That morning, Hades had checked into work. His tired eyes could barely keep themselves open as he leaned against the counter in the employee's lounge. He had been waiting on a poptart to finish cooking in the toaster, but had dozed off while doing so.

Last night had taken it's toll on the young man. He had stayed up until the early hours of the morning sitting in that kitchen and talking to the green eyed man. Time seemed to have flew by when with the other. Hades didn't recall them migrating to the couch in the living room due to being so tired. But he had woken up there that morning with a sleeping Jack on top of him.

At first Hades had panicked, thinking something between them had happened that he couldn't remember. Then the young man realized that their clothes were still on, and that he had done nothing else but share smoke with Jack that one time on the stairs. He would possibly be bringing that up the next time they met. But until then, it was Hades's little secret.

"Have a rough night, Hades my boy?" Another young man, patted his hand down harshly onto Hades's back, snickering as the boy jolted up.

Hades let out a groan, standing up to stretch out his sore, tired muscles.

"Dax, you asshole, don't be such a dipwad, man. I was only trying to relax my eyes for a few minutes," Hades explained.

"Yeah, uh huh, tell that to the manager when he catches you sleepin' on the job. You know how that asshole is, always trying to catch us doing something after that one incident on the second floor," The other said, taking the boy's breakfast snack from the toaster. He took a bite out of it and sipped on his coffee.

Hades rolled his eyes, remembering the little stunt they pulled weeks before with the janitor's supplies. They had thought it to be a good idea to put on a show for the patients, (or so that's what they had told their boss). The two were high on some new stuff they had been sold. In their daze, they put buckets over their heads and got broomsticks to run at each other in attempt to joust. Unlucky for Dax, Hades cheated and had lifted up his helmet to see where he was going, and gave the other boy a hard whack to the head, breaking the wooden stick over the bucket-helmet. The junior was not pleased with the destruction of his tools, nor was he happy about cleaning Dax's nose blood, or Hades's puke off the floor. Dax still had the bruises beneath his eyes from that, which made Hades chuckle in the slightest.

"Hey, those guys loved it though, couldn't stop laughing about it for weeks, I bet they'll still talk about it even now. They should be praising us for making those patients smile, who knows when was the last time they had a good laugh," He said, a small grin on his face as he thought about green eyes.

"Yeah? Try telling that to Jimmy then. He's still busting my balls about his broken stuff! You're helping me pay for that shit by the way Hades man. We'll have to get our stash later on in the week."

Hades nodded, no longer paying attention to his friend. Instead he thought about those green eyes and the gentle laughter of the man that had them. He was excited to see him again, and would have left right after work too, but he figured he shouldn't bother the man. After all, it was his first few days home. Hades figured he'd want some time alone to get settled in.

"The hell are you smiling about, Hades?" Dax scoffed, taking another drink from his paper cup. Hades blinked, snapping out of his thoughts and looked to the man who questioned him.

He shrugged his shoulders, the closed-mouth smile still there on his face as he leaned against the counter with his arms crossed.

"Nothing, just thinking is all," He replied, taking the poptart from the other, and finished off the rest of it. Dax narrowed his eyes at the boy, suspicion filling the dark orbs. He knew his friend like the back of his hand, Hades could never hide anything from Dax for too long. The young man always found out sooner or later. They had been friends since they were children. Growing up together in that small town had it's ups and downs, so it became clear when the other was hiding something. Whether it be hidden sorrow or a deep secret, one of the two always found out one way or another.

"Hades...." Dax said slowly, inching towards the other with eyes still narrowed.

Hades laughed lightly, keeping his place against the counter.

"Yes, Dax?" He responded in a polite tone, looking his friend in the eyes.

Dax stood quiet for a moment as he studied the boy's facial expressions. He then grinned as he looked into crystal blue eyes, and spoke in a teasing tone.

"You screwin' some chick I don't know?" He asked, causing Hades to let out a loud laugh.

He shoved the other back, pushing him out of the way so that he could turn to fill up a cup of coffee.

