Chapter 24 - The Picture

Soooo I got bored of revision and decided that I'd upload again! Sorry if it's short. I'll try and put in as much as I can. Mind you, my chapters are usually quite big anyway so I'm sure you guys wont mind too much :)

Wish me luck for my Tort and Public Law exams!

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Matt wasn't sure what to feel when he realised that Kristen had kept her distance from him for the day. She couldn't hang out with Laura for obvious reasons, and she wasn't close to anyone else, but somehow she managed to stop herself from sitting with him at lunch.

He hardly saw her at all and, when he did see her, she was talking to people from class in a light conversation. He couldn't help but listen in when he had a chance, partly paranoid at the fact that she might give his secret away, partly curious as she decided to almost ignore him completely.

He had to hand it to her, she knew how to keep a guy interested.

Well she knew how to keep him interested anyway. He wasn't sure about anyone else, though he did see several of the guys in his classes looking over at her and whispering at each other. He wasn't surprised. Kristen wasn't exactly bad looking. She could get whoever she wanted if she really tried, besides him, of course.

The feelings he got when they looked at her, though, he wasn't sure whether he enjoyed them. It felt like jealousy, though he wouldn't dare admit it. He just wanted the day to be over.

Did he have to wait for her after class so that they could walk together?

Why was he suddenly wanting her company, now that she wasn't trying to talk to him? Wasn't that what he had wanted all along? Didn't he want her to have friends?

By the last class, Matt was grinding his pen against the table in front of him. He didn't know why, but he couldn't concentrate. He didn't need to concentrate but it wasn't an excuse not to...if that made sense.

In the last half hour of the period, Matt pulled out his notebook and flipped through the pages. He was already drawing before he realised what he was doing, staring towards the front of the class where Kristen was sat chatting to a girl with long blonde hair, curling at the bottom near the crook of her elbow.

He kept glancing up as his pencil skimmed across the paper. It wasn't until the lead snapped that he stopped and looked down.

His eyes widened in shock.

This picture wasn't like anything he'd ever drawn. It wasn't a symbol. It was simply just a picture.

A portrait.

Kristen stared back at him through the paper, her dark eyes drawing him in like a magnet. She was looking slightly across her shoulder, a table sketched in front of her, her hair draped down her back and across her neck, her lips slightly parted and dark. The only problem with the picture was that there was a dint in the paper where the pencil had snapped down one strand of hair. However, it wasn't noticable unless Matt pointed it out.

His eyes still wide, he pulled the paper, for the fist time ever, out of his pad and gripped it in his hand, staring at the back of Kristen's head with annoyance. It frustrated him how much of an effect she'd had on him already. Suddenly he was obsessed.

Matt folded the paper and slotted it into his pocket, out of sight, reminding himself to hide it once he got home. He didn't want Kristen seeing a picture of her in his pad. It would just make her get the wrong idea.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been sat there until he realised that the bell had gone. Blinking, he pushed himself off the seat with a groan and stared at the clock. The students had long since gone, as had the teacher, so he was the only one left in the room. Noticing that Kristen was no where to be seen, Matt's chest tightened as he packed his stuff away and made his way to the door.

He really must have been there a while because the school was practically empty. Sighing further, Matt made his way out of the entrance doors and moved towards the road.

Until he was ploughed into by side on.

His whole body froze as something pushed into him, making him almost lose his footing.

Almost.

Eyes flashing red, he regained his stance and turned towards his attacker, mouth opening with a rumbling growl and lengthening teeth, shaking from head to toe.

"Hey! Um...Matt?" Kristen stared with wide eyes as she looked Matt up and down, realising her mistake. "Matt, are you okay? It's me."

Matt huffed and tried to drag himself out of it but he could feel it. He was changing. Not now. Not at college. Not in the middle of the street.

His back arched and he groaned, panting.

Stop it! Stop it, damn you! Matt argued with himself as his spine cracked.

"Matt? Matt it's me!" Kristen stepped closer but Matt jumped backwards, colliding with the entrance door with a bang.

"Kristen. Stop." Matt snarled through his lengthening teeth as he cried out when his fingers snapped.

"Matt! Oh god! What have I done?! Come on. We need to get out of here." She moved forward before Matt had a chance to move and she gripped his forearm with an iron hold, surprising him as she dragged him forwards. "I should have realised what that would have done to you. We need to hide you. Matt, control it. You can do it. Push!"

She pulled him along but he was only vaguely aware of it. The fight going on inside of him was agony. He couldn't turn right now. He was risking everything. He wouldn't be able to turn back if he turned now until the morning. He couldn't rip out of his skin in public.

Stop it, Matt, damn you! You can do this! Stop being so weak! Matt snarled as his wrists clicked in and out of place. He stumbled as his ankles did the same. He was losing. He was losing this fight.

The stupid curse was winning again.

"Matt, come on! Fight! You can do this!" Kristen practially dragged him into a nearby alley and pushed him to lean against the brick wall away from the mouth of it. Her hands ran through her hair in a distressed manner.

Matt's eyes flashed red and he crumbled to the floor, leaning breathlessly into the brick. "Kristen leave." He panted.

