By Moonlight (P.P + M.J)

33. Back to School

*Werewolf pov*

Aaron drove to Midtown in his car with Jack, and pulled up in front of the school. Aaron had given him a loose long-sleeved shirt to wear and a pair of ill-fitting Nikes, but Jack wasn't one to complain.

Midtown was on high alert. There were cop cars everywhere as well as a number of reporters. Jack forgot that this was where Miles went to school, and he felt nervous just being near the place he had just fought in. But when Aaron asked him to run in and grab Miles because the kid had left his phone at home, his skin crawled. What if Spiderman was still inside, and what if he was out of his costume and was just a civilian? He wouldn't possibly recognize Jack, would he? Shaking his head, and told himself to be cool, thinking there was no way the kid could know him. Jack focused on Miles, and how he looked forward to seeing him, but that didn't exactly make his anxiety about reentering the school vanish. But either way, Jack took a deep breath and got out of the car.

He managed to slip by the line of cop cars and the surrounding officers, who were distracted with keeping back a flood of pedestrians. Jack figured them to be parents of the kids inside the school. But Jack found an unguarded section of the school and made his way onto the grounds. Luckily, the students were camped out in the football field, being roll-called by teachers to make sure everyone was present.

It was easy to blend in with the kids, since he was about their age. But the fact that he had the beginnings of a beard should have been enough to tip anyone off that he didn't belong. Being a werewolf made his facial grow at an accelerated rate, which was both a blessing and a curse. But thankfully, no one caught on.

As he searched for Miles, he picked up some of the chatter the kids were saying. They were talking, almost excitedly, about some "Wolfman" that they had seen. Was that Jack? Was that what they referred to him as?

"Still think it's just a fursuit?" One kid said teasingly to another.

"Shut up, dude," the other kid retorted.

Jack smirked and continued to look for his friend. But he couldn't find him in the sea of kids, and he hesitated to call out his name. The last thing he wanted to do was literally call attention to himself.

Suddenly, someone grabbed hold of his arm. Before he could turn to look at who it was, he was being roughly dragged away. He didn't fight them because he didn't want to cause a scene, and eventually they broke from the crowd. He was aggressively whirled around and he found himself looking into a pair of familiar brown eyes.

"Why the hell are you here?" Michelle demanded, glaring at him. Jack took a second to collect himself, but before he could say anything, she swept on, "you need to tell me who the hell you are, and don't give me that "I can't tell you" bullshit. Straight answers only."

"It's nice to see you too," Jack said, straightening his ruffled shirt sleeve, "I'm not here to cause trouble-."

"You should've thought of that before you paraded through the school," she retorted heatedly, rolling her eyes.

"What are you talking about?" Jack asked, trying to sound confused but knowing full-well that she had figured him out.

"Don't play coy with me, Russell," she warned him, tapping his chest with her finger. Michelle then looked up at his hair, and she raised an eyebrow, "since when do you have red hair?"

Jack rolled his eyes. Why was that the first thing people noticed? "Look, I'm just here to get a friend-."

"Screw that and just tell me, Jack! Or should I say... Werewolf."

"How do you- nevermind, so you know who I am, and that's great and all, but what do you want from that? What do you want from me?" Jack questioned, his mind reeling and his skin crawling at her confrontation. While he was impressed by her powers of deduction, Jack wanted nothing more than to get away from the uncomfortable confrontation.

"I want to know what happened in there. Is Spiderman okay? I saw him swing out but I didn't know..." Michelle questioned, taking a step closer to him.

"Yes, he's fine. It's just... too crazy to explain, okay?" He sighed, shaking his head, "why do you even care?"

"Because he's been thinking that you've been dead this whole time," she pointed out, putting her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, he told me," he grunted, looking away. But then he gave her a peculiar look, quirking his mouth, "but how would you know that? And how do you know my nickname?"

Then it was her turn to look away, and she nervously pushed her bangs out of her eyes as she replied, "call me a friend of his."

He rolled his eyes, but softened his tone when he said, "look, nobody can know, especially not... Spiderman. He'll come looking for me and he just... he shouldn't."

"What's so bad about that?"

"If it hasn't occurred to you, I'm not exactly a good guy."

"Says the one that just helped him."

"Yeah, but I've also tried to kill him. I even tossed him off a building!" Jack retorted, throwing his hand to the side, "has he told you that?"

They were silent for a moment, neither saying anything. It was awkward, and both were uncomfortable. Jack stuffed his hands in his pockets and gave her a knowing look.

"Could you just... not say anything to him, at least not yet?" He pleaded with her, "just give me some time?"

"To what? Run away?" She asked back, crossing her arms.

"No, I just don't want him... chasing me. I want to meet him on my own terms, but I just need time to-."

"Cool it, Teen Wolf, I'll give you until the end of the day," she said, punching him lightly in the shoulder, "then all bets are off, got it?"

Jack rolled his eyes, giving her a cheeky smile. Michelle took a step back, and refused to meet his eye. He leaned forward, bending slightly to make her look at him. She, who wasn't used to be shorter than someone, reluctantly looked up at him. He was maybe two inches taller than her, and as they stood, he noticed her string necklace. Upon closer inspection, he realized that she was wearing a fang, his fang, looking bright and polished.

"Where did you get that, Michelle?" He then asked her, gesturing to the necklace with a sly smile. She laughed, looking embarrassed, and held it in her fingers, turning it over.

"Uh, I made it," she replied, and he smirked, knowing that couldn't be wholly true. Sure, the string had been added, but Jack knew what his own tooth looked like. But he couldn't fathom how Michelle had ended up with it. Last he saw of it, he had dropped the thing back in the sewers.

"It's just... very peculiar," he said, slightly enjoying watching so stoic a person blush, "I've got one just like it, you see."

"Well how about that," Michelle replied flatly, turning and walking back at the crowd of students. Parents were starting to filter in and grab their kids, while some were pulled away by cops to be interviewed.

He quickly caught up to her, and they walked side by side back into the crowd. He looked around, and finally, he spotted Miles laughing in the middle of a group of kids. He took hold of Michelle's arm, stopping her, and she gave him an annoyed look.

"Let Spiderman know that I'll find him," Jack stated firmly, not letting go of her arm, "Since your his... friend."

"Try not to let your jealousy show," she retorted, pulling her arm away. Jack stared at her for moment, making sure that what she said was true and that she wouldn't tell. She met his gaze without flinching.

"I really did throw him off a building, you know," Jack said, cracking a smile and staring her right in the eye.

"And I really don't care," Michelle responded, pulling her arm away before becoming enveloped in the crowd.

I haven't done a double update in a while, but owe it to you guys for getting me to 2.6k reads! You readers make me happy with each and every vote and comment. I smile whenever I see either! But here you go, number 32! Hope you enjoyed!

~Fargone5