As we finally stepped back onto the main sidewalk, a sudden, heavy thump echoed from the shadowed alley behind us.
"What was that?" I asked, spinning around. I strained my eyes against the dark, but I could barely make out the shapes of the brick walls. I thought I heard a rustling sound deep within the overgrown bushes, but then everything fell deathly silent.
Brad turned around slowly, his body turning rigid as he stared into the gloom. He knit his eyebrows into a deep, severe frown, his intense gaze locking onto a specific patch of darkness. It was clear he saw something I couldn't.
"Brad?" I whispered, my heart dropping.
"What is that thing?" he murmured, though he seemed to be speaking entirely to himself.
"Brad, let's just get out of here. I don't like this," I said, a sudden panic flaring in my chest as I grabbed his arm.
Brad gave a mechanical nod and prepared to turn, but before he could take a step, an unseen force violently ripped him away from me. A massive, shadowed silhouette launched itself from the dark, clamping down on his ankle and dragging him backward across the concrete.
The creature buried its teeth into Brad's flesh, and he let out a piercing scream of agony. I screamed right along with him, the sound tearing from my throat.
"Help! Somebody help us!" I shrieked, looking down the deserted street. Brad kicked desperately at the attacker, but the entity unleashed a deep, guttural roar that sounded like a wild, prehistoric beast. Desperate and utterly terrified, I didn't think—I just ripped open the white bakery box in my hands and hurled the leftover Hawaiian pizza directly at the creature's face.
To my shock, the entity immediately released Brad's leg, snapping its jaws around the food instead. In a flash, the dark shape vanished back into the alleyway shadows. Brad scrambled to his feet instantly, ignoring his injury as he snatched my hand and pulled me into a frantic sprint away from the alley.
"What the hell was that?" he panted, his voice raw. I couldn't even answer; my brain couldn't process what I’d just witnessed. He was limping heavily, his stride uneven as he forced us toward a well-lit street corner.
"We have to call the police. We need to tell someone right now," he wheezed, fumbling through his leather jacket to pull out his cellphone. He dialed emergency services immediately.
"Brad, what are you doing? You're not planning on going back there, are you?" I panicked, my hands shaking. I looked down at his jeans and choked back a sob. "Brad... you're bleeding. A lot."
The dark denim around his ankle was rapidly soaking through with thick, crimson blood. Brad didn't answer me; the operator had just picked up, and he was frantically reporting the attack.
"Some guy just ambushed me in the business district," Brad spoke into the receiver, his voice tight with pain. "I don't know—I didn't get a good look at him. He took off."
"It looked like an animal," I offered frantically, trying to help. "Maybe a massive ape or something."
Brad waved a tight hand at me, signaling for me to remain quiet while he spoke to the dispatcher. I got the message and closed my mouth, forcing myself to look away from the pooling blood on his sneaker.
"My girlfriend saw him," Brad told the operator. "She says it looked like a large ape. Look, I’m telling you, there is a dangerous animal on the loose in the city. It might have escaped from a zoo or a private sanctuary. I have to go—I need a doctor."
He hung up the phone, letting out a sharp wail of pain as his leg finally gave out. He slid against a brick wall, his face turning an asymmetric shade of pale. I was openly crying now, kneeling beside him on the concrete.
"Hey, don't cry for me, hon," he whispered, a weak smile fighting through his grimace. "I'm fine. I swear."
"I'm calling my mom," I choked out, pulling out my own phone.
Within fifteen minutes, my mom’s grey BMW roared up to the curb. She helped me guide a heaving, sweating Brad into the backseat and drove like a maniac toward the emergency room. Watching Brad struggle for breath, his skin slick with sweat, terrified me. I was certain he was losing too much blood.
"It's going to be okay, Natalie," he murmured, his voice sounding entirely too distant.
"Hey, I'm the one who's supposed to say that," I whispered back, leaning over the seat.
A soft chuckle escaped him, though I could tell how much effort it cost him. "Our very first date under a full moon... and I get bitten by a werewolf," he joked weakly.
"Would you shut up? That is not funny," I snapped, though a sudden chill ran down my spine. It was a bizarre joke to make, but now that he’d said it, the memory of the creature felt wrong. I had assumed it was an ape because of the thick hair, but was it? I honestly didn't know what I’d seen in the dark.
"I know..." Brad sighed, closing his eyes. "But I have to laugh. It keeps me from losing it."
We burst through the hospital doors, and after a brief wait in the triage area, Brad was wheeled back into an examination room. My mom and I followed him inside, where a doctor was already washing his hands.
"I'm Doctor Walters," the man said, approaching the gurney. He looked at me. "Could you help me slide his jeans off so I can evaluate the wound?"
I froze, a wave of teenage awkwardness hitting me despite the gravity of the situation. Brad caught my expression and intervened. "Doctor, I'm fine. My girlfriend and her mother can wait out in the hall."
I didn't want to abandon him, but I didn't want to make him uncomfortable either. I offered a tight nod and stepped out into the corridor with my mom.
"Do you mind explaining to me exactly what happened out there?" my mom asked, leaning against the sterile wall.
"We were just walking back to the bike, and this... thing grabbed his leg and dragged him," I explained, my voice trembling. "Then it bit him. It only let him go because I threw the leftover pizza box at its face."
"An animal? In the middle of the business district?" My mom shook her head in disbelief, stepping forward to wrap her arms around me. "Jesus, Natalie. I am just so incredibly glad you're okay."
