• tab She had punched Sam for holding her back. She blamed him for a missed opportunity and he had been harmed, all because of me. I felt horrible. We sat down on the couch and I cleaned up his cut with an internal debate of kissing it better. His eyes were red and puffy because he had been crying. I really had hurt him. Father came home a few minutes later to find us facing each other on the couch staring at each other.
    tab "Ren?" he said softly, I turned to look at him and he looked as stressed as me. I nodded at him and looked back at Sam. "Have you told him?"
    "No," I replied, reaching for Sam's hand to squeeze it gently before sitting back. "Go ahead."
    tab He nodded and turned to Sam as well, sitting on the coffee table. "Sam, you've known us since we moved here, right?" --Sam nodded-- "Well its time you know why I am so strict about girls around Ren. Its time you know the truth. How much do you know about Irish mythology?" he began.
    tab "Almost nothing, just a few creatures," he said blankly.
    tab "Well, what about the gancanagh?" I asked.
    tab Sam nodded. "Men who have an addictive drug in their skin, sort of. Drives girls. . . . crazy. . . ." he said, trailing off as realization dawned on him. "Impossible."
    tab "Sam, you've known me for six years now and have you ever once seen me come into contact with a girl? Have I ever befriended one? You saw what that girl was like today when she kissed me," I stated softly, head down.
    tab "How do you expect me to believe that you are a mythical creature. I mean, I know you're completely gorgeous, but how can I believe you. This is ridiculous, I'm going home. Goodbye, Ren. . . ." he trailed off, standing up.
    tab "I can't let you leave without promising not to tell anybody," father said, towering above Sam with his hand on his shoulder.
    tab "I don't have to promise you anything. You two are insane," he said in a louder voice, eyes tearing up. He tried to walk away but father grabbed his wrist.
    tab "I was afraid of this. Sam, please come with me. I have someone who wants to see you," father said, leading him down the hall to his bedroom. I gave father a look, and he mouthed 'he'll be fine.' before closing the door.
    tab Worried about my friend I followed them down the hall to his room but heard nothing. So, disappointed, I went downstairs into my room and curled up on top of my blankets, letting depression pull me into sleep.
    *

    tab I awoke to the feeling of someone crawling on to my bed beside me. I peered down through my lashes to see Sam snuggling up against me. I glanced at the clock, which read one forty-two am, then draped my arm over his hip.
    tab "Ren? Are you awake?" he whispered, looking up at me.
    tab "I am now," I muttered, my voice slurring.
    tab "Sorry, but I woke up on the couch and the movie was over and you were gone, so I came down here to join you," he said, nuzzling against me.
    tab "Movie. . . . ? Oh never mind. Good night," I whispered and kissed his forehead. We fell asleep like that, fully clothed.
    *

    tab I woke up at about six, feeling warm and complete. All of my problems seemed distant with Sam this close to me. One of his hands was pressed to my chest lightly, the other was on my back. Carefully I crawled over him to go shower, but father was waiting for me.
    tab "Be careful of that girl, she's hooked and all you can do is avoid her until it either passes or your drug overcomes her. Its hard to say what will happen," he said before walking away.
    tab "What did you do to Sam?" I asked expecting him to fight telling me.
    tab He paused. "I got a gypsy to wipe his memory of yesterday and replace it with memories of the two of you skipping the day and staying here, cuddling for hours watching movies. No big deal," he said.
    tab "You shouldn't have done that-"
    tab "We couldn't risk it!" he hissed, spinning around to face me. He glared at me for a minute before walking out the door into the light snow. I stood there fuming, my fists clenched at my sides, before going into the bathroom to shower.
    tab I hadn't noticed how cold I was, so the warm water seemed to burn on my skin. I winced and waited to get used to it. The fact that I had to continue lying to Sam was horrible, I hated it. Also, why was I feeling so worried about him? He’s only my friend, I told myself.
    tab “Only my friend,” I whispered to myself. “Nothing more than that. He’s just a friend that I care about more than most people. . . .”
    tab With confusion filling me, I got out of the shower and walked down into the basement with my towel wrapped around my waist. It was too early to wake up Sam seeing as how it was now Saturday, so I pulled on a pair of dark-blue plaid pajama pants (no boxers or anything else) and walked over to my bed.
    tab Sam had rolled over and sprawled out on my bed, a pillow crushed under his chest. I pulled my blanket up over his shoulders and kissed his cheek, hesitating before going upstairs to the living room. The smile returned to his face.
    tab With a yawn I slouched onto the couch, switching on the television to watch the morning news. I stared blankly at the screen while the man discussed the economy problems in Canada, the flu outbreak in Bancroft, Ontario, and other pointless things. Things finally got interesting after five minutes of bland talking. I started to tune in now.
    tab ‘In other news, mass murders have been breaking out all over Ontario. So far there have been twenty unexplainable deaths in random locations, all of which were in parks or forested areas. It seemed to have been due to an animal attack, but the marks were like nothing noted by scientists before. An interview with an injured man was recored in a hospital, ending when his death met him. Here it is:’ the reporter said, and a rough sounding tape started to play.
    tab ‘Could you tell us what happened?’ the reporter asked.
    tab There was a long pause. ‘I was walking in the park, it was completely dark, all the lights were out. The next thing I knew something was on me, ripping and tearing at my body. I thought I was going to die right there,’ a strained voice replied.
    tab ‘Did you get a good look at it?’ she asked, pressing on.
    tab ‘It was big and hairy, almost like a wolf, but it was huge!’ --the voice started to fade, talking slower-- ‘I couldn’t. . . . g-. . . . get. . . .’ and the tape went silent except for the heart monitor, which was singing the mans death.
    tab I sat up straight, thinking hard. Were there other “mythical” creatures out there besides the male side of my family? Now I was curious, and also worried. Not worried for my own life, but for Sam’s. I don’t know what it was, but I felt an insane need to keep him safe. As though something about him required more protecting than my own life. So, switching off the television, I crept down the stairs to my room. Sam was still in my bed, but the very small window on the top of my wall (with a beautiful view of the ground) was cracked open a bit. After a quick peek around my room for who could have possibly done that, I closed the window and sat down beside Sam protectively.
    tab His eyes opened slightly, looking past me at the door. He glared. “How did she get in,” he asked softly, staring unblinking at the door. I looked over at the door but saw nothing.
    tab “Who?” I asked.
    tab “That girl right there, can’t you see her?!” he said frantically, propping himself up on his elbow. I shook my head. “Great, so you’re gonna’ think I’m insane like my dad now, right?”
    tab “No of course not,” I promised, rubbing his cheek with my thumb with a gentle smile on my face. He rested his hand over mine and curled his body around me.
    tab “What time is it?” he asked.
    tab “Only seven,” I replied. He groaned. “Want to go to the mall today?”
    tab “Sounds good, but why’s it so early,” he said in a mock wining voice. I smiled.
    tab “Slide over, I want to lay down,” I said, curling up in the space he made. “So tell me, do you believe in any mythical creatures?” I asked suggestively.
    tab “Yeah, but I doubt I’ll ever meet any,” he said, hugging me.
    tab “What if I told you you already knew one?” I asked, more hesitant this time.
    tab “I’d beg you to tell me who and what they are,” he said, looking at me intently.
    tab “What would you do if I told you?”
    tab He paused to think. “I don’t know. I wouldn’t tell anyone because then someone might try to take them away to test on them or something. But it would be really cool to know,” he said, heavily implying on the last bit.
    tab “I’ll tell you in time,” I whispered, hugging him close. “Go back to sleep, we’ll go to the mall when we wake up again.”
    tab I waited for him to drift off before falling asleep as well.
    *

