The festering winter of Michigan was at its highest peak. The air was substantially cold and dry, and hibernating animals were the only living remnants on these streets riddled with death. The clouds blocked out the sun. Snowfall was near.

Angela was in her room wearing Jack’s old hoodie as usual, drawing her feelings into a big sheet of paper, a surprise she was preparing for him. His seventeenth birthday was three months away, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t start on her gift early. She was preparing to draw something huge, a true representation of her gratitude and love towards Jack. She had finals coming up as well, so she continued to practice her piano skills on her electric keyboard to keep herself busy, and lastly to make sure that her mentality was sane.

Evidently, she still wished to go to school. She didn’t care what type of school she decided to go to in the end: public school, private school, even church school. It didn’t matter to her in the end so long as she went to an actual school to relish those experiences. That was all that mattered. Even though she wished she could go normally like everyone else, she already knew she’d be different.

Jack was still worried about her safety, of course, especially due to their past experiences and her dreadful past he’d witnessed firsthand. He didn’t want a repeat of that and couldn’t imagine how worse it would be for her. They were living in a neighborhood far worse than anything he’d seen when he was a child.

As she drew, Randolph opened her door, walking into her room. “What are you up to?” he said, closing the door behind him.

Her pencil stopped moving and she brushed her hand on the drawing. “Oh nothing, just drawing and studying as usual.” Angela dropped her pencil, cracked her fingers, and stretched.

“Aww, how cute. My little Angela isn’t gonna be some dumb hoodlumb,” Randolph said.

Angela turned to her uncle, yawning. “What’s up, Uncle?”

“I thought maybe if you were hungry, I’d take you somewhere to eat, cause I’m bored as a mutha fucka!”

Angela giggled. “Language, Uncle!” She stood up, then neatly put her utensils back into place, cleared her desk, and smiled.

“Yeah I know, but the streets are in my veins. Cussing is part of my vocabulary.”

“Hee, hee. Whatever. Oh! Where’s my brother?”

Randolph crossed his arms like Jack and impersonated him by deepening his voice and sounding cold. “I’ve got a mission to do! Bother me or I’ll kill you, jellybean!”

Angela laughed and accepted Randolph’s offer. “Alright, Momma! Hop in the SUV cause we are rolling into the good part, so Uncle Randy gotta roll in style! Ya feel me?” Randolph flicked his jacket to make himself look cool.

Angela’s lips narrowed, her eyes too, blinking rapidly. “That’s a lil lame, Uncle. And with that attitude, I doubt you’ll pick up any girls around that area.” She smiled and started packing her bag up with drawing equipment.

Randolph had an embarrassed look on his face. He slammed a palm on his chest in shame. “Damn! You gotta hit me hard like dat, sweety? Making me wanna kill myself here yo!” Randolph chuckled and so did Angela. He walked out of her room, made his way to the SUV, and waited for Angela.

In her room, Angela prepped everything in her little bookbag for the happy trip with her uncle. I’m so glad to have such loving guardians like my uncles and brother… but…

She paused as she held her bag open. “Do I deserve them? A person like me, devoted to misery, embracing darkness the older I get? Huh, we’ll see what life has in store for a lost cause like me.”

Grabbing her drawing pad and lifting it off her desk, beneath it was a hidden razor. Angela stared at the razor while her bangs created a shadow of shame over her eyes. With her eyes hidden away, Angela clenched her fist and continued glaring at the sharp object.

I thought I’d hidden it away, so why is it here, taunting me to tempt my stress?

Angela picked up the razor and observed it. “My life’s been nothing but insufferable misery, a burden I let out every so often. All because of her.” She tightened grip on the razor and bit her lip, then she softly whimpered.

Throughout my life I’ve been told I’m nothing but a walking vessel belonging to someone else. Someone whose obsession had claimed a home inside my dreams, connected to my very essence of life, yet…

She was about to toss the razor into a bin, but behind her in the shadows there she was, the being who she’d blamed for her wretched life. “Why am I still alive? If that’s the case, do I deserve such a loving life and caring people who’ve sacrificed so much to ensure a brighter future for me? Especially the one person who I look up to the most?”

