A Companion for Life (Part 1)
#9 of Companion
A Companion for Life
The classroom was filled with laughter and excitement as they waited for class to start. The eighth grade class of Aurora Middle School was filled with a lot of energy due, in part, to their teacher, Mr. Lewis. As the children continued to talk with each other they heard the click of the door handle causing everything to die down as Mr. Lewis walked in with an unfamiliar face walking behind him.
"Good morning class" Mr. Lewis said. All of them greeted him back, but all of their eyes were focused on the kid standing next to him with a less-than-enthusiastic face. "Ah, I see you've all noticed that we have a new student. How about we let him introduce himself?"
The kid was silent for a few seconds before his eyes focused on the class while still keeping the same expression on his face. "The name's Sam."
The room was silent again. "Okay" Mr. Lewis said. "How about you tell us a little about yourself; where did you go to school before coming here?"
Sam closed his eyes and let all of his breath out of his nose. Memories of what had happened only a week ago flashed through his mind.
One Week Earlier
Sam sat on the couch staring at the wall as he listened to his music using his earphones. In the other room he could just make out the voices of his parents in the other room. "I just got another call from Sam's teacher..." Sam's mother said.
"Great, what now?" Sam's father asked in irritation. "Did he get into another fight?"
"Yes, but it wasn't one that he started"
"What difference does it make!? If this keeps up then Sam's going to get expelled."
"I know that, dear, but during the phone call with his teacher she wasn't distressed over him fighting - it was the kids he fought with."
"Kids? So now he's fighting more than one at a time?" His father shook his head. "So how many? Two? Three?"
"Eight..." Her answer made his eyes widen. "Eight kids attacked Sam today. Sam would have gotten hurt really bad if the teachers hadn't broken up the fight. Sam's lucky to get out with just a bloody nose."
"Damn it!" His father slammed his fist against the wall. His hand cringed as he let out a long sigh. He took a seat and covered his face with his hands. Sam's mother sat down with him. "If things keep going the way they are Sam will either be expelled or jumped by those kids again."
Sam's mother started to cry from the reality of the situation. "Isn't there anything we can do? I don't want him to end up like Tyler." She started to cry into her husband's shoulder as her slowly rubbed her back in attempt to calm her down.
"Me neither..."
In the other room Sam had taken out his earphones and sat with his arms around his knees as he quietly started to cry.
"I'll ask my father if Sam could move in with him" Sam's father said.
"But he lives six hours away, dear. We won't be able to see Sam that often."
"I know, but it'll give him a new start. "I'm sure getting out of this city would be better for him anyways." His wife nodded in agreement, but still couldn't stop crying as the two held each other.
"And that's basically why I'm here." Sam said to the class who were now all staring with wide open eyes and gapping mouths. He didn't mention the conversation his parents had; only that he came so he wouldn't be expelled for fighting so much.
"W-well that certainly was interesting, Sam." Mr. Lewis tried to regain his composure after hearing the tale. "How about you take the empty seat in the back." Sam approached it without giving any affirmation. As he walked down the aisle of seats he could see most of the kids trying to avoid his gaze.
Sam sat down at the desk he was given in the very back of the class. He took note that there were other empty seats scattered about in the classroom, and yet the teacher suggested he take the seat in the very back. Sam chuckled softly at how Mr. Lewis didn't want to be too close to him. "The kids are afraid of me and the teacher doesn't want to be too close to me..." Sam thought in his mind. "If this keeps up then I won't have to put up with anyone for the rest of the year... just the way I want it to be."
As the class continued Mr. Lewis started discussing an assignment that the class was working on. Since Sam had transferred in the middle of February he was a bit behind on the class work assigned by Mr. Lewis. He offered Sam the chance to partner up with anyone who offered, which was only a handful of students who probably weren't intimidated by Sam, but he said he preferred to work alone.
When lunch time came around Sam briefly walked by the lunchroom when something caught his eye. The entire lunch staff was comprised of animal-like creatures that each had a blank expression on their face. "I guess even the countryside has Doubu."
• Note: Doubu are named after Doubutsu (Animal). They were first discovered in Japan and soon spread throughout the world. The details of their discovery and distribution are a secret to most of the world; however they are such a rarity to see even inside the cities that many people don't concern themselves with them. The only thing that people know about them is that they are 'programmed' to do what they are ordered to do.
Sam continued on, not caring to eat lunch. He wanted to find someplace quiet to just listen to his music. At his old school he would just find some corner in the library to relax, but that idea was quickly dismissed when he saw many students walking around in there. He didn't know whether they were there for a class or just to read, but it didn't matter; he wanted to be somewhere with as few students as possible.
After a little wondering around the second floor of the school Sam found something interesting; a stairway to the roof. "They actually allow students on the roof here?" Curiosity got the better of him as he opened the door and climbed the stairs. He opened the door and was met with a gust of wind that blew through his short brown hair.
The door slammed shut behind him as he walked out onto the roof. All of it was surrounded by a ten-foot tall fence that didn't block out the horizon at all. Sam could clearly see how different everything was from the city from there. The school was located in the mountains about 15 minutes away from the nearest town by car. Everywhere he looked he saw trees and mountain cliffs. It was a place he could just relax and not worry about other people. He sat down and took out his iPod. He listened to his music for 30 minutes before he had to go back to class.
