6. Sudden cravings
I was not a fun person to be around after I came to the realization that I was broken. It took a few days for me to talk to my friends and even more before I would sit down and have a real conversation. My family wasn't fairing any better with my mood swings. Hell saying that I've been home a lot due to my lack of a sport my family was getting the brunt of it.
On top of that I could swear I'm infected with something deadly. Along with the strange visions I've been getting more moody, tired, aggressive, and have almost lost my appetite even though I'm always hungry. My body just feels wrong, yet right at the same time.
Of course as all funks do, this did pass. Sitting on the bus on Thursday my friends it was obvious that they were on edge around me, I didn't blame them though for if roles were reversed I would be apprehensive too. When I greet them nobody can manage to mumble more than a muffled and unenthusiastic hello.
It wasn't until we walked into school that I noticed them starting to come around. Not surprisingly it was Anna who came up to me first and kissed me hello. I kiss her lightly on the cheek and turn towards everyone else.
"Guys I am terribly sorry for the way I've been acting the last few days. Can we just forget about it?"
"Definitely," Anna smiles as Lindsay just nods.
Sam shrugs, "I don't know dude you've been pretty strange for a while and a little moody for my taste."
"Sam's right," Dylan agrees. "This isn't going to become a monthly thing is it?"
"Your masculinity is in question and I don't think Anna would like it if you start PMSing all the time on her. We hang with two girls, we don't need three."
"Sam," Anna screeches as Dylan gives him a high five and Lindsay hits Dyl in the back of the head."
"Damn Linds, what the hell was that for?"
"Chauvinistic bastard," she explains only is having trouble containing her laughter.
I just shake my head at my friends and laugh along with them. This is much better than the strange relationships that I've been having with them recently. We start talking about more pressing issues like wrestling and how it's going. Part of me is still pissed that I had to quit, yet it does feel like the right thing to do.
It was in the middle of the conversation about how big a dick Bill was being that I feel myself salivating and feel stomach pangs. The sensation was similar to the one I have when I'm standing in an ice cream parlor or at a BBQ. Looking around I survey the area for breakfast food such as doughnuts, which people sometimes carry before school, however I see none.
Deciding to shrug it off as simple hunger from missing breakfast I hear the bell ring and walk towards biology. I sit down and Ms. Tall smiles at me. I smile back, for some reason the long term sub has grown on me. Madison sits next to me with a little hesitation. As I smile at her she visible seems to feel more at ease.
Today we are looking at blood types. "Can anyone tell me the different types of blood?" Ms. Tall asks.
Without realizing I put my hand up she calls on me, "O, A, B, and AB. Each of these can either be positive or negative meaning that they either have or lack the Rh protein."
"Very good Matt, now what the different types mean is that,"
She continues her lecture and I start to tune her out. I don't know how the hell I even knew the answer I gave her, but somehow I did. This time I don't worry about it though, this has happened to me so much recently that I don't even fret over it.
"Matt as you seem to know about blood can you tell us the different kinds?"
"Umm, red carries oxygen. White has to do with the immune system, platelets come together to clot wounds and plasma is how they all travel."
She tells me I'm correct and I tune out the rest of the lesson, I know this. I don't know how I know it, but I do. Class passes quickly and I walk to math with Madison chatting about random nothingness. She doesn't ask me how I suddenly seem to know everything and I'm glad for that. Don't get me wrong I'm good at school, but never before a few weeks ago have I know the answers before we learned anything.
Or at least a lot besides math, I still have no idea what I'm doing in math. What I do know is ever since biology my strange hunger has gotten stronger and is getting harder to ignore.
Math ends and I rush to the locker room where Sam is waiting for me. He nods at me and I see the smirk on his face, he has something big planned today. However it doesn't bug me as it usually would. On the contrary I like the fact that things are finally back to normal. As we change he doesn't say anything and nothing happens and I find myself gulping in suspense.
We walk onto the field and I get my customary hug and newly customary kiss from Anna. As I pull away I plant a small kiss on her neck, liking the feeling of her pulse under my lips. She giggles, "Matt as much as I like that gym class is no place for that. We don't want to turn into Lindsay and Dylan now do we?"
Not able to argue with that I pull away and laugh as well, although the hunger has seemed to have gotten worse. Pulling apart coach calls us over and tells us we are going to be split up into different groups today. He wants the football players in the class to work separately from everyone else so that he can make sure we've been training for the past month or so.
Coach takes his football seriously.
Telling Anna goodbye I turn to Sam and by the look on his face he knew this was happening and his plan more than likely involved making me look like a fool.