The girl in white stared deeply into Angela’s soul, ensuring that she was watching her from behind. Angela’s room transformed into a floating square within a void of misty darkness.

Angela changed her mind and lowered her hand. “All this time, every time I think, my thoughts of darkness overcome my sight. I use this to release the pain inside me. Hopefully, in doing so—”

The girl in white came out of the shadows, her height taller than before. Angela didn’t turn around to acknowledge the girl watching her.

In doing so, I can release this darkness lurking in my veins, to let it out and get out of me so I can live a life of normality.

The girl in white sighed. It was not just a sigh, but a sigh of aggravation and anger.

“You’re behind me… aren’t you…?”

The girl in white didn’t reply. Instead, she took a step forward.

“What do you want? How and why did you put this here? I hate having this self relieving thing shown to me in broad daylight. It’s so tempting to relieve my stress. I want to do it now!”

The girl in white took another step forward. “Would you dare to inflict scars onto the body that belongs to me?”

Angela gritted her teeth and grasped her right arm. “Wh-What are you—”

“Reveal them to me, the satisfying pain that you so love inflicting onto yourself, to relieve the emotional pain I’ve given you.”

Angela shook her head. “No… I won’t.”

The girl in white clenched her fists and took another step. “You’re nothing but a fake. The only reason why you’re wearing my love’s clothing is to hide your shame, you worthless pile of detestable—”

“Shut up!”

The girl in white raised her hand over her supposed mouth, gasping dramatically. “Oh… is that how you want to express your guilt? Raising your lousy, phony voice at me, you cattle!”

When the girl in white raised her voice, the walls around Angela’s room exploded, revealing the misty darkness they were floating in.

Angela stood her ground. “How dare you! You’re nothing but a burden on my miserable life! You have the audacity to say I’m only wearing my brother’s hoodie to hide my shame? What shame…? This shame!”

Angela pulled up her sleeve, revealing her precious snowy skin with past self inflictions.

The girl in white gasped and scowled. “Look at what you’ve done… to me… to my…”

Angela’s right arm had razor scars on them, a secret she’d been hiding for a couple of months. Falling into a depression, Angela one day inflicted herself with this pain accidentally when she was helping Jack do housework, and upon doing so, she realized how great the pain had given her. Angela has since cut herself every time the girl in white would taunt her, mortify her, petrify her, and most of all, cause her the pinnacle of suffrage. Cutting was her new coping mechanism, and she felt ashamed doing this to herself, but the poor girl couldn’t resist how the newfound addiction to relieve the darkness lurking in her veins felt good.

Angela finally mustered the courage to turn round and look face to face at the girl who’d always terrorized her dreams. But who she saw wasn’t the same person inside of them. “H...uh? Wh-What… happened to you?”

The wretched girl in white unclenched her hands and softly giggled. “What do you mean? I’m still the same, I’ve just matured a little, that’s a-l-l.”

Angela slowly shook her head in shock. “No. You’re… you’ve…!”

“Yes A-n-g-e-l-a… I’m evolving into the woman my dear Jack is turning me into, like in the past.”

Angela’s eyes grew wide. Her face turned paler than her skin. The girl in white towered over her with a menacing shadow of anger. Her arms started reaching towards Angela. She let out one loud scream then closed her eyes. Finishing her scream of terror, she opened her eyes and gasped for air. She was now back in reality.

Clutching her chest, Angela felt a burning sensation on her right wrist. She felt the razor in her hand, lifted it up to see it, and saw blood drip from it. The pain sizzled on her right wrist as blood dripped out from the black depths, splashing gently on her floor. Angela quivered. Slowly lowering her head in shame, Angela began walking out of the room to go inside the bathroom from across the hall. Walking in, she threw the razor away and into the bin. The bangs on her face hovered over her precious eyes, hiding the shadow of guilt and shame. Angela lifted her sleeve, revealing a new self inflicted wound.

“I’m… sorry…” she said quietly to herself as she looked into the mirror.

She turned the faucet on, wiped blood off her wrist, got a bandaid located behind the mirror, and covered her cut. Slowly covering her wrist and staring at herself, Angela noticed that her purple highlights had grown further up. She grabbed the end of her hair and started crying silently. She couldn’t bear to look at herself any longer, so she walked out of the bathroom, back into her room, and packed the drawing pad away.