"No, Dax, I'm not screwin' no chick," He said, shaking his head at the man as he fixed his morning drink.

Dax grinned, laughing as well.

"Who is it then? Is it Jessica? I knew you two were back at it again! You givin' it to her good, Hades? Clean finish and all?" He questioned, to which Hades snorted, making a face at his friend.

"Nah, man, it's not her. Don't worry about it," He said, bringing the cup up to his lips to take a sip from the warm beverage. Dax gave Hades a look as if the young man was crazy to insist that he drop the conversation. His eyes narrowed again, determined to read right through Hades's secretive behavior.

"Don't worry about it, Hades? You must be kidding me right now. Who is this chick? She must be somethin' real important for you not wanting to tell me about her," He said, annoyed now that he was left completely in the dark by his friend. Dax didn't like secrets, especially from the one person he shared everything with no matter how terrible it was. There was a special bond between the two. A trust that neither of them ever thought to ever break.

Hades shrugged again and carried on eating another one of the poptarts while sipping on his coffee.

"Like I said, it's not a chick," He said with a mouth full of food. He then finished his breakfast and began making his way back out into the hall.

Dax blinked, taken aback by the other's claim.

"Not a chick?" He repeated, turning to follow after his secretive friend. "What do you mean it's not a chick? It's a dude?"

He stopped Hades in his tracks, who rolled his eyes at the other man's sudden show of shock. It was nothing new to their friendship that Hades was bisexual. He had told Dax back when they were thirteen, when Hades took a liking to one of their friends. Nothing had changed between the two, but sadly, as for the crush, though the person liked Hades as well, things didn't last very long. That was a memory Hades pushed to the back of his mind, and never once, thought to bring it up again. The heartache, even now, was just too painful for the young man to bare.

Dax put his hands on his hips.

"Look, I don't care if it's a dude. That's all you have to say, and if you're not comfortable sharing who he is, I get it, okay?" He said, now calmer with less pestering to reveal the mystery person's identity. Hades smiled in the slightest and nodded. Dax grinned as well, throwing an arm around Hades's shoulder as they carried on with walking to their station.

"But what's the guy's deal anyways? He not out yet,or somethin'?" He asked as they strolled down the hall.

Hades let out a sigh as his eyes glanced to the old room where him and green eyes used to share silent conversations. It was currently being cleaned by the janitor.

"Something like that," He said, as Dax changed the conversation to one of the girls he had picked up at the bar last night.

Though Hades could barely pay attention when all he could think about was his new found crush, and what he was up to now. 

____

Meanwhile, back at the house in which Hades had left that morning, Jack still was laying there on the couch in a deep sleep. He was laying on his front side, the side of his face buried into a couch pillow. Beneath his closed lids, his eyes searched around in the dream land that they saw. It was anything but a dream, however. If anything it was a nightmare, and a terrifying one at that.

"Jackson! Why does he do this, Jackson?" He heard in an echo, causing his brow to twitch.

Screaming had went on further. The kind that was blood curdling, agonizing to hear. It pierced his ears, causing an endless ringing to them once all was finally quiet. Inside his dream, he had covered his ears and could hear his younger self whimper as he was enclosed in darkness.

Then another voice was heard.

"You loved her, yet you could not save her....Worthless boy, letting your feelings get in the way....You are nothing, and now so is she," The voice of an older man said. His hand reached out and grabbed onto the boy's chin, forcing Jack to look up into the blazing fire of burning green eyes.

"Worthless" He heard again, causing him to let out a whimper and close his own eyes. But the flashbacks of blood soaking tile flooring kept replaying right before him.

"Worthless boy! Now see will pay the price!" The voice shouted, followed by the terrified screaming of it's victim.

"Jackson!" He heard it call out for him, though he could do nothing but run blindly in the darkness and listen to those agonizing screams beg him for help.

"Jackson, hurry! Jackson, please, help me!"

He began to pant, searching frantically through the dark hallways, until finally he found her lying there on the ground on that cold kitchen floor with another man right beside her. Both pairs of green eyes were dull and lifeless, and both were covered in blood.

