Cursed

Freaky shit was going on. No doubt about that. So imagine this shit scary scenario. I was sitting on my bed with a cup of coffee, reading some more of that professor's paper before school while Gerard snored softly beside me. The paper was going into more detail about potential changes in the individual's body as time went on. Sharpening of fingernails and teeth. Typical stuff like that. I hadn't noticed anything so far, in fact I was beginning to wonder if I was running away with this idea. Perhaps things were okay and Gerard was just growing up like he'd insisted.

Beside me, Gerard stirred and suddenly sat up when he saw the time on our clock. He threw his covers aside and hurried out of bed and towards the bathroom. I shrugged to myself and went back to reading my printout. Moments later Gerard stumbled back in, washed and refreshed.

“Why the fuck didn't you wake me?!” He demanded accusingly.

I chose to ignore him as he rushed around, grabbing clean clothes. As he did so, I noticed something. There was something protruding from the base of his spine, on his tailbone. I distinctly remember thinking What the fuck? to myself. As Gerard pulled his shirt off, I could see something was growing out of his spine. He adjusted the waistband of his boxers, first pulling them down and then back up again. There was definitely something there.

“What the fuck is that?” I questioned.

“What?” He replied instinctively, turning and seeing me staring “Nothing,” He snapped.

“It looks like. . . something's growing!”

Gerard gave a whoop of laughter. I frowned and checked my papers. There it was in black and white.

. . . manifestations may involve claw like qualities in fingernails, sharpening of teeth, changes to muscle definition, gradual elongation of the spine or growth of a tail from the base of the spine. . .

“Don't be ridiculous,” He insisted, turning away and giving me another chance to see. It was there all right. A small thin, flesh covered lump. It was even moving.

It was a fucking tail growing out of his ass!

* * *

Finding that guy turned out to be surprisingly easy. Or rather, he found me. I was walking alongside the science block, heading home from school – sick of watching Gerard and Lindsey making out. And there he was, resting against the building, one knee bent. He looked at me expectantly.

“Got a smoke, kid?” He questioned.

“No,” I answered truthfully. Gerard had taken them all.

He shrugged and pulled a box from his back pocket, proffering it to me once he'd taken a menthol for himself. I accepted warily. He smiled in a friendly manner. He seemed harmless enough.

“Got a light?” He questioned.

I looked at my feet guiltily and pulled my zippo out of my jacket pocket. He smirked knowingly and sparked up, handing it back.

“Well, I've just spent a considerable amount of my time looking for you, so give me a minute!” He commented.

“I actually wanted to talk to you,” I confessed shyly.

“Oh?” He answered “What about?”

“What do you think?”

He laughed pleasantly, throwing his head back. There was a pot laugh if I ever heard one. This guy was certainly a bit odd. He seemed to be dealing with what had happened very well. I took a drag of my cigarette.

“Well what was it?”

“It was what you hit-”

“Yeah, I know,” He said with a shrug “It could've been anything. So why am I so convinced it's a werewolf?”

There was a long pause. His hazel eyes were totally serious. He wasn't kidding. This guy actually believed me. I wasn't crazy. My shoulders sagged in a visible sign of relief. Perhaps I had someone who would help me with all of this shit.

He waited patiently for me to say something. I took another long, steadying drag, inhaling deeply. He mimicked me, blowing smoke rings and then a waterfall.

“I can see I'm not the only one that thinks so.”

I shook my head. My hands began to shake. He watched me calmly for a moment and then took a step forwards.

“Look, how about you come with me and we'll talk about this, yeah?” He offered gently “I can see you're freaked out by this! We can talk in private.”

I thought about it carefully. What if this guy was a weirdo killer? I was too young to die. But on the other hand, I had someone who believed me! This was too rare of an opportunity to pass up.

“Okay, fine.”

* * *

As Frank unlocked the door to his apartment,he turned to me. He lived in an old renovated poolhouse just off the grounds of the company he worked for.

“You come in here, you didn't see shit, okay?” He said seriously.

I guessed I was about to walk in on his pot cultivation. I nodded sincerely. What this guy did on the side wasn't my problem. I wasn't buying and I wasn't a grass.

He threw the door open and tossed his keys onto a table. It was a one room place with a separate bathroom. The whole place was surprisingly tidy. I don't know why but I'd expected this guy to be a little slack in the cleaning department.

“If you're worried about being caught, why do you live to close to work?”

He laughed. Clearly I'd said something hilarious.

“Hell I'm not worried about that. My boss buys off me. He says I'm on my own if I get caught though. Want a drink?”

I shook my head. He shrugged and went into his fridge, pulling out a coke and threw himself onto the sofa.

“Right, start at the beginning.”

I sat anxiously beside him. How did I word this? Gerard would be furious at me if he ever found out I'd told someone about all of this. I could almost hear him furiously insisting it was his business and no one elses.

“Promise me you won't call a freak show.”

He indicated crossing his heart in reply.

“I'm changing,” I gabbled my lie quickly “But full moons haven't got anything to do with it! And all I keep thinking is silver bullet. The end.”

He didn't say anything for a while, letting what I'd said sink in. I watched anxiously, wringing my sleeves in my hands. Frank ran a hand through his crimson hair and cursed under his breath.

“You're serious?”

I nodded.

“Okay well, my van did a pretty good job of flattening that thing so let's just forget the silver bullet movie shit for the moment.”

Frank got up and rummaged through his bedside drawer, commenting that he had an idea.

“It's like a virus,” I explained “Working from the inside out.”

“Biology!” He exclaimed “Always was my favourite science in school!”

He came back over to sit with me.

“There has to be a cure! There's a solution to everything. And if there wasn't a cure, there'd be more of them!”

“I guess.”

He reached out to hand me something. I looked in my palm at the small silver ring. I looked up questioningly. He smiled.

“When I first got my lip pierced, it got infected. A pure silver ring cleared it up!” He explained “See what this does.”

I frowned to myself for a moment. Gerard was shit scared of needles. It had been a struggle getting him to let the doctor give him his shots. It was a fear he'd carried through his life for as long as I could remember. But if I convinced him it would be a good look. . .

I looked up at Frank gratefully. This was better than nothing.

“Thanks!”

“I'm guessing you'll be trying it ASAP. Let me know how it goes!” He answered “Now how about a beer for the road?”