Angela was ready. Letting out a long sigh, she wiped her eyes and walked out, then made her way downstairs. She forced herself to smile and walked out of the house. Randolph saw her coming out so he waved. To be polite, she waved back too. She walked to her uncle and gave him the gentlest smile, but it was artificial. Randolph replied back with chuckles. The two were ready and hopped into the SUV.

They drove to the nice town located between the good and bad parts of Flint. They parked in front of a nice cozy local pizza shop. Randolph was excited because he loved pizza, especially Detroit style pizza, and having Angela come along made the experience better. Though Angela had a depressing ordeal before the trip, she was really looking forward to pizza, hoping it’ll cheer her up. Jack normally bought her pre-made or fast food in most cases to cheer her selfishness, but having to eat something handmade almost swept away her feelings of darkness that grew inside her. It was a rarity for her to eat anything freshly made or anything that nice since Jack worried about her exposure even though it’d been years since their grand escape.

They walked inside and Randolph went to the front to order the food, while Angela sat at the table they’d picked. She took out her drawing pad and continued drawing her surprise gift again, but as she flipped through the pages there was one that reminded her of her past.

“You love tormenting me, don’t you?” she muttered.

In front of her was a drawing of the girl in white, elegantly twirling her dress in a dead forest. Dead rose petals floated all around her, and above her was a sea of crows. She flipped the page and let out an angered breath.

The front door dinged and Danny walked in. He was hungry and decided to eat at the establishment which Angela happened to be in. He looked around and spotted a familiar set of hair. It was really dark and touched her shoulders which had drizzles of purple highlights. At first he brushed it off, but upon further thought he remembered who she was.

No way…?! It couldn’t be, right? Danny wondered.

A sinister smile formed on his face as he walked up to her table. He set his hand on her shoulder, which surprised her. “Found you…” he muttered.

Angela looked at Danny. His eyes were scary and he had a creepy smile on his face. “Um, who are you?” she asked frightfully.

Danny leaned in close to her ear. “Tell me girl, you know Jack, don’t cha?”

Angela was surprised. She gasped and started to tremble, feeling afraid of him because of his change of tone. “Yes. He’s my br-brother.”

He tightened his grip on her shoulder and she yelped a little from the pressure. Just as I thought… Hee, hee, hee, Danny thought.

He started laughing sarcastically. “Is that so? Nice meeting you! Don’t take this little encounter into account, but I just happened to bump into a familiar past and… you know. Ha, ha!” Before he could leave, he suddenly grabbed her pencil and started running for some odd reason.

Having her precious pencil taken away from her, she shouted, “My pencil! Someone stop him!”

Randolph heard her cry and noticed Danny dash out the door. Randolph managed to catch up but had to stop because of Angela. He picked up a rock closeby and threw it at him to at least give him a taste of his own medicine.

The rock hit Danny on the shoulder. It hurt him quite a bit, though he was some distance away. Damn… what is he? An ex-football player? Youch!

Danny was gone. He managed to escape, but more importantly he had Angela’s pencil in his grasp. He had a huge grin on his face and felt that progress was starting to play out for his revenge.

Walking confidently back home, Danny hopped onto his computer and started looking up Jack’s name, searching everywhere he could possibly guess: where Jack had been throughout the years, whether at hospital visits, shelters, schools, foster care centers, adoption centers, anywhere he could get anything on him.

He spent four hours on his computer and eventually became agitated. He slammed his hands on his desk. Damn it! Is there anything on him? Come one! Give me a sign or something, God!

Danny was close to giving up. The venting frustration released itself out of his mouth in the form of a burdened sigh. Just when he felt the need to give up on his act of vigilante justice, he spotted something. It was an old advert for the mentally ill.

“This is strange? Let’s see if their number still works.” He dialed the number on the page and waited patiently.

It rang for a while, but there was no answer. Damn, I knew this was just a fluke. He smacked his lips and tossed his phone aside.

Then his phone rang back. Danny grabbed it and looked at the number. It got him by surprise because it was the number he’d just dialed. Danny answered the call.

“Hello… whoever this is. You’re calling an old number and we’re no longer in business,” an unmotivated voice filled with guilt said.

