(( TRIGGER WARNING! There is a suicide attempt in this chapter, and some very unhealthy thoughts! Please do not read if you believe you are not capable, or do not have a stable enough mindset. Never be afraid to stop reading if it hits too close to home, Loves.))

The first flurries of the year blew in the wind behind him, and the chilly gusts were whispering in Adam's ear as he approached Lotor's door. It was almost as if the wind was warning him to turn back the way he'd come, and run as fast as his legs would facilitate.

He knew everyone was watching from the mansion, and that they were ready to storm the place if anything went bad, but still. There was no amount of anxiety meds or self medication that could save his nerves.

" You're doing fine. You need to breathe." Shiro talked from Adam's glasses. He didn't bother shutting up, since Lotor wasn't around to hear right then. They could keep the channel open.

" Be careful." Matt added.

Adam took a very deep breath, the snow beneath him crunching with every step he took. Lotor had opened the gate for him, so there was a start. This could go a couple ways. One, Lotor was leading him to his death. Or... he was going to believe him when he begged for forgiveness.

" I'm in the security cameras. As far as I can tell he's unarmed. Beware of the guards." Pidge said. Though last time they'd caught her inside of the security system, they hadn't seen her this time. If it was so simple as hacking in, Shiro would've already gone in with Keith and Lance, however, they had many paid security guards and gang members on the premises at all times. With the human component, the part that they couldn't hack and control, things got complicated.

Adam set his suitcase down, ringing the doorbell. There was a very deep chiming noise, base-like in its tone. Being there was bad enough, but the ominous sound was not helping his anxiety one bit.

Adam didn't have a weapon. He knew if they searched him and found one, it was game over. It was a calculated risk. His glasses were Shiro's eyes and ears, and the only way he could communicate with them. If he used a phone, it would've been tapped and Adam would've been undoubtedly executed in his sleep.

" Well, well, well..."

The door had been swung open, causing a large breeze from how heavy it was. Adam stood with narrowed eyes, stiff posture, and snowflakes in his hair. His hazel eyes were beading, but he couldn't help it.

" Look who came crawling back..." Lotor smirked. He scoffed in an amused way, and Adam didn't dare move a muscle. " Did your little boyfriend hit you? Is that why you're here?"

" He's not my boyfriend." Adam lied through his teeth, though it hurt him to do so. " And I made a mistake."

Lotor whipped a blade out from the inside of his sleeve, putting it right in front of Adam's face. It was about a centimeter from his glasses when he stopped it, having precise control and accuracy. He was testing him, or so it seemed.

Adam gulped, but didn't flinch. He knew everyone at home was most likely losing their shit, and internally he was doing the same, but he couldn't afford to show it.

" Stubborn as always... you always were like your brother that way." Lotor remarked, stepping aside and allowing him inside. Adam contemplated for a moment before taking a step inside, and hoping that when he left the mansion again, he would still be breathing.

Adam tried not to choke up at the mention of his brother, who had been slaughtered years before. He blinked slowly and collected himself, and instead of showing his anger, he repressed it. Shiro would be getting revenge for him. Though Adam most likely wouldn't be the one to deliver the finishing blow, he trusted Shiro and the others would.

" I'd like to come back... if you'll even have me, sir..." Adam conceded, and Lotor looked down upon him with judgemental eyes.

Lotor seemed to get an idea, his violet eyes glistening.

" Bow before me." He ordered like some sort of entitled dictator. Adam raised a single brow, wondering if he was being serious. " Did I stutter?" Lotor asked, folding his arms.

Adam felt his pride getting put through a paper shredder as he sunk down to his knees and bowed his head like a peasant.

" Good..." Lotor smirked, and the bodyguards aside from him began to snicker. James was one of them, being that he'd made a full recovery from Lance's gunshot to his leg. The gang leader shot them a stone cold look, causing them all to freeze. Lotor held his blade by his side, playing with it and alternating it between his fingers.

Adam stayed down, not sure if moving equalled death.

" Kiss my shoes and beg to stay." Lotor told Adam, clearly enjoying what he was doing too much. Adam really didn't have any other choice but to listen at that point, though Lotor had gone completely mad. He forced himself to stop shaking as he pressed his lips to Lotor's house slippers.

" Please let me stay..." Adam murmured, inwardly disgusted.

" Not good enough, you two faced toad." Lotor spat.

" I'm sorry! Sir, please!" Adam exclaimed, kissing the Gucci slipper once again.

Lotor was silent for a moment, then he told Adam to get to his feet. Adam complied, standing up and more terrified than before. He felt like a child that had fallen into the lion's exhibit at the zoo, and like he was Lotor's surprise dinner.

Lotor lifted his knife, tilting Adam's chin upward with the edge of the razor sharp blade. He stared straight into his eyes, then ran the sharp edge across Adam's cheek sadistically. Adam hissed, but Lotor prevented him from moving.

