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"You're insane!"

Jackson cocked his head to one side, frowning at the possibility that he was insane. It was very unlikely, more so due to the fact that he was asking something very reasonable of Stevie. While they were walking towards their respective lectures, he had asked her to apologise to Kai for punching him. The look on her face made him concerned for his own face, even though he was nearly a foot taller than her. 

"To be fair, you did start the fight," He reminded her. "And you also punched him, and tried to hit him again. I could get him to apologise to you too?"

Stevie scoffed. The two stopped at the steps, waiting for Stevie to open her bag so that one of the officers then examined the contents inside. He didn't bother bringing anything since he only had one lecture for the day. To Jackson, the security measure was ridiculous. Only an idiot would waltz into the campus with a weapon in their bag. The killer would most likely strike at night, through a secret entrance that only they knew. Not to mention, the killer slaughtered those two students because of Jackson's disobedience. He knew better than to refuse him again. 

Once they were let into the Arts building, there conversation started again. "As if he'll ever apologise to me. Are you gonna get on your knees and apologise for him?"

He furrowed his brows, making a face of discomfort. "I can't say I'm in the habit of getting on my knees."

"That was way too much information."

"Well, you asked. Me apologising for him isn't fair to you," Jackson paused. Should he tell her about what Joshua said? It was high risk, high reward. Stevie was a brilliant researcher, with a much better grasp of computers and records than him, but she could just as easily dismiss him. "I wanted to ask something of you. I met Kai's father yesterday, and he knew about my mother."

Her brows shot up in surprise. "Isn't she dead?"

"She is," He dropped his voice to a whisper, glancing around to make sure no one could hear them. "I was wondering if you could dig up anything about her, cross reference it with the word Gemini and coven." 

The Campbell had never seen someone as confused as Stevie looked in that moment, staring up at him like had definitely gone insane. After a few moments to process his words, she nodded, and Jackson felt some of the weight on his shoulders lifted from him. However, he felt a physical weight on his shoulders, and a head poking between the two friends. He could recognise the minty scent from anywhere. 

Stevie looked visibly annoyed by Kai's presence, especially considering the fact that he slung an arm over her shoulder too. "Back by unpopular demand, huh?"

"You betcha," Kai grinned. "What's the 411, hmm? What were you guys gossiping about?"

There was a brief pause, before she reluctantly spoke again. "I... apologise. For punching you."

Another pause. Stevie impatiently glanced up at Kai, waiting for something in return, but he simply smiled as they walked. Jackson shot a glare in his direction, making Kai huff with indignance. 

"Fine. I'm sorry too," He mumbled. "There, is that all now? Or do you want us to hug and makeup? Ride into the sunset on the rainbow of friendship and harmony?" 

Stevie looked horrified at the thought. "I would rather douse myself in gasoline and light myself on fire."

Jackson stopped, making them both stop as well. "A little dramatic. Scratch that, very dramatic."

"I only speak the truth," Stevie moved away, no longer within Kai's reach. "Try not to take too long with him; Professor Thompson gets pissy when students are late."

While she walked off, Kai turned to him, and Jackson stepped back to give himself space. A simple jacket, shirt and cargo pants had been Kai's choice for clothes, while Jackson wore a trench coat over a shirt and trousers. Yes, he wore a coat with almost everything, but today was a bit chilly. It was more appropriate now than ever. 

"And then there were two," The Parker tilted his head at Jackson's coat. "Why do you always wear that?"

"Because it makes me look taller," Jackson took note of the declining amount of students in the hallways. "What do you want?"

He squinted at Jackson. "You're getting targeted by a killer and you're asking me what I want? C'mon, Campbell, think. I want to make sure you're okay, obviously. Do you need me to teach you how to fight?"

"Yes, I'm fine, I—" He stopped suddenly to glance around, making sure no one heard the Parker. The last few students were at the end of the hallway, far away from them. "What did you just say?"

"Do you need me to teach you how to fight?" Kai took a small step back, his eyes running over Jackson's lanky frame. "Your stamina and your build is good, but you - and every other idiot in America - could learn how to fend for yourself properly. Like throwing a punch and not breaking every little bone in your hand. It'll be a good distraction, y'know, to stop thinking about the stalker-slash-killer who wants to kill you."

Putting the situation like that made Jackson start to think, which was singlehandedly the worst thing he could be doing in that moment. "Well if someone tries to kill me, I'll just say it's racist to kill a black person."

