A/N: A couple people guessed it, but Cat Lunaoff got it first! Isla Fisher voiced Tooth in the movie, so I used Fisher for Tina's last name.

Warnings for this chapter: More about eating disorders and angsty Jack.

Also, enter: Babytooth.

Chapter 4: Downtown Drama

Light filtered in through the window, and Jack's eyes slowly opened. Sitting up in bed, he decided it was time to go visit his friend who he hadn't seen in a long time. Jack got up and moved to the window, seeing the entire ground covered in several feet of white fluffy snow.

He pulled on a sweater and pair of skinny jeans, and was ready to leave within minutes.

"Mom! I'm going out!" he shouted upon walking down the stairs.

She was laying on the couch, watching tv. Her back faced him. "I don't care what you do," she replied without bothering to turn around.

Jack rolled his eyes and left without breakfast. The outside air was freezing cold, as the sun hadn't fully come up yet. Jack shoved his hands in his pockets and walked down the familiar road to his friend's house. She is the only person that Jack considered a friend at this point... he wasn't sure if the others counted yet.

After a good fifteen minutes of walking, Jack came up to a small brown brick house. Knocking on the door, Jack shuffled his feet, kicking off the snow that clung to his sneakers. A few minutes passed before the door opened up, revealing his childhood friend. Her light blonde hair was short and with soft curls, just like Jack remembered.

"Jack?" she questioned, her mismatched eyes wide with surprise.

"Hey Ami!" Jack greeted.

Her face lit up with a bright smile. "It's so good to see you! Do you want to come in?"

"Nah," Jack shook his head, "I was thinking we could walk around downtown and catch up."

"But I'm still in my pajamas! You could have texted me," Ami pouted.

"Sorry, I forgot!" Jack wanted to see her so bad that he forgot to text her about coming over. He just couldn't wait to get out of the house and leave his mom, if only for a few hours.

"Whatever. How are you up so early anyways?" she asked curiously.

Jack shrugged. It surely wasn't because of nightmares that ruined his happy dreams of Emma. Or the fact that he couldn't sleep for longer than an hour without waking up screaming, which his mom yelled at him for. Nope, it definitely wasn't either of those reasons.

"Alright, just give me a few minutes to get dressed."

"Why? PJ's are perfect for walking around town in," Jack teased with a smirk.

"That's what you think!" Ami stuck out her tongue at him. "I won't be too long. Do you want to wait inside for me? It's really cold out."

"Nah, it's fine. I'll wait out on the porch," Jack replied.

"Okay, be out in a few!" And with that, Ami shut the door and rushed to get ready.

Jack moved to go sit on one of the porch chairs. While sitting, he thought about his friend. His only friend.

Ami moved from France to Burgess with her family when she was six. Their parents knew each other, so Ami and Jack were really close growing up. Even though Ami is home schooled, they always found time to hang out. Ami's a year younger than Jack, so she's only fourteen and in 9th grade. She's really mature (at times), and gives amazing advice.

She is also the only person that knows what Jack had to go through with Emma. Even though she didn't get to go to Allentown to be with Jack's family, he texted her about everything. Since coming back to Burgess, Jack hadn't had the time to come and visit her, even though it had been about eight months since they last saw each other.

The door opened again, bringing Jack out of his thoughts.

"Okay! I'm ready to go out and explore this snowy town!" Ami cheered, completely dressed for the snow.

"A little cold, are we?" Jack joked. Though Ami did seem a little overdressed with her heavy winter coat, hat, scarf, gloves, and boots. At least compared to Jack and his simple black sweater.

"Oh hush, not everyone is as used to the cold as you," Ami scolded playfully.

Jack chuckled. "Let's go."

Ω Ω Ω

"I know! It was so funny!" Ami laughed as the two walked inside a cafe. They had been walking around downtown for awhile, catching up on lost time.

"I still can't believe your mom did that!" Jack agreed with a smile.

"Yeah," Ami paused, looking up to the menu board. "Let's get some food!"

