Hey, everyone! Or at least those of you who are still reading my story. First of all, I apologize hardcore for the excruciatingly long wait for this next chapter! I realize it's been more than seven months since my last update, but my life has taken an incredibly chaotic turn and I really haven't had time to devote to sitting down and writing. I hope you guys understand! I'm going to try to get back into updating this story regularly again (as well as other stories). Hope you guys enjoy the chapter! And thanks for being patient or for at least continuing to read!

Jake swallowed hard as Fiona's phone continued to ring. "Come on, Fiona, I need you right now." He held his breath until he heard noise on the other side.

"Jake, is everything alright?" Fiona already sounded concerned. Well, she did tell him to call if there was a problem and it was almost 11 at night.

"No, no it's not." His voice cracked, not bothering to hide the fact that he was becoming unhinged. "I know who hurt Drew and I have a good idea of where he's gonna be tonight." He took a second to catch his breath. It was as if he'd been running a marathon. "I think it's time he gets what's coming to him."

"Whoa, Jake. Slow down for a second." Fiona almost couldn't believe what was coming out of Jake's mouth.

"I don't NEED to slow down, Fiona!" Jake said defiantly, "That worthless piece of shit is out there drinking himself sick and having a good ol' time with his asshole friends while my boyfriend is confined to a hospital bed because of them!" He ran a shaky hand through his hair, becoming frustrated. "I'll be fucking damned if I let them get away with this. I'm so fucking sick of letting people walk all over me!"

Fiona had a hard time figuring out what to say next. For a second she wondered if it was really Jake on the other end of the line. She never heard him speak like this; she didn't think it was possible for him to get so worked up. There were so many questions in her head, she didn't know what to ask first.

She settled on the most obvious one. "What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to come with me."

Fiona hesitated, "This is a really bad idea, Jake." She heard him sigh on the other end and quickly tried to reason with him. "Your emotions are getting the best of you right now and you're not thinking clearly. Can't you just-"

Jake stopped her from going on, "If you don't want to come with, I'll just go by myself."

Irritated and losing his patience, Jake nearly hung up on Fiona when he heard her shout "WAIT!" He raised the phone back up to his ear. "Fine, I'll come along."

Jake smirked. "I'll be there in five."

Fiona opened the door for Jake, who wasn't as intense or seething as he seemed over the phone. In fact, he was more subdued and anxious than anything.

"Are you ready?" He asked as he stepped inside. Fiona grimaced. She'd hoped that Jake had lost his nerve to go through with this by the time he showed up.

"Yeah, so what's the plan?" She asked reluctantly, desperately trying to find a way to stall him.

They sat down on the couch as Jake started to explain his plan. "Well, I obviously can't take them all down, so I figure if we can somehow lure that one jerk away from his friends, then I can give him a taste of his own medicine."

Jake's increasingly erratic behavior was clearly evident just from the way he was talking and how his eyes were darting around the room like he was paranoid over something and it was really starting to bother Fiona. He also seemed unable to sit still and his hands were shaking. She was worried he was headed for a meltdown.

"Okay, stop!" Fiona interrupted. "Jake, slow down! What is going on? This isn't like you at all and honestly, you're really scaring me."

"What do you mean?" Jake came off as clueless and gave her a blank, innocent look to match.

Fiona's stomach churned. It killed her to see him like this. She could only imagine how horrific Drew would feel if he were the one witnessing Jake spiralling out of control right now.

"Jake, I think you're having a nervous breakdown or something. You're not acting like yourself. You're not the kind of person to talk about things like 'taking someone down' or 'giving them a taste of their own medicine', especially not in a way that could mean killing someone!" Fiona had a hard time keeping her own emotions in check, but she knew she had to in order to help stabilize Jake. "You walk in here pale as a ghost. It's freezing outside and yet, you're working up a sweat and you're shaking like you drank fifteen energy drinks. Something is definitely wrong."

Jake glared at her incredulously and scoffed. "Nothing is wrong with me, I'm fine! It's not like I'm the one in a hospital bed because a bunch of douchebags beat the shit out of me for no reason! Drew's the one you should be worrying about."

"I am worried about him, but I'm also worried about his boyfriend who's sitting in front of me and plotting a murder."

