September 27, 2012 (Thursday – 2 days to the Full Moon)
Resa felt numb at school on Thursday. She barely spoke to anyone and focused on her notes and Miss. Rush's board. Her pen doodled on a piece of paper, drawing wolves that howled at the moon and stars in black and white. She couldn't stop thinking about Rashad. She wiped a tear and sniffed, returning to her doodles.
*****
Rashad woke up at about 11:30 a.m. and checked his phone. There were some missed calls and a voicemail from Resa. He listened and then erased it. 'What was she sorry for? He's the one that messed up.' He knew she was at school, and he didn't want to be a distraction to her there. He took his clothes off and as he did, he could still smell her on him. His erection came to life, and he tried desperately to subdue it, but it had a mind of its own. He stepped into the hot shower and let the water run over him.
After the shower, he put his clothes back on and walked over to Wal-Mart. He went to the men's section and picked up some polo's, T-shirts, jeans, socks a pair of sunglasses a couple of hoodies, and boxers. He went to the shoe department to see what they had. He picked up a pair of hiking boots and turned to leave the store when a scent caught his attention and made his mouth water, blood. He started sniffing the air and following the smell to the meat department. He found himself standing in front of the meat display case. He sniffed some more and reached through the packages until he found some steaks with a high content of blood still in them. He put 3 of them in a plastic bag and brought them and the rest of the items to the checkout.
He went back to his room and put the clothes in the dresser. Then he walked into the kitchenette and realized that he didn't have anything to cook the meat in. He was about to walk back to Wal-Mart when he caught the scent of blood again. He ripped open the first package and hesitantly took a bite. The taste of the raw meat going down his throat with the blood trickling behind it was too much. He fell to his knees and devoured all the steaks in a feeding frenzy.
He looked at his cell phone when he was finished and saw that it was 2:15 p.m. He knew that Resa would be getting out soon and he needed to talk to her. He threw away the wrappers, washed his face, brushed his teeth, and put on a pair of jeans, a hoodie, and hiking boots. He grabbed the shades and walked out of his room to the bus stop where he knew she had to go to use the bus.
He made it to the bus stop at 2:40 and just sat on the bench, put his headphones on, and listened to music while he waited. He smelled her before he saw her, but he didn't move. He knew his face would be shadowed by the hood and the glasses. He watched her walk up to the stop, past him, and wait. She looked sad, and he knew it was his fault. He wanted to wrap his arms around her and hug her to him, but that would have to wait till later. A few minutes later, the bus arrived, and she got on it, and he followed. She sat on the third seat, and he went to the bench at the back of the bus.
The ride took about an hour, and he watched as Resa tried to call him again. It took all his willpower not to answer, not to walk down there and sit next to her and hold her. He knew he had to be strong. He needed to know where she stood in all this, especially after last night.
When they arrived at her stop she got off and he followed behind. He acted like he was walking in the opposite direction and then he stopped and waited for her to get to her building. He walked up the stairs to her condo and knocked on the door.
*****
Resa had a terrible day. She barely passed the surprise quiz that Miss Rush gave them. She couldn't concentrate on anything else. She missed him. She wanted to support him through everything. He ran away and he still wouldn't pick up his phone. She didn't look around the bus as she usually did. She didn't smile or say anything. Her chest hurt. She had used up her hydrocodone when she woke up this morning, her gall bladder had acted up and caused her pain. She thought about going to the hospital and taking another bus to get there. She changed her mind.
She got off the bus at her stop and walked to the building, smoking a cigarette on the way. Her feet felt heavy as she climbed up to the third floor of the complex. She reached the top and put out her cigarette, unlocking the door and entering. She shut the door behind her and headed to the kitchen to throw away the cigarette butt before going to her bedroom. She tossed the book bag on the floor by her chair and took off her jacket. She felt cold inside. She shivered a bit as she stepped out to the kitchen. A knock on the door made her turn. Her lips tightened. She wasn't expecting anyone. She walked to the door and opened it. At first, she didn't recognize him, then her eyes widened. Her arms wrapped around him. Her tears ran down her cheeks as she pressed her head into his chest.
*****
He hugged her back and just stood there. He had a lot on his mind, but for now, just holding her seemed to be enough. After a few moments she backed up from him and he wiped the remaining tears from her face. She invited him in, and he joined her in her bedroom. He made sure that he stayed on the opposite side of the room from her, and then sat down on the ground.
"What happened to you last night?' she asked as soon as she sat on the bed.
"I had to get out of here. After we were done, with the feelings that I had, I wasn't sure if it was what was inside of me, or just me. Plus, you have Derek to worry about. I don't want to come in between the two of you." He said to her. He watched her face for any sign as to how she was feeling.
She spoke softly, "I don't know. This is too sudden; I need some time to think about it." He looked at her and understood that she was in a difficult situation, and he was not helping. He stood up and reached for the doorknob when she got off the bed and held his other hand. "But you don't have to go. I still want to help you; we just have to do it as friends."
"I don't know if I can control what my body wants to do to you. The closer I seem to get to Saturday, the worse it gets." He said without looking at her.
"We're friends, we can do this together. I trust you, Rashad. I know you can fight whatever urges you have so we can figure this out." Resa said. Rashad took his hand off the doorknob and turned to her. He could smell her, and he liked what he smelled. 'No, I can fight this.' He thought to himself as he pulled his hand from her and returned to his spot on the wall. She went back and sat on the bed.
*****
She went to the computer and began searching the internet. She questioned him about various things: how fast he could run. Strength? What did his hunger feel like? She glanced at him a few times and noticed that he avoided her gaze. She pouted and placed her hand on her chest, the pain was getting worse. She hated it. But she didn't tell him. She looked back at the computer and scrolled down the list of possible scenarios for the first full moon. She didn't like the results she was finding. She turned and left the chair to go to him. She knelt in front of him. He stopped her hand from touching his face and she watched him.
"Rashad, I'm here for you. I always will be. Okay?" she asks gently. "This is something incredible that happened to you. But it's also a terrible nightmare. I know you're afraid of losing yourself to the beast. I know you want to resist it. Let me help you as much as I can." she said as he looked into her eyes and saw no fear. Only excitement sparkled in her eyes. He smiled and nodded.
She smiled back, pulling away from him. She wore black Capri shorts and a matching black tank top. Her necklaces hung around her neck and her hair was clipped back. She typed on the keyboard and muttered some things, writing them down in a notebook. She looked at the computer again. Her legs swung back and forth. Her right hand moved to her chest. She stopped typing and breathed slowly. She tried to ignore the pain.
*****