Chapter Two

Everything seemed quiet, not a single sound except for the slight ringing in his ears, probably from hitting his head so hard. He couldn't really feel his body, though he felt himself shivering from a chill throughout his body. He gulped a bit and slowly began opening his eyes to the unfamiliar room. It was practically empty except for the wooden desk and chair in the corner, a bookcase on the side, and a small closet, but it looked like there used to be other furniture in the room, even seemed like there was painting on the walls.

He felt something soft under him, something warm on top of him. He finally managed to open his eyes to the room, noticing the bed he was laying in with the warmest blanket covering over his body. He laid there for a second motionless, even closing his eyes again. Then he realized exactly what had happened… He quickly jumped up panting, He grabbed onto his chest in panic with the thoughts that just maybe the rumors were true, that his heart was stolen or he was dead. But he was breathing, his heart was still there and pounding in fear, he was still alive. He took a few deep breaths before the wound above his eye began aching again and he had to grab onto his head. He moved his fingers swiftly across the wound only to find it was stitched. He looked around a little more and then found his glasses on the nightstand next to the bed and began reaching for them. But the sound of the door knob turning sent a shiver down his spine and he quickly jumped back. He quickly covered the blanket back over himself and laid down, closing his eyes and trying to calm his breathing to make it look as if he never woke up.

He tried his best to keep himself still and breathing easy as the sound of the door opened and footsteps came across the room. He didn't make a sound or move as a cloth moved over the wound on his head. It was a bit cold and he twitched a bit but didn't "wake up". After the cloth was gone, he felt a hand grab onto his arm and pull his sleeve up; he could feel two fingers checking his pulse. He wanted to open his eyes and see who this monster was, but he couldn't do it. He felt his sleeve being pulled back down, heard the footsteps leaving the room, and then the door closed.

He jumped up in the bed and panted, god it was hard to stay that still. That monster touched him, it had him, but something felt strange; the touch was so gentle. He grabbed onto his glasses, looked around the room, and got up against the pain coming from his head and quickly tried to unlock the window. It was no use though, the window's locks were in place and the window was even nailed so there was no way out through that way. He looked around in fear, he needed to get out of here! He went to the door and became very quiet as he grabbed onto the knob and turn it as quietly as he possibly could. He slowly opened the door a crack, trying to make sure it didn't creek, and looked out into the hallway. The wooden floor was covered by a long Chinese rug that reached from end to end, there were several other doors, but he saw the stair case and that's what mattered.

His legs shook a bit but he took a deep breath and pushed himself to go out into the hallway as quietly as he could and headed toward the stairs. He tried looking down the twisted stair case but couldn't see anything because of the way the stair case was made. He gulped a bit and began stepping down the stairs, hearing it creek every few seconds made him freeze and sent his heart pounding. He took another deep breath and carefully made it down, then paused once he got to the bottom. He looked out of the stair case for any sign of this unknown monster but didn't see a thing in the living room. It was dark, everything looked old but never used and completely clean. He didn't know who lived here, he didn't want to find out, and he quickly ran across the room as quiet as a ninja and ducked behind the couch once he heard movement.

He looked toward the door that he believed led to the kitchen as he heard foot steps walk around. He gulped down his fear and looked the opposite way, trying to find the door. He jumped and ran back past the stair case and hid again behind another couch on the opposite side. He heard the kitchen door open and heard foot steps come into the room, Matthew covered his mouth so he wouldn't make a noise and listened as the monster walked toward him. Matthew's body tingled with fear as he heard the footsteps suddenly stop so close to him. He closed his eyes and tried not to make a single noise or even breathe.

The foot steps headed up the stairs and left him down there. Matthew took a huge sigh in relief and quickly bolted toward the front of the house, going through a door that led to a study, come back out, and go through the door next to it that led to the main hallway. He could see the front door and smiled, his way out! He ran to the door and grabbed onto the knob only to find it was unable to turn. "W-What?" he gasped. He tried shaking it more and turning it but it would not budge. He looked around at the door to find this door even nailed, dozens of nails sticking out of the outline of the door. He felt his heart sink as his one chance to escape faded away. He panted and tried opening it, even trying to take out the nails only to cut a finger or two, but it seemed useless. He wanted to bang on it, scream, call for any kind of help but who would hear him? Surely Alfred, Kiku, and Peter had ran away in fear, plus he didn't even know how long it had been since he was even in here!

