John stood in front of the bathroom mirror in total disbelief. He couldn't stop staring at the reflection. One of his eyes was still its normal, deep black, but the left one was a bright, glowing crimson. He staggered back from the sink, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. His mind was racing to find any logical explanation for what he was seeing.
"What is going on? No, this is not possible. This can't be happening," he mumbled. His voice was shaking with a cold terror that felt completely foreign to him. He reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut. He half-expected the image to dissolve like a hallucination when he opened them again. But when he looked back, the red eye was still there, burning back at him.
At first, John was in a state of utter shock. He felt frozen by panic, his heart drumming against his ribs. But as the minutes passed, his excited, nerdy imagination began to take over. The fear started to turn into something else. He had spent his whole life watching heroes transform and gain incredible powers. Maybe he wasn't broken. Maybe he had finally been upgraded.
"Wow! I am a super-powered cyborg animal machine sent from the future to save humanity!" John exclaimed. The words tumbled out of his mouth in a rush of delirious excitement. "I knew I wasn't just a normal human. Maybe I am a new model! I am the M-One-Million! I am so awesome!"
He began to pace around the small bathroom, his mind spinning with possibilities. He knew he had to tell his parents right away. In the movies, the protagonist always kept their powers a secret, but that always seemed weak and cheesy to him. He didn't want to deal with a bad plot. He wanted to be honest, and he knew his father would appreciate the high-stakes sci-fi drama of it all.
John started doing dramatic poses in the mirror, testing out how he looked with the new eye. He held his palm out flat and angled his wrist just right, trying to look like a hero from a poster.
"I'll be back!" he whispered with a grin. He chuckled to himself, feeling a surge of confidence. "My father is going to love this. He is such a huge fan of those old sci-fi adventure series."
John headed down the stairs. His excitement was starting to win the battle against his fear, but he still kept his left hand firmly over his eye to hide the surprise. The wooden floorboards felt solid under his feet, which was oddly comforting while his whole body felt like it was going through a revolution.
"Mom! Dad! I have to show you something!" he called out.
His father, Jiren Fang, was sitting in the living room. He was watching TV with the sound muted, the flickering light of a sports game reflecting off his face.
"What is it, son?" Jiren asked. He turned his head as John stepped into the room.
In the kitchen, John could hear his mother, Angeline, moving around. The air was heavy with the rich, savory smell of slow-roasted beef and earthy herbs simmering on the stove.
"I'll be there in a second!" she called out, completely unaware of what was happening.
Jiren stood up and walked into the center of the living room, and Angeline followed him a moment later, wiping her hands on her apron. She looked at John and her expression immediately shifted to worry. She noticed his trembling hand covering his left eye.
"Son, what happened? Did that boy at school give you a black eye?" Jiren asked. He stepped closer, his posture shifting. He was moving from a relaxed father to a protective one in a heartbeat.
"Dad, Mom, please promise me you won't freak out," John pleaded. His excitement started to waver as he faced them. Facing them made the whole situation feel much more real and much more absurd.
Jiren chuckled, trying to break the tension in the room. "Well, of course, son. Having a black eye isn't that bad. I had plenty of black eyes in my day. Just spit it out, kid."
John took a deep breath that hitched in his chest. He slowly removed his hand from his left eye and revealed his face. Up close, the transformation was even more terrifying. His left iris was a bright crimson red, but that wasn't the weirdest part. The sclera, the part of the eye that should be white, had turned completely black. It was an abyssal, deep black that made the red center look like a glowing warning.
"Look! I am a cyborg animal machine sent from the future to save humanity!" John declared. His voice was high-pitched and full of nervous energy. He struck a pose, waiting for the shock and horror to hit them.
Instead, Jiren and Angeline both froze. Their eyes widened, but it wasn't the kind of panic a normal parent would show. It was an intense, focused shock. It looked like a long-kept secret had finally burst out into the light. For a few agonizing seconds, they stood in total silence. They looked at each other, sharing a long, silent moment of communication that John didn't understand.
Then, unexpectedly, they both burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Oh, haha!" Jiren roared. He clutched his stomach and leaned over, tears of relief pricking his eyes. His laughter was way too loud and sudden.
"Hehehe, darling, you aren't a robot machine or whatever," Angeline said. Her laughter softened into a warm, genuine smile. She reached out toward him, not with fear, but with fascination. "Come here, honey. Let Mommy have a closer look at your eye."
"Wait, wait, wait, time out!" John stammered. His confusion was finally replacing his excitement. He took a hesitant step back. "What do you mean I'm more special? What is going on?"
"Come here, son. Let me see," Jiren urged. His smile was now a strange mix of pride and a very old kind of memory. He reached out and gently took John's chin, tilting his head back and forth to examine the black and red eye.
"Babe, look," Jiren said to Angeline. His voice was full of warmth. "He has your eye. The color is exact. I guess I'm out of luck. He didn't get any of my family's traits first."
"What about your teeth, son? Show Mommy your teeth," Angeline instructed gently. Her eyes were shining with anticipation.
"What do you mean by teeth, Mom? Am I an animal machine from the future or not?" John pressed. He was still desperately hanging onto his sci-fi fantasy because it felt safer than whatever was actually happening. He felt his adrenaline spike again.
"For the last time, no, darling. You are not a machine," Angeline said with a smile. "Just show me your teeth. All of them."
John instinctively opened his mouth wide to show her. Suddenly, a searing pressure erupted in his gums. It was a brief, sharp pain, like his bones were being remodeled in an instant. He felt a strange clicking sensation, and then four long, pointed fangs extended from his gums. They were sharp and white, clicking perfectly into place.
Angeline beamed. Her face was lit up with a fierce maternal pride. She looked at Jiren, her smile vanishing as a look of deep concern for the future crossed her face. "My love, is it okay?"
Jiren let out a long breath and nodded slowly. His expression settled into a weary resignation, as if he knew a long journey was finally beginning. "It is time, my love. He is ready."
Angeline turned back to John. Her face was solemn, but her eyes were full of love.
"Darling, you are the son of a vampire and a werewolf. You are a Hybrid."