Jack awoke to the sound of the soft hiss of the door. Sitting up quickly off the padded floor, he rubbed his eyes as the blinding lights kicked on around the room. He couldn't tell the time, but he assumed that it was early morning, causing his body was still too tired to handle being jarred awake like this. A women dressed in a fine pressed suit slipped into the room holding a clipboard. While just outside the room, the guard told her seriously. "I'll be just out here." Nodding to him, she waved him away before giving Jack her warmest smile. Jack barely acknowledged her, still trying to wake himself up, as she began too chipperly. "I'm just gonna sit down over here. That way we can see each other better and I'm not staying over you." Taking a seat against the wall by the door, she told him pleasantly. "Mr. McLoughlin. Sorry for the long wait. I hope you were treated well. I'm Dr. Gavina. I'm the-" Before she could finish, Jack blurted out dryly. "The Therapist." The statement came out meaner than he intended, but he blamed it on being too tired to care.

Dr. Gavina merely smiled, continuing to be overly sweet. "Exactly. I'm going to ask you a few questions. Answer as honestly as you can. Think of me like a friend. I just want to understand you and help you out." Hugging his legs, Jack tensed a bit. He wasn't sure how much he believed that. Her job was to judge his actions. Not be his open-minded friend. Looking over her clipboard briefly, she quickly hugged it to her chest and asked him lightly. "Let's start at the beginning. Tell me every detail of the incident to the best that you can recall." With a heavy sigh, Jack sleepily told her the events and how he ended up in here. He even told her about his conversation with the principal over taking the full blame because it wasn't Mark's fault. The only part he left out was how he felt during the incident. He had hoped it wouldn't matter. Instead, she asked him after taking extensive notes. "And how did this all make you feel? When you saw Mark with Chad. What did you feel that made you want to intervene? Were you mad?"

Huffing loudly, Jack shot back. "Of course I was mad! Chad was grinning like some sinister cat cornering a mouse! Who knows how far he would have gone and what he would have done to him!" For a moment, Dr. Gavina wrote something, then very smoothly slipped in. "You were worried what he'd do to Mark? You weren't just mad that Chad is a manipulator of others in general?" The question perplexed Jack into blurting out nervously. "What...?" A tiny smirk crossed her lips, before she professionally recited. "Your first thought upon finding them was concern for what he'd do to Mark, correct? Your first thought was not to attack Chad because he did anything physically or mentally to you, yes?" Jack pondered her words, then nodded. Writing something down, she asked him so casually. "When did you start feeling protective over Mark's wellbeing?" Jack's jaw fell open as he tried to answer, but nervously chuckled out. "What do you mean by that? He's my friend. I care about my friends."

Meeting his eyes, she pleasantly replied. "Of course you do. How about to tell me what you thought Chad would do had he succeed. Ok?" Jack raised an eyebrow, shifting a little uncomfortably but answered. "I don't know. Recorded them having sex again? Maybe leave Mark in a compromising situation that he could make fun of him or post something... He's an asshole. He could do anything from the bully playbook of being the slimiest human being." Nodding, she wrote again, while adding softly. "You never once considered that Mark genuinely loves him or that Chad does?" Rolling his eyes, Jack shot back at her defensively. "I don't believe Chad even has a heart. You'd feel the same if you heard the things I've heard him say. Mark..." Jack looked away, his voice turning sad, before finishing. "Mark, I think still loves him. For reasons that I don't understand. He believes the lies or choses not to see them... I don't know. He's heartbroken and Chad is using that to his advantage." Digging his fingers into his legs, Jack blurted out. "He hurt him once. I... I don't want to see him get hurt worse."

For a moment her scribbling was all that was heard, then she asked him with a tenderness to her voice. "If the school switched you with Miss Delrio. And Mark switched with Chad what-?" She didn't even finished before Jack snapped out quickly. "Don't do that! Chad would make his life a living hell! If he abused Mark. Mark would NEVER speak out against him! Why would you say that? Did Mark request that? Did Chad?!" Without answering, she quickly wrote something down, before calmly telling him. "I was merely curious what you'd say. Neither party has requested that. Tell me Jack. How would you describe Mark?" Chuckling to himself, Jack relaxed his arms around his legs, answering openly. "He's... active. He's got a very sweet side to him. Yet... he's troubled. He tries to hide it behind his strong personality but... it's there. He has a very small attention span which surprises me because he's able to learn lines for his theatre stuff but can't listen to me for more than a few minutes. He's a great cook but SUCKS cleaning up dishes. He just sets them in the sink or puts the dirty dishes in the washer but doesn't run it! I mean, how hard is that? It's not just me, right? He eats out and yet has a body like a fucking truck! If I eat like that all the time... I would not be this thin, I'll tell you that!"

Blushing when he noticed her grinning, he mumbled out. "Sorry. I'm rambling. He's a good guy. He doesn't deserve anything bad to happen to him." Looking at her clipboard, she wrote something and asked shamelessly. "How long have you been in love with him?" Jack straightened up, blurting out through a nervous chuckle. "What? I... I'm not. I'm just his friend. I like women. I got paired with him by mistake. He was all that was left." Meeting his eyes over her clipboard, she adjusted her glasses and said casually. "That's not what your school files says. According to this. You are an A plus student and so is he. You both share strong work ethics. You lack social skills. But he scored high. You both showcased similar interests in your high schools. And while he showed potential in both pairs for male and female. He requested a male partner. You scored too low to be a father candidate but high on a stable adoptive father chart. You were paired because in the sexual tests... you matched his in bisexual interests but leaned heavily toward a male partner."

