SO LIKE…THE NEXT DAY

Ben would be mad, Jeff knew. Really mad. When the little elf had turned around, he had said into Jeff's face, "I love you. Do you know now?" and then fainted. The knife had disappeared through him and even pixelated, completely destroying one of Jeff's favorite knives, but it didn't matter. He was in shock.

"Benny…loves me?" Somehow the word "Benny" seemed more appropriate for Ben to Jeff now.

And to not destroy his beloved Benny's heart furthermore, Jeff decided to leave. He packed up his Happy Valentine's! Card from Ben and took an extra pair of clothes and brandished his knife and took the cloth with him too and left.

Fifteen minutes later he could hear Slenderman shouting all over the place, "JEFFERY! GET YOUR BACKSIDE IN HERE!"

"Fuck you, Slendy," Jeff muttered under his breath. "I don't want to know you. Not nice to know you either," he said impatiently and sped up. He could hear EJ's panicked cry of, "JEFF!" and laughed sadly.

"Sorry, EJ, I owe you one." Jeff completely tore away from the woods after that.

New got around pretty dang fast and eventually everyone was in the woods, searching for Jeff. But no matter how hard they tried, none of them could find them. They asked Ben to search all the security cameras, but Ben refused and muttered miserably, "He hates me. I know that! And…I don't want to see him!" and then had ran away sobbing blood. Everyone for the sake of Ben's little heart begged Slendy to stop the search, now that they knew Ben loved Jeff, but Slenderman swore he would get Jeff's little backside in this mansion and whip his butt until it had split into another half on each half.

Slenderman realized soon enough that Ben knew something though. Every night he would hear Ben talking to someone, and then laugh happily, then come back and sob like a baby. Slenderman decided it was time to harden his heart.

"Ben Drowned," he said seriously at the dining table. Everyone suddenly settled down and put down the cups. The Puppeteer and Bloody Painter eyed Judge Angel and the three of them stood up together and excused themselves. Masky and Hoodie kicked Ticci Toby and pointedly told him to open his mouth. They stuffed a chicken leg in and ran off, at a speed even Slendy couldn't catch up. Ticci Toby followed faster than their speed. Slenderman frowned and dragged Masky back with one of his tentacles.

"You're staying here," he said with Masky's own voice. Masky nodded meekly and grinned nervously at Ben.

Sorry, he mouthed. Ben nodded knowingly.

"Ben Drowned, tell me what you have been doing lately during night time," Slendy commanded. Ben frowned.

"Sorry, Slenderman, I can't tell you that," Ben said firmly. This was most unlike Ben-Ben was normally serious and smiling, yet these days his smile never hung on his face and his counter with Slenderman just deepened upon this suspicion.

"Ben Drowned, do not deny my request. I will find out what you want, and I will find out who you are talking to." Of course, Slenderman had already assumed it was Jeff. "I will find out soon, Ben, and then you will tell me everything-everything." He turned around and left.

Masky gasped and ran off towards his room moaning, "Sometimes being a proxy isn't so fun."

The only people left in the room were Ben and Smile Dog. And Sally. She looked somewhat…triumphant? Sad?

"I…I spoiled your paradise, didn't I, Ben?" she asked. Ben looked at her. He didn't conceal anything, or lie to her.

"Yes, you did," he said simply and walked away. Smile Dog and Sally looked at each other.

"Well, at least ya tried," he said. Sally nodded.

"I knew I'll never get Ben's heart. It belonged to Jeff the moment they saw each other. I knew, but I wanted to try. And now I shattered Ben's heart. Oh, Smile Dog, what have I done?" The little girl started weeping loudly. Ben 's heart would never be mended until Jeff came back, she knew.

I broke his heart. Now I must fix it, she told herself.

"Smile Dog, let's go find Jeff. This is payment back," she said. Smile Dog stared at her.

"Alright," he said and trotted alongside of her out the front door of Slendy's mansion.

