I was asleep on the floor in Jack's room when I heard screaming. I shot up off the floor and saw Jack thrashing around in bed with his mouth open in a scream.

"Jack! Wake up!" I screamed. I didn't want to touch him and make everything worse. Over the course of a month that Jack's been back, he's made some progress.

He can sit close to me now and he somewhat answers questions. He lets me stay in his room at night. I think he feels protected when I do that, but I don't know.

He keeps screaming, so I finally touch him, shaking him awake. His eyes shot open and he starts sobbing instead of screaming. He grabs my hands in his, gripping them in his.

"Jack, I'm right here." I told him. He pulled me down next to him and wrapped his arms around me. He started sobbing into my chest and it shocked me. He hasn't been able to touch me since he got back.

"Matthew, help me." He whispered.

"Help you how?"

"They're going to come back. They're going to take me again."

"No, they aren't. You're going to stay with me, okay? The hunters are never going to touch you again."

"They hurt me." He whispered.

"How, honey?"

"They raped me every night. They beat me everyday. They.. they.." He said, but ended up trembling on the verge of a panic attack.

I sat him up, pulling him into my arms. "It's okay. I'm right here. Focus on breathing."

"E-everyday.. they put me into this ring and forced me to fight a different guy to stay alive."

"How many people did you fight?" I whispered.

"I killed 12 people, Matthew." He whispered, then sobbed into my chest again.

"Breathe, Jack, just breathe. You're safe now."

"I killed them." He whispered between sobs.

"I know you did, but you did what you had to do, okay? They forced you."

"I could've let them kill me or-"

"No, don't you dare say that, Jack. You're alive and you need to be grateful for that."

"But they could've been parents or-"

"Don't think about them, okay?"

"I can't. They're always on my mind now. They haunt me. I can never forget them."

"Then thank them. Thank them for saving you."

He looked up at me and squeezed my hand really tightly. He looked up at the ceiling, then looked back at me.

"Thank them." I whispered to him.

He looked back up at the ceiling and I watched as his eyes closed. "Thank you."

I looked down at Jack as he slept like a baby. He had fallen asleep in my arms about two hours ago. I set his back, gently, on the bed and walked out of the room, quietly.

I walked down the stairs and into the kitchen. Oliver, Isaac, Dad, and Father sat at the counter with cups of coffee in hands.

"We heard screaming about two hours ago," Oliver said. "did he have a nightmare?"

"Yeah." I whispered, pouring myself a cup of coffee.

"We thought it would be better if we didn't go in there, so we didn't crowd him." Isaac said.

"He told me what happened." I whispered.

Their heads shot up and Dad walked over to me. He placed a hand on my shoulder. "What happened to him?"

"It's not my story to tell. He told me. I can't lose his trust now and tell people his secrets."

Father was about to say something, but I heard screaming from upstairs in Jack's room. I dropped the cup of coffee in my hand, the glass breaking on the ground.

I took the stairs two steps at a time. I slammed the door open and ran over to the bed. I took Jack into my arms. His eyes widened as he woke up. He looked at me and scrambled to find my hand.

"Are you okay?" I whispered to him.

He nodded, trying to catch his breath. "Y-yeah, I'm fine."

I ran my hand through his hair. "Just breathe. You're safe now."

I watched as he looked up at the doorway to see his parents and my parents standing there. He moved in his arms, so his face was buried into my shoulder. Dad nodded and left with everyone following him.

"They're gone, so talk to me. What's going on?" I said, holding him closer to me.

"I had another nightmare."

"About what?"

"I don't remember. Something about..."

"The kidnapping."

He nodded. "Yeah."

"Do you want some coffee?"

He nodded and I pulled him off the bed. I wrapped my arms around him and held him close to me.

"I'm new to this, what can I do with you and what can't I?"

"You can touch me and kiss me and stuff like that, but I can't.. I can't.." He started.

"You can't do sexual things." I finished for him.

"Yeah."

"I completely understand that. You can talk to me about anything, okay?"

"I know and thank you."

"Do you want to talk about anything?" I whispered.

He nodded, so I sat us back down. I gave him distance, so he could do what he wanted to make himself feel more comfortable.

"W-when I was there, they f-forced me to.. um.. they forced me to s-suck.." He started, then looked down at the bedspread.

"Suck them off?" I whispered.

"Y-yeah. They forced my head down and made me do things that I.. just.. couldn't do."

I took his hand in mine. "I understand, baby."

"That's why when you forced my head down when I saw you again, I freaked out."

"Okay, well, I won't do that and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel uncomfortable."

"You didn't know."

I used my finger to lift his chin and he looked me in the eyes with a small smile. I leaned in, letting our lips touch. I jolted back a little at the shock that happened when our lips touched. It was the first kiss we've had since he's been back.

We pulled back and he smiled at me. "I love you."

"I love you too." I whispered.

I pressed my forehead against his, closing my eyes. We relished in the moment and he took my hand in his.

"Come on, let's get coffee." I said.

We walked downstairs and our parents smiled at us. Isaac smiled at his son. "Good morning."

"Morning." Jack whispered, gripping my hand, tightly.

"You're okay. They're not trying to hurt you." I whispered to him.

He nodded to me as I poured him a cup of coffee. I handed it to him and watched as he took a sip. I noticed that he's been having problems keeping food down. He barely got any food for three months, so his stomach was still adjusting to it. I know that keeping drinks down as well was hard for him, so I was hoping he was getting better.

"Do you want to try to eat?" Father whispered to my mate.

He looked up at him and sighed. "I guess."

I nodded and started to make him toast. Once they popped up, I buttered them with a tiny amount of butter and handed it to my mate.

I ate one of the pieces because he handed it to me and once he bit into it, I could tell that his stomach churned. He closed his eyes and set the food down. He was focusing on not throwing up, so when he stood up, I knew it wasn't good.

He ran to the bathroom and I followed him. He made it to the toilet just on time and I watched as he emptied his stomach, which barely had any food in it.

"You okay?" I whispered to him, rubbing his back.

He leaned back and I let him sit between my legs. "I just want to be able to eat."

"We should take you to the hospital. You need another IV."

About a week ago, the same thing happened and his parents forced him to go to the hospital to get his vital nutrients. I didn't go because I had something else to do, but I know something happened and I know it wasn't good.

"No! No! Matthew, don't make me go, please!" He cried.

"This isn't healthy. You need to get your vital nutrients. I'm sorry."

"I can keep trying. I can keep eating. Please." He begged me, turning to face me. I could tell something bad really happened to him when he got an IV placed in, so I gave in.

"Okay, okay. You don't have to go."

He lunged at me and hugged me, tightly. "Thank you, baby, thank you."

I nodded. "You're welcome. Brush your teeth, go to your room, and put a trash can next to your bed. I'll bring you food, okay?"

"Okay." He said and kissed me. I glared at him because I forgot that he hadn't brushed his teeth yet.

"You're dead." I whispered and let my hands attack his sides. He started to laugh, loudly, and his back fell to the floor.

He tried to push me away, but I kept tickling his sides. He pulled me down to him, so our lips touched. It distracted me from the tickling and again to the kiss. I didn't care that he hadn't brushed his teeth. I was just glad he was okay now.

"You cheater." I whispered once we pulled away from each other.

"Love you." He whispered to me.

I chuckled and gave him a quick peck on his lips. "I love you too."