Jack's jaw dropped as he whined out. "That can't be!" Dr. Gavina gave him a little empathetic shrug, before answering. "I'm afraid it is. While we have had a few mispairings due to unforeseen calculations. You, Jack, are showing all the signs of being... Well, in love with him." Shaking his head, he told her stubbornly as he tensed up. "No! You're mistaken. He's my friend. How am I showing signs?!" Dr. Gavina looked over her notes and recited openly. "You relax when questioned about Mark but not when questioned on other matters. When you speak about him, your tone changes. You have plenty to say against his habits... yet still find him to be rather pleasant. You seek to defend him from things that would harm him. Implying that you are aware of his feelings as to why that would be a horrible thing to happen to him. When asked to pair with someone else... your mind went directly to Mark before you even let me finish." Hugging the clipboard to her chest, she added as she smiled at him. "I've been doing this a long time. You care deeply for him."

Shaking his head, he mumbled out. "I would know if I liked him. I've liked girls my whole life! Why would I suddenly shift?" Dr. Gavina adjusted her legs, then told him professionally. "Often it is the environment. Sometimes growing up in a home where a couple is prevalent gives the impression to a learning child that THAT is how romance looks. Movies and literature do this too. It conditions you to see things one way because the people you are around enjoy those things. So, to fit in. You enjoy them too. If you dated women all your life that is fine. You were comfortable with them. But getting out on your own... you learn things about yourself. You aren't held to the expectations of family and old friends. This can... expose new interests. It's natural. All through history people were bisexual and experimental with sex... until religious teachings. Being exposed to... your first male relationship could be awaking what was always there. Just buried. These things take time. It doesn't happen overnight for a lot of people."

Crossing his legs beneath him, Jack mumbled out. "Are you sure that is what this is? What if... you're mistaken?" Dr. Gavina told him honestly. "I'm human. I can be mistaken. But do you feel like I am? Have you really tried to find out if you are? If so, the answer is simple. If not... are you doing yourself justice by forcing yourself to not even try? You'd be married off to a woman that you will be unable to leave. You should give yourself the chance to experiment before it is too late. If I'm wrong. I'll admit it. But if I'm right... You are just where you need to be." Getting to her feet, she lifted the collar of her suit and looked up at one of the cameras as she said aloud. "My assessment is complete. Mr. McLoughlin is fit to return to the apartments. My diagnosis on his act of violence is that it was an act of passion. Mr. McLoughlin doubts his sexual orientation. As a solution, short weekend sessions on his progressing feelings should be monitored for possible changes. All-in-all... He's a good kid with a heart of gold. Let him go."

Dropping the collar of his suit with the hidden mic, she winked at him and slipped from the room. After she left, the mic in the room informed him. "Mr. McLoughlin, you are cleared for release. Stand by. A guard will assist you to collect your things and see you safely out of the wing. Have a pleasant morning." After a short time, Jack had collected his things and was walking back to his apartment. The sun was just cresting over the trees, and he yawned. It was so damn early that he doubted Mark would even be awake. So, he began to debate about crashing on the sofa or in his bedroom. The campus was a ghost town this early in the morning. Allowing him to make it all the way to his apartment without anyone noticing. Turning the key in the door, he stumbled inside barely able to keep his eyes open. Just as he closed the door and put his forehead to the cold wall, he heard a warm voice greet him. "Welcome home, Jailbird. Did prison change you?" Smiling weakly, he stayed against the wall as he mumbled out sleepily. "Ya... You could say that."

Mark's voice drew closer when he asked teasingly. "Scrambled or over easy?" Jack opened his eyes, blushing as he peaked over his shoulder and meekly questioned. "What? No one..." Jack stopped talking as Mark pointed to the stove pan with some cooking eggs as he repeated. "Scrambled or over easy? I can't remember what you like." Leaning his shoulder against the wall, Jack told him sweetly. "Depends on what you're making. But you're never up this early..." Smirking at the pan, Mark told him coolly. "Eggs benedict. Your favorite. And I'm not normally... but they called me to say that you were released. I felt like celebrating. Coffee, my little Jailbird?" Rolling his eyes, he bashfully told Mark. "Yes, and over easy eggs. But... don't call me that. I wasn't..." Mark flashed him a grin and kept working. Allowing Jack to notice what he was wearing. He was just wearing pajama bottoms and nothing else. They hung so low on his hips that he could tell that he wasn't even wearing underwear. Biting his lip, he tasted the dried blood from his split lip, before nervously asking. "Mark? Can we... Can we talk?"

Preparing the plates, Mark hummed to him as he concentrated on putting the eggs over the benedicts, then told him. "Sure. Have a seat. I'll be with you in a minute." Walking over to their little dining table, Jack eased down into it. Internally, he tried to think of the best way to tell Mark that he might be... attracted to him. That what he did was done out of love. Yet, he didn't want to sound corny or dumb. He wasn't even sure that he believed it. Setting the food down, Mark fetched them coffee and finally took a seat. Starting into his breakfast, Mark chuckled out. "So? What do you want to tell me? Did you meet someone on the inside? Was he nice to your little virgin ass?" Taking a deep breath, he planned to say one thing, but it ended up coming out as. "Mark, do you wanna go on a date with me?" Mark's fork froze inches from his mouth and his eyes met his like he wasn't sure if Jack was joking or not. Upon seeing how nervous and anxious he was, Mark lowered his fork and smiled as he said. "Where would you like to go, Jack?"  To Be Continued...