We Are Bulletproof

"Um..."

Sam had no idea what to say in the face of... whatever he was looking at. He didn't know where to look, either. A woman was one thing but this man in... that outfit... Sam's face heated up as he took a step back, recoiling from the sight. And also from the look in his dad's eyes as he stared at him. That was definitely the face of a man that was about to give him a good whacking if he didn't vacate the premises like right now.

His gaze skirted over his father and then over his male friend and he didn't know what else to do except grab onto Iris' hand and drag her away from the scene. He didn't even apologize; as far as he was concerned, he had nothing to apologize for! But he needed to get the hell out of there before something awful happened.

"Let's go," Sam said tightly as he quickly moved away, wishing he could bleach his memories.

"Lemme check."

Sam moved back over to the door to make sure it was locked. It wasn't so he quietly turned it over and made sure they were safe in hiding. Then he turned back to Fiona with a wide grin, hurrying back over to see what kind of food and snacks Fiona brought. He still couldn't believe he was doing this. It wasn't generally in him to do stuff like skip class but he couldn't say he didn't like it. Plus, it was time he got to know Fiona better.

Dropping down to sit across from Fiona, Sam pulled the games closer to see what she had brought. Then his grin grew as he placed Battleship on top.

"This one," he said. "For sure!"

(SHIT SORRY SO LATE)

"I see it!" Sam said back, as if he didn't see it with his own eyes. Skidding to a halt, he let gravel fly and then sat astride his bike as he looked up at the unfamiliar place. He frowned.

"Where is this?" And why the heck did his dad come rushing off here in such a hurry? It didn't make much sense to him. Glancing over at Iris, he shrugged, then set his bike down on the ground before approaching the place. What would make his dad come out here and was it the reason he was less... well, less of an asshole, if he was being honest. Lately, his dad had his head up in the clouds or something. Distracted but no longer as irritable and distant as he was. Not that he'd changed overnight into a good dad but he was definitely starting to grow into something different.

"You think he's got a girlfriend?" Sam said curiously as they approached the building. He wasn't sure if he should knock or not. He chewed his lower lip and started to raise his hand to do so.

Sam was generally what most people would have called a "good boy." He went to school, he got middling grades, he did his best at whatever he had to do... even if his skills were lacking. But today... today, Sam was going to be the Bad Boy. He was going to ditch school.

For some reason, the idea of it made him super nervous but excited at the same time. So when he approached the school gate, he was still trying to decide if he would really, actually go through with it. It wasn't until he saw Fiona that he made the decision. If she was going to, then so was he!

Quickly, he ran over to her, the way a kid might if they were running past their parents' room to sneak a snack in the middle of the night.

"Let's go!" he stage whispered, becoming antsy and feeling as if he had to suddenly use the bathroom. "Before somebody sees us!"

"I know. I'm not mad. Don't worry about it."

He didn't know what set her off; he thought he did an all right job masking his weird feelings about the charity thing. But hey, he got a free phone out of it, right? And one his father would never be able to afford on his own. He just wished that his father could or that Sam could. It was forever Sam's burden that he was just a kid and the best he could do was get 15 bucks for mowing a neighbor's lawn.

"Anyway, I should get home. But you have to tell me when we move into phase two!"

"Yeah, we're both living in like, the 90s," Sam said with a laugh. He tucked the phone away, actually grateful at the same time. He didn't want the charity, he didn't want Iris knowing how bad things really were (and she didn't, not fully), but he couldn't help that short-lived feeling. Turning toward his bike, he hopped on and patted the bars.

"Yeah, come on! Let's go~"

"Um... sure!" Sam tried to smile as if it didn't mean anything but... sometimes the charity thing got to him. He knew that Iris was just trying to be a good friend--she had an item she no longer needed and Sam could use a better phone. His current one was hecka old and cracked and it had definitely seen better days. But he wished... he so wished that his father could do these things for him or that Sam himself was capable of it himself. As soon as he could get a real paying job, he was getting one. Not just odds and ends around the neighborhood, but a REAL job. Even if that meant Happy Burger.

"I'm sure my dad can add it to the account," he said. With his father's newfound interest in his life, it seemed like a possibility for once. "Maybe he'll get a new one too while we're at it," he said with a crooked smile. Not like his dad's phone was much better!

"Maybe? Sometimes?"

Sam couldn't say he had never given it thought. Sometimes, he was envious of people with older siblings that protected them. He wasn't sure if he was equipped for a younger sibling, though. But then, he kinda liked the idea of somebody looking up to him. So... Maybe. He thought it might be nice to have a step-sibling, the more he thought about it.

But Iris didn't think so, judging by what she said, so Sam laughed. Well, it would be kinda weird if the kid was in their class. Like... if his dad was seeing Ollie's... um. Yeah, he somehow doubted THAT was happening. So it could get weird, then.

"Yep. I'll get everything ready and tell you when I see him leave the house. Deal?"

"Yeah... maybe." It didn't sound like his father, though, to worry too much about what Sam thought or felt. In fact, most of Sam's life, he felt neglected and distant from his only family. It made it difficult for him to connect to other people in his life, too. Iris was the only one he had a strong connection with. Even the friends they hung out with were mostly there for Iris or met Iris or were brought in by Iris. Sam didn't share secrets with the guys. Some part of him didn't feel as close with them as he did with Iris.