Danny drew in a deep breath. “Sorry for the confusion! Do you perhaps have any records for anyone named Jack?”

“Jack, Jack, Jack… We’ve had many patients named Jack. You’re gonna have to be more specific.”

“Oh, my apologies. Okay, his name is Jack Samr.” The person behind the phone stayed quiet.

Danny was left hanging, and wondered why it got dead silent.

The person behind the phone gasped in shock. It sounded as if he’dd dropped a glass. “Who’s this?!” He sounded static, yet eager from how he responded back to Danny.

“Uhh… um—”

“How do you know who he is?!” Behind the phone it sounded as if he’d slammed his hand on a desk.

“Woah man. Relax, will ya?”

The man took a deep breath, let out a cough, and cleared his throat. “Sorry, out of subject, but was there a girl with him by any chance?”

“Umm, yes.”

The man behind the phone chuckled quietly.

Danny let out a sigh of relief and grinned. “Let’s just say I’m an old friend of his. Perhaps you can tell me more about him and where he lives?”

“Friend, you say? Well sorry kiddo, we have no clue where he lives, but we did have a hint of his last location.”

Danny gripped his chin and thought to himself. So he is alive after all. Just as she said, just as I witnessed. To be honest, I didn’t want it to be true, but alas, people do change, don’t they?

Danny cleared his throat. “Don’t you people keep records of past patients and where they were sent off to or something?”

“Yes, that would be the case. But why would I give you such confidential stuff to a stranger like you huh?”

“Uhh… He was my best friend at one point?” Danny forcefully coughs.

The man sighed. “Whatever at this point, I could care less. I don’t have much information on that delinquent.”

Danny smacked his lips. “Damn it, I thought I could get a clue.”

“I only have a small file on him, it would be bigger if they didn’t happen to escape, then that’s a different story.”

“Escaped?” Danny didn’t think Jack would do something as crazy as escaping a mental institution.

Damn, Jack has really become a degenerate, hasn’t he?

“So what’s the full story behind Jack? Why did the police lie about his death to us if that were the case? And most of all, who’s the little girl you asked about and why is she with Jack? Why are you more worried about her than an ex-patient of yours who escaped?”

“You know where she is too?!” he asked excitedly, quickly clearing his throat. “Sorry! What I meant to say is, is she still with him by any chance?”

“Yeah, I do. I just confronted her four hours ago. She was with some Black guy though, but she definitely knows Jack.”

Danny examined her pencil and saw her name engraved into it. Angela. Huh… cute name.

“I even took her pencil to get some clues. Uhhh, her name’s Angela if that was the girl you’re referring to?”

The man started laughing as if he were a kid being handed a lifetime supply of candy. “Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful! I’ll tell you everything, if you tell me your name and help me out with something.”

Danny knew something was fishy right away. “Well, what’s in it for me, Mister? What do I get in return?”

The man chuckled. “I’ll tell you everything about Jack’s situation and answer all your questions! I’ll even pay you five million dollars! But only if you help me get the girl. How about it?”

Danny’s mouth dropped. “Fi-Fi-Five million!” He jumped out of his desk chair and placed a hand on his head.

Holy crap! All I wanted was revenge on the bastard, but to get rich too? How awesome is that!

Danny dragged his hand down his face, relaxing his greedy excitement. “Okay, I’ll help you out, my good man. My name is Daniel, or you can call me Danny. Your name please.”

The man behind the phone had a grin and was twirling his pen in an office of some sort. “That’s good to hear, especially knowing that we share the same goals.”

“Interesting indeed, uhhh…”

“Oh yes, sorry, allow me to introduce myself. Well Daniel, my name is Dr. Cato. It’s a pleasure to be doing business with you.”

Dr. Cato chuckled sadistically, reached into his desk and pulled out a photo of Angela. You’re coming home soon, Angela.

He continued conversing with Danny on the phone and they shared everything together; information, locations, and their plan to take Angela.

Dr. Cato thanked Danny for everything, and mostly for his time. He said he’d be in touch. Hanging up his phone, Dr. Cato got out of his chair, walked up to his window and with a joyful look on his face, he felt so relieved to hear that she was still alive. From what Danny had told him, she was healthy and well. He couldn’t have been happier to hear that.