"What? No! I'm here! I'm not leaving you!" She crouched down and pushed Matt's growing hair out of his face, startling him.

"I'll kill you." He snarled through his teeth, ending in a hiss as his legs began to snap. He was almost half way through his transformation. He couldn't stop it. It was going to take hold.

Kristen grabbed his hand and dragged it closer to her as his fingers twisted involuntarily. Her eyes were wide and frightened but still she didn't move. "Fight."

I'm trying! Matt screamed in his head as a cry of pain echoed through his throat. Why didn't she just leave?!

Panic took over as he started trying to scramble away from her. He was in too much agony to move very far. She still stayed next to him, despite his obvious attempt to move.

"Matt." She whispered as Matt threw himself onto the pavement, breathing quickly, glad that they weren't in the main view of the public. "Matt, you can stop. Believe in yourself. Look at me."

Matt looked up, his mouth open in the effort, staring desperately into Kristen's eyes, sweat dancing across his forehead. Kristen leaned forwards and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into the sitting position. He faught against her but she held tight and breathed against his transforming neck.

"Concentrate, Matt. I'm in your hands. If you cant save yourself then save me."

Matt let out a long breath and heaved against her, scrunching his eyes up as his hands twisted against her back. "Krist..."

"Shh. Concentrate. Concentrate on me." She gripped him further, digging her fingers into his back and he felt it. He felt her dig into his skin. She was shaking, causing his tremble to match hers. He felt her breath against his neck, her cool arms around his core, her fingers almost ripping into his top. He felt as she relaxed against the crook of his neck and ran her lips along his collar bone.

He didn't know whether he was trembling now because of her touch or because he was in the middle of his transformation. Slowly, his fingers adjusted back into position and his back cracked itself into place. The hairs on his neck began to desolve and his teeth shortened, pulling back into his mouth.

He sighed and winced as her fingers ran up his neck and into his hairline. An automatic growl escaped his lips. Unable to think about anything else, he gripped hold of Kristen and relaxed his muscles as they stopped twisting. Shaking and wet, he pulled Kristen onto his lap and nuzzled into the crook of her neck, almost purring.

She squeaked slightly but didn't say anything about it as she pulled her fingers across his scalp and let out a deep breath, as if she'd been holding it the whole time.

"Thank you." He croaked, not caring about the closeness they shared. He was just so glad that he hadn't fully changed. He'd faught it.

He'd won.

The swell of success filled his chest as he took in Kristen's wonderful raspberry smelling hair and nipped at her shoulder almost playfully. He could feel her smile against his skin as she cradled his head.

"I knew you could do it." She whispered huskily and pulled back, looking up at his exhausted expression, smoothing back his frown with her thumb.

Matt swallowed, his heart thumping. He'd never done that before. He'd never been so close to Kristen either. Her company made his senses pick up immediately. He wasn't sure whether it was a good thing that she was in his lap or not but, right now, he really didn't care. He was just relieved that he hadn't changed. He was relieved that he had been able to control himself...

With Kristen's help.

Staring at her, she studied his face and a smile crept onto her face as she leaned her nose against his. With still shaking fingers, Matt removed his hands from around her and brushed a strand of her hair off her face before he sighed and nudged Kristen off of him, running his fingers through his hair carefully, blushing.

He didn't even want to hide it.

"Come on, before it happens again." Matt murmured and picked himself up, pulling on his bag which had been knocked to the side in the struggle. He brushed himself down and shook himself like a dog before rolling his shoulders.

It was only then that he noticed that Kristen had picked up a piece of paper from the floor and had opened it, scanning the contents. Matt's eyes widened as Kristen looked up and beamed, more than he'd ever seen her beam before.

"Is this me?" She whispered and ran her fingers down the picture before she looked back up into Matt's avoiding eyes.

"So what if it is?" Matt mumbled as he fiddled with his bag, wanting to suddenly be anywhere but there.

"It's so amazing." She breathed and folded it back up carefully. "Can I keep it?"

"Sure."

Before he knew what was happening, black hair clouded his vision as Kristen practically jumped on him, throwing her arms around his neck. His breathing hitched in his throat and he swallowed as he pressed his fingers against her spine. "It's beautiful. Thank you." She whispered and Matt felt a soft pressure at the bottom of his neck.

His heart stammered.

"Yeah, well." He coughed and dragged Kristen off of him, pulling her fingers from his skull. "We need to go."

Kristen nodded, her eyes sparkling as she picked up her bag and pulled it over her shoulder. Matt quickly moved out of the alley way and looked around. Luckily the school road was empty so hopefully no one had seen the little episode that they'd had together.

He turned towards the road which lead to his house and went to turn back to the alley until he felt Kristen's palm touch his. He quickly pulled his hand out of hers, ignoring the icy sparks up his forearm. "Let's go." He said stiffly, not looking at her as he began walking quickly down the road.

His feelings were going to have to wait until they got back. There was no way that he was going to let himself become so vulnerable in public again. He especially wasn't going to start holding hands with Kristen in public.

Being with him definitely had it's consequences.

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I hope you like it!

Also, it mentions that he'd never pulled a picture out of his pad before... He has, but he's always scrunched it up. This time, he wanted to keep it! Wonder why ;)