It was just Mason's luck that the first boy he had ever kissed turned out to be not only already in a relationship, but some weird scorpion dude with huge spikes coming out of his arms. Hella poisonous spikes at that. There was nothing sexy about poisonous spikes, nothing.

He knew he had virtually no chance with Brett. Everyone with eyes knew that he was hung up on Liam, had been for years, and anything and anyone else was merely a distraction. It was pretty discouraging to sit inside Sinema, a gay club, and chat to someone who kept staring at another guy the whole time.

And then there was Corey, who was dead, killed by the Dread Doctors at the hospital. Which was a major bummer, because he was hot like burning, looking all sweet and innocent but Mason had had a feeling that there was something more to him.

Of course, he hadn't even told Liam about his maybe interest in Corey, so instead he had to listen to his best friend wax on about how sad it was that Hayden was dead. Which sucked, sure, but did they really both have to suffer?

"Wait," Liam said, turning suddenly. "I smell her."

"Who?" Mason asked.

"Hayden," Liam snapped, looking frustrated. "I swear-"

"Liam, Hayden's dead, remember?" Mason pointed out helpfully.

"I know what my senses are telling me," Liam growled.

Mason looked skeptical but followed Liam into the woods as they tracked the scent, eventually coming across the Nemeton after hours of searching.

"Their bodies are gone," Liam gasped.

Suddenly, the police were descending on the clearing, Hayden leading them and showing them the bodies. Liam almost had a conniption but Mason ignored him, staring off into the distance.

"Corey," Mason whispered.

When he saw Corey, the light seemed to bend around him and he would swear he could hear the hallelujah chorus while the other boy walked towards them.

"Hey guys, are you volunteering for the library clean up too?" He asked sweetly, a soft smile on his face. He was so pure and innocent. Mason wondered how he thought for even a second that Corey could be evil.

"Yep," Liam nodded, looking very unconvincing.

His smile turned sultry as he brushed past Mason, heat in his eyes, and Mason swallowed nervously.

They follow him into the library, with Liam urging Mason to go and talk to Corey to get more information about Theo.

"He brought us back," Corey said, a light frown creasing his forehead. Mason's heart ached as he stared at him, still not quite sure that someone so perfect could be real. He wanted to shove him against the stacks and kiss him senseless, but Liam was still listening.

He got enough information out of Corey that Liam was happy, and left. But Mason stayed.

It turned out that Corey could turn invisible now, which was very helpful when you have a boner inside a school library because a boy pressed you against the wall and whispered all the dirty things he wanted to do to you in your ear.

"That sounds great," Mason agreed. "But first, can you kiss me, please?"

"Keen, aren't you?" Corey chuckled, but then his lips moved, pressing soft kisses up Mason's neck and jaw. He hovered over Mason's lips, his hot breath on his face making him shiver in anticipation. "I can already tell you're gonna be a lot of fun," he purred.

Mason whimpered, his cock hard and aching, leaking inside his pants. He clenched his hands into fists as he waited for the other boy to close the gap.

"Mason, where are you?" Liam called. He stopped near the stacks where Mason and Corey were hidden, looking frustrated. "I swear he was following me," Liam muttered, stalking off.

Corey phased them back into visibility and Mason gave him a rueful smile, discreetly adjusting his pants. "Rain check?" He asked hopefully.

"Sure," Corey said quietly, giving him a tight-lipped smile as he walked away. Mason let his head fall back against the wall with a groan. His phone buzzed in his pocket and he sighed as he fished it out, hissing as his hand brushed against his erection.

"What?" He snapped as he answered it.

"Uhh, hey man," Liam said. "Where did you go? We gotta go find Scott."

"I'll meet you in the car park," Mason said, hanging up before Liam could reply. He took a few deep breaths, and then walked out of the library.

If he didn't know that Liam didn't have a nasty bone in his body, Mason would swear he was doing it on purpose. All he wanted was one lousy kiss, one moment of uninterrupted time where he could feel Corey's gorgeous pink lips against his. Was that really too much to ask?

"Found you," Corey grinned, snaking his arm around Mason's shoulders and breathing in his scent. Mason had retreated to the bleachers by the pitch, hoping to catch Corey before his game. He turned, eyes wide and hopeful, but then, sure enough, there was Liam.

"Dude, Corey, come on, we gotta warm up," Liam called as he ran out onto the pitch.

Mason groaned, burying his face in Corey's neck.

"Next time," Corey promised, pressing a kiss to his cheek before jogging over to join Liam.

