Things go bite in the night

Jason Elmbridge was finding school boring. If he could be anywhere right now, it wouldn't be the middle of PE on a cold winter's day. Jason hated PE and hated the cold just as much. This was the last lesson of the day and right now, he preferred to be at home, having a nice hot drink and being in the centrally heated comfort his room. Instead, he had had to walk into the PE changing rooms, face the embarrassment of showing his skinny body in front of all the other boys (as he got changed) and then now be in the middle of the rugby pitch with one of the largest boys in his year charging straight at him.

Jason's mother had bought him a long sleeve thermal top, in aid of trying to keep him warm, but it hung loosely on his skinny frame, offering little protection against the temperature. Other's in his class also had these tops, but they were well muscled and athletic, meaning the tops were skin tight around their biceps, showing off the toned muscle underneath. Those boys too were not shivering in their boots, but well up to running around, shoving over anyone not brave enough to stand their ground.

Back to the man mountain charging right at Jason. Time seemed to slow down as Ryan McGlochlin came stampeding down the field, his mouth open and his gumshield showed, looking like a single white tooth. Jason had barely any time to think, choosing to jump out of the way, coming to a land in a particularly wet and muddy patch of grass. Brown gloop mushed its way all over his PE kit, in his hair, over his legs and under his nails. It was gross. Ryan charged past, grunting with satisfaction at Jason's demise.

A whistle blew, and the teacher called an end to the lesson. There was a tap on Jason's shoulder and he looked up and through the mud, to see his only friend in the PE group, Alexander Jones, AJ for short. AJ was also covered in mud, but that was not from jumping out of the way. AJ enjoyed PE, he was one of the well-muscled, athletic members of the class. The only difference compared to the others was, AJ liked Jason and hated the way he was treated by the others.

"Need a hand?" AJ asked, presenting a muddy set of digits. Jason took the hand.

"Thanks, I hate this so much."

"I can tell. The mud really doesn't suit you. Let's go and get changed."

The class headed back towards the main school building, some of the boys picking up loose bits of mud and throwing them at the weedier members.

"Carter, McGlochlin, Cooper! Stop it," Mr Evans, the teacher, shouted. "I don't expect that behaviour from the school team. You don't have to play in the next game if you continue."

That stopped the mud throwing quickly. Even though James Carter, Ryan McGlochlin and Jimmy Cooper were nasty pieces of work, they were the best members of the school rugby club and they had helped win many matches. The last thing they wanted to do, was to lose their place on the team. Mr Evans was a fair teacher and even if it would cost the match, he wasn't afraid of punishing those students.

A quick clean of the boots outside and the group of boys trotted back into the sports foyer, dragging some residual mud with them. Other groups were already getting changed when they got into the boy's changing room, these were the indoor groups.

Jason and AJ went over to where their bags were hanging up and began to pull out their clothes. Fortunately, being the last lesson of the day, meant they could go home and get a shower, instead of using the school ones. These were cold and involved an embarrassing display of their bodies. Even some of the athletic members of the class didn't like putting their bodies on show to the rest of the boys.

"Can you give me a hand?" AJ asked Jason.

"What with?"

"This top. It is getting too small now. I need to get the next size up." AJ was struggling to get his thermal off his muscular frame. The skin-tight material, coupled with the mud and being wet, was clinging to his arms. A quick, sharp tug helped it to come off, splatting some loose mud off the sleeves.

"Ahh, that's better," AJ breathed a sigh of relief.

"Do you want to hang out tonight?" Jason asked.

"Sorry mate, I can't tonight. I must do something else. Maybe on Thursday?"

"Yeah, okay then. What are you up to tonight? Are you seeing someone?"

"Naah. I've just got to do some jobs at home. My parents have been going on at me to do them, so they've 'grounded' me to get them done."

"Nice," Jason replied with some sarcasm.

They finished up getting changed, just as the school bell rang its three short blasts, signalling the end of the day. Jason and AJ grabbed their bags and left, heading out of the building and along the path to the school gate. They both walked in roughly the same direction to their homes.

AJ and Jason had been friends for years. They had both gone to the same Infants and Junior school, rising to where they were now, in Year 10, their penultimate year of Secondary school. They had been both the social outcasts and had come together with their shared status. The friendship they formed was a strong one, even though they did have some different hobbies and tastes. AJ liked sports and was quite active in the gym, whereas Jason was more academic, preferring to pick up a book, rather than a 10kg weight.

