Matt's Story [COMPLETED]

Chapter 17 - Shopping with Matt

Saturday morning was the same as all of the others. He shook himself from the pain that flooded away from him once he’d changed back into his usual form and then straightened up and got changed into his clothes for the day. He didn’t pay much attention to what he was putting on. He only realised what he'd chosen when he looked into the mirror and saw himself dressed in dark jeans and a tight black top. He blinked and turned to look at himself a bit more. His muscles were so clear in the top it was unbelievable, even to his own eyes.

He looked big and, above all, strong.

          After another quick look to check that he was okay, he brushed his teeth then moved straight out of the door and into the sunlight. It beamed into his eyes and he squinted with the pain, as his eyes were still so sensitive to the heat, even after a year of changing. He had to put on his sunglasses, the pair he normally ended up wearing when he was outside, and the weather was good.

The Matt a year ago would have described himself as a character from Men in Black.

          He didn’t have much to do today. Most of it was just collecting shopping - a pain but a necessity - and maybe buying some new clothes to replace the ripped ones from moments when he’d been unable to control himself. Though he hunted at night, or used to until he realised he was being observed, it was important to have extra food in the freezer and fridge, just in case of emergencies and he was unable to make a hunt.

That and if he ever got hurt, eating always made him heal quicker. He’d noticed that when he’d eaten a large chicken and his scratch on his chest had disappeared without any trace that it had even existed.

          The shops weren’t that far away consdering what he wanted but he liked the walk nevertheless. He never had a normal moment now that he was a werewolf thing and sometimes it was good to just walk and relax and not think about a thing…

          Of course that was never going to happen for him. He had too much to think about to be able to relax, even when the sun was baking his already steaming skin. The murders. His family. Kristen. Laura. Gareth. His disease of being a wolf...

There was too much to not think about. Sometimes he wished that, for at least one day, he could be normal and it could all go back to the way it used to be.

Scratch that. He always wished that. He wished that he could return to the Matt he actually liked.

          He had to be such a freak. It wasn’t fair. Matt tipped his head back and ran his fingers through his black shiny hair, feeling the sun burn his scalp and it heeling up instantly. The good thing about it was he never burnt, no matter how much sun he got, even without suncream. He just stayed brown and warm as if he’d just come back from holiday abroad. It was always good to have. He always looked healthy, though of course he was anyway, just his diet was different.

          People were walking past him, giving him looks as if they could see him. Of course they couldn’t. He was shading his eyes and so they didn’t know if he was looking at them or not. The lenses were so dark it was impossible to tell. Maybe it was because he was actually showing off his body today. He didn’t know why.

It was probably just one of those days. It did feel different.

          He turned about the corner and then walked further down the road, still enjoying the heat, even if it was uncomfortable. He didn’t mind the sun too much; so long as it didn’t hurt him he was fine. After all, living in a place where it was mostly cold did get slightly boring no matter how nice the cool wind felt. He enjoyed the holiday weather ten times more than the winter weather.