The rest of the day went by without a hitch. He just listened to the teacher's lesson, did the work he was assigned and just walked out without saying a word when the school bell rang. He loaded onto one of the many buses that took the students back into town. He sat in the very front since most kids liked to sit in the back.
During the entire ride Sam just stared out his window while listening to his iPod. He felt as though he was watching an old movie in which the background kept repeating itself over and over again. He quickly got bored of it and decided to close his eyes and focus only on the music flowing through his ears.
Before he knew it the bus came to a complete stop and students were filing out of the bus one-by-one. He was the last off and saw many of the other students being picked up by their parents. He wouldn't have that luxury. His parents were hours away and his grandfather worked during this time. He really didn't mind though; it was only a twenty minute walk to his grandfather's house. He had walked it before with him when he first arrived. Sam was told that the town was very safe so he didn't have to worry about anything happening to him.
As he walked away he could feel the eyes of a few of his classmates staring at him from behind. He had certainly left a very interesting first-impression on them; it was only natural that they would be staring at him. Sam didn't care anyways; he just tuned out the rest of the world with his music as he continued to walk home.
When he first walked down this path a couple of days ago with his grandfather he was a little uneasy by how narrow the roads were. The way he was walking was no more than just a pathway on the side of the mountain. The actual road leading to the house was five miles on the other side. His grandfather was able to drive him to school but not bring him back. Sam preferred to walk this route rather than walk an addition five miles to get to the road. The only thing he kept reminding himself of was to not look over the cliff. He made that mistake the first time and was met with the view of a one-hundred foot drop down a steep cliff into the trees below. He shuddered a little from the memory, being afraid of heights.
He decided to stay very close to the wall, so close that he was practically leaning against it. It slowed his pacing quite a bit, but he had no reason to complain. Twenty minutes he could see the where the path grew wider; once there it would only be another ten minutes to his grandfather's house. Not wanting to jinx himself near the end he continued to put his weight on the mountain wall as he continued to walk slowly. He started to smile from the relief of it being almost over. He had only about 100 yards left to walk before his smile suddenly faded as he heard something starting to crack, even through his headphones. His immediate reaction was to look down to see if the walkway was crumbling, but there was nothing wrong it. Before he could figure out what was going on the wall he was leaning on collapsed, causing him to tumble into the side of the mountain.
"Oww" Sam mumbled as he got onto his knees. He shook his head to get the dirt out of hair. He opened his eyes and discovered that he was in a very small cave. He turned his head around and was relieved that the entrance didn't collapse in. He turned his back to see what was in front of him. The cave was barely the size of his bedroom. He slowly got to his feet and felt pain in his right leg, it having taken the impact of the fall. He brushed the dirt off of his jeans and was about to turn around and leave until he saw something. It was in the back corner of the cave and was barely being illuminated by the light from outside.
Sam's curiosity got the better of him. He slowly limped his way to the corner knelt down to examine the object. He used the light of his iPod to illuminate the object since he was now blocking the lights path. The light revealed what appeared to be a fat, oval shaped rock that was about one and a half feet tall. Sam reached out to touch it. He felt it for a second before drawing his hand back suddenly. He was surprised for two reasons. The first was that the rock was completely smooth. The second was that it was warm to the touch. "How can something that was in complete darkness be so warm?" Sam asked to himself out loud.
This rock was staring to intrigue him. "I should take it back with me." Sam picked it up and found it to be about twenty pounds. Even though the weight wasn't that much for him, he was only able to take a few steps before his right leg started to feel very painful. "Looks like I'm going to have to come back for you another time" Sam said as he gently placed the rock in the middle of the cave. Now being illuminated on all sides, Sam saw one more thing that intrigued him. On one side of the black rock there was a patch of white. He thought it might have been some sort of mineral, but when he touched it, it was smooth and warm just like the rest of the rock. His leg started to act up again signaling him to get back home. Sam slowly limped out of the cave, not noticing that as he left a large crack formed on the rock.
"You need to be more careful where you step..." Sam's grandfather said as sipped his tea. "One misstep could become deadly"
"I'm aware of that, grandpa." Sam said, rolling his eyes.
"Perhaps you should stop listening to that thing you always have in your ears. It'll help you to rely on your sense of sight rather than focusing it all on hearing." He smirked, causing Sam to roll his eyes again and turn his head away. Sam decided not to tell him about what he had discovered. "Your leg should get better after some rest, but if you want I could take off early from work tomorrow to drive you home."
It was a very tempting offer to Sam. He liked the idea of not having to walk home from school, but then his thoughts went to the rock. He really wanted to bring back as soon as possible, but he didn't want his grandfather to know about it. "Nah. I'll be able to handle myself tomorrow. You don't need to take off work."
"If you say so. I was kind of hoping to have an excuse to take off." He placed his cup on the table. "Yesterday afternoon our office got a call from headquarters; they're planning to expand our division here. Soon we'll be getting new workers and equipment..." Despite the good news his grandfather had a rather solemn look on his face.
"What do you do anyways?" Sam asked out of curiosity.
