“Isaac, please.” Danny’s voice cracked. “Don’t do this.”
Brad’s jaw tightened. For the first time, his pleasant mask slipped, revealing the monster underneath. “You want to be a hero? Fine. Let’s see how that works out for you.”
Everything sped up and slowed down at once.
Brad grabbed Danny’s arm, fingers digging in hard enough to bruise. He started pulling him toward the side door. Isaac lunged forward, fist already swinging.
The punch connected with Brad’s jaw in a satisfying crack. Brad stumbled backward, surprise flashing across his face.
“I’ve wanted to do that since finding Danny on the floor bleeding!” Isaac snarled.
For one perfect moment, Danny thought maybe they’d actually get out of this. Who knew someone so small could pack such a punch? Danny was honestly impressed. And terrified. He thought he knew everything there was to know about Isaac, but something told Danny there was a ton of things, scary things, his best friend kept hidden.
“Danny isn’t going anywhere with you,” Isaac said to Brad, planting his feet. Danny could see over the guy’s head. Saw when Brad raised the gun, something cold flickering in his eyes.
“No!” Danny screamed.
The gunshot was deafening in the small living room. Louder than anything Danny had ever heard. Louder than thought or breath or heartbeat.
Isaac stumbled backward, eyes wide with shock. Red bloomed across his shirt, spreading outward in a widening stain.
“No!” Danny’s scream tore out of him, raw and broken. “No, no, no!” He rushed forward as Isaac crumpled. Caught him before he hit the floor then lowered him down as gently as he could with shaking hands.
Blood. So much blood. It soaked through Isaac’s shirt, spreading fast, and Danny couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t do anything but stare. Isaac’s eyes were unfocused, his breathing shallow and rapid.
“Look what you made me do.” Brad sounded annoyed, like Danny had inconvenienced him. “This is your fault, Danny. You made me do this.”
“You shot him!” Danny’s voice cracked, breaking on a sob. “You shot him, you fucking monster!”
“Whichello,” Isaac whispered. His eyes found Danny’s, scared and confused, the amethyst color shining behind tears.
“Isaac, stay with me. Please stay with me.” Tears blurred Danny’s vision, streaming down his face unchecked. “Please don’t die. Please.”
“He shouldn’t have gotten in the way.” Brad moved closer, gun still in hand. “None of this would’ve happened if you'd just come back to me. We were perfect together. Don’t you remember?”
Danny couldn’t stop crying, couldn’t stop shaking. Isaac’s blood was warm on his hands, sticky and wrong. This wasn’t happening. This couldn’t be happening.
“He’s dying because of you,” Brad continued, voice almost gentle. Almost loving. “But it’s okay, babe. I forgive you. We can start over. Just you and me, like it used to be.”
Isaac wasn’t moving anymore. His eyes had closed, his breathing too shallow to see.
Danny’s best friend was dead.
And it was all his fault.
Danny pressed his forehead to Isaac’s still form, sobs tearing through him that made his ribs ache. Wetness soaked into the fabric beneath him—blood or tears or both. His hands clutched at Isaac’s shoulders, fingers digging in like he could anchor his best friend to this world through sheer desperation.
Then Isaac’s body moved.
Not breathing. Not stirring back to consciousness. Something else entirely.
“What—” Danny’s voice caught.
Isaac’s form grew smaller. Limbs pulled inward, like Isaac’s body had settled deeper into the floor, except it hadn't. One moment Danny held his dying best friend, the next his hands cupped around something barely bigger than a house cat.
Its fur was deep auburn on top, darkening to near-black on its belly and legs. Rounded ears twitched. A bushy tail, ringed with alternating bands of red and cream, curled protectively around its body.
Danny's brain stuttered, trying to process what his eyes saw. Small paws, delicate and dark, each no bigger than Danny's thumb. A pointed snout. Black-rimmed eyes that remained closed, as if the panda was asleep.
