AN/ Thank you so so much for all your great reviews. I didn't know that this story was so popular. Thanks to you guys I've been writing like crazy to get this chapter done and up before planned.

I hope that you'll like it. I personally think it's pretty sweet...

DISCLAIMIER: I do not own Kickin' it.

Chapter 9

Making Contact

Still sitting perfectly hidden among the books, I thought about my options. Mr Brewer's uncontrolled outburst had scared me, to say the least. I mean if he was mad enough to do something like that to his own son, then imagine what he would be capable of doing to an animal… I shuddered.

This day had been like a roller coaster, turning my world completely upside down in so many ways… And as much as I had liked Mr Brewer before, as much did I dislike him now…

But did I really have a choice but to ask for his help. After all he was the only one who could help me and I just couldn't live the rest of my life as a bird, now could I?

In the distance I could hear that same clock going tic-tac, reminding me that time was passing. Time that we didn't have too much of according to Claire…

I briefly wondered how much time had past since Mr Brewer had left. It must've been several minutes at least. I shot a worried glance at Jack. He still hadn't moved, his tall body all curled up. The lack of movement was disturbing. What if he was seriously hurt? Or worse…

I swallowed. Oh my God! What if I just witnessed a murder!

Felling a panic attack coming, my mind started to race. Should I fly back to Claire? Should I get help? If so; how should I be able to do that? I was just a small sparrow. No one would pay any attention to me and even if they did, I still wouldn't be able to talk to them. Besides, Mr Brewer had closed the door when he'd left and I wasn't strong enough to open it by myself.

Frustrated and upset about the way things had turned I glanced at the boy lying on the floor. Maybe I should fly down and take a closer look at him… There wasn't much else for me to do anyway…

I hesitated though, remembering the way he'd chased me earlier. It could be dangerous to approach him.

But after while my curiosity and –as strange as it may sound- worry for him were stronger than my fears and I jumped from the shelf, taking a glide down towards him.

I landed on the floor above his head, noticing to my relief that he was breathing, his chest moving up and down and if I listen carefully I could hear the air entering and leaving his nose.

Wanting to see to see his face I made it around his head. He had his hands lying in front of it though and I would have to squeeze in between them and his face if I would like to see it properly, which would be too risky…

From where I stood I could only see half of his face. The half that had taken the hit… His cheek was really red and it looked like it already had begun to swell. The faint yellow bruise I'd seen earlier at the dojo was still visible and I just realized how he'd gotten it. Suddenly for a moment I totally forgot the past that we shared and I felt sorry for the boy lying in front of me.

The entire time I'd stood there, inspecting him he'd kept his eyes closed, making me wonder if he was unconscious. Maybe I should try to wake him up… After all, his dad would return soon and if the room wouldn't be cleaned up by then I feared that Jack would have to suffer another beating. I shook my head, not believing that I actually worried for him. That meant that I must care, which confused me...

The boy didn't seem so dangerous anymore and I became braver than I normally would've been. I boldly jumped up on his hand, looking at his face. He must've felt it for I could see his eyelids starting to move, slowly opening. His brown orbs focusing on me, making me feel both happy and worried. I wanted him to get up, still I didn't trust him and I prepared myself to take off if necessary.

He closed his eyes again though, grimacing in pain while letting out a moan.

"Look what you did…" He muttered quietly.

I was taken aback by what he'd said. He blamed me for what happened? He was the one who'd trashed the place. I'd just tried to get away from him…

Even though I tried to convince myself that I was completely innocent I couldn't ignore the feeling of guilt starting to consume me. I felt bad for him and I wished that I could talk, so that at least I could say that I was sorry and I didn't mean for this to happen.

Jack sighed deeply, finally moving, stretching out his body somewhat and got into a more comfortable position. He still made no attempt to get up though. Suddenly he pulled away the hand I was sitting on, making me fall off, although I never hit the floor, my wings catching me and holding me up in the air. He placed his hand on his stomach, clutching it slightly while moaning again.

I didn't know how severe the pain was, but I could tell that it hurt. I knew for sure that Jack wasn't a cry-baby, having seen him taken loads hits without even flinching at the dojo.

I watched him worriedly, hoping that his injuries weren't too serious. Needless to say I felt beyond bad as I saw him turning and twisting slowly as if he was trying to escape the pain, while using both of arms now to clutch his stomach. His eyes would occasionally open to just stare blankly out in space before he'd shut them tight again. He had started to breathe heavier again and moans of pain and discomfort left his throat every now and then. The dark eyebrows of his furrowed, frustration and dejection could clearly be seen in his expression. Feelings that I was pretty sure were reflected on my own face, if now a bird was able to show emotions through facial expressions.