"Well, you shouldn't be. Alright?" Jake raised his hands dismissively. "I'm the last person who needs someone worrying about them in this situation. It's my goddamn fault after all." Jake trailed off, his words ridden with shame.

Fiona narrowed her eyes. "You can't be serious."

Jake turned back to Fiona. "Damn right I'm serious. I'm the one who started this whole mess by punching that guy. I should be looking out for Drew, but instead I end up leading him into more shit."

"No, Jake, you didn't start anything!" Fiona protested. "That jerk is the one who started shit by harrassing Drew! You did what any protective boyfriend would do for the person they love."

"Well I should have been there to make sure he wouldn't come after Drew! I knew something like this was gonna happen and I still let it!" Jake stood up and began pacing. His voice rose the more agitated he got. "How could I let this happen!?"

Fiona got up and followed him. "Jake, you're being ridiculous!"

"I'm supposed to protect him, Fiona!" Jake's voice was cracking. He felt a lump building up inside his throat. "He's my whole world. What would I do if I lost him!?"

"You can't expect to be able to watch over him all the time." Fiona retorted. "That's not even possible. You're going to drive yourself crazy thinking like that!"

"What if I already am crazy?" Jake scrunched his eyes shut, the tears finally streaming down his cheeks. He crumbled back down to the couch in defeat.

Fiona sat with him and rubbed his shoulder. "Jake, come on.. You're not crazy! Why would you even think that?"

Jake remained silent for a few moments and faced away from Fiona. Finally, he responded. "I always have these thoughts about horrible, awful things happening to my family and friends. They scare the living hell out of me. When Drew told me what those guys did to him, I felt like I couldn't breathe or even think. I thought my fears were starting to come true or that I somehow caused this. That's why I'm so scared that this is going to keep happening and get worse."

"Oh, Jake.." Fiona hugged him from behind and rested her head on his shoulder. "I had no idea that you were going through something like this. I'm so sorry. But you know, you can't blame yourself. Your fears did not cause this to happen at all and they're not coming true. I know they feel real to you, but you have to remind yourself that they're irrational and that things aren't going to be as bad as you think they'll be."

"Easier said than done." Jake said cynically. He sat up and wiped a few tears from his eyes.

"I know. But you have people in your life who love and care about you who will help you realize that. You do so much to make sure everyone around you is safe, but now it's our turn to make sure you feel that same sense of security."

Jake stayed silent and watched Fiona as she spoke, his eyes glistening in the dim light of the apartment.

"As for those jerks, I know you want to kill them for what they did. I don't blame you at all. Just about anyone would feel the same way. But if you went through with it, you'd regret it for the rest of your life."

Jake frowned and sat back down. "Why do you say that?"

"Because you're not a killer." Fiona patted him on the knee, "Even though those bastards have it coming, you would feel horrible afterwards. You have such a good heart. You don't have it in you to take someone else's life away and then act like it was nothing." Fiona rubbed his arm comfortingly, "And that's no weakness; that's something to be proud of. Not everyone has a conscience as good as yours, Jake."

Jake raised his hand to his mouth and gnawed a little on his thumb; a conflict of thoughts stirring up inside his head. Fiona knew her words were starting to make him see reason.

"Besides, if you killed him, you'd be leaving all of us behind, including Drew. You'd go to prison for the rest of your life. You can't be with Drew if you're behind bars."

This revelation caused Jake to look up, his gaze locking with Fiona's.

"You also can't protect him from there, either."

His eyebrows scrunched as the thought pained him. He ran a hand through his hair roughly, as if he was trying to pull it out. "But what if this happens again?"

Fiona leaned forward and grabbed both of Jake's hands. "It won't. There are other ways to deal with these guys. You just have to trust me, okay?" Jake continued to stare down into his lap. "Do you trust me?" She asked again.

After a moment he looked up at Fiona and nodded his head, a small smile finally gracing his lips. "Yeah, I trust you."

Fiona breathed out a sigh of relief. The Jake she knew and loved seemed to be coming back, along with the color in his cheeks.

"I.. I'm so sorry, Fiona." He said with shame. He held his face in his hand and repeated his apology.

"Don't be. Don't worry about anything else right now, okay?" Fiona assured. Jake nodded in agreement.

