"Oh my God! Dale! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!” I put my hand on his neck, which was still bleeding. Dale's eyes were half closed and the forest was drenched in his fear. Why the hell did I do that? And at that moment, I felt a dark presence in my mind slowly disappeared. Lazar… It had to be his fault. Damn it! A mournful groan came out of my throat. Dale groaned softly and tried to get up. I supported his back and carefully lifted him into a sitting position. Dale growled in irritation and I realized I was constantly mumbling, sorry, sorry, sorry. Tears welled up in my eyes, and every time I swallowed, I was in danger of vomiting.

"Damn... You're fucking strong for a pup…" Dale sighed and leaned against my chest.

"I’m sorry Dale, I didn't mean to…" I began, but Dale interrupted me with a disapproving grunt.

"I want to go home," he whispered softly, his warm breath tickling my chest. "Please…" He snuggled up to me and I gasped.

"O-okay, yeah, y-yeah. I'll take you home," I stammered. "Can you get up?" Dale’s answer was another grunt, and then he began to rise. I helped him as best as I could, then carefully let him go. He swayed on his feet a bit but stood. I ran for the backpack with his clothes and brought it to him. It wasn't until I handed him his shirt that I realized that we were both covered in his blood. The dark red liquid glistened in the moonlight. I licked my lips and my stomach heaved immediately. This time I couldn’t push it away. I turned around and threw up. It was all Dale’s blood. When I finally stopped and focused on the pool of red, I threw up again…

"Ugh..." I moaned in disgust and rose. A warm hand appeared on my back, and then the other offered me a water bottle. I gave him a grateful smile and rinsed my mouth before I drank. I tried to wash away the blood both from me and him as he sipped water. The wound on his neck had stopped bleeding, which was a good thing. I quickly threw on some sweatpants and a t-shirt that Dale had brought in his backpack. I didn't even bother with shoes. Then I picked up the backpack and took Dale home. I supported him on the way as he swayed. He looked like he would pass out any moment. Oh god… What have I done?

By the time we got to the house, Dale was practically asleep on his feet. I threw the backpack on the ground and helped Dale up the stairs. Rather I dragged him upstairs... I wasn't even sure how I managed to pull off the blankets and slowly lower him to the bed. He was practically a dead weight in my arms. I could probably thank the werewolf strength for that, even though I didn't feel the Beast right now. He was hiding somewhere deep in my soul and refused to climb out. If only I could hide from my problems like that… With a sigh, I collapsed beside Dale and rubbed my face in exhaustion. I almost killed him… I almost killed Dale! My chest suddenly felt too tight, I couldn’t seem to catch my breath and I could hear my blood rushing through my ears. I gasped and tears ran down my cheeks. I couldn't even wipe them away with how shaky my hands were.

"Hush… Andrew..." he whispered in my ear, and I gave something between a whimper and sob. "It's okay… I'm fine…" His hands wrapped around my torso and a soothing warm weight pressed against my side. I tried to stop the tears, in vain.

"I almost killed you!" I said.

"But you didn't. You stopped." His breath tickled my neck as he buried his face between my neck and shoulder. My breath finally calmed and my chest stopped trying to crush all my organs. A strange calm spilled over my body… I was finally able to focus. Dale had one hand on my chest and one leg slung between mine. Shit… If I didn't suddenly feel so dazed, I'd probably be very uncomfortable. Right now though I was just happy I could feel his warm living body against me.

"It's not your fault, Lazar is to blame. He wants you for himself, and I’m destroying his plans.” He laughed softly. "Fuck how I hate him…” he growled.

"We'll kill him... I promise..." I muttered, still feeling a bit dazed.

"I have no doubt about that... but at what cost?" His breath evened as he fell asleep. As I lay there next to him the feeling of inner peace suddenly started to fade away. Um… Shit. What now? I tried to move, but Dale held me tight.

"Uh… Dale?" I tried, but he was dead asleep. Well, if my punishment for almost killing him was one night in his arms, I would survive. I had no right to wake him, so for a good few hours, I just stared at the ceiling and thought about how the hell I got into this situation. I fell asleep only as the first rays of sunlight penetrated the window.