The blue eyed man raised an eyebrow at him, unimpressed by his instincts, and the erudite let out a defeated huff in response. "Alright, fine. You can teach me how to fight so I don't die before I graduate. In all honesty, I think I could use a distraction now."

Kai stepped forward. "You're lucky I'm really good at those."

Before Jackson could ask what he meant by that, Kai grabbed the lapels of his coat and steered him in the direction of the nearest door to the left. He opened it, then grabbed Jackson again to push him in before anyone saw them. It took a moment and a couple of broomsticks for Jackson to realise they were in a small janitor's room. 

He turned around to say something, although Kai grabbed fistfuls of his trench coat and pulled him in, capturing his lips before he could react. Jackson made a muffled noise of surprise - not that he was opposed to Kai kissing him, it was just that it wasn't exactly what he had in mind when he said he needed a distraction. He figured something along the lines of going out and grabbing gelato. Or playing Yahtzee - he was really good at Yahtzee. 

But this was just as good, if not better. Jackson took the reigns and pressed him against the wall beside the door. His hands slapped away Kai's grasp on his coat, reaching out and tugging off the Parker's jacket from his body. He could feel a smile curve on his lips in response. It took a sheer force of will to remind himself that he was on campus, and what he wanted to do was the last thing he should be thinking about. 

Their mouths parted, and Jackson's lips travelled down towards the Parker's neck. All he could manage was a breathy whisper. "No sex."

"No?" There were traces of amusement in Kai's tone, between soft pants. "Look at your hands - you were about to take my shirt off too."

Jackson could groan in frustration. Kai could've easily waited until later today for this, but he knew the brunet intentionally put Jackson between a rock and a hard place just to see what he would do. This was further proven when Kai pulled the coat from his shoulders, and almost immediately he moved to fill in that space and press himself against the Parker, reconnecting their lips again. His entire body felt like it was on fire, and all he could think about was wanting more.

"Jack..." The rise and fall tone of the Parker's husky voice elicited a shaky exhale from the erudite. 

"Stop talking."

"All I'm saying is—" Kai shifted his head away from Jackson. "If we continue, we're having sex."

Re-centering his focus on his own faint breaths was a difficult task. Jackson's hands were underneath Kai's shirt, grabbing him by the waist. In the same vein that the brooding Rochester clutched on to the good Jane Eyre, besotted and lustful over her frame, he too couldn't get enough. He wanted him all for himself, if just for a moment.

Jackson squeezed his eyes shut, his parted lips softly pressed against Kai's cheek, listening to the Parker's breaths grow more lighter; more evenly. His hands drifted from Kai's waist to his hips, loosening his hold on him. He was already late to his English lecture, it would be better if the Campbell spent some time alone. Even if being alone would cause him to brood.

With a bit of effort, he pushed himself away from Kai and grabbed his coat. He was quick to exit the room and down the hallway, passing the officers lounging around the steps as he pulled his coat back on. Jackson must look a right varlet with the way his trench coat fluttered in the wind. He might've had an inkling of the awkwardness Mister Darcy had come to known, being taller than most people and being unable to hide or blend in because of it. 

A hand ran through his hair, trying to think of something to do before he picked his default. And picking his default meant spiralling. Spiralling wouldn't have been so bad if not for the fact that his grades were always on the line, since drinking lead to losing time and losing memory. As if his right hand had a mind of its own, felt the need to flex for a few moments. He simply shoved both hands in his pockets, wilfully ignoring the symptom of stress. 

"Jack!"

Walk faster, you idiot. Instead, his shoulders dropping with a defeated sigh, he turned around to reluctantly listen to the Parker. Combat boots glinted in the sun as Kai made his way towards him. It was hard to imagine what Kai was thinking, or more so, feeling from his expression. The nickname alone was a simple reminder that he was wrapped around Kai's ring adorned finger whether he liked it or not. 

"What do you want?" He asked, softly. 

Kai tilted his head, seemingly disappointed by his question. "If you don't know what I want, then you're not as smart as you look." He glanced back at the stairs momentarily, where the two cops were positioned. "Walk."

He frowned, but reluctantly walked alongside Kai, his hands sitting behind his back. "Well?"

"You said you wanted a distraction, right? Talk."

