Chapter 62

• As I stood in the kitchen, savoring a steaming cup of chamomile tea, the robust aroma danced around me, teasing my senses and making my nose twitch ever so slightly. The sweet and soothing taste washed over my tongue, providing a much-needed moment of comfort amidst the worries in my mind. I was clad in soft red lounge pants and a simple black t-shirt, my bare feet cooling against the tiled floor; the night was drawing near its end. The moonlight bathed the room in a gentle glow, its luminous beams streaming through the window and enveloping me in a beautiful essence. In the distance, the solemn hoot of an owl echoed, its watchful, beady eyes fixated on the backyard tree.
• It was quite unconventional for me to be awake later than Steve and Xavier; however, the past few nights had robbed me of restful sleep. My gaze drifted to the calendar affixed to the refrigerator, and my heart sank when I noted the small circle marking the 18th, signaling the ominous approach of the full moon. Vivid memories of last month rushed back, laden with pain and fear: the agony of my first transformation. I distinctly recalled feeling so utterly overwhelmed that I had desperately wished for it all to end. The primal hunger and instinct surged within me, spiraling so wildly out of control that I was left paralyzed by fear, almost helpless to lift a finger as I lay drenched in my sweat. The memory of my bones shifting, muscles and tendons tearing apart, only to reknit themselves in an entirely new configuration beneath my skin, haunted me.
• A sudden wave of perspiration broke across my forehead, and I felt my hand tremble as I became lost in my reflection on those harrowing memories. In that moment of distraction, I was oblivious to the sound of the toilet flushing or the soft footsteps approaching the kitchen.