42nd Country Road

Mark?

I woke up shivering. Why was it so cold? I sat up and pulled the comforter around my cold body. I looked back on the bed and saw that Mark wasn't there. I headed out the door and into to the dining room. Jack was searching desperately for something.

"Where's Mark? And what are you looking for?" I asked through chattering teeth.

"Mark, I'm looking for Mark," He said. I started to get concerned. I dropped the blanket surrounding me and ran towards the ladder leading out. It was open. I found his jacket near the bottom. I put it on and headed up the ladder. I found the house with frost on everything.

"Mark?!" I called. I heard sobbing from the outside. I ran out to see Mark on his side, crying. I went over to him and looked up and down his body, checking for new wounds. He sat up, shivering, and pulled me into his arms.

"What are you doing out here?" I asked him, stroking his soft black hair.

"The dark brought me out here, he said something about being alone," He said. He started to shiver even more.

"Let's get you inside, Okay?" I said pulling out of the hug and looking deep into his eyes. He nodded weakly. I took his hand and guided him down the ladder. I walked him to the couch and laid him down, covering him with a blanket. His eyes closed and I started to walk away. He grabbed my hand and opened his eyes again. I turned around to see his tired eyes.

"You think that you could get away?" He said smiling weakly. I smiled weakly back at him.

"With what?" I asked.

"Running away without giving your boy something to remember you by," He said. I rolled my eyes and took off his jacket and handed it to him.

"Not that, it smells like me," He said.

"Then what do you want?" I asked kneeling down to his face. He placed his hand on my cheek.

"Anything that smells like you," He said. I stood up and walked to our room and grabbed a shirt off the bed. I handed it to him.

"Better?" I asked. He held it up to his nose and smiled.

"Better," He said, closing his eyes. I smiled at him through love. I walked into the kitchen where Jack had stopped searching and was now sitting on the counter.

"You found him," Jack said.

"Or he found me," I said.

"He woke up last night and I had to tell him where you were and that you were okay," He said looking at me.

"You would have had to tell me the same thing, you know," I said

"Ya, I know, I just never thought it would come from Mark," He said.

"It's paranoia," I said. Jack looked at me with a straight face, "It's the feeling that everything is trying to take that one thing away from you, I get it, I understand, I've been there."

"Ya, me too," He replied

"I still feel like we should leave," I said

"Why can't we?" Jack said.

"Something wants me here, either it's the dark or just the way that everything has set us up," I replied

"It's probably the dark, I mean we've had it for a few months and I feel like it's just now really started to get to us," He said. I nodded and stared at Mark fast asleep on the couch.

"What do we do now?" I asked

"I...Don't know," Jack replied, "Wait?"

"Guess that's the only thing we can do," I replied. I slumped against the floor cabinets and stared off into empty space. Jack left the kitchen and went to his room. I sat there over thinking every wrong decision. I thought about Adam and Brady. I heard something behind the counter. Luckily, I was near the knife drawer. I pulled open the drawer grabbed the largest one and stood poised to throw.