United [A Superhero AU] - Book Two

Chapter Eight - The Last Straw

A few days pass with few incidents. The boss gets angry, but he doesn't resort to beatings and instead just yells. When he isn't being sent out on patrol or being forced to control rebel groups, Jack spends the majority of time in his room, missing Mark but being unable to go and see him. For a while, it seems like everything will be fine and that soon, he can go see Mark and it will be even better.

He shouldn't have gotten his hopes so high.

Cry, Matthew, and Jack head inside after a few tiring hours on patrol, their muscles aching and their hearts heavy. Jack hates using his powers to make people afraid of him. He hates sprinting close to their doors and making them rattle so he sounds like a phantom. He hates when people see him and quickly turn in the other direction, hurrying off with their heads bowed. The villains have done these things so often that among the citizens, all three of them have their own nicknames; Ghost, Demon, and Canary. Cry, Jack, and Matthew. It took the Irishman ages to figure out that "Canary" was referring to the "canary in a coal mine" metaphor, which, when applied to Matthew, makes perfect sense.

The moment they step inside, the boss' henchmen are waiting for the villains. All three of them tense and are unwilling to move until the henchmen drag them forward and towards the boss' office. Jack's heart palpitates in his chest, his anxiety rising drastically. If the cronies are involved, it's bad.

They reach the office and enter. The boss stands behind his desk, tossing papers from the drawers and pulling the last of his hair out. He looks up and upon seeing the villains, reaches over and throws a stapler at them with all his might. It hits Matthew in the shoulder and he cries out in pain, struggling against the henchman's grip. Jack scowls and Cry attempts to lunge towards his father, but one of the men holds him back.

"The fear methods aren't working! They're going to think I'm weak!" the boss yells, storming forward.

With that, the beating commences. This time, it's worse. Jack tries to brace himself, but the moment a fist pounds into the already tender bruises, he sobs. His anxiety swirls in his gut and makes him feel like he's going to throw up, and every punch cuts off his train of coherent thought. He struggles, trying to get away from the pain, but the moment he does he's shoved to his knees and kicked to the ground by a foot between the shoulder blades. His hands shake as panic runs rampant in his brain, creating a haze that stops him from processing anything. Cry ends up on the ground next to him, sobbing and struggling to breathe, and beside him is Matthew, who dances on the brink of unconsciousness.

The boss takes a seat, his breathing back to that familiar rattle. The villains are dragged into the hallway, but this time none of them stand and walk away. Matthew passes out then and there, and Cry simply lies there and tries to wipe away the tears that continue to fall.

Jack can't think. He can't breathe. His entire body hurts, but that doesn't stop him from stumbling to his feet and sprinting from the institute. The hero's base is hard to find in the dark of the evening, but he has to try. Nobody else will be able to soothe the absolute panic that grips his heart.

He knocks on the door before leaning against the outside wall, feeling utterly faint and seized with fright at the exact same time. The door takes far too long to open, and by the time it does Jack is on the verge of a panic attack. Mark's eyes widen significantly when he sees the villain on the front step, and Jack nearly cries.

"M-Mark, h-help," he gasps, his heart pounding in his ears. His vision starts to blur and he stumbles, falling against the wall. Mark's voice is distant in his mind as he sinks to the ground, trembling and breathing sporadically.

Gently, he's lifted off the ground and carried inside. He tucks his face into Mark's chest, trying to focus on his scent and his voice as he speaks softly. The hero's arm presses against his very sore back, but at this point, Jack doesn't care. He just wants to be safe.

"Jack, shh," Mark whispers, cradling the villain against his chest as he settles on the couch. "Breathe with me, okay?"

Jack nods a bit, matching the rise and fall of the hero's chest as best he can. The haze eventually lifts and his heart rate slows, allowing him to think with a bit more clarity. Mark is right there, coaxing him out of a panic attack and pressing gentle kisses to his fingers. He has no idea how black and blue his body is or how tremendously awful the past week was.

Before he can stop himself, Jack is sobbing. Whether it's from the beatings or relief, he has no idea, but he sobs into Mark's shoulder nonetheless. The hero tightens his arms around him, which hurts like Hell but the Irishman can't bring himself to tell him that.

"Hey, I'm here now. It's okay," Mark murmurs.

Jack takes a few deep breaths, folding his fingers around Mark's hand. His voice comes out as a squeak, but he hardly cares. "M-Mark..."

"Shh," the hero whispers.

Jack starts to settle against Mark's chest, but just as he does someone enters the room. Instantly, the villain's breathing picks up again and he tries to hide against Mark.

"Felix, it's not a good time," Mark says, his tone filled with tension as he tries to soothe Jack once again.

After a moment of silence, the Swede clenches his jaw. "Talk to me as soon as possible."

The footsteps fade and Jack exhales heavily, hiding his face in Mark's neck. "I'm s-sorry."

"It's okay, Jack. It really is," Mark replies, pressing a kiss to his forehead. "Will you be okay if you just sit here while I talk to Felix?"

"Um, yeah, I think so," Jack whispers.

Mark nods and as gently as possible slides out from under Jack.  He settles him on the couch, sending him a weak smile as he heads to the kitchen, where Felix waits.  The villain curls up, waiting anxiously for the hero's return.