A.N. ~ so, this is the longest chapter yet - over 3,000 words. *Mumbling* more my style, anyways... Well, brownie points to anyone who gets the 'Crocodile Dundee' reference.

Jakara clenched her teeth lightly as a man either in his late teens or early twenties made yet another attempt at conversation with her. He didn't look so bad. In fact, his light blond hair and blue eyes coupled with his square chin made quite the attractive combination. But heck, she was dating Jeff the Killer. She didn't judge people on looks.

I'm no longer happy looking older than I am. Can I go back to looking like I'm sixteen, please?

"So, been working here long?" He leaned on the counter, smiling with pearly white teeth at the brunette, who wondered how long he was going to keep unsuccessfully trying.

He doesn't know how to take a hint. If Jeff stabs him from behind, would he get it then?

"A couple months." She also wondered if she could get away with grabbing the book she'd been reading and ignoring him. But that hadn't gone over well with her boss the last time she'd done it, so she was stuck with him.

"Hm, that explains it. I come here every now and then, so I was wondering if I somehow missed you."

Ugh, Jeff, please get here and chase this creep off before I lose it. I'm going to be crazier than you are if I have to put up with him for another two minutes.

She smiled and nodded, then glanced out the window, somewhat hopefully, before quickly returning her eyes to the customer, though he followed her line of sight for a moment.

"Waiting for someone?"

Yes! I can finally get rid of him!

"Oh, my boyfriend stops by every now and then." She shrugged, smiling sweetly and noticing with satisfaction that his lips twitched downwards momentarily before curling back up.

"Ah. Must be one heck of a guy to have you." His free hand began sliding towards the one Jakara had on the counter, but she noticed and scratched the back of her neck with it so he couldn't touch her, chuckling softly more at how frustrated he was getting than because of her nerves.

"He's definitely one of a kind."

'One of a kind', get over here! Please, I'd even take L.J. at this point! She almost face-palmed at how desperate she was getting.

Definitely not used to being hit on.

Her other hand began slipping under the counter to reach for her phone to send a text, but then she remembered Jeff didn't have a cell phone and Jacy was in the middle of work.

Crap, we should have contingency plans. Jeff, I regret joking about this. There, I said it. Now karma can drag your butt over here!

"Y'know, so am I." That was about it.

"I'm sure you are. Well, if you'll excuse me, there are other customers, so I need to get back to work." Without waiting for an answer, Jakara hurried to where a man had walked in with a look she'd grown adept at noticing.

The look of confusion and preparation that people who didn't know their way around the store had. Oh, how she loved that look right about then.

The moment she was out of the store and on her way home, Jakara yanked her hood up and sighed. Her hands rested in the large central pocket of her sweater, assuring her that the knives she always had were there and calming down as she rubbed a finger against the cool metal.

Even without weapons, she was confident in her martial arts abilities. However, she still found comfort in the knowledge that for the most part, anything short of a gun wouldn't pose too much of a threat.

"Hey, sweetness. Need someone to walk you home?" A look of everlasting suffering crossed her face as she recognized the voice of the customer who hadn't left her alone for two hours straight and she rolled her eyes before turning to watch him approach.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I'm alright." She began walking again, but he roughly grabbed her shoulder and spun her around.

"Now, I have been patient, and I think I deserve a little something for being such a gentleman. Really, what could your 'boyfriend' have that I don't?" Before she could react, a white-sleeved arm shoved the blond away and Jeff stood between him and Jakara with a look that spelled murder.

"A knife and a temper. Get lost," the killer growled. The older male straightened and glared, pulling out a pocket knife and flipping it out as a cocky smirk crossed his face, though it dissipated into anger as both the teenagers burst into laughter.

"Wh-what is that, a bobby pin?" Jeff's question only got the other guy angrier and he took a threatening step forward, but stopped when the girl slipped in front of her boyfriend and pointed at his weapon.

"That is not a knife. This is a knife." And she slowly drew out one of her blades in her usual reverse-hold style. "And now that we aren't in the shop, I don't have to put up with your pitiful attempts at flirting. I'm not interested, I'm not single, I'm not expecting to see you again. Am. I. Clear?"

Jeff couldn't help but grin at her expression and tone, wrapping his free arm around her shoulders. "I knew there was a reason I loved you."

"Hm, and you're trying to rub it in, aren't you?" She glanced at him with a smirk and his smile somehow got wider.

"Maybe." Then he looked up at the blond man, who was glaring with both frustration and disgust. "And I'd do as she says if I were you. Jackie here ain't the violent type, but I am, and I can get very jealous." With a grumble, the older male turned and began walking away.

Jakara sighed, putting away her knife and relaxing enough to lean against Jeff's chest. He wrapped his arms around her, one over her shoulders and the other her waist, and held tightly as a glare darkened his features.

Without his knowledge, the killer's hold constricted as his anger grew until she finally had to tug against his arms and ask to be let go.

"Sorry…" He rubbed the back of his neck, but she just threw an arm around his neck and began walking back towards home, dragging him with her, then stiffening as he scooped her up bridal-style with a smirk.

