Scott woke up before the alarm, but this time he didn't move immediately.
He lay still for a few seconds, letting the quiet settle around him, measuring the difference instead of reacting to it. His breathing was steady, deeper than it used to be. His body felt… aligned. Not just rested, but tuned.
The bite had finished what it started.
He sat up slowly and checked his side out of habit. Smooth skin. No wound. No scar.
But the absence of injury wasn't what mattered anymore.
It was everything else.
He stood, rolling his shoulders once, testing range, tension, response. Nothing resisted. Even small movements carried a kind of precision that hadn't been there before.
That was enough.
He let the system surface.
...
[Proficiency System — Status]
Strength: 16.8
––Muscle Efficiency: 5.6
––Grip Strength: 5.3
––Explosive Force: 5.9
Speed: 17.4
––Movement Efficiency: 4.1
––Balance: 3.9
––Reaction Speed: 5.1
––Hand-Eye Coordination: 4.3
Endurance: 16.2
––Pain Resistance: 4.8
––Recovery Efficiency: 5.6
––Stamina Control: 5.8
Control: 15.6
––Sensory Filtering: 3.8
––Body Awareness: 4.1
––Emotional Regulation: 3.6
––Perception: 4.1
...
Scott read through it once, then dismissed it without lingering.
"Good. Stable."
That mattered more than high numbers.
Melissa barely looked up when he entered the kitchen.
"You're up early."
Scott grabbed an apple, leaning lightly against the counter. "Didn't feel like sleeping in."
She paused, then looked at him again, a little more carefully this time.
"…you look better."
Scott shrugged. "I feel better."
She watched him for another second, then nodded. "Good. Try to keep that going."
"I will."
.....
The school hallway hit differently.
Not louder—clearer.
Scott slowed slightly as he walked in, letting his senses adjust instead of forcing them down. Conversations didn't blur together anymore. They separated. Footsteps had direction. Even the scrape of lockers carried distance.
He focused on one thing at a time, letting the rest fade out naturally.
[Sensory Filtering +0.04]
"Dude!"
Stiles appeared at his side, already talking. "You didn't answer your phone last night. You just vanished. Like—full horror movie disappear."
Scott didn't look at him immediately. "Cops showed up. I wasn't sticking around."
"Yeah, okay, fair," Stiles said quickly. "But listen—this is the part you missed. They didn't find the other half."
Scott glanced at him now. "So it's still missing."
"Exactly," Stiles said, lowering his voice slightly. "Which means something took it."
Scott nodded once. "Yeah."
Stiles frowned. "That's it? 'Yeah'? That's your reaction?"
"What do you want me to say?"
"I want you to say something like 'holy crap, that's terrifying,'" Stiles replied.
Scott shrugged lightly. "Panicking won't help."
Stiles stopped walking for half a second, staring at him.
"…who are you and what have you done with Scott?"
Scott almost smiled. "Still me."
"Debatable."
.....
Class settled slower than usual.
Scott took his seat, not focusing on the teacher yet, but on the room itself. Who paid attention. Who didn't. Who reacted to the mention of the body.
Patterns again.
Then the door opened.
Allison.
She stepped in just slightly unsure, scanning the room before the teacher directed her forward. It wasn't dramatic. Just enough hesitation to mark her as new.
But that wasn't what Scott focused on.
It was her balance. The way she carried herself.
Subtle.
He looked away before it became obvious.
Stiles leaned slightly toward him. "Okay—new girl."
"Yeah."
"That's all you've got?"
"What do you want me to say?"
"I want you to say something reckless. Preferably involving you embarrassing yourself."
Scott shook his head. "I'll pass."
"You always pass," Stiles muttered.
The bell rang, breaking the room into motion.
Later, in the hallway between classes,
Allison was adjusting her bag when Lydia suddenly appeared beside her, like she had been there the whole time.
"I love your jacket," Lydia said, casually, but with the kind of confidence that made it feel like a decision rather than a compliment.
Allison blinked, a little surprised. "Oh—thanks."
"Where'd you get it?" Lydia asked, already reaching out to touch the sleeve without waiting for permission.
"LA, actually," Allison said with a small smile. "My mom worked for a boutique there."
Lydia tilted her head slightly, studying her. "Interesting."
It didn't sound like she meant the jacket.
Behind them, Jackson rolled his eyes, leaning in to kiss Lydia."You're interrogating her over a jacket now?"
Lydia kissed him lightly, not even looking away from Allison."I'm being friendly."
Then she smiled at Allison again.
Stiles watched that too.
"See that?" he whispered. "Beautiful people move in packs."
Scott didn't respond.
But he noticed.
Halfway through class, a pen slipped from the desk behind him.
It wasn't the sound that caught his attention.
It was the shift before it fell.
Scott turned instinctively, his hand already moving.
He caught it mid-air.
No wasted motion.
For a fraction of a second, everything aligned—distance, timing, angle.
Then it was over.
He placed the pen back without looking.
No one reacted.
But the system did.
[Reaction Speed +0.06]
[Hand-Eye Coordination +0.05]
→ Speed: 17.4 → 17.5
Scott leaned back slightly, processing it.
That shouldn't have been that easy.
But it was.
"Okay, no—you're definitely acting weird now." Stiles said quietly getting suspicious.
Scott glanced at him. "Why?"
"You didn't even look when you caught that."
"Lucky," Scott said, like it didn't matter—though even he knew it wasn't just that.
Stiles stared at him. "Yeah. Sure."
The rest of the class passed normally.
Or at least, it looked normal.
For Scott, everything had changed.
When the bell rang, the room broke into motion. Scott stood, grabbing his bag without rushing.
Stiles fell into step beside him again.
"Alright, I've got a theory," he said.
"That was fast."
"I work quickly under pressure," Stiles replied. "You, dead body, weird reflexes—it's all connected."
Scott raised an eyebrow. "That's not a theory. That's a guess."
"Give me time," Stiles said. "I'll figure it out."
Scott almost smiled.
They walked out toward the field.
Voices carried further now. Movement felt sharper. The world wasn't overwhelming—it was just more detailed than it used to be.
Scott adjusted without breaking stride.
[Body Awareness +0.03]
Coach's voice cut across the field before they even reached it.
"Move! Move! Move!"
Scott stopped at the edge for a second, watching.
Players running drills. Jackson already on the field. Energy high, aggressive, competitive.
Normal.
Stiles glanced at him. "You ready for this?"
Scott looked at the field.
Then back at him.
"Yeah."
Because this—
Was where things really started to change.
Scott stepped forward.
And for the first time—
For the first time, Scott wasn't walking into this blind.He was stepping in prepared.
To be continued…