“Wait, so am I allowed to put my shirt back on? Or did you want me to remove my pants, too?”

“How?" I had seen it with my own eyes, but I still didn't believe it. Then something struck me. "Take off your shirt!""I'm not that kind of guy!" He frowned thoughtfully. "On second thought, why not?"I blushed angrily and looked at Raquel. "What is he? I don't see anything!""He's not 'anything'.Just a talented boy.""Then how did he make a door? How did he get through the Paths?""Wait,so am I allowed to put my shirt back on? Or did you want me to remove my pants,too?"Lend and I joined forces in a dark glare. "Only if you want me to vomit," I snapped.”

“Are you okay?"I sighed,my sodden coat chilling me to the bone. "Peachy.Made a new friend."He pulled me up by the hand,unzipping my coat and yanking it off me. "Shirt,too,please.""No!""It's only fair. I seem to recall you making me strip the first time we met.”

“I could have kisses like that for the rest of my life. Kisses that don't know who I am. Kisses that make me feel more and less than what I am. But my finger tap tap taps on my leg and reminds me that I am not who Adam thinks I am, and it makes me want to cry. It's not that I don't deserve his kiss. It's that the person I am can never really share a life, a soul, with the person he is.”

“What are you?" I whispered. "What are you?" Offended, I frowned. "Human." "Funny, me too." "No, you're not." "Funny, neither are you." I set my jaw and glared. What a jerk. "Why did you come here?" My voice came from his mouth, disconcerting as always. "I could ask you the same thing. Are you going to kill me?”

“I could feel the threads from that world, threatening to pull me in, and I'd take whatever anchor I could get. Even if he was a blond nightmare.I lifted my head to look at him "How did you find me?""Just lucky." The answer was smooth, but it felt like he blurted it out a litle too easily. I narrowd my eyes,but he continued."Why did you lie about the trolls?""I didn't." We sat there looking at each other, two seasoned liars,until i couldn't take it anymore."Jack?""Hmm?""Thanks." My voice cracked a little. "If you hadn't shown up...""If I hadn't shown up,you would have been fine.No need to get sappy on me when I've decided you mmight be some decent fun after all.Now,you happen to be wearing my nicest coat. I'll like very much to get it back, so let's take you home,shall we?”

“I don’t want to be like her, like Vivian. I don’t want to hurt anyone. Am I going to hurt people?”“No one can make you do that, child. You are caught between two worlds, much like my own Lend. You will want the fire, you will want to be filled. It is your nature. I hope you do not fall, but she is much stronger than you are.”She smiled at me, reaching out as though she would wipe away my tears. “Cling to what is good in your life. Be good to my son.”