Switched | Zayn Malik

Chapter 5

I woke up to a throbbing headache and an empty stomach. The one time I go to a party, I end up hurting myself. Welcome to my life. It's safe to say that I'll be heading home after every football game from now on. I downed some Advil and leaned back against my headboard. My bedroom door creaked open to reveal my Mom with a warm smile.

"You're awake," my Mom stated, placing a tray of food and tea next to me, "I was so worried last night when that sweet boy dropped you off."

"I'm sorry, Mom," I said and hugged her, "Just a little accident at the party, that's all."

"You should be happy it wasn't that serious. I doubt you'll need stitches," Mom said, rubbing my head gently, "How about you take a warm shower. I bet that'll make you feel better."

"You're right." I said and took  sip of the hot tea.

Once I finished eating, I locked the bathroom door and turned on the shower. I shed my clothes and tried to get a look at the cut on my head. Dried blood stuck to the roots, I could hardly make out how big it was. I was happy that it didn't hurt as much as last night. My whole body ached as I stepped into the shower, letting the water drizzle down my skin. The warmth made my body feel ten times better. My legs started to tingle and I felt a weird feeling in my chest. Suddenly, I lost balance and slipped onto the floor of the shower.

"I really need to work on my balance." I said to myself, cursing my legs for failing me the past week. I rolled over on my back and felt extra weigh on my legs. I glanced down at my legs which were nowhere to be see. A long, slimy green scaled tail replaced them, "OH MY GOD!"

I covered my mouth and tired to steady my breathing. I leaned forward and turned off the shower, unable to pull myself up off the floor. I stared down in shock. I was dreaming. This was definitely a dream. Zayn dropped me off last night and its till in my bed right now. My chest was even covered in an arrangement of green scales. A loud knock echoed throughout the tiny bathroom. The door handle jiggled slightly.

"Is everything okay, Avery? I thought I heard something." My Mom's concerned voice asked from the other side of the door.

"I-I," I struggled to form words, "I dropped the shampoo bottle on my foot. No biggie."

"Are you sure?" She pestered, jiggling the handle once again.

"I'm positive." I nervously chuckled.

I attempted to yank the tail off me. It wouldn't budge. i tired picking off the scales which only resulted in pain. I dragged myself out of the shower, sprawled myself on the bathroom floor, and closed my eyes. I was hoping I'd wake up in my bed and my legs would be there. I threw a towel over the tail and stared up at the ceiling before drifting off into sleep.

••

"Avery." Mom's voice gently met my ears. I opened my eyes and saw her staring down at me with a bobby pin in her hand. Everything came rushing back and I frantically propped myself up.

"I can explain." I said and tried to come up with an excuse for having a fish tail. I couldn't even explain this thing to myself, let alone my mom.

"Explain why you decided to take a nap in the bathroom instead of your own bed?" She questioned and I looked down at my legs. They were there once again. I must've fallen asleep after I got out of the shower or something. I couldn't recall.

"Maybe we should take you to the doctor." She said with raised her eyebrows.

"Mom, I'm fine. I just needed to sit down for a minute and must've fallen asleep." I reassured her and jumped to my feet. The pain that was fading in my wrist had disappeared, I moved it around with ease. I touched my head and felt the cut, already in the process of healing.

"Well, how about you go to your bed. It's definitely more comfortable than sleeping in here" She said and waved the bobby pin at me. That was her universal key.

"Agreed." I cheekily smiled and kissed her cheek, scurrying to my bedroom.

I shut the door and flopped onto my bed. The dream was so vivid. I could've sworn it was real. My mind was thinking about a million things. I just needed more sleep and than everything would be back to normal in no time.