A few days had past and so far, Kyle's grandparents hadn't suspected anything since his grandpa had no proof he was in town. However his brother, Shaun, knew where he was going and snuck into his bedroom on the night he got back saying:
"I wont tell them if you do double the workload for a week"
He had no choice to comply unless he wanted to sleep with the pigs that night.
And so, he worked his ass off that day, shoveling the muck, feeding the chickens and even pulling the plough which he only managed a meter before giving up. And after the sun had begin to set' he went up to the tallest point on a slant and sat down; gazing at Fordwich as the lights from town lit up.
It wasn't that bright but it was bright enough to make Kyle think of Zayne and his family. He couldn't bring himself to throw away the clothes but he wasn't brave enough to put them on again. He sometimes worried they'd lose that smell, that oddly intoxicating smell.
But he was always confused by it, His grandpa smelled similar in terms of cigars, take away the smell wilting life and it was pretty much the same.
"KYLE, FOOD!" His Grandmother shouted from the kitchen window and shuts it rather angrily.
"Bitch" He whispers to himself, standing up and walking back over to the hut, sitting down at the table with Shaun, They didn't eat with them and always vacated to the living room so they could watch the tv, which gave them plenty of time to not eat the slop and talk.
"Why are you doing this by the way?" Kyle asked his brother.
"Doing what?"
"Treating me like im an enemy? i know im hard on you but...you've changed so much, its like you enjoy getting beat"
"I DO NOT-" he slams his hands against the table, but flinches at the cough in the next room, Calming himself and lowering his voice.
"I do not enjoy it, but playing along actually wins you favors..."
There was a pause as Kyle nudges the sludge with his fork before looking back up again, he didn't see it at first, but Shaun has always been that little boy he remembered, he just adapted like he did.
"I'm sorry for what I said...I should be able to trust you, I sure as hell cant trust them" Kyle admitted.
Shaun looked up at Kyle with a glistening eye, he wasn't a bad person, but he struggled with talking even when he was a kid, not like they were reliable for schools so they "home schooled" them. It pretty much consisted in "I'm right you're wrong" philosophies and YouTube math videos, it was lucky they both liked reading to begin with.
After dumping the slop from the kitchen window they both run up to their rooms in the hopes they wont be disturbed, and as the clock in his room was reaching 8:00 pm he couldn't sleep at all.
He was thinking if he'd ever get to go to Fordwich again, whether his grandpa would be stupid enough to not check his trucks carriage again after the last incident.
Then for whatever reason, Kyle feels like hes being watched or at the very least someone was looking for him. Unsure what the feeling meant he looked outside his window, despite the wind blowing outside he could hear the animals freaking out in the pens. He thought about what his grandfather said about the chickens being killed.
Curiosity sparking he whips on a raggedy coat and slippers seeing as he didn't have shoes anymore and sneaks from his room, Sliding down the stairs and out the front door like a thief in the night. Unseen and unheard he inspects the outside with a torch he'd grabbed on the way out.
Who knows, maybe if he caught what was killing the chickens his grandparents would leave him alone for a few days.
After venturing from the only large light source on the farm, he wanders through the pens with a beam of light in his hands. Shining over the animals who were huddling together in fear, they were squealing and braying loudly and they all seemed to run away from Kyle when he approaches the pens.
"What the hell..." Kyle whispered to himself, feeling something gazing at him through the shadows. Turning around and pointing the torch to the darkest spot in the dark, flashing over nothing but patches of trampled grass and weeds.
Kyle was beginning to get scared, he approached the trampled grass, discovering paw prints the size of his hand. Standing back up he takes a deep breath.
"Ok...that's no fox..." he whispered again.
Rustling came from his right near the chicken coop, and he was for sure shaking in his boots (or slippers rather) as he turns the corner, what he saw next, nothing could have prepared him for.
Standing over the carcasses of the chickens was Zayne, He was covered in blood and feathers and he had a playful look in his eyes...Until he saw Kyle that is.
"Zayne..."
"Kyle..."
They both spoke at the same time, meanwhile, Kyle was trying his hardest not to look further down as he was shamelessly naked in the chicken coop. It was a bad look for sure, but in that moment Kyle hadn't even thought about the chickens or the blood, He was wondering why he was here.
"Why...are you neck deep...in chicken blood..."
Zayne looks down at himself and acts shocked, even though it was painfully obvious he knew exactly what he was doing.
"Oh...oh wow, this...this looks bad" he says, slightly smirking, slightly embarrassed. Kyle pulls a face that can only be described as disbelief.
"What did you think would happen, that they'd learn to fly?!" Kyle says, closing the coop behind him and locking themselves in the cramped coop for the fear someone could walk out on them.
"This is bad, you need to leave!"
"Wait, so you're not bothered about this?" he gestures to himself, Kyle, foolishly looks down when he does and immediately closes his eyes.
"Of course I am you dumbass! if they find you like this, Jesus, I dont even want to know how bad it'll be!" he says trying to wipe the blood off his face but ended up smearing it instead. Now his hands were covered in blood too.
"Ohhhhhhh come on" Kyle cries as he tries to shake it off, getting it all over himself and the coop.
"Look this isn't working, although i appreciate the effort-" He chuckles but gets cut off by Kyle who presses a finger to his lips.
"You should, I know I shouldn't have stolen from you but I had no choice Zayne!"
