Jason didn't know what to think. He spent the rest of the day just processing what happened. He kept trying to sneak looks at Laura without her noticing, but every time he lifted his head, her eyes would meet his, causing an unwanted shiver crawl down the back of his neck. Laura, on the other hand, was quite amused by how much time he took to wrap his little mind around it. She wasn't worried though, her instincts told her he was trustworthy, and he half guessed it already. She just sat on a log, a good metre away from Jason, while she tried, with no luck, to undo the knots in her red hair. She made no effort in trying to get a conversation out of him, as he would talk when he was ready.
Jason ran a hand through his brown knot of hair, a habit, Laura noted. He bit the inside of his lip before saying, 'so your a werewolf?' Laura just looked at him funny, 'no. I'm a bloody panda bear.' Jason let out a small laugh. Laura was just so.. Laura. He tried another question, one that wouldn't earn him a sarcastic remark, 'were you bitten?' Laura just stood up and made way towards him. 'I don't fancy answering all your questions, so I will tell you about me, in return you tell me about you.
'What is so interesting about me that you want to know?' Jason scoffed.
Laura calmly replied, 'we've been out in the woods for 2 days now, not once have you insisted on going home. I thought ;;;you would miss your family, your school, your life. Obviously there is something you're not telling me, probably not as interesting as being a werewolf, but worth listening to.' Laura smirked at her blunt statement, making him feel uncomfortable was becoming an amusing hobby of hers.
'A werewolf is more scientific than most assume. We don't shift on the full moon unless at will, we don't get burned by silver. A werewolf's genes are passed on by DNA, parents that are werewolves would produce werewolf babies. To create a werewolf, you must pass on the werewolf genes to another. The easiest was is the good old classic method: biting. When enough DNA is passed, a normal human can be transformed into a werewolf in a matter of minutes. Humans that receive a small amount of werewolf DNA, for example, sharing a drink, wont transform fully, but only partly; causing that human's senses to strengthen. Not as high as a full werewolf though. That's why I kind of passed when your wonky teacher scratched the blackboard.'
Laura sighed, explaining things wasn't her strong point and she was hoping that this was the last time she would have to do that. She wasn't sure how to tell Jason about the next part of the story, the reason why she needed him, the reason he was sitting with her right now.
'There's more, isn't there,' Jason replied, 'a bad side of being a werewolf?
'The DNA destroys half of your human side, making room for your inner wolf, which last for about fifteen to twenty years - the average lifespan of a regular wolf. Once your inner wolf dies, half of you dies, making it impossible to live. The only way for werewolves to live a long life, is if they stick together and regularly swap DNA. That's why werewolves need packs, that's why I need a pack.'
Laura stared into her hands, her mouth making a tight, thin line. Jason thought about what she said. Werewolf DNA? If he understood correctly, Laura could die any minute now, she was what, sixteen, seventeen? He glanced at her, she looked so small. It seemed that she was processing the truth. She was going to die.
Jason couldn't wrap his head around it. A life without Laura? He only just met her, what, 2 days ago? He already considered her as a friend, he couldn't imagine how hard it must be for her, it must be tearing her up inside, not knowing when you will die, but knowing it will be soon. Her small figure was looking so forlorn he had to do something, anything, to get their minds off this fragile subject.
'I'm an orphan, my parents left me when I was five. They couldn't handle a baby. I know it wasn't their fault, my Mum apparently had cancer, all the money my Dad got was used on her treatment. There was no money for them to handle a baby. It still hurts though, it felt like they didn't want me, but I know deep down it wasn't the case. I found out last year, that my Mum died in the hospital, and my Dad committed suicide a few days later.'
