~23 reviews! Oh, my beautiful readers, thank you! I had a bit of writer's block and didn't know how to end this chapter. So, forgive me if it isn't all that great.~
Disclaimer: I own no one. Juliet116 gave me the idea for part of this chapter, so thank you Darling!
Warnings: Slash, language.
Kind of Important: The two songs that always, always make me think of Now You See is Counting Stars and Secrets by OneRepublic. I just wanted to share that with all of you.
Sunlight peeked through the curtains of Donnie's room. Jack rolled over.
"Wake up Jackie!" Donnie said as he walked into the room and over to the window. He shoved the curtains back and let the sun flood into the room.
Jack groaned and turned over, burying his face into the pillow beneath his head.
"Jack, it's 10:30. Get up, please?" Donnie half begged.
Jack sighed heavily.
"Not now Donnie." As soon as he said that he shot up in bed and looked around the room frantically until his gaze fell onto the older man.
"Easy there Jackie," Donnie walked over to him and sat on the edge of the bed, "You alright?"
He raised a hand and rested it on his little brother's forehead.
"It wasn't a dream." Jack said so softly that Donnie hardly heard him.
"It really happened." Jack's shoulders relaxed.
Donnie rubbed Jack's temple his with thumb and smiled, "Yes, you really tried to steal my wallet last night, then we really went to dinner, and then we really came back here, to my place."
After a few moments of silence Donnie said, "Come on, get dressed."
"Why? Where are we going?"
Donnie stood up and turned to face his brother.
"Out. I'm buying you some new clothes, because face it little brother, you hardly have any, and while we're out we'll grab a bite to eat."
"I have clothes, it's just that, they're back the Four Horsemen's apartment." Jack mumbled.
When Jack finished getting dressed he met his brother out in the living room. His brother was wearing a pair of gray jeans and a black t-shirt while he just settled on black jeans and a white V-neck shirt.
"Ready to go?"
Jack nodded.
Donnie smile hugely, "Great! Let's get going!"
They left, but not without Jack grabbing his black leather jacket.
Since Jack left almost a month ago Daniel, Henley, and Merritt spent their days searching for their missing friend. Daniel would walk up and down every street and back alley there was. Henley would go to motels and shelters, flashing Jack's picture around. Merritt would check, oh God forbid, hospitals.
Dylan would help when he could, he was still an FBI agent after all.
"I got nothin'." Merritt said when the three Horsemen met up by the docks after hours of searching.
"Same here." Henley said with a grim expression.
Daniel was silent. He didn't want to say those dreadful words. He didn't want to say he didn't find any sign of his Jack anywhere.
He stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jeans.
Henley laid a hand upon his arm gently.
"Don't worry Danny, we'll find him." She assured him.
"Yeah, we'll look some more after we grab some food. I'm starving!" Merritt exclaimed.
The three magicians walked across the street to a small diner. Daniel slumped in the booth as he sat across from Merritt and Henley.
"Cheer up Danny! We'll find the kid." The eldest man said.
"Of course we will!" Henley agreed.
They have said that more in the passed month than they have breathed. I just wonder," Thought Daniel glumly, "When I am going to start believing it."
Daniel focused his attention on the back of a young man sitting up at the counter. He was wearing a black leather jacket, and he had short, dark brown hair.
Could it be? No, my mind is just playing tricks on me. It couldn't be Jack. Could it? Daniel thought.
The leather jacket wearing man stood up and headed for the door. Daniel hesitated for just a moment. His hopes of that man being his Jack was too high already. He didn't want to be disappointed, but he just had to see if it was Jack or not. He shot out of his seat and ran out of the diner, ignoring his friends' calls and questions.
"Jack!" Daniel called, but the boy just kept walking.
Daniel huffed and sped up. He heard his friends running after him.
"Daniel!" He heard Henley yell.
"Danny, what the hell are ya doin'?" Merritt asked.
Daniel finally caught up to the boy and grabbed his upper arm and spun him around roughly.