    tab For once Sam woke up before me, and I only woke up as well because he crawled over me. I’m not a heavy sleeper like him, so it woke me up instantly. We dressed silently, to groggy to talk yet. I pulled on striped skinny jeans (black and dark-blue), a black tee shirt and black sweater with blue gloves. Sam was dressed in the same outfit, but red. To perfect his outfit I grabbed my black winter-hat and put it on him. After this minor preparation we left my house for the mall, which was just down the road.
    tab We sauntered along in the thickening snow, careful to avoid other people on our way. When we were just one block away from the mall, Sam slipped on a patch of ice and fell. I had to stifle a laugh as I helped him back up, but he glared at me anyway, knowing what I was thinking. I didn’t let go of his hand after he was on his feet and we continued down the road.
    tab The wonderfully warm air of the mall met our frozen faces, but the babble of preppy teenagers met our ears at the same time. We sauntered along down the corridors, gazing into stores at the overpriced “brand” names. As we passed Garage Sam pointed and laughed at a preppy girl putting on a jacket with “Bench” plastered across the back, and I couldn’t help but laugh at his mockery.
    tab We went over to Tim Hortons and bought some coffee and sat down to enjoy it. Seated at a table surrounded by tables filled with more preps, we started to talk and laugh.
    tab “So I was like ‘Dad, calm down, its just a little cut’ and he completely flipped! Seriously, look at it! Overreaction much?” he said, holding out his arm to show me the scratch. I took his hand and gazed at it.
    tab “Unfortunately I agree with him, I think its infected,” I said, prodding the cut gently with my finger. He winced. I grabbed a napkin and dabbed at the line of puss that was coating the inch long wound. “The skin around your cut is turning green. What scratched you?”
    tab Sam had to think for a minute. “I don’t really know. I woke up at the computer two nights ago from a nightmare where that girl was talking to me. It was just there,” he said with a confused look on his face.
    tab “What did she say to you?” I asked, pushing for answers. He didn’t seem to like this conversation, but he kept answering.
    tab “She said something like ‘you will be my way back’ or what ever,” he said, waving his hand in a bored way. “Then she grabbed my arm and when I pulled away her bone cut me--the skin on her fingers was like, burned off or something.”
    tab I nodded and finished my coffee, still holding his hand over the table. He lowered his eyes and looked at our hands, chewing on the rim of his cup while watching his thumb rub the back of my hand. I squeezed his hand gently and motioned for him to listen to the girls in the table beside ours (that was separated by a waist-high wall if standing).
    tab “They’re holding hands,” one of the girls whispered with a giggle, eyeing us. Sam and I grinned to each other. To mess with them more I leaned forward on the table to rest my chin on my free hand, my head tipped to the side so I could gaze at him with a dreamy expression on my face. Sam matched my expression and did the same. The other girl bit back a squeal.
    tab “Its too bad they’re together, they’re both kind of cute,” the second girl whispered. Sam looked at me with his eyebrow raised. The look on his face was suggestive, and I was pretty sure I knew what he was thinking.
    tab I don’t love him, I’m not gay. I’m just not allowed to love girls, I told myself. So, in theory, I shouldn’t want to kiss him. But for some reason, I did. It couldn’t hurt to give him a chance. With a slight incline of my chin, I leaned forward a bit further, letting Sam do the rest. He blushed and started to close the gap. He touched his forehead and nose lightly against mine and I could feel his breath on my face. My heart was beating fast, my cheeks burning. His smooth, thin lips met mine, and a yell of rage met my ears.