He began to tear and fall against the door, holding onto the knob and breaking down inside. I'm going to die, he thought, this monster will kill me. The adrenaline that had been rushing through his veins to get out and pushed any pain or fear away was gone. His head ache came back, his body shook in fear, he even began to cry. One thing he didn't expect was the feeling that he couldn't breathe. He let go of the knob and sat against the door, sucking up his tears once he realized he was gasping for air. Once he stopped crying though, the feeling didn't go away. He actually couldn't breathe, it wasn't just a feeling, he couldn't breathe!

He grabbed his throat and gasped for air, he couldn't bear the suffocation for too long. Within seconds, no air was getting in or out. He slide down onto the ground and his hands fell away from his throat, hitting the ground with him. Everything began to look blurry and dark, he couldn't see anything anymore. Except for the monster coming toward him. He tried looking up at the monster's face but everything was too blurry; all he could see was the figure of a big tall man coming toward him. Everything went black….

He believed he was dead. He couldn't feel anything, he couldn't feel himself breathing or feel his hands or feet, he felt completely numb. But he opened his eyes and didn't see any heaven or hell, but the same room he had woke up in the first time. He gulped a bit as his vision came back to him, he was alive? He was alive! He didn't feel so relieved though, he was still in that monster's house… and this "monster" stood right next to him.

He jumped up once he saw the figure near him, though without his glasses everything was still very blurry. He panted and felt his body shake in fear again, now he would die right? This monster was probably mad at him… right? He could see the figure lifting his arm up toward the boy and he quickly closed his eyes for whatever was to be done to him.

But there was no violet attack to the boy, nothing at all. He opened one eye to look and then the other only to find the figure holding out the boy's glasses toward him. He gulped a bit and lifted his shaky hands up to grab them and began to put them on as the man turned his back and went toward the door. His vision came back to normal once his glasses were on and he looked up toward the man, only to have him opening the door and walking out. Matthew gulped and looked in silence, then froze once he heard the man speak. "Come." He said from the hallway.

Matthew quickly got out of the bed, he figured if he listened maybe he could live a bit longer and find a way out. He followed out of the room and into the hallway, seeing the man going down the twisted staircase and followed behind. He gulped again, his hands shook as he followed the man through the living room and into the kitchen. It looked old too, but still clean and well organized. It had a small table in the corner with three chairs around it, the counters in the middle of the room separated the table from the rest of the cabinets and counters where food was held. "Sit." The man said, his voice sounded a bit dull but covered by some kind of heavy accent.

Matthew didn't hesitate to quickly sit at the table as the man went into the kitchen area and took a pot off the stove. He tried to get a good look at the man but he couldn't see his face. He wore a long brown coat with the lightest covered scarf wrapped around his neck that reached down his back. His hair was a dusty blonde, or even ash, a unique and strange color. He waited nervously as the man poured hot water into a cup with some mix in it, watching the color change to a darkish green. Was it poison? Was he going to have to drink it? Was it going to kill him?… the questioned rushed through his mind. But this man had taken care of him, he had realized the head wound had been stitched somehow, the man must of helped him when he couldn't breathe, he laid him down in that soft bed twice; he was taking care of him? But why? Why would he take such good care of him if he was going to kill him? Why didn't he just let him die in the hallway?

His heart…

A shiver was sent down his spine as he remembered Alfred's words: but the most known rumor is that he takes your heart as his own. He physically rips your beating heart out of your body, listening to your cries and screams of pain, and places it inside his own body to replace the one he had lost. He never finds a new one though.

Matthew gulped as his heart hammered in his chest, was that what he was after? He wanted to do the dirty work himself, not just let him die? He wanted to hear Matthew's screams and cries while he was still alive and in pain, not wait until he was dead. He froze in fear once again and grabbed onto his chest, still feeling his heart hammering fast. He's going to kill me, he thought, he's going to rip my heart out. He closed his eyes like it was the end but opened them again to look at the man. The man peeked over at him then turned around, he didn't look like any monster…. He really was a man.

