Hey there, guys,

So, here is another chapter and I hope that you enjoy it. I have half term now, so I'm on a break from school for a week and a bit. I'll have a lot more free time to write and should have another chapter up soon enough. This one has more emotional stuff about Jessie and Jeff, but nothing too heart-wrenching this time.

I would have uploaded sooner, but I had to deal with some personal stuff for the last couple of days. Hopefully, that stuff won't come back and I won't a delay in the next upload. I'll enjoy writing the next one for you guys (^_^)

~Ciao

Chapter Thirteen

Cherry Blossom

The apartments may have been deserted and unkempt, but the almost dead trees did still thrive at certain times of the year; spring was upon the killers who lived within the abandoned buildings and the monster-children were playing outside, among the cherry blossoms. The rosy leafs fell from the trees and flew through the air, infecting the area with a light shaded pink; the sun glistened as brightly as the light that surgeons used during operations and Jessie was feeling the heat like she had hadn't felt it in a year. Being trapped in a hospital building all day made her miss the sun and its rays hitting her skin, even if the heat was sometimes unbearable. It was better than being stuck inside for – what seemed like – all eternity.

"One…two…three…"

Sally was counting while leaning her head and arms against a withering tree; she was covering her face so as to not see where everyone else was hiding from her. BEN had mentioned to Jessie that the apartments were large enough to have amazing games of hide and seek, since the area also had large forests near it and bushes all around. Not all of the plants around the apartments were sterile and some were even beautiful to Jessie. Since hearing this, she suggested playing a game of hide and seek to experience the fun; she couldn't remember her childhood all too well, but she recalled playing this game with a boy when she was younger. She couldn't make out his face, but she remembered that he had glasses. The games were always a great deal of fun and she wanted to re-live that for a while, in order to temporally forget her worried and troubles.

BEN, Sally and Laughing Jack all agreed to play the game. Jack had spent the morning trying to get Jeff to speak to him and gave up; if he was wasting his time attempting to grab his friend's forgiveness, then he may as well have ran off and played games instead. BEN always played with Sally when he had the time and wasn't too busy worrying about where Jeff was, so he decided to join in as well. Since Jessie had come to live with them, the killer hadn't left the area or gone to the city to make a kill, so the blond gamer didn't feel as though he had much to worry about when it came to Jeff and his whereabouts.

Sally began counting – at the result of losing an intense game of rock, paper scissors – and the killers all ran off in different directions.

Jessie had picked up a pair of denim shorts from the wardrobe in her room and they had managed to fit perfectly, without looking too revealing – she was lucky, since this game needed her to be able to run away quickly and hide without an awkward dress slowing her down. She had also picked up a crimson t-shirt with Hollywood Undead written on it – not that Jessie knew who or what that title meant. Luckily, there had also been some bras laying around the room that she had picked up; her breasts were starting to feel sore after not wearing one for so long while running around. At the hospital, she was unable to wear one for safety reasons because of the under-wiring, but they allowed her to wear a sports bra since she was a good patient and did as they had told her. The day that she ran away from the place, she had misplaced it in her room and had to leave without it. Being able to run around in normal clothes felt so refreshing and her chest being held up by a proper bra felt incredible.

She ran in the direction of the large bushes, knowing that she could hide in there with no problems; Laughing Jack ended up going in the same direction as her by chance, while BEN sprinted into the buildings.

There was a massive, vibrant, verdant bush with a gap in the side of it that Jessie knew she could fit through; she turned her head to Laughing Jack and signalled for the two of them to hide in there. He nodded to show that he understood what she meant by the signal and they practically jumped into the bush.

In the distance, Sally could be heard counting still.

"Nine…ten…eleven…"

Knowing that once the young girl reached twenty, she would be on the prowl, searching for them, the two hurried up and ducked, sliding into the hole. There was a small amount of space in the place, meaning that Jack's tall exterior would be forced to squeeze in, next to Jessie. The clown sat cross-legged as Jessie pushed her knees into her chest and held them there with her hands. The teenager couldn't help but giggle as she realised how much her heart was throbbing and how much excitement was running through her. She hadn't had so much fun in a long while and was glad that she had suggested playing this game.

It was a shock to see Laughing Jack following her into the bushes and deciding to hide with her; she suddenly felt bad for the lonely BEN, who was hiding all by himself, although being a killer, he should have been used to hiding from police or witnesses of his murders by himself. She couldn't imagine the young blond having to do something so criminal, but that wasn't a shock. He was a child after all and she couldn't remember how he was before she lost her memory. He could have shown signs of being a killer and she wouldn't have even known it. Although, she would have thought that if the murderers around her were actually killers, than they wouldn't be playing with her in a garden, like they were right then.

