DISALIMER: Are they really necessary? I think it's pretty evident I'm not John Carpenter.

After a moment of fumbling with the light switch, the kitchen illuminated. I closed my eyes for a moment and then opened them, adjusting to the brightness of the room. With an annoyed sigh I leaned my head against the wall. "Derek, what are you doing here?" The man placed his hands on his knees and lifted himself up off the ground. Wrench dangling from his mouth, he smiled at me cunningly. "Well g'morning sunshine." I just stared back blankly. I was in no mood to deal with this fool at these early hours. Derek turned back around examining the wrecked dishwasher. "Came by to fix the dishwasher. Well...tried to at least. What the hell did you do to this thing anyway?" I rubbed my face wearily and crossed my arms. "You're fixing my dishwasher at 4 o'clock in the morning?" Derek looked at the ground and then glanced back up. "I couldn't sleep. But, uh, how are you, Mac?" he inquired, fighting a yawn. I clenched my teeth. Why had I given this guy a key to my house? "So you wake me up in the middle of the night, fixing my dishwasher because you can't sleep…I don't even understand that. And now you want to carry on a friendly conversation when its pretty obvious I have a lot to do today?"

Derek looked guilty for a minute and then shrugged. "Well since you're not sleeping now, wanna pop in a movie? I can fix the dishwasher later." I couldn't hide the sly smile creeping up on my face. No sympathy for me whatsoever, from this guy. I thought back briefly to when we first met. I wasn't too fond of him then. We worked together on the same shift at Firestone, him as a mechanic in the garage in the back, and me working at the front desk in the building. I had always thought of him as something of a horn dog, but after spending time with him on breaks he turned out to not be that bad of a guy. He was a little rude sometimes, but I don't think he realized it. I got a little more respect from him unlike some of the other women he knew. But unfortunately he was a night owl. I shook my head. "No, I need to get some sleep. I've only been getting 4 hours of sleep each night for the past two weeks. And Sam starts school tomorrow and I have to make sure he gets situated okay. And I need to quit my second job and work out some custody paperwork and enroll my community college classes online since its pretty evident I won't be able to attend my night classes and—Jesus, Derek I'm so stressed out. Ya know? How am I going to support this kid and keep my sanity intact?" I paused, waiting for Derek's response. "Well you could always let me move in," he suggested with a deviant smile. I punched him in the arm playfully. "Get outta here and let me sleep." Before he could reply, small padded footsteps approached the kitchen. Sam walked into the bright kitchen rubbing his eyes wearily. I glared at Derek and then bent down to Sam's level. "Did we wake you, sweetie?" Sam just looked up at Derek with a tentative smile.

Derek put out his hand for a high-five. "Hey buddy. You must be Sam." Sam slapped Derek's hand halfheartedly and scrunched up his face, yawning. "I'm your sister's friend. My name's Derek." Sam smiled at him shyly and then turned and looked up at me. "Do I have to go to school today?" "Nope. You're starting tomorrow." I couldn't help but smile when Sam hissed "Yessssss". Derek slapped his hands together. "So." He looked at me inquiringly. "Movie?" I let out an annoyed sigh and glanced at the fully awake Sam. I threw up my hands. "Whatever, Derek. Just…whatever."

I watched the two walk to the living room and shook my head, smiling a little as I turned to start up a pot of coffee. "Keep it PG!" I hollered, rummaging through the cabinet for a mug. I really shouldn't have had to say that, but though I had known Derek for a good year and a half, I was wary about his idea of what was appropriate for a six year old. I heard Derek's smartass voice respond, "Hmm so I take it you got rid of your Taped College Collections and Wild Party Girls." I slammed the mug down on the counter. I was not a morning person, at least not until I had caffeine coursing through my veins. "Derek, come in here," I demanded sternly. I could feel his hesitation, though he was in a separate room. He came slinking in with a rueful smile on his face. "You can't talk like that around him!" I exasperated. "Oh chill out McKenzie. A six year old wouldn't understand any of that." I raised an eyebrow. "Well you didn't know Kevin. Lord knows what kind of language that child has been subject to." I shook my head with a heavy sigh while watching the coffee drip into the pot.