"It's only 9:20," Jack stated after checking the time on his phone. "And you wanna get food now?"

"DUH," Ami replied dramatically. "Especially because somebody came to my house at eight in the morning on a Saturday! I didn't even get a chance to eat breakfast!"

"Oh, I wonder who that could have been?" Jack tapped his chin in thought.

Ami playfully punched him in the arm. "Let's order some donuts!"

"No thanks, I'm not hungry. I had breakfast before I left," he lied.

Ami frowned. "But Jack, you're so skinny!"

Ha ha, sure. "Just order your donuts," he told her, chuckling.

"I will, thank you very much."

A jingle sounded, announcing the arrival of more customers. Jack blanched upon seeing who the two were.

"Are you ready, can we leave now?" Jack turned to Ami and questioned her quickly. He wanted to avoid the newcomers.

"Huh, but I haven't gotten my donut yet," Ami replied, walking up to the counter to order.

"Okay, just hurry before they-"

"Jack?" Tina called as she walked over to them.

"-see me..." Jack finished quietly with an inward groan. He then turned around, giving a slight wave to Tina and Evan.

"Are you okay?" Tina's violet eyes shone in concern. Jack was sure that they must be coloured contacts. "I was worried about you since you left so suddenly yesterday. And I hope we didn't offend you when you when you went outside..." she trailed off, seeing Ami next to Jack.

"No, no. I'm fine," Jack replied hurriedly. "Let's go, Ami."

"Wait, Jack. I still have to pay for my donut. What's the rush?" Ami asked, pulling out her wallet.

Jack sighed. He was hoping to avoid Tina and Evan, but it looks like that plan's already out the window.

"Oh! Are these your friends from school?" Ami asked when she saw the other two.

"Yep!" Tina chirped. "And you are...?"

"I'm Ami!"

"Nice to meet you. I'm Tina, and this is Evan," she gestured over to the other.

"Hey," Evan greeted.

Jack stifled another sigh. He had wanted to avoid all of this.

"So how do you know Jack?" Ami asked, turning her back on them to pay for her donut at the counter.

"He's in our project for health care," Evan replied.

"We're researching leukemia," Tina added.

Jack noticed Ami stiffen beside him. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Jack nodded to her, mouthing 'I'll tell you later'. He sure has a lot of explaining to do.

"Oh," Ami said quietly, turning back around with a grim smile. "That's... cool."

"Do you go to our school? I've never seen you around before," Evan commented.

"Oh, no. I'm home schooled. But I've known Jack since we were little. Our parents were close friends."

Tina blinked in confusion. "But didn't Jack just move here?'

"Yay, my order is ready!" Ami cheered.

"Great, okay, let's go. See you guys later," Jack hurriedly said, urging Ami out of the cafe.

"Bye! Nice meeting you!" Ami called over her shoulder.

"Well, that was awkward." Jack heard Evan say to Tina before the cafe door closed behind them.

Once they were a good distance away from the cafe, Ami turned to Jack. "Okay! Explanations?!"

Jack sighed heavily. But he knew that there was no avoiding this discussion. "Well, in health care yesterday, we got a project about cancer..." he started, and Ami's eyes immediately softened in sympathy. "And of course my group just had to get leukemia." They continued walking while Jack talked, Ami eating her donut as she listened intently.

"I went over to her house after school yesterday so we could work on the project with some other people. I called my mom to ask, but she just ended up yelling at me again."

"What did she say?" Ami asked, bicoloured eyes laced with concern.

"Just that I was the worst son in the world, you know, the usual." Jack shrugged. After awhile, he sort of got used to his mom saying so many mean things. It still hurt whenever she said it though.

Ami didn't speak, but she looked like she wanted to comment about his mother.

"Anyways, I ended up going to Tina's house. We were upstairs researching leukemia, or at least she and Evan were while I wrote down everything I remembered," Jack continued. Ami already knew how he had looked up leukemia months before. "Well, then they were asking how I knew so much, and then I just had to get out of there."

"What do you mean?" Ami interrupted quietly.

