“What?”

Admittedly, I was not expecting such a reaction. Especially from a gossipmonger like Nicolas.

“Yeah, dude!” Nicolas cried excitedly, his spit drizzling all over my face, “It's totally awesome!”

It was hard to decide if I felt more sorry for the people who had conceived him, or the fact that he was such a tragic level of stupid.

Being a criminal was awesome?

What in the flying shits?

Nicolas hopped onto the desk next to the chair I was sitting on.

“So, that’s why you guys disappeared!” he said, swinging his skinny, freckled legs around, “It was because you were concocting ways to commit crimes and then, you had to hide from the police!”

Um, no. Close, but no.

“Excuse me,” I said slowly, as if addressing myself to a grade one retard, “I think you’re mistaken. Indeed, that was me on the surveillance video, but if you believe for a second that Damian and I had been planning on murdering his mom for some time – ”

Nicolas spread his arms apart, knocking the back of his hand against my nose. “It doesn’t matter!” he exclaimed, as the tears began to form at the corner of my eyes, “The fact that you and my best friend appeared on national television, accused of the murder of Damian’s mom, is awesome! Wow, you're, like, practically a celebrity.”

His eyes were shinning. Or were those tears blurring my vision, from the hit I had received?

I was not an idiot. Far from being one. Thus, I was aware that there were some deep, psychological issues about me. Nobody was perfect – except Damian, that is – so, I wasn’t about to lie to myself and believe I did not stand out like a sore thumb, in society.

But Nicolas? Nicolas Williams? He was fucking crazy. Like, literally his brain had left the chat the day he was born.

No, not even. The moment he was conceived, a peanut had been floating inside his skull.

Never had I witnessed such a dumbfounding, shocking reaction. Never had anybody, except my family and Damian, gotten away from not only hitting me, but acting as if what I did with my free time and my life was part of their business.

And it was amazing.

Amazing how much I instantly wanted to protect this guy too. I mean, it’s not everyday you’re going to waltz down a street, and bump into a boy who thought being on TV, wanted for criminal activities, was cool.

He was a keeper. Damian had great taste.

Nicolas put his hand on my shoulder, his face a tad too close to my own. “You know, this reminds me of a game I’d played once. Where the main character, an anti-villain, had set out on a journey against the world, in order to avenge the ones who had hurt his loved one. That’s why you did it, right?”

He leaned closer and closer, his excitement expanding, practically breathing into my face. I had to keep on backing away to keep from being showered by his saliva.

“Because Danielle was a terrible parent, right?” he continued, “Because she abused Damian and Daphne? I don’t blame you for doing it. I would have done it too, if I had the same amount of courage that you did, plus – ”

As he blabbed on and on, my chair teetered backward, and I fell back, my legs in the air, like an overturned turtle.

CRACK!

The chair broke under my weight, and I hit the floor hard. My back throbbed in pain.

“Oops!” Nicolas jumped off the desk and rushed towards me, “Are you okay? Should I get you a glass of water? A Tylenol? Do you want a massage? I’m pretty good at giving massages. Last year, I was known as Sir Handy, in the school. Pretty neat, huh?”

He reached out to help me stand up, though I shrugged his hand off and sat up with as much dignity as I could muster.

“Listen,” I said, feeling very tired and very confused as to why I thought he was fun to talk with. Trying to understand why I even bothered to explain myself. “I didn’t kill Danielle. I would have loved to, but I didn’t.”

Nicolas tilted his head on the side, “You sure, dude?”

I nodded, “Yes.” 

Of course, he was not going to believe me. He would either scream, tell me everything was a joke or run away to call help. Of course, if he even tried any of these, today would be his last day on Earth.

However, to my surprise, Nicolas merely nodded and said, “Ah, really? Okay, I believe you.”

“Huh?”

Confusion. It was a weird, peculiar feeling.

“I said I believe you,” he repeated, “So, was that why you were under the bridge? Because the police was after you and they didn’t have it in them to comprehend that you were innocent?”

“Umm…”

“No problem! Fear not.” Nicolas said, jumping up, “I’ll help you!”

My heart skipped a beat. No, several beats. I thought I was going to faint.

He was going to help me? Without my having to force him? Without threatening his life or the ones of the people or things he cared about?

Out there, in this world, there were rare gems like Nicolas?

I didn't have to abuse people, to corner them like rats, to trap them and render them useless, to get them to obey me?

Did that mean everything I did to Damian had been in vain? All of my past actions, all the times I had treated him like Cookie's replacement, did not have to be done?

I could have gotten him to listen to me if I had treated him with more respect?

Wow. Just wow.

Nicolas rushed towards Tony, and began to shake him. “Wake up!” he said, “Come on, dude. Wake up! You've got to hear this!”

Tony did not even stir. Nicolas had been right. That guy was a heavy sleeper.

After a few minutes of work, which included screaming into his ear, tickling his feet and slapping him across the face, Nicolas gave up on Tony.

“Oh, well!” he said dejectedly, “He’ll come about tomorrow, but I’m sure Tony will help you too, once he hears your plea. He may be a pain, but he's really nice and understanding. I'm sure he'll agree to help you as well.”

