I grin, looking at my best friend. I would do anything to protect him.

“You ready to go?” He says, looking up. He laughs when he notices I’m already looking at him. 

“Yep!” I bounce from my seat, linking my arm with his. We’re going to the movies today. Disney’s “Haunted Mansion” recently came out, and it’s a combination of both of our favorite genres. Children’s movies and horror. 

“Hey, what are you watching?” A random boy plops himself down on the bench next to me, looking at my phone screen. 

“Casper,” I reply. “Have you seen it before?”

“No way, really?” He asks, shuffling closer. “I love that movie!”

“Me too,” I giggle. “What’s your name?”

“Kahleel,” he responds. “What about yours?”

“Akuma,” I reply. 

I smile, and I can’t help but chuckle at the memory. Kahleel was so insistent on knowing what I was watching when I didn’t even know him, and now here we are eleven years later, doing the same thing that we bonded over originally. 

The drive to the movie theater is short, but the movie itself is longer than you would expect of a Disney movie. Two hours and five popcorn refills later, it’s over and I stumble out of the theater, on a sugar high from slurpees and Sour Patch Kids. 

Kahleel catches my arm, steadying me. “You okay?” He laughs. “Jeez, I didn’t know you could get any weirder.”

I smack him in the arm with my purse. “Shut up,” I respond. “Like you can talk.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” He shrieks, but I can tell his tone is a joking one. I grin, sliding into the passenger seat of his car. 

“Nothing you need to know,” I reply, wiggling my fingers mysteriously. 

He shakes his head, backing out of his parking spot. “I thought we were friends,” he sticks out his lip in a fake pout. 

I feel a random spurt of anger at those words. “We are,” I mutter. “Don’t question that again, whether it be real or a joke.” 

Kahleel goes quiet at that. “Sorry,” I mumble. He doesn’t acknowledge it. 

The first half of the ride goes by in an awkward silence, the only sound being the cars passing outside. I know I said the wrong thing, but I apologized. He should forgive me already. 

We’re starting to accelerate after a red light the first time it happens. A car barrels through the light, and I see it about to hit us. Kahleel’s reaction time has never been the greatest, so I shoot my hand out to grab the wheel and jerk it to the right, sending us crashing into a tree instead of getting hit by a car. Kahleel glances over at me, giving me a nod of thanks. I don’t mention the four inch cut in my leg from a tree branch sticking through the door. 

********************

Two weeks later, everything is normal. Kahleel still doesn’t know about my leg, as I’ve done a pretty good job at hiding my limp when I’m around him. I’m not sure about today, though. We’re going to the mall, and I’m not sure how long I can walk without hurting myself more. 

“What about the arcade?” Kahleel suggests. “They’ve got a pretty good one here.” 

“You’re just taking advantage of my insane arcade game skills,” I laugh. 

“More like luck,” he jokes. 

I gasp, feigning offense. “How dare you!” I shout, but my tone is nothing but playful. He laughs, shoving me in the direction of the arcade. “Fine, we can do the arcade. On one condition. I’m paying.”

“No!” Kahleel shouts, pushing me out of the way and rushing up to the counter. I lean against the wall for a second, willing my leg to stop hurting. “2 cards, $20 on each please.” He turns to me, smirking in triumph. 

“Jerk,” I reply, punching him in the arm. 

“Whatever,” he laughs. “I bet I can get more tickets than you!” 

“Oh no you don’t!” I shriek, dashing to the whack-to-win. I swipe my card, grabbing the hammer and dropping it on the button. I don’t even need to turn to know I’ve won. “See? Jackpot.”

“I’ll never understand how you do that every time,” Kahleel shakes his head. “You made those two boys at the last arcade so mad. They were trying to win for hours, and you just came up and did it in one turn.”

“You know me!” I laugh. “Always a show off, even if it’s just for two eight year old boys.”

“You’re ridiculous,” Kahleel replies. 

We go around, playing all the games we want to (or all the games two teens can afford at an overpriced mall arcade). Kahleel even wins the jackpot on a spin-to-win, which surprises me. I always thought those things were rigged. 

We’re cashing in our tickets the second time it happens. Gunshots ring through the arcade, and I see Kahleel pause before moving. I push him away from the counter and into a small broom closet, closing the door and essentially throwing myself between him and the door. Not on my watch. 

“Are you okay?” I whisper, and Kahleel nods. He already has his phone out, ringing 911. I breathe out a sigh. It’s okay. We’ll be okay. 

********************

I don’t know what’s going on with me. All I feel is this urge to protect Kahleel, no matter the cost. We’ve avoided death two times in two weeks. If it happens again, I might have to take more drastic measures. 

I sigh, closing the door to the dank, cleared out storage room in the basement. It’s been a little too empty for the last few months. Maybe it’s time to do something with it. 

********************

A week later, we’re going on a hiking trip. The two of us are still a little shaken up from the arcade last weekend, so we thought we’d take some time outside. It should be good for us. 

I glance over at Kahleel, grinning. He looks like an absolute idiot in his bucket hat, carrying a walking stick taller than him. I wouldn’t trade it for the world, though. 

“You ready?” He asks me. I shake my head and laugh. 

Unlike Kahleel, I’ve opted to carry all of the water for this trip. The whole thing is an uphill trek, so it’s a little complicated, but it’s good for me. I needed a workout anyway. 

Typically, we’ll do downhill paths, but both of us decided to try something different today. We live right by a mountain range, so we’re both used to quick elevation changes. It’s not much of an issue for me when we’re a thousand feet higher than when we started. 

“This is so cool,” Kahleel says, gazing out over the horizon. 

“The view is pretty great,” I admit. He laughs, doing a little spin. “Wanna take pictures?”

We’re doing just that the last time it happens. The last time I feel that urge, that tug, letting me know that all I need to do is save him, even if he hates me for it. I can live with it, as long as he lives. 

His foot slips and he falls, and I dart under him to stop his head from hitting the rock. He looks at me. “Thank you,” he whispers. “I almost died. Again.”

We walk down the mountain and take our ten minute drive home, opening the door and turning on the lights. “You okay?” I ask Kahleel. “You seem a little shaken up.” 

“I am,” he responds. “I’ve almost died three times in the past few weeks.”

“Let me grab you a drink,” I respond, grabbing a glass from the cabinet. “Maybe it’ll help you calm down.”

I pour him and I a glass of soda, setting the bottle on the counter when I’m done. I slide his glass across the table, and he holds it for a second. I pretend to take a sip of my own when he takes a sip of his. 

Ten minutes later he’s drunk the whole glass, and he looks as if he’s going to fall asleep where he sits. “I-I’m tired….” he drags out his words like a drunk before promptly passing out. 

I pick him up, and it’s almost too easy to carry him downstairs and into the no longer empty storage room in the basement. I comb my fingers through his hair, making sure he is comfortable. He needs rest in a time like this. 

I clasp the chains around his wrists and ankles, leaving him for a few seconds and coming back with food and water for when he wakes up. I sit with him for a few minutes before leaving. While I did this to keep him safe, he’s going to be angry with me. I pause before closing the door.

I grin, looking at my best friend. I would do anything to protect him.