Beast

The first thing Jordan noticed when he woke up was how freaking cold it was, his teeth were already chattering. The second thing was how much he hurt. Groaning he sat up with a hand to his head trying to remember what happened. He glanced down at his wet pants and everything came rushing back.

He took a deep breath to keep from panicking. "Well, I'm still alive so that's a plus, right?" Fingering the rocks underneath him he wondered where he was.

Glancing around he realized he was still in the forest and only about three feet away from the creek he'd fallen into. "Maybe I imagined it?"

Then he felt it. That tingle on the back of his neck, the one he gets when someone is staring. A quick scan of the area in front of him revealed nothing but moon lit trees, but as soon as he turned his head to look behind him he saw it. The same golden eyes he had seen earlier.

He froze then scrambled away, crying out in pain when he put pressure on his ankle. "Fuck!" He bent over, resting his forehead on his knee while he held his throbbing ankle, his eyes squeezed closed against the building tears.

"Whoa, calm down. I'm not gonna hurt you." Jordan's heart rate calmed some as he realized a person was talking to him.

At the sound of foot steps crunching closer he lifted his head to get a closer look at the person talking. It was a tall man, someone he hadn't seen before. Well, he seemed tall, but then again Jordan was sitting. His blonde hair looked like it glowed in the moon light and his skin seemed tanned.

The man gave him a crooked grin when he realized he was calming down. "I'm glad you woke up. For a little while I was sure I was gonna have to drag you back to town out cold. What are you doing way out in the woods?"

"Um... I was just going for a hike?" He watched the man ruffle his blonde hair while he sat on the ground slightly closer then was comfortable.

"Alright and why were you lying in a creek?" The man was giving him a skeptical look.

He wasn't sure what to tell him. He chose to ignore the question "What's your name?"

The man flushed and looked embarrassed. "Oh right sorry. I'm Gage. You're lucky I was out hunting today. You probably would have froze, hell you look half frozen as it is."

"Right, well thanks for saving me then. My names Jordan." they sat in awkward silence for a moment. "I need to get headed home so...."

"Of course, do you need some help?" Gage pulled himself off the ground and brushed his pants off while he stared expectantly at Jordan.

"If you wouldn't mind... I kind of hurt my ankle." At Gage's concerned look Jordan continued quickly. "I'm sure it's not broken, just sprained."

"Well, if you're sure." Gage still sounded concerned but Jordan didn't get a chance to say anything. He let out an admittedly girly squeak as he was suddenly hefted from the ground into Gage's arms.

"What the hell! Put me down!" He tried to contain his failing so he wouldn't get dropped. He scowled at Gage when he had the nerve to laugh at him. "It's not funny, this is totally inappropriate."

The man just beamed down at him. "It's fine. You're hurt; this is faster then trying to limp through the woods." Gage didn't say anything else as he started the long trek through the woods back to civilization.

Jordan swore if his face got any hotter he would ignite. "So... What do you do?" The silence was starting to get to him. It seemed almost too quiet. His nerves were getting to him.

"I run the little grocery down on eighth. You know the one with all the wind chimes in the window?" Gage seemed excited about sharing information about his shop.

"Actually I haven't had the chance to explore that side of town yet. I only just moved here so..." When Jordan saw his face fall in disappointment he was quick to add "But I'll totally come check it out sometime k?"

Jordan couldn't help but smile back as Gage beamed at him. "Sounds like a plan. So, which way to your house?"

Jordan pointed Gage in the right direction and Gage gave fun little facts about the town as they walked. They seemed to make quick work of the long trek back. Jordan was surprised he hadn't been dropped yet, he wasn't exactly light.

"This it then?" Gage asked as he gently set Jordan down.

"Yeah, thanks for the help." They stood there just staring at each other in an awkward silence for a minute. Jordan coughed to break the silence when he felt his face heating up. "So, again, thanks for the help. I'll stop by your store sometime alright?"

Gage looked down at him with a warm smile on his lips. "Sure kid, see ya around. Oh, and be careful will ya? The woods aren't exactly a safe place at night." He reached up and ruffled Jordan's curls then turned left with a quite 'Goodnight'.

'Well this was an interesting night.' He carefully hobbled his way into his house and up the stairs to his room.

That night Jordan fell asleep with a frown on his face.