Okay, I apologize for writing this! In fact, I hate myself for it! But, after watching The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo I couldn't stop thinking about the great hurt/comfort stories on here. I absolutely love Blacken Wing and her story Secrets in the Dark. And there's some other ones I've read and liked. Which is pretty scary!

So, here is probably the worst thing I've let happen to one of P.C's and Kristen Cast's characters. But don't worry, Jack-baby is in good hands! Forgive me!

WARNING: Implied rape,possible smut in later chapters though I don't plan on getting real descriptive. I mean, I'll keep it Young-Adult-Novel but this isn't a Disney Movie!

-/-

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" Damien asked, holding Jack even tighter. They were sharing a last hug before Jack left for his shopping trip. Usually, if one of them left the school grounds they'd go together. However, tonight Jack insisted he go alone. He was buying Damien's birthday present after all. He couldn't just let Damien hover around while he did that.

"Yes, I'm sure." he said, melting into the taller boy's grasp. He breathed in Damien's scent, filling his lungs with warm air before he headed out into the cold, fall night. Finally, he pulled away, saying, "I better go before the mall closes."

"Be careful!" Damien called after him, "And don't forget to text me once you get there!"

"Oh, chill out. I'll be fine," Jack said, already leaving. He would later wish Damien had gone with him. Or at least, that he'd remembered to text him when he was supposed to.

Damien walked through a hallway alone, looking for the twins who'd promised to entertain him while Jack was gone. On the rare occasions that Jack left without him, he usually got a strange feeling in his gut. He knew it was dangerous, but Jack was a fledgling. He usually asked Nyx to watch over him, but tonight the feeling didn't hit him and he continued through the halls toward the doom rooms. *

"Hey, Damien!" Zoey Redbird, one of his closest friends, called.

"Hey, are you going to movie-night to?"

"Yeah, Erik's bringing his Star Wars movies and the twins are bringing the new Star Trek movie. Sounds great, doesn't it?" she rolled her eyes, laughing a bit.

"Maybe we'll be lucky and he'll mistake Star Wars for 300. I could go for some Sparta right now."

"Don't get your hopes up."

They walked side by side, laughing and chatting excitedly. It was just like any other Sunday night.

-/-

The next day, or night technically, Jack didn't show up for classes. Damien would have worried if he hadn't been informed that Jack had visited the infirmary in the wee-hours of the morning. He's just sick, I ought to see what he wants for lunch; he thought, about to text the younger boy. Of course, he stopped himself deciding Jack's rest was more important. Sleep would do him good. Damien would just have to swing over to his room during lunch and bring him something.

His friends weren't surprised when he turned down their requests to go with him. Damien liked to 'look after' Jack sometimes. And although a fledgling getting sick was unheard of, they agreed not to start assuming the worst.

Later, he wished he had let someone come with him. Jack didn't answer to the tip on the door. He'd had to make it with his shoe since his hands were full. Balancing a bowl in his arm, he reached into his pocket for the spare key. Once he'd found it, he quickly unlocked the door and let himself in.

Jack jumped when the door opened, though he looked away once he saw who it was. His gaze seemed to be fixed on the wall. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. For a second, he let himself meet Damien's eyes, but instantly turned away.

"Are you okay?"

It was a simple question. Though Jack couldn't find the right words. How could he explain things to Damien when he barely understood it himself? What had happened the night before was clear one minute, hazy the next. But one thing remained; the feeling of being dirty, soiled in a way. The feeling didn't leave him, even after the third shower he'd took.

He couldn't let himself taint Damien that way. That was the first thing he'd thought of when he saw who was at the door. He couldn't let Damien kiss him ever again. He couldn't dirty Damien as he'd been-

He felt a sudden touch on his arm.

The memory began again. Someone grabbing his arm. The gun just out of view. Someone pulling him and shoving him into a van…

Blindly, he struck out at the touch. A second later, the sound of a yelp and clattering against the floor forced him to look up. It was only Damien who'd touched him. And now, because of Jack, he was covered in steaming hot soup.

"I'm so sorry-" he started, reached out to help but… But he couldn't let himself continue. His arms and head both dropped.

What the hell? Damien wasn't used to feeling so confused. And when he was, he typically had words to help him. Words larger than four letters.

This wasn't the over-the-top, bouncy, giggly Jack that he knew. Even in one of those rare, I'm-not-worthy-of-you moods, he had never acted like this.

"Jack," he breathed, not sure exactly what he was seeing. Had the boy suffered a complete mental break? "What happened to you?"

The words cut like a knife through his flesh. There was no way… Damien couldn't know. He just couldn't know. "Na-nothing!" he stuttered, his mind searching for a lie to tell.

Something was very wrong here. He set the bowl he still held next to Jack's alarm clock. Damien reached out and turned Jack's face toward his own. This time, Jack resisted striking him. Though the flinch was obvious.

"Jack, I can tell something's wrong. Please talk to me."

Damien's eyes were understanding, but really he had no idea what Jack was dealing with. He would never understand the feeling of absolute helplessness. The feeling of losing control and just not caring whether you lived or died anymore. Death would have been a blessing if it meant the pain ended.

"Jack?" He wondered if he'd said something wrong, though couldn't see how he had. Damien tried to put his arms around his now crying boyfriend but found himself being pushed back.

"I… I need some time, okay?" his eyes begged Damien to let him go.

"Alright," Damien wouldn't make Jack talk about it if he didn't want to. He didn't have a clue what was wrong, but he didn't want to push it. Just like everything else, Jack would talk to him eventually. He glanced at his watch. He really should be going soon. Classes would start up again in five minutes and he wasn't sure if he could make it in any less amount of time. "I've got to go, will you be okay alone?"

Jack nodded once; though he wasn't sure he wanted to be alone. On the bright side, Erik would be back in a few hours so at least he'd have one friend with him.

"Okay, I'll see you later." In spite of feeling he should stay, Damien left without another word. In his head, he asked Nxy for clarity. But, it seemed Zoey was the only person she after granted with answers.

-/-

Okay, so… Should I make this rated M? I don't plan on anything really gross happening… But you never know… Possible flash-back in the next chapter. Oh, and the next one will probably be longer since I was a little rushed during this.

As always, many thank you's to the people who read this! If you'd like to talk to me about this, like actually talk, feel free to message me or write on my forum. (:

*I think the dorms are in a different building. All well, that's totally unrelated!