CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER EIGHT

CASEY'S P.O.V

-TO LIA

I can't come over—at least, not yet. Momma's keeping a close eye on me.

I huffed and tapped on the 'Send' icon, feigning a smile to my mother who just walked past me and I to her bedroom. My phone beeped almost immediately, and I realised Lia had responded to my text.

-FROM LIA

I don't think there's need to. She seems pretty calm now.

-TO LIA

Phew! What a relief.

-FROM LIA

You know, I think we should re-discuss Astoria. First, you mentioned something that sounded off the cuff. You mentioned that when you found her, she was unclad?

-TO LIA

Well, that wasn't a sort of a verbal mistake. When she went soaring and somersaulting into the nearby bush, I got down from the car to trace her body immediately. To my surprise, I found her with no clothing. Thanks to the wool sweater I wore to the bar that evening, that was what I gifted to her body till I got to the City Hospital.

-FROM LIA

Wow! I still can't believe this.

-TO LIA

You know, the doctor made a suggestion about Astoria when I went to confirm if she could be discharged. He believes she probably is a caveman.

-FROM LIA

Haha! And you believe that?

-TO LIA

Of course! I mean, she literally struggles to walk with just her legs, she doesn't really speak English. Even if she had any other language, I haven't heard her speak in a different tongue.

-FROM LIA

Hahaha! I believe otherwise, though. I think she's of a different race, but definitely not a caveman.

-TO LIA

Whatever…

I dropped the phone on the bed to fetch a bottle of water from the refridgerator. The silence that encompasses the house made me realise Mom wasn't at home anymore. I reminisced how she's welcomed me back home earlier this morning and smiled. I returned to my phone and noticed that I had received a message from Lia.

-FROM LIA

You know Astoria can't continue to stay here, right? Except of you have the right excuse to table to my parents.

I slumped unto the bed and grunted complacently. I most definitely haven't thought about a lot. I sighed, typing a reply to Lia's text,

-TO LIA

You're right. I haven't thought about a lot, and that alone is energy draining.

-FROM LIA

Don't worry. You will figure this out.

I dropped my phone and decided to take a shower.

"I might just be light headed after that." I thought to myself, taking off my clothes.

LEO'S P.O.V

Tanner was supposed to show up today to put me through our school's upcoming exams. Believe me, I wished I had the freedom to do anything I wished to just like the gamers I encounter in my life everyday. Some of them decides to take this on as their career, but here I am, being forced to go through school. Arrrgh!

I could feel my tummy rumbling when I finished another gaming round. I decided to drop the game pad and scan for food in the kitchen. God helps Lia and I don't find any food…

I approached the kitchen, but suddenly bumped into Lia.

"Hey!" I rose my head to meet the face of Lia, only that it wasn't Lia standing before me. It wasn't even Lia I bumped into. It was the girl from last night.

"Sorry," she muttered, walking away to only-God-knows-where.

Almost instantly, Lia popped out of the kitchen, but I sidestepped her.

"Why is that girl still here, huh?" I asked, worry wrinkles creasing my forehead.

As expected, Lia rolled her eyes and shoved me out of the way, but I reached for her hands immediately.

"I have the right to ask, y'know. When Mom and Dad gets back, you don't expect me to be cooking up excuses alongside you." I sneered.

"If only you spared yourself a little time from playing video games all day, you perhaps might just know." she retorted.

"Oh really? You—", I was interrupted by a knocking coming from the door.

I immediately assumed it was our parents, and that they were back from work. Nah, it wouldn't be. If they were, they wouldn't be knocking. They'd be expecting us to be at school.

"Tanner… shit!" I heard my sister whisper and dash for her room.

I chuckled, wandering why she's been avoiding Tanner ever since he moved to town. I went to get the door. Lo and behold, it was Tanner standing outside.

"Hey, Mannie!"

"Leo, wassup?"

"I'm good, man. How're ya?"

"Before I respond to that, come on in." I nudged him, urging him to step in.

I noticed him freezing to a spot, his face seemed like it was scanning the living room.

"Tan?" I asked, my eyes querying his expression.

"Erm, is there someone in here with you?" he asked, his eyes still scanning the living room.

"Well erm, yeah. Lia's home, and—"

"Tanner!" Lia shrieked, running down the stairs.