Zayne just took a few seconds of pause before regaining his thought, he seemed so concentrated on Kyle's bloodied finger.
"If I promise you I didn't care about that would you be willing to hear me out?"
"On one condition..."
"Shoot"
"You tell me how you managed to find me and why it took you so long?"
Zayne laughed under his breath at Kyle's comment, he liked the way he'd question him about everything, the worry and the concern heightened his emotions, making him harder to get a grip on.
Zayne shook his head.
"No way, cant give away all my secrets"
"Trust me" Kyle looked at Zayne in a different light than before "If this is one of your secrets I'm not sure how much more I can take"
Zayne watched as Kyle looks away him, an avoided gaze and a tendency to not look him in the eyes, its like he actively dodged his gaze no matter what. Zayne had a hard time understanding why even though it was pretty clear. They only met 3 days ago and now this?
"We should find a safer place to talk right?"
"You're damn right that's what were doing" Kyle opens the coop with Zayne on his heel. And he attempts to fetch the clothes he stole from him from upstairs.
"Where you going?" Zayne asked him.
"To get your clothes I took, I didn't know if we'd meet again so..."
"Dont worry about it, I dont need clothes" he cheekily smiles at Kyle.
"Yes you do and that's final" Kyle speeds inside before Zayne could catch his growing blush, his grandparents were asleep and were not affected by the stronger winds than usual.
Zayne was calmly waiting outside in the winds like it was a hot summers day, basking in his glory while Kyle scrambles in his room to get him the clothes he had hidden. Zayne thought it'd be best to make sure he wasn't covered in blood when Kyle came out, so he used the hose on the side of the hut.
After about 10 minutes he comes down and meets back up with Zayne, who was sat cross-legged on the hay covered ground, dripping with water.
"Dude dont sit down!...and why are you wet?"
"What? i was filthy and It was comfy"
Kyle handed him the clothes while still closing his eyes, he couldn't see but Zayne was relishing in the reaction he was getting, in fact he dragged it out for as many pieces of clothing he put on.
"How long does it take to get dressed?"
"How long does it take you to blush when you look at me?"
Kyle couldn't control the blush spreading on his cheeks right now, especially when he was standing face to face with him.
"Not very long then~"
After he had finished putting on his jeans and top he walked barefooted with Kyle back to the place he had been earlier today, looking back at Fordwich now with the person he couldn't stop thinking about.
"So, care to explain what you were doing and how you found me?"
Zayne looks up after enjoying the silence that wedged between them, and he drooped his head with what looked like shame, but Kyle knew it was something else after that paw print.
"Ok...so this isn't going to...make a lot of sense to you but..." he tramples over his word as Kyle rolls his eyes.
"You're a werewolf"
Zayne immediately snapped to Kyle, his face contorting into a shock that must've felt like goosebumps were spreading all over his body in every nook and cranny. He seemed at a loss for words as Kyle looks at him with an odd stare.
"Yeah I'm sorry to steal your thunder but you kinda made it obvious"
"How? What did I do that gave it away?"
Kyle laughs to himself, think over the times he suspected him but never said or thought anything of it. Feeling pretty silly now.
"Well when we first met and I ran, you somehow got ahead of me and got me...I didn't even see you do it but you did..."
"I still haven't apologized for that, I should probably explain the mood change but I'll wait for you to finish."
"What a gentleman" Kyle teases "Anyways, when you tackled me the first thing I saw was y-"
"Your eyes" they both said at the same time.
Kyle looks up and smiles to himself.
"They were so beautiful...I was so distracted I hardly paid attention to the rest of you"
Zayne chuckles to himself and smiles gratefully at Kyle.
"Impossible, it was like I'd opened my eyes...felt so clear you know?" Zayne explains as Kyle nods in agreement.
"Yeah..."
There was another overlapping silence over the sounds of crickets and the farm animals that had finally calmed down. Zayne and Kyle were leaning on their hands, Zayne was slowly inching his pinky towards Kyle's.
"So what else did you notice?" Zayne asked.
"The sign, but that was an after thought cause you said you had no dogs"
"Yeah not my brightest moment" he admits, inching his hand closer.
"Oh, and your sister was not hiding it at ALL"
"Yeah shes pretty proud of her wolf heritage...Some of us choose to see it as a blessing in disguise"
Kyle was listening intently to him, like he was pouring his soul right in front of the man.
"Well when you're beheading chickens with your own mouth I think its safe to assume you're not the biggest fan?"
He sighs, then turns to face him directly.
"When the wolf takes over its like transporting your entire being into another creatures body, specifically a wolf (duh)" he explains to Kyle, who had now turned to directly face him.
His eyes were blazen in the night, while Kyle's was harder to see.
"Why did you just stare at me when it happened, it's like the cogs were turnin-"
He finally reaches out and places his hand above Kyle's, He was interrupted by this as if it was the most shocking thing anyone had ever done to him.
"Kyle I need to tell you something..." he says in a sober tone, sparking Kyle's curiosity.
"What is it?"
"Listen...I-"
"THE CHICKENS ARE DEAD...KYLE'S GONE TOO!!" They both heard shouting in the distance and crane their necks to see Kyle's grandfather was storming from his hut, and it didn't take long for him to finally spot the two, sitting on the slanted hill, holding hands.