There was still disbelief in Jessie's mind that Sally was actually a killer. She was such a sweet and adorable, little girl that she couldn't have imagined her going around, taking people's lives. She seemed so innocent – despite her bloodied body, face and clothing – that Jessie suspected that she didn't even know what death was. Even if she looked as though she had been violently murdered herself, she was still a child and a cute one at that.

"I wonder where Jeff is…" Jessie thought to herself as she sat with Laughing Jack. "Maybe he would lighten up more if he played a game with us too."

There was a wonder in Jessie's mind as to when or how she would be able to speak to him again; she had made the promise to herself that she would be patient and wait until he was ready to talk to her, but time was ticking and the more that she knew he was around the area and wasn't speaking to her, the more she wondered why he hadn't. She had now been at the apartments for two days and he didn't even seem interested in making amends with her for whatever she did to him before she lost her memory. She couldn't even imagine what she could have possibly done to him to make him hate her so much, but it must have been horrific.

Reluctantly, she wished that he would come and play with them – the reluctance was due to the fact that she didn't know whether he would actually have fun or simply brood the whole time. She hadn't spent time with him at all since she had arrived there and he was the whole reason that she had escaped from the mental hospital and travelled half way around the world to these worn out buildings in the first place. It was true that she had gained a new home and new friends through her journey, but what she really wanted was the man that she loved to spend time with her and help her understand who she really was.

"Jessie…" Laughing jack whispered, grabbing the contemplative killer's attention while being careful not to let Sally find the two of them. "Are you having fun?"

She smiled at her clown friend and giggled. "Of course I am. I haven't played hide and seek for a while, as far as I can remember, but it's still fun."

The demon sighed. "Good…I was worried that you were upset."

She titled her head. "Why would you think that?"

"Well, you have a very sad look on your face."

Jessie jolted, realising that she was displaying her emotions. She desperately didn't want to show that the situation with Jeff was actually upsetting her, but she seemed to not be able to; she was well aware that the whole apartments probably knew about their past – even though she didn't anymore – and were expecting her to be a depressed wreck, but she didn't want to give them what they wanted. She wanted to have fun and smile, so that when she and Jeff finally did talk about everything, she could act happily and be confident. He didn't seem to like weak people, so she needed to be the opposite. Although, she had now shown herself to be exactly what he didn't like.

"I do?" she asked hesitantly, knowing that she was faking her surprise. "I don't know why. I'm feeling really happy right now."

Laughing Jack leaned back. "You're probably thinking about Jeff…right?"

The teenage murderer couldn't help but wince at his comment. She didn't realise that she was so easy to read. Not being around normal people for a year caused her to not be able to know whether she wore her heart on her sleeve or not. It was torture not being able to know how to hide her expressions.

"I…I…uh…"

"Don't worry about it." Jack laughed slightly. "I get it. You and he have history and it wouldn't be normal if you weren't thinking about him. He is acting like a prick after all."

"Do you…?" Jessie began reluctantly. "Do you think that he hates me…?"

A chuckled escaped Jack's mouth. "Jeff hates everyone. I wouldn't worry about that too much. He has the mentality to just condemn anyone who doesn't do what he wants. You just happen to be someone that he hates less than everyone else."

Jessie's expression became solemn as she sighed. "This isn't what I was expecting when you appeared in front of me and told me that you knew the guy that I was looking for."

"Let me guess…you were expecting him to take you in his arms and tell you that he loves you, right?" Jessie nodded slowly. "Well, that's not how Jeff works. He may have been like that with you in the beginning, when you guys first met, but he doesn't like that lovey-dovey stuff. He's more macho and manly than that."

"He doesn't seem macho and manly." Jessie mumbled.

The clown burst out into laughter, which he tried to hide, since the both of them were supposed to be hiding away from Sally – who may have stopped counting by then. "Don't tell him that you said that under any circumstances."

Jessie giggled. "I won't. Anyway, I just mean that a macho man wouldn't punch someone and run off like he did with you. He would have stayed for a full-on fight."

"He does fight me sometimes." Jack chuckled. "He can fight. I think that he just wanted to make sure that you didn't see him fighting like that."

"I am sorry about that…" Jessie stated sorrowfully. "I didn't know that he was going to try and beat you up because of me."

"It wasn't your fault." Jack patted Jessie on the back gently with his large, dark, claw-like hands. "He just has some major anger problems that he needs to deal with."

The two sat in silence for a moment, taking in what they had just discussed. Laughing Jack wasn't aware that Jessie had actually felt guilty for Jeff attacking him the other day; she may have worn her heart on her sleeve, but she was good at hiding some of her emotions, when she really didn't want to let others know what she was thinking. Jack hadn't even guessed that she'd felt bad. On the other hand, Jessie didn't feel as if she knew anything about Jeff. He was supposed to be the man that she loved and yet, she couldn't even figure him out; she knew next to nothing about him. There was the temptation to ask Jack about their past, but she would rather just ask the killer himself.

