Inner animal. by Emily Zimmerman. (books to read for 12 year olds .TXT) 📖

/> I took in a deep breath and sat in silence. Sweat beaded on my forehead as I could almost feel the hands on an invisible clock turn, getting closer to twelve. It was the longest two minutes of my entire life, I couldn’t tell how long it had been, but it seemed like hours. The fear of what was about to happen sunk in, and I worked to keep my breathing even. I glanced at Hank, who was studying me with solemn eyes.
There was no warning, just an excruciating stabbing pain like a knife in my chest. I gasped and clutched my chest, the pain got worse and worse, and I let out a cry of pain. I wrenched myself up to my feet.
“Hank…what the hell is this?” I choked.
“You’re shifting” he explained, standing with me.
I let out a choked breath as I was forced onto my knees. Searing pain everywhere! A blood curdling scream ripped from my mouth as the pain got more intense.
Hair grew from my hands, and my nails got longer. I meant to scream, but all that came out was a feral roar. I opened my eyes, and tried to move, but I was not in control of my body, the pain was replaced with an overpowering urge to kill. I looked up at Hank, who had changed into a large bear. I roared at him and he bared his teeth at me.
‘No, stop, stop, stop!’ I screamed in my head as I lunged at him.
I ran into him, making his head hit the door and he was knocked out.
‘what have I done?’ I screamed again.
I was lunging at the door, I slamming my entire body into it. I could feel it opening. I knew this was wrong, but I couldn’t stop it, it wasn’t just the overpowering urge to kill, it was the overpowering urge to protect myself as well. I slammed the door open, and all I saw was a lion, and a lioness. I leaped over them and burst into a sprint, running at inhuman speeds. I clawed my way up the stairs, all the while I was trying to gain control of my body. I felt a claw scrape my side and roared in pain, but didn’t stop. My body only stopped when a panther stood in my way, the mind, thinking differently than my own, said that she knew this panther, yet she had never met him before. I struggled to find some way to gain control. The panther roared, and my body lunged.
‘No!’ I screamed.
Before I hit the panther, I finally got control, and I was able to land just in front of him. I looked up into the vivid blue eyes of the panther, and a new feeling washed through me, something that had never felt so powerful before. Love. “Nina, listen to me, don’t do this” the words, so unmistakably Bane’s, came from the panthers mouth.
By this time, I had lost control, and my body wasn’t mine anymore, I bared my teeth, and roared in his face “listen to me Nina, take control! You did it before, do it now!” Bane ordered, watching as I raised a paw, claws extended, to slash him. He made no move to protect himself.
I struggled, mentally closing my eyes, trying to take control; I could feel myself take control of my legs, one at a time, the raised paw lowered and I opened my eyes.
Then, suddenly, I was human, standing on two feet. I felt so weak that I stumbled; strong arms caught me before I could fall and I looked up to find Bane’s human face, and human eyes staring down at me.
I blacked out; the last thing I remembered was a stinging pain in my side.
I opened my eyes to a dark room, but I could see perfectly, as if it were daylight, I looked around, it seems I was in a hospital, I groaned. I hated hospitals.
I movement in the corner caught my eyes and ears; I looked over, my body suddenly tensing in fear. But I relaxed as soon as I realized it was just Bane…Bane…
The memories of last night…or was it two days ago? Three? Who knows, but they came flooding back to me, Bane, a large panther standing in front of me, I was ready to slash him, all these conflicting emotions were flowing through me, where’s Hank? I remembered knocking him out.
Guilt flowed through me at that memory; all the while I was thinking this, Bane was walking towards me.
“Hey, how do you feel?” he asked softly.
“Oh you know, like I just got a heavenly massage with a sledge hammer” I said sarcastically.
“well, you’re not the only one, my dad feels like he got one of those, except with five metal bats in the head” he chuckled.
There’s the guilt again “how is he? How bad did he hit his head?” I asked immediately, I was anxious.
“Relax, he’s fine, us shifters are tough” he assured.
I took a deep breath and then forced myself to relax.
“there now, you need your rest, I had to make Jenna and Drake go and get some rest in their own bed, and if she had known that you woke up right after she left, she would have killed me” he said, smiling teasingly now.
I smiled slightly “I’m not really tired anymore” I murmured.