His face was a bit pale but he was human. His eyes were a darker violet than Matthew's, his nose was a little big, his face was a bit rounded, his lips looked a bit dry, his bangs fell and covered his forehead but they looked as if he pushed them aside a lot. He was a human? He a was a tall, big man with muscle under that coat, his scarf covered his neck and even part of his chin. He even looked a bit… shy?

The man walked over and placed the cup in front of Matthew on the table. "Drink it." He said. His accent was heavy and it was a bit hard to understand his words, but Matthew seemed to understand them well enough. "W-What is it?…" He questioned, he didn't feel so afraid after seeing this man's face but fear still ran through his entire body.

"Medicine." The man turned back and went into the kitchen area again. "M-Medicine?"

"Da."

Da? Isn't that Russian? Matthew looked toward him as he thought, the accent, it was Russian, so this man?… "W-Why? Why would I need m-medicine?"

"Your body is sick." The man said. "So drink it."

"W-What?"

"Drink it." The man's tone seemed to go up and a small shiver went down Matthew's spine again. He hesitated at first as he looked at the drink, but he took a sip and swallowed it down, even though it tasted pretty disgusting. He looked back over at the man. "All of it." The man turned back and watched him hold the cup. Matthew gulped and looked back at the drink. He took a breath and gulped down the liquid, then placed the cup back on the table. The man looked at him, lifted his head a bit, and turned around to the countertops.

Matthew decided to be brave and question the man. "H-How long have I… been asleep?"

"Since you've been in my house?" The man questioned. "Two days. Today would have been the third." Two days? Matthew gulped a bit, his friends probably thought he was dead by now. Two damn days? "Are you hungry?" That question came out of no where. "W-What?"

"Are you hungry?" The man repeated. "You have been asleep for two days. Are you hungry?"

"N-No sir." Matthew lied, but his stomach let out a small growl that the man seemed to hear. He thought the man would hit him or do something to him because he had lied, but nothing happened again.

"I only soup." the man looked toward him. "Is that alright?"

"Y-yes sir." He gulped.

"Stop calling me 'sir'." The man placed a pot on the stove and poured some soup into it, turning the stove on and letting it cook.

Matthew froze again but pushed himself. "T-Then what should I call you?…"

"My name is Ivan." The man turned back toward him. "You can call me that."

"O-Okay… I-Ivan…"

"When people introduce themselves, they say each others names, correct?" He looked at Matthew who only nodded back. "I said mine." Matthew looked at him in a bit of confusion. "Your name. What is it?"

"M-Matthew." he said.

"Matthew… Matvey." Ivan thought a bit. "Gift of God."

"W-What?"

"Your name. It means 'Gift of God'." Ivan looked toward him. "Matvey is how you say your name is Russian." more proof, so he was Russian? He was just a person?

Matthew tried smiling a bit. "You know about names huh?"

"Da."

"W-What does your name mean?"

"God is gracious." Ivan said. He turned back to the cooking meal as Matthew sat there. "Vanya is another version of Ivan."

"I didn't know that." Matthew said. The conversation between them was simple but a bit awkward, Matthew didn't mind too much though. He believed if he kept it up the man wouldn't hurt him. He looked as Ivan took out a bowl and poured the soup into it, then reached into a cabinet and grabbed a spoon, placed it in the bowl, and brought it over to the young nervous boy. Matthew looked up at the tall man.

"Eat it." Ivan walked around back behind the counters as Matthew watched him, then turned to the small meal in front of him. He looked at it for a moment, hesitated, but his starving stomach pushed him to pick up the spoon and get some of the soup in his stomach. He blew on each spoon full at first but it tasted good and he quickly began rushing his eating. Ivan watched the boy as he ate and filled his starving stomach, not looking away or moving, just watching. Matthew quickly finished eating and sat back in the chair, never even noticing Ivan was looking at him.