Not standing to watch him any longer I let my eyes wander across the room. It looked as if a bomb had gone off in here and there were a lot of work to be done to put everything back in order.

Seeing it as my only way to help I landed on the floor, picking up a sheet of paper with my beak. Normally I would never put something in my mouth that had been lying on the floor, but I found it way easier and much more effective to use my beak instead of my feet or claws which were my only other option.

Holding the piece of paper with a steady grip I lifted from the ground, flying up and placing it where it originally had laid on the desk. One down only about sixty or so to go…

Not wasting any time I dove back down to collect another one. It worked pretty well to clean up like this even though it took some time and little by little the actual floor started to get visible again. Flying back and forth, moving around everything that was light enough for me to carry, I spotted an opened book lying on the floor, a few notes having falling out from it. I swiftly made it over to it, putting all the notes back one by one and after a bit of struggle I even manage to close the book. It was way too heavy for me to move though so I just left it lying there.

I was focused, determined to get this room as nice as I possibly could. It didn't take too long until most of the things were up from the floor, except the chair, the lamp and the books.

Flying up to the desk again I gripped the penholder I'd knocked down earlier with my claws, trying to lift it back up. It was heavy though and I struggled so much I stated panting. The end I was holding on to was about an inch up in the air when my tiny feet started to hurt to a point where I had to let the penholder go. I didn't give up though. Being the stubborn girl that I was, I flew down next to it and placed my back against it, trying to push it back up. I pushed and pushed until my legs started shaking without much happening. Eventually I had to stop, gasping for air while small black dots danced in front of my eyes… I rested for a moment, gathering some new strength and getting my breathing back to normal.

When I felt that I would probably be strong enough for another try I took a deep breath. Closing my eyes I put my back back against the penholder. Okay, here goes, I thought. Mind over matter…

On three. One…two…THREE! With that I pushed as hard as I possibly could against the penholder, bracing every muscle in my body. At the exact same moment I did that though, the penholder magically disappeared from behind me and I fell flat on my back, hitting my head on the hard surface of the desk. Confused and a little embarrassed I looked around. Was I really that strong?

Of course I wasn't... It dawned on me pretty quickly that it hadn't been me who'd moved the penholder, but the teenager boy whose chocolate coloured eyes were looking curiously at me.

I let out a high shriek from surprise and fear, jumping to my feet and backing off in such a hurry that I missed to see where the desk ended and I fell over the edge. I shrieked again, feeling my heartbeat speed up incredibly as I flapped my wings. Managing to catch myself before hitting the ground I flew up to one of the higher shelves, landing on a safe distance from Jack. From up there I dared to look back down at him. He was standing next to the desk, holding the penholder in one hand while the other still was wrapt around his stomach. His eyes were fixed on me, a fascinated expression on his face.

"Don't be scared," he said. "I'm not gonna hurt you." He didn't seem threatening anymore but I wasn't fully sure that I could trust him. Being the vulnerable small sparrow that I was I just couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

Silence erupted and I'm pretty sure that if it hadn't been for me being a bird it would've been very awkward. Jack looked around the room, his hand unconsciously rubbing small circles across his sore stomach.

I wondered how long he'd been up watching me. Had he seen me moving around stuff? If he hadn't he still would figure out that I was the one who tidied this place up. After all there hadn't been any other in the room who could've done it.

Jack was smart enough to be able to realize that I wasn't an ordinary bird, I knew that. I just didn't know if it was a good or a bad thing of him knowing it though… I was pretty sure that no one except Claire and Mr Brewer were supposed to know about me.

Jack looked up at me again.

"Thanks," he said sincerely, before putting the penholder down where it belonged. I smiled at him, even tough I didn't know if he would be able to see it. He gave me another glance, looking as if he was going to say something but changed his mind. Sighing deeply, he slowly turned away, reaching down for a book lying close by. He moved carefully, not wanting to cause himself unnecessary pain as he began to pick up all the things that I hadn't been able to. In spite of being cautious, he would occasionally flinch though, accidentally having done a move that would hurt.

After watching him from above for a moment I decided that could trust him enough to not do anything stupid and hurt me in any way. The penholder was back on its place but the pens were still all scattered round and I figure I might as well fly down and be a little useful again. So I left the safe spot on the shelf and started to pick the pens and pencils up, placing them back in the holder. I noticed Jack watching me with interest and I debated with myself whether I should continue or escape to safety again. But he didn't try to approach me again; instead he got back to picking up stuff from the floor.

It didn't take too long until everything was back into its place and no traces of what happened could be seen. During the time we'd been working along sides I had gradually relaxed in Jack's presence and I didn't believe that he would intentionally hurt me any longer.

