I'll be fine redo

A low growl made my ears perk up. I turned around. A large dog, German Shepherd looking breed, mixed, was growling at me. Brown coat, partial saddle. More like spotted. Black and white feet. Feral? I held still. Don’t show fear. Running would just encourage it.

“Nice doggie?”

Then I saw that the dog was next to the shadow from earlier. The voice told it to sit. There was a pained grunt as he said it.

He was holding his arm. This time the voice was quiet. “Get out.” Another rag over a spot on his arm, the palm was covered in blood.

“You’re hurt!”

He backed up, almost into the door frame. And out to the hall. “Glass. I’ll be fine…”

“Yeah, right, you are. Let me see it.”

That was obviously not the reaction he was expecting. He backed up even further, banging into the far wall. I followed.

“Let me help you.” I tried more gently.

Still shying away, he made another attempt. Like a wounded animal. Keep your distance. “Go away. Get out of here.” This time, it sounded apprehensive. “Leave me alone.”

I stood my ground and pulled my best ‘You will listen to ME, child’ voice. “LET me SEE IT.”

Startled, he sat down. The rag came off. A shard of glass, about what you’d get from a thin greenish broken bottle, was sticking in his shoulder. “You are so not ’fine‘, you liar.” Then I remembered. “And you called me dim-witted?” Luckily, the glass wasn’t in anything vital. But still very much changing color due to the blood staining down it. I tried to smile, kneeling close enough to see. He was looking elsewhere, maybe a little sick. Or scared. “You helped me back there.” I gently touched under it and saw him wince. A small gritting of teeth. A tiny whimper. “I want to pay back the favor, since you didn’t steal from me, other than to deal with the blood. Doesn’t look like anything major is severed. Looks like you tried to pull it out, but couldn’t.”

“Rag. Gauze. Over there.” He pointed to the cabinet on the other side of the door. Must have been going after it when I had disturbed him.

I retrieved what he had told me. The dog meanwhile had sat down and put it’s head in the figure’s lap. It was trying to be comforting.

I wrapped the piece of gauze around the shard, making it less slick. He was breathing as if he was trying to control his fear of me. That made me pause, just a moment. A closer look under the makeshift hood. I took a minute to see him. Black hair drooped across his face, chopping off at pieces that hid at least one of his eyes at time. Blue eyes. Very human and very scared looking at me and my hands. The color was very blue, almost an indescribable blue. The kind of blue that was almost magical.I had always liked various shades and tints of blue, but never been unable to name one.  The arm under the cloak was tan and muscular, but still young and lanky. A boy, maybe my age? Or…?

“This is going to hurt…” I warned, gritting my teeth. “Brace yourself.”

“Do it.”

I yanked. He gave a sharp yelp. But it was out. The cut was small, just bloody. More gauze went over the spot. I tied the rag over the works, since I had no medical tape. Tightly.

The dog licked at his face as I finished up. “Thank you.”

“You should see a doctor.”

“So should you.“ He paused. “Why are you being nice to me?”

I let a small laugh escape. He didn’t take my explanation? Sitting down next to him, it felt amusing that there was some body heat to the figure. So much for a ghost.