The next morning the doctors decided to release me. Jay had gone home in the middle of the night, but left a note on the desk, a sticky note, which I assumed he'd gotten from Dr. Michaels. Jay wrote:

"A,

ur mom is here

see you later"

I got a new set of clothes that Mom brought since my other outfit had been ripped and covered in blood stains. I wondered if Mom threw them away or held onto them, or if they had just been tossed when I had gotten here. Sure, it probably wasn't the best thing to hold onto, but knowing my mom, she'd want some sort of memoir to commemorate the day her son had managed to escape death. Unfortunately, it wouldn't be the last time I would get into the same type of danger, nor the last time I would suffer an injury that bad. I pushed the thoughts out of my mind as I grabbed what little I'd had in the room.

Jay took all of his board games and other things since none of them were where they were when I had fallen asleep the previous night. We said our goodbyes to Dr. Michaels and left to go home."Don't get into trouble like that again," he'd told me. "Don't be the hero." He'd probably gotten information from Jay and Evan while I was out of it. He clearly wanted to keep me there longer, just to make sure I was human, but the doctors couldn't call me because of any condition, and keeping me there was pointless and stole our money. So Dr. Michaels agreed to give Evan my contact information and shut his mouth about everything as we exited the building. I felt bad, I was sure he'd seen something he couldn't explain and it'd drive him crazy. I wondered if he'd seen anything while I was out.

The car ride was mostly silent, except for the pitter-patter of the rain and my mom's occasional questions. My mom asked if I was alright, and I nodded, though it didn't feel like everything was all right. Something felt wrong, something in my gut told me something was going to go awry any minute, but nothing did. Nothing felt real, and I was sure that a nailimp was going to attack any minute. It was the same feeling I'd had in my own mind- the monster lurking in the shadows. When we pulled into the driveway of my house, I'd gotten the feeling to somewhat dissipate so I could focus on the banner above the door. I wiped through the fog on the window and squinted to read the half-soaked lettering:

WELCOME HOME

I looked at Mom, and she smiled softly, but she grumbled about the rain ruining the sign. I smiled brightly- were they really throwing a party for my return? I got out of the car, and the rain crashed so hard, I felt like I was instantly drenched, even my morning hair that had been poofier than usual now lay flat on my head like a used mop. I ran up to the door and my sister opened it, looking timid and afraid of what I was going to say.

I'd said it before, but really, when you're on the edge of death, your life does flash before your eyes, and it really makes you grateful for the things you have. You never know how much something means to you before it starts slipping from your grasp. Did this mean I forgave my sister for abandoning me? Not by a long shot. But in the heat of the moment, I hugged her tight. She must have been completely surprised because she hesitated to hug back.

"Welcome back, Andrew," she said, and squeezed me, letting go just before my dad shoved her out of the way to hug me as well. It was a brief hug from him, but he was overjoyed to see that I was all right. He asked me what happened, but before I could answer, Mom shot him a death glare that told him to get off the subject.

"I got a cool scar though," I said, lifting up the side of my shirt to show them the slash. Mom didn't want to look at it, nor did my sister, but Dad thought it looked like a "cool, gladiator scar". My mom rested her hand on the shirt and made me put it back down, then went to the kitchen. I went to the living room and sat on the couch, and Dad did the same, his excitement beginning to fade as he zoned out on whatever played on the TV screen. I leaned back, closing my eyes, and the bad feeling returned. I flinched and sat back up, and Dad glanced at me strangely, asking if I was okay. I nodded, and got up from the couch, following my mother and sister into the kitchen.

I got hit in the face with a blast of warmth as Mom opened the oven. She pulled out the most amazing cookies I'd ever seen. When I was at the hospital, they would give treats, like strawberry shortcake, except it tasted as if the sponge cake were made with an actual sponge, and they seemed to forget the sweet part of the dessert. Not to mention the actual food there wasn't exactly made by a top-notch chef. Seeing actual, good-smelling, fresh, homemade cookies made my mouth water. I went to grab a cookie as she set the tray down, but she smacked my hand away.

"You need to wait, you'll burn yourself! Plus there are others-"

The doorbell rang, and she took off her oven mitts. Scarlet acted as if she was going to answer the door, but she saw Mom moved first, so she went back to leaning on the counter. I grabbed a napkin and snatched one of the cookies with it, the heat of it still scorching hot through the napkin. Scarlet snickered as I dropped the napkin-wrapped cookie on the counter and shook my hand in the air, trying to cool it off. She looked happier than I'd ever seen her before. She looked at me with so much joy, it was almost overwhelming. It made me want to forget everything that had happened between us, but I knew the happiness wasn't going to last. I tried to shove those feeling away, but her happy look turned to a guilty on, and I was sure she was thinking the same thing.