The boy dropped to his knees, suddenly covered in the crimson red.

"No, no....." He cried out quietly to himself, reaching over with bloody hands to pull the girl into his lap. He could no longer contain those cries as he held that lifeless body in his arms.

Unaware of his surroundings, a hand, dripping with red had grabbed onto his arm. The boy gasped, looking up to see that those burning green eyes as if they never faded. They stared stared straight at him, unblinking with a never ending glare of hate. The red man let out a loud roar as he took the girl from the boy, and dragged her off back into the darkness where her screams echoed in his head once again. Repeating that gory scene right before his eyes, he finally let out a scream of pure terror.

"No....No! Annalise!" He cried out.

His eyes then shot open as he jolted awake. The throbbing in his head came in harsh, causing him to groan as his eyes adjusted to the lightening of the room. They searched his surroundings as soon as they unblurred. He found himself in the living room, just where he had fallen asleep last night, only something was missing.

Jack lifted himself up, realizing that a blanket has been pulled over him by the person that was supposed to be beneath him. He figured that Hades had left already to go do whatever it was that teenagers did in the morning. So he wasn't too bothered by the young man's absence. Especially after that dream he had, and explaining the mumbling in his sleep, was just something that Jack didn't want to do. It was better to keep his troubles locked away, then have to face them in front of someone else.

He then sat up, rubbing his red, irritated eyes with the palms of his hands. Last night had been interesting, considering how the ex-mental patient never spoke to anyone in a long time. It was quite nice to not worrying about his own mind for once, though he would never truly admit that to himself, nor to Hades. That was another thing the green eyed man had to lock away. No matter how hard it would be, Jack knew better than to letting anything, or anyone, especially a charming, blue eyed young man, get passed his barricaded mind. His emotions and feelings would be the death of him.

Getting up completely, Jack brushed himself off, fixing the wrinkles in his clothing. He couldn't believe he had allowed that to happen. Allowing Hades to spend the night was like asking for trouble to come his way. Sleeping in his clothes was another thing, and at that time, Jack was desperate for a shower.

He shuffled up the stairs, heading towards the bathroom where he turned on the water to the shower and got in after stripping away his clothes from last night.

The cold water ran down his body, soothing him from his anxiety. He swayed in the slightest, eyes closed as he relaxed under it's cool touch. Cold showers were the best showers in Jack's opinion. They were best taken early in the morning after a night of tossing and turning. It didn't matter if the weather outside was below freezing, Jack still always proceeded with taking his ice cold showers that washed away all his troubles for the time being.

After showering up, the man turned off the shower and stepped out into similar freezing temperatures and dried off before carrying on with his old morning routine.

He put on some fresh clothing. A dark grey hoodie that hugged around his arms and torso snuggly. Beneath it was a plain white shirt along with black jeans that he usually wore. The sleeves of the hoodie were pushed up as he jogged back down stairs and went off into the kitchen to pick up an apple.

The green fruit would be his breakfast that morning. He leaned against the kitchen counter munching on it after cleaning it on his shirt. All was quiet as he did so. A bit too quiet for his liking. It was boring just sitting there in that house. There was nothing to do but clean and listen to the radio. It had gotten depressing after the first day, and now all Jack wanted to do was go out in town for a walk, but he couldn't because now everyone knew who he was, and it would not be ideal to get in trouble so soon after just having gotten back. He let out a sigh, looking around his kitchen for any spark entertainment.

The clock on the wall went off, breaking the silence with it's cheesy cuckoo song of chasing the weasel. It signaled that it was already twelve in the afternoon.

His eyes went to the device, watching it until the music ended, and the little wooden figures went back into their home. Then, shifting his attention back to the rest of the kitchen, he spotted something silver and shiny on the table. A pocket knife.

Hades had left behind.

It was used to cut up the apple slices that they enjoyed last night. Jack looked to it, his mind going off somewhere dark and unpleasant.