"Ohhh," he said with a laugh, kicking his leg out and letting his heel catch the edge of the bench seat. "You mean built in siblings? I hope it's not anybody from school."

But the fact was, if she was from Hazleton and had kids, they definitely went to their school.

"I wonder what kind of person she is. Do you think she's like my mom?" Sam asked. He almost dared to ask--would she become his mom? His step-mom? Sam didn't want to curse it so he kept it close to his heart and left it silent. His dad could get remarried. There could be another woman in his life, now that he was learning to get over the past. Sam was positively gleeful over the idea--he didn't want to jinx it with anything else.

"Do you think she'll like me?" Sam looked down at their two hands together, heart thumping faster. Then he looked up at Iris. "Do you think the reason he hasn't let me meet her is because... of me? Because she doesn't like kids or...?"

Once they made it to the park where they usually met up, Sam leaned his bike against a picnic table and climbed on top. He sat with his feet on the bench, leaning back against the palms of his hands.

"All right, if we're going to follow my dad, we have to find a good time for it. Like the next time he goes out!" He checked the time on his ancient cellphone. Unlike the rich kids, he was pretty much left with the oldest model that would still connect. It used to bother him but after seeing what he'd seen with his dad over time, he sort of understood where they were. (In the hole.)

"What do you think he's doing?" Sam asked. "Do you think he met somebody new? Like... a new girlfriend?"

Since the change in his dad seemed positive, maybe his dad was finally able to let go of the memories of his past lover and find solace in a new one.

See! That's how crazy it was for Sam's dad to be sober! Iris actually dropped her bike in surprise. Sam stopped, turning toward her. After a moment, he shook his head slowly.

"No. Never." His mother was off-limits for as long as Sam could remember. Every mother's day, there was a weird tension in the air as questions arose in Sam's head but by now, he'd learned not to ask. His father inevitably would get drunker and meaner than ever. Whatever happened, Sam decided it wasn't worth it anymore. That's why the book meant so much to him. For once in his life, Sam's father actually shared something about his mother with him.

"Yeah, but... we can..." Sam's eyes lit up as Iris picked up her bike. "We can find out what he's doing! The same way we always do, only not with monsters."

Sam definitely saw the other guys as some kind of competition. He could tell Iris might even like them maybe, he wasn't sure. Iris was never the type of girl to get all flirty and shy around guys she liked. Actually, Sam didn't even know which guys she liked because they didn't talk about who they liked. Was that weird? Best friends should share that sort of thing! But Sam didn't so maybe Iris thought he didn't want to talk about it with her.

Which wasn't true. But then, he wasn't sure how to feel about the other guys. Iris didn't show any favoritism toward any of them in particular so honestly, there was no real threat. If she started moon eyeing one of them and getting all weird and hand holdy and blushy, there might be a problem. On his end.

But he didn't want to think about it. Mostly, he just wanted to revel in the fact that Iris made him a gift and it was a perfect one. She wasn't even psychic and she knew. Somehow, she knew. Because she knew him. It made him feel worse for not having the perfect, thoughtful gift in return. Now he would start working on one and he'd surprise her with it.

"About that," he started, looking over his shoulder, like his dad would be right behind him. He continued in a hushed voice as he approached his bike, "My dad's been acting real weird lately. He's... been sober. And he's talking about my mom. He never used to."

"Same old goofs?" Sam asked, adopting a goofy smile as he looked up at Iris. She was right, though. They changed a lot from the day they met but they were still--at the core--the same people. They were still close friends and that would never change. All that weirdness from Iris being around the other guys disappeared when he thought of it like that. Inwardly, his feelings were confused but at the same time, at least he knew his place with Iris was irreplaceable--other boys around or not!

He bet they didn't get a scrapbook like this, for example! He smiled to himself as he looked back down at the book and then closed it and brought it up to his chest to gently hug it.

"Since I didn't get you a present, do you want me to get us lunch?" Sam asked. "I snuck out a few dollars from dad's jacket before I left."

Sam made a slight face. Yeah, seeing him might be a present for her but it felt like a total copout. It was never a good feeling to get a present when there was nothing to give back in return. Not that he wasn't happy about the present, though. He could feel all the positive feelings that his best friend placed into that book and it made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Every page was filled with the best photographs and memories that Iris had managed to collect and Sam couldn't believe it. He kept thinking back to the book his dad had. Crazy how they thought so alike. Or had Sam's mom made that book? Now that Sam thought about it, there was still a lot he didn't know. Just because his dad started to open up didn't mean that he have told Sam everything. Sam bit his lower lip and then looked at Iris again.

"The last page?" he echoed, flipping over to it eagerly. He didn't correct her about loving it. He did love it--he just didn't know how she knew--how she knew about his dad's book. How it could be the perfect gift. Crazy. His gaze fell upon the last page of the book. It felt so long ago, this photo. And yet it really wasn't.

"Look at those two goofballs," he said with a big, stupid grin.