I turned to look at him. With the dark expressive eyes, messy black hair, pierced ears, sexy scruff and that permanent devious smile, he definitely screamed bad influence. "You may talk that way to your buddies without a second thought, but don't talk that way around here. ...Derek, by bringing him here I'm attempting to give him a somewhat decent upbringing. Just please try to remember to be respectful towards me. I'm trying to give this my all," I said quietly, hoping he was taking me seriously. "Ok, Mac. Gotcha babe," he said nodding running a hand through his hair lazily. My face sagged a bit, realizing my words hadn't quite hit home. "Now hurry up with that coffee and get your sweet little ass out in the living room and let's spend some wholesome time together," he said in a purposefully loud tone, while exiting the kitchen. I rolled my eyes and awkwardly poured a cup of coffee. Damn I was tired. I could see my bedroom from where I was standing. The bed with its sheets tousled and soft looked so inviting I felt myself walking towards the room, my intentions to promptly crawl into the bed, stay there and not wake up for several decades. But as I heard another impatient swear word, my feet made a sharp turn towards the living room. I threw a pillow and a threatening glare in Derek's direction and positioned myself between him and Sam and looked ahead at the T.V. "What are we watching?"

Derek draped an arm over the back of the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table. "Dunno," he said, scanning through the HBO channels. "You pick it Sam, my man." Derek tossed him the remote and Sam scanned through the channels and shrugged shyly. "I don't know. Whatever you two want to watch is fine with me." Better not say that, I thought with a smirk thinking of Derek's collection of videos at his apartment. I had gone there one night to hang out and play poker with him and a few of his friends and was thoroughly disgusted by the array of "adult films" displayed proudly in a glass cabinet.

"Hm Finding Nemo sounds good to me," I said, snatching the remote before it could reach Derek's outstretched hands and clicking on the first kid friendly movie I saw. The three of us huddled up against each other in silence watching the TV screen. I felt an odd sense of comfort and security with them. I loved the feeling. I glanced at Sam as he laughed a little and then glanced at Derek who was smiling slightly. I let my head rest on Derek's shoulder and let myself smile. It was something I hadn't done in awhile. Smiling felt foreign on my face but I figured that if I got in the habit of doing it more often, it would bring back some familiarity. Just me, a good friend, and my kid brother at 4 in the morning watching a movie. Things felt at ease. I pushed aside the nagging reminders of work, school and custody paperwork and allowed myself to enjoy this peaceful time. I think Derek noticed my contentment because he gave me a brief, but soft smile. And I also noticed some surprise in his eyes when they met mine. It made me wonder how long I had carried this miserable, negative aura. It instantly crashed my good mood even touching on the subject. I let the grim mood linger for a fleeting moment and then swiftly distinguished it, letting a smug smile creep up on my lips. I was happy and content. Nothing would ruin it. Except falling asleep moments later and waking from a nightmare.

"Whoa, hey, hi Mac," Derek greeted, eyebrows raised. I put a hand on my heaving chest. "Have a bad dream?" I ignored him and sniffed the air, sending a cautious look in his direction. "What's burning?" "Breakfast," he answered easily, bringing out two plates of burnt toast and overcooked eggs. I laughed heartedly. Derek set the plates down in front of me and plopped down on the couch grabbing a piece of toast off his plate. The crunch was loud. I looked down at my own plate with some distaste. "You should have woken me up. I would have cooked." "Wait a minute, do you doubt my cooking ability?" Derek accused playfully. "Oh no, Derek. Of course not. I mean, you put George Foreman to shame," I remarked sarcastically, gazing at my eggs warily. "I'm pretty sure I sensed some sarcasm somewhere in there." No shit Sherlock. I sighed, placing my tired face in my hands. I rested a moment and then looked up. "Where's Sam? Still asleep?" Derek, who had caught onto my not-so-subtle hints that I would never in a million years eat anything he cooked, grabbed both of our plates and headed back to the smoky kitchen.

"Nah, I went ahead and dropped him off at Becca's since we have to head out to work in about 30 minutes," he informed casually. I shot up and looked at the clock which read 7:05. "Derek!" I screeched hoarsely. "Why didn't you wake me?!" Derek paused, taking in my angry glare cautiously. "I was just trying to be considerate. I know how things have been crazy for you lately. I was just trying to let you get a few more hours of sleep in. And I feel bad for keeping you—" I didn't even hear the rest of his futile apology. I darted for the bathroom, stripped and swung the shower curtain open. I showered at warp speed and ran down the hall in a towel, hoping to God that Derek wasn't anywhere nearby. I successfully sneaked by into my bedroom and leapt into my Firestone polo and khakis. I combed my damp hair, put on a bit of mascara and raced out of my bedroom.

"He's at Becca's?" I asked, out of breath. "Mac, don't worry. Becca and Sam are settled in. They're probably playing a board game or watching TV or something," Derek assured, looking at me curiously. I knew things were probably fine, but the nagging over-protective part of me pushed its way to the front. "I'll be right back. I'm just going to run up the street to Becca's," I said as I quickly went out the door. Sunshine smacked me across the face, assaulting my tired eyes. I squinted with a groan and power walked down the street. This wasn't how I planned to start my morning. I planned to get up at 6 to make some phone calls and then drop Sam off with Becca, some teenager girl who had put flyers out for babysitting gigs to save up for a car, and then drive to work and have a pleasant day. Now, instead, I was worrying about whether Sam had everything he needed for spending 6 hours at some stranger's house and more than likely I would arrive at work late.

