life as a shapeshifter Remastered (book 1)

online school problems

June 2020

I wake in Jolt after having a nightmare about the explosion five years ago. It's a constant reminder of a past I wish I could forget. "ugh, it's been five years. Why can't I ever forget about this?" I think, getting off my bed, and I walk into the bathroom. I look at myself in the mirror and see my wolf self looking back at me. "as comfortable as this is, I think people would freak out if they saw me." after a quick flash of blue light, I'm back in my human form I look at my phone, and I see I have a text from jack.

I opened the text, and it said, "Hey James, I'm having a sleepover tonight. You coming?"

I text back, "Yeah, of course, just come pick me up around 6."

I leave the bathroom, go to my dresser, and put on a casual shirt and shorts. Afterward, I head over to my desk, turn on my laptop, and sit on my chair, and it's uncomfortable. "I really should ask my mom for a better chair one day. This chair is very uncomfortable." I think as I sign on to my first class, Mr. Phillips teaches history, and I always fall asleep during his class due to how boring it is

"Hello, class. Since we're about a week away from summer, this will be a free period, so do whatever," Phillips says in a monotone voice.

After a few minutes, I fall asleep from boredom. I wake up in a dark void, the air heavy with an ominous silence. As I get my bearings, I hear a voice, a chilling whisper that seems to echo from all directions: "It's your fault," repeatedly, each word dripping with accusation.

"No, it's not. It was self-defense. He was hurting me. I did what I had to do," I say, trying not to let the voice get me.

"Oh, James, you always try to convince yourself you did the right thing. You know it was your fault."

"Shut up, stop. I swear it was self-defense. I would never kill my father on purpose," I say, sounding more afraid.

I see a dark figure appear in front of me. "You're scared of the truth coming out about your true identity. I can see it in your eyes and hear it in your voice. You're like a scared animal. It's quite pathetic."

"Fine, I am scared. I've hidden this for five years and had moments where I thought I was caught, but I kept it hidden because I was scared. But I refuse to let fear control me. Do you think you can bring me down because of that? You're dead wrong," I say with a newfound determination, my voice steady and unwavering.

"I like this new determination. I knew doing this would bring this out of you. I'll see you soon, James."

The figure rushes at me, and I wake up in a jolt. "James, you're back. Class ended five minutes ago," Phillips says. I'm back in the real world, away from that terrifying nightmare. Relief washes over me, but the fear still lingers.

"Oh, sorry about that. I didn't get much sleep at night," I say

"It's okay, just leave the call and get ready for your next class," Phillip says

I leave the call, and I start to think about that nightmare. "what if that thing was right, and I'm one wrong move away from exposing myself?" I quickly shook off that thought. "Why is this thing talking to me like it knows me? I'll figure it out later. I need to get to my next class."

After a few minutes, I signed up for my next class and was actively dreading it because the teacher, Mr.Johnson, made the school year 20 times worse. "Alright, class. Today we have an exam. Hopefully, you all studied." Johnson says

I opened the test and was immediately met with many problems we had never been taught. "Great, just great. We never learned this. I'm so screwed." I think to myself as I'm doing the test. I feel the familiar pain when I have to shift. "This is very bad. Why do I have to shift during a test? I hate this time limit," I try to think of a way to get out of this.

Mr.Johnson notices with me, "James, are you doing alright?" Johnson says

"I just need to go to the bathroom real quick," I say

"Uh, sure, go ahe-"

Before Mr.Johnson can finish, I quickly dash out of my chair and run to the bathroom. I shut the door behind me and noticed my tail behind me. "oh, that's awkward. I hope no one saw that," I think before shifting to my wolf form. "There we go, much better."

When I thought I was clear, one of my classmates said, " Did anyone notice that James had a tail, or was it just me?"

"Crap, they did notice that that's going to ruin my reputation," I think to myself. I wait for 25 minutes before changing back to my human form, and I head back to my desk and sit back down.

"James, you're back. Are you doing alright?" Johnson says

"Yep, I'm fine," I say

"James, are you a furry?"

"No, absolutely not," I say

"You had a tail. How do you explain that?"

"Dude, just don't worry about that man, Jesus," I say

Everyone in the class starts laughing. I ignore them, and I finish my test. "Alright. Once you finish the test, you can leave the class," Johnson says

I leave the class. "that was terrible. There goes any reputation I had left," I think.

I went to sign up for my last class, but an announcement said there was no class today. After I shut off my computer, I got a text from Jack: "Hey James, I'm coming to get you right now. Hopefully, you're cool with that."

"Yeah, sure, I need someone to hang out with," I text

"Rough day, huh?" Jack texts

"You have no idea," I text

"Alright, I'll be there soon. Just get your stuff ready," Jack texts

I put my phone in my pocket, and I leave my room. I see my mom before I leave. "Mom, I'm going to have a sleepover with Jack. I'll see you tomorrow," I say

"Alright, have fun," Molly says

I leave the house and wait outside for Jack to arrive. "Wait, what if this is that one mistake that nightmare was referring to?" I think I quickly shake off that thought. "No, there's no way that something like that would happen."

I sit on my porch, waiting for Jack to arrive.