"Right, I'll see you tomorrow," AJ said, as he went to turn down a different road to Jason.

"Yeah, see you at school."

"Sorry again about tonight. I'll make it up to you on Thursday, we can get the PlayStation loaded up."

"Sounds good," Jason said with a grin. "PlayStation it is then."

They both said their goodbyes and headed off to their respective houses. When Jason got to his house, he took out his key, unlocked the door, shifted it open and went inside. Once he had entered, the familiar beeping of the burglar alarm began and only ended, when the correct code had been inputted into the panel on the wall next to the door. Jason slumped his bag down in the hallway and kicked off his shoes. He needed a shower big time.

Jason's house was a nice one, built in the Georgian period, so was quite old. The rooms were big, and it was filled with lots of nooks and crannies, great for playing hide and seek. He trudged up the stairs and headed to the bathroom, where Jason stripped off his uniform, shut the door and had a long and warm shower. It was so good to get the mud off his skin and feel clean.

Soon, Jason got out, wrapped himself in towels, gathered up his clothes and went out and into his room. Plastered around the walls were posters from Jason's favourite TV shows and films. There were clothes strewn on the floor and mugs laying all over his desk, bedside table and windowsill. He put his clothes in a pile, ready to take downstairs and put in the washing machine. They would need a clean, ready to be used tomorrow.

"Jason are you here?" a voice called up the stairs.

His mum had walked in the front door, home from work. Jason's mum worked as a lawyer, in a local law firm in their town. She had ambitions to work on the big cases, but nothing really happened in their local area, so she generally had to deal with local thieves and the odd drunk driver.

"I'm in my room!" Jason called down to her.

A moment later, his mum poked her head around the door.

"How was your day today?" she asked.

"Yeah, it was PE today. I got covered in mud and was frozen to the bone."

"Oh, of course. I keep forgetting Monday is now PE day. If you're getting too cold, I can go and get you those tights? They'll protect your legs."

"Are you kidding me! They'll just fall and make me look ridiculous, the top is baggy on me as it is. So much for being a thermal and keeping the hot air in, there is so much space that it lets the cold air in."

Jason's mum came into the room and went over to her son, resting her hands on his shoulders.

"I know you don't like it, but you only have a year left after this one at school, then you don't have to do PE ever again. I was like you at school and hated those lessons. It does bring back bad memories. Just be glad you don't have to face what your father did. If they didn't have their kit, their teachers made the boys do PE in their underwear."

"Thanks, mum. Just the image I want in my head."

This caused them both to laugh and warmed up the atmosphere"Come on, let's go and get a drink. I could murder a cup of tea right now," his mum said. "Oh, and don't forget your washing."

Jason gathered up his uniform and some other clothes as he followed his mum downstairs. He also grabbed his school bag with his PE kit in, as he passed by the front door. Whilst his mum put the kettle on, Jason put the clothes in the washing machine and set it going.

The front door opened again, and another voice could be heard coming from the hallway, talking on a mobile phone. This was Jason's older brother. He had left school last year and was now going to university, to study all things, sport. Jamie Elmbridge was 20 years old and the opposite of Jason, tall with an athletic build. He also had a better social life, with lots of friends he liked to hang out with.

"Jamie is that you?" mum called into the hallway.

"Hi mum," Jamie replied, coming into the kitchen and putting his mobile into his pocket.

"Good day?"

"Yeah, thanks. Lots of learning done today."

Jamie was wearing his PE kit, the difference between what he was wearing and what Jason had worn earlier, was the fact Jamie was okay in the cold. He wore shorts most of the year and didn't need long sleeves to keep in the warmth. He likes to say it is because he is hot-blooded.

"Well at least someone had a good day with PE," Jason said.

"Hey squirt, we'll get you to like it someday," Jamie said, going over and ruffling his younger brother's hair.

"Oh," mum suddenly said as she was looking in the fridge.

"What's wrong?" Jason asked.

"We've run out of chicken. Would you mind Jason and going to get some from the shop?"

Jason sighed. "I suppose not."

"Here, take this money. A two pack is all you need, as Dad is away on business tonight and Jamie is going out with friends."