“What if he doesn’t?” I stood up and brushed some invisible dust off my pants, suddenly feeling very self-conscious and nervous. “You know, I don’t think it’s a good idea for me to stay here. What if Marie-Yvette discovers the video? What if the police comes knocking here for information, and then they think that she was covering for me?”

Nicolas thought for a second, “Then, we get you out of here.”

“Huh?”

He pranced around excitedly, “It’s alright! My parents own a cottage a few kilometres away from here. Tony and I will safely get you there, and we can start planning our next moves. You know, proving stupid Jake and the police wrong. Oh, and maybe you might want to bring Damian too?”

I did not answer. He might have noticed my discomfort because next thing I knew, he patted my back. “Damian is in trouble, isn’t he?” he said softly, all traces of his contagious delight gone, “Something bad happened, yes?”

I bit my bottom lip, refusing to answer once again.

“It’s alright,” Nicolas said, “Although, I’ve known you for only a couple of hours, I know you’re not a bad person. Similar to Damian, you might have had your share of bad experiences, which led to your current situation. I wasn’t always there for Damian, and maybe I could blame it on my young age and everything, but I should have done something.”

“He never said anything, but I knew there was something going on in his house. I knew his mom was treating him and his sister badly. I could have helped them, you know, but...I failed him. Failed both him and Daphne.”

He paused, giving me time to process his words. “That’s why, I’m going to help you.”

“Whatever comes our way, we’ll get you to that cabin, and sort out matters from there. Let’s clear out your name and save Damian from whatever pinch he is in.”

Nicolas yawned loudly. “I’m tired. Lucky for us, I do not think Tony’s parents will recognize you anytime sooner, if ever they saw the video. It’ll take them some time to realize the police is after you, because they rarely ever watch television, or pay attention to what’s around them. I think it’ll be safe for you to sleep tonight.”

He turned off the light, and with mighty effort, pushed Tony to the corner of the bed, against the wall. Then, he curled up next to him.

I stood on the side, unsure of what to do. Unsure of what to feel.

Everything was happening too fast and it was taking me more time than usual to come up with a solution. I was going to receive some help?

Somebody felt sympathy for me? Me?

Nicolas patted the space next to him, “No need to sleep in the other rooms. As an only child, I know how it is to feel lonely. Let’s all sleep on the same bed, to honour our friendship.”

“Friendship?”

Nicolas smiled, his braces making him appear more like a ten-year-old kid than a fifteen-year-old moron. “Of course!” he said happily, “Damian’s friend is my friend. Come on, let’s sleep. Whenever the three of us had sleepovers, we always slept on the same bed. Even if it was small, we'd stick together like canned sardines. It's part of our bond. And now, you're part of it too.”

“I don't know,” I said, astonished by his persistence and kindness.

Couldn’t he tell I was a bad kid? Couldn’t he see me for what I really was, or was Tony the only one with common sense? Was Tony the only one who was aware that you should not always trust strangers, regardless of their being a mutual friend?

Was Nicolas seriously an idiot?

“No need to hesitate, dude,” Nicolas insisted, “Come on. This bed’s big enough for like, ten people.”

Oh, well. Fuck it.

Reluctantly, I walked towards the designated space and lied down. Nicolas grinned, then turned to pinch Tony’s cheek, while the latter snored.

A few hours ago, I had been ready to murder these two in cold blood. Now, one of them was offering their full support and friendship to me. Me, a bloody, evil, dirty sorcerer who had not told them the truth. Who knew that their best friend was in great trouble, but who did not know what to make of it. Who had not told them how bad the situation was.

I was bewildered he didn’t even think of me as a monster, like most people did. Maybe this was a trap? A trap set up by my family. Yes, that was their style.

They wanted me to become attached to others again, so they would come and snatch them away, making them suffer as I watched. Telling me they were doing it for “my own benefits.”

It was probably one, giant farce, set to blow up in my face, once I let my guard down.

Tony, I still had my doubts about, but for now, I decided it would be better to seize the moment.

Marie-Yvette and Damian were not the only humans I wanted to protect. I realized that in this world, I shouldn’t be prejudiced against humans. Perhaps, they weren't so bad after all.

Perhaps, their inferiority and evil selves weren't true. More lies from my clan. 

Besides, even if he was a stupid one, Nicolas wanted to be my friend. He was ready to claim me, a liar, a manipulative scumbag, a useless, unwanted child, as a friend.

I hadn’t had friends, real friends, for years.

Connections. I'd always been afraid to form connections. Afraid to be judged and looked at differently because I had problems. Because of who I was. 

Because of what I was. 

Friends, huh?

I had a friend. Nicolas had accepted me. Believed me. Was not scared of me.

“Thank you,” I muttered. A few seconds passed, and when he did not answer, I realized he was also fast asleep. Snuggled up right next to Tony, his arm around him.

For the first time in fifteen years, a genuine smile appeared on my face. For the first time in fifteen years, I did not cry myself to sleep. For the first time in fifteen years, I did not have nightmares.

And I certainly did not feel so alone anymore.

It would definitely not last forever, and they would definitely turn against me once they found out the truth about my origins.

The truth about everything.

But temporary acceptance and happiness was better than feeling like the whole world was against you.

For now, all I wanted to do was enjoy sleeping in peace.