If he wanted a distraction from the Parker, then he would've continued what happened before and everybody would be hearing just how loud he could make Kai scream. Jackson didn't say this, however, and remained silent. If he played his cards right, he could slowly figure out one of the mysteries that had been dropped at his feet. Better to be a detective and risk further insight than be a helpless damsel.

"Do you know Latin?"

If Kai's expression before was hard to read, then his face now yielded static uncertainty. Jackson tried to remain externally neutral. He didn't want to give away any information that would give Kai an idea of what he was talking about.

"I know a little, I guess?" 

Jackson gave a short, singular nod. "I saw a word in the newspaper, the word lux. Do you know what it means?"

"It means light," The Parker narrowed his eyes at him. "Since when do you read the papers?"

"Since yesterday."

"Huh," He didn't like the smile of low cunning on Kai's face. "Are you gonna ask me what donec sol oriatur in occidente et occidat in oriente means?"

Well, the attempt at lying was useless. Jackson hid his panic, glancing away from the brunet. "I think I saw that in the newspaper too."

He looked unconvinced by the taller man's coolness. "Until the sun rises in the west and sets in the east."

That what the phrase meant? It didn't make any sense whatsoever. The sun rises in the east and sets in the west, not the other way around. Jackson gave Kai a puzzled look, but the Parker simply shrugged in response. His mother's words were a riddle, and a terrible riddle at that.

"What does that mean?"

"I—" He stopped abruptly, and Jackson could see something flicker behind the brunet's pale eyes. Something was holding him back. "Can't say."

Cryptic. Jackson grinded his teeth and shifted his gaze elsewhere. Why? Why couldn't Joshua or Kai just tell him the truth? It was more his right to know than their right to withhold answers from him. Kai had repeatedly begged for the Campbell to trust him but gave no reasonable proof that he should. 

There was bewilderment in Kai's voice, like he couldn't understand why Jackson would be unhappy. "You're angry."

"No, I'm upset. And I'm upset because I wanted to be left alone and you keep pestering me," He raised a hand to rub the bridge of his nose. "Why is it that whenever I want to be alone, you take that as me yearning for your company?"

"Who wouldn't wanna be in my company?"

"Me."

"So you admit it, huh? You're not a Heathcliff or a Rochester, you're just like every other man who wants to put their dick somewhere."

Jackson couldn't help but roll his eyes at the error he made. "Well actually, that's exactly what Rochester wanted to do with Jane Eyre. And it's hard to be like other men when they think I'm mental for liking you against my better judgement." He let out a soft exhale through his nose. "Recent events has driven me to needing more and more time by myself. Everywhere I go, every person I'm with... I'm just not safe. At least I know that I'm not running around and stabbing people."

There was a sadness to Kai's attempt at remaining humorous. He could almost taste the bittersweet edge on his tongue. "You don't trust me?" 

"To be perfectly honest, I don't know if I do," The Campbell pressed his lips together, trying to find a way to say what he wanted to say. "You tell me that you might be gone in six months and you won't tell me why. You tell me you know about my mother's words and you won't tell me how or what it means. You haven't given me a reason to trust you." He glanced around, making sure they were alone. "This is more than just distrust, this is a prevention of further loss. The man on the phone knew about Jennifer Curtis' connections to me. The death of her and her boyfriend were warnings. What if I'm not ready for him to strike again? What if his victims become closer to me, and Jimmy or Bea or Stevie drop dead?"

He stopped, reaching out and latching them onto Kai's upper arms. "What if you die? Do you think I could ever live with myself, knowing that I put you in danger? My soul would die with you; I may as well be rotting in the ground next to you."

The Parker studied Jackson's eyes, his expression softened. "You read too many books. Never make a declaration of love again, you suck at those."

The Campbell allowed himself to smile. Over his dead body. "As long as I'm alive and well, I will always make them. I will see you tonight, Kai. I swear it."

His hands dropped from Kai's arms, and after a moment of hesitation, Jackson turned and walked off. Now that he had time to himself, he could visit a library or a bookstore for information, and possibly see if Stevie could research with him. There were no payphones he could use, though. He should've brought a pager with him, as Bee and Stevie always carried their pagers around. God, this was a terrible time to make a fuss but he needed to use his free time efficiently. 

And, no matter how important anything might seem, he needed to return back to his dorm before sunset. Winding up as a statistic didn't seem pleasant.