Who would’ve thought that someone like Jack would wind up as a mindless killing thug? Dr. Cato shook his head.

“Poor Angela, you deserve better. This time, I’ll make sure to take care of you and most of all, I’ll save you from that fool and ensure the promise I bestowed on your father.” Dr. Cato pulled out his phone again, then dialed a number belonging to his good friend Mr. Mathew. He informed him of everything that had happened.

Mathew was glad about the news. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on Jack for what he did to him back at the yard five years ago. The time had come for him and Dr. Cato to recover the person they’d sworn to keep out of society and to keep a promise for an old friend. It was the time to retrieve Angela and save her from her demons.

Even though Danny was ecstatic and happy, there was a cloud hovering over him. He was having second thoughts now, and he had no idea that Jack had gone through all that hell, but he could never forgive him for killing his sister. He wondered if all the uncertainties Jack had gone through were the reasons why he ended up as a heartless killer. Danny stared at a family photo of his sister and mother. They’re both gone now. He had no one now, almost like Jack.

Am I going to become a psychopath like him?

Danny wondered if he’d turn out to be like Jack. At first, he thought of how everyone would view him if he became a changed boy, becoming bad in a sense. But his selfish, greedy, lustful mind overcame such conflictions, making him smile once again. Thinking if he’d turn out like a bad boy, the first thing that came to mind was if he might have a chance at Veronica liking him.

Danny glanced at his old gaming console, remembering how he and Jack used to challenge each other in a shooter. Just like old times, huh buddy?

He stood and made a gun out of his fingers. “The game is still on! Bang! Game on, Jack.”

***

Jack returned home from an exhausting mission. He had to sell a lot of dope along with a couple pounds of marijuana. He crashed onto his bed, then stretched and yawned. He was in no mood to do anything. However, shortly after, Randolph and Angela returned from their lunch. Angela hurried to Jack’s room and jumped on top of him.

He made a funny sound when Angela hopped on him. He noticed Angela looked a little upset. “Dang. What’s the matter? Why are you all shakened and spooked out?”

Randolph walked in. “Jack, you gotta hear this, you big ol psychopath.”

Jack simmered Angela down by rubbing her head, rubbing her shoulders, and holding her. He was all ears now.

“Some punk tried picking on Angela and stole her pencil,” said Randolph.

Jack carried Angela up off the bed as he got up too. “Who? I want his skin color, what he was wearing, everything!” he said in a furious tone.

“Sorry man. By the time I could get a good look on his description, the lil pussy ran stupid fast.”

He put Angela down, and approached his wall. “Fuck…” Jack slammed his fist against the wall.

If I was there, he’d be a dead son of a bitch.

“Chill man! At least it was nothing more! Am I right? Or am I wrong?”

Jack placed his hands on his hips, raising his head and scratching it then taking a breath. “I guess you’re right. At least she wasn’t hurt.”

Angela grabbed Jack’s hand. “But brother, he knew your name, though…”

“My name? That’s not possible. Nobody else knows my name except for you guys and…” Jack froze. Sweat started pouring down his face.

Don’t tell me? No, No, No, that couldn’t be it, right?

Angela looked up at her brother’s frightened face. It made her feel uneasy and a little creeped out since Jack was mumbling to himself. “Are you okay, brother?”

“Angela, what was he wearing?”

She retracted a bit, putting her hands up and squinting. “Just normal winter clothes, though his eyes were really scary and brown… just like yours.”

Jack sighed. “Well, I guess that’s a relief. Had me worried there for a second. Hey, wait a second! Are my eyes that scary?”

Angela winked to her brother, grabbing his hand again. “Yes and no, but they’re still mesmerizing to me!”

Jack patted her head. “Heh, I’m glad you’re okay. How about you head back to your room? I’ll come up there and watch some cartoons with you? What do you say?”

“Really? You mean it!” She got so excited that she couldn’t help but jump up and down.

“Relax, will ya?” Jack asked.

“No! You better be there or I’ll destroy you. By the way, they’re not cartoons!” She then left and headed to her room.

