AN:
Before the chapter starts I wanna thank my reviewers Novaglare, Chocolatepie277, mulzypops, PrincessLyoka & DeadFicDude!

Music tip:
Timeflies ft. Katie Sky – Monsters (Acoustic)
youtube: watch?v=9lKVZZ5eRMU

Lovers of Freedom

Chapter 12:
No Resort

Mitch had to be honest – they had done an excellent job.
Just an hour ago he had arrived at the airport together with the whole group – the reunited Team Crafted. With three rental cars they had made their way back to the house, which none of them had thought to step in to again.

All the more surprising had been the fact that Mitch remembered the way to their villa without thinking twice. Was it due to Mitch's longing to have the team reunited again? Or were his secret visits responsible, which he had taken to take a trip down memory lane before they had sold it?

Now he was standing in front of the all too familiar building, painted in a fresh and bright tone of champagne. It fitted the house well and the newly adjusted garden made it look a three times more expensive as it really was.

"Isn't it beautiful?"
Jerome stopped beside him and stared up at the house with wide open eyes. Mitch risked a look and glanced into his best friend's sparkling eyes and the happiness that practically radiated from him. With an inaudible sigh Mitch put a smile on his face and continued to muster his future home.

"It is. I never expected it to turn out that nicely."
Desperately he tried to hide the frown on his face. Someone else had to be skeptical as well! Just yesterday the group had still been in Redmond to sign the remaining contracts. Now they were in LA - the tickets for a flight had already been available and the house was freshly renovated.
Murphy and whoever was involved in all of this must have planned this for a long time now. Team Crafted, buying Minecraft…

A shiver ran down his spine, as Mitch thought of all the things his new bosses could have planned for the future.
But he couldn't talk to the others about it. They were too excited about the contract and the house to worry about those signs and either way Mitch wasn't allowed to say anything. He still had to talk to his parents, because another dozens of calls hadn't been answered by him. What should he tell them? The truth wasn't an option, but both of his parents wouldn't back down without a proper answer.

"Let's go inside," Jerome interrupted his thoughts and grabbed his arm to pull his best friend towards the door. As they finally entered the house, the rest of the team was already standing in the middle of the main hall, looking around with open mouths.
Not only had they renovated the house and the garden – expensive but modern looking furniture was standing at its rightful places and made the rooms look brighter and bigger at the same time. Little accessories were placed carefully among the rooms, but every single thing suited the gamers perfectly.

Cheerful words rang around the large hall, as the others spread into the living room and the impressive garden on the outside. Mitch stayed behind and then slowly went towards the stairs. No one seemed to notice him, so he made his way up to escape the happy group, as a movement out of the corner of his eyes raised his suspicion.
Jerome and Adam eyed the others warily and then the latter pulled his best friend towards the deserted kitchen.

For a moment Mitch furrowed his brows, but too much was on his mind already for him to really care for their actions at the moment. With an inaudible sigh and a lazy shrug of his shoulders the Canadian turned around again and continued his track to the upper floor.

As soon as Mitch had opened the door and taken a step inside of his old room, he stopped dead in his tracks.
Of course they had changed it, he figured that much, but to see the place he once had called home like this now… Mitch would have lied to say it didn't hurt. Sure, for an outsider it all looked incredible Mitch-like, with the various items about his favorite band and ice hockey team.

But all of them only presented him on the outside.
Not a single thing in the cold and unfamiliar room said something about his other, more private side, which he valued highly. So this was how people saw him?

Uncertain steps led his towards a small, practical mirror to his left, hanging over a dark dresser with a picture of Montreal on top of it. A humorless snort was the only thing holding him back from throwing the frame against the next wall.

No more slip-ups, Murphy had said.
The team wasn't allowed to know.

Unconsciously the look in his eyes turned into a hard stare and the muscles in his back clenched painfully.
How could it have come to this?
Murphy held Mitch in the palm of his hand and he was unable to break free from the tight grip his new boss had on him. Never had the young Canadian anticipated that a situation like this was possible, not to him at least. But then there had been Murphy, whose weapons were more secretive and stronger than Mitch would have ever been able to predict.