"You know…" Jack started, grabbing her attention. "You can smile without him. He's not the only killer in the world who gives a damn about you. BEN really likes you and so does Sally. Eyeless Jack called you hot the day that you arrived."

Jessie blushed suddenly. "R-Really?!"

Jack nodded. "Yep. Thank God Jeff wasn't there when he said it. He would have clocked him."

Jessie tilted her head. "Do you really think that Jeff would care about something like that?"

"He would." Jack stated bluntly. "He may not look it right now, but he's quit possessive when it comes to you. While you were gone, he refused to let anyone say anything about you unless he addressed the matter first…and one monster called you cute when they saw your picture online and he flipped his shit."

"Oh…I see…" She tried her hardest to be monotone when speaking, but she couldn't hide the fact that she loved knowing that her lover used to get angry on her behalf. Her heart started to flutter and she couldn't hide her excitement on the matter.

"You can smile about that, you know." Jack's large hand now went on the girl's face as he pinched her cheek. "You look way better when you smile anyway."

Jessie's cheeks were going crimson and not simply because Jack was pinching one of them until it turned rosy and rough. Her large, brown eyes stared up at the clown demon as she wondered how someone like him could be a serial killer; he seemed so gentle and kind – nothing like how Jeff was presenting himself to be. When he fought off those rapists for her, on the day that they first met, he seemed so scary and tough, but she could see that he wasn't mean at all. She could instantly tell that he wasn't going to be dangerous – she just acted cautious, since she could never really know whether someone was mean or not by first glance.

"Besides…" the clown continued as he released Jessie's cheek from his grasp. "You're fun to be around…and Jeff shouldn't take your beautiful, happy look away from you."

This comment instantly caused her to do exactly as he wanted her to do and beamed at him; the knowledge that someone wanted her to be happy actually made her feel warm inside, even if the individual wasn't Jeff. For as long as she could remember, she had been treated like a test subject and as if she didn't matter in the world; no one had shown concern for her or let her know that she was cared about, but now she was liked by people like her. Now, she had finally found a place where she could feel at home and looked after.

"Thank you, Laughing Jack…" she giggled a girly giggle that she had never done before that moment. "You're fun to be around as well."

Suddenly, Jack's entire face became a salmon colour. Jessie's smile was causing his face to feel warm and his heart to skip a few beats. All of a sudden, he could see Jessie for what she actually was – a young girl. Her large eyes shone in the blazing sun that was hidden behind the bushes and trees around the two of them; her lips seemed to glisten, as if they had been waxed with the greatest of care – they even seemed extremely kissable. The long hair that had grown out over the years fell to the floor and touched his hands so that he could see how soft and silky it was, and her bare legs resembled a sparkling, chocolate cream – he felt as though he could just lean over and take a bite out of them, since they looked so soft and smooth.

It had only just occurred to him how cute she was. Her attitude was also so unlike any human that he had ever seen – kind and caring – but she was also a killer who seemed to be able to control her urges to stab others. She was unlike anyone that he had ever met before and he could figure out why on earth Jeff was so determined to stay away from her. He was missing out, in Jack's opinion.

On the other side of the bushes, high up on a balcony, Jeff was stood with his arms crossed and an angry expression on his face; he had seen Jessie and Jack run into the bushes and had no idea what they had been doing. He knew that Jessie had been spending time with Sally and BEN the day before, playing games and having fun without him, but Laughing Jack wasn't involved before that. He couldn't tell whether Jack was playing a game with her or taking her into that bush to do something vile to her. The thought of either was making him throw up internally.

He could feel his jealousy seeping through worse than when John and his crew had their disgusting way with Jessie and took advantage of her. The reason why his feeling were more vivid and blood boiling was that he knew Jack and how he liked to annoy people and treat them like his own personal playthings. Jessie didn't need that in her life and she certainly didn't need to be playing around with someone as frustrating as Jack.

"Come on, BEN!"

The killer noticed his short, blond friend running around the corner with Sally's hand in his as she dragged him along with her. Those two had been friends since Sally had moved into the apartments and had never looked back; Jeff was wondering why they hadn't started dating, but then remembered that even if they were killers, they were still children and had the minds of children. Romance and relationships weren't on their agenda; the only thing that they tended to do together was play games and gossip with one another.

The two kids headed towards the bushes that Laughing Jack and Jessie were hidden in and shouted into them; the clown and teen came out of the bushes laughing and smiling without a care in the world. A lump appeared in Jeff's throat as he realised that Jessie was laughing and having fun without him and had been since she arrived; he expected her to be miserable and desperate to talk to him, but for some reason, the fact that she wasn't made him depressed. He guessed that he wanted for her just be sad and lonely like he was.