"If you drop me, you're sleeping on the couch," she warned, but couldn't help a wide grin as she held him tighter.

"Just shut up and stay still," he ordered playfully before starting to run.

Jakara's eyes snapped open when she felt the bed jolt and she realized Jeff was shaking. His heavy breaths filled the room, and her hand found his palms were sweaty when she reached to hold one. The killer froze at the contact and slowly pulled off his sleeping mask.

Turning, he saw the girl staring at him with large, concerned eyes and flushed out of embarrassment and anger that she was seeing him so vulnerable. He harshly yanked his hand away and rolled so his back was facing her, then just made an irritable, incoherent grumble when her hand touched his shoulder.

"You okay?" He grit his teeth at the question and clenched his fists tightly.

"Yeah, fine." The brunette frowned at his harsh tone and wondered what to do. He obviously wasn't in the mood for coddling, but she couldn't ignore how haunted he'd looked and didn't really know what to do.

"Talk about it?" She hadn't really planned on saying that and face-palmed, knowing it was basically the forbidden question when it came to nightmares and sure it would piss Jeff off. So she was surprised when he sighed and sat up, which she also did.

He leaned against the wall and looked up before glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"I had parents and a sibling, too, a few years ago." He chuckled softly, but not in the way he usually did when he was teasing Jakara. This was far wilder and she shifted slightly, unnerved at his sudden change. "Let's just say there was an accident involving vodka, bleach, and a lighter. That's why I'm…" He gestured at his face and the girl nodded. "Well, I was already a little crazy at the time, what with the sudden, strong sadistic urges and how much I got off on other people's pain. Anyways," he began laughing again and his friend tensed, wondering if she should get away from him.

My knives are under my pillow…but I can't overpower him. He's stronger than me…

"I-I loved my new face! Heck, it was perfect! I couldn't stop smiling!" His ecstatic voice dropped. "But smiling got hard, and I couldn't keep it up after a while." The laughter came again, bubbling and making his voice high-pitched and grating in a way that made him sound truly insane. "So I carved one in, so I could smile forever! I didn't want to stop looking at myself. At my beautiful new face. But I got tired and my eyes wouldn't stay open, so…hehehee, I burned off my eyelids. That way I could always see." He cackled, shoving his fingers in the hair over his eyes and the howls continued until Jakara hugged him tightly, half because she wanted to calm him down and also because she was scared and wanted to get him back to normal.

You must've been through hell to become like this, she thought sadly.

"Mom found me. Lied and tried getting dad to kill me." He laughed again. "She lied and I made sure she couldn't lie again! Her and dad both! Then I went to my brother's room. Heh, he didn't like my new face. He hated it, so I told him to go to sleep." The chortling increased again, sounding more psychotic and insane than anything the girl had ever heard before.

Chills ran down her spine and she shivered as she realized what his words implied. Jeff had killed them. Jeff had killed every single member of his family and succumbed to his sadistic urges completely.

"Do you think I'm beautiful?"

Crap, if I don't answer this right, he might snap and kill me.

"You're prettier than I am."

"Are you lying?" He pulled away and looked at her with his eyes stretched wide, grinning as though he was envisioning causing her unimaginable pain.

"Would you even believe me if I said 'no'? And you know I'm not the type to lie and suck up to you."

"You might be trying to save your own skin."

"Again; think about the last six months and tell me that's what I'd do." With yet another maniacal cackle, he shoved Jakara out of bed, causing her to land painfully on her hand which still wasn't quite healed.

Jeff hopped down next to her and shoved the girl against the wall. Hard. She winced and became completely winded when his fist drove into her stomach while his free hand clutched her shoulder tightly.

"J-Jeff, calm down. This isn't you," the brunette wheezed.

"Oh," he laughed once more, "but it is, Jackie. You forgot that my name is Jeff the Killer. I'm a crazy murderer and you made the mistake of falling for me." The basement lights clicked on, distracting the boy long enough for his girlfriend to wrestle him down and giving her the chance to pin his arms with her legs.

"Kara, what—Jakara! Are you okay?" Jacy opened the door and took in the scene with wide eyes.

"Jacy, go back upstairs."

"What? No! What's going on?"

"JACY! GO. UP. STAIRS," Jakara thundered commandingly, looking at her sister with hard eyes before her attention was ripped back to Jeff, who kneed her in the back and managed to wriggle free.

"B-But—"

"I'll call if I need you and I'll be up later."

"What happened?"

"Jeff's insanity took control. Just go upstairs, I'll calm him down."

"Calm?! Hahaheheheee, I'M COMPLETELY CALM!" The killer charged his girlfriend and swung a punch at her face. She saw it coming, knew she could block it, but she had already pieced together that his insanity was like anger. If you don't vent it when it's there and suppress it, it'll just explode later. So she took the hit and fell back with an 'oof'.

"Jak—"

"JACY, GO. I won't let him kill me."

"BUT HE'S HURTING YOU!"

"I know! I kinda feel the bruises. But if he doesn't let it out now, he's just gonna be worse later." So her sister reluctantly retreated, glancing over her shoulder.

