The smell of pancakes and coffee wakes me. A picture of my mother at the stove flashes through my mind. I smile. Then it all comes back to me, the attack, the change, Joshua, Garrett and last night. So sure that last night was a dream, I open my left eye first. In my blurred vision I see Garrett is sitting on the side of the bed sipping from a black cup. My other eye pops open. A tray with eggs, bacon, and the pancakes and coffee that I smelled is set on the bedside table.
"Good morning." Garrett smiles at me, his lips tinted red by the contents of the cup. I stretch, working out the stiffness and soreness in my body. The soreness is a good feeling, one I hope to feel again. Soon.
"Mornin.' That food for me?" He nods and scoots down the bed so I can reach the tray. I sit up and lean against the headboard. I settle the tray across my lap.
Last night, I didn't get a chance to look around the room. I do so now, taking in the interesting mismatched furniture and odd color scheme. The bed is a basic full size with a padded headboard and metal frame. The side table's top is scratched and scarred. The desk in the corner is an old roll-top, but the chair that sits by the desk is a brand new, high-cost gaming chair. Garrett notices me looking around and cocks his head, inquisitively. I look at him and shake my head.
"So, I have to ask. Was there absolutely no plan for decorating?" I gesture with a wave, indicating the whole room.
He laughs and responds, "Not really. I just pick up pieces I like when I see them. Of course, the gaming chair is must. That thing is damn comfortable."
Now it's my turn to laugh. I do so, even as I'm cutting into my pancakes. As I'm eating, I feel his eyes on me. I glance up at him and, for the first time since waking, I realize that I'm completely naked and the only thing covering me is a thin quilt. Heat rushes to my face, coloring my cheeks and ears bright red.
"You okay, Cal? Your heartbeat just picked up and your face is red."
"Yeah," I cough as I choke on a bite of pancake. Garrett reaches over and slaps me on the back.
"Thanks. Yeah, I'm fine. It just hit me that I have no clothes on." A shy smile creeps over my face. Garrett just leans down and kisses my lips. It's a quiet, chaste kiss that's only meant to reassure. Of course, my traitorous body doesn't take it that way. I'm just grateful that the wooden tray is across my lap right now.
"I'll let you finish eating and get dressed. I'll be downstairs. Come on down when you're done."
I think it's the fastest I've ever eaten and gotten dressed. That includes all the times I've been late for the bus. I'm downstairs, freshly groomed and fed, within ten minutes.
I find Garrett sitting on the couch, channel surfing. He looks up when I walk in. He smiles at me and turns off the TV.
"Ready?" he asks. I cock my head to the right and look at him.
"Ready for what?"
"I promised we'd take care of that pesky issue with your transformation. Ready for it?"
"Hell yeah."
He gets up from the couch and leads the way to the side door. Opening it, I can see that it goes out to a garage. Aside from the usual things in a garage, tools, lawn mower, trash bins, I see a gleaming black motorcycle.
Garrett goes right to the bike and picks up two full-face, black helmets. He tosses one to me. I catch it, surprised.
"I, uh," I stammer.
"You're okay riding, right? I mean if you aren't we can take the Benz."
"Riding is fine. I've never been on a motorcycle, but I'd love to. I don't have any gear though. I mean other than this." I hold up the helmet he tossed me.
"No worries. There're a couple jackets in the closet next to you." I turn to the left a little and, sure enough, there's a closet right there. I open it and see three thick, leather jackets hanging there. I grab two, putting one on and bringing the other to Garrett. He puts it on and opens the garage door.
He pushes the bike out the door before shutting the door behind him. As he is getting his helmet on, I see a familiar logo on the gas tank.
"Harley?"
"If you're gonna ride, might as well ride the best." He swings his leg over the bike and settles on the seat.
Since I can't argue with that, I pop the helmet on my head, strap it down, and climb on behind him.
The bike roars as he starts it, then calms. I feel the vibrations of the engine beneath me.
"Hold on," he says as he flips the visor on his helmet down and grabs the handles. I lean forward and wrap my arms around his waist. He takes one hand off the handle just long enough to squeeze my hand. Then he's holding the bike again.
There's a bit of a shift as he kicks the kickstand back, then puts the bike into gear, and we're off.
Even with the helmet and thick jacket on, I can feel the wind hitting my body. The air is cool, it is February after all, but between my newly toughened body thanks to the changeling and the gear, I don't find it unpleasant at all.
I lean into his back through the twists and turns, tightening my grip around his waist. I can feel his muscles under the jacket bunch and move in response to my weight.
The trip back to town is far too short. I would've loved to have more time cuddled behind him. All too soon, we stop in front of the pharmacy. Garrett turns off the bike and takes off his helmet. I dismount and take mine off as well.