Fortunately, the doorbell ringing had snapped him out of those thoughts before they could take advantage. He blinked and looked in the direction of the sound. One of these days, he promised to himself, that blasted sound would be no more. It already was ticking him off just hearing it's piercing noise. (Hades had ruined that for him).

Quickly he began making his way out to the door, but stopped at seeing the knife lying there on the wooden table. He paused for a moment to think to himself, but another ring had cut his thought process short. With a grumble, he snatched the sharp object from it's place, making sure it was closed before tucking it away into his back pocket. He then hurried to the door to answer it.

When he had opened it, there standing behind its barrier, was two teenage boys, ones that looked much younger than Hades's age.

"Whoa, he actually answered!" One of them blurted out in surprise. Him and his friend looked to each other, nodding their heads as they laughed. "Oh these poor fools", was all Jack could think. Their hair was shaggy and messy. One boy had long blonde locks that went down to his shoulders. The other was a dark brunette. His hair was equally of a mess,but was only long enough to touch his ears. They both wore blue jeans and t-shirts cover with flannels. They also had levi jackets with patches of peace signs and happy faces. All that was missing was a valse wagon van and a talking dog by their side.

Jack let out an irritated sigh through his nose as he rolled his eyes at the blonde boy's comment.

"Can I help you?" He asked, not wanting to waste his time on a couple of hippy teenage dirtbags. Besides, he knew what they were there for. It was obvious that they were just two curious kids who wanted a closer look at danger. Telling by the smell that they gave off, it was also clear that they were not at all sober.

"Dude, aren't you like that one dude. Y'uh know, the one who like eats people?" The brunette asked, his eyelids droopy as he looked to the man.

Jack sighed.

The other boy nudged his friend's shoulder.

"Bro! You can't just go around asking dudes if they eat other dudes! Not cool man!" He scolded in his stoner voice, while the other boy rubbed his arm and made a face as if he had just learned an important life lesson.

Jack couldn't begin to understand what was going on after that moment. Hearing the way teenagers spoke to one another these days was like listening to a foreign language. He didn't understand, let alone want to begin to comprehend what they were saying. Instead he just waited until they stopped bickering back and forth with each other.

In a way, it was quite amusing to watch the two friends have a somewhat intelligent conversation without using very many intelligent words. But for the most part it was starting to get annoying having them there.

Then again, Jack was beginning to think they might be of some use to him.

The faint smell of marijuana was slowly becoming stronger. It masked over the alcoholic scent that the two gave off. Jack had picked it up quickly. For a moment he thought as the two continued on talking, until an idea came to mind, causing his eyes to dart over to the blonde.

"Right, dude. That is why you should never stand too close to a lion while covered in meat sauce," The blonde finished explaining.

The green eyed man then suddenly grabbed hold of the boy's jacket, and pulling him in close. The boy yelped. His friend going wide eyed behind him.

"H-Hey man, not cool bro. Let me go!" He pleaded.

"Dude, I told you this was a bad idea! He's gonna bite your face off, man!" The brunette panicked, though he did nothing but watch in horror as his friend was held face to face with a former killer.

Jack brought him close to his face. The tips of their noses barely touched. He felt the boy shake in his hold. Any second now and he would have thought the teen would wet his pants. Though he wasn't in the teasing mood. Instead he dipped his head down to the boy's neck, inhaling the strong odor deeply.

"H-Hey d-dude! Look, I-I'm sorry alright? I-I didn't mean to bother you! We'll leave, I promise!" The teen continued to beg, though it would do no use. Jack never did give into the begging and crying. The boy was just wasting his time and breath.

Ignoring the young man's pleas, Jack trailed his nose down, searching for the source of the scent.

He stopped once he reached the front pocket of the boy's jacket. Both teens were confused and very much terrified when the man went down south. The one he was searching didn't move a muscle, only whimpered and shook like a cold, wet dog.

Reaching into the pocket, Jack pulled out a small bag of the substance he was looking for, along with one of the smoking sticks already made. Standing back up, he began patting the boy's chest, reaching into his jacket to pull out a half-empty packet of cigarettes from the teen's