"Andy," she began, lowering her voice as her eyes darting back and forth like she was picking invisible words from the air to use. She obviously didn't want our parents hearing what she was going to say. "What did happen?"

"You didn't hear?"

"All I heard was that you were stabbed. But that's a giant scar, it can't just be a stabbing. And that you healed over that fast?"

"I have to wear gauze over it and-"

"What happened?"

Of course, a secret was going to be hard to keep around my sister. She'd become a reporter after all, which meant she was still as nosy as ever. Which was bad news for me, considering I actually had another big secret to deal with now. Scarlet gave me this stare, that made all of the truth want to come falling out of my mouth, and I looked at the cookie on the counter.

"I guy with an ax was sitting in the bathroom. Attacked us."

"Us?" she asked, and I sighed.

"Jay, Evan, and I. Evan was attacked first, his arm got cut clean off. I went in to help, and Jay ran to go get help."

Normally stuff like this would excite my sister, a big news story, but she seemed so revolted by this ax man's actions, that there was no doubt in my mind that she was pissed about it. Which was never a good sign.

"Did they catch the guy?" she asked, her voice trembling. I could tell she was getting worked up, and

"I don't think so, but I was in the hospital. Maybe you can find something out there. I never got an interview or anything, maybe they thought I was going to be in the hospital longer."

My sister opened her mouth to say more, but I was nearly tackled from behind by Nancy, whose hug was so tight I felt like my head was going to pop off. Even though I was a fast healer now, my chest and side still ached from the wound, so squishing my insides was not the best idea. I yelped as she squeezed tighter and Jay lightly pulled her off of me and reminded her of the wound.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry!!" she cried, and I turned around to see everyone that had just entered. Jay, Nancy, and Roger had arrived, gifts in their hands and all of the others chastising Nancy for hugging me so tightly. I couldn't help but laugh at all of them.

"You're all right! All in one piece!" Nancy said, and Roger, as awkward and quiet as he usually is, ruffled my sopping wet hair as a friendly gesture. They all looked like they had been in the rain longer than I had, which explained why it took so long for everyone to get into the house- no way my mom was letting a single person in without drying off. I was grateful that Nancy had clearly pushed past Mom to interrupt my conversation with Scarlet, that I did not want to continue.

"Yup," I replied, crossing my arms awkwardly. "The doctors patched me up really fast. Wasn't too serious."

"Oh, don't glaze over the details," my mom interjected as she entered the kitchen. I quickly stood in the way of the cookie I'd stole, but I had a feeling she knew I stole one anyway. "The ax punctured his lung."

"Holy shit, man," Nancy said as if she'd just had a revelation. Then she turned to my sister, who was watching me intently, gathering every detail of the conversation. I hated when she did that. The others seemed to finally notice Scarlet, and they looked from me to her, and back to me. She seemed to get the hint and walked over to join the conversation.

"I'm his sister," she said, sticking her hand out for them to shake. "Scarlet."

"Oh, I thought you were his aunt," Nancy said, and I elbowed her in the ribs. She glared at me as she shook my sister's hand. "Andy, you never told me you had a sister."

Scarlet shot me a look, basically saying, why not? I looked back at my friends.

"Just didn't really think about it. She's never around. Jay met her a few days back." I looked around to find Jay, who had left the crowd earlier to try to get a cookie, but my mom kept lecturing him about patience, which subconsciously reminded me to grab my cookie off of the counter and start eating it before Mom saw me. I showed the napkin to Jay, and he nodded, bounding over in the middle of the conversation.

"Okay, guys, let's go to the living room. We'll bother Dad instead of Mom."

They were silent, and with the silence came that fear, that feeling I was being watched. Nancy and Roger left to sit on the couch, and my dad greeted them by talking about whatever was on the TV. I grabbed the cookie out of the napkin and split it with Jay as we followed suit, my sister staying in the kitchen to talk with my mom, but I could feel her eyes boring through me before I turned the corner, out of her line of sight. Jay shuddered, and I did the same.

"So," Jay said, trying to make small talk. "How are you really taking everything?"

"Good, actually. Didn't really expect a party for my return this time. Maybe they learned from the last time that I actually like to be appreciated. I better get cookies every time I stub my toe or I am going to riot," I replied, and we both cackled as we sat down on the couch, our laughter interrupting the previous conversation between my dad and the others. They looked over at us with puzzled looks, and we tried to shut up quickly. Again, the silence.