"I think I better get going." Jake stood up and began heading for the door.

"Wait!" Fiona grabbed his hand and pulled him back to the couch. "It's late and you're beyond wiped out. Just crash here in Drew's room tonight."

"But-" Jake began to protest.

"No, I insist! You shouldn't be by yourself tonight anyway and besides, I don't like being by my lonesome either."

Jake sighed and nodded. "I guess you're right." He rubbed his head and grimaced.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, just got kind of a headache." Jake knew it was no surprise, given the rush of adrenaline and rage that's been surging through him all night.

"Here." Fiona got up and headed to the refrigerator, pulling out a fresh water bottle. She then grabbed a bottle of aspirin and poured out two in her hand before returning to Jake and handing them to him. "The water should help mellow you out a little too."

Jake gulped down the aspirin and took a few drinks of water. "I really appreciate this."

Fiona winked. "Don't mention it."

Jake pretty much passed out the second his head hit Drew's pillow. The smell of Drew's hair instantly eased his mind.

Fiona gently pulled a blanket over Jake's sleeping form.

"G'night, Jake." She whispered and gently kissed him on the forehead. She flicked the light off and quietly closed the door. A knock on the front door came as she exited Drew's room.

"Oh my god! Is everything alright!?" Imogen hugged Fiona as soon as she opened the door. "I would've been here sooner, but the taxis were running slow tonight."

"Oh, Immy." Fiona sighed exasperatedly and rubbed her palms against her own temples. "Tonight has been utter chaos, but everything's fine now. I thought I'd need another voice of reason."

"Why? What for?" Imogen took a seat at the couch and watched Fiona as she returned to the fridge and pulled out two bottles of water, handing one over to Imogen.

"Drew got jumped tonight while he was leaving work."

Imogen's eyes widened. "What?! Oh god! Is he okay?"

Fiona nodded. "Yeah, he will be. It turns out that the guys who attacked him were the same ones that gave him and Jake trouble at a bar not too long ago. One of them was trying to start shit with Drew, so Jake punched him. Then, I guess they somehow tracked Drew down and took it out on him. Needless to say, Jake went berzerk when he found out and he was ready to hunt the guy down. So, for the last hour, I had to talk him out of becoming a murderer."

Imogen's jaw just about hit the floor. "O. M. G. This is insane! Poor Jakey! Where is he now?"

"He's sleeping in Drew's room." Fiona nodded in the direction of his room. "He's in no shape to be by himself right now. Poor guy is so exhausted."

"I can't even imagine. I don't want to think of how I'd feel if we were put in that situation."

"Je suis d'accord, the last thing I need right now is for you to be in any danger. I wouldn't be able to handle it." Fiona leans over and hugs Imogen tightly. "I need you more than anything."

"You got me and I'm definitely not going anywhere." Imogen smiled brightly before pecking Fiona on the lips. "And good news, I'm not needed back home, so I'm all yours tonight!"

"That is good news!" Fiona beamed. "Well, the night's still young and even though it's a school night, how about we start things off with a movie marathon?"

"I knew you'd suggest that, so I came prepared with all of our favorites!" Imogen reached in her bag and pulled out several DVDs, waving them in front of Fiona.

Fiona beamed. "You know me so well!"

Jake took in a deep breath and stretched as he woke up on Drew's bed, breathing in the smell of Drew's hair that was on his pillow.

His cursed once he noticed the clock. "Dammit! I'm fucking late!"

He stumbled out of Drew's room and nearly overlooked a note on the table.

"Jake,

Sorry for not waking you. You looked exhausted and since you had such a rough night, I thought I'd let you sleep in. Don't worry about coming to school today. I'll cover your absence with Simpson and I already told your dad you spent the night here. Just take it easy today. Please? You deserve it. The doctors said Drew's fine and he'll be released soon.

Lots of love,

Fiona (and Imogen!)"

Jake showed a hint of a smile and calmed down a bit after reading the note with a sense of warmth inside of him. With the growing list of people seemingly hellbent on keeping him and Drew apart, it was a nice feeling to have someone on their side for a change.

Things seemed almost perfect at the moment, except for one thing: Drew still wasn't there with him.