I look at the pharmacy apprehensively. Garrett looks at me and catches the look on my face.
"You okay, Cal?" He asks as he swings his leg over the seat. I sigh. I guess there's no getting around telling him what happened.
"Yesterday, I kinda made a complete ass of myself. I ran into your ex and didn't realize it was Alexis until he told me." I sheepishly hid my face.
Garrett roars with laughter. "You thought Alexis is a girl, didn't you."
"Well, I mean, it's not every day you run across a guy named Alexis. I actually thought you weren't into me at all. Mostly because of the fact that I thought your ex was a girl."
"Alexis can be a girl's or guy's name. But that's not the point. You thought I wouldn't be into you? Why?"
"History has shown that I don't have much luck with dating. In fact, you're my first boyfriend." I confessed, then thought better of it and added, "Probably not something I should've shared, huh."
"I'm glad you did. I'm also glad you trust me enough to be your first."
I blush, knowing that he doesn't just mean first boyfriend. He moves closer to me and hooks his arm around my waist, yanking me to him. He leans his head down and captures my mouth with his. His lips are soft and mine yield under the pressure of his. His lips part slightly, just enough to allow his fang to graze my lip. I shudder, as always, and that makes his lips curve. I feel the movement of his lips, which makes me smile in return.
"You guys finished?" I hear a voice behind me, but it sounds far away.
"Garrett, you gotta let him breath at some point."
Garrett's lips leave mine just long enough for him to say, "Go away, Lex." Then he's back. It takes my brain a few minutes to comprehend what Garrett said. I break away and look into Garrett's eyes. Then I turn to see Alexis standing in the doorway of the pharmacy. My cheeks fill with red color.
"Finally. I thought you guys would be standing out here till the end of time." He laughs. I hear a slight British accent that I hadn't noticed the day before. Garrett flips him off which causes him to laugh.
"We actually came to talk to you. Mind if we meet you in the crystals?" Garrett's arm is still around my waist. Alexis' eyebrows shoot up in question, but he doesn't say anything. He backs into the store and lets the door close.
Garrett turns and secures his helmet to the bike. I hand him mine so he can do the same. He takes my hand, and we walk into the store together.
"Crystals?" I ask as we make our way through the store. He just nods his head but doesn't say anything.
We weave through the shelves of cold medicine and bandages, stacks of toilet paper and paper towels, racks of magazines and books. He continues to the back of the store. Alexis is there, waiting for us.
There are baskets of stones and candles of every color of the rainbow and then some set up on tables. On a necklace holder that looks like a tree, hang silver pendants on black cord.
Along the wall are bookshelves filled with books with titles like "The Green Witch: Witchcraft for Novices" and "Pagan Holidays and How to Celebrate Them;" there's even a book called "The Rainbow Witch: Witchcraft in the LGBT+ Community." Crowded under the books are rows and rows of tarot card decks and booklets.
Everywhere around us there are several types of witchcraft and pagan statues of different gods and goddesses in all types of metals and materials. Multiple colored tapestries with symbols on them hang wherever there is room on the walls. I recognize one or two of the symbols, but most are foreign to me.
Garrett stops next to one of the tables with the baskets of stones. Lex is there waiting for us.
"Is this the one?" Garrett points to a smaller basket of stones. The stones in it are a brilliant white with a few black spots scattered around the surface. Lex nods.
"Yeah. Either that one or this one here." He holds up another basket of mostly white stones. When he turns the basket, it shines rainbow in the light.
"Pick one," Garrett tells me. I look at him, stunned.
"Pick one for what?"
"These are called moonstones," this comes from Lex. "Like Garrett's bloodstone, the moonstones coupled with the proper spell and metal for the setting, it should alter your form slightly. In Garrett's case, the stone alters his form so he can walk in the daylight.
"The hope is that the moonstone with silver and, of course, the right spell, will allow you to maintain control over your wolf form."
My eyes light up.
"You mean I'll be able to transform when I want?"
"Unfortunately, no. Nothing can do that for a changeling. You'll still transform at the full moon, but you'll have your human mind. You won't be taken over by your instincts. Also, you should be able to recall your adventures."
I'm about to say that I can already recall what happens, but I remember Garrett's warning that no one should know. Then something Lex said clicks in my head.
"What do you mean by 'should'?"
"Well, it's never been done before. There aren't many changelings. And, honestly, you're the first I've ever met. You don't seem much like a cold-blooded killer to me." He tilts his head to the side and studies me.
"Well, I don't know about that," Garrett interjects. I look at him with a mix of hurt and astonishment. "I mean, you did quite a bit of 'attacking' last night." He grins. My mouth drops open. Lex groans at Garrett's bad joke.