"Oh, it's nothing special; I'm sure it would just bore you out of your mind, but if you really want me to tell you..." Sam shook his head and decided not to pursue it any further. He figured that his grandfather just had some plain old desk job; nothing exciting.
His grandfather's cell phone started to ring in his pocket. "Must be Charlie..." his grandfather said quietly.
"Who?" Sam asked, hearing the name.
"He works for me. He updates me on what's going on at the office." Sam only shrugged his shoulders at the rather simple explanation. "Hello." His grandfather said into the phone as he stood up. "Yes, Charlie, I hear you; I'm not deaf" his grandfather said jokingly as he walked up to his room and closed the door.
"I guess it's top-secret information..." Sam sighed sarcastically. Soon after he decided to head up to his own room and lay down on his bed. His room was much larger than the one he had at the city apartment, but that only just made it seem emptier to him. He was simple in that he never had that much. A simple bed, a dresser, and a desk were all that was in his room. He had no television; the only electronic device he had was his iPod.
Sam sighed staring up at the ceiling. With his iPod charging he could hear nothing but silence. He hated silence. Back in the city he would constantly hear the sounds of cars driving down below on the streets, but in the mountains there was nothing. The only thing he ever did hear was the crickets. He closed his eyes and hoped that he would fall asleep, but he couldn't do it. The silence caused his mind to wandering from place to place. "Can't something happen!" Sam groaned.
A second later he heard something new outside. His eyes flew open and he stared towards the window. "Was that... was that howling?" He got to his feet and looked out the window. A cool breeze blew across his face as he heard the howling once again. "Wolves?" Sam tilted his head in curiosity. His grandfather had told him about the wildlife in the area, but never did he mention anything about wolves.
The howling came again. Sam's heartbeat started to speed up spontaneously. "Guess I'm a bit nervous..." He rationalized with himself. Each time he heard the howl his heart started to beat faster to the point he felt he was running laps. His breathing started to speed up too. "What's going on?" Sam shook his head and covered his ears. He tried to block out the howling, but he could still hear it through his hands. He quickly went to his iPod and unplugged it from the wall charger. He quickly put in his earphones and cranked up the volume until he couldn't hear anything else.
Sam was still breathing heavily as he slumped onto his bed. He could feel his heart starting to slow down. His mind became hazy and he realized he was becoming exhausted. His eyes slowly closed as soon he wasn't able to hear his own music.
"It's time to get up, Sam!" his grandfather shouted on the other side of the door as he banged on the door. Sam eyes started opening slowly but instantly flew open as his full sense of hearing came crashing down on him. He quickly pulled the earphones and shouted "I'm up! I'm up!" He heard his grandfather walk away as he rubbed his eyes awake. He placed his right hand over his heart and was relieved that it was beating normally. He looked at the clock and saw he was running late. He placed his iPod on the charger and quickly got ready for school.
His day at school went by the same as it did yesterday. He worked on the assignment in class before lunch started. He was hungry today, however, and decided to make a quick stop at the snack bar and purchase a pack of beef jerky. He ate half the pack as he sat on the roof listening to his music. He stashed the rest of the jerky in his bag before heading back to class.
Sam smiled during his walk home. His leg didn't hurt anymore and he would be able to bring back that rock. He still walked carefully on the path, but wasn't hugging the wall like last time. "Don't want to fall into another hole..." he said as he just kept his right hand against the side of the mountain. He could see the opening and slightly quickened his pace.
As he turned the corner into the cave he was expecting to see the rock laying in front him, but instead his smile faded as he saw the rock in many pieces. "What happened!?" Sam said as he knelt down to pick up the pieces. "How could this happen?" He threw his head back and sighed from the disappointment. His head slowly tilted back forward as he stood up with a huge chunk of the rock in his hand. "Well there goes my fun for the day!" he shouted as he tossed the shard of rock at the back of the cave as he head for the exit.
The rock collided with the wall and a high-pitched yip filled the cave. Sam eyes widened as he went completely still. Soon after he could hear some growling as something was right behind him. He slowly turned his body around and looked down. It was a black wolf pup, a very big wolf pup. Its teeth were bared as its dark blue eyes glared at Sam.
"Easy there, little fellow." Sam said as the wolf got closer to him. Sam slowly backed up with the wolf's advances. The heel of his right foot hit large rock in the ground and caused him to fall backwards onto his butt. The wolf kept approaching him. He tried to back himself up, but the fall caused his back to face the cave wall; he was trapped. Sam closed his eyes and placed his hands between him and the wolf to shield himself. He felt the wolf's breath as it sniffed his hands. He was expecting the wolf to bite next, but instead it started licking them causing his eyes to open. He looked at the wolf pup and watched as it kept licking his hands excitedly.
He moved his hands to his sides and was immediately tackled to the ground as the pup jumped right into him and snuggled its head into his chest. "Well... you certainly are an affectionate one aren't you?" Sam said as he sighed in relief. "Where's your family?" He wondered if he should be worried in case its parents came back. His question was only met with a lick to the cheek. "It would be best if I'm not around when they come back." Sam tried to get up, but the pup seemed to put more of its weight on him, making it harder. "C'mon now, I really should go." The pup responded by getting closer to him.