"Hey, Lia. You haven't been taking my calls and—"

"I know, and I'm very sorry. Erm, Leo?"

I rolled my eyes, answering rather sluggishly, "Wat is it?"

"I gotta show you something. Right now." I noticed her eyes widening at the moment she uttered 'now'.

I took it as she really had something important to tell me, so I followed her back into her room. There was the girl from yesternight on Lia's bed, muching on the chicken chops. She didn't care about the bone—she ate them all together. I feigned a puking sound, and Lia turned to glare at me, a scowl decorating her face.

"What is it, huh? And why are you suddenly being 'friendly' with Tan now? I thought you didn't wanna talk to him."

"That's none of your business."

"Aha… I hear you."

"The thing is, this girl over here…" she points to the mystery girl who kept staring back at Lia and I whilst we both exchange words, "is in a bit of trouble, and her story I'm gonna tell you about later on. But for now, try to be sensible enough to—"

"You didn't shave to add that, do you?"

"My goodness, Leo! This is exactly why I did so. You never take things seriously!"

I rolled my eyes, my silence admitting to what she had just said. She shook her head and continued, "You must not disclose anything about her or her identity to anyone. Not even Tan."

"Huh? But Tan—"

"Yeah. I know. Tan is your best friend, Casey's best friend, my…" I watched her hesitate before she proceeded, "my best friend, but we have to keep this as a secret. For now."

"What about Mom and Dad? What do we get them when they get back?"

"Casey and I will try to figure that out."

"Hmmmph. Alright." I scoffed, taking a glance at the mystery girl again.

She seemed to be done with the chicken chops, and she was staring at the plate, probably wondering if she could eat that too.

"What's her name?" I asked Lia, who retrieved the plate from her and collected all the crumbles from the chicken chops that was on the bed.

"Astoria."

I repeated the name in whispers, staring at her facial expressions once more. I couldn't tell, but I felt a special connection to her name at the mention of it. I began to scan my head to see if she was somehow connected to my past and that of Lia's, but Tan's voice would distract me immediately.

"What's going on, you two?" I heard him yell. "We've got just today to talk about revising together." he added.

Lia's eyes widened and she muttered, "Go to him before he comes up here."

I nodded hesitantly, staring at Astoria before exiting the room.

TANNER'S P.O.V

I still couldn't get that scent off my nose. It wasn't wavering. It felt like stagnant water, the scent wafting up my nose. I could feel the unsettled feeling of my 'Wolf' calling out to investigate this scent, but I ignored it. It's always been persistent ever since I got to know 'it', yet I couldn't deny this scent.

It was exactly that of the mystery girl from the hospital months ago. Even when I wasn't touching her, I could feel her presence and the same electrical feeling. I thought about conversing with her through my 'Wolf'. I conveyed the message to my 'Wolf' through my mind,

"If you are here, please respond to me." I thought, hoping her 'Wolf' would give me an answer.

I still couldn't comprehend what was happening. Lia and Leo were the only ones present. Asides there parents, I only know of Casey who's free to come visit. Neither Lia or Casey were reportedly in a coma four months ago, so it definitely wasn't any of them. I remembered Leo telling me he was gonna be down soon, so I decided to call out to him.

"What's going on, you two?" I yelled. "We've got just today to talk about revising together, Leo." I added, remembering I also had to spare myself some time of the evening to revise my books.

Just then, Leo came rushing down the stairs, his hands filled with I assumed go be his school notes. I chuckled, teasing him by referring to him as a Professor. He frowned and I was forced to laugh the more.

*******

Several hours had passed, and I had just one more book to revise with Leo. What always seemed to surprise me was why Leo never attended classes. He prefers to learn from me when school tests and exams are knocking by the door. In a matter of minutes whilst learning with him, he seems to grasp the whole thing pretty fast. I would have referred to him as a werewolf, because I used to believe as a child that my mother and I were the only ones gifted with that outstanding trait, not until I met Leo and Lia.

"Huh? Osmoregulation implies the regulation.of water? Does that mean there're some sort of oceans and seas in some parts of our body with all sorts of fishes and shit?" he questioned with a funny look.

I laughed out loud, knowing fully well that he was messing around.

"Come on, Leo." I urged, still laughing. "Now, would you explain what Osmoregulation is?"

"In short, it is the regulation of water balance in our system." he said, chuckling.

