Samantha shut off her DVD player as the credits began to roll at the end of the second movie she'd been watching. She stretched and looked at the clock. The small digital numbers just clicked to 12:58 when a knock came from the door.
Sam froze mid-stretch wondering who could be knocking. She got up quickly and flipped the hood of her sweatshirt up hoping that it would cover the obvious bruise on her neck. Making her way to the door, she quickly checked out her window to see who was there but all she could see was a black jacket and a pair of jeans. She eased the door open and stared for a moment at the person standing there before she forced a smile onto her face.
A woman stood on Sam's porch. Her bleached blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail but she had let a few loose strands frame her face. She wore thick eyeliner and mascara. Bright red lipstick was painted over her full lips, which were stretched into a huge smile. The woman's name was Janet Cook. She was one of the artists at the tattoo parlor where Sam worked and got Sam her job. The two women had been friends since Samantha moved to Haddonfield.
"What are you doing here?" Sam squeaked in a slightly shocked voice.
"I thought I'd stop by and see how you were. Andy said you were sick." She replied with her usual happy demeanor.
Sam was about to respond when she remembered that she was playing hooky and forced her voice into a scratchier tone. "Oh yeah, come on in." She said as she stepped aside letting her friend enter.
Janet wandered in and took off her hoodie revealing the extensive tattoo sleeves on her arms. She moved towards the living room before looking over her shoulder and asking what Sam had been up to. Sam quickly followed behind her and responded. "I've just been taking it easy."
Janet nodded and looked over the DVDs that were stacked on the coffee table. "What were you watching?" She asked as she sat down on the couch.
"I just finished Puppet Master." Sam replied sitting down next to her friend. Janet was leaning forward picking through the movies before she squealed and sat back rather quickly.
"Have you watched this yet, today?" She asked in a hyper voice. Sam glanced at the title in Janet's hands and smiled. She was holding The Crow. I shook my head and she squealed again. "Can you watch it now?" She asked bouncing it around like a kid asking their mother if they could have a candy bar.
"Don't you have to get back to work?" Sam asked. She loved spending time with Janet but she didn't want her friend to get in trouble.
"Nope, I'm on mommy duty for you. Andy's orders." Sam smiled, but secretly hated those words. Mommy duty meant that she wasn't going to get a second to herself. Normally, she wouldn't mind that but with a huge purple bruise across her throat she dreaded the company.
"All right then toss the movie in. I'll get popcorn." Janet nodded and Sam went off to the kitchen. She pulled a bag of popcorn out of the box and tossed it into the microwave. She let a quiet sigh escape her lips as she leaned against the counter. Gently she traced the bruise on her neck. She closed her eyes and let her mind wander. She wasn't surprised when she started thinking about Michael. In fact, she expected it.
She remembered the night Michael stood in front of her and offered her a rat as a dinner option like it was the most normal thing in the world. That memory led to another and then another. Sam was so lost in thought that she almost didn't hear the popcorn stop popping and almost let it burn.
She was in the middle of pouring the popcorn into a bowl when she heard her name being called from the living room.
"What's up?" Sam asked as she walked into the living room, popcorn bowl in hand.
"Where'd you get these?" Sam almost stopped dead in her tracks when she saw her friend holding up the stuffed bear and letting the clown rest in her lap. She felt her stomach tighten as she saw her friend touching her toys. She couldn't explain it but she didn't like the fact that her friend was touching them.
"Oh…uh," Sam rapidly tried to think of some lie she could tell her friend and have her believe it. "I saw them in one of those antique shops and picked them up."
Janet gave the dolls a once over before putting them back where they were and reaching out for the bowl of popcorn. Sam handed it over and sat down next to her friend forming a barrier between Janet and the toys.
Sam grabbed the remote and hit the play button. She snuggled into the couch and unconsciously grabbed her teddy bear.
Halfway through the movie Sam swept her hood off her head when she started getting too hot. She thought nothing of it until she heard a gasp from beside her. She turned and only gave her friend a better view of the bruise.
"Oh my God! Sam what the hell happened to you?" Sam immediately tried to hide the bruise even though Janet had already seen it.
"I'm fine. It's nothing to worry about." Sam said meekly without looking at her friend.
"Like hell it's nothing to worry about. Tell me what happened right now." Janet was now turned fully towards her friend and was not going to let the matter drop.
Sam sighed and began playing with the teddy bear in her lap. She couldn't tell her friend everything but she could give up some information. "A couple nights ago I got attacked by some guys on the way home. Another guy saw what was happening and stepped in. He took me to his house and I stayed there for a night. He took me home yesterday. And let me keep those toys too."
Janet stared wide-eyed. "Damn no wonder you didn't want to go to work. Have you been to the hospital?"
"I told you I'm fine. It's just a bruise and it'll go away." Sam reassured her.
Janet stared at her friend for a moment silently cursing the person who had hurt her before finally speaking. "All right. I'm not going to push it but just remember you can tell me anything." Sam smiled at her friend and hugged her.
"I know and I really appreciate that."
The two girls separated but Janet held onto Sam's shoulders. She studied the younger girl, looking her directly in the eye, making sure that she wasn't hiding anything else. Satisfied she turned back to the screen.
"So are you going to tell me about this guy who saved my best friend?" Janet asked, a mischievous smile returning to her face.
Sam returned the smile and settled back into the couch. She grabbed the teddy bear again. "What do you want to know?"
"For starters was he cute?" Janet was immediately assaulted with a pillow as Sam laughed at her question.
"Is that all you think about?" Sam questioned and hit her friend once more only to have Janet catch the pillow and tear it out of her grasp.
"I am always on the lookout for potential boyfriends for you. Now answer the question." Janet said tossing the pillow back at Sam.
"He wasn't cute per say, but there was something about him that made him…memorable." Sam said while thinking about the black eyes that always caught her attention.
"Oh, so he left an impression. Tell me more." Janet said leaning closer, once again abandoning the movie on the screen.
Sam felt a blush creep onto her cheeks but ignored it. "He's tall. And he's really quiet. And he's…considerate, to a point." A smile tried to force its way onto her lips as she spoke and she did her best to hide it, even though she had a feeling that Janet saw.
"What else?"
Sam bit her lower lip as she thought about it. Well let's see. He's number one on Haddonfield's most wanted list. He killed his older sister at age eight and then killed his younger sister several years later. And during those several years of searching he killed dozens of other people. Yeah, he's really good at killing. Oh, and he was the one that actually choked me. She mused before actually replying to Janet. "I only spent a day with the guy. It's not like he told me his life story."
"Well does he at least have a name?" Janet asked with a smirk.
Sam contemplated whether or not she should tell Janet his real name, but couldn't see any reason not to say his first name at least. "His name was Michael."
"What about a last name?" She pushed leaning just a little bit closer.
"Um…Spencer, I think." Sam said using her mother's maiden name instead of Myers.
"Hm…sounds like a decent guy." Janet said finally turning back to the movie, which was almost over at this point. She grabbed a handful of popcorn and tossed it in her mouth. "Wish I could meet him."
Sam smiled at the thought of Janet meeting Michael Myers before turning back to the screen.