His knuckles tingled as he readjusted his grip on the bar. His body felt alive with electricity; as if the current of ten thousand volts was penetrating through his very entity. His toes twitched from their confinement in his running shoes. This was it. The moment he'd been waiting for, preparing for, conditioning his body for. Everything he'd endured came down to this. This was it, there was no turning back.

Jensen grabbed the bar from him and set it in the holder allowing Eddward to sit up. He flexed his fingers a few times and took deep breaths.

Fight or flight.

Sink or swim.

Ready or not.

Kill or be killed.

"It's been a minute, hasn't it." The voice said from behind him.

Eddward let the words hit his back and roll down his spine.

"Two and a half years to be precise, but who's keeping track." He said as he adjusted his hat and stood to look at his tormentor.

Jensen Reese stood at about six feet tall. He had a defined jaw and deep sunken eyes. They were hard and tired. His curly blond hair rested above his eyebrows. He was bulkier than what Eddward remembered. He was clad in a hoodie and dark wash jeans. A small side smile graced his lips.

"Take it all in Double Dee, I'm back." He said as he raised his hands and gestured to himself.

"You've been back for a few months now. One must wonder why you emerged now of all times." Eddward stated trying to keep himself calm.

Something was off about, Jensen. He couldn't quite place it. It was almost as if he was actually excited to see Eddward. That was crazy. Maybe he was excited to come and finish the job. That was it. That must be it.

"You look good," Jensen said as he took a step closer and Eddward took a step back trying to keep enough distance between them. "Come on, I won't hurt ya."

Eddward couldn't stop the laugh that escaped him, "Funny, I remember a similar conversation taking place the night you tried to murder me."

Something in Jensen faltered, he didn't try to hide it. His shoulders dropped and his tough exterior faltered.

"Yeah, about that. Look, Double Dee-"

"Shut up!" Eddward snapped, earning him a shocked look from the other party in the room. "You killed him. That part of me is dead. He died a long time ago. You don't deserve the privilege to speak that name."

"Damn, well okay." Jensen said as he went to take another step.

"Don't. You. Dare." Eddward snarled enunciating each word. "I don't know how you envisioned this evening going, nor do I care, but I'm going to tell you what's not going to happen. You will not touch me. You'll be lucky to leave here with all your ligaments intact." He finished as his fists curled harder at his sides.

"Wow, I don't know what I was expecting, but that… that was hot."

Eddward's demeanor broke.

"Excuse me."

"Look Edd?" He asked, seeming to test the waters as the name rolled off his tongue. "I've come to terms with a lot of things since being in jail. It… it changed me. I… you…I thought beating you… almost killing you that is. That wasn't supposed to happen, but you figured out who I was. I was drunk. Uhm… angry… embarrassed, scared too I guess," Jensen started, "I grew up in a very strict Christian household. Being gay was a sin. I was a sin. And you… you just walked around flaunting it like it was the easiest thing in the world. I was jealous of you."

Eddward tried to speak, but Jensen continued on.

"I knew. I could tell. I saw the way you looked at Kevin. It was the same look I caught myself giving you. I couldn't let it happen. I needed to eliminate the problem. I thought beating the hell outta you would cure me. But it didn't. Jail, heh, jail was an eye opener. If you're not runnin' things in there then you're someone's bitch. I will never be someone's bitch again. I got help. I'm better now. And I'm here."

Eddward hadn't realized that as he was speaking Jensen was steadily making his way closer to him. They were millimeters apart. Jensen's eyes were locked hard on Eddward's waiting patiently for something, for anything to happen.

Eddward couldn't believe the absurd words being spoken to him. This was some kind of twisted, sick joke. It just had to be.

He laughed. He laughed loud and hard to the point that his eyes welled up with tears.

He'd been preparing for this since the day of the attack; for this altercation, for this moment of true justice to come his way. He was ready to take back his life and make sure Jensen was never a threat to him again, but this, this was completely ridiculous.

Anger and pain surged in Jensen's vision as he closed the gap between them and grabbed Eddward's collar tightly with his fist and was ready to strike a punch with the other.

"This a fuckin' joke to you?!" He bellowed out hurt and angry. "You of all people should understand how it feels to be like this."