"That's more like it." I remarked, smiling. "Leo?"

"Huh?"

"You should get a sort of err, home teacher. Don't you think?"

"Why do you say so, Tan?"

"I mean, you refuse to go to school—"

"Hey hey hey. I 'love' going to school, okay? I just… I just don't like the lecturers." he stuttered.

"I hear you, Leo. I hear you." I smiled.

"It's just really remarkable how quick you are to grasp stuff, Leo."

"You're flattering me now, hey?"

"Oh, please." I said, and we both laughed.

I saw Leo reaching for the bag behind me.

"This is…"

"Casey's. Correct."

"Why are you with it? Was she supposed to be here?"

"Well, I was the one who thought she was here. The thing is, she was acting really weird yesterday, and I couldn't help but try to ask her what was happening. She refused to speak with me. Remember Arnold? The 'WaterBoy'?"

"Yeah yeah… what about him?"

"She spilled her lunch on him."

"Whoa! That's new." he said, unfazed.

"Yeah. So, in short, I saw her trying to escape through the school walls behind the Old Hall. In the process of doing so, she left her bag behind."

"Huh? Casey never boycotts classes!" Leo remarked defensively.

"And when last did you step through the school gates?" I shot back, folding my arms.

Leo shook his head in silence, and I chuckled lightly.

"Now, I have to take this back home with me." I muttered to myself.

"Nah. You can leave it here. I believe Casey's coming over here later today."

"Really? I didn't see her at school, though."

"Well, that's because her mother told her not to."

"Oh…" I whispered, dropping the pile of books back into the table. "Let's get done with this. Believe me, I am starving. Do you have anything at home, Leo?"

"Nah. Asto… sorry, I meant to say that Lia already finished it all." he said, a hint of nervousness clouding his expressions.

"I'd just prepare something myself." I retorted, unable to deny how hungry I was.

"No worries, Prof. Now help me out with this 'osmo' thingy." he said sarcastically, and I laughed in response.

CASEY'S P.O.V

I decided to sit in my little study at the right corner of my bedroom and probably get myself busy with a thing or two. Mom wasn't back yet, so it was still quiet. After minutes of trying to concentrate on a single book, I couldn't assimilate a thing—not even something as little as a sentence.

I eventually opted to continue reading The Hong Kong Trilogy, an intriguing werewolf invasion story. If there's anything I love after my family and friends, then it's werewolves. I don't care about the histories, myths and stories that tries to prove their existence as real or fake.

The concept of werewolves seems to be my niche, and I always look forward to making researches about them someday. Someday when when freedom is at my grasp. I concluded yet another chapter when a phone call came in. Surrounded with books strewn here and there, I stumbled upon one book and fell, but the the bed became my saving grace.

I reached for my phone just before the call went off.

It was Lia.

"Hello, Lia."

"Casey! You mentioned you were going to come over today. Wassup?"

"Shoot!" I gasped, staring at my phone. It was 3:35 pm. "I almost… I'm sorry, Lia. I'm on my way now."

"Really? I bet you haven't even worn your pants yet."

I chuckled, realising Lia already knew the truth.

"I'm sorry, Lia. I'd just get dressed and start coming over."

"That's alright. Y'know, before Tan left today, he dropped your bag with us. Did you visit his place in town?"

"No, Lia." I chuckled, "that wasn't really what happened. I was trying to escape from school yesterday upon hearing the news about Astoria regaining consciousness. I was almost out when the security dogs cane after me. That forced me to leave my bag behind."

"Oh, okay. That's quite—"

"Don't you dare laugh at me, Lia." I warned jokingly.

"Of course, not. Why would I?" she said, muffling her laughter.

"Better. How's Astoria doing?"

"Well, she's doing okay. She was behaving pretty calm today, that I had noticed."

"Really? Tell me about it."
.
"She barely struggled to walk to the kitchen and fro."

"Whoa!"

"Not just that, Casey. She actually had the remaining chicken chops this morning. I asked if she liked it, and she said 'Yes'."

"I guess my savings will all be spent on chicken chops then." I said jokingly, causing Lia to laugh.

"But there was something I noticed about her, and that was how she reacted to Tan's presence. I am still thinking about it, and I can't seem to fathom the whole thing. Maybe I am just overthinking—"

"No. What happened, Lia?"