Jay wakes up to Tara laying on top of him. He chuckles. "What are you doing?" Tara hums. "I'm comfy." "I have to get up." Tara shakes her head. "In a minute." Jay chuckles. "You keep forgetting I can do this." Jay flips them over. Tara pouts. "I was comfy." "I know but I have to go." Tara wraps her arms around Jay's neck. "Go where?" Jay takes one of Tara's hands and moves it to his stomach. Tara nods in understanding when Jay grunts. "Hurry back." Jay runs to the bathroom. As soon as he sits down he sighs in relief. About an hour later Tara goes into the bathroom to shower. As Tara is showering Jay comes into the bathroom and peaks his head in the shower. "Hey babe?" Tara turns. "You coming in?" Jay shakes his head. "I have to go deal with something." Tara pouts but nods. "Alright." Jay leaves the house a few minutes later with Root. In the car at the meeting spot. "You better not be fucking with me Root. I took you out. I can just as easily throw you back in." "I promise Jay. They'll be here." Jay nods. About an hour later another car pulls up. "That's them. Stay here." Root gets out of the car and meets the driver of the other car half way. "Did you bring it?" "Of course I did. You doubt me?" "No." The guy whistles and the passenger gets out and brings over a bag and hands it over. "Now the payment." Root looks back at Jay and nods. Jay nods back. He gets out and goes to his trunk and takes out a bag filled with money. Jay closes the trunk and walks over to Root and hands the other guy the bag. The guy accepts it. "Who are you?" "No one important. Just the driver." The guy nods. "I see." The guy checks the bag and smiles. "Pleasure doing business with you. You'll have the rest by next week." Root nods. The men go back to their cars and drive off. Jay looks at Root. "You're dealing with the most dangerous gang in LA?" Root looks at Jay worried. "I made a promise to his boss." Jay sighs and rubs his temples. "Your father and sister are going to lose their shit." "Please don't tell them. It'll put them in danger. Promise me Jay." "Are you kidding me!?" "Promise me." Jay sighs. "Fine. I promise. I won't tell your father and sister that you're an idiot." Once at home. Jay and Root get out of the car and go into the house. Later on that night. Root knocks on Tara's door. "Come in." Root opens the door and goes in. "Can I talk to you for a minute Jay?" Jay sighs and gets up. Tara looks confused. "What's wrong?" "Nothing love. It's okay. I'll be back." Tara nods and Jay and Root leave and Jay closes the door. The two go out in the backyard. Jay lights a joint. "Talk." "Okay so Alexander wants me to do this one mission for him before we meet next week." "What kind of mission?" Root looks at Jay. "You don't want to know." Jay shakes his head and takes a puff. "Go on." Root rubs his hands on his jeans. "I don't want to do it but if I don't the whole thing will explode and both my father and Tara are dead." Jay rubs his temples and finishes off his joint. "What did you promise them?" Root looks away. "Root. What did you promise them?" Root looks back. "Okay I promised them that I would help them get Alexander's brother out of prison." "Are you fucking insane!?" "I know! I know I messed up okay!?" "Oh do you? You have any idea who his brother is?" Root shakes his head. "He's the one that killed thousands of people in that plague outbreak seven years ago. He built a bomb that exploded and made everyone sick from the powder that rained down in the air. They're still trying to clean up that area. He damaged so many buildings and landscapes with that bomb." "I. I didn't know." "Of course not. How could you? Wanna know who the only survivors of that outbreak were?" "O okay." "Well you know one." "Oh?" Jay turns around and lifts up his shirt. Root gasps. He runs his fingers along Jay's back. "Who was the other?" Jay turns around to face Root. "Hm?" "You said there was another. Who was it?" "My brother." "Aiden?" Jay nods and tears start to fall. Jay wipes them. "He nearly died. If it wasn't for me and his father he'd be dead." Root sits down. "What do you mean?" Jay joins Root on the ground and places his arm over his knee. "Before the bomb went off Aiden,his father and I were walking to the park. The two of us were playing together in the sand when Aiden's father screamed to run." Jay starts to tear up. "By the time we got up and started running the bomb had hit just behind me hence the burns. I fell forward and landed on Aiden. Greg came running over and helped both of us up and started running towards the car. By the time we had got to the car Greg had already inhaled too much of the radiation and collapsed beside the driver side door. Aiden went running to him but I grabbed him and threw him gently into the car. I drove away just in time for the second bomb to hit." Jay is full on crying now. "I. I couldn't get away fast enough. Aiden started coughing and. And." Root places his hand on Jay's shoulder. "You don't have to keep going." "And so I quickly drove out of the town and brought him to the hospital here in LA. They said he needed a liver transplant because the radiation from the powder that was in the bombs damaged it. My mom wasn't a match so they gave up. The next day I asked them to test me. At first they refused but when I told them I could be his last chance at survival they tested me and I was a match. The rest you know from there." Root looks confused. "Then that means you have no liver." Jay nods. "Yes." "How are you still alive?" "I'm not. Well in a matter of speaking." "What do you mean?" Jay sighs. "Easiest way to explain is." "Is?" Jay shakes his head a few times and looks back at Root. Root moves away from Jay. "Whoa!" Jay chuckles. "Its okay Root. I'm not going to hurt you." "Your. Your face." "Seriously Vik?" "What? I love scaring people. I'm a demon remember?" "Right. I forgot." "Sorry about that." "What was that?" "That was Vik. He's the reason why I'm still alive." "Is he like some kind of personality or something?" Jay shakes his head. "I want people to think that because he's not actually a human at all." "Huh?" Root looks uber confused. Jay sighs. "There's God and then there's Satan. Or as he likes to be called Lucifer." Root nods. "Right." "Then there's angels and demons." "Right." "Demons and Angels aren't human." Root nods in understanding. "Ah I see now. So you're alive because Vik is an angel?" Jay and Vik laugh. "What?" "I'm nowhere near being an angel" says Jay in his deep voice. Root looks scared. Jay shakes his head. "Sorry. That was Vik." "Quit it!" "Make me. I'm the reason you're still alive remember?" Jay sighs. "Whatever. Just please stop. Root is my fiance's brother." "Oh. Right. Sorry." "Its okay." "So what exactly do you have to do in this 'mission'?" Root looks away from Jay and stares off into space. "I have to kill someone." "Someone or some ones?" Root puts his head in his lap. "Some ones. A whole family." Jay shakes his head and hugs Root tightly. After that was over. "Give me your phone." "Why?". "You want to call Alexander or should I?" Root pulls out his phone and dials Alexander's number. It starts ringing.