Mom moseyed out of the kitchen with a plate of cookies, Scarlet right behind her. She looked between Jay and I as we took deep breaths to calm down. Jay always seemed so happy to see Scarlet. Maybe he'd doubted her very existence until today since I had only really brought it up once. Only a few people really remember my past experiences with her, and it was usually kids that were tied to the police. I was surprised Jay hadn't investigated further, but it could be the fact that he was waiting for a story I could never tell him.

I hated it when Scarlet came to visit. She acted like she hadn't abandoned me for years. Abandoned all of us for years. And only to save a skin that wouldn't have needed to be saved. Even though she comes to visit, even her boyfriend and child have never come with her. And yes, I knew they existed. She kept this part of her life completely separate from her as if we were something to be ashamed of. Of course, I could understand trauma. But I had been through most of it since she had left me there alone to deal with it. When I stared at Scarlet, I could feel those same, terrified emotions again. I could see the same disturbing images. Smell the familiar stench of blood. Maybe when she looked at me, she felt the same way. And yet she wanted to talk about it as if bringing it up would make everything okay. That's what made this visit worse. She wanted to make peace, which I assumed meant she was going to leave us for good once she'd made me happy with her. In a small way, maybe that was a reason I hadn't talked to her yet. Because even though I hated her visits, watching her leave was living that same night over again. I hated it. I hated her. I hated myself for it most of all. But there was nothing I could do about it because she would leave anyway.

I noticed that I had been staring at Scarlet a long time from the couch, and she looked back at me with concern. Jay touched my forearm, shaking me out of my trance. I looked from him, back to my mom, who was setting the plate of cookies in front of us on the coffee table. I immediately took one and started eating it, looking towards Nancy, who radiated happiness.

Part of me couldn't believe she cared that much, but she'd been my friend for a long time. I'd met her in about fifth grade, and she was definitely the new kid in town. She had moved into an apartment near the city, which was fairly close to the school we'd both end up attending. Even as a ten-year-old she had a lot of freedom, and offered to walk me home. At that point, I didn't have much freedom. The only real freedom I got was going to Jay's house, and that's because Jay had been my friend since the second grade. Other than that, it would be my walk home. I wasn't a big talker, but Nancy definitely was. I think she was drawn to me because she knew I could listen well, and wouldn't interrupt her daily drabbles. She talked on and on when she walked with me, and I didn't mind it one bit. It really filled the silence when Jay wasn't able to walk with me, and she was so excited to tell me about her day, even if we were in the same class. I felt really happy to be one of her first friends here, and after a while, she'd become protective of me.

Ever since the incident with my sister, the kids that had known about the entire situation, or at least part of it, would wave it in my face. They'd threaten me with death, and eventually, Nancy got fed up and decked one of the guys. He'd attempted to fight back, but the kid was much weaker than she was, and she completely wiped the floor with him. Thankfully, everyone shut up after that, but I told her to never get into a fight like that again. She still hasn't.

When we'd met Roger, we definitely grew more distant. Roger had fallen for her, but to this day, he'd never admitted it. He followed her around like a shy puppy, except a very tall, muscular one that we all feared. He didn't use to like me, but after a while of us hanging around, he at least developed a tolerance for me. He wasn't completely mute, he clearly spoke and ordered his teammates around, but that was about all the socializing he could muster. Don't get me wrong, he was a very kind guy once you got to know him. He'd sneak us into adult things because he looked so much older than he really was, and every time Jay asked to ride on his shoulders, he obliged. Despite the fact that he didn't care for me much, I wasn't surprised he'd showed up to this party. I knew, deep down inside, that he probably had shown up to see if I was doing okay. He might've even been panicked for me that day. I wonder if he'd seen the state I was in.

"Can I talk to you guys?" I asked. "My friends, I mean. I just have some questions."

My mom nodded. "You guys can head upstairs. I'll come and fetch ya when I have more of the food put out."

I got up from the couch and my friends instantly followed. We walked up the stairs and down the hall to my room. I opened the door, to reveal...my extremely clean room. My mom had absolutely been in here. Everything was clean. Everything. The counters, the dresser, the bedsheets-

The bedsheets. The blood on the floor. Had she cleaned that up too?

"Andy," Nancy said, placing a hand on my shoulder, shaking me out of my daze. "Are you all right? You look a little pale"

"Yeah," I lied. "Just haven't seen my bedroom floor in a while. It's very clean here."