"I don't know," Jack sighed, running his hand through his white locks. "I just had to leave the room for a while. I just couldn't be in there."

"Go on," Ami encouraged when it seemed like Jack wouldn't continue.

"I got really upset with myself and went outside for awhile." Jack conveniently skipped over the part where he cried his eyes out. "Then my mom called me again, wanting me home. She just yelled at me some more..." Jack paused when Ami patted his shoulder comfortingly. "I went back inside to tell them I had to leave, and Tina was really worried about me."

"And rightfully so," Ami commented with a definite nod.

"So when Evan and Tina came into the cafe earlier, I wanted to avoid them," Jack finished, letting out another sigh.

"I'm sorry Jack," Ami apologised, "I should have realised that you didn't want to talk to them. I shouldn't have talked to them..."

"It's okay," Jack said with a hard smile. "What's done is done."

"I'm so sorry for everything that's happened. You've been through a lot," Ami remarked, her grim expression matching Jack's.

"I know, I know. I just need to control my emotions better."

"Oh Jack." Ami brought her arms up and wrapped them around Jack, bringing him in for a hug.

"Sorry about all of this..." Jack starts.

"Jack!" Ami exclaimed, letting go of him. "What did you do to yourself?!"

"Huh?" Jack questioned, confused.

"What did you do to yourself while you were gone! I felt through your clothes when I hugged you just now, and there's practically nothing to hug. You're too skinny!" Ami yelled in concern. She wondered if Jack even let himself eat...

"I don't know what you're talking about," Jack murmured, voice shaking. He folded his arms across his chest nervously. He'd been found out and he knew it, even though he tried to deny Ami's words.

"Lift up your shirt," Ami commanded sternly.

"What? No."

"Jack!" she insisted.

"I'm fine, Ami," he told her harshly, but she wouldn't relent.

Her arms reached out quickly and grabbed the bottom of his sweater, pulling it up.

"Oh my god..." Ami whispered. Every rib was showing through his sunken in stomach. Small scars criss crossed his flesh, adding discolouration to his otherwise flawless skin. Ami wondered how those cuts got there. She stared at his bare stomach for a few moments, slowly bringing her hand up to feel the ribs poking through. "What did you do to yourself... Jack..." her voice broke as tears pricked her eyes.

Jack places his hand over hers, and gently lowered his sweater. He wanted to tell her everything that he's been through, and though she already knew most of it, Jack just couldn't bring himself to tell her the rest. Several emotions pass through him; anxiety, sadness, regret.

"I..." Jack starts, but loses his voice. "I should go."

"No! Jack, wait!" Ami called and grabbed his wrist as he tried to walk away.

"I'm sorry, Ami," Jack murmured quietly. He didn't want her to find out like this. Then again, he didn't want her to find out at all.

"For what?" Ami asked, exasperated.

"For everything," Jack whined. He hated it when he whined but he really couldn't help it. "I'm just so stupid. You're so nice to me and all I do is make you upset..." Jack trailed off as a couple passed by them, reminding Jack that they were still in public.

"Jack, what are you even talking about?" Ami couldn't believe that all of this was even happening. "Whatever you're doing to yourself, please stop. I don't know everything that happened while you were in Allentown but stop it. Stop. Please. You don't need to be skinny to be perfect."

Jack bit his bottom lip to keep the tears from falling. This is all he ever wanted to hear... someone who cared.

"You're so much better than this. I know with Emma gone it's beyond horrible. I know with your mom acting the way she is, it's not helping one bit. And I know going back to school here is terrible trying to fit in. But you're so much better than this. Now, don't ever call yourself stupid again, okay? You're great and that's why I love you. You can never upset me. Please know that I care for you, okay Jack?" Ami finished, breathless.

Jack suddenly found the concrete sidewalk very interesting to stare at. As long as it meant avoiding Ami's eyes. Jack nodded numbly.

"And Jack?"

He looked up slowly.