Sam sighed as he tried to think of a way to get the pup off of him. He could hear a soft rumbling and realized it was the pup's stomach. "Are you hungry?" The pup went to his face and gave him another lick. Sam reached behind him and took out the leftover jerky from school. He took out a piece and offered it to the pup. It sniffed it for a second before biting and chewing at it. When it swallowed the meat it licked its muzzle and Sam's hand. "Want some more, huh?" Sam got some more jerky and tossed it a few feet away from them. The wolf seemed hesitant for a few seconds but finally jumped off of him and went for the jerky. Sam took the opportunity to get to his feet. He watched the pup gnawing at the meat and finally noticed something. On its upper back was a patch of white fur that went from shoulder to shoulder. "That seems familiar..." Before he could think about it anymore the pup came up to him and started jumping on him.
"I can't stick around and play with you, alright. I need to get home before your parents come back to theirs." He watched the pup tilt his head, like it was trying figure out what he was saying. "See you later, pup" Sam said as he headed for the exit. The wolf pup started following him. Sam tried to make it stay but it kept following him whenever he started walking. "Sit!" Sam shouted. The pup immediately went sat down, surprising Sam. "Now stay here and wait for your parents." He walked a bit and turned his head when he heard the pup starting to whimper. Sam groaned and walked back to the pup and started petting its head softly with his right hand. "It's alright; I'm sure your parents will be back soon." The pup pressed its head harder into his hand and licked his arm. Eventually Sam raised his hand and walked out of the cave while waving good bye to the pup. To his amusement, the pup actually raised its left paw and moved it in a waving motion as he left. "It sure does learn fast."
Later that night Sam was lying on the couch listening to his music while his grandfather was typing away on his laptop. Images on the pup popped into his mind. He took out the earpiece from his left ear and said "Hey grandpa..."
"Yes?" his responded while still typing.
"Are there any wolves around here?"
"Occasionally they're spotted in the forest surrounding the mountains, but not at this altitude. Why do ask?"
"Well last night I heard something howling."
His grandfather stopped typing. "Just one thing howling or a whole group?"
"It sounded like it was just one."
His grandfather started typing again. "Then most likely it wasn't a wolf. Wolves travel in packs and always stick together. You must of heard a stray dog."
"A stray, huh?" He thought back to the cub. "Is it possible it's been abandoned?" he thought to himself. He shook his head. "No. I'm sure its parents are with it now."
Meanwhile back at the cave the pup was in the same spot it was told to sit in. It just stared at the entrance of the cave, waiting for someone to come. It just watched as the moon traveled from horizon to horizon and was replaced by hints of sunlight. Its eyes became heavy as it slowly collapsed to its stomach and closed its eyes, letting out a whimper.
Sam's day went on normally. He had finally completed the project the class was assigned just on his third day. It was no surprise to him that the teacher and the rest of the class were surprised by how he had already completed something that wasn't due for another two days. The students started whispering to their partners. "That's the problem with group projects" Sam said in his mind. "They spend more time talking to each other than actually doing any work." Sam let out a soft chuckle as he sat back down in his seat. He could feel stares of resentment and frustration being focused on him. "Work before pleasure" Sam said in his head as he pulled out his iPod. With his assignment complete he would be able to listen to his music while everyone else finished up their assignment. "This is why you're better off without friends" Sam thought before he pressed the play button.
At lunch time he was lying on his back on the roof, watching the clouds pass by over him. He couldn't believe it was already his third day of school and he hadn't gotten in a fight. He laughed at how he wouldn't have gone that long without being attacked or attacking someone who was getting on his nerves. It was then he realized how quiet and boring his life really was now.
From the corner of his eye he could see the door to the roof opening up. He lazily turned his head and saw two male students approaching him. He really didn't know who they were but he swears that both of them are from his class. "So this is where you've been hiding, huh?" the one on the left said.
"What?" Sam said as he slowly got to his feet.
"I said 'so this is where you've-"
"I can't hear you, speak up" Sam said.
"Would you just turn off your music!?" the kid shouted.
"No. Sorry, but I really like this song." Sam lied stretched his neck from shoulder to shoulder. He knew that the two of them were getting pissed, but he enjoyed watching it happen. He saw that the two of them had given up trying to talk to him through the music and instead just glared at him. "Aw, that's no fun" Sam thought as he pretended his favorite song was done and took out his earphones. "Now what were you saying?"
"You're a little asshole aren't you?" the kid said.
"There's no need curse now." Sam said, rolling his eyes. "What do you guys want anyways?"
"We've become interested in you." Sam raised an eyebrow. "My friend and I, along with a bunch of other kids run things around here. We set the rules of what others can or can't do and when they need our permission."
Sam rolled his eyes. "Yeah, so? What does that have to do with me?"
"Well we're always looking for some good enforcers. The school year might almost be over, but it's never too late to add someone new to the team."
"Enforcer?" Sam said mockingly before cracking up. "Who do you think you are? The Mob? Are you going to make me an offer I can't refuse?" The two of them glared at Sam again as he continued to laugh.
"Now that you mention it, you could say we have." Sam tried to contain his laughter so he could hear what the kid was going to say. "You see, we can't allow you to just walk around without restraint. Either you join the group or you'll be sorry."
Sam started laughing again. "This is rich. There was nothing like this where I came from."
"You'll find out were much different than the city scum you've associated with."