"Hello?" "It's Root." "What do you want?" "My friend wants to talk to you."
Alexander sighs.
"Put him on."
Root hands the phone over to Jay.
"I have a proposition for you." "I'm listening." "You let me do his mission and let me help you." "Help me with what?" "I can get your brother out of prison." "Oh yeah? How can you do that?" "How do you think Root got out? I helped him escape."
Alexander laughs.
"You don't have the guts to kill a person. Let alone a family." "Oh you think so?" "I know so." "I once killed a teenage boy and his friends for messing with my brother without even giving it a single thought of guilt or remorse."
Alexander scoffs.
"I doubt that." "Let me prove it to you then." "Alright then. Tomorrow night. 11 pm at the bridge. Don't be late." "Fine."
The call ends. Jay hands Root his phone back. "Hey Jay?" Jay turns back around. "What?" "Is it true what you said about those teenagers?" Jay looks at Root seriously and walks back inside. Root stands at the door to the backyard outside shocked. At about 5:30 am. Jay's phone buzzes. He gets up and answers it.
"Hello?" "Hey Jay." "Oh hey bud. Are you okay?" "Not really. Could you come get me?" "Alright. Where are you?"
Jay gets dressed and goes to Root's room.
"I'm at the library." "Why are you there?" "My friends and I were drinking." "I'm on my way." "Thanks."
The call ends. "Root." Jay shakes Root's shoulder. "Root wake up." "Mmm." "Wake up. I need you to come with me to get my brother." Root gets up and dressed. The two leave. At the library. "Get off of me!" Jay and Root run over and Jay pulls the guys off Aiden and Aiden's friend. "Get lost." The guys get in Jay's face. Jay pushes the guys back. "I said get lost." Root helps up Aiden and his friend. "Get in the car." Aiden and his friend obey. The guys from before push at Jay's chest. "Make us." The one guy goes to punch Jay in the face but Jay catches his fist and grabs his throat. "Big mistake." The other guys try to defend their buddy but Root comes over to Jay and whispers in his ear, "Calm down Vik. I know you're not human so you're able to kill this man. Jay doesn't want you to do so." Jay looks at Root. "What makes you think I'm not capable of doing it myself?" Root looks shocked. "Jay?" He nods. "So those teenagers..." He nods. Jay crushes the guy's trachea and throws him on the ground. His buddies back off in fear and take off. Root and Jay get in the car and drive off. Once at home. "Aiden seems to have grown the last time I saw him." Jay chuckles. "That's what happens when you haven't seen someone in 3 years. To be honest I didn't think you remembered him." Root shifts in his seat. "So does my sister know?" Jay looks at Root. "Know what?" "That you're a liar and a psychotic murderer?" Jay laughs his deep laugh. "What made you come to that conclusion?" Root puts his hands in his pockets. "The look on your face when you killed that man earlier." Jay's facial expression darkened. "I protect my family and people close to me." "Sso that includes me and my family then?" Jay's face softens and then nods. He then smiles. "I told you. I won't hurt you. I wasn't joking about that." "What about the part about the radiation thingy?" Jay nods. "Only it wasn't Aiden's liver. It was his kidney." "Those burns. Were they really from the bomb going off behind you?" Jay smiles his psychotic smile and shakes his head. "It was from me burning my step father alive. He was abusing me and one day I just snapped. Burned the house down in the process." "How do you not have anymore burn marks other than those ones then?" Jay chuckles. "Guess." "Vik is hiding it." Jay nods. "So the way you looked before when we were in the backyard when you first told me about Vik. That was what you look like?" "Somewhat." Root looks confused. "Somewhat? What do you mean somewhat?" Jay sighs. "Vik if you could explain." Vik removes the shield and Jay takes off his clothes down to his boxers. Root gasps and throws his hand over his mouth. "You look so." "Burned?" Root nods. "How did you survive that?" "Easy. My mom saved me. I was taken to hospital and treated." "What happened after that?" Jay and Vik chuckle. "My little friend came out of hiding." Vik puts the shield back up. "So Vik has always been there? He was just dormant?" Jay smiles. "Correct. You're not going to tell anyone right? I mean I have no fear and what not. I just don't want people knowing. I like to keep some things to myself." Root goes to hug Jay but then decides against it. He puts his hand on Jay's shoulder instead. "Your secret is safe with me." Jay goes inside with Root following. "Can I tell you something?" Jay stops in front of Root's room. "What?" Root comes in closer to Jay and whispers, "I am too." Jay smiles. "I know. You hate it though." Root nods. "I mean I do have fun with it sometimes but I prefer to be normal like everyone else." Jay snorts. "Normal is boring." Root chuckles. "Good night Jay." "Good night Root." The two go to bed again and fall asleep soon after.