"Please stay strong. For me, if no one else," Ami grabbed his hand it gave it a firm squeeze. She needed to let him know that she was there for him, no matter what.

Jack nodded again. Wiping his eyes with his sleeve, Jack tried to regain his composure.

"So, how's it going with Tina?" Ami says, trying to lighten the mood with a joke.

Jack chuckled, but his laugh was hollow and broken. "Why? Is someone jealous?"

"What, no way. She could never compete with me," Ami said, flipping her curled blonde hair over her shoulder.

"Exactly. Because she beat you before it even started!" Jack laughed, and this time it sounded fuller.

"Hey!" Ami called in playful spite, shoving Jack's shoulder.

Jack chuckled again, and was thankful that he had Ami to joke around like this with. She was always there for him, and made him feel better when he was down. He really missed her when he was in Allentown.

The two continue walking down the street, the mood much lighter than it had been a few minutes ago. After a few more hours of walking around town, Ami decided to head home. She said she was freezing, even though she was fully dressed for the cold winter Saturday. Jack waved her off with a smile, but wished that she could have stayed longer. Though it was already a little past noon, he didn't want to go home to his mother.

He wanted to stay out as late as possible and avoid her.

But if there's one thing Jack learned today, it's that he can't avoid people forever. Just like he couldn't avoid the confrontation with Tina and Evan, Jack can't avoid talking to his mom.

He knew that the way she yelled at him wasn't normal. But she was still messed up about Emma. They both were. So he couldn't really blame her for it. She was still his mother, after all.

After a few more minutes of silent debate, Jack decided to walk home. He was freezing after being out in the cold for so long, and Jack was really craving a warm bath and some nice hot chocolate.

It took him about an hour to walk home, since he was pretty far downtown. He passed by several people on the way back to his house; they gave him friendly nods or polite hellos, but Jack could hardly return the gesture. He really didn't want to face his mom.

He finally arrived at his house around 1:40. Jack wondered is his mom was worried that he was gone so long. Probably not.

Unlocking the door, Jack was met with a dark living room. It was silent, so it either meant that his mom was asleep or out.

"I'm home," Jack announced to the darkness. Flicking on the lights, he noticed that the living room was in its usual state of disrepair. Empty beer cans littered the floor, along with some take out boxes. The putrid smell of smoke permeated the air.

"Mom?" he called out, louder this time. No reply.

I guess she's out then. Jack sighed and got to work cleaning. This was an endless cycle for him ever since he and his mom had come back to Burgess. His mom had taken up drinking and smoking after Emma died, even though she had quit since before Jack was born.

But he didn't hate her for it. He just couldn't.

Once he deemed the living room clean enough, Jack broke out the febreeze and sprayed it throughout the house. He really hated the smell of smoke.

Jack went into the kitchen, searching for some food. He hadn't eaten all day, but that was nothing particularly new. The fridge was empty save for several six packs of beer and wine bottles. Jack rolled his eyes and wished that his mom could have gone grocery shopping for a change.

The cabinets were bare other than a few cans of vegetables and pasta boxes. Reaching in the very back, Jack was delighted to find an unopened box of hot chocolate packets. He then warmed up some water on the stove, and in a few minutes, Jack had a steaming cup of chocolate.

Jack let out a sigh when the chocolatey warmth spread through him. He leaned against the counter, drinking his hot beverage in the silence of an empty house. He supposed that the house was more empty than it should have been.

Then again, without Emma, everything in Jack's life was empty.

Sighing, Jack set down his unfinished cup on the counter. He didn't feel like drinking anymore when he thought of his sister.

Jack went down the hall to the washroom, intent on taking a hot bath. Relaxing in the tub, he thought again of his sister. He wondered if she was truly in a better place, or if heaven was all made up. Jack and his family had never been religious, so he really didn't know about any of that.

But when he found out that Emma was sick, Jack prayed. That was the first time in his life that he had ever prayed, but Emma was still taken from him.

Jack sniffled, and realized that he was crying. Instead of wiping his tears, Jack let them fall into the bath water. "What's wrong with me..."