THE CURSE OF THE SHE-WOLF - PART TWO

A few days later after the wolf attack, my wounds were completely healed. I found out the wolf had escaped from the local zoo and the zoo keepers had captured it again and took it back into the wolf enclosure.

I shyly put on my red swimsuit and followed the other girls out to the school's indoor pool. I had my head lowered and my long black hair inside a blue swimming cap.

The black swim coach walked up to us with a whistle around his neck. "OK, everyone, in the pool and do twenty lapses. GO!" he ordered. He turned to me. "That includes you, Nicholls."

"Yes, sir," I replied softly.

"NOW!" his voice roared.

I shuddered and slowly walked down the metal steps into the pool.

"Move it, Nicholls!"

I could swim a bit, but I wasn't brilliant.

"Chicken!" Mina shouted at me making me startle and fall back into the pool.

I felt the chlorine water go up my nose as I went under. When I rose back up to the surface, I saw Mina and Tracey sniggering with their friends from across the pool, but their laughter was much louder than usual. My heart was pounding.

"Mina, enough!" said the coach. "Everyone get moving. Twenty lapses up and down the pool, no stopping. Another stunt like that, Cho, and you're off the team."

"But, sir!" Mina protested.

"No buts, Mina. This is your final warning."

She glared evilly at me as she and her friends breast stroked past me. "bitch!" she said.

Sheer animal anger started brewing inside me that I had never ever had before in my entire life. I wanted to kill her, which was so unlike me. I glanced up at the seats where people came to watch students swim and my heart leapt when I saw Devon Haynes sitting at the back watching me.

Devon waved with his right hand and a smile on his handsome face.

I smiled back with my cheeks blushing.

"Nicholls, move!" the coach ordered. He walked over and looked up to see who I was looking at. "Who are you?"

"Devon Haynes, sir," Devon replied.

"Are you in my class, Mr Haynes?" he asked rudely.

"No, sir."

"Well, then, I suggest you get on out of here. I am teaching."

"Actually, sir, I do have a right to be here," Devon said evenly.

"Excuse me?" Coach Danvers asked.

"My father is a magistrates lawyer and he says that any student in a school can sit and observe while a class is in session."

I was impressed and so were the other girls. I turned to the coach.

Coach Danvers had his hands on his hips. "Fair enough, Mr Haynes," he replied. "Just keep quiet during my class."

"Yes, sir," Devon replied.

He walked away. "Nicholls, start swimming!"

I turned back to look up at Devon and he smiled and I smiled back.

"Nicholls!" the coach ordered.

I turned and started to breast stroke up and down the pool, while Mina and Tracey and her friends were sniggering.

Ten minutes later, Coach Danvers wanted us to dive off from the diving board. But I was really afraid.

"Chicken!" Mina shouted out nastily, and her friends laughed. But Tracey stayed quiet.

"Miss Nicholls, get up there and dive," the coach instructed firmly.

I looked at the other girls sitting on the side wall of the pool and then gathered up the strength to walk up the steps to the diving board and slowly walked towards it. I peered over the edge and the height was high up.

"Come on, Lilly, don't be such a coward!" Mina shouted up.

The other girls laughed.

My heart was pounding as I slowly walked onto the diving board, my body was shaking. I couldn't do it. I glanced up and saw Devon watching me with concern. Suddenly, I could hear what he was saying to himself to me.

"You can do this, Lilly, I believe in you."

"Whoose!" Mina shouted out.

The girls laughed.

"That's enough, Cho!" Coach Danvers ordered.

The girls stayed quiet and watched me.

I had a sudden burst of confidence and walked to the very edge of the diving board and looked up at Devon who smiled warmly. I raised my arms up into the air and then brought them out in front of me as I jumped from the diving board and made a perfect swan dive into the pool. When I rose back up to the surface, Coach Danvers and the girls were applauding, except for Mina. I turned towards Devon and he was clapping with a smile. I smiled back.



After class, I took a hot shower. It felt so nice to have the hot water against my bare skin. When I was done, I turned off the water and wrapped a towel around me and went to my locker and gasped with panic when my clothes weren't there. Where are my clothes? I thought, panicking. I turned my head to the left and saw Mina and her friends talking by their lockers. I had this sudden anger that made me march over to them.

"Where are my clothes?!" I demanded Mina angrily.

"The freak actually speaks," Mina replied in mock shock.

"Where are my clothes?"

"Why would I know where your clothes are?" she asked innocently.

"Because you took them!"

Tracey walked over. "What's going on?" she asked. "Mina?"

"This freak thinks I took her clothes," Mina told her.

"You did!" I accused. My anger building up.

"Not my fault you didn't keep your locker shut."

"Mina, where are Lilly's clothes?" Tracey asked her firmly.

"God, Trac, since when did you become Mother Teresa?" Mina asked, unimpressed. "Fine, I took them."

"Where did you put them?" her voice got angrier.

"The freak can find her clothes in the boys' locker room," she replied sweetly. Mina walked away with some of her friends.

Pure anger built and built up inside me that made me clench up my hands into fists.

Tracey turned to me with pity. "I'm sorry, Lilly, I'll go and get them for you. Stay here," she said to me and then hurried away.

I walked over to the mirrors above the sinks and stared at myself. I gasped in horror as my eyes changed colour from blue to a golden colour right before me. What was happening?

Tracey came back with my clothes a few minutes later. "I got them. I'll put them on the chair for you," she told me. She noticed I was bent over the sink with my head low. "Are you OK?"

"Thank you, just go," I told her.

"OK, see you," she replied, and turned and walked away.

Once I heard the door close, I looked back up at the mirror and wiped it down with my right hand, and saw my eyes were still glowing. To my horror, claws were growing out from the knuckles of my hands. I cried out in sheer agony as my legs broke down making me fall to the floor. I watched in horror as my skin began peeling off. What was happening to me?

The door to the girls' locker room opened and Devon rushed in and he gasped with shock.