The moment Angela left the room, the happiness that everyone showed tagged along with her. Jack’s smile faded and he got serious then looked at Randolph, who seemed more serious than what Jack did.

Randolph walked up to Jack and looked into his lifeless eyes. “Jack, I think it’s time you tell me everything, don’t cha think? What’s up with you two? Why did you ask about the guy’s appearance?”

Jack looked away. He wasn’t in the mood to talk about something like that so he tried walking away. However, Randolph placed his arm in front of Jack and blocked him from going any further.

“Randolph, I—”

“You ain’t going nowhere until you tell me everything.”

Jack pushed Randolph’s arm aside. “I’m sorry. This isn’t the time.”

Randolph gritted his teeth and pushed Jack. “Tell me or you’re gonna get a bullet in your damn skull!” Randolph pulled his gun out and pointed it at Jack.

“Randolph, relax—”

“Please man!” He sighed deeply, calming down his shortened fuse. “I just wanna know so that I can protect your sister. Please Jack.”

Jack wasn’t sure if Randolph was serious enough, so he brushed it off and tried to apologise one last time, but that angered Randolph even more.

“Look man, like I said I’m sorry… I gotta—”

Randolph’s gun went off, cutting Jack off from finishing his sentence. A bullet passed Jack’s face and grazed his cheek, then penetrated the wall behind him. Jack’s ear rang and Randolph left him shakened. Jack couldn’t believe what had just happened. He was shocked that Randolph did something like that. The only person who would ever try to do something so careless was either him or Eric.

Jack looked at Randolph as he rubbed the blood off his cheek. “Randolph?”

He could tell by the look in Randolph’s eyes that he was serious from how furrowed his brows were, his jaw clenched, and a glint starting to show itself.

The gun in Randolph’s hands trembled, and his face expressed agonized frustration. “The next bullet will hit, Jack.” Randolph shed a warm, saddened tear that flowed down his cheek, which finally made Jack realize how serious he was.

Jack expressed a gentle grin and walked up to Randolph as he gently placed his hand on his shoulder. “Okay, I’ll tell you everything. And I do mean everything…”

“Really?” Randolph asked.

Jack gently grabbed the gun. “Yes Uncle, really. Now put that tool of mass murder away.”

Randolph did exactly as Jack asked and put the gun away. “If you lie to me, you are a dead summa o bitch!”

When they were about to walk away, Randolph clicked about a word Jack had said a moment ago regarding the status of his guardianship. With a quivering lip, Randolph turned to Jack as they headed to the backyard.

“What?” Jack asked.

“Di-Did you just call me uncle?” Randolph asked.

Now in the backyard, they both stood in the middle of the cold area with a single tree stump. The air was dry and cold. The wind was slightly harsh enough to send chills throughout one’s body. Jack took a seat on the old tree stump, pulled out his wallet, and took out a drawing he’d kept since his escape from the facility. It was a drawing that Angela had drawn when they first met. It was a premonition of her and Jack, happy and free.

Jack smiled and handed it to Randolph. “What’s this boy?” Randolph asked as he examined the adorable drawing that represented two kids being free and happy next to one another with big open mouth smiles also holding hands.

Randolph was amazed that someone like Jack had kept it for so long. He joked around and mocked Jack by calling him a suck up.

Jack didn’t mind, though. He knew how much of a hard ass he was, especially knowing how much he’d changed in two years.

Randolph handed the paper back, nodding. Jack grabbed it from him. He was ready to hear the truth that he was seeking and hoping to learn about Angela and Jack’s backgrounds, where they came from, and who they were.

Jack gazed up at the dim gray sky. The sun shone behind cold, foggy clouds, which barely emitted any light through them. “It was about five and a half years ago, when I was barely eleven years old…”

Randolph listened closely. “Alright, go on.”

“I was so damn happy back then. I thought the pinnacle of happiness and devoted partnership would stay by my side forever. I had loving parents, amazing friends, and a perfect life to be honest… until one horrible day all that amazement in my life came crumbling down, like crushing the perfect cookie in one’s wretched grasp.”

Randolph was eager to hear the rest and paid close attention, raising a brow and staring hard at Jack. “What happened if your life was that amazing? What brought an end to such a beautiful life?”

