Jesse walked down the dark and dirty hallway, scanning the numbers on the doors. Finally he found the door with the number 14 engraved on it. Knocking loudly three times, he waited for the door to be opened. It was near a minute and still the door remained closed, so Jesse decided to turn back and walk away.

Just at that moment did the door finally open partially, the small golden chain of the lock in place. Peering out at him, Todd's face was suspicious but otherwise plain. 'Jesse?'

Jesse turned and shrugged, 'yeah, obviously it's me. You're the one that called me and told me to come here. So are you gonna let me in or what?'

'Oh yeah, sure, just a second.' Todd closed the door and Jesse could hear the chain lock being taken off. Sure enough, the door opened again and Jesse was gestured to come inside.

Todd's apartment was a little messy and cramped, but otherwise it looked good enough. There was a couple of magazines thrown about on tables and couches, and some empty and crushed up cans lying about, but other than that it looked neat enough.

Jesse followed Todd inside and into the small and open kitchen.

'Can I get you a drink or something? A beer, maybe?' he offered.

Jesse turned to face him sharply, 'look here man, I'm not to be friendly, alight? I came because I thought something important was going on, or Mr. White was here or something. So why don't you cut the crap and tell me what the hell is going on?'

For a moment Todd didn't do or say anything, but eventually he shrugged, 'yeah sure, of course. Well, follow me then. I'll show you what it is that made me call you over here.'

Todd led the way across the open, brick walled room and into a smaller, more closed in room. All there was in it was a simple low wooden table and a torn up couch. On the table was an empty bottle of beer, two lines of cocaine, much to Jesse's surprise, as he had never figured Todd for the type, and a handgun.

At first Jesse didn't understand what the point of being brought into this room was, but soon enough he saw it. It was staring down at him, eyes accusing, mouth slightly agape. Jesse backed away a few steps in silent shock, not daring to believe his eyes.

Todd turned to him with a cheerful, friendly smile on his face, 'so what do you think, Jesse?'

Jesse's mouth was wide open, just as his eyes. He kept backing away until he hit the wall, and then pressed his hands against it, as if to steady himself.

The severed head of the boy stared at him, his stare burning through Jesse, never leaving him, never forgiving him. It was unrelenting, and cold, and hard. The nails had been hammered through the ears of the boy, the blood around the impact now well dried and dark. The cut at the neck, where the head had been separated from the body was clean and precise.

'W-what have you done?' Jesse said quietly, wanting to rip his eyes away from the head, but finding he couldn't do it.

Todd shrugged and said casually, 'I thought it would make a good trophy.'

It was the way that he said it that sent Jesse over the edge. He said it as if it were the most obvious and normal thing that came to mind; that it was nothing special, and just something to hang up.

Without hesitating, without even thinking, Jesse tore his gaze away from the head and to the table. In one swift movement, Jesse moved over to it, picked up the gun and raised it to Todd's head.

Todd turned to face Jesse a second before a bullet blasted through his left eye. The burst of noise was near deafening in the small room, and the instant Jesse fired the gun he dropped it to the floor and covered his ears from the loud shock.

Todd's body had slumped lifelessly to the floor face down, blood seeping from the hole where his left eye had been only a second before. The ejected shell rolled across the floorboards, and Jesse could see where the bullet had finally impacted in the brick wall.

Not giving Todd's body one last glance Jesse steadied himself and left the room in a rush.