"Not really." Sam said as his laughter slowly came to a halt. This made the two boys both agitated and confused. "You talk and act just like them, the only difference is your approach."
"You mean how we're smart and build our forces?"
"Nope. Groups grow in size from where I come from, but never do they give a choice." Sam's face started to turn serious as he approached the two boys. "When one wanted someone to join their group they would beat the crap out of them until they begged for them to stop. Beating them was the only way to not join. That's how it's done in the city. The only time we ever 'asked' someone was for a temporary alliance against a common enemy. There have been rare times I've allied with other kids to take someone down, and more often I was ganged up on." Sam was standing right in front of them, staring them in the eyes. "The two of you don't scare me, and I don't have any interest joining your little group."
The three of them stared at each other in silence. Then the bell rang three times, indicating class started again in two minutes. "You have until Friday to change your mind" was all that they said before they headed down the stairway.
"Don't count on it" Sam followed as he put his earphones back in.
After school Sam's grandfather was waiting for him at the bus stop. "What are you doing here?" Sam asked as he approached him.
"They're making room for the new equipment that's supposed to arrive within the next few days. Until the equipment arrives we'll all be cramped together in one room."
"That sucks" Sam said as he got into the passenger side door.
"Yes, but it will be worth it once the new stuff comes in. We'll get larger computer monitors, comfortable chairs, and cable television."
Sam looked at his grandfather with a dumbfounded look and raised an eyebrow. "Cable television? Are you serious?"
"Do you know how bad satellite is the mountains?"
"Not really, I don't watch television."
"Of course. You just listen to your music all day long." His grandfather got into the driver's seat. "I was thinking of going to get something to eat. Is there any particular place you want to go to?"
"Nah. I'm really not that familiar with the area yet. Anyplace is good."
"Well alright then. I'm going to take you to the Golden Corral." The car drove off. About an hour later they arrived home after a filling endless buffet. Sam brought back some of the food he couldn't finish. "You really had an appetite for meat, didn't you?" His grandfather noted the doggy bag that was filled with a variety of meats including steak, chicken, and roast beef.
"Yeah..." Sam had only gotten so much meat because while he was eating at the buffet he started thinking about the pup. "I'm going to go for a walk."
"With the food?" His grandfather raised an eyebrow.
"Uh... incase I get hungry again?" His grandfather just shrugged his shoulders and walked into the house. Sam walked towards the mountain path. The whole way he kept hoping that the pup wouldn't be there, that it would be gone so he wouldn't have to worry about it. He thought the worst that could happen was that the pup was still in the cave, but as he turned he dropped the leftovers. The pup was in the exact same spot he left it in yesterday, except it was lying on its side, breathing hard.
"Oh crap!" Sam said as he quickly knelt down and cradled the pup upper body in his lap as he tried to wake it up. "Come on little..." Sam finally noticed something as he looked down the pup. "Come on little guy, wake up." He continued to stroke the pup's sides and head. He watched as the pup's eyes opened just slightly and looked at him. Sam let a sigh of relief. "Oh thank you. Are you all right?" The pup just tilted its head and gave him a lick under his chin. Sam let out a small chuckle. "Wait right here." Sam slowly lowered the pup back to the ground.
Sam went back the entrance and picked up the box of leftovers. It was fortunate that the majority of the food had managed to stay inside the container after it fell to the ground. He walked back to the pup and hand-fed him some of the meat. After a few minutes the pup was able to get on its feet and finish off the rest of the food from the container. Sam just sat and watched the pup going at it from behind. He noticed the huge white patch of fur on the pup's back. "Why does that seem so familiar?" Sam said to himself. Again, before he could think about it anymore the pup came back and jumped into his lap. He took out his earphones and set his iPod to the side as the pup alternated from licking his face to snuggling into him.
"I'm not sure why you like me so much, little guy; we've only known each other since yesterday, and that really wasn't much of an introduction." The pup just looked at him and barked. "My name is Sam." The pup was just stared at him before letting out another bark. "Are you trying to say my name?" Sam joked. He said his name again, the pup followed with another bark. He repeated it a few more times before he realized just how stupid he must look trying to teach his name to a wolf. The weird thing to him was that he couldn't explain why he was actually doing it. "So what's your name?" The pup was silent. Sam rolled his eyes, realizing he was being stupid again. "I guess I should give you a name..." His eyes gazed at the pup. "Well besides the white fur on your back you are almost completely jet black..." Sam smiled. "How about I call you Jet?" Jet barked and licked Sam's face. "I'll take that as an approval."
Sam sat there with Jet in his lap for a few minutes before slowly easing him off. He was getting bored of sitting down and so decided to take Jet for a little walk. "Watch your step here; one misstep could be tragic." Sam briefly glanced over the edge. Jet did the same and started walking closer to him. When the path started to widen Jet started to run around to vent off all of his pent up energy. "You see that building over?" Sam pointed to his house in the distance. Jet's head turned towards the direction that his finger pointed. "That's where I live." Jet's tail started to wag faster as he started dashing in the house's direction. "No! Stop, Jet!" Sam shouted. Almost immediately Jet came to a halt with his ears against his head. "You can't go there; my grandfather would probably have a heart attack. Sam actually pictured that the scene would be hilarious; his grandfather walking in and seeing a wolf in his lap, but that was beside the point. "You have to stay in that cave."
