It was two weeks. Two weeks of seeing no Jeff and staying inside unless being driven to work by Ben. It was torture for Tim who loved to walk around, stay outside, and someone who missed Jeff so much it felt like they're heart was slowly being ripped up. Jeff didn't come to work so he had to lie and say he was sick, even though he had no idea where Jeff was. The stir craziness was what led him here now.

"I want to go outside Ben!" Tim yelled, the younger boy blocking the door.

"Do you have any idea where I live?!"

"Near the highway?"

"Ye-- NO! I live a mile from the forest so that means Slender could get you if you stay outside too long!" Tim groaned at the mention of the cursed Slenderman, who he was starting to hate with a passion.

"Then take me to Jeff's house!!"

"NO! The other proxies will be waiting for you there!" Ben yelled back, Tim fisting his hands into his hair, messing it up.

"I want to see Jeff god damn it!" Tim screamed, Ben stepping back as he was told Tim never cussed unless he was really really drunk.

"Did someone say my name?" Tim froze, swerving around with Ben to stare at the older man walking into the living room. Jeff had cuts, bruises, and bumps all over him, his body battered and he was favoring one leg over the other. Tim couldn't believe that this happened.

"Jeff..." Tim said, walking closer to the battered man before holding one of his hands that had the less bruises.

"Hey there, pretty boy... What's up?"

"What happened to you?"

"Stuff. You been safe?" Jeff asked, cracking his neck for a moment. He groaned at the movement, but sat down.

"I have... Should you go to a hospital?" Tim asked worried, glad he didn't win the argument as he wouldn't have seen Jeff.

"Nah. I am fine. Still breathing."

"At least let me help you... I know a little bit about nursing." Tim said, smiling as he kissed a bruise on Jeff's hand gently before going to find some bandaids for Jeff's cuts. When he came back Jeff and Ben were talking.

"Very nice... Was it an interrogation?" Ben asked.

"Yeah. He, and his two boys, were involved." He says, laying back.

"I'm back..."

"Thanks, darlin'. Uhg... Do what you must." Jeff says not resisting the help.

"Of course..." Tim started to put band aids on Jeff's cuts and put ointment on his bruises, his face looking fearful as he found large bruises on Jeff's back and stomach. "I swear... If any of them come close to me I'm going to do the same to them as they did to you..."

"How come it sounds sexy when you say violent stuff?" Ben said, winking before laughing as Jeff hit him.

"Mine..."

"Got it!" Ben yelped, laughing.

"I'm done..." Tim said, smiling as he finished the last bandage before cleaning up his mess. Tim was thinking when the phone rang, Tim being closest grabbed it.

"Yello?" Tim asked, hearing breathing on the other end.

"Is this Masky?" Tim paled at the voice, the same one he heard a week ago on his own phone.

"Who is it, pretty boy?" Jeff asked, concerned.

"I-I-It's for you..." Tim stuttered, holding out the phone for him.

Jeff takes the phone, and raises an eyebrow.

"Hello...?"

Jeff listens for a moment, before growling. He looked unhappy, and more furious than ever.

"Leave. Us. Alone. Or I will go to Zalgo! Fuck off, Slender!" Jeff yelled, hanging up. At that moment every phone started to ring with every tv turning on, the lights flashing and Tim held his ears as static from the tv hurt them.

"ZALGO!" Jeff roared, before everything went dead silent.

"You called...?" A voice cooed, from everywhere and nowhere.

Tim gasped, the voice bringing him back to the dream and he swerved to where he thought the voice came from only to see nothing.

"I... I want a deal. Something. I want to protect Tim from your partner, Slenderman." Jeff said, coughing for a moment.

"Dude, this is dangerous..." Ben said, uncomfortable.

"I suppose I can do something for your friend..." The voice said, before a form molded itself from the shadows of the room.

"NO! No deals!" Tim said, having become terrified at the word and the demon in the corner and he pulled Jeff back to talk with him. "What in sam's hill are you doing?!"

"He can protect you from Slender." Jeff said, smiling slightly.

"At the cost of something from you!"

"I have no soul, so... so?"

"He might do something bad... I'm afraid he's going to take you away from me..." Tim said, shuddering as he heard a dark chuckle right next to his ear.

"I would not do that to you, Timothy... Jeffery would only have to do me a service." The voice said, chuckling.

"What service?" Tim asked, feeling like growling at the chuckling voice.

"Nothing he hasn't done before... Shall we discuss somewhere more private, Jeffrey?" The voice asked, the shadow being going into the spare room.

"You're not doing this without me..." Tim said, crossing his arms.

"Buddy, I want you to watch over Ben for a moment. Please." Jeff said, before entering the room.

"Don't just walk away..." Tim said, sitting down with Ben.

"He's fine, Tim. Zalgo will most likely just ask him to kill someone." Ben said, shivering. He staticked a bit, looking a bit hazy before going back to normal.

"Are you ok?"

"He makes me glitch a bit..." Ben says, wincing. "But I will be fine."

"I just... I just don't like him for some reason even though he let me have this life where I can be with Jeff... It's like my mind is programmed to hate him..." Tim said, not telling the big reason he was not happy.

"He did give you that. You and Jeff before were so hateful towards each other... Cruel pranks, fist fights..." Ben said, sighing. "But we have to trust Jeff that he knows what he's doing."

"I... I don't like how Jeff didn't ask me... I would have said I wanted them away from me anyway, but I don't like it how he seems to know me more than I do.. It's... Unnerving and amazing at the same time..."

"He's protective of you. He hasn't had someone that he genuinely liked in a long time." Ben said, chuckling.

"Why didn't we like each other?"

