On edge. A little twitchier than usual. Not so level headed. His eyes flitted between all the nooks and crannies of his surroundings before finally settling on Jim’s face and staying there.
Don’t get into cars with strangers. Don’t follow strangers into dark alleys. Don’t accept a stranger’s invitation for Thai food. That’s the kind of thing parents were supposed to teach their children, wasn’t it? With Michael, it was the other way around. Don’t get into a car with the Anti-Christ. Don’t follow the Anti-Christ into a dark alley. Don’t go out to eat with the Anti-Christ.
He could rip this man’s heart out and eat it if he wanted to, if he felt like it. Jim could consider himself lucky, that Michael didn’t have any intention to do that. There was no reason for turning on somebody who was being so nice to him. Sure, his father would’ve enjoyed it (if he were here), but that only heightened his desire to do the opposite. Play nice. Play the part of the Down on his Luck Teenage Boy.
Michael looked flustered, feet stuck to the ground. His hunger compelled him into motion. His feet moved as if on their own accord. He followed behind Jim, a stray who had been won over by a soft voice and the promise of a good meal.
“You’re very kind,” he said as he fell in beside Jim. “You don’t have to, you know?” One last chance to back out.