Jet whimpered as he slowly walked back towards Sam. Each whimper he let out made Sam's heart sink slightly. "Don't get sad. I'll let you come over when he's out." Jet's enthusiasm quickly came back as continued running around Sam. "And make sure you don't come here without my permission unless it's an emergency. Got it?" Jet barked and jumped up on Sam.
An hour later the sun was starting to disappear behind the mountaintops. Sam walked Jet back to the cave and rubbed his head before saying goodbye. "And feel free to move around" Sam said, not wanting to repeat the same mistake.
Jet lied down on the ground when he could no longer see Sam. He was tired from all the running he did today. His eyes started to close and his mind started to go blank as he started to fall asleep. Unknowingly to him, before he completely fell asleep his muzzle opened slightly. "Sam..."
The next day at lunch Sam bought some more meat for Jet before heading up to his usual spot. He wondered if those kids were going to be there to bother him again. Unfortunately they were already waiting for Sam up on the roof. "Have you changed you mind?" One of them asked with his arms crossed.
"Nope..." Sam said as he sat down and turned up his iPod.
"Tomorrow's your last chance." They said before heading back downstairs. Sam couldn't hear what they said through the music, but he didn't really care anyways. He just closed his eyes and enjoyed the music for the rest of lunchtime.
Back in class the teacher was late and Sam noticed most of the kids chatting amongst each other and occasionally looked over at him. Sam was both surprised and confused by this. Sure everyone had done the same thing after he introduced himself, but that quickly faded away. He wondered why everyone was talking about him again. Just then something even more shocking happened; two of the kids actually approached him.
One was a boy, the other a girl. He could recollect their names because they were called before him during roll. They were the class twins, Ryan and Emily. They walked up to me with the whole class watching. They were obviously nervous, but he noted that they probably had the most guts to talk to him. "Is it true?" Emily asked Sam.
Sam took out his earphones and asked "What?"
"Is it true that you're joining Keith's group?" Ryan asked in a low voice to prevent the possibility of Keith overhearing them even though he was sitting at the opposite side of the classroom."
"I'm not joining anyone. Now go away" Sam said as he motioned to put his earphones back in.
"That's not what Keith said" said Emily, causing Sam's arms to stop. "He's been boasting to us during lunch that you're going to be the newest member."
Sam rolled his eyes. "Well he's lying because I've already told him, like I'm telling the two of you, that I'm not joining any group. I've made that clear to him. Now leave me alone.
"You don't get it do you!?" Ryan interjected. Sam glared at Ryan, causing him to flinch a bit, but he continued. "We've seen many kids who said the same thing, but they all either joined in the end or..." Ryan bit his lip. Sam's curiosity caused him to raise an eyebrow. "They go missing..."
"Well it looks like it's easy to get lost around here" Sam said.
"You know what he means" Emily said. "Especially since you're from the city."
Sam sighed. He knew full well what they were talking about. When someone went 'missing' from his old school they would usually be found in a dumpster a few days later. Sam sighed. "I was expecting this place to be peaceful..."
"Everyplace has its problems..." Ryan said. They turned their heads when the teacher walked in. Everyone quickly went back to their seats and got quiet. It was still assignment time for most of the class so Sam just resumed listening to his music.
At the bus stop later that afternoon Sam was walking his usual way to his house, not knowing that a group of boys were watching. "He walks alone down a secluded path" one of the boys said. "Which means there'll be no witnesses" another one said.
"Is this really necessary?" one of the younger boys asked nervously, obviously new to the group. "It will be if he doesn't accept our invitation" Keith said. The group continued to watch Sam before heading each their separate ways.
"Hey Jet" Sam called out as he turned the corner into the caves. He was immediately jumped upon by the pup. "Look what I brought" Sam pulled out the meat from school and laid it out on the ground. As he let Jet eat his meal his thoughts focused on what Ryan and Emily had told him. "I just can't get a break" Sam whispered. His thoughts were interrupted as he just realized that Jet had crawled into his lap. He stroked the pup's fur. "So what do you want to do today, huh?"
Jet got excited and walked to the entrance of the cave. "You want to go to my house, huh?" Jet barked. Sam chuckled. He was impressed that Jet remembered his promise from yesterday. "Alright. Let's go."
Sam walked slowly on the path while Jet ran all the way across. Sam got a little nervous when Jet did that. His grandfather had told him that the path is fragile and should only be crossed with caution. Sam knew Jet weighed nowhere near what he weighed, but all the same he didn't feel comfortable with the running. He sighed with relief when Jet was on the other side. When he reached Jet they both continued to his house.
When Sam opened the door Jet quickly went in and started sniffing everything. He smelt the fridge, the pantry, the couch, his grandfather's desk chair, and then went upstairs where he started scratching at a door; his door. "Looks like you found my room" Sam said as he came up the stairs. He turned the knob and let Jet dash in. He watched as Jet immediately jumped on top of Sam's bed and lied down at the foot of it, dozing off.
