Until Dawn - 7. Chapter 7

Elliot was happy to see me, and Jimmy, well… he seemed perturbed. It was as if he was looking through the window at a ghost. I couldn't help but smile at them, and Elliot darted for the door. He started pulling away some of the equipment blocking the entrance, only to be yanked back by Jimmy.

"What the hell are you doing? He could be one of them," Jimmy rebuked. He glanced from me to Elliot in alarm.

"But he's…." Elliot began.

It was evident that he wanted to defend my honor, but judging from the fear in Jimmy's eyes, he was not going to let Elliot fuck up his little habitat. In his mind, he presumably thought I was a werewolf. So, I pounded on the window for them to pay attention, and as I did, their focus shifted.

"I'm not… I just….” I spoke dryly.

I was confused about what was going on. People were winding up dead, and Bao and Sebastián happened to be goddamn wolves. I didn't feel precisely safe standing out in that hallway, so open and vulnerable.

"What is going on?" I added when I found my voice.

"Eh… people are acting like dogs and shit. Did you see Sebastián?" Jimmy said, his voice breaking.

I don't think I had ever heard his voice crack at all until that day.

"Yeah…" I said gravelly. "He's dead."

Jimmy wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve and said, "Dead… how?"

"He was trying to kill me; he was acting all crazy," I said.

Jimmy looked at me skeptically, and Elliot stopped attempting to pull items out of the way. They were scared, but I was the same.

"So, you killed him?" Jimmy rebuked.

The comment perhaps came out a little harsher than he had probably intended. Confronted with the fact I killed Sebastián, a pang of guilt rose from my stomach and into my chest. Would the whole ordeal be considered self-defense? After all, he didn't have a weapon in his hand. Yet, I presumed those rules fall flat when you have a wolf chasing after you?

Peering down at the floor, I glumly added, "Yeah… I didn't mean to… but…."

Errrrrpt… Clunk… the same sound repeated itself again. Errrrrpt… Clunk... It had to be Bao, and I didn't want to be here when he came along. Suddenly, the corridor that I had passed through so many times and never had a problem with seemed terrifying. I didn't know where the sound was coming from, but I knew I didn't want to be standing outside the gym to find out. Banging on the window, I pleaded with the boys.

"Please let me in… Bao is out here somewhere."

"Bao… the new kid?" Elliot questioned.

"Yes," I said.

I broke away from the window and went to the doorway, and started pushing on the door. It would be no use; the barricade was there for a reason. If it had given away at the first sign of stress, I would have changed my mind on wanting to be inside the gym when Bao came hunting.

From the other side of the glass wall, Jimmy let out a massive roar, "Get back from the door."

I did as I was instructed. I had never heard Jimmy be so somber with his words.

"ALRIGHT, OKAY…" I yelled.

The two boys looked helplessly at each other. I was starting to doubt if they'd ever let me in at this point. Though Jimmy stepped up to the glass and tapped on it.

"Prove that you're not like one of them," Jimmy said.

I wasn't sure how I was to take the news of this request. Was there a particular rule book that you follow to prove to people you aren't a witch or a monster? After all, back in medieval times, you were dunked into a river to verify if you were indeed a person who could harness the power of black magic. Either way, the outcome was always the same, no matter what form. If you survived the drowning, then you were obviously a witch and had to be burned. If you died by drowning, you were proven innocent, but what was the lesson learned from that outcome? Not wishing to be alone, I conceded and nodded.

"How do I do that?" I asked.

With his index finger, Jimmy tapped on the glass, pointing at my waist. Glancing down, I lifted my hand to better understand what he was directing my attention toward. I even raised my shirt for him to see that I wasn't bitten anywhere. Though I grew aware when I peered back up that he was asking to see my hands. I was confused, but I didn't offer up any fight. I placed my hands on the cold glass and let him examine them. Apparently, werewolves have an extra-long finger on each hand, and I wasn't sure where he got his knowledge of such a thing. I was just uneasy with the stillness on that side of the glass, and I wanted in.

"Where did you hear about the finger differences?" I asked.

"Oh, the SYFY Channel," Jimmy uttered with a tone that suggested he was almost sure that he knew what he was talking about.

Though I didn't think that was sufficient for me, I challenged him on the concept.

"Oh… and does that make you an extinguished professor?"

Elliot seemed apprehensive and fraught with worry. Jimmy ran the show, which I could respect, but did he have to be so cautious?

"HEY! At least I'm playing it safe," Jimmy shouted back, some spray from his mouth webbed across the glass.

Removing my hand, it left a white print of my hand on the glass. It would take a few seconds for it to dissipate, but it made me realize just how much I was sweating. Up the hallway, the same noise echoed around the building again.

Errrrrpt… Clunk… Errrrrpt… Clunk…

I pleaded with my eyes.

"Okay, let me in now," I urgently said.

"Wait a second…." Jimmy said.

Breaking away from the window, he jogged back to the bench press where the dead assistant was lying, removed a silver dumbbell, and ran back to the window. I’d give him a solid to the face when I’d get inside, that was for sure.

We all had to work together, even if it meant doing these ridiculous drills.

Jim returned to the entrance and held up the silver dumbbell to gauge my reaction. I think he wanted to see if I was afraid of the silver. After the incident, I learned that werewolves didn't like to see the same thing that could equally kill them. I was never one for horrors, but that didn't stop me from occasionally hearing about them from kids in school. I found out about werewolves, silver bullets and decapitation not long after the rec center night. I wanted to be sure that I'd be ready to defend myself if the same event happened again. I'd know what to do if the situation ever arose, and I'd know how to kill the bloody things.

Peering at Jimmy, I stated, "I'm not joking. I'm not a werewolf."

My comment was appreciated by a snarl.

I pivoted over my shoulder to where the stairs came up from the ground floor to see Bao standing by them in human form. He didn't look dangerous, but I knew he was, so I didn't give him the advantage. Sebastián was dead, so I turned all my attention to him. The other boys sensed my mood of annoyance turn to fear, and they followed my stare.

"That's right… no, you're not. Not yet," Bao said with a chuckle.