Jack stared at falls leftovers drifting past his feet. “It all began when I had a strange dream, a dream like no other. I can’t remember much, but what I can is darkness, solitude, and…”

Randolph indicated for Jack to finish his sentence, but Jack couldn’t bring himself to mention the girl in his nightmares.

“Do you still have weird dreams like that or at least remember something from it?” Randolph asked as he sat on a nearby chair.

Jack nodded. “Yes, I still have dreams like that. Horrible, dark dreams. And as I get older, they get weirder, more grotesque, and realer.”

Jack stared at his scarred palm. The only thing I always remember from any dream is that girl…

“Her black hair, paper skin, and that damn relaxing voice pisses me off.”

“Who?” Randolph asked with a raised brow.

“The girl in my—’’ Jack said, realizing he’d spoken beyond his thoughts.

“You alright, Jack? You’re sweating.”

“I’m-I’m fine…”

“Alright bro, just making sure cause you’re turning white on me. But finish whatchu were saying.”

Jack whipped his hair back. “After that night, I got into a fight with one of my best friends. I called her a bitch and made her cry.” Jack clasped his hands, placed his head on them, and thought about his past.

“Damn… you were a cold little delinquent, weren’t you?”

“Not necessarily, but what happened after my dreadful school day I could never forget.” Jack tightened his hands, remembering that awful night. “My parents were killed in front of me and… I blacked out…”

Randolph swallowed nervously. “Wha-What happened after-wards?”

Jack continued staring at nothing. “Apparently, I killed all the guys who killed them… I… I don’t know how! All I know is that everything got worse for me in terms of my life.”

Randolph felt horrible hearing that. It pained his heart, and it was enough for him to frown. “How much worse did it get for you?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say worse, but… it got pretty bad. I was put into a mental facility cause they thought I was the one who murdered everyone. I still can’t get over that. Even to this day I can’t, but I’d say it was a blessing in disguise. I wouldn’t have met Angela there and rescued her.”

Randolph’s mouth dropped. “You met her in the same facility? What the fuck?! A girl like her? Nuuuh!”

Jack chuckled. “Yeah, I was surprised too. She was living there because her parents were supposedly killed in a car accident, or from what I was told by a selfish doctor. That poor girl has been through so much.”

“You both have! What’s the story behind her, though? Why do you always worry about her safety?”

Jack’s eyes were filled with anger. Just thinking about Dr. Cato made his mind become filled with hatred. “Randolph, I’m going to be completely honest with you, she’s still a complete mystery to be honest, but what I do know is that if she ends up back in those doctors’ damned hands, it’ll be the end of her. I’m sure of it.”

Jack stood up and clenched his fists. “That’s why I’m so cautious about her going to school, especially that day at the hospital.”

“Hospital…? Huh?!”

Jack gazed at the sky one last time and stretched. “That’s as much as you’re going to get out of me, Randolph. So, what’s your story?”

Randolph chuckled, stood up, and walked over to Jack. He looked down at his friend and patted his shoulder. “I’ll try my best to keep it short and sweet.”

“I’ve got all day,” Jack said with a grin.

Randolph took a deep breath and sighed out the hidden burden weighing down his soul. He sat down beside Jack. “Ten years ago, my life was amazing too. Even though I wasn’t super rich or poor, I worked at some lame office job to take care of my family.”

Jack’s eyes grew big. A gasp trickled through a sudden breath when Randolph mentioned the word family.

“I had a beautiful loving wife who took care of me at my worst. She was my childhood best friend and the love of my life. But more importantly, I had… I had…” Randolph couldn’t finish. He kept thinking about his past. His eyes got watery as he clenched his pants.

Jack could tell what was coming next, but he hoped his gut was wrong.

Randolph toughened up, held back his tears, and continued. “I had a beautiful, amazing daughter. A smart, adorable… representation of happiness. She was everything to me… I was so happy! So fucking happy.”

Jack saw Randolph shedding a single tear as they sat in brief silence. But the quietness got interrupted by Michigan’s natural sounds of gunshots being fired, police sirens, dogs barking, and Flint’s chilly wind fluttering their clothes.