My friends walked in and sat down on the bed, or on the floor, looking at me expectantly as I shut the door behind us.

"What happened at the school?" I asked, getting right to the point. "I have fuzzy memories but I can't remember a damn thing about what happened after I was attacked."

Roger was the first to speak, his voice sending a shiver down my spine with its intensity, "Jay came outside, terrified. I knew something was wrong because we greeted him and he ran right through us to talk to a police officer. I don't know what he said, but we saw the blood splatters on his shirt and the cop ran inside with him."

"Roger told me to stay outside, and I talked with Jay for a bit," Nancy chimed in. "Jay said you were in danger, and I ran inside after Roger. When I got in there, he was helping teachers and police grab you and Evan and into the nurse's office." She paused as if recounting every detail. I'm sure she was scared out of her wits.

"Everyone was kind of in a panic as soon as the paramedics showed up. We got to go home for the day while the cops looked for an explanation. They didn't find...the ax guy," Jay explained.

"You guys saw me?" I asked, feeling kind of guilty.

"You were in really bad shape. We thought you weren't going to make it," Roger said. I ran my hands through my hair and sat down with them. I lightly rested my hand on the side where the wound would be. I felt the gauze underneath the shirt. I probably wouldn't have made it. Roger was one of the people to save my life. I'd have to thank the school nurse too.

"Evan lived," I announced, and Nancy heaved a big sigh of relief.

"That's amazing."

Jay smiled fondly at me, knowing that I'd shaken him out of his coma back at the hospital. "Yeah, amazing," he agreed.

"Sorry to scare you guys," I apologized, looking sheepishly at Roger, who seemed genuinely surprised. "I'm sure you guys didn't want to see that. Heroics aren't usually my thing but I panicked."

Roger put a big, sweaty hand on my shoulder, which both comforted me and made me want to cringe in disgust. "It's all right, you did the right thing. Just don't get yourself axed next time, got it?"

"Y-yeah," I stammered, and he released me from his meaty grip. I sat back on my hands and looked at all of my friends. It was so tempting to tell them everything that had happened, and part of me felt like they deserved to know the truth after they'd helped me live a little longer. It just didn't seem like the right time.

"So," Nancy began, breaking the awkward silence. "Who was the guy that axed you? Did you get a good look at him?"

I groaned. "Nancy, I wasn't really looking, he was swinging an ax at me," I lied, which seemed convincing enough. She shrugged it off. "But I know that I've got a bit of weekend now since I was in the hospital. Part of me wished I'd stay in a coma until Halloween."

The group laughed, as demented as the joke seemed to be. And then we got off of the depressing subject of my near-death experience. Jay launched a few childhood stories and even Nancy shared a few about us that I hadn't even remembered had happened. Even Roger joined in on a few things, mostly to chide Nancy for beating up kids for me in elementary.

"One time, Andy pushed me down the slide, and I face-planted at the bottom, and he laughed so hard he fell off the side and also face-planted-" Jay was explaining before I heard a knock at the door, and Nancy offered to get it.

The person at the door was someone I least expected to see-Officer Robinson. He was a dark-skinned, tall and muscular man, and he had a soft grin on his face, like the type of smile you'd see on a Santa Clause figurine. He was still in full police uniform, although all of his different weird tools on his belt were gone. I was so stunned I didn't even know how to respond to his presence. I stood up, and he rushed past Nancy and wrapped me in his arms, lifting me into the air and swinging me from side to side. He set me down, and I grinned wildly, except every single person in the room had no idea who this was. More things I'd hid about my sister and I seemed to slowly be bubbling to the surface again, but I was too excited to see him that I paid no mind.

"How are you, boy?" Officer Robinson asked, ruffling my hair just like he used to. "I thought we agreed that you weren't going to get into any more trouble, Andrew."

"I'm perfectly fine," I assured him, lifting up my shirt to show him the bandage. "I healed super fast!"

"So I heard," he grumbled, though he still kept a smile on his face. Jay walked up next to me, staring at the guy. He must have been thinking about if he had seen the guy before, which I hoped he hadn't.

"Officer Robinson, these are my friends," I explained, and started pointing to each person individually. "This is Jay, Nancy, and Roger."

"Nice to meet y'all, I'm Antonio. Call me Tony. This dummy still thinks I like to be called Officer Robinson, even when he's 15. You're a freshman now, right?"

"Sophomore."

"A sophomore? It's been way too long since I've seen you, boy. Where did all the time go? I was in the big city way too long, I'm sure you know."

"We missed you here, man. Or, at least I did," I agreed. "Did you really come all this way just to see me?"