Daniel felt his world crash down around him he saw the frightened face of a stranger.
"What do you want? Do I know you?" He asked.
He immediately released him.
"I - I'm sorry. I thought you were someone else." Daniel explained.
The stranger glared at him and straightened his jacket out before storming off.
Merritt and Henley caught up with him.
Daniel gripped his hair in pure frustration. Jack was - has taken over his life. He was slowly going insane and he didn't know how long it was before he had a major breakdown.
"Danny..." Henley began, but trailed off, not knowing what to say.
"Ya know, I'm not really all that hungry. Let's keep lookin' for the kid." Merritt said, knowing that Daniel couldn't take much more without knowing if Jack was okay or not.
To tell you the truth, Merritt was a nervous wreck not knowing where their kid was. When they all first met in that old apartment two years ago, Merritt thought that Jack was just some immature kid with mommy and daddy issues, but as time went on he came to really care for the kid.
He walked passed Daniel and Henley.
"I'll go check some motels I saw back there." She motioned behind her.
Daniel stuffed his hands in his pockets and began looking down alleyways.
Meanwhile across town Jack laughed at the story his brother was telling him.
"I mean, how was I supposed to know she was my boss's wife! She looked young enough to be his daughter!" Donnie chuckled.
The two brothers were currently sitting outside of a small café. Shopping bags sat at their feet.
Jack sipped at his iced peach tea. This was the first time since he ran away from The Horsemen that he was actually happy.
"Where to now, brother?"
Jack looked at him, "Hell if I know, Dude. You bought me enough clothes to last a year!"
"Okay, okay, no more shopping. What do you want to do? Anything you want, just name it."
Jack thought long and hard before he finally came to a decision.
"I want to go, see a movie."
"A movie?" Donnie asked, "Like go to a theater?"
Jack smiled, scratching the back of his head nervously.
"Yeah. The last time I went was with...Daniel, over a year ago. It was hard to go out and do stuff when you are wanted in like, five countries."
Donnie sent him a look of sympathy.
"Alright then. Let's drop all of this stuff off at the apartment and then we'll go. Anything particular you want to see?"
"Ah man, I don't know. Something...I don't know, I guess something that will make me laugh."
Donnie nodded, "Comedy it is. It's my favorite anyway."
Later that night the two brothers came walking out of the theater. Jack was laughing so hard that his stomach ached. Donnie had an arm draped over Jack's shoulders and he was trying so hard to calm down. They had just seen That's My Boy. They found a small theater showing older movies.
"That movie was freakin' hilarious!" Jack exclaimed.
"I know! Adam Sandler is so awesome!"
"The way he treated his son, oh my gosh!"
"Yeah, that was bad, but his son pretended not to know his own father." Donnie said.
Before Jack could answer Donnie said, "You wouldn't do that to me, would you? Pretend you don't know me?"
"Of course not, bro." Jack assured his brother.
"Oh good, then I can do this."
Donnie swooped down and tried to kiss Jack on the cheek.
"What? No, stop it!" He tried to push his brother away, but it was no use.
"Donnie," Jack laughed, "Stop!"
"One kiss won't kill you, Jackie! We're family!" Donnie finally planted a big, wet, sloppy kiss on Jack's cheek.
"It might! Will you quit it?" Jack pushed Donnie off of him, laughing.
"Jack?" The two brothers heard a small voice.
Jack and Donnie stopped laughing and looked in the direction the voice had come from.
Jack's eyes widened, "Henley."
The red head stepped forward, "Jack," her voice broke as if she was about to cry.
"Jack, who is this?" Donnie asked.
Jack couldn't answer his brother, he was too busy having a staring contest with the woman he had come to think of as a big sister.
She took another step towards him, "Jack? Oh my gosh, I can't believe it."
Jack grabbed Donnie's hand, "We have to get out of here. Now!"
"Okay, okay, come on."
