CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

I started my first shift at the bar and it went wonderfully. Morgan showed me around all the employee areas and presented me with a uniform that made me shake my head. "Really?" I sighed in exasperation.

The clothing resembled that of a maid's uniform, but with longer hem lines. It brushed just below my knees and swished around my legs as I walked. The top hung on tightly, making my very average figure seem more curvaceous.

"It is perfectly decent," he chuckled, enjoying how I was tugging uncertainly at the skirt.

"Fine…" I conceded. It really wasn't that bad. In fact, it was actually pretty cute. I just hoped that Jimmy didn't seem me in it. He would throw a fit.

"If anyone gives you trouble, come to me," he told me. "No one disrespects anyone in my club, you got it?"

I nodded. "Thanks, Morgan." I hugged him, feeling his large hands rest at the small of my back.

"Now, go get me some business," he teased.

I whacked his chest, not even feeling him flinch, but there was a faint throb in my hand. He was built like a brick wall.

Surprisingly, the night went smoothly. Everyone treated me with more respect than I recalled them treating anyone else, but the looks from Morgan may have been the reason.

It was also great seeing all the trips from the patrons. By the time I was home, I was riding high. I had already put aside the money for Elsa. There was still a decent amount for myself and I already knew what I was going to do with it.

"Jimmy?" I whispered, sticking my head into his tent. It was pitch-black, but I could see his form nearly eagle spread on the bed. "Jimmy…!"

When he didn't respond, l crept in. Normally, I'd wait until he was awake, but I was too excited, this time. I was never going to find sleep without telling him first.

I stood beside him for only a moment longer before I pounced.

He was quickly startled awake. His limbs flailed everywhere until he finally opened his eyes to see me grinning back at him. His body went limp and he let out a groan. "What's going on?"

"Work is fun!" I exclaimed, practically bouncing in excitement. "I can't wait until tomorrow!"

His eyes clenched closed and a gasp left his lips. "S-stop…" His hands held on to my hips, stilling me in place.

"Don't do that," he mumbled.

It wasn't until he shifted his pelvis away did I feel the bulge brush against me. My face immediately lit up and I tried to move away, but he kept me in place. "Jimmy…"

When his eyes opened, they were dark with desire. "Please, Madi." I couldn't tell if he wanted me to get off or for me to help relieve him.

I swallowed, gently cupping his face before leaning down, pressing my lips against his. A sigh left his as he deepened the contact. His hands moved to my waist, pushing me flat against his body.

We finally broke away, breathing heavily. 'I love you, Madi."

My lips trembled and all I could do was kiss him, again. I had tried so hard to keep these feelings at bay because I was still afraid of being hurt, but they were so overwhelming. It was difficult to think when my every though led to him. "I love you, too," I mumbled, laying my head on his chest. His heart was racing and I knew mine was, too.

We wiggled in bed until I was tucked underneath his chin beneath the covers. I missed this so much.

Slowly, my eyes fluttered closed and a smile remained on my face even as I slumbered.

…

The next morning, I felt him trying to slide out from under me, but I held on tight. It was too early for him to leave. I wasn't ready to let him go, yet.

"Madi, I have to go to work. This will be the last one, I promise," he whispered to me, kissing my temple.

"Don't go," I whined back. My eyes remained closed.

"I'm all yours after today. I promise."

Knowing that neither one of us had much of a choice, I let him go. "I love you."

"'Love you, too." With that, he was gone.

I fell back asleep, nuzzling his pillow and imagining that he was still with me. Sleep came quickly. I managed to become oblivious to the world until he came back, looking happier than I had ever seen him.

"Feels like a huge weight has been lifted off me." He grinned.

I smiled back, loving how his eyes seemed just a little brighter. "I'm glad you're not doing it anymore." I stretched my limbs, hearing them pop and sighing contently. "I'll be back. I need to give this to Elsa."

I grabbed the small pouch I had left on the table and jingled it happily. "I feel rich, Jimmy! Like I could buy the world if I wanted to."

He snorted. "Come here." He extended his arms out to me. I obligingly hugged him. 'Are we…"

"Do you want to?" I asked him.

He nodded, eagerly. "I don't want to let you go, anymore."

"Then, yes." I really thought this was going to work out. Everything was going so smoothly. What could possibly go wrong?

Not long after I finally made it to Elsa, I got ready for work. Jimmy took one look at my uniform and his face lip up red. "You're wearing that to work?" he gritted his teeth.

I gave him a teasing twirl. "Isn't it cute?"

"It…" He swallowed.

I kissed him. "No one's allowed to touch me there. Don't worry. Morgan will take care of me."