"Well, I got a call from one of my friends down at the police station. Even if you hadn't survived, I still needed to be here for your funeral. Who else is going to remember the candy flowers?"

I turned to my friends, who looked horrified by the statement.

"When I was a kid, I'd had to go to this funeral. I said something like 'What's the point of flowers? What is he going to do with those? If he's in heaven, he's not going to want flowers he's going to want candy'. It was pretty weird, but we kept it up as a joke," I tried to explain, but everyone was so confused.

Officer Robinson howled with laughter as if the memory had just returned to him. I looked at all my friends, especially Jay, who looked to be the most nervous to approach a man three times his size. I clapped Jay on the back, shaking him out of his trance. He met my gaze, and I gave him a look that said, 'We'll talk later'. He nodded and smiled as Officer Robinson looked down at us once again.

"I'm glad to see you're doing all right. Just know that if anything happens, you have my new fancy number," he beamed, whipping out a business card from his pocket, and it looked so small in his giant hands. I grabbed it and looked at the number, nodding. "Just promise me you'll stay safe. I was really worried about you. You're like the son I never had and you know that, boy. I told you to stay out of trouble when I left didn't I?"

He was a tough man, and even bigger than Roger, and yet the thing I loved most about him was his compassion. His eyes were holding back tears and his eyes darted around the room in an attempt to mask the emotion he was feeling. My friends seemed to grasp the hint, because they decided to leave us alone in the room, Jay leading and closing the door behind them.

I hugged Officer Robinson and he hugged me back. He was showing more gratefulness towards me than my own father. Dad hadn't even shown up at the hospital. Yet, Officer Robinson had driven miles to check up on a seven-year-old boy that he'd found on the side of the road when he got hospitalized years afterward.

We let go, but he grasped both of my shoulders.

"I need to go back home to my daughter. You probably don't even remember her, but she misses you. And no offense, boy, but she misses me more than you."

"None taken."

"So," he continued. "I need to get going. I know I wasn't here long, but I'm so happy to see you're okay. And this time, when I say stay out of trouble, I truly mean it. Stay out of trouble, boy. Stay. Out. Of. Trouble."

I nodded in agreement, but I knew it was a lie. It was great advice, but it definitely wouldn't be followed. I knew that much. He headed for the door, and I followed him downstairs and into the living room, where I waved goodbye to several others.

"Don't scare me like that again, dork. I'll come back and knock some sense into ya" Officer Robinson scolded, ruffling my hair once more, then heading outside into the rain. I shut the door behind him.

"What was all of that about?" Scarlet asked, crossing her arms suspiciously. I could feel the anger rising in my chest, the rage starting to boil over with one comment, but I let it subside. This was a fight better left until my friends were going home. I ignored her.

"What do we do now?" Jay asked.

"Now, we watch bad movies, eat cookies, and sleep. Sound like a plan?" I suggested. Everyone agreed, except my dad, who was angry to be kicked off of the television.

All of us set up a blanket fort big enough for all of us in the living room. We put on some of the worst B Horror movies we could find on Netflix and binged cookies. Jay was out like a light, and Roger slept like a baby after the second movie. Soon it was only Nancy and I, who laid on opposite sides of the fort. It was dark and silent, and there were so many things I wanted to say, or that I felt like I should say, and yet I couldn't find the words. So, as usual, she spoke first.

"Who even came up with zombie beavers? Who sat down and said, 'Let's make a movie about zombie beavers. That's a hella scary film. That will work. Cash Money'?" Nancy whispered to me, trying not to wake up the others. I stifled a laugh.

"Must be the same guy who thought that Sharknado would be a great movie too," I joked, and Nancy snorted, burying her giggles into her pillow. Once she cooled off, she rolled back onto her side to look towards me.

"Did you ever go on your date?" I asked, and she smiled sadly.

"Nah, I was too shaken up by everything. I just asked him if we could plan it another time. He's a lot better of a guy than you imagine. He said he understood," Nancy explained. I nodded.

"Maybe he is. I hope he's a good guy for you, Nance. Maybe somebody other than Roger can protect you for a change."

"And what about you? Now that you've been attacked by a psycho murderer who's gonna protect you now? Do I have to go back on duty as your bodyguard?" she teased. I shook my head and scoffed.

"I think I'll be just fine. If I can take a knife to the lung then I can take anything."

"A knife?" she said skeptically, sitting up from her position to get a better look at me. "It was an ax, Andy."

I started to sweat under her gaze. "Yeah. I meant an ax. Sorry, I'm just tired. What time is it now?" I said, frantically changing the subject.

