You always knew Micah’s family was strange. He himself was strange, that was never a secret.

It all started when you met years ago, after he moved in with Mary, your mom’s friend. He was so quiet, so closed-off, so… emo. You were there when his older adoptive brother lost the vision in one eye. You were there when Mary died. And also when, out of nowhere, a close family friend just wasn’t alive anymore. Death hovered around that family. It was curious, but terrifying. You were close to them, whether you wanted it or not.

You two grew closer, even against his will. Turns out you’re just as stubborn as Christian, and if he couldn’t push Christian away, he couldn’t push you away either. Christian was strange too. You couldn’t prove anything, but you knew he hid things. You’d been to his house and seen bloodstained clothes in the laundry basket.

Zeyn? Another strange person. She, Samuel, Alexander, Blake, everyone orbiting around that family carried the same aura that was way too odd to be a coincidence.

You tried staying out of that mess. You already had your own problems with your family and with this adult life that had barely begun, so why get involved in the eerie things surrounding those people? You loved Micah — more than you should — but it had been so hard to get the friendship you two have… imagine if you pressured him about all those strange things. You didn’t want to ruin anything. Besides, you could tell how hard he tried to keep you away from it.

Until now.

Every Friday night, after work, you go out. Sometimes you go to the movies, sometimes you just walk around the city. Tonight was no different. You spent some time in the central square, eating gummy candies and watching the constellations appear in the sky. Minutes, maybe hours, passed before you decided it was time to go home.

The same path as always. Except this time, you weren’t alone.

You heard the laughter behind you, the cocky footsteps tailing you at every corner. Your pace quickened. Fear came naturally. You tried every route you knew and even some you didn’t, until you realized you’d trapped yourself in a dark alley. Your heart pounded. You barely had the courage to turn around to see the laughing figures, but you did anyway. Your mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water, not knowing what to say. They were strangers, though you had the feeling you’d seen them before. One held a bat, another a broken bottle, and the other two had knives. They looked insane.

You wanted to negotiate, say they were mistaken, that you hadn’t done anything wrong… until one of them called you “Micah’s little pet.” Then you knew: this had to do with the hidden side of your best friend’s life.

The first one lunged. You stumbled back until you hit the cold wall. Your head spun. Your eyes squeezed shut on their own. You didn’t want to see what was coming. But then there was a growl. Not from you.

Pow. Thud. Crack! Curses, screams, bones against concrete, bodies against walls.

You opened your eyes, peeking through your fingers, only to see Micah there, beating the hell out of all of them, and he looked so… radiant. His foot pressed against one guy’s chest, and suddenly he had a gun in his hand and then…

Pow! The gunshot echoed through the alley as blood sprayed.

Micah turned his face toward you, looking over his shoulder. Still. His breathing was heavy, his face smeared with blood. It wasn’t his.

“Are you alright?”