Wrapped in her hug, the remaining walls of my composure broke down, and I finally cried. As we stood there in the quiet hallway, a sudden, muffled scream echoed from inside the room. It was Brad. He was screaming in absolute agony.
An hour later, Doctor Walters finally called us back into the room. Brad’s lower leg was heavily wrapped in layers of thick white gauze.
"I went ahead and administered a preventative rabies injection just to be safe," Doctor Walters explained, filling out a chart. "It was an animal bite, without a doubt. Based on your descriptions, I can't be certain of the species, but the puncture tracking is distinctly canine. It was most likely a large, ravenous stray dog."
I immediately shook my head, my jaw tightening. "There is absolutely no way on earth the thing I saw was a dog. It didn't even look like one. It was a massive, hairy ape."
"She's right, Doc," Brad added from the bed, his voice still weak. "I'm lucky to be alive. Whatever that thing was, it possessed a terrifying amount of strength."
"Well, I've already forwarded the medical report to the local precinct, so the authorities are actively searching the area," Dr. Walters said smoothly, handing Brad a sheet of paper. "For now, your only job is to remain at home and rest for a full week."
"A week?" Brad protested, sat up slightly. "I can't miss a week. I just started at Franklin High."
"Oh, so you're actually complaining about an unexpected one-week vacation?" the doctor chuckled dryly, adjusting his glasses. "You kids these days are entirely backward." He tapped the prescription slip. "I want you to take two of these every four hours for the pain and inflammation."
Brad took the note, squinting at the classic, illegible doctor scribble across the page.
"Thank you, Doctor," my mom said. She lingered by the desk to discuss the discharge paperwork while I helped a limping Brad navigate his way out to the BMW.
"Brad, I am so incredibly sorry," I whispered as we reached the passenger side.
Brad let out a soft laugh, looking down at me. "What? Why are you apologizing?"
"What do you mean why? Because of all of this! It's completely my fault. If I hadn't suggested we go for that walk—"
"Hey," he interrupted, cutting off my spiral. He reached out, his warm fingers cupping my jawline. "This was still the best night of my life, Natalie. Honestly... I think I'm completely in love with you."
My heart did a violent, beautiful flip as he leaned down to press his lips firmly against mine. The tingly sensation returned instantly, his touch warm and intense, making me wish we could stay in that quiet parking lot forever.
When he pulled back, a soft smile played on his lips. "I think... I'm pretty sure I'm falling in love with you too," I confessed softly.
"You think?" he teased, giving me one last quick peck on the lips.
I offered a weak smile, leaning against the car door. "School is going to absolutely suck without you this week."
"It's just five days," he promised. "I'm just sorry I won't be around to help you train for the basketball tryouts on Friday."
"Me too," I murmured.
We arrived at his house an hour later. My mom and I climbed out of the BMW to help Brad up the porch steps, where we were met by his father. Mr. Wolfram looked like an older, more rugged version of his son, and true to form, my mother immediately shifted into her performative, flirtatious mode—completely ignoring the fact that the man was married and entirely uninterested.
"Well, Mr. Wolfram, I am so terribly sorry that your son was injured tonight, but I must say I’m glad it gave us a chance to meet. Thank you so much for your hospitality," she said smoothly, adjusting her coat.
Brad’s family lived in a modest, charming one-story house. As I scanned the lawn, I noticed an old tire swing tied to a sturdy branch of a oak tree, making me assume he had a younger sibling somewhere, though the house was completely quiet.
Mr. Wolfram turned his attention to me, extending a firm hand. "You're Natalie, right? It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, sir," I said, shaking his hand. A heavy wave of embarrassment settled over me, hating that our very first introduction had to happen under such horrific circumstances.
"I am just so incredibly sorry, sir," I murmured, my voice cracking slightly under the weight of the evening's events.
"Hey, don't worry about it. It wasn't your fault," Mr. Wolfram said gently, offering a reassuring shake of his head. He was dressed casually in a blue button-down shirt with a dark plaid pattern and structured khaki pants. "Some rogue animal is loose in the district. I'm just thankful he's alright and that nothing truly catastrophic happened out there. It easily could have been much worse."
"Dad..." Brad called out weakly from the threshold as his mother gently guided him into the entryway. A faint, proud smile crossed his pale face. "Isn't she beautiful? She's officially my girlfriend."
A heavy wave of embarrassed heat rushed to my face.
Mr. Wolfram offered a soft chuckle, clapping his son gently on the shoulder. "Yeah, son. You did pretty well for yourself."
His mother offered us a final, grateful nod before clicking the heavy wooden door shut, sealing them inside. We exchanged quick goodbyes with his father, and I climbed back into the passenger seat of the BMW. As my mom backed out of the driveway, I couldn't tear my eyes away from the modest, single-story house. I found myself wondering what his bedroom looked like, whether he was already settled into bed, and how it was even possible that I had fallen so completely and deeply in love with him in such a short amount of time.
My mom clicked her seatbelt into place and quietly drove us back to our side of town. When we burst through the front door, Cameo came rushing forward, barking happily and greeting me with his usual chaotic joy. I just wasn't in the right space to match his energy tonight, so I gave him a soft, distracted scratch behind the ears before retreating straight up the stairs to my room.
My emotions were an absolute storm of mixed signals. Brad had kissed me—the memory of his mouth and the intensity of his touch still made my pulse race—but then that horrifying ape had lunged from the shadows, and everything had violently derailed. I pulled out my phone and dialed his number, but the line rang through to his machine. I left a quiet, lingering voice message wishing him a peaceful night's sleep, before finally slipping into my pajamas and collapsing into bed, staring up at the dark ceiling.
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