My hands were trembling as I unbuttoned his shirt. I'd never seen so many cuts and bruises before. I had no idea what to do for him. I used my coat as a pillow and put aside his drenched coat, shirt, and even took off his shoes.

He was unconscious and the sight of him was far from pitiful. My years of watching Supernatural played in my head on rewind. At least Sam and Dean always had Bobby to run to yet I, on the other hand, was but a menace with her guardian angel possibly in a spirit comma.

Liam's lip was busted and blood had dried at the corner of his mouth, forming a thick scab. His left eye was swollen and it looked like his nose was broken with the angle it appeared to be in. His chest was covered in cuts and bruises and his back had been whipped quite mercilessly. I was starting to feel queasy. I took several deep breaths and finally sat beside him, staring hopelessly.

What had I done? My big mouth had landed him in serious trouble and all because I was jealous. Samantha had simply gotten on my nerves! What did he see in her anyway?

"How bad is he?" I was on my feet in an instant out of sheer reflex and fear. "Oh my, it's worse than I thought."

"Gus?" I stammered, slowly returning to Liam's side. "What-How did you-?"

"I'm sorry you got to see him like this," He said, putting down a black briefcase. "He's been through worse before, but this... Jason went a little too far."

"He was here," I whispered.

"I know," Gus replied. "He didn't do anything to you, did he?"

"No, not at all. He scared the shit out of me though."

"Yeah, it comes with the trade," He said, smiling briefly. "Think you're brave enough to help me out?"

"Absolutely."

Gus worked as if he'd patched up wounds his entire life. His fingers danced with the bandages after I'd cleaned the mess made. Up close and unconscious, Liam was beyond what I'd thought. His facial features were more defined and his lips were extremely soft as I secretly traced them with my fingers. I kind of understood Samantha's obsession.

"I hope he gets out of this fast," I said under my breath.

"He's tougher than you think," Gus replied, gathering the soiled cloths.

"Could I ask how he and uh-Samantha know each other?" I asked, sitting close enough to Liam I could hear him breathing.

"It's not what you think," Gus replied. "I bet he told you that he was never who he is right now?"

"Yeah, he did."

"How he got here is the big question," he continued. "The only person who lent him a hand was Samantha. Being who she is, her influence swayed Jason to believe that allowing Liam to be the first lower soul to ever be accepted to be a reaper would, in turn, benefit us all and she was right. Even though it took years for Jason to trust him, Liam is the best reaper we have around. In under a year, he'd organized the zones and all the souls were correctly placed. Samantha, on the other hand, fancied him, big time. Liam did kind of owe it to her that he got the chance to be who he is now, but he made it clear to her that they could never be more than that. More than true friends, in some sort of way."

"And why's that?" I asked. "They could be the power couple or something like that."

"Samantha definitely thinks like that," Gus said, chuckling. "Never tell Liam I told you any of this."

"Absolutely, it stays between us," I replied, winking at him.

"As hard as it is to believe, Samantha is not his type," Gus said, looking at me.

"You're pulling my leg!" I gasped. He was seriously joking, right?

"Nope. Samantha knows that and so she's doing everything she can to change his mind hence, the endless out of the blue kissing."

"He does go along with it though," I said, confused.

"Because that's the gentleman thing to do. He's not the kind of person to make a person feel awkward. She's the one doing all the work though if you didn't notice. He never kisses her back, she simply says he does."

"I simply don't understand why he even puts up with that."

"She is an incredible kisser though," Gus said, blushing and completely out of context.

"Really?! No! You too? Does Liam know?"

"Of course he does. It's how Samantha rolls. Since she can't have him, she's going for the next best thing," Gus replied, pointing to himself.

"How about Rodrick and Hanta?" I asked.

"Oh, they don't roll like that," Gus replied. "They have more to do than letting some woman come between them."

"Well, good for them," I said. "I'm guessing you like Samantha more than you lead on?"

"How could you tell?" He asked, biting his lower lip a bit nervously.

"When you speak about her, there's this subtleness to it. You know that she's the way she is, but you actually like that. Does he know?" I asked, looking down at Liam.

"He actually does," Gus said.

"And what is he doing about it?" I asked, wondering why he'd let his dear friend suffer while she was toying with them.

"He has a plan," Gus said, smiling at me.

"What plan?" 

"You simply need to trust him and understand that he always means well, even when it seems like he's being a selfish prick," Gus said. "I'm glad he met you, even though it was sooner than expected."

"What do you mean by-"

"Ahhh...."

"He's awake," Gus said, ignoring what I'd just said.