HUMAN

Chapter 16 - Max Gray

I gasped and shot up.

I was frantically scanning my surroundings as the flash of light seeping through the window had dwindled for me to see clearly. The scent of pine wood, the feeling of spring pushing up against me on the mattress, and the sound of a TV running on the other side of the room that I woke up in.

A water tap turned on for a second before switching off. My bones rattled and cracked as I stood up, followed by smelling a revolting scent. It was my own body.

Gagging a bit, I began to take my first steps, still confused as to why I woke up here, as I looked out of the window to see the fields from last night in the daytime. "You stink like shit." A coarse but gentle voice casually commented from the other side of the house. "Hurry up. You've already ruined my spare mattress."

I stood still, holding a breath that I wasn't aware of. Was he talking to me? A heavy sigh was heard, "Down to the end of the hall and to the right." I wasn't sure if I should reply. This person, no, Anthro, was talking to me as if we'd known each other before and not acknowledging I was human.

"Umm. . .ok." I manage to wheeze out. As bizarre as my situation is, I decided to comply. The house was rustic in design. I traced my hands along the crevices of the walls built with wood as I made my way to the bathroom. A white shirt and black shorts were folded delicately on the counter alongside a towel.

As the warm water ran down my body, the stinging sensation was brought to my senses. Right, claw scratches haven't been treated. I reached for my back to feel them but instead felt bandages peeling off from its exposure to water.

"Huh. . ." I uttered. My wounds seemed to be treated, too.

I stayed for an extra 10 minutes. The relief and calmness brought into me by the warm water relieved my muscles. I changed into the new set of clothing and set aside the torn and ragged ones. Luckily, I brought extra underwear.

As if I just walked out of heaven, I felt refreshed and brand new. The scented lavender bar of soap eradicated the awful stench I'd brought in. I walked out of the hallway and peered into each room cautiously before making it into the living room, where a German Shepherd faced the TV.

"A teenager claimed that she was attacked by a figure that she couldn't describe-"

"So. . .you're the human the Avery's have been looking after." He'd finally turned to face me, but only a glance before looking back at the TV. Shocked and utterly confused by this newfound, calm demeanor to my presence, I eased up a bit. But, the Anthro had an aura of authority that he'd established the moment I walked in.

"Yes, sir," I said. My hand refused to keep still as my body wanted to move from my stiff, paralyzed position of standing up, waiting to see what would happen next. "Sit down, boy." He remained focused on the TV.

Slowly approaching the couch, I finally looked at his face. His age showed through his muted fur color and strands of white hair beginning to appear. He was older than Jayce, but what was nerve-wracking to me was his eyes.

The German Shepard had a restful gaze, but one that had seen many things, things that he wished he hadn't seen. "Just Frank, boy." I nodded. We finally made eye contact but were quickly cut off by him pulling out a cigar. "Decided on a name yet?"

I was snapped out of my trance. His eyes averted back to me, waiting for a response. "I'm sorry. I don't know wh-what you mean by that?" Frank rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Damn it, Jayce. . .still vague as ever with your instructions." He mumbled before lighting his cigar and placing one leg over the other.

After puffing a smoke, he said, "He should've told you that I'll be creating a fake citizenship ID for you." He said. "Well, he only told me that you'll be-" "Able to help?" He chuckled. "Listen, I can only give you a fake citizenship ID, and that's about it. I don't do that line of work." There was a pause for a moment. "Not anymore."

I hadn't realized I began moving closer to the edge of the chair. "Oh. . .I see." I said before shuffling back, and I didn't know what to say to be honest. "So, name?" I didn't want to risk pushing Anthro's buttons, and I blurted out whatever was first in my mind. "Max. . ." He shifted his focus from the TV to me, followed by a raised eyebrow. "Max. . .what?"

"Max. . .Smith?"

"Max is fine. Smith is too uncommon. You need a forgettable, common name, so you won't stand out."

"Alright. . .how about Max Gray?"

Frank searched his mind for a bit before nodding. "Max Gray it is. You better start getting used to that name now. Vincent Armani will be a name you will never use again, understand?" He took out the cigar from his mouth and pointed it at me. I nodded, knowing that I'd be carrying Max's legacy through his name and believing I made a good choice I'd want to stick with.

"Good. Follow me."