I gave a desultory glance at the Myers' house as I walked past it and kept moving. "Hey sis, where are you going? I'm right here. You're supposed to come find me. You're "it" this time." I froze and turned around, brow furrowed in confusion. Sam stood at the edge of the Myers' driveway smiling at me, a hand cupped over his forehead, blocking the sunlight from his eyes. "Sam." I walked briskly toward him and tripped over a pothole. I laughed in spite of myself and got straightened out. When I looked back up, he was gone. I shook my head, confused. I looked up at the Myers' house and flinched as I saw a curtain sift in the top window and a tan elbow flash by. After a few tense, ominous moments, I marched up to the Myers' house, completely overlooking the fact that it was one of the scariest houses to exist. I opened the door cautiously. Soft light poured into the desolate house. Dust particles stirred and danced lazily in the air as a breeze swept in. I walked in carefully, but each step I took sounded like a bowling ball being dropped to the floor from the top of the stairwell. A heard a tinkle of laughter and a saw a flash of red in my peripheral vision. I spun around wildly. "Sam?" I whispered. I heard another giggle and then a "shh, shh". I rubbed my temples. My lungs felt strained, my breath caught in my chest. "S-Sam?" I managed, a bit louder and more confident. No response. The dust had settled, the morning sunlight had dimmed and the house was deathly quiet.

I wrapped my arms around myself and walked in a small circle. "SAM?" I called out loudly. I looked above me at the second floor. I walked slowly towards the staircase, carefully placing a hand on the railing. The chill that ran down my spine startled me. A strangled noise crept up in my throat, but I swallowed it thickly and slowly ascended up the steps. As I climbed upwards I let my eyes wander down below. Strange dark silhouetted objects lurked in the corners. Were they bodies? I shuddered. I felt tears begin to well up in my eyes. Desperation and panic was beginning to kick in. "Sam, answer me! This isn't a game!" I hollered fearfully. "Please," I whispered quietly on the last step of the staircase. "Sam..." I looked both ways down the hallway and chose the left. I walked as quietly as I could manage. The doors were closed tightly. The cracks under the door showed that no illumination was present. Each room was most likely submerged in entire darkness. I wrung my hands nervously walking straight ahead mechanically. One door at the end of the hall was cracked open an inch or so. My fingers brushed the cool cracked paint of the wooden door as I slowly pushed it open. I froze in confusion. What I found laying on the floor of the room was not Sam, but something I hadn't seen in many years. I narrowed my eyes and strode into the room with ease, fear fading and curiosity replacing it. I knelt down to the floor cradling in my lap an ancient article from my childhood. I breathed shakily as I ran my fingers over worn, mismatched fabric. Old memories I thought I had completely forgotten flooded back. I raised the hideous thing to my face and breathed in its scent.

"You really should get rid of that godforsaken thing, Daniel. Its been sitting in the garage getting dusty for 5 years now. And it's the most hideous thing I've ever seen," a light voice, full of laughter pleaded a lanky but handsome man. "Trace, I'm proud of that elephant. Sophomore Home-ec class. My greatest accomplishment in high school." Daniel said, hands on his hips looking down at an ancient stuffed animal with mismatched patches covering up various stains and wear and tear, with ridiculous pride. Tracey grabbed her husband's hands and placed them on her hips. "I thought convincing me to date you was your greatest accomplishment in high school." Daniel's face broke out into a broad grin. "No that wasn't too hard. All the ladies found me irresistible. You're lucky you're so beautiful. I don't think you realized just how much competition you had." Tracey laughed, kissed her husband full on the mouth. "I think you need to take that ego of yours down a notch." Small footsteps entered the garage. "There's my special peanut!" Daniel boomed sweeping his daughter into his arms and swinging her about. Peals of laughter filled the otherwise quiet garage. Daniel set his little girl up on an empty section of his tool bench and winked at her. "Can you believe your mom is trying to get me to get rid of my favorite stuffed animal?" The small girl gasped. "Mom! You can't do that! You can't take someone's favorite stuffed animal away!" Tracey stifled a laugh. "Yeah well we can buy him a new one next time we go to Toys 'R' Us." Tracey's daughter hopped down off the tool bench and walked over to the shelf on the adjacent wall. "Is that it, Daddy?" Daniel grinned and took it down off the shelf and handed it to her. The little girl scrunched up her face and looked at it uncertainly. "It smells gross." "Yep. That's because its old .I made it myself in school many, many years ago." "You're not that old Daddy." Daniel laughed and swept her up again. "You little brownnoser, you!" He tickled her gently and set her down again. "You can have him, if you want. It could be something that you can remember me by." She looked up at him curiously. "Where are you going?" Daniel bent down and cupped his daughter's face in his hands. "Nowhere, my sweet. At least not for a long, long time."

