At this point in time, I take up a defensive position I once observed a female black bear take. She looked about ready to eat me alive.

He immediately relents. “I’m sorry. That was horribly forward of me.”

My eyes do not shift from the glare to anything less menacing. I think about walking away, but then I realize that this guy might die of eating the wrong thing. I didn’t want to feel responsible, and I would be if I deserted him. “If you pull anything like that again…” I let him imagine his punishment. I find that to be the best method of threatening.

“I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

I turn and walk on down the path. He follows like a puppy.

An entire day passes this way, and by the time the sun begins to set, I am reminded of why I left people in the first place. So irreverent. Do they never stop to listen?

He amazingly found his car. I glared at the metal beast of a thing. Seeing that Nick would not die by my hand tonight, I set out for home.