He looked up toward Ivan once he was done and the man came back around to get the bowl and the cup and place them in the sink. It seemed so quiet in this house, Matthew could hear the pattering of rain around the house and on the roof, but other than that it was silent. "Follow me." Ivan began walking out of the room and into the living room, Matthew got himself up and quickly followed. He followed Ivan up the stairs again and down the hallway to the door at the end. He opened it and held it for the boy to go in, which he did, then left and let the door close behind him. Matthew jumped at the sound of the door shutting then looked for some kind of light switch. Once he found it, he switched it on to lighten the pitch dark room to uncover the small room was a bathroom. He looked around, seeing a marble bathtub, toilet, sink, everything looked expensive and clean.

The door opened up again and Ivan stood there with a pile of two towels and clean clothes. He came in and placed them on the countertop of the sink and looked toward the boy. "Wash up. You can take your time." Ivan said. Matthew nodded as the man walked out and left him alone in the bathroom. Matthew stood there a bit nervous to take off his clothes. He looked into the mirror above the sink and looked at his reflection. He looked like a mess, his hair was a dirty blonde now, dry blood still stayed on the side of his face from the wound, but his wound looked well taken care of at least. There were circles under his eyes and his skin was already pale, he looked like he had died and come back to life. Then again, maybe he had?

He took a deep breath and took his sweatshirt off, then the shirt underneath. He dropped his pants and underwear down and stepped out of them. He took his socks off and looked toward the bathtub. He felt weird being bear in this stranger's house, especially in this situation, but he turned the knob and let the water flow out, letting it gain heat and height in the tub. He watched the water fill up as he stood bear, then picked up his clothes and folded them together; he could see dry blood stains on the cloth of his sweatshirt. He kept his clothes together then unfolded a towel from the two and kept it next to the bath. Once it was high enough, he stopped the water. He took his glasses off and placed them on the pile of fresh clothes, then dipped his foot into the water, feeling the warm water, then the rest of his body. He stood there for a moment but sat down and slid into the water, the heated water surrounding his body. He took few breathes as the hot water soaked his painful body, washing away any pain he had gained from his fall or even any nerves that wouldn't calm down.

He felt calm and peaceful in the bath, the hot water calmed every nerve he had. He sunk down a little more until just his head was above water, he wanted to just relax for a minute without fear. His thoughts were calming down, though the wonder of if he would still be alive in a few days stayed in his mind and haunted him. He tried pushing it away, just for a moment he wanted to push the fear away, but it wouldn't. He took a deep breath and sunk his head under the water, closing his eyes and letting the hot water go over his head. He stayed there for a moment as all fear left him, but he needed air and the moment he came back up they came back. He grabbed onto the cloth Ivan had left for him and began washing his body. He splashed water onto his face and rubbed the cloth against it, then moved down his neck and to his chest. He washed his whole body then splashed himself again with the cooler water.

He grabbed onto the towel as he stood up and dried his body off, then grabbed onto the other dry one and dried his hair as the other one was soaked now. He let the water out and laid the dry towel onto the floor so he wouldn't slip as he got out. He dried himself off more and looked toward the clothes, then unfolded them.

He peeked into the living room as he came down the stairs, seeing Ivan sitting there waiting for the boy. Matthew came down and stood there for Ivan to see. He wore the clothes Ivan had placed down for him, a light buttoned shirt and pants that matched, both a light red-pink color, and very silky and soft. Ivan looked at him and stood up off the couch. "Does your head hurt at all?"

"N-No." Matthew gulped, he tried not thinking about the wound but it did still hurt him.

"Can you breathe alright?"

"Y-yeah." Matthew said. "I-Is that why you're giving me the medicine?" Ivan nodded. "But… Why?… I've never had trouble breathing before."

"I'll explain soon." Ivan simply said. "You should go lay down though." He walked over and stood in front of the boy. "You look very tired." Matthew looked up at him, not feeling so much of fear anymore, and nodded. He turned to go back up the stairs as the man turned to go into the study room. Matthew paused a bit and looked as Ivan closed the door behind him. Matthew stayed there for a moment but then hurried up the stairs.

What was this man?… who was he?…. Matthew couldn't understand something he didn't know, but he wanted too….