He was now standing in the middle of the room, taking one last look around to make sure that we hadn't forgotten anything. His brown orbs eventually found me sitting on the desk. He seemed to be thinking for a moment before taking a few steps closer, holding out his hand towards me. I backed away. Up close he was really big and he kind of scared me.

"It's okay," he said softly. "I'm not gonna hurt you." There was friendliness to his voice and his body posture which made me stop, letting him slowly start to close the gap between us. I braced myself as his hand got closer, hoping that he would understand how fragile I was and not be too rough.

When his hand was only an inch away I closed my eyes as a reflex, knowing that the touch would come and half expecting it to hurt. But surprisingly enough I didn't feel a thing. Confused I opened my eyes again. In front of me lay Jack's gigantic hand, palm facing upwards, inviting me in to its hold.

"Come here," Jack said quietly as if he didn't want to scare me by speaking too loud. I gave him a sceptical look. I wasn't sure that I wanted him to hold me. "It's okay. Trust me."
After some hesitation I finally stepped forward and climbed up into his hand, but not without mentally preparing myself for a flight if necessary…

The corners of Jack's mouth pulled slightly upwards into a smile. I don't think I'd ever seen him smile like that before. It was so genuine and…beautiful. I caught myself starting at him and quickly looked away, thankful for the moment that I was a bird and he couldn't really read me.

"See, nothing to be afraid of…" He said before slowly moving his hand towards him. Holding it close to his body he made sure that I would sit safely in his still open palm. "We better leave before he returns." he mumbled and headed for the door.

Even though he was limping he did his best to keep his hand as still as possible, making sure that I would have a comfortable ride. I have to give him credit for that. He was handling me with much more care than Claire. Relaxing against his ribcage I felt safe, as he carried me through the house.

"It's okay." He reassured again. "I'm going to help you."

My heart skipped a beat. Was he meaning what I thought he was meaning? Did he know who I was already? Was he the one to help me after all?

It must be. He had already figured it all out and now he would bring me back to my own body. I felt so relieved at that. I would never have to work with Mr Brewer. I shook my head slightly, thinking about how happy I'd been just a couple of hours ago believing that Mr Brewer was the one and not Jack... It's really strange how things can totally turn around like that….

Sadly my newly lightened hope was brutally snuffed as Jack brought me out to the porch. It had darkened considerable during the time I'd been inside, making me feel uneasy. I'd never been afraid of the dark before, but now I just felt so vulnerable.

Jack carefully moved his hand underneath me away from his body while placing his other hand next to it, cupping them so I would sit safely within them. I looked up at him, noticing him watching me. Our gazes met and for a long moment none of us were able to look away. I think that he felt something there. A connection of some sort. I know I did.

I looked into his usually so dark and scary eyes to find warmth and care. It hit me again that I didn't really know the boy before me. I didn't know what secrets were hidden in those brown orbs, I didn't know what intentions were filling that mind, I didn't know what desires were living in that heart…

I'd seen him almost everyday, but I had never really seen his soul. The soul of Jack Brewer.

A sudden and unexplainable urge to get closer to him filled me. I wanted to know him.

"Thank you for helping me," he said, breaking the silence and making me return to reality. Smiling he walked out to the edge of the porch and lifted me up almost as high as he could, opening his hands a little. Clearly he meant for me to fly away. I sighed in frustration. Apparently he hadn't got a clue of who I was or what was going on… I found myself disappointed. For some strange reason I'd started to hope that he was the one Claire had meant to send me to.

"You can go," he said, reaching up even higher.

I remained still in his hands. I couldn't leave. Not only because I still needed to get to Mr Brewer or because of the fact that I had no other place to go, since I was forbidden to return home, but because I couldn't bring myself to leave him -the most annoying guy at my school.

"C'mon," Jack urged. I lay down, pressing myself against his palms. Noticing that I didn't intend to leave he brought his arms back down, looking at me. "It's okay, you can fly away now." I just sank deeper into his hold, causing him to sigh and wrinkle his forehead slightly in thoughts for a moment. Having seemed to gotten an idea his expression lightened up. At first I thought that he would bring me back inside but instead he wrapt his right hand around me ever so carefully and lifted me up, placing me on the back of the chair that the cat had laid on earlier.

"There you go." He smiled before turning around to go inside again. I looked at him, feeling annoyed over this entire situation. Why couldn't I speak? It would have made things so much easier.

I was determined to not give up though and as he opened the door to enter the house I lifted and quickly snuck in with him. Flying above his head he failed to notice me.

I landed on a small cupboard with a matching mirror hanging on the wall behind it in the hallway. From there I watched as Jack closed the door behind him, just waiting for him to spot me. But he kept his gaze to the floor and even though he was limping my direction, he didn't see me. His hand made it to his stomach again, rubbing it. There was bitterness written all over his face as he came to a stop right in front of me.