Every time Mitch had made a contract with a company regarding his YouTube career, he had kept his mind on the conditions and behavior of his new acquaintances. His parents had warned him early to beware of the unpleasant sides his business could stir up, but now those sides had caught up with him and thrown him to the ground.

How was he able to keep the smile on his face to satisfy Murphy and keep his teammates oblivious to the whole ordeal?
How was he able to fool his friends, his family and his fans – the whole world?

Suddenly the air in his room was too stuffy and the panic inside of him rose again, so Mitch crossed the room and threw open the door to his small balcony. The fresh and cold air of the October night was a blessing and like a drowning man Mitch took several deep breaths to calm his mind again. It worked partially.

Voices drifted up to the silent Canadian and he glimpsed carefully over the edge of the railing. It took him a moment to detect his friends near the pool, laughing out loud while shoving each other playfully in the direction of the chilly water.

Friends.
It still sounded awkward to Mitch… unused. Unfamiliar.
Nonetheless it brought a smile on his face, as he slid down the wall of the balcony to sit on the ground to enjoy the pleasant atmosphere. The voices quickly disappeared inside of the house again, as fine drops began to adorn the ground and Mitch's left arm, which was exposed to the weather conditions due to his position. Even though the chilly breeze made him shiver, he stayed on the balcony and slowly closed his eyes. His legs were pulled up to his chest and his arms crossed over his stomach, while he slowly rested his head on the wall at his back.

The raindrops on his face were welcome and washed away all of the worries and doubts his mind was occupied with.
It was the first peaceful moment Mitch had in a long time.

The sound of hesitant footsteps grew louder and stopped, as the person reached the still open door to the balcony. Mitch didn't bother to open his eyes, too absorbed in the moment and his feelings, which were rather calm for once.
Instead of saying something, the person slowly moved towards him and then sat down at his side, too close for one of his former friends he just had met again yesterday. A distinctive and pleasant scent caught his attention and the smile returned to his face, before Mitch uttered with a low voice,

"What can I do for you, Jerome?"

"How did you know it was me?"

"Typical scent of a wet bacca. It's like the one of wet dogs, only worse."

The barely suppressed laughter and Jerome's shaking body made Mitch grin from ear to ear and finally he opened his eyes again to look to his right. Humor still visible on his face, Jerome returned the look without any suspicion. The presence of his best friend calmed him down further and Mitch looked at the nightly view of their neighborhood again, familiar but foreign at the same time.

"So…," Jerome started carefully and put an arm around his best friend's shoulders, who glanced back at him with a hint of curiosity.
"Why did you ignore me since my arrival at Redmond yesterday?"

Jerome's voice didn't hold any grudge nor blame against him, nonetheless Mitch flinched and tensed visibly. The arm around his shoulders didn't disappear, instead Jerome pulled him further towards his chest. He lowered his voice, but Mitch still understood every single word over the now pouring rain, barely hitting him under the protection of the roof.

"I talked to Adam."
For a second Mitch stopped breathing.

"You're behaving extremely suspicious since you got that phone call from Murphy."
He trembled in every limb, as he tried to take slow breaths.

"During our call you told us that he had threatened you with something."
His arms, still lying on his stomach, hid his clenched fists from Jerome's view.

"And then there is this sudden change of your opinion. Not in a million years can you fool me, Mitch. No matter what Murphy would've told you, you wouldn't have moved back into this house. Not after what had happened. But still you did."
'Don't say anything,' a voice in his head replied. 'You can't endanger your family or him. Not him!'

"What is he doing to you?"

Maybe it was his choice of words.
Maybe it was the unusual peace in his voice.
Maybe it was the closeness to someone, who had never let him down, no matter what.

The trembling became more intense. Without missing a beat, Jerome pulled him closer and changed his position to put his other arm around the desperate Canadian as well. Even before Mitch buried his face in the crook of Jerome's neck, the tears began to stream down his pale face, accompanied by the heartbreaking sobs, destroying the silence of the night.

And then Mitch told Jerome everything.