TWO HOURS LATER

"So now Sally and Smile Dog's gone too? Candy, anyone? No? Okay." Laughing Jack popped a piece of candy into his mouth and sighed. "Good thing Slendy's out looking for Jeff, otherwise we'd all be in worse trouble."

"What. Did. You. Say!?" Masky shouted. Laughing Jack turned around to glare at Masky just to look into a piece of black fabric.

"Uh…hi, Slendy," he said. "I'll, um, go and see Eyeless Jack now, if you won't mind. Hehe…" Laughing Jack backed into the table.

"Eyeless Jack is in front of you." Slenderman frowned and cornered Laughing Jack.

"Slendy, they ran off. We couldn't stop them," Eyeless Jack said. "They were going to find Jeff."

"Well, get them! I know where Jeff is! All we have to do is spy on Ben tonight. He talks to Jeff at nighttime! Go!"

"What…? Ok, whatever you say, Slendy!" everyone yelled. They dispersed and spent the rest of the afternoon and until 9:00 p.m. looking for Smile Dog and Sally. Eventually they found them on the edges of the woods, deciding whether to go on.

"Sally…it might not be wise to go on," Smile Dog said.

"That's true…we'll lose any support if we get in danger…but Jeff's out there! We have to get to him! I don't…I don't…" And then Sally broke into sobs.

"Guys…" EJ said. "Let's watch what the situation is. We'll get them back before 9:30, deal?" Everyone nodded.

"Smiley…what shall we do? It's all because of me, it's all because I ran over to Ben and forced him to kiss me…"

"Wow, Laughing Jack, thanks for spreading the wrong rumor. You're the one that broke Ben's heart. Sally forced Ben to kiss her, he didn't do it willingly," Masky said and shook his head. LJ sighed and looked apologetically at the sky.

"When I find Jeff again I will bow down three times in repent," he swore.

"You'd better," EJ said. "I lost my best friend because of you."

"Wait. I thought I was your best friend."

"No, Jeff is my best friend."

"So what did my hard work all count for?" Laughing Jack's voice rose. EJ matched his voice.

"Just because you're my date doesn't mean you're my best friend! Jill's your best friend!"

"Guys…" Hoodie nervously said. EJ and LJ were practically talking loudly now. Smile Dog and Sally were searching for their voices.

"JILL'S MY GRANDMOTHER!"

"JEFF'S MY BEST FRIEND!"

"Smiley, we got to go! They're gonna capture us!" Sally whispered urgently and stepped over the threshold between the woods and Earth.

"Guys! They're leaving!" Ticci Toby hissed at EJ and LJ. They stopped abruptly and lunged at Sally and Smile Dog. The four were tangled in a heap mass of legs and arms and paws. Eventually the two Jacks were on top, Eyeless Jack's mask missing chunks here and there, his pale gray skin showing, and Laughing Jack's nose crooked and bent.

"You're gonna pay for this," they said together. Masky, Hoodie, and Ticci Toby looked at each other.

"What's Laughing Jack do to get him so mad?" Hoodie asked.

"EJ's normally so quiet. He must have done something." Masky shrugged.

"Yeah. He must have insulted Jeff or something. He did say something to EJ, something like "best friend" and "date"." They all suddenly looked at each other again.

"Toby, what was that you just said?"

"Date." Then the three looked around at the two Jacks, panting and angrily staring at each other and their eyes widened.

"You're dating?!" they shouted. EJ and LJ narrowed their eyes (LJ was confirmed-EJ was kind of hard to tell) and glared at them harshly.

"Yeah, about as much as you guys are!" LJ replied and hugged EJ into his embrace. "So what?"

"Uh…" all three of the proxies gave them a look that said "nothing".

"Good."

"We'd, um, better start going back. Hey Sally, Smile Dog…uh, Slendy says he found them, I mean…Jeff." Awkward silence spread into the atmosphere.

"Ok," Sally mumbled. She was happy. She was scared she had done it all wrong, and now she hasn't.

They went back to the mansion to hear sobbing stretching into the night.