It wasn't until I felt small warm fingers on the nape of my neck that I realized I had slipped into a completely different universe of bittersweet memories and simpler times. I turned around, snapping out of my stupor. Sam looked down at me, his face hard and his eyes icier than ever. I squinted looking at him peculiarly. "Sam why did you run away? I was looking all over for you. I was scared." There was a long pause and then Sam removed his hand from my shoulder. "I've been seeking for a long time trying to find you, but you always hid so well." I stared at him blankly, trying to process where this strange conversation was going. "Why are you here, Sam?" Sam backed away into the shadows a bit. "I was hiding. Waiting for you to come and find me." I peered into the darkness. "...Sam, I don't understand."

I stopped breathing suddenly, my heart pounding in my chest and dread filling my stomach. A large knife gleamed in the limited sunlight that occupied the room. Sam's eyes glistened in the dark. "I was waiting for you to find me so that we wouldn't have to play hide and seek anymore." I swallowed hard. "S-Sam, put the...put the knife down. You'll hurt yourself." Sam took a step forward. He raised the knife and let it hover in the air. My delayed brain sent panic throughout my whole body. The numbness in my legs vanished and I rolled out of the way as the knife came crashing down. I ran out of the room and raced down the stairs. My lower body was on a completely different speed than the rest of my body as I painfully fell down the steps. After quickly composing myself, I looked up despite my terror. I saw a tall dark silhouette flicker across a door in the hallway. I held my breath. Someone else was in here. Not just Sam.

I threw myself out the front door, breathing heavily. A familiar red car was going down the road but then came to screeching halt when the driver saw my disheveled state. The man hastily got out of the car and sprinted towards me. "Mckenzie!" Derek shouted frantically. Something in his voice drove my body to hysteria and I began to sob. I stood there limply as he held my shaking frame. He stepped back after a moment. "Mckenzie, what happened?" he asked steadily looking at me hard, hands planted firmly on my shoulders. "I-I-Sam..." I turned to look up at the window. Vacant. A closed curtain. I began to descend to the ground, face buried in my palms, but Derek grabbed my upper arm and pulled me up into a standing position. "Ssh calm down. Sam's at Becca's. I just called. Her and Sam are doing some watercolors in the kitchen. Sam is fine, Mac." I buried my face in his shirt and took deep, even breaths. "Do you want to drop by Becca's and see for yourself?" he asked tentatively as I pulled myself from his arms. I looked in the distance. "No. I just want to go to work." Derek shook his head indignantly. "Mckenzie you—" "Derek," I snapped my attention to him and looked at him firmly, "I want to go to work."

Derek looked at me uncertainly and then opened the passenger door, ushering me inside. I spared another glance at the house. I tried not to let the sight of a man wearing a familiar white mask staring down at me through the previously vacant window startle me. I looked away hurriedly, more frightened tears streaming down my cheeks. I heard the other car door slam shut as Derek slid into his seat. The car engine started and we drove down the street. I folded open the car mirror above the dashboard and fixed my messed up mascara. My knee throbbed from where I had fallen heavily on it. I massaged it through my ruined khakis. It wasn't something I was too concerned with at the moment, but I was sure my boss would question why I came into work so uncharacteristically messy. "You're bleeding," Derek said quietly, "On your neck." I inspected the small cut and wiped the blood away with the back of my hand. I slammed the mirror shut and gazed out the window. "Mckenzie...why were you in that house?" I didn't answer for a long while. I took a shaky breath. "I saw Sam," I responded distantly. I heard him sigh. "Mckenize, I don't think you're getting enough sleep or...or something," he finished lamely. He glanced at my lap. "What's that?" I looked down. I hadn't realized I was still carrying the hideous thing. "A stuffed animal," I replied blankly. I could feel Derek taking brief worried glances at me. I blocked him out as I fingered an ugly mismatched patch. Sleep was not an issue. What I had felt, what I had experienced...it was real. Sam's touch, the man in the window...I could not have imaged it. There was no way. I sighed, rolled down the window and closed my eyes against the breeze. I was waiting for you to find me. I shivered, panic starting to well up within me again. I fought it down forcefully and gripped the edge of my seat. I could hear Derek speak a soft murmur of words I couldn't interpret. At that moment I was miles away concealing myself from the rest of the world and just praying someone wouldn't discover my hiding place.

Hmm well I'm taking a different direction here than what I had originally planned. I hope this goes over well.

Ciao