"Listen I have a question you've been really avoiding lately, Mister Secretive. Why are you so weird around your sister? It's not some gross Alabama white shit is it? Please tell me it's not." Nancy said, and I looked up at her with a disgusted grimace.

"First off, I am offended that you think I would be that low. Secondly, it's a long story. And I want to sleep. Maybe I'll tell you tomorrow."

"Andy-"

"Goodnight, Nance."

I turned my back to her and faced the window, the rain pattering on the glass soothingly. It would've been enough to lull me to sleep, until I saw a nailimp pressed up against the glass, staring at us through the window. Its face was entirely covered in mouths, and they were opened wide to reveal one eyeball within each, which looked down on us and darted in different directions as well as if trying to figure out how to get inside. I was ready to fight it off. If it was here for me I wasn't letting it hurt anybody. But at the same time, I realized that I could try to play it off as if I didn't see it. If I didn't look at it, maybe it wouldn't notice me. I wouldn't be any different from Nancy, who was completely oblivious to it. I closed my eyes and tried to go to sleep, and when I opened them a few moments later, the nailimp had left. I guess it got bored and didn't find what it was looking for.

However, my heart still pounded in my ears, and I felt so terrified. I hated this. I truly wished I was going crazy, rather than opening my eyes to some truth no one else would ever see unless it brought itself to life. It'd be easier to say I was seeing things rather than accept fully that monsters could attack me at any moment.

Despite the disturbing thoughts that went through my mind, I managed to fall asleep.

This time I dreamt I was back in the hospital. The same setting, like I'd come right out of Stranger Things, but less gooey and full of monsters and more like I was walking on solid storm clouds. It felt like a dream, but I knew it wasn't. There were three different ways I could go: down the hallway and into a hospital room, out the exit, or into the cafeteria. I ran my hands along the walls as I headed into the cafeteria. It felt like the right way to go like it was the most comforting. Maybe my dream self was hungry.

I opened the doors, and Evan sat at a table all by himself. A few other people were strewn about, but Evan ate in the corner, his one arm lifting the corn and beans into his mouth. It felt awkward, to approach him in a dream again, and my heart pounded violently. The last time I'd talked to him he'd almost died. And he was in limbo. So, how was I seeing him now?

I sat down at his table, and he squinted to see me like he couldn't tell if I was there or not. But he didn't seem surprised that I was there at all, and simply went on eating his food.

"Evan, what's going on?" I asked, waving my hand in front of his face. He hit my hand away, but it went right through me like I was just a ghost. Evan looked up at me, annoyed.

"You tell me, dude. You're the one who keeps showing up here," he replied through a bite of beans. I felt my face flush red with embarrassment.

"You're okay, right? Not in a coma or dead?"

"No, are you?"

"I hope not," I said, looking at my hands like they would turn to dust if I mentioned death. He shrugged.

"So, what? We show up to each other in dreams now?" I asked, and he just shrugged again.

"I just know that you're like my own personal ghost now. The people here already think I'm on edge. Now those people see me over here talking to nothing. But I guess we both need someone to confide in. Especially since I can see those monsters now."

"The nailimps?"

"Yeah. There's one on the ceiling in the top right corner in this room right now. And there was one small one in the bathroom this morning. Is this just a normal thing to you now? Do you ever get used to it?"

"It's only been a few days," I explained. "I'll probably never be used to it if I'm being honest. Maybe when I tried to drain your life source, we became connected. Do you transform into anything at all?"

Evan shook his head. "No, all I got stuck with is me debating whether I'm crazy or not. For all I know, even this conversation may not be real."

I shook my head and rested my hand on his, making him drop his fork, though I was really just an apparition and phased right through him. I gulped. "I'll see if I can come to visit tomorrow. I'll show you this is real."

"I'm debating whether or not I want to know," Evan said, dragging his hand back. I could feel myself slipping from the dream, and the room started to darken and flicker as I looked around. Evan could tell I was leaving, he looked at me strangely, and with a hint of disappointment. "Don't forget about me, Andrew. I'll still be here."

Then, I was shrouded in complete darkness, standing still in my own mind once again. I felt the presence again like I was going to be attacked. It was so overwhelming I fell to my knees, staring at the ground.

Stop trying to fight me, a booming voice screamed in my mind, and I put my hands over my ears to dampen the noise, but it only seemed to get worse. You are a tiny, minuscule human being, and the flame that is your soul will be snuffed out with ease. Don't think you'll win. There is no winning. You are only prolonging the inevitable. Give up.