"Oh no" Sam said shaking his head. "I agreed to show you around, not give you a new place to sleep. Sam closed the door and got on the bed and tried to budge Jet off. "C'mon..." Sam went to try to pick Jet up, but Jet turned to him and let out a yawn. Suddenly Sam let out a long, heavy yawn. His eyes started to get heavy and he collapsed onto his back, sleep slowly consuming him.
Everything around him was hazy. He couldn't make out where he was. The only thing that was clearly defined was the rock that he had discovered a few days ago. He looked around him in confusion before his eyes went back to the rock, or rather where the rock had been. In its place was Jet who stared at him with his tail wagging. Sam knelt down to pet Jet on the head. Before his hand made contact Jet opened his muzzle and let out "Sam!" Sam froze. Jet did it again and again before everything around him vanished and he woke up to the sound of his grandfather calling him from downstairs. Jet was sitting up looking at him. He looked at the clock and realized he had been asleep for three hours. "Don't move" Sam said to Jet as he rushed out the door, closing it behind him.
"Were you taking a nap?" his grandfather asked as he saw Sam's drowsy face.
"Yeah. Did you need me?" Sam said rubbing his eyes.
"Work starts late tomorrow so I'm heading out to see a movie. Is there anything you want to see?"
"Oh, I don't feel like seeing a movie tonight. You go on ahead."
"Alright, try to get to bed before I get back."
"I will" Sam said as his grandfather walked out the front door. He watched as his grandfather entered his car and drove off. When he was sure he wasn't coming back he rushed upstairs and opened his door. "Come on" Sam said rather sternly. Jet sensed this and flattened his ears as he slowly hopped off the bed and followed Sam. Before leaving Sam grabbed an extra bowl from the cupboard and a bottle of water from the fridge.
Sam was agitated that he could have been caught. If he hadn't woken up in time his grandfather would have surely came up and opened his door. Jet sensed Sam's frustration and slowly followed closely behind him. Sam could barely see the path as the light from the sun was beginning to fade.
When they reached the cave he placed the bowl on the ground and filled it with water. He couldn't tell how long it's been since Jet had something to drink. He turned around and found Jet sitting down staring right at him with his ears folded. His eyes pierced through him. There was just something about puppy eyes that made a lot of people melt. It didn't necessarily have the same effect on Sam, but it did cause a bit of his anxiety to go away as he petted Jet's head. "Stay in here. I'll see you tomorrow." Jet's ears straightened out when Sam petted him.
Sam waved goodbye to Jet.
The next day at lunch Keith and his friend found Sam in his usual spot. Sam was sitting with his back faced to them. Without letting them say anything Sam said "The answer is still no. Get it through your thick egotistical skull that I have no interest in joining you. Sam turned his head. "Now go away." He turned his back forward, not seeing the smirk that formed on Keith's face. He and his friend walked away with him saying "You'll be sorry." Sam didn't hear a single word he said.
In class the rest of the kids were turning in their assignments. The teacher then had every group join another group so they could critique each other's work. Sam knew this was going to be a mandatory thing and decided to wait until everyone else partnered up. If he was lucky there would be an odd number of groups. That wasn't going to happen, however, as Ryan and Emily immediately came up to him. This shocked both him and the rest of the class. Before he could say anything the two of them sat down in the desks around him.
"What did you say to Keith?" Ryan asked.
Sam groaned. "The same thing I said yesterday. Ryan and Emily looked at each other with worry. "What?"
"You should be careful from now on" said Emily. "Remember what we said yesterday?"
"I do and the two of you should stop worrying about it and me. Why do the two of you even care about it?"
"Our childhood friend, Jeremy, was forced into joining Keith a few months ago" said Ryan. "He was resistant in the beginning as well, but when the deadline came he ended up accepting, after Keith had his left arm broken."
"Why was he interested in your friend?" Sam asked. Is he tough?"
"Oh no" said Emily. "He was just the fastest runner on the track team. He hates violence."
"Doesn't exactly sound like the kind of person Keith would want in his gang."
"He doesn't only recruit those who are physically strong" said Ryan. "He gets those who are the best at what they do, like Jeremy, who can benefit him in some way."
"And if you're not with him you're against him" Emily finished off.
"Interesting, but I can take care of myself. If Keith is smart he'll stay away from me." Ryan and Emily were silent. "Don't we have work to do or something?" Sam asked trying to get things moving. Ryan and Emily nodded and went to critiquing their work.
At the bus stop Sam walked towards the cliff. He was so engrossed with his music that he didn't realize ten students following him. "I still think this is a bad idea Keith" one of them said. "How many times do I have to tell you to shut up? Would you like me to break your arm again?" Jeremy went silent as they slowly followed behind Sam.
It was when Sam could see the cave that he decided to take out his earphones, and that's when he heard the sound of footsteps behind him. He turned around and saw the ten boys practically in a single straight line. It should have been a threatening sight, but Sam just placed his palm on his face and shook his head in disbelief. "Are you frickin serious!?" Sam shouted.
"I don't take no for an answer" Keith said. He was standing at the very front. "I can't take the chance for there to be any opposition when we enter high school."
"You'll only be freshman. What harm could you do?"