Eddward stopped laughing long enough to form a sentence, "To be like what? A coward? A pathetic excuse for a human?" Eddward asked as Jensen's eyes dialated and his grip tightened, "Oh, I've struck a nerve. Am I getting warmer?" Eddward asked not even trying to hide the sarcasm coating his words.

Jensen heaved Eddward back and he crashed against the wall and fell with a thud. The laughing ensued. He couldn't help it. Was Jensen really out here trying to play the victim?

"I trusted you. You of all people know what it's like to be like us. To be judged. I thought you'd understand." Jensen let out as he towered over Eddward's body. "I didn't ask to be like this."

Eddward looked up at Jensen. His shoulders were rising and falling rapidly with every breath he took. There was sweat beaded on his forehead that had soaked into some of his loose curls. His eyes were hard and focused.

Eddward put a hand out to him as if to silence anything else he might try to say. He slowly got to his feet and brushed himself off as he composed himself.

"You see, that's where you're entirely wrong." Eddward started and Jensen looked like he was about to interject, "No. You've said your piece. You've made things abundantly clear so now from my perspective it's my turn to enlighten you." Eddward started, "You belittled me on every occasion and made my life a living hell. I endured endless hours of suffering and torture at the hands of you and your delinquent followers. I was afraid to use the facilities alone for fear of having my head bashed into the sink, again. I was fearful of turning a corner into a darkened corridor. I was afraid every minute I wasn't near a teacher or in the sanctuary of a classroom. My own home was no longer safe because of you. So no, no matter how I view this scenario we are not the same. Our situations are entirely irrelevant to each other." Eddward finished.

Jensen's exterior seemed to relax a little. "I'm sorry. I can't take back what I did, but I'm here now and I-"

Eddward reacted so quickly Jensen never stood a chance. In an instant Eddward had thrown Jensen back into the wall and was now at him with his forearm slammed up against his throat. With his free hand his finger was stabbed directly into Jensen's chest.

"You are not the victim here!" He screamed out. "You are the monster. You are the villain in my story! If you came here seeking redemption then your apologies end here. You don't get to be sorry. You don't deserve forgiveness. You ruined me. Because of you… it's all because of you. You changed me. I have panic attacks that make me a borderline insomniatic. I cut my body because the thought of anyone else ever hurting me is too much for me to handle. I hurt myself so others can't. I destroy everything I touch so that no one else ever has the satisfaction of doing it for me. I finally get the chance to settle the score and you have this barbaric excuse of how we're the same. We are not the same. We are nothing alike. And you…" Eddward paused and released his hold on Jensen who slouched down onto the floor trying to regain his breath, "You will never have my pity or my forgiveness. Your past transgressions are your demons to deal with. I have my own."

Eddward took a deep breath and turned so he could exit the locker room. When he reached the door he put both hands on the doorframe and spoke his final words.

"This is to be our final encounter. Do not cross paths with me again. Do not seek me out. Do not ask how to find me or where I am. I never want to see your face ever again."

The music was blaring. The room smelt like a sweaty locker room after a rough practice. There was cheap beer in his cup and cheap booze soaked into his jeans from some drunk chick earlier in the night who sucked at flirting. Another drink down and so many more to go. Kevin had lost count of how many he'd had at this point. He just wanted to keep drinking. The more he drank the easier it was dealing with the fact that Eddward... Eddward… no fuck him. Fuck him and Marie and all his secrets and lies. Kevin just wanted to drown out his name and focus on the girl who was grinding her ass against him on the couch. Who was this chick again? Oh shit, she's talking.

"What?" He asked when she turned to face him.

"I said do you wanna go upstairs to one of the bedrooms?"

Good question, did he? No, no he didn't. Mentally and physically he didn't. He wasn't even hard. This chick was winding and grinding and probably throwing out her best moves and Kevin just couldn't get into it.

He opened his mouth to answer and before he could speak she threw her head down and puked beside the couch, just missing him. Yeah, no. Definitely not. Kevin looked up into the crowd of people and saw her friends making their way over to him.

"Oh my God, Brittany you can't just puke on the quarterback." The girl said as she grabbed her friend and pulled her off of Kevin. "She's usually not like this." The girl said, trying to wipe the other girl's mouth and pull her to her feet.