"I always said it's because you two were too stubborn for your own good, not fearful of much." Tim froze and Ben glitched hard for a moment, both turning toward the doorway to see a tall faceless man.

"You are not allowed here! Get out Slender!!" Ben yelled, backing up as his form glitched. "Dammit! Get out!"

"Slender?" Tim said, the man hurting his head and he nodded.

"Come here, Masky." Slender ordered, Tim feeling his feet shift on their own.

"Grrrr!" Ben grabbed Tim, and yanked him back. "JEFF! ZALGO! SLENDER IS HERE!"

The shadow being appeared in front of Ben and Toby, a smirk on it's face.

"Hello Slenderman... Once again you come at an inconvenient time..." The shadow said, chuckling.

"I'm here for my proxy..."

"He is no longer under your command... He is a free man, allowed to court whoever he wants, able to live freely..."

"Not if he gets his memories back..."

"He shall not get them, if he desires them gone. Is that your wish, Timothy? To live as your own person and be with Jeffrey? Or return to Slender as his servant?"

"Or finally realize who you are and know about what happened to your parents and friends..."

"That is the price of being with Jeffrey... who is now a part of MY army." The shadow laughed, as Slender staggered at that claim.

"Is this true, Jefferey?"

"I want Tim to be safe from your control... And if it enables me to be with him, I will serve Zalgo, until he cannot complete that deal. Then I am a free agent again." Jeff said, walking out and looking at Tim.

"He has never done what he didn't want to do... He killed because he wanted to... Like you do, Jeff." Slender said, Tim stepping back in shock at the mention of him killing people.

"I... I did?" Tim said, his head swirling once more only to have Slender grab his pills.

"So, these are the reason you haven't remembered your true self..."

"Give them back! My head hurts!" Tim said, not wanting to get close to the being as he held his head, the swirling getting worse as memories flashed across his vision.

"No... Remember then let's see what you say.."

"What if I don't want to remember?!" Tim yelled, falling to his knees as the pounding grew agonizing.

The shadow holds out his hand, another bottle of pills in them. They were the same ones as before.

"Here child... Take them." He said, smiling. Tim reached for them only to wince and resume holding his head, static now piercing his vision.

"No Zalgo! The child is MINE."

Zalgo snarled quietly, and put his hand on Tim's head, making the pain slowly disappear.

"I always honor my deals, Slenderman... I keep my end. This boy is under my protection until the day he wishes to return to you. For now, he shall keep ignorant of his past." Zalgo said, his form becoming solid. He looked like how he did in the forest, only more powerful and stern.

"You have NO RIGHT on him!" Slender snarled, his tendrils twitching as Tim noticed two men behind Slender.

"I have every right, to do this. He does not wish to come back. Jeffrey summoned me to protect him, and he wants the pills."

"He would want to come back if he remembered! The only reason he wants the pills is for the pain!"

"Do you wish to remember, Timothy? To remember your past and be forever indebted to Slenderman? Your choice, of course... Just remember what is at stake." Zalgo said, motioning to Ben and Jeff. Jeff still looked bruised and upset at Slender, and Ben was in a corner, trying to keep from glitching too hard.

"No. You hurt the one I love and all you have done is hurt me in the process! You are hurting my friend too!" Tim yelled, Slender's tendrils twitching.

"See? He wants to have this new life... and he sees how you can be." Zalgo said, a sly smile on his face.

"He'll come back... Once he sees how YOU are..." Slender said, disappearing with the two men and Tim felt a weight come off of his chest.

"Are you alright, Tim?" Jeff asked, running to him. He hugged him, shaking slightly. Zalgo moved away from Ben, allowing him to take his form. Tim nodded, hugging Jeff tightly as he had a blank look as his mind raced.

"Jeffrey, you shall work at my personal club, The 9th Circle. You may apply as well, Timothy. I pay well, and I allow certain extent to trouble... I shall see you in three days, Jeffrey." Zalgo said, smiling still.

"Thank you... For doing that..." Tim said, but he hated himself now. The time without Zalgo's help made him remember some horrible memories, most gruesome and torturous on his mind.

"It was a pleasure to help, Timothy. Everyone deserves a chance at redemption, sometime or another... Shall I expect you at my club as well?"

"I don't want to work with Slender hovering over so I'm going to say yes."

"Good. Bartender sounds good?" Zalgo asked.

"Sounds great." Tim said, smiling as Jeff snuggled into him as he held Tim in his arms.

"Very well. I shall see you both then. Timothy, your pills are in the cabinet in the restroom. Two a day, once in the morning, once in the afternoon."

"Good.. No more pain for my pretty boy..."

"Your pretty boy?" Tim teased, nuzzling their noses together.

Zalgo smirked, and disappeared, vanishing from sight.

"This is why I don't like you at my house." Ben said, smiling as he was joking.

"Shit goes down." Jeff says, pumping his fist in the air.

"Can we go home now...?" Tim asked, just keeping his head on Jeff's shoulder.

"Yeah. We can. Thanks Benny." Jeff said, picking up Tim up as Ben nodded.

"I can walk..." Tim mumbled, not complaining as he barely slept with Jeff gone.

Jeff rolled his eyes and carried Tim to the truck, putting him in before climbing in on the other side. He revved the engine, before taking off.

"Have you been feeding Willy?" Tim mumbled, snuggling into the seat.

"I have been. He's fine..." Jeff said, not mentioning that Jane had to do it since he had been held hostage.

"I love you... A lot you know..." Tim said, falling asleep as Jeff stared at the sleeping form.

"Yeah... Yeah I know, pretty boy." Jeff said, sighing.