Jess woke up, yawned and looked at the clock. 7:16 am. Typical time for Jess to wake up. She laid on the couch and started thinking like she regularly does. *what will I paint...* her stomach growled. *hmm more like what will I eat...there's so much food in that fridge... Kinda funny cause the night Norman looked in the fridge and said it was empty, the next morning when I was cooking it was full... Did he really just con me into a date?* she smiled at the funny thought. *he's smart... And a smart ass* Jessica yawned as she grabbed her phone and checked her messages. She saw a text from an unknown number. Her heart raced a little before she clicked the new message. She read it in her head. *'Hey sorry about always asking you to come to my parties...' whew... Thank god it's just Bret...* Jess was relived expecting the worse, the murder. She continued. *'...it's just I would really like to get to know you! Just as a friend!'... Hmm maybe Norman's theory worked...* Jess checked the time on the phone, 8:20am, and turned it off not replying to Bret. She got up from her excuse of a bed and walked barefoot over to the massive canvas. *...whatever I paint on this thing it better be good... That canvas was 200 dollars...* she sighed at the amount of money lost to the canvas and supplies. The blank canvas stared at her and the plastic bag of paint sat on the ground lonely. She bent down and looked through the bag. *...yellow...blue... orange... brown... white... Where the hell is red? She viciously searched the bag with no luck of the red tube. *well...fuck...* she put on some pants and her trench coat leaving Normans shirt on underneath. *...might as well get it now than put it off till the last second.* The note she wrote continued to stick to the main door as Jessica walked out of it.

Norman woke up early for a change, about 9 am. He did the usual exposure to cold drill and walked into the main room seeing no Jessica. *Are you kidding me...* he sighed. Norman looked to the door expecting a note, and that's what he got. *'Went to art store. Ha maybe now you'll go in there...'* Norman let out a massive sigh. *She's practically begging to get murder! Always going out alone! God she's stupid for a smart girl!* he frustratingly left the apartment in a thrown-together-suit. He decided to walk knowing he'd most likely catch her the way.

*I can't believe I forgot red... There's a whole wall of it!* Jess looked through the shades of red finally picking one and buying it. "That'll be 2.89 dollars ma'am." the cashier lady stated. Jessica handed her the money and waited as the girl struggled to put one small item in a bag.

Norman came up to the street across from the art store. Not many people were actually on the street at that time considering it was 9:10am. Once Norman looked up from his watch there he saw the red car sitting 5 meters away from the art store. Norman quickened his pace. He saw Jessica step out of the store looking into a plastic bag. He relaxed a little but kept his pace. "Jess!" he shouted and waved his hand high. Jessica looked up. "He-!" something stopped her from talking. Something over her mouth. She tried moving her hands but they were stuck at her waist. Her mind and body were in shock and complete confusion. Norman went into full sprint as he saw a masked man cover Jess' mouth with his hand and hold the rest of her body together with his other arm. "JESSICA!" Norman now only a meter away. Jessica kicked and struggled, every muscle in her body working to free herself. Once she felt herself being dragged backwards she went into full survival mode. The shock wore away and she knew someone was kidnapping her, had his hand over her mouth to prevent screaming and had his arm wrapped around her to prevent movement. She bit deep into the masculine hand then bit again accidentally on a ring wore by the captor. The man had the red car door open struggling to shove Jess into it. Norman charged and struck the man with his entire body knocking him away from the car and Jess. The masked man came back at Norman with a left hand punch to the right side of Normans face. Norman took it but came back with a right then left hit to the criminals face. The man punched Norman in the stomach knocking the wind out of him. Norman gripped his stomach with his arms protecting it. Jessica filled with adrenaline jumped out of the car immediately, only to see Norman bent over clutching his stomach. The man stepped back then kneed Norman in the face sending him to the ground. "NORMAN!" she screamed then looked at the man. Jess came to her senses and grabbed the familiar object in her pocket. The masked man glared at Jessica as he stepped over Norman and slowly walked over to her. His eyes piecing hers. She stood her ground and swiftly pulled the item from her pocket pressing down the button letting the toxic pain spray from it. The man let out a shrieking yell and Jessica took the chance and kicked him in the crotch making him fall to the ground. She strayed away from the mysterious man to Norman. Jessica lifted him off the ground gently and put his arm over her shoulder carrying him into the art store. "Call 9-1-1!" Jessica screamed to the employee. The casher lady went into the back and after 5 minutes red and blue lights were flashing but with no red car in sight.

"Yes...and the scarf over his face was blue..." Jessica answered the officer asking her questions and writing the answers down in a notepad. Jessica looked over at Norman sitting on the edge of an ambulance with a medic tending to his facial wounds. "And what was your name again?" the officer asked snapping Jess out of her stare. "Oh... Jessica Teppel." Norman tried not to wince at the pain given from the alcohol on his open cuts. The medic added two final band aids to the open gash above Norman's right eyebrow. "I don't think they will need stitches, but just be careful you don't open the cut." Norman faintly nodded and looked at the pavement below him. The medic cleaned under his nose. "Looks like your nose is bleeding again." Norman went into shock after he heard the words 'nose' and 'bleed' together. He looked up at the medic that was shifting into a rock wall. "O-oh ok i g-got it..." he held the gauze to his nose letting the medic leave him to clean up. *gotta find Jess and get out of here before people get suspicious...* he stood up and walked to what seemed like the art store, trying his hardest to keep his balance and not look drunk. Jessica looked past the officer again to see Norman holding something to his nose and making his way to the door step by step. *Shit!* "Thank you officer." she cut off their conversation and attempted walking past him normally to Norman. "...jess..." Norman took a bold chance and swiped his hand in front of him hoping he'd hit Jessica. "Norman shh we're going..." a female voice whispered as the body to it slipped an arm around his waist and pulled his own arm across the other body's shoulders. Norman look in the direction of where the body's head might be and slowly lines began to appear indicating the outline of Jessica's face. Jessica looked behind her shoulder seeing that none of the cops or people were watching them make their awkward exit. *We'll get a taxi around the corner and nobody will see us...* she plotted out her next move then looked at Norman's drowsy bleeding face. She sighed. *oh my god he looks so beat up.* her look of edginess turned to a look of sympathy. Norman's vision came back and he could see Jessica and the scenery behind her. He too examined her face seeing the inward curve of her eyebrows and the watery shine in her eyes. *she almost got taken and I was practically useless... I didn't save her...She saved me.* Normans face also turned sympathetic once the facial muscles gained control again. "...j...je...ss" he muttered out just too tired to breathe. She looked back down at him as a taxi rolled by. "Yes are you okay?" a faint urgency in the tone of her speech. "I'm... sor...ry." he breathed out. Jessica's face switched from sympathetic to angered then sympathetic again. *How the hell can he say sorry when he risked his life for me... Why!* She helped him in the cab and they arrived at the apartment in silence.