"That's what I'm afraid of," he muttered.

"I'll tell Morgan about us and we'll go from there, alright?" I told him. I knew my boss was going to understand. He had been clear that what we had was flexible.

"Okay…" he mumbled with a sigh. "Come back, soon."

I nodded and heard the car bonk from just beyond the fencing. He was here and he probably saw us together. "I'll see you, later. I love you."

"'Love you, too."

I gave him one last grin and ran to the sleek, black car waiting for me. When I slid in, I was immediately given a knowing look. "Don't look at me like that," I half-heartedly scolded him. It was ruined by a content sigh in my voice.

He chuckled. "You two looked cozy there. Should I assume that it's off between us or is he interested in a threesome? I'm still open for that."

I looked away, my face bright red. "S-shut up!" There was a part of me that was very curious, but I knew that Jimmy wasn't up to sharing and quite frankly, I wasn't either. By the way Morgan looked at Jimmy, I knew he was interested in more than just me. He had also verbally expressed it several times before. The worst time was when Jimmy met him at the club. It took everything I had to not melt into a puddle of embarrassment.

We eventually arrived to work, but not before he planted all those images into my head. What would mother say if she knew what I had gotten myself into?

Thankfully, work went by quickly. I even managed to get to know some of the regulars who were all very kind, albeit a little drunk. Their rambles were full of nonsense and laughter.

I found myself enjoying their delight and in doing so, they tipped me well. It was a win-win situation for me.

"Ready to go home?" Morgan chuckled, standing behind me, while I wiped down the table.

I looked at the window and saw the sky turning brighter. I hadn't realised how late it had gotten. "I'll just finish up here and put the things away."

"Don't worry about it. Let Christa handle it. If you do everything, I'll be paying them for doing nothing." He took the cloth away from me and threw it back on the table.

"Fine." I pouted. I never knew work could be so fun. To finally have a purpose – to contribute to society. It was great!

"Get into the car before the sun comes up." I had eventually told him about my affliction when he became increasingly suspicious of my strict time management when it came to the sun. With how much he helped me, I didn't think it was fair to keep that secret from him. He had taken it in strides and joked that he thought I was a vampire. It quickly defused the anxiety I had built up and the rest of the night went by smoothly.

When we arrived at camp, the cars parked in front of the fence made me freeze. They were police cars, but what happened? Who had called them?

I slide out of the car and ran towards the circle of friends. "Eve? Eve, what's going on?" She had been the easiest to spot. Her eyes were filled with confusion and despair.

"Let. Me. Go!" a muffled growl caught my attention.

I turned and saw Jimmy pressed into the ground by two policemen. "Stop! What are you doing?!" I cried, trying to get away from the man who was blocking my path. "Jimmy? Jimmy!" I watched helplessly as he was cuffed and being taken away from me.

He turned his head, staring into my eyes. "I love you, Madi. I Swear I didn't do it. I swear I'm innocent!"

And then, he was gone.

"JIMMY!" I shouted for him, but it was too late. I fell to my knees and the rest of the policemen departed, leaving behind a devastated, broken family. "Why…?"

Morgan knelt beside me and pulled me into his arms as I cried. The tears fell profusely, but I could still hear the rest of them talking.

"Do you think he really did it?" Paul asked. I couldn't even believe that he was doubting Jimmy.

"No," Eve replied. "Jimmy would never kill those women. He told me how happy he was to finally leave that job behind. This was his last one. It doesn't make any sense for him to throw it all away, now."

Kill? Jimmy killed someone? No, Eve didn't think that it was him and I believed her. I also believed in him. "He wouldn't do something like that," I mumbled into Morgan's dress shirt.

"I know," he replied, tightening his grip. "I'll call around and find him a lawyer."

I swallowed the sob that was threatening to come back out. "Thank you. D-do you think you can drive me over to see him?"

He nodded. "Of course. Whenever he's allowed visitors, I'll bring you there."

How could this always happen to us? Whenever things were beginning to look up, it'd all go to Hell. Could we ever find happiness together or was this just fate telling us that it was not meant to be?

"Come on, let's get you to bed," I heard Eve quietly say to me.

I looked at her with teary eyes. "Can we go to Jimmy's?" I wanted to pretend, if only for one more night, that everything was still alright because I knew that this was going to be an uphill battle.

…

"Follow me," I heard him call out to me from within the darkness. His voice sounded so close, but I couldn't see him. In fact, I really couldn't see much at all. I was walking around blind. "Madi, come here."