"NO!" I screamed back, but the voice only laughed. I started yelling at it, and I didn't even comprehend what I was saying, and apparently, neither did the voice. It didn't respond, only slinking away into silence and leaving me alone. But not for long.

Nancy shook me awake. Her, Roger and Jay stood over me with concern, and I felt my hands fly toward my face, subconsciously checking for extra eyes or whatever weird stuff I'd discovered. I took a deep relieved sigh, but it didn't last long when Nancy was two inches away from my face. I could smell her disgusting morning breath, but I definitely wasn't going to complain about it when she looked like she was going to kick my ass.

"Why were you yelling?" Nancy said, her voice laced with concern and fear.

"Bad dreams," I explained quickly. "Sorry. It's been happening recently. Did I wake you?"

"No," Jay spoke, which calmed me down a bit but also worried me. "We were awake. We just heard you from the kitchen. Your parents are still asleep though, so don't wake them up, doofus."

Nancy heaved a big sigh, and backed away from me, getting to her feet and helping me to my feet. "Sorry," I apologized again.

Although my head seemed to be on fire, and I'd just gotten a terrible omen warning message from a dude in the back of my brain, I felt like I had a good morning. We ate cookies again for breakfast, despite my mother putting a note on the cookies that specifically told me not to touch the cookies and that they were for dessert. I needed fuel, and I was too shaken up to really make anything for breakfast anyway. I needed to figure things out, but it could wait. I needed time. So, many things were happening at once. Not to mention, I was, even more, drained just trying to get through a few more days of holding onto my human form. After managing to hold on through surgery, a few days at the hospital and now a day at home, it was really starting to take a toll on me. I was ten times more sluggish than I was per usual. I was afraid that I would lose control any minute, but I decided I wasn't going to dwell on that thought, otherwise, it would happen.

Nancy was the first to leave. She gave me a kiss on the cheek and a giant punch to the arm and told me to stay safe for the weekend. Roger went with Nancy, and Jay decided to stay. I owed him a few explanations. I didn't want to worry him. He was a sensitive soul, no matter how much he said he wasn't. Jay seemed excited to talk about things, but also apprehensive like he thought the news was going to be awesome and horrible at the same time. We hobbled upstairs, avoiding waking up my parents, and once we were in my room, we shut the door behind us and kept low voices.

I held a finger to my lips and kept the light off just in case, so they would think we'd gone upstairs to sleep. I let my human form go, and reverted back to my other form, a rush of energy suddenly running through my body, and then relief. My other eyes opened and darted around the room, making me dizzy until I focused them all together. The glowed like headlights, which is what I decided I was going to call them officially afterward. Jay only stared at me in awe, and I said, "Don't be weird. You know how tired I am? Being human takes a lot more out of me than I hoped it would."

He shook himself out of his daze and replied, "Yeah, sorry. So, who was that cop guy? Antonio or something?"

I felt myself hesitate when it came to a response. "It's a long story. He helped me through a really rough time before I met you. And I mean a really, really tough time. He moved off for his promotion, but he was a big figure in my life as a kid."

A lot of fond memories of Officer Robinson came to mind, and a felt a smile grow on my face. I wondered how he'd react to all of this transformation monster weirdness. Maybe he'd find it just as cool as Jay. Or maybe he'd be scared of me. Either way, I never wanted him to find out.

"What tough time? I don't remember him. You must have been pretty young."

"That, my dear friend, is a story for another time."

"It has to do with your sister, doesn't it?" Jay said, starting to piece things together faster than I'd planned.

"Drop it, Jay, " I warned. He went to say something but shut his mouth just as quickly.

"Fine." He scowled, but also looked hurt. "Well, you said you can teleport right? We should try testing stuff out. Maybe if you have full control, it'll be less hard to hold onto your human-ness."

"You know what? That's not a bad idea. But we're not attacking anything this time. It was a disaster last time and I'm not going through that again," I replied, crossing my arms. Jay lit up with excitement.

"Agreed. But first, just in case someone recognizes you, we should get you some sort of outfit. You have anything superhero suit worthy in here?" Jay asked, opening up my closet. I lit up the clothes with my headlights.

"I have hoodies," I suggested, grabbing a hoodie from a hanger. It was bright blue with the words Las Vegas Aquarium etched on the front. Jay shook his head with a disgusted look.

"Get something plain. We'll start with that. What about..." his voice trailed off as he yanked a black hoodie from another hanger. "THIS ONE."

I held it in my hands, a grimace on my face. "You want me to look even more emo?"