Mason was leaving English when an invisible hand grabbed his, pulling him into a nearby classroom.

"Corey?" Mason breathed.

He didn't reply, leading Mason away from the door and to the teacher's desk. Corey reappeared, smiling at him in that sinful way of his as he leaned closer, Mason licking his lips as his eyes fluttered closed.

Only for the door to crash open, Corey grabbing him and making them both invisible as Hayden and Liam stumbled in, laughing, pressing hungry kisses into each other's mouths.

"Shhh," Liam laughed, "we'll get caught."

"There's no one here," Hayden said smugly.

What followed was the most uncomfortable ten minutes of Mason's life. Did he need to know that Hayden had a daddy kink? Or that Liam liked Hayden biting his neck? He grimaced, trying his best to block out the noise they made, staying as still and quiet as possible so that the humiliation was not made even worse by the couple realising they had an audience.

The bell rang, and Liam and Hayden adjusted their clothes, giggling and kissing softly as they left the room.

"I'm gonna be late for class," Corey muttered, not quite able to meet Mason's eyes as he phased back in and slunk out of the room.

To top it all off, there was some stupid beast running around killing people, and so not only was he being cockblocked by his best friend, but also by murder, because everytime they try to find the stupid thing, Mason passed out.

"I just want to kiss a hot boy," he growled as he stood in front of the mirror in the locker room.

"I'm flattered," Corey said, phasing in behind him.

Mason held him at arm's length, looking around him wildly. Slowly, he looked back at Corey. He should do it quickly, before they're interrupted again but he had been waiting for so long that he wanted to savour it.

He leaned closer, praying to every god he knew for just one minute of peace.

The door opened and Liam walked in with the other players, talking loudly.

"Oh, hey Mason," Liam said, smiling at him, dropping his bag inside of his locker. Mason glanced around, but Corey had disappeared.

"All the gods are dead," Mason muttered as he stormed out.

"What are you doing Saturday night?" Corey breathed into his ear. Mason glanced around but he couldn't see the other boy, could only feel him pressed up against him.

"Nothing," Mason whispered, fighting against leaning back into the solid warmth behind him.

"Want to go on a date with me?" Corey asked.

"Really?" Mason asked, eyes wide as he turned around. He ignored the fact that he probably looked deranged as he squinted, trying to find Corey's face.

"Come on," Corey said, grabbing his hand and leading him outside towards the pitch.

"What about class?" Mason asked, eyes sweeping the halls as he kept an eye out for Liam, who would almost definitely find a way to stop them.

"I think that considering your GPA, you can afford to skip one class," Corey laughed.

"Probably," Mason admitted, but he still pouted a little at how much sucking up he would have to do later to make it up to Mrs Finch for skipping Bio, not to mention that he shared that class with Liam, who would ask where he was, if not outright come looking for him.

Corey lead him out onto the oval, with Mason awkwardly waving at the students sitting by the bleachers as he marched past them.

"You could have made me invisible as well," Mason whined.

"We would have bumped into people," Corey explained. "Everyone got out of the way for you because they could see you."

"Oh," Mason said, "yeah that makes sense." They walked for another minute, crossing the pitch and heading towards the woods. "Um, where are we going?" Mason asked.

"Away from your annoying werewolf friends that can hear and smell everything," Corey said.

Mason stopped suddenly, heels digging in, feeling nervous.

"Um, why?" He asked, tugging his hand from Corey's.

"Why do you think?" Corey laughed.

"Well I know what I was hoping," Mason said, easing backwards as his eyes flicked around the woods, "but now we're in the murder woods I'm not so sure."

Corey phased back into visibility, frowning at him.

"You think I want to murder you?" He asked.

"Why else do people come into the murder woods?" Mason asked, not looking at him, still scanning the trees around them. He almost expected Theo or one of his goons to jump out and attack him. He barely ever saw Corey with them, but he wouldn't put it past Theo to organise something like this.

He turned back, and Corey had moved a lot closer, making him jump. "Jesus, you scared me."

"I don't want to scare you," Corey said, bringing a hand up to caress his cheek, "or murder you."

Mason's phone buzzed but he ignored it, his eyes wide as he stared at Corey, heart racing in his chest.

"What do you want then?" He whispered.

"I want to kiss you," Corey said gently. "And I really want to take you out this Saturday."

"Thank god," Mason declared, reaching up to grip Corey's jacket, pulling him closer and kissing him enthusiastically.

