ever and just a little bored. "Finally." She said brightly but it was clear that something had changed her defences were up as she turned and began striding away from me as if she was going to war leaving me bobbing along in her wake.

"So..." I said clumsily desperately wanting to say something "what do I do now?"

"What do you mean?" Amy asked sharply "you wait it out it's like puberty got to be done but it's a biology thing you can't 'do' anything."

"Great." I said simply knowing that was a shut up and interpreting it as such.

"What classes have you got today?" she asked surprising me.

"Um... German, Maths, err... double chemistry, Geography and um.... The other one." Amy looked

back at me with a smile,

"I have Drama does that help."

"Music." I said grudgingly.

"Well we have a total of two classes together." I nodded,

"Chemistry you're too smart for me in Maths." Amy stopped and turned around to look at me sternly hands on her hips,

"Have you been stalking me Matthew?" I smiled,

"Your like a new toy there has been a lot of talk about you. Of course nobody says it to me I just overhear it."

"What do they say?" she asked playfully,

"You want to know you do your own eavesdropping." I said walking past her.