"Aaannyyy waaaayyyy," Lex drolls on. "Pick which stone you like from these two. This is regular Moonstone." He points to the white with black spots. "This is Rainbow Moonstone." He points to the one that glimmers rainbows. I look over the Rainbow Moonstone. There's one piece in particular that my eye keeps being drawn to. I pick it up. It feels almost warm in my hand, but that can't be. Stones aren't warm.
I see Lex studying me staring at the stone in my palm from the corner of my eye.
"You feel something, don't you?" he asks. I nod, slowly, as if in a trance. Lex reaches over and plucks the stone from my hand. Garrett rubs my back, a concerned look on his face.
"You okay?" Garrett asks me. I shake my head to dispel the fog that has settled over my mind.
"Yeah. That was really fucking weird."
Lex smiles at me. "It was speaking to you." he told me. I look at Lex to see that he's completely serious. There wasn't a hint of sarcasm or irony in his statement or face. I guess he's right, it was speaking to me, but I don't say anything about it.
"Now you just need to choose how you want to wear it. Ring, pendant, bracelet."
Before I can answer, Garrett interjects. "Actually, I have an idea about that. Do you mind, Cal?"
"No, I don't mind. I'm not too picky. Thanks."
"Welcome." He grabs my hand and gently squeezes. "I wanna talk to Lex about this. Alone, if you're okay with that." He squeezes my hand again, presumably to reassure me. He then brings my hand to his lips and kisses my knuckles, letting his fang lightly scrape the skin.
I can't do anything except nod. He lets my hand drop and I stumble away. I keep myself busy by pointlessly checking out the first aid supplies, which is the furthest aisle away I can get from them to let them talk.
Several thoughts start racing through my head. Not good thoughts, either. Not only have I never been in a relationship, I've never had anyone not related to me (except Max) care enough about me to help me with a major problem. This causes many self-depreciating thoughts to zoom through my brain.
He'll leave you. He doesn't really like you. He'll get bored of you. He's still in love with his ex. Alexis is much better looking than you are. You are horrible in bed. You're a fuck up and no one wants you. You can't do a damn thing right.
I feel a sharp pain in my palm. I look down at my hand through tear blurred vision and see that I've completely mangled a package of scissors. The point having gone through the packaging and into my hand. I stand there, staring at my hand and the blood dripping to the floor.
"Cal?" I hear a voice calling my name, but it sounds far away. "Cal? Can you hear me, Hun?" A face attempts to get in my field of vision. "Caleb!?" A shake brings me partially out of my daze.
"What? Huh?"
"Caleb, what happened? Are you alright?" Garrett is holding me by the shoulders, his face close to mine. Concern evident in his eyes. Alexis is behind him, his face echoing the same concern as on Garrett's face.
"I'm fine." My voice is deadpan.
"You sure as shit ain't fine. Look at your hand." He grabs my hand and holds it up so he and Lex can see the damage. Lex gasps and pulls a couple packages off the shelf. He then comes closer to me, Garrett still holding my hand. Quickly, Lex yanks the scissors out of my hand, which had gone completely through my hand to the other side, with the point of the scissors pierced the back of my hand. He then dumps a clear liquid on my hand, and it begins to burn like it's on fire.
"SON OF A BITCH!" I yell loudly as the burn finally breaks me fully of my daze. Before I can yank my hand back, Lex wraps it in a bandage and tapes the bandage closed.
"Sorry, man, but I needed to disinfect the wound before putting the bandage on it." Lex doesn't really look sorry.
"What the fuck did you dump on my hand?" I demand, clutching my bandaged hand to my chest with my uninjured hand. He holds up the bottle he grabbed from the shelf. I read the label, "99% Isopropyl Alcohol," and my eye narrow at him.
"You poured 99% alcohol on my hand?"
"Yep. It was either that or you risk infection."
"Isn't there a less painful, more witchy way of making sure it doesn't get infected?"
"Probably." He smiles smugly. "But you needed the shock too."
"Cal, what was all that about?" Garrett gets in between us before I do something stupid, like kill his ex.
I shake my head. "It was stupid. Don't worry about it."
Garrett doesn't look like he's going to drop it completely, but he doesn't say anything at the moment. Which is as much as I can hope for, I guess.
"How's your hand feeling now?" Lex asks.
"The burning stopped."
"That's good. Come over here." He turns and heads back to the area with the stones and candles. Garrett and I follow with Garrett holding me around my waist.
We get to the back where Alexis is. He hands me a small, dark glass jar.
"Put some of that on your hand tonight before you go to bed. It'll help heal the wound. Your changeling blood will help heal it faster too."
"Thanks." I lay a bit more sarcasm in my thanks than I probably should, but he did just dump alcohol on my open wound.