Jen thought back. So far, her mom was the only person who had definitely opted to change back. Ashley might have as well, but she had no way to know. She tallied up the victims. Including her family, there had been at least nine. As far as she knew, the only two left were Beth and Vanessa.
Since Vanessa was out sick, she would have to wait to fix her legs. Beth, on the other hand, should have been in one of the study halls. Jen switched out a few books and slung her bag over her shoulder, then left to the closest designated study room. She peered inside, hoping to find Beth. She didn’t know her very well. In fact, she had only just learned her name a few days earlier. She also learned about her change. Two assholes. Jen thought it was a little gross. Surely Beth would choose to go back to normal, given the choice.
She finished surveying the faces in the room. Beth wasn’t there. Jen was still determined to touch her and walked to the other end of the building. She found another study hall and peered inside. This time, she spotted Beth near the back. She slipped in and found a seat nearby. She wanted to use the same discreet approach she had attempted on Ashley. She doodled in her notebook and watched the clock. When the bell rang, she got up went towards her. Once close, Jen carefully bumped her hand into Beth’s arm.
To avoid trouble she pretended it was an accident and continued out the door.
In the corner of her eye she watched as Beth stopped to stare off into the distance. It had worked. Whether or not she had changed back would remain a mystery, but Jen was glad to have given her the choice. She felt good about what she had accomplished. Only Vanessa remained and it wouldn’t be difficult to find her. She could visit her house later that evening, or just wait until she was back at school. Jen leaned towards the latter. She really didn’t want to catch whatever bug she had.
She imagined how annoying it would be to get a cold and wondered if her new shape-shifting ability could be used to boost her immune system. She pondered the idea while walking towards her locker. Suzy was waiting nearby. Jen deposited some books and they both went to get something to eat...