Since we are all in gym clothes without padding or anything we are supposed to be playing a game of flag football. And we do, it just happens to be a little rougher than it's supposed to be played. Naturally within the two small teams we have he wants us to try and play our usual positions so I'm the QB of one team while the starting QB is on the other team. He manages to mix JV and V up pretty well and Sam turns out to be on the opposite team.
As I get into the game everyone is surprised that I'm keeping up and managing to outplay the Varsity defensive line. When we scrimmaged like this in the fall I got crushed. But now it's as if I can see the entire field and every detail in slow motion and am running faster than any of them.
Since the flag part wasn't followed we did have a few tackles, nothing horrible, but a few mishaps. Class draws to an end and as I'm about to throw a touchdown pass I fall down, glancing at my shoes I notice that Sam got a hold of them and messed with them. Seeing me fall three guys come out of nowhere and tackle me. I'm not sure exactly what happened, but before I know what's going on and before I touch the ground I manage to throw the ball in the smallest gap between two of the guys before getting sacked.
By the sounds of cheering I'm pretty sure we won. However one of the guys on top of me must have scraped his knee. The smell of iron hits my nose and suddenly my stomach growls louder than it ever has before. We stand up and he stays on the ground. Not moving towards the rest of my team I stay where I am and take off my shirt so I can bandage it. Without conscious thought I lean towards him as if I'm fixing it and lick the wound. The taste is exactly what I'd been craving all day.
The second I realize what I'm doing I shake my head, wipe my mouth, and wrap it up. Needing to get away I heard toward Sam.
"Dude what was that?" he asks.
"What was what?"
"It's winter and you took your shirt off to help a guy who hates your guy gat bandaged. What are you a saint?"
At the moment I feel like a demon, but I don't mention that. "Yep, that's me St. Matthew."
He laughs and I awkwardly join in just glad he didn't see what happened. And by the words of thanks I receive from the senior he doesn't remember me doing anything. I wish I was that lucky.
I'm late to history and as I walk in Dylan shoots me a look. I mouth the word bathroom to him and he nods. That was the truth, I was in the bathroom, only not for the reason he probably thinks. I was in their washing my mouth out. I had licked some guys blood. Hell he could have had HIV for all I know!
At lunch I have no appetite. All I crave is something that I never will have again. I will not become a monster. Maybe I need to be checked into an asylum or something because I swear I'm going crazy with the images. And now apparently I'm a fucking cannibal!
After lunch, which thankfully was normal, I head to English. Just as in Math English isn't coming any easier to me. It was never hard for me, only now it seems to be a bit challenging. Every fiber in my body is telling me to say things wrong such as saying me and blank or blank and me instead of blank and I. I've never had that problem before!
"Mr. Nash," my teacher calls on me.
"Yes Ms. Hemlock?"
She looks at me funny, "Did you just call me Ms. Hemlock because that isn't funny."
"Um I'm sorry I don't know why I did."
"Detention today after school," she tells me before calling on someone else to answer the question. What the hell was that about?
My mind was playing tricks on me for the rest of the day. Along with the craving I had gained I felt as if ever since the incident this morning I could hear heartbeats and the blood flowing through my classmates veins.
As school ends I make my way to detention and spend my time doing simple grammar exercises that seem to fit with the name Ms. Hemlock that I said earlier. My stomach never settled down and it gets worse when I get home.
At home I sit down for dinner and scrunch my nose at the spaghetti in front of me. I eat it although it doesn't seem to satisfy my growing hunger. Therefore as I head to do homework I'm still famished.
Sitting down and doing my homework I hear the shower running and my head starts to hurt again. In a trance like state I stand up and walk to the bathroom where I see Sarah getting ready to take a shower. I beckon her forward and she does as I say. MY vision gets foggy as the girl in front of me goes from being Sarah to another young girl and back to Sarah.
She approaches me and I take my nail and slit her arm. Opening my mouth I start to suck on the wound and moan in ecstasy. This is exactly what I needed. The hunger fades and I realize what I'm doing. Afraid I was killing my sister I lick the wound and watch it disappear.
Once again I'm extremely dizzy and it takes every fiber of my being not to either go back to Sarah or fall down in the middle of the hallway. The second I hit my bed I pass out.
Thank you everyone for the reviews. Updates will be sporadic for the next few weeks due to AP exams but I promise that in that time I am not giving up writing, but I really want 5s. Please continue giving me your thoughts. And due to the wait I will tell you that in the next chapter Matt gets a visit from a few ghosts.