I slowly made my way towards where I thought his voice was coming from. It was difficult. Every once in a while, it'd sound as if it was hitting me from every direction. "Ta – Jimmy, where are you?" I stopped in my tracks. Why did a different name appear in my mind, first?

When I tried to grasp that name, I couldn't find it. It had been there for only a fleeting moment.

"Over here!"

He was coming from the right, now.

"I'm coming. Can you stop moving?" He had to be moving further and further away. It felt as if I had been walking for a while. I had to have reached him by now. "Jimmy?"

"Here."

Suddenly, he was so close that I could feel his breath on my ear. I turned to him, but there was no one there. "Stop playing around! This isn't funny!" I was tired of playing chase. "Where are you?!"

"Right here, Madi." This time, I knew I could feel him. I turned into his arms and gasped when his body hit mine.

He looked at me with a smile on his face, but it was different from what I was used to. It didn't hold the same warmth that made my heart race. Instead, the smile only amplified the darkness in his eyes. It was unnerving.

"A-are you alright?" I swallowed, staring widely at him as if I was waiting for an extra eye to suddenly pop out of his forehead or if his face suddenly melt off and he wasn't Jimmy, at all.

"Of course," he purred. His body was pressed against mine, but it didn't feel right. He was cold. "Madi… My Madi." He sighed heavily, holding on so tightly that it was becoming painful.

"Jimmy, wait…" I squirmed around. 'Let go. Let go!" I pushed him away, staring at the man in front of me in horror.

His curls were shadowing his eyes. The darkness around him shifted as if it had a life of its own. The tendrils weaved and crawled along his body. "Don't you love me?" he whispered. His voice was soft, but it was booming in my head.

"I…" Of course, I loved him. I loved him if he was my Jimmy, but the man in front of me couldn't possibly be him. He was an imposter!

"DON'T YOU?!" His eyes flared red and I was suddenly swept off my feet, flying and landing heavily some distance away.

I tried to get back on my feet, but it was as if something was holding me down. The unseen chains were heavy and wound tightly around my limbs.

The closer he got, the more his body seemed to fade and dissolve into the darkness. "What do you want from me?" I could do nothing as his shadows reached me. It was darker than the surrounding.

When only the red eyes still peeked through, realisation hit me. This was the creature from Dandy's place. It stopped me when I tried to take my own life, but that only further confused me. If he didn't want me dead, then what did he want? Why was he following me, stealing Jimmy's face?

As he materialised back into a humanoid form, eh looked a little different. The curls were a little longer, but he was still Jimmy. He laid down on top of me, resting his head on my chest. "They tried to take you away from me," he mumbled. "But you're mine."

"Who? W-who tried to – "

"That fuckin' two-faced fucker!" he screamed, nearly giving me a heart attack. "I nearly ripped them in two. I would've… I should've… Fuckin' bastard!"

Two-face… Did he mean Edward Mordrake? Could that be the reason I was left alone that night? HE didn't even consider me because this… this spirit threatened him?

"I don't understand… Why does it matter to you?" I asked, my head was already hurting from trying to make sense of this irrational being.

"Because you're mine," he repeated like a child, clinging on to me.

And as I relaxed, I felt my confines fade. My hand hesitantly reached for his hair, gently stroking the curls. A low rumble vibrated through my body. He was purring.

And as he was now, he resembled an overgrown cat. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all…

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Sorry, had to cut the happy times short. I think I might've switched some events around. I don't recall whether he was arrested first or if Chester joined first, but… Either way, both are going to happen.

And I think this is officially my longest story in the series. Who would've guessed that my outline only had nineteen chapters planned out…

Thank you HerOverYonder, BucksDoe, Applejax XD, guest (anonymouscsifan) for reviewing!

HerOverYonder: Muahahaha! I guess you'll just have to wait and see what kind of character Morgan is. I typically update over the weekend if you ever think you've missed a chapter. Fanfiction alerts are a bit wonky for me too, sometimes. And yes, it will be Jimmy and Madi… most likely… I mean… He's only just been taken away somewhere. No big deal. Not like anything's going to… happen to him or anything…

anonymouscsifan: I've been waiting for Season 7! I really hope it's good with LOTS of Evan Peters. It's kind of giving me The Purge vibes and… Evan Peters with blue hair… Hmm… At least it looks better than when he had that horrid grey wig as Quicksilver.

BucksDoe: I'm so glad you love the series! I haven't watched Season 5, yet, since for some reason, I can only really concentrate on one thing at a time. After I finish writing this one, I'll be watching that and if a lot of people want to read a fifth installment, I'll be writing it.

Applejax XD: Ahahaha… You were saying?

Thank you as well to everyone who has favourited and followed this story.

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