Jack's hand went on Jessie's back, bellow Jeff and they both laughed out loud. The sudden urge to punch Laughing Jack in the face was something that Jeff knew that he couldn't avoid. He wanted to head down there and give Jack some ass-kicking that he would never forget, but the problem with that plan was that he would have to see Jessie's look of shock if he did that. The one thing that he seemed to hate more than anything was seeing Jessie upset.

He just wished that Slender would come back and take her away, putting her back into a bigger and better hospital with better security – and most importantly, away from him. That was where she belonged. She was the one who would rather have died than become a killer. She chose what she wanted and she couldn't change her mind now that she had lost her memory.

"Shut up, Jack!"

Instantly, Jessie slapped Jack around the face playfully and giggled. Jeff's hands firmly attached themselves to the balcony and crushed the fence that prevented him from falling over the edge. His anger was growing more and more as he observed the adorable scene from bellow him and his need to go and grab Jessie and take her away from the others was increasing.

He couldn't take how much his emotions were flicking from one to the other. One moment, he wanted to grab Jessie, take her into his room, lock the door and make love to her and the next minute, he wanted to send her away and keep her away from him. He couldn't decide which one he wanted to do more and it was pissing him off.

He just wanted this all to be over.

~:~

"What do you mean Jeff isn't the only killer like him?!"

Anthony and Dan were sat down on the paper-covered couch of the Jeff the Killer fan club, looking over some candid pictures of the killer himself and some articles about him. Andrew had made it very clear that any information that they gathered there couldn't be used in any news paper articles without his permission and made a massive case of it; they agreed without any problems, since that wasn't their main concern. After introducing them to a few of the club members and showing them some articles however, he had stated something that had changed their views entirely.

"Didn't you know that?!" Andrew laughed. "I thought that most people knew. Jeff isn't the only person who kills in his weird way or the only person who had committed mass-murder and gotten away with it strangely."

"But…" Anthony looked down to the floor. "You can't mean that there are people around who kill as much as he does…"

"That's exactly what I mean." Andrew tilted his head. "You should know this more than anyone, Anthony. Jessie wanted to move with Jeff when she committed murder. He doesn't live by himself and she knew that. I thought that you knew that."

The glasses-wearing teenager flinched and remembered when he realised that the reason that Jessie wanted to run away with Jeff was so that she could be around other killers like her, who understood her more than he and Sally did. He couldn't believe that he had forgotten something so important from when he was in love with her. Since he had tried to forget everything so desperately, he must have really erased many things from his memories.

Dan turned to his partner angrily and glared at him. "What else have you kept from us, twerp?"

Anthony glared back. "I'm not keeping anything from you. You just don't ask, Dan. All you care about is yourself anyway."

Before Dan could yell at his counterpart, Andrew intervened. "So, you do know this stuff, Anthony?"

The British boy sighed, in order to calm himself down. "Yeah. Jessie did mention it before she ended up losing her memories and going to that hospital."

"That was something else that I was wondering." Andrew mentioned. "We cannot find anything about the night that Jessie went to that hospital. Do you know why she ended up there and didn't go with Jeff?"

"I don't." Anthony answered honestly. "That last time that I saw her was…when I tried to…to…"

"Kill yourself?" Dan finished for him.

"Yeah…when I tried to kill myself to be with Sally." Anthony glanced up at the club leader, knowing that he probably already knew that this event occurred. Even if he did, he still gave him an extremely sympathetic look.

"I am sorry about Sally." He exhaled. "She seemed like someone who would have been a good friend to Jessie. She probably went to the roof that night to convince Jessie to stop this murderous path."

Anthony nodded. His best friend had already told him that she went to the roof with the intension of saving Jessie and rescuing her from Jeff's grasp – whether that meant killing her herself and having Jeff murder her as a response, or simply getting her to agree to leave the roof with her and turn herself in. Either way, he knew full well that Sally was an amazing friend and someone that he was really missing talking to.

"How are these people connected?" Dan asked, clearly not sympathetic towards Anthony's situation in that moment – not that the teen was shocked at that fact.

"Well…" Andrew began. "All of these…creatures aren't people for a start."

Anthony and Dan both glanced at the leader with a shock. Dan was the one to speak. "What do you mean by that? Jeff is human. He was a normal kid not long ago, just like us."

"Well, that may be so, but his friends are not." Andrew stated. "We have a name for them all that we came up with a while ago."

"What's that?" Dan asked, sounding irritated.

Andrew chuckled slightly, remembering how crazy the name actually sounded when he said it out loud.

"Well…for short, we call them the C.P.'s." he inhaled and exhaled. "But their real name is…the Creepy-Pasta's."