"Worse? Haha, I FEEL PERFECT RIGHT NOW!" Jeff scrambled and lunged with another punch, but this time, she used her forearms to block it, though it still hurt way more than she thought it would.

After letting him knock her around a little longer, Jakara finally decided she had to subdue him while she still had strength left or he may actually manage to kill her.

At least his mind is too scattered to remember the knives under my pillow.

The next time her friend attacked, the girl flipped him and slammed him down as hard as she could on the floor, knocking all the air out of his lungs and giving her ample time to pin him again, though this time with the way half his legs were positioned under the bed, he couldn't hit her so hard from behind again.

"Hehe, LIARS! LIARS!" She flinched at the completely insane howl. "Aren't I beautiful? HUH?! AREN'T I?! Don't worry, I'LL MAKE YOU ALL BEAUTIFUL, TOO! HAHAHA!" As he struggled and laughed, Jakara finally caught a glimpse of what she never expected in Jeff.

He was completely crazy like a rabid wolf, whipping his oily, thick hair back and forth and thrashing, and also had a terrifying look on his face. But despite that, all she could think of was how long he had to live like this and how much suffering he must be experiencing.

Tears filled her eyes, threatening to overflow, and she couldn't help but lean over and hug around his neck, though that only caused him to head-butt her and she drew away, finally getting up the nerves to knock him out before dragging him into bed and taking the knife out of his hoodie, as well as her own blades.

She stumbled upstairs, finally feeling every ache and pain she'd accumulated throughout the fight. Jacy, waiting at the top, bombarded her sister with questions, but the younger girl just placed the knives in the kitchen before collapsing into her startled sibling's arms and began to bawl.

"Jacy, h-h-he's in so much pain! He's hurting so much and…" She was led to the couch, where they sat down. "And I hurt him, t-to. I had to and…I'm sorry. I'm so sorry…"

Jeff slowly shuffled up the stairs, aching and limping, though more worried about what had happened last night than anything. His knife was gone, as were Jakara's, and that scared him somewhat.

Finally, at the top, he was stopped by Jacy, who had her arms crossed and a knife in one hand.

"You know, my baby sister is head-over-heels in love with you. Last night she was crying into my arms because she felt so bad for hurting you. Do you know how badly you hurt her?" He slowly shook his head, dreading to hear the answer. "There are bruises all over her arms, on her shoulder, on her back, her stomach…even her legs are marked up!" He flinched at her words.

"On a scale of one to ten, how insane was I?"

"Twelve. Is this the first time you've hit her? Or did you knock her around before, too?"

"N-no! I didn't—I didn't want to hurt her…" He looked down guiltily, still pinned by the girl's hard stare.

"Well, you did. Will it happen again?"

"I don't know." His voice trailed off softly and just as Jacy was ready to kick him out of the house, the sound of gentle sobbing from the living room drew their attention and they hurried to the door, finding Jakara curled up with her arms wrapped around her head.

Jeff tried to move towards her, but his friend's sister yanked him back sharply with a glare before she went to the younger girl.

"Kara? Hey, you alright?" She gently placed her hand on her sibling's shoulder.

"Is Jeff okay?" The killer, still hovering at the doorway, flinched at hearing the question and wondered if he even could face his girlfriend after what he did to her. His eyes caught on her arms and they widened as he took a step back. Bluish purple blotches covered her forearms, and since she wore shorts as well as a tank-top, he could see the dark spots dotting her legs here and there.

No, he definitely didn't think he could even keep looking at her.

"You're crazy, worrying about him, you know that?"

"Jace, I'm really not in the mood for a lecture on my messed up mind. Please just…answer the question." Sighing, the woman looked at Jeff, who'd averted his eyes and looked down crestfallen with his hands in his pockets.

"Are you going to hurt her?" He cringed, but shook his head. "Then come over here and get my little sister to stop crying." But he couldn't move. He wanted to comfort Jakara, but the crushing weight of what he did anchored him in place. "Look, you coward, you hurt her enough already. Don't you at least have the guts to come over here and apologize?" Instead of flaring up like he usually would at such a jab, his shoulders hunched until his chin pressed against his chest.

"No, I don't think I do." Jacy marched up to him, grabbed the boy, and practically dragged him to where her sister had become completely still, shoving him the last couple feet before crossing her arms.

Finally looking at his friend, Jeff's eyes widened. She looked even worse up close, and he could make out a bruise on her left cheek. Just as he opened his mouth to say sorry, she grabbed him and hugged tightly, burying her face in his shoulder.

"I'm so sorry I hurt you. I'm sorry…" He could feel the bruises on his back and his head ached, but those seemed so insignificant compared to her own injuries.

"H-how can you say that? After what I—I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…I'm sorry." His voice became hoarse and broke, but not in the crazy way it had last night. He was shaking and struggling to hold in his own tears of guilt.

"No, you didn't have control. It wasn't your fault."

"How can you forgive so easily," he whispered. He felt her lips brush against his ear and warm breath caress his neck.

"Because I love you."

A.N. ~ the feeeels! Or not. Heck, I don't know, you tell me.