“Randolph,” Jack’s eyes were about to water, “it couldn’t be?” Jack’s breathing intensified while he held back his emotions. He felt butterflies and knew what Randolph was about to say.

Randolph clutched his chest. “One day when we were on our way to celebrate our daughter’s tenth birthday…” He randomly chuckled out of sadness.

“Randolph…”

Randolph sniffled and placed a hand over his eyes. “They were taken from me. I always asked myself why God took them away from me. Was I not good enough for them? Is that it?” Randolph slammed his palm against his face out of frustration.

“If you don’t want to speak about it no more, you could—”

Randolph stood up and looked at Jack with blood shot eyes filled with self guilt and sorrow. “Why them and not me? Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!” He dropped on all fours, crying all his caged sorrow onto the cold ground.

Jack clenched his fists and held back his own feelings. He walked up to comfort him, rubbing his back as he cried guilt onto the ground. “It’s okay to cry. How about we head back inside? What do you say?”

Randolph sniffled and wiped his tears with his sleeve. “It’s okay, I can keep going. I’m a tough man, aight! I just lost my cool there for a second.”

He stood up and looked at Jack with a grin on his face. “I’m sorry for letting you see me like this.”

Jack smiled and patted Randolph’s shoulder. “We all get emotional sometimes, but that’s what keeps us human, right?”

Randolph relaxed, unclenching his fists, remembering the moment his family was taken from him. “I wanted to show my baby the time of her life. All of that came to an end, though. It happened so fast. All I remember is the car covered by bullet holes, broken glass, and my family…”

“You were targeted? By who?”

Randolph shook his head. “That’s the thing… I wasn’t. We were in the middle of a crossfire between two rival gangs. It’s my fault for stopping!”

“Don’t say that. It’s not you’re—”

Randolph stood up, pointed at the sky and angrily shouted, “Why? Why did you take them away from me?!”

Jack quickly stood up and rubbed his back to calm him once again. “Randolph, it wasn’t your fault or God’s. It happens. This is just how cruel the world and life is. You can’t expect the unexpected.”

Randolph finally calmed down and looked at Jack. “Man, you are so damn weird! Why did you become so fucked up?” Randolph, now in a calmer state, hugged Jack.

“What’s this for?” Jack asked, surprised.

“Who would’ve ever known that the old Jack Angela told me about would still be in there,” Randolph said with tears trickling down his face, which stained Jack’s shoulder.

Jack tightened their hug, embracing their partnership. “Hey, like I told Eric, it was I who chose to be this way, not the streets, neither of you two, or anyone else.”

“Thank you, the both of you, for giving me a reason to live.” Jack and Randolph looked at each other, laughed, then rubbed their eyes.

“You almost made me cry there, Uncle. I haven’t felt this emotional in five years. I should be thanking you for everything, Randolph, along with Uncle Eric. Both of you will always be family to me, even if you almost shot me a few minutes ago.”

Randolph playfully punched Jack’s shoulder. As they turned around and were about to head back inside, Eric was standing at the door. Both Jack and Randolph glanced at each other and shrugged their shoulders. Eric deeply sighed because he’d heard Jack’s story and felt bad for him.

Eric acted like he still didn’t care, even though he secretly did. He knew Jack was still messed up and needed help. They joked around and suggested that they should send him back to the facility he’d escaped from. Jack sighed and suggested that he should just ditch them and run away with Angela like he did five years ago at that place.

After a small laugh, Eric needed to explain something to Jack. “Yo, fool. We both have a meeting with a rival gang leader in a week aight?”

Jack smirked. “Alright, I understand and promised not to escalate the situation like last time… well maybe ha.”

“You better not or else I’ma kill you for real this time.” said Eric pointing his finger at Jack. “Randolph, you’ll be here at the crib for the meantime when it does go down so you can keep watch and ensure that nothing fishy’s being planned by the other side.”

Randolph grinned. “You got it boss, we don’t want to be stabbed in the back like last time.”

Jack punched Randolph’s shoulder. “You got that right, otherwise I’ll show them no mercy.

All three men were all aware of their positions and the details of their plans, now all they had to do was wait for the week to pass. Randolph grinning, Jack smirking and Eric bringing out a smile as well, the three felt like everything was coming into fruition and were ready for anything.