At first I thought that he had seen me, but soon noticed that it was the image of himself looking back at him through the mirror above me that had caught his attention. Turning his head slightly sideways he examined his swollen cheek, letting his fingertips run over it. He carefully put a bit of pressure on it, probably testing how sore it was. Flinching from his own touch he stared at his reflection. He clenched his jaw as if he was trying to hold back the sadness and anger that were showing in his eyes, although the rest of his features remained blank. Exhaling he let out a deep sigh of frustration.

I was actually surprised by the calm and collected way he was dealing with all of this. The Jack I knew- or thought I knew- was violent and loud. He would never have taken those hits without fighting back. Why hadn't he done anything to defend himself? He was a black belt for Christ's sake. Was he really that scared of his father that he didn't dare to do anything?

"Hey, what are you doing in here?" Jack's voice made me snap out of my thoughts. I looked up to see him looking down at me. He didn't seem mad, which I had worried he might be when he would notice that I was back inside, only surprised and a bit confused. "Strange… I thought I left you outside..." He mumbled more to himself than to me.

Reaching out his hand he tried to grab me again, but I quickly moved away. After yet another try with the same result he withdrew his hand, looking at me. I kept my eyes on him and he must've noticed all the attention I was giving him, for he asked;

"What do you want?"

"Tsiip, tsip…" I said as I tried to answer the question, totally forgetting that I wasn't able to speak. Jack's eyes widened slightly, looking as if he just realized something.

"Are you trying to talk to me?" he asked sceptically.

"Eeep!" I exclaimed, nodding my head. The boy looked at me with disbelief.

"Did you just answer my question?" Again I nodded my head, keeping the eye contact.

"So you understand what I'm saying?"

"Eeepts-sip!" I tweeted excitedly. To say that he looked surprised was an understatement. His expression held a mixture of shock and disbelief as if he'd just seen a ghost.

Shaking his head he tried to clear his thoughts and make sure that this was actually happening and was not just a part of his own imagination. He then looked at me again, seeming to have gotten an idea.

"Ok, prove it," he said, folding his arms across his chest. I rolled my eyes at that. I mean I'd just helped him clean up the office, hopped up in his hand to let him carry me through the house and answered all his questions... Wasn't that proof enough that I wasn't an ordinary bird?

"If you can understand what I'm saying then fly over to that chair." He pointed across the room to a chair standing in a corner. Without hesitation I immediately took off and landed on its seat. When I turned to look at him again, he seemed surprised, but quickly shook it off.

"Okay, that doesn't prove anything." He said. "You only went there because you saw me pointing at it…" I raised an eyebrow. How much would it take for him to get it?

"If you truly do understand me then jump down from that chair, land on the floor before flying again, then circle me for three laps and land on my right shoulder." This time he was careful not to give away any clues by gesturing, keeping his arms folded across his chest. I smiled, knowing that I would be able to do all of that and I couldn't wait to see his face once I was done.

Jumping off the chair I landed on the floor like he'd said, giving him a curious glance as I did. He was watching me with interest as I took of again and flew around him, carefully counting the laps. Jack followed every move I made until I landed lightly on his shoulder. He turned his head, looking at me, his mouth slightly opened. It took him a moment to find his voice and when he finally did he wasn't able to talk louder than whisper.

"You really can understand me, can't you?" I nodded. I don't know what he was thinking, but he seemed to be happy about it because a smile made it to his lips. A smile that was quickly wiped away when he suddenly spotted something behind me.

"Oh no…" Jack whispered. I worriedly turned around, following his gaze and looking out that window. It didn't take me more than a split second to see the familiar man who was walking along the sidewalk, the light from the street lanterns creating shadows across his face. I felt fear grasping my chest, immediately reminded of what that man had done to Jack earlier.

"He's back," Jack stated quietly, before he quickly turned and took of jogging. I dug my small claws into the fabric of his shirt to be able to stay on his shoulder as he moved swiftly through the house. "If he sees that I've let a bird in, I'm screwed…"He sounded worried, which didn't exactly ease my mind. "We gotta hide you somewhere."

Jack sprinted up the steps, making it close to impossible for me to hang on to him so I let go, deciding to fly instead. Following him to the second door to the right, which I assumed would be his bedroom, I could hear the front door opening downstairs.

"Quick," Jack whispered as he opened the door, letting me in. He threw a worried glance down the stairs before entering the room himself, closing the door behind him.

That was all for now...

I don't know if I'll be able to get the next chapter up as quickly. But reviews always help;P simply because they motivates me and as soon as I read one I usually get to writing right away.

But as always I'll try to update asap and to all of you who review; there's gonna be a small sneak peek of the next chapter;)

Thank you for reading

/MJ