Kissing Corey was fireworks and electricity and heat, every cliche under the sun. Corey walked him backwards until he was pressed against a tree, hands cupping his face as he licked into his mouth, sending bolts of pleasure directly to Mason's groin. He moaned into Corey's mouth, desperately trying to pull him in closer, to feel more of his body against his, wrapping his arms around him and sliding them under his shirt so he could feel his surprisingly muscled back.

Corey pulled away slightly, panting for breath.

"Is that a yes to Saturday?" He smiled.

"Yes," Mason grinned, ducking his head a bit as his cheeks heated. Not only had he kissed a cute boy, but he had a date with him too!

Life was looking up.

Life was not looking up. This stupid Beast that kept going on these killing rampages was really screwing with his love life. Not only had he had to postpone his date with Corey, but now he was on a bus looking at shoes, which was fucking nasty, if he was honest. There was nothing sexy about looking through gym bags that smelt like sweaty socks.

But Liam and the others really wanted to catch this punk, and he was with Corey, so he couldn't complain that much.

"That's the last one," he grimaced as he placed a red cross over the last boy's face on his phone.

"Then who could it be?" Corey muttered.

The door to the bus opened, and Corey grabbed him, turning them both invisible as one of the Devenford Prep boys walked onto the bus and grabbed his bag. They both let out a sigh as he left straight after.

Mason glanced at Corey, finding the other boy already looking at him.

"What?" He asked.

"Nothing," Corey said, pulling him in for a kiss, but the look in his eyes stayed with Mason, making him feel uneasy. They left the bus, and the last thing Mason remembered was a high-pitched noise that made him fall to his knees, clutching his head.

Mason couldn't find any of his friends, so he made his way back to his car. He stood there, frowning, watching as Scott tried to break into the boot of his car.

"What the hell are you doing?" He demanded as the werewolf opened it.

Scott looked at him and then looked down inside the boot.

"Mason," he said, pulling out a pair of shoes, showing the blood on the soles. "It's you."

Mason blinked. This was his car, those were his shoes. His brain stalled.

Corey phased in, grabbing him and turning him invisible.

"No," Scott yelled, but Corey was already pulling him away.

Mason didn't say anything, his mind reeling. He was the Beast? How was that even possible? It wasn't possible! Wouldn't he know if he was going on killing sprees every night? Wouldn't someone have noticed?

He stopped, looking around. "Wait," he said, looking at the tunnels surrounding them. "What are we doing here?"

"It was the only place I could think of," Corey admitted. "Scott can't find you down here. He can't follow your scent."

Mason stared at him like he was crazy. "But it's not me, it can't be."

Corey stepped closer, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. "After we left the bus, I lost you at the game, remember? Where did you go?"

"I went to," Mason stuttered. "I was-"

"All those times you said the Beast showed up? Everything you said about frequencies. Where were you all those times? The night at the transmission towers. The observatory downtown. The army base. All the times you said there were transmissions," Corey pressed.

Mason held up his hands, trying to fend off his words, realisation making him feel sick to his stomach.

A tinge of electricity on his arms made him pause. "Wait," he said, horrified, "they can still find me. They can find me by frequency."

"Who? Scott?" Corey asked.

"No," Mason whispered, looking past him at the Dread Doctors walking towards them. "Them. Run!"

And they ran, and it was raining, and they caught him, and Mason's last thought before he was knocked out was that at this rate he was never going to lose his virginity.

There was only pain and darkness. He passed in and out of consciousness, left with brief impressions of dripping blades and brown masks. It wasn't until Liam and Scott were there shaking him that he became truly aware of what was going on around him.

Pain, incredible pain, making him scream until he was hoarse, Liam whispering apologies into his ear as he tugged at whatever was implanted in his skull.

They were talking but Mason couldn't concentrate on it, his head throbbing, making him see stars.

I have to get it out, he panicked.

Liam moved away and he reached for the back of his head, trying to stay conscious against the swooping sickening feeling in his stomach every time he touched the metal.

His mind went blank as he screamed, pulling it out of his head. Smoke swirled around him and he passed out.

"Mason!" Lydia screamed, and suddenly he was running down a long tunnel, falling into Corey's arms and gazing at him as the other boy helped him stand. They drunk each other in, blind and deaf to anything else going on around them as they stared into each other's eyes.

The Beast roared, captured by the Hellhound and Parrish screamed Scott's name. Scott picked up the pike and launched it at the creature, piercing it's chest and it died with a loud, echoing screech.

There was silence.