Jamie nodded.

"It's alright for some," Jason said.

Mum gave Jason a smile and handed him a £20 note. He went back into the hallway and got his shoes and coat on, wrapping a scarf around his neck, to try and keep the cold out. Being winter, it was already dark, despite it being only 5 o'clock in the evening.

"See you in a minute," Jason called through, as he opened the door and left the house.

The shop was only a 5-minute walk away, but it was still a pain to go there. As he walked along, Jason thought about the lovely warmth of the house and how he longed to be back there. He turned left at the top of his street and came onto the main road. On the left, there was a wooded area, that backed onto the gardens in Jason's road. People feared to go into the wood, especially in the dark. Local tales told of weird goings on, with strange noises and people disappearing.

A couple of minutes later, Jason had arrived at the shop, bought the chicken and was on his way back out and heading for home. As he was passing the wood, he heard a familiar voice. It was AJ. What was he doing here? He'd said he had to do jobs at home. Jason was curious and spied AJ walking with someone who looked like his brother, into the wooded area. A moment of intrigue came over Jason and he carefully tiptoed after them.

AJ and Jamie were going further into the wood, away from the gardens and to the edge of the town. They were talking in low voices, as though they were trying not to be overheard. Jason caught snatches of what they were saying.

"How are you feeling?" Jamie was asking AJ.

"Good, just want to get this over with," came the reply.

"Tell me about it. You can't deny that it doesn't feel good though."

"Yeah, but the start. I just can't get over it."

They had been walking for about 15 minutes when the two of them came into a clearing, where they went over to a large fallen tree that was in the centre. Jason held back at the edge, hidden by the shadows of the trees. What happened next, Jason didn't have words for. He had lost track of time, not realising where he was really going.

Jamie and AJ began to take their clothes off, stuffing them inside the hollow trunk of the fallen tree, right until they were both completely naked, not one shred of clothing on their bodies.

"I still don't like this bit," Jason heard AJ say.

"It will be over in a minute," Jamie replied.

This was then when it happened. AJ suddenly screamed in pain, falling to the ground, a horrific snarl coming from his mouth. Jamie followed, also letting out a sharp cry of pain. The noise horrified Jason, but he found that he could not move, his legs rooted to the spot. There was the sound of cracking bones, as the two teenagers in front of him began to change. Hair was growing from their bodies, thickening into fur. Their legs had grown longer, as had their feet and hands. Sharp black claws had ripped through their nails and pointy ears had moved up their heads. Each teenager's face then began to elongate, forming a muzzle, until finally any trace of the teenagers had gone.

Where Jamie had been standing, was now a brown furred werewolf and where AJ had been, was a grey-furred werewolf. This was when Jason suddenly became unfrozen and dropped the bag containing the pack of chicken. The two werewolves' head snapped around and looked in Jason's direction. The brown furred werewolf seemed to have a look of shock come over its face. The grey wolf, however, snarled and began to move forward.

"Jason, run!" the brown wolf seemed to half shout, half growl in a deep throaty voice.

Jason didn't need telling twice. Without picking up the bag, he turned and ran as fast as he could back the way he had come. It took all he could to not trip over the mass of roots that were strewn over the ground. However dear reader, I have mentioned Jason's hatred of PE. Another reason for this was his lack of coordination. A root took hold of his trainer and he fell to the ground, hard.

The pounding sound of something heavy came up behind him and Jason scrambled round to see the grey wolf standing over him. A loud roar came from its mouth.

"Stop!" came the deep-throated voice of wolf Jamie.

Too late. The grey wolf lunged forward, fangs bared and planted a large bite onto Jason's shoulder. He screamed in pain as he felt the teeth sink into his flesh, drawing blood. The next thing he knew, the brown wolf slammed into the grey wolf and batted it off to the side.

"RUNNNN!" the brown wolf roared again.

In pain and terror, Jason's adrenaline level gave him a push to scramble back to his feet, his left arm hanging limply from his side. He ran as fast as his feet could take him, not daring to look back. He kept going until he made it back to his front door.

Jason pounded on the door until his mum opened.

"What is going… JASON," she shouted, as he fell forward and into her arms.

The next thing Jason remembered was blackness enveloping him and falling into a deep sleep.

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