Izzy: Gah, first fic I've written in quiet a while. Please forgive my inactivity. This was inspired by a picture I drew… and I think I'm the first person to use this pairing…? o.O haha, Ironically the day I was inspired to write this, a few hours later I discovered chocolate milk in my fridge xD Tis Jasper!

Disclaimer: I don't own Silent Hill, Jasper, Henry (weird last name) Townshend, or kid Walter.

Summary: Jasper is revisited with a childhood memory. Slight Jasper/Henry slash. Sucky summary, I know.

Tastes Like Chocolate

.Blood.Drop.Lolita.

Darkness and overcasts… that was all you ever saw at the Wish House. All they toys lay scattered about the fenced-in yard, most of them broken or on the verge of being broken. The fence was a good seven feet high and all the children there had forgotten what nature looked like. All they ever saw was the trees and rocks, and even those were ruined by that Walter Sullivan boy.

He had never been able to bring himself to leave this place; where else did he have to go? He had no home, no family. His mother had killed herself because her husband had left due to the fact his son was not perfect; his son was almost four and he had yet to say his first word. He was five when he watched his mother blow her brains out with the revolver she kept in her bedside drawer. After that, he was sent to live with his aunt, who was just crazy and was verbally abusive. At age nine, he was dropped off at the hell hole that he would grow to know as home: Wish House.

The traumatic events in his life led to a nervous habit- he stuttered. Horribly. Most people refused to talk to him because it took so long for him to get one sentence out. But there was that Sullivan boy… he was rejected by all the other kids, as well; they never considered each other friends, but there was a level of understanding between the two.

There was one day, though, that stuck out in his mind. He was in confinement (basically locked in a small, windowless room the size of a closet) for not praying right or something. They told him God didn't want to listen to his stutters and stops, and that he wasn't allowed from confinement until he found a way to correct his affliction. He had been in there for three days, without any food or water, and he felt he was going to die in here. He was so thirsty he had considered cutting his arms and drinking his blood… but blood made him squeamish, so he ruled out that option. There was a tapping on the wall and he stiffened.

Then there was silence, and once he relaxed the tapping resumed. It sounded like it was coming from behind the bookless-bookcase… must be mice, he finally reasoned with himself. Then someone whispered his name and the bookshelf shuddered slightly. He swallowed dryly and stood up stiffly and stretched before walking slowly over to where the noise was emitting. He noticed a piece of the backing was moving, and he could feel cool air coming from that one spot. He removed the piece of wood and was met with a green eye staring back at him.

He gave a startled yelp and scuttled backwards; he had not been expecting that. The owner of the eye gave a small, awkward, chuckle and the eye was replaced with… a bottle? Sliding through the uneven hole in the wall was a bottle of… something. It was gently placed on the shelf and then there was the scuffling of footsteps. He managed to get a grip on himself to lean forward and peek through the hole, to see the retreating back of… that Walter kid.

He blinked then placed the wood back over the hole, afraid one of the overseer's might peek through. He held the bottle in his hand and turned it over. It was unlabeled but he could tell it was definitely a liquid. Without further hesitation, he ripped the cap off and tilted the bottle to his lips and felt the cold liquid relieve his parched throat. He savored it and tasted it… and it was the sweetest thing he had ever tasted: chocolate milk.

He managed to conserve the sweet milk and sipped on it for the remaining four days he was left in that room. The overseer's found him hopeless, and then released him from confinement. Had it not been for that milk, he would have died of dehydration.

oOoOoOo

Jasper stared off and shook those memories out of his head. That same boy who saved his life had taken so many other lives… in the back of his mind, Jasper couldn't help but wonder if he were on Walter's 'hit list'.

There was a man skulking around. Jasper was wary of him, because the man was carrying a lead pipe. It was covered in blood and bits of green fur, and his shoes were also covered in the red liquid. No doubt he had seen those monsters. Jasper was never one to be able to keep information to himself, so he went on babbling about the orphanage and some man that was nosing around. The man with the pipe just ignored him and continued searching the area. Jasper knew so much about the Wish House because he had spent most of his life here, and whenever he tried to leave, within a year's time he was drawn back to it for some strange reason.