"Yeah, whatever. Maybe take her to lie down or something." Kevin suggested as the two made their way back into the horde of bodies.

Kevin sighed and shimmied further down the couch, thankfully she missed hitting him, but he still didn't want to sit near vomit. His cup was empty now and he was about to get up and get another drink when another body sat down beside him.

"That was disgusting." Eddy said staying clear of the vomit rug.

"Right? Pathetic." Kevin countered and went to toast Eddy with his empty cup.

Eddy raised an eyebrow and fist bumped his cup. "Not drinking." Eddy replied.

"I noticed," Kevin said as his eyes searched the room, "you here with Ed or somethin'?"

Eddy relaxed into the couch. "Nah, although he might be here somewhere. Nazz was drunk texting me so I got worried. Just came to see if she was okay."

"Aaaaand?"

Eddy raised an eyebrow, "and she promptly told me to fuck off when I tried to get her to leave with me. Apparently she won't go home with someone afraid to be her boyfriend, even though she has no problem texting me like I am."

"She'll come around. Just give her some more time. It's been hard on her too." Kevin answered. "What'd she text you anyway?"

Eddy's cheeks flushed. "We're not that close, Shovelchin." He answered.

Kevin inwardly shuddered. "You know what you're right, I don't need to think about either of you like that."

They both shared a laugh and stared back into the mixture of drunken teenagers.

"Keep an eye on her will ya?" Eddy asked as he got up.

Kevin raised his once empty cup again and saluted Eddy with it.

"Won't let'er outta my sight, Captain."

"Find some water and sober up, you're embarrassing." Eddy said with a laugh as he made his way out.

Kevin was left alone once again, but that only lasted a second until another body plopped down ungraciously beside him.

"What'd that fuckin' loser want?" Came the voice to his right.

"He ain't all that bad," Kevin began and went to look at who sat down beside him. His eyebrows shot up when Tom smiled back at him.

"Oh, no he is. I hate that little shit. He's like a fuckin' cockroach, always crawlin' around and he's everywhere. It's like I can't get rid of him. Tried knocking him out the other day and he still pops back up." Tom said as he threw the rest of his drink back.

Kevin pointed to his eye. "That was you?" He asked.

"You know it. Not the one I wanted to punch, but he still had it coming." Tom said nonchalantly. "I have you to thank for that actually. But you were right, better not to do it on school grounds."

Kevin nodded his head recalling his encounter in the locker room before winter break. Kevin raised an eye to him. "What's going on with you and Dee anyway? Kinda odd for him to go after anybody." Kevin said, trying not to have any emotion behind his words. "How's the nose?" Kevin asked, gesturing with his cup to Tom's face.

Tom gave him a sleazy grin as he brushed it off. He had bags under his eyes and deep sunken bruises. Eddward had gotten a clean straight shot at him.

"That fucker stole my girl, you know, Marie Kanker? Drives me around and dotes on me. But she has this thing for him which I don't quite get. Like why anyone would go for a fag like him is beyond me. Anyway, tried keepin' her in her place. Had to slap her around a bit and she bolted to him. Now he's all in my face about how he has her. Like the nerve of that loser. Like Jensen didn't do enough to him the first time around. Now he thinks he's all big and bad, but he doesn't know what I know."

Well now Kevin was intrigued. Him and Tom were never friends. He'd spoken to him a few times back in the day before Jensen was put away. So why was he over here talkin' to him about Eddward? Something wasn't adding up here and wait a minute… he hit Marie?

"You just say you hit Marie?" Kevin asked, head still fuzzy from the alcohol.

Tom shrugged like it was no big deal and slouched back, "You know how these girls are, just gotta show'em who's boss and put'em in their place every once in a while. I didn't wanna hit her. She did it to herself really."

"The fuck is wrong with you?" Kevin asked, "You don't hit a fuckin' girl dude." Kevin said as he sat upright and looked at Tom who still had that stupid smug smile plastered across his face.

