Ethan ended up falling asleep on the couch while listening to the music.

A few hours later, Ethan feels a hand touching his arm, gently shaking it.

He opens his eyes and sees Enid looking at him, confused.

"Mom?" Ethan said.

"Why are you sleeping on the couch?" Enid asked confused.

"Oh, I laid down to rest after eating the pizza. I ended up falling asleep... By the way, there's pizza for you in the fridge." Ethan said, rubbing his eyes and watching Enid walk to the refrigerator in search of the pizza.

"How was the work? What did you want to explain to me?" Ethan asked, taking a seat on the couch.

"It started with a group of people reporting burglaries in the area, we were investigating, but then, it started getting dark, and we got word that a guard was killed by an animal in Mason County." Enid said, half worried.

"An animal?" Ethan asked his mother.

"Yes, no one knows yet, but they suspect a pack of wolves. Captain Charlie dismissed me now tonight and said we are going there early tomorrow morning." Enid said, as she devoured a piece of pizza.

"Sounds kind of dangerous...". Ethan said, concerned.

"From the description of the body, it didn't sound like it was an animal... Honestly, I'm rooting for the ones responsible to be wolves." Enid replied, a little quieter than usual.

Ethan got up, straightened the couch, and started walking toward the bedroom.

"Are you going to sleep?" Enid asked, her mouth dirty with sauce from the pizza.

"Yes, I will! Get some more sleep, huh?" Ethan said, wryly.

"That's because you're not eating right. Did you know that processed food makes you more tired? She said.

Ethan walked over to the table where she was sitting and picked up the pizza box, taking it to the trash.

"You better not eat that then, it'll make you tired!". Ethan said, with a wry smile.

"No, no! Go to sleep! Leave the pizza here!". Enid said, pulling the box back, and causing Ethan to give a small laugh.

"Good night, Mom!" Ethan said, walking up the stairs.

"Good night, baby! Sleep well!". She replied, turning on the television to watch while she ate.

Ethan went upstairs to his room and tried to sleep. He just wanted the day to pass soon. Maybe he could work things out the next morning.

By sleeping under the light in the living room, his body had not recovered any energy, which caused him to fall asleep more quickly that night.

So, just like that the dawn passed, and the alarm clock screamed in Ethan's ears.

He raised his hand and tapped on the clock so that the clock would be quiet soon.

Ethan felt a little more tired than usual. He wasn't sleepy, but he also didn't feel like he could run a marathon the same moment he got up. When he looked over, he saw the damn penguin lit up in the socket.

If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Ethan rolled his eyes upward. Probably Enid had put the penguin there while Ethan slept.

He knew that his mother was still used to her son being afraid of the dark and the like. He hadn't even been in that new life for a week, so it was to be expected that it would take her a while to get used to Ethan's new quirks.

He stood up and unplugged the penguin, throwing it on top of the closet. That way, Enid would never find out where Ethan kept it, and he wouldn't have to throw it away.

Ethan took a shower and put on a dark blue sweatshirt with light beige jeans. He put on his usual sneakers, grabbed his backpack, and went downstairs to eat.

"Good morning, Ethan!" Enid said, placing a plate of scrambled eggs on the table.

"Hi mom! Good morning!" Ethan replied, smelling that delicious dish. "You're leaving early today, right?". He asked.

"Yes I will, it's a trip there, but I'll get home later today!". Enid replied, wearing a thick coat. "If you want to call any friends to stay here at home with you, that's fine!". She added.

Ethan wondered for a while who he could call. He didn't want to call any of the girls, he just wanted to be quiet for a while.

"Well, I'll be right there. Take an umbrella because it's raining. Love you!" Enid said, giving Ethan a little kiss on the head and running out the door.

"Fine!" Ethan replied, eating the eggs she had prepared.

After eating and washing the dishes. Ethan took his backpack along with an umbrella, which was propped up near the door, and headed for school.

He walked to that street he had passed with Mike last time. Ethan stood there for a few long seconds, looking at how she seemed less scary that day.

A policeman had just been killed in Mason County, which was considerably far from there, but it was better not to risk it.

Ethan decided to take a longer route and walked down the avenue, following the movement of cars and people, until he came across his school.

He saw his group gathered at the school gate to protect themselves from the rain, and in the middle was Jessica. She looked at him, exchanging glances, but soon turned her face the other way, disguising herself.

"Hi, guys!". Ethan approached.

Everyone was talking about the dance and how excited they were about it, but Jessica was quiet after Ethan arrived, and barely looked him in the face.

Ethan approached Jessica and looked at her:

"Hi Jessica!" Ethan said, with a gentle smile. She turned red at his approach, but only responded with a quick, fake smile. Which made Ethan internally roll his eyes.

- When will you let it go? - he thought, a little irritated, even though he knew he was to blame for this.

Ethan had barely interacted with his friends and the bell rang. He had arrived later than usual that day.

The students began to trickle into the school. Ethan could barely pay attention to what he was doing because he was frustrated with Jessica, until Alice appeared in his path with a giant smile on her face.

Ethan felt his body freeze as he knew Jessica was around and interacting with Alice now, could make everything worse.

"Hi, classmate!". She said excitedly to him, which made Ethan remember that they would have biology class now, and that cheered him up to the point where he couldn't remember Jessica.

Alice took his arm, and they walked together to class. Every time Ethan was with Alice, he felt a little hypnotized by her, which made him not think straight, but as he entered the room, he noticed Edward's presence.

Edward looked deep into his eyes, seeing that Alice was clinging to Ethan's arm. Edward followed Ethan with his eyes, who despaired internally for a moment, thinking that Edward would read his thoughts.

- Stop thinking, Ethan. Stop thinking! - Ethan thought, quickly, as all the most impure and derogatory thoughts popped into his mind, as if they wanted to play a trick on him.

Luckily, at the same instant, they both heard Eric's annoying voice getting louder in the room, disconcerting them both, as Bella entered the class, which made Edward totally lose focus on what he was doing.

"Taking care of the dance is a woman's thing, but I'm going to have to cover it anyway because of the newspaper, and they also need a guy to help pick the songs." Eric said, following Bella, who didn't seem to mind. "If you tell me which ones you like best...". Eric said.

Bella put her coat on the rack and looked at Eric, standing face to face with him.

"I was wondering if... you have... company... yet." Eric was saying, fidgeting with his hands, shyly, however, before he could finish speaking, Mike stepped in between the two, breaking the conversation.

"What's up, Miss Arizona? Enjoying the rain?" Mike said, as he swung a cap over Bella's head, wanting to represent the rain.

Bella just laughed and walked into the room, ignoring what Eric was saying.

"It's Mike... You're really cute, aren't you, Mike?". Eric said gloomily, watching Bella slowly walk away.

"Oh, I know, I'm a cutie anyway." Mike said, putting his coat on the rack.

"A pretty dull grace." Eric said, irritated, seeing that Bella wasn't listening anymore. "And you're boring as hell." Eric added.

"What?" Mike asked, seeing that Eric was becoming exalted.

"And ugly!" Eric said, irritated.

"Nah, look at you!". Mike replied, not taking Eric seriously.