It didn't occur to him the man with the pipe had left until he no longer heard the sound of footsteps. Jasper's shoulders slumped. He was so desperate for human contact, and yet that was the one thing he feared; he communicated though his memos and articles to avoid people face to face. He heard howling in the distance and could vaguely make out shadows of the four legged beasts. That was his cue to exit this place. He got up shakily and swiftly walked in his awkward gait up the path that lead to the Wish House.

oOoOoOo

The first thing Jasper noticed was that the pipe man was not in this area, which relaxed and worried him at the same time. He wandered around the "playground" and looked in the playpen. He had never actually seen any children in this, and that was probably for the best, considering how neglectful the overseer's were. He narrowed his eyes at something red and rusted sticking out from underneath the playpen. He bent down and pushed the lidless cage until the object could be seen clearly. It looked like…

"A g-gardening spade? What w-w-would this be d-doin' here…?" He mumbled to himself and turned the small shovel over in his hands. It looked like there were numbers written on it… in blood. He immediately dropped the shovel and closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the familiar nausea rise up in his stomach. He took deep, shaky breaths and continued until they evened out.

After eight good minutes of breathing exercises he opened his eyes and instantly scanned the area for pipe man. No sign of him; Jasper was thankful, because he hated being stared at. He picked up the spade by its handle, telling himself it was rust, not blood. He walked up the familiar steps to the entrance of the House and paused. He always paused there; he never went back inside. He was never able to bring himself to relive everything he had tried to forget.

He heard approaching footsteps and spun around. It was the pipe man, still covered in blood. Jasper noticed the man eyeing the spade he held in his hand.

"D-do you n-need this…?"

"Actually, yeah, I do." The pipe man nodded and approached Jasper, who offered the small shovel. The pipe man did not take the spade, as expected. Instead he tilted his head and observed Jasper for a moment, his green eyes boring curiously into him.

He finally asked,

"What's the matter?"

Jasper looked taken aback. He sputtered around a little before answering sheepishly,

"Nothing… I-I'm just… r-really thirsty. It g-gets to you af-fter a while.

"Oh, I can fix that. I'm Henry, by the way." The pipe man, Henry, said and he reached in his pocket. He pulled out a small bottle and offered it to Jasper. Henry smiled slightly,

"Equivalent exchange, eh?"

Jasper handed over the spade and took the small bottle in his hand. He took no time to read the label and tore off the lid, then greedily gulped down the liquid inside. He took the near-empty bottle away from his lips and gave a noise of contentment. He felt warm inside, even though the liquid was cold. He actually felt… happy. And the satisfied smile Henry was mirroring made him feel even happier.

He felt slightly dizzy and had no idea what he was doing, but he knew he was leaning forward and…

Henry took a step back, his eyes slightly wide.

"I think there was something in your milk…"

Jasper felt his face flush and he stammered incoherently. What the hell was that? That was just… well, he did find this Henry attractive and he found it ironic that of all the drinks he could have given him it would have to be chocolate milk, and… did he just try to kiss him?

"I-I'm sorry… I'm n-n-not… I'm not here r-right now…" Jasper continued to stare at the ground. Henry relaxed and smirked. To be honest, the only reason he had stepped back was because he was shocked… and a little freaked out, because it was only milk.

"It's alright." Henry said.

"It's just… I-I kn-know it sounds stupid, b-but this s-saved my life." Jasper held up the bottle.

"A-and I haven't been able to f-find anything around h-h-here to drink…" He trailed off, knowing he sounded like a complete idiot. He glanced back at Henry, then back at the ground and sighed, "Dammit."

Jasper grabbed Henry's shirt and pulled him towards him, capturing the man's lips. Something inside Jasper was compelling him to kiss this man, to want to be near this man. He felt a connection, even if they had briefly met. It could have been because Jasper was so starved for intimacy and human interaction that he was compelled to kiss Henry… but it made him feel so… happy. It made him feel not so alone, even if…

And then Henry was kissing him back, his tongue asking entrance into Jasper's mouth. Jasper parted his lips nervously and brought one arm around Henry's neck, too afraid to let go of the man's shirt in the fear he would drift away. Henry slid his tongue over Jasper's, exploring the cool cavern that was his mouth. The milk left a particularly sweet taste in its absence and made it all the more enjoyable.

Henry broke the kiss, barley pulling his lips away from Jasper's. His lips quivered slightly as Henry mumbled against them, with light humour in his voice,

"Tastes like chocolate…"

Izzy: I know it wasn't the greatest fic in the world… actually, I know it wasn't great at all, but reviews mean lots. :)