Dying... for a while, it had seemed less scary than having to live, having to leave home and move into a stranger's home because the people he'd known all his life no longer wanted him around. Because they thought he was cursed and would bring doom to all their homes - they'd told him as much.
Why they thought his mother's relative would not be affected was something he - still too young to understand the selfishness of adults - had yet to figure out. So far it seemed to work. Perhaps the curse was terrified of Miss Ella too.
But what about David?
Mr Schubert whined in a faint attempt to get the boys' attention back.
Cal didn't want his friend to go back to a serial killer's home, but what if staying here, staying around Cal for too long would end up killing him? The serial killer would be not amused and neither would the old lady.
"You'll not die." He said it with conviction but who exactly he was trying to convince wasn't quite clear. "You just have to... grow up. If you manage that, it'll be fine." Adults were better off than children - at least in Cal's small world - well, provided they didn't get shredded by monsters...
Still the American boy believed that if they both managed to become adults, too, everything would be better.