Now it was starting to make more sense. If anybody ever laid a hand on Nazz he would absolutely lose his shit on them. No wonder Eddward was a complete wreck breaking out of character and going after Tom during the school day. But why, why didn't Edd tell him. So much could have been resolved right then and there if Kevin knew the true reason behind Eddward's actions. Kevin inwardly slapped himself.

"Anyway," Tom started, "I notice you and the fag hang out sometimes, like weight train together and meet up after your game lets out, or you used to earlier in the school year. Whatever. Now you're hangin' out with the small dipshit." Tom said.

"We're friends, not that its any of your fuckin' business." Kevin snarled, growing more angry with every passing second.

"Well ya might wanna go check on your friend because I'm pretty sure he just met up with an old friend of mine who was just dying to see him again."

Kevin's face drained of blood and he could hear his heart thumping in his ears.

"Yeah, loaned Jensen my school ID so he could use the gym, pretty sure fag boy's been goin' there at the same time every day this week. I bet they can spot each other." Tom laughed as he put his hands behind his head and stretched out.

Kevin spun and grabbed Tom by the throat, "I swear to God, if anything happens to him-"

"Didn't know you cared about your friend this much. Maybe a little too much." Tom let out in a strangled breath.

Kevin threw him down and lunged to his feet. He reached in his pocket and pulled out his phone. He scrolled to Edd's name hastily and pressed the call icon.

Tom was yelling other vulgarities and profanities at him, but he didn't care anymore. He needed to hear Eddward's voice.

Ring.

Ring.

"Hello you have reached the voicemail box of Eddw-"

Click.

Ring.

Ring.

"Hello you-"

Click.

"Hel-"

Right to voicemail. Fuck.

If anything happened to him, Kevin didn't know what he'd do. He staggered through the sea of teenagers until he made his way to the front door. Once outside Kevin inhaled the fresh air as he scanned the street. He'd come here with a bunch of the football players, but everyone was drunk and he figured he'd be walking home anyway so he hadn't cared about a designated driver then, but now.

"Keeeeviiiiiin," came Nazz's drunk voice as she grabbed him around the waist and held him to steady herself, "you leavin' already?" She asked.

"Nazz, Jensen went to the gym to see Dee." Kevin said in a panicked tone.

Nazz let go of him and straightened, "Holy shit."

"Yeah, I know. School's too far to make it on foot." Kevin said as he grabbed his hat off his head and squeezed it tightly, using his other hand to run his fingers through his hair, "fuck what do I do. He won't answer his phone, I don't- I don't know what to do." He stammered.

"Hey, I know I was an ass, but this is serious, are you home?" Nazz's voice said from behind him and he swiveled to see her on the phone.

"Call Dee, he's in trouble. He-" Nazz stopped talking as she stared off into the distance. "Oh. Okay then." She hung up and stared at Kevin.

"What, Nazz? What happened?" He asked as put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them.

"You sure Jensen went after him? Cuz, Eddy just got home and he said he saw him sitting on his front porch. "Nazz answered and Kevin dropped his arms.

Kevin let out a breath of relief he didn't know he was holding. "I- I mean, Tom-" Kevin felt the rage burning inside his veins, "That prick was trying to fuck with me."

"Apparently," Nazz said.

"Ugh, sorry Nazz. I didn't mean to… I know you didn't wanna call, Eddy. Thanks though." Kevin said as he turned back to face the road.

"Come on," Nazz said, linking her arm in Kevin's, "walk me home, I've lost my mood to party and I want a cheeseburger."

"Yeah, let's go."

He saw Eddy's truck pull up across the cul-de-sac and park. Eddy hopped out and waved to which Eddward nodded in return. It was getting late and Eddward was mentally tired from the day's festivities.

Eddward sat on the porch to his home in a state of unease. The moment he'd been waiting for had been the most anticlimactic moment of his life. This was not how it was supposed to happen. They were supposed to fight. Duel to the death. Something… not this. Words were spoken and Eddward had said his piece and he was okay with that, but he was still unsettled. Something more needed to come from this. Anything.

If it were any other day he may have noticed the subtle changes around him. The porch light was on for starters. And the curtains inside were slightly parted. There was soft music playing inside barely audible to the world outside the front door. If it were any other day he would have been prepared. He would have noticed, but today had thrown him for a loop and the fun had just started.