Donnie gripped his little brother's hand tightly as they ran down the street, away from Henley, and to the bus that was about to drive off.
The older Wilder boy beat on the glass door and the bus driver opened it, giving them a small irritated glare.
The bus took off. Henley was too late.
"Jack." She sniffed as tears flooded her eyes.
At least he's okay. She thought to herself.
Pulling her phone out of her bra, she looked at the time.
Damn, I'm late. I was supposed to meet the guys almost twenty minutes ago. Oh my gosh, what am I going to tell Danny? That I saw Jack with another man and they ran off?
As she walked back to the docks she kept replaying Jack's scared face as he saw her, Jack grabbing the other man's hand, Jack running away.
"Henley! Thank God, you're safe." Merritt had his arms out as he walked up to her and grabbed her into a hug.
She looked over Merritt's shoulder and saw the pained expression her ex lover wore. He was leaning against one of the wooden poles, leading to a dock, his hands in his pockets.
Merritt finally released her, but laid his hands on her shoulders, "You okay?"
"I - I uh," her voice wasn't steady and she felt like crying.
"What happened?" Merritt removed one of his hands from her shoulders and rested it upon her cheek.
"I saw Jack."
Daniel looked up at her and rushed over to her, "You did? Where? Show me. Did you talk to him? Is he okay? God, Henley, tell me that he's okay."
"I saw him coming out of a movie theater. I tried to talk to him, Danny, I really did, but they ran from me."
"They? Was he with someone?" Daniel wanted to know.
I'm so sorry I have to tell you this, Danny. The young woman thought.
Henley nodded, "Yes. An older man. He had dark brown hair, his face was a bit scruffy, he was taller than Jack too."
Daniel faltered a little bit.
Is Jack with someone? Already? It hasn't even been a full month yet.
"I'm sorry, Danny. I tried to go after him, but they got on a bus." She tried to comfort him, but he wouldn't have any of it.
He jerked away from her.
"I - I don't blame him; for already moving on. I hurt him so badly." Daniel's voice was breaking more and more with each word, just like his heart.
"I think Jack called the other man Donnie."
Daniel looked up at her once more, "Donnie?"
She nodded.
"Why? Do you think you know him?"
"Donnie was Jack's older brother's name...but he left home when Jack was ten years old. It couldn't be him."
Merritt stepped forward, "Ah, but what if it is?"
"We can ask Dylan to do a search on a Donnie Wilder." Henley asked, excitedly.
Daniel's whole chest filled with excitement. He, for sure, was going to get his Jack back.
On the bus Jack and Donnie sat all the way in the back. There was only an elderly woman reading a newspaper, sitting up front and a young teenage girl messing with her Ipod in the middle of the bus.
Jack sighed in relief.
"Was that the girl who did all of those magic tricks with you, in The Four Horsemen?" Donnie asked.
"Yes, her name is Henley Reeves. She's an escape artist; the best."
"She looked really upset when she saw you."
"Henley has probably been worried sick about me since I left. I just," Jack shook his head, "If I let her talk to me, then I would have gone back to The Four Horsemen. If it had been Merritt, I would have gone back. If it had been Daniel," He paused before continuing, "I would just have to look at him and I most likely would have kissed him. I miss them so much. They were only family I have ever known and they all mean the world to me."
"You have me now. We have each other."
Jack looked up at his smiling brother.
"I know. Now come here." Jack grabbed his brother's face and gave him a very similar kiss like his brother had done to him just moments before.
Donnie howled with laughter.
"I rubbed off on you!"
Jack laughed too, but his chest felt heavy again, like it had felt when he walked out of the Four Horsemen's apartment almost a month ago. He felt guilt and regret and sadness.
~Ah, I don't know how many more chapters I have left. I think only a few more. Sad! But this is definitely not my last Now You See me fanfic. I am so obsessed with Jack/Daniel. Also, what is their name? I have heard Jack Daniel's and LoversDeath. I don't know which one it is or if it's a completely different one! Let me know what y'all think.~