He sighed and sat down beside me on a chair “how is your side?” he asked.
I cocked my head to the side in confusion “my side?” I asked.
He chuckled and lifted my shirt lightly; I looked down to find three long strips of gauze taped to my side. I raised an eyebrow and looked up at Bane “Drake feels really bad for doing it, but he couldn’t stop you” Bane explained.
That’s when I remembered feeling the claws hitting my side that night. “Oh, I don’t feel it anymore…how long have I been asleep?” I asked.
“Two days actually” he said, his vivid blue eyes flashing down to my hand and back, did I imagine the longing look in his eyes?
I nodded, looking away “so my parents have been here for two days?” I asked.
“Yeah, they’re crazy about you; I swear Drake wanted to cut his own hands off when he found out that he had left those scars on your side” he said, his eyes solemn now.
My forehead wrinkled and I wrung my hands together, all this was exhausting, and I found that I was tired after all. I sighed “tell him that I feel fine, dad doesn’t need to worry, anyway, what are you doing here?” I asked, laying on my side and cuddling into my pillow. I watched as his eyes softened, and he looked away.
I closed my eyes, and heard him murmur something, but I couldn’t make out what it was before I was asleep.
Chapter five:

I awoke to someone carrying me; it took me a little while to be able to open my eyes, and another few minutes to realize who was carrying me.
“Thank you for this, Bane, you know I can’t carry her, and Drake is so busy…” mom’s soft voice chimed.
“Nah, it’s no problem” Bane replied in a soft voice.
I closed my eyes again, not wanting to wake up yet, my side still hurt, despite what I told Bane
I hurt mom suck in a breath, but hesitate “you really like her don’t you?” she asked quietly after a moment.
Bane’s strong, but somehow soft, arms tightened around me as he cradled me to his chest “is it that obvious?” he asked, quieter than before.
“No, but that’s the way Drake looks at me…” she trailed off.
Bane heaved a sigh, I could feel it as his chest expanded, as well as hear it. “I don’t know what it is about her, other than the obvious, but I’m more…she interests me like…” he sighed, unable to finish.
A thrill went through me at his words.
“I know, it’s hard to understand at first, Drake and I had a few problems at first, I was cautious, because I didn’t know him. Nina, from what I have learned of her, is allot like Drake, but she has my…shy traits, I guess you could say, and I’m here to tell you, you hurt her, and I will personally use my full on power on you” her threat was a growl.
Bane didn’t tense, or even shudder from what I could feel, he was completely relaxed as he shifted me to his other arm and I heard a door knob turning “I would never, ever intentionally hurt her” Bane’s voice had a seal of promise in it.
I was so preoccupied with the conversation, that I didn’t even notice when he gently set me down on my bed and pulled the covers over me.
I heard the door shut quietly, and Bane and mom’s voices getting farther away. I opened my eyes and stared at the ceiling.
“He likes me?” I whispered.
I smiled widely to myself, the way his voice wrapped around the words he said about me in promise, I knew what he said was true. But how could that be? How could he like me already? We met four days ago.
And what was the obvious about me? What did he mean by ‘besides the obvious’?
My eyebrows lowered in frustration, why didn’t he just say it?
A random stinging pain in my side reminded me that I was not all the way healed. I groaned and clutched my side “stupid scratch” I complained.
I closed my eyes and started chanting “go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep” out loud in a groan.
I couldn’t though, so I sat up and ran my hand through my hair.
“Ugh!” I exclaimed.
I lifted my shirt, because the pain was intensifying, I could clearly see the redness under the gauze; I took the gauze off one of the scars and gasped. It was red and swollen, and it looked as if it were infected.
“What?” I asked, my voice going an octave higher with stress.
I gently touched the scar,
It hurt.
I sucked in a breath, tears welling in my eyes. What was going on? I started to get scared, my breathing getting heavier, almost hyperventilating.
I didn’t know what to do; the pain was scorching now, reminding me of when I shifted.
It was like my side was on fire, and I couldn’t figure out why!
A blood curdling scream ripped through my consciousness, and it took me a minute to realize it was mine. I couldn’t touch my side, I couldn’t even move, I just sat, screaming, with my hands hovering over the scars.
The door burst open, bane running in with mom and dad close behind him.
“Nina! What is going on?”