"It's a theme. Put it on it's just for today. Go grab black pants or sweats or whatever too. Something comfy."

"You are such a nerd," I laughed, and he threw a bundle of cloth at me. I caught it and realized it was a bandana. I groaned, but he shot me a glare, which meant I was putting it on whether I wanted to or not. I put together an outfit comprised of all the clothing we'd compiled, wrapping the bandana over my nose. My headlights shone through the bandana, clearly visible in either the light or dark. Jay clapped his hands excitedly.

"You ready to teleport?" he asked me, and I nodded, feeling a new sense of confidence, even in the dorkiest outfit.

"Where should we go?" I asked.

"The hotel. Not a lot of people go there."

"You mean, where this all started? Sounds kinda poetic if you ask me" I replied, and Jay grinned ear to ear. "Sure, why not?"

I linked arms with him, and I focused hard. I could feel a tugging sensation in my gut, and I could feel power flow through me like I was a machine being used for the first time. I closed my eyes, and when I opened them, we were falling through the air. Jay was screaming and holding onto me for dear life as we plummeted out of the sky and towards the hotel roof. I concentrated harder, trying not to panic, and we both collapsed onto the roof, the wood slightly shaking with the force.

I felt giddy, and Jay laughed, even though he was plagued with fear beforehand. "WOO HOO!" he shouted, as we got up from the ground, dusting ourselves off.

"Well, it wasn't perfect, but we didn't die, I guess," I breathed hard. It both tired me out and gave me more energy to use my powers, like a rollercoaster of energies being exchanged. I shook myself off and got ready to teleport again.

"Where to now?" I asked Jay, but he was distracted by something else entirely, looking over the edge of the roof.

"Oh boy," he said. "We should probably get out of here. They're coming up the stairs. Must have heard you screaming."

"I wasn't screaming," I argued. "You were screaming."

"Nuh uh, that was you, dude."

"Don't do that it was definitely you," I started again, but he put a finger to my lips, shutting me up. I waved his hand away. "What? Who's coming up here?"

"Nancy and Roger. I have no idea what they're doing here, but they're here..." Jay explained, keeping his voice at a whisper. I was so confused. Was Jay messing with me? What reason would they even have for being here?

I grabbed Jay by the shoulders, but he faltered. "Wait, maybe we should see what they're up to. Can you fly? Any camouflage thing going on?"

"Not that I know of. Maybe?"

"Yeah, maybe you'd need more of the nailimp juice for that-"

"The what?"

He shushed me and looked around for a place to hide. "You could teleport us downstairs into a room. We could eavesdrop."

"Dude, my teleportation isn't exactly accurate-"

"Maybe you need a high-pressure situation to keep things in check. You teleported to your room just fine the first time. And you're not vomiting so that's a plus."

"That's only when I drain nailimps- whatever, this is crazy. This could expose me."

"What's the point of a disguise if you're not gonna be disguised? You'll be fine they won't know it's you. Maybe deepen your voice or something." Jay explained, and I shook my head in disbelief.

"Fine, but only because I'm curious," I said, and I tackled him, teleporting into one of the rooms. I could hear the two down the hallway. They were talking quietly.

"...his entire arm ripped off? The guy didn't leave it. This is the shadiest place and the best place we could find Evan's arm." I heard Nancy explaining. I have a deep frustrated sigh as I got up off of Jay. We both got closer to the door as we heard their footsteps passing.

"I'm here to help. If we find the guy, I'll take him down. But this building isn't safe. There's a reason its condemned." Roger pointed out.

"We found Andy's backpack outside. The ax guy has to be here. We're doing this for Andy." Nancy argued. I shook my head, and so did Jay.

"Your backpack is alive? I mean, not alive, but-" Jay started to say before I clasped a hand over his mouth. The footsteps stopped. They were looking at our door, I could feel it. Roger started to rush over, and I hugged Jay tightly, teleporting us to a room further down the hallway. Unfortunately, I did not know there was a giant hole in the floor, and Jay would've screamed if my hand wasn't over his mouth. We tiptoed on the edge of the hole, careful not to fall in as we made our way to the door.

"Can you teleport other people?" Jay asked.

"Probably not. I'm getting really tired and I'm not feeling like trying something that could expose us both."

Before I realized it, Nancy opened the door, sending us both falling through the hole in the floor. Jay was screaming, but I managed to grab his hand and teleport us out to the front of the building before we hit the ground below.

I looked towards the building, hopping to my feet in a panic. Sure enough, my backpack was on the steps, fully intact and in the hands of the very first nailimp I'd ever encountered.