"That would be a good question... if there weren't already others like us already in high school." Sam raised his eyebrow in both confusion and with curiosity. "I didn't create this gang. I became a member in seventh grade and was promoted to the overseer of the middle school when I entered eighth grade. My superior and his men are currently running the freshman division in high school. His superior and men are part of the junior division and so forth. Our gang works like a chain. As the links at the top vanish after graduating, new ones are formed at the bottom by seventh graders. Once I finish middle school I will appoint a seventh grader to take my place, and the cycle will continue."
"Well I have to give some props for being creative, but what's the point to all of this?"
"My point is that if I allow a potential threat like you to roam free then I'll be reprimanded when I enter high school. So I am going to give you one more chance to-"
"No!" Sam shouted bluntly.
Keith shook his head. "It's obvious you need some 'persuasion'"
Sam put his backpack down. "What are you going to do? Fight me here? Look around you!" Sam had his arms spread out. "You guys can only stay in a straight line. If you charge at me I can just kick you over the side."
"We'll see" Keith said as he pointed his finger forward, signaling the guy behind him to approach Sam. He was a few inches taller than Sam and was cracking his knuckles as he approached him.
"Ready for some pain?" he said as he was only a foot away from Sam.
"Are you?" asked Sam. Before the other kid could react Sam swung his foot right into his crotch. He immediately doubled over to the ground fast and hard, causing a slight crack to form on the path. Having to pity on him, Sam stood behind and kicked the kid in the same spot over and over again until he got bored. The tough kid now had tears rolling down the sides of his face from the pain. Sam walked on over the kid's back. "You can go back to your group now" Sam said mockingly as the kid slowly got up and walked back with his hands clutching his crotch.
"Hey boss. Could I please go home?" Keith sighed and gave pity on him. Every boy can understand the pain that come from even slight abuse down there. The kid walked pass the other kids and around the mountain edge.
"Well that's one down." Sam smirked. Keith glared at him. He sent two more boys at him. They were practically side-by-side with one slightly behind the other. The boy in front swung at Sam. Sam ducked under the punch kicked the other boy in the side causing him to lose his footing and fall towards the end of the path. Sam snagged the kid by his backpack and held him in place. The kid's feet were at the edge of the path and any slight movement would cause his feet to slide forward. Sam looked back forth between Keith and the other boy that had been sent at him who was just standing still.
"What are you doing?" Keith shouted. "Get him!"
The other kid started approaching Sam. "I wouldn't do that" this caused the other kid to freeze. "Attack me and you might cause me to lose my grip on this kid, causing him fall straight down. You don't want that do you?" He asked the kid he was holding.
"No! I don't want to fall!" the kid cried, tears rolling down his face.
"What's your name?" he asked the kid he was holding.
"Will..." he sobbed.
"And what's yours?" Sam asked the other kid.
"R-Richard."
"Now Richard, you don't want to be the cause of Will falling to his death because you caused me to lose my grip."
"Please! No!" Will cried. Richard stared at the two of them with wide eyes and his breathing getting heavy.
"Well do you!?" Sam asked again.
"I don't!" Richard answered back.
"Didn't think so" Sam said as he swung will off the cliff and into Richard, knocking them both out and collapsing to the ground. The crack underneath them widened. "It doesn't seem like your boys have it in them." Sam said mocking at Keith who was now biting his lip.
"Come on Keith" Jeremy pleaded. "Let's get out of here before something really bad happens.
"I told you to shut up, Jeremy!" Keith shouted as he grabbed Jeremy and pushed him towards Sam.
"Jeremy?" Sam realized this was the person Ryan and Emily had told him about. He watched as Jeremy was trying to get his footing on the rocky path, but failed and ended up falling down hard in front of Sam. That extra shock caused an audible crack to be heard by all of them. Sam looked down at his feet and noticed cracks starting to form all around him. "Oh crap!" Sam shouted as the ground beneath him, Jeremy, and the two unconscious boys gave way and started sliding down and side of the mountain towards the ground a hundred feet below.
"Well that's one way to take care of things..." Keith smirked as he and others watched.
"Sam!"
The boys looked around them to find who had said that. They then noticed that a black wolf had suddenly appeared on the other side of the collapsed path. "Is that wolf... crying?" one of the boys behind Keith asked.
"Sam!" Jet shouted down at ground below, no longer able to see him.
"What the hell?" Keith said as they all realized that the wolf was speaking.
"Sam!... Sam!... Sam!" Jet shouted over and over again as tears rolled down from his eyes. After a while of shouting at the ground his eyes focused on Keith and the other boys. His face turned vicious and a terrifying growl emitted from his muzzle. Jet's pupils expanded until his eyes turned black. He started approach the boys who were now freaked out and slowly walking backwards.
"Sam!" was all Jet shouted before dashing towards them.
What do you think? I hope you liked it.
This story is based off a dream I had a couple months ago, but couldn't get to writing it because how demanding school had been. Most days I had to wake up at four in the morning to carpool to school 90 miles away. Then I would get home and go to bed at nine at night. So I had little time to do any story writing.
This series might become a trilogy (I had wanted to write it all under one story, but then I realized how little I was doing at a time and decided to break it up instead).
Only if people really like this story will I continue the series. I already have another story series I'm working on, but I just had an urge to write up the dream I had.
If I decide to continue this series I will be alternating between this and my other series.
Please comment on anything you liked or you think needs improvement (Both are welcomed)