Hollow is the Heart | ON HIATUS

Chapter 13.1 ❤️ Hunters

"You know, I'd been hoping you'd call," Sam told me, "but I hadn't expected it to be from freaking jail."

Sam stood tall over me with his arms crossed while I waved a cheerful goodbye at the officers. They were good dudes, to be honest, and we'd all gotten fairly well acquainted with each other over the years, what with me being a hopeless delinquent since childhood and all. I'd spent the morning playing cards with them, waiting for Sam to pick me up. We all knew that I was destined to die alone in a gutter one day. No matter. I tucked the King of Hearts I'd stashed during the game back out of sight beneath my toque and zipped up my hoodie.

"Take it easy out there, Webber," was an officer's response to me as Sam and I left the station and stepped out into the crisp morning air.

"And yet, you came," I said, grinning up at Sam as we walked side by side down the street. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, yet the sun still offered little warmth. A shiver made my smile evaporate. "And thanks for, uh...bailing me out, too, man. I promise I'll pay you back." I scratched at my head. "You know...Just gotta get a job first."

You're a real prize, Ryan.

Honestly, I hadn't expected Sam to not hang up on me immediately, much less actually show up to rescue my sorry ass.

My companion laughed at that. He laughed a lot, and I liked that about him. "You look like hell," he said, eyeing me up and down as we walked with no destination in mind. "I'd hate to see the guy you beat up."

I felt his gaze linger on my purple eye, and I tucked my bruised knuckles out of sight in my pockets, mumbling, "He deserved it."

Since meeting Sam again, I'd spent the past few days groveling for work. My shitty apartment wasn't going to pay for itself. After a long string of no luck and a ton of pent-up frustration, I'd been ready to combust in an explosive fashion. All I needed was a trigger—a target. And the asshole slinging slurs at me on the subway practically volunteered to be pummeled.

Sam sighed. "I'm sure he did. There's a lot of people in the world who deserve to get their faces bashed in, or...bitten."

"Hey! I didn't bite anyone this time. I've grown out of that."

"But you can't fight everyone, Ryan," Sam said, shaking his head. "One of these days, you're gonna get in a fight you can't possibly win. And then what?" He touched a gentle finger to the swollen bruise under my eye.

I froze up. My first instinct was to flinch away from him. Usually, whenever someone laid a hand on me, a brawl ensued. But this time, I let Sam's hand linger on my face. Goosebumps erupted on my skin at his warm touch. It was still hard to believe that my childhood best friend was by my side again. The last time I had seen him was through the bars of the upstairs railing in the group home, watching his new parents whisk him away to a whole other province. The other little boys cheered around us. I was happy for him, sure, but I hated that he had to leave me. My nose sniffled when we smiled and waved our goodbyes, but I managed to hang on to my tears until after the door to the home shut, and Sam was gone.

I kicked at a pebble on the sidewalk, saying nothing and enjoying Sam's body heat.

Sam tucked his hands in the pockets of his very expensive-looking coat, and we carried on walking. "Why'd you call me, though?"

"Can't keep calling Miss Margeret to pick me up from jail anymore, now can I?"

"I mean, no...but...Don't you have anyone else—?"

I suddenly found myself preoccupied with the traffic crawling past us and stared at nothing in particular. A cold breeze awakened all the leaves in the trees and made them hiss. Aside from our footsteps, birdsong and distant sirens filled the air. I supposed it was a nice day out, if I gave a shit about any of that.

The sound of Sam's chuckle broke our heavy silence. "You know what?" he said, smiling at nothing. "I'm glad you called. I needed a break from studying."

I perked up at that. "Oh? You in university?"

"Med school."

I elbowed him playfully. "Oh shit!" I cheered. "Following in your parents' footsteps, I see." I laughed. "Doctor Sam Fowle. Has a nice ring to it."

Sam looked away bashfully from my grin. His angular, tan face reddening to a purple hue. It was so charming to see someone as tall and, judging by the look of his biceps threatening to rip his coat sleeves at the seams, completely jacked look so self-conscious. I felt myself wandering closer to him to feel his body heat and had to force myself not to gawk at his chiseled jawline or the shape of his pecs beneath his button-up.

Shit.

What was I doing here? I was just some low-life with no future, and here I was with a future doctor. Someone like him had no business spending time with something like me. Yet, I didn't want him to go. I didn't want him to leave me. Not again. Nonetheless, I felt I should give him an out. "I swear I'll pay you back, and then you'll be rid of me."

"Liar," Sam said, interrupting my inner monologue.

I flubbed at that. "Am not!"

My handsome companion smirked at me, and I damn near passed out on the spot. "You are. Know how I can tell?" He touched a finger ever so lightly to the side of my neck. "Your pulse just quickened. I could see it."

I slapped a hand to my neck, concealing my own betraying pulse. Damn, he'd caught me. There was no way I could ever repay him. Though, my lie wasn't the only reason my heart-rate skyrocketed. When he pulled his hand away from my neck, I missed his touch. I skipped forward, then skidded to a stop in front of him, hands on my hips.

"Tell you what," I declared. "I'll make it up to you another way. Let me buy you dinner. Tonight."

Oh, fuck.

What did I just say?

Sam scoffed. "I thought you said you didn't have any money."

"I'm not promising a five-star meal here."

Sam rolled back on his heels, regarding me, his brown eyes soft. He was a good guy, and I was no good for good guys. But my heart exploded in my chest when he laughed and answered, "Sure."

"Then..." I said. "It's a date."

No.

No, no, no!

I destroyed the memory, tearing it apart seam by seam. Ryan was a walking human disaster. From the moment he was born, he destroyed everything he touched. He never should've met Sam. I never should've met Sam.

I woke up to the fading scent of smoke. Once again, my heart convulsed in agony inside my ribs. I sat up with a wince, hissing, "Stupid...useless thing," through my teeth.