" Don't defy me again." Lotor told him darkly. There was some blood dribbling from Adam's cheek, and he grit his teeth. " Now get out of my sight. Your old room is open, and I expect to not find you in my presence until morning."

Adam grabbed his suitcase, pressing his palm to his cheek.

" Yes, sir..." He said, going to the staircase. His cheek was stinging, and he could tell already that it was going to scar. Adam hoped a first aid kit would be enough to fix it.

He was in.

...

" NO! He cut him! No! Let me go!" Matt squirmed as Shiro struggled to hold him back. He was kicking and thrashing. " I'm going to kill him and wipe that dumbass smirk off his ugly face!"

" No. You're not." Shiro told him, finally using brute strength to pin Matt in his lap. Everyone was sitting in the conference room, watching Adam's glasses cam and listening to every event as it unfolded.

" Did he seriously just make Adam kiss his shoes?" Pidge asked, grimacing. " Nasty."

" He's crazy. We're lucky he didn't shoot him on sight." Keith spoke up, and Matt turned to dirty look him.

" Take that back." He said.

" What? It's true." Keith folded his arms, and Lance uncomfortably laughed. Keith was sitting in his lap, and he realized he needed to rein him in. Matt was once again trying to get out of Shiro's grip, on the brink of a mental break from all the stress.

" Keith, I think you should shut it before Matt tries to fight you." Pidge cut in.

" How about nobody fights anybody?" Hunk looked around the room. " I get we're all scared for him, but there's no reason for us to turn on one another. That's the last thing Adam needs from us."

" Thank you, Hunk..." Shiro sighed. He wondered if Matt was going to give himself an ulcer from how freaked out he was.

" Sorry, Matt." Keith mumbled, and Lance was proud of him for apologizing. Matt nodded and seemed to settle.

They all turned back to the screen, and Adam had made it to his room safely. Well, mostly safe. His cheek was bleeding still.

" Adam, will you get by?" Shiro asked once the door was locked. He hoped Adam wouldn't need to use dental floss and a sewing needle for a few stitches.

Adam pulled back and looked at his palm, which was stained red. He ducked into his bathroom, needing to take a look at it. He grabbed a tissue and dabbed some of the blood off.

" I think I'll be okay..." Adam whispered.

" You did really well with that." Matt told him, trying to reassure.

" Yeah, I would've punched his teeth down his throat." Keith growled. Lance held him tighter, not being comforted by that at all. And that was exactly why he had to go with during the siege, to make sure Keith could keep his temper at bay.

" We know, Keith." Pidge deadpanned.

" We should go take a break... go for a walk..." Lance murmured in Keith's ear, feeling how worked up the smaller male was. He didn't want anything bad to happen because of his boyfriend's anger, and he knew that he could calm him down.

Keith nodded, and Lance held him while the pair stood up. Lance looked over at Shiro, who nodded once he realized what they were doing. Lance kept an arm draped around Keith's waist, and the shorter boy was limping subtly due to what they'd done earlier.

" We just have to trust that Adam will make it through..." Lance said, guiding him toward the staircase while they walked. Keith truthfully didn't have the energy to be dealing with it. He was drained after his disagreement with Lance, and he was so worried about him even after everything.

" How am I just supposed to trust it? We all know the risks... but you and I both know that his chances are slim at best. Lotor might be crazy but I don't think he's dumb enough to fall for this." Keith raked a hand through his hair, exhaling in a stressed out way.

Lance didn't want to tell Keith he was wrong, because deep down, he knew that his boyfriend was right. Still, though, if they lost hope in him... his odds were even more stacked against him.

" We're a family. No matter how rough things get, we have to support one another." Lance responded, and Keith's eyes cut down and to the side.

" Yeah, I know that..." He told him quietly

They reached the summit of the staircase, and Keith took Lance's hand. Even if the taller boy was often overprotective of him, he appreciated that he could speak about what was bothering him. He knew he would never face ridicule where it wasn't well deserved.

" Let's go cuddle." Lance suggested, knowing that cuddles were almost medicine for Keith. While some people were told to take a 'chill pill' when they were worked up, Keith probably should've been told to get a dose of cuddles. They were therapeutic.

That's when they heard Kosmo barking from down the hall, and Keith turned over his shoulder. Kosmo wasn't typically one to bark for no reason, and something had to be up. There were only two reasons Keith had ever seen him use his voice, and one of them was to alert of danger.

Keith whistled at his husky, who looked at him and barked.

" Lance... we have to check it out." Keith told him, breaking away from his boyfriend and swiftly walking in the direction of the dog. He was still limping, but it didn't slow him down much. Keith essentially jogged over there, and Lance was hot on his heels.

" Hey, stay close to me." Lance told him, and they arrived by the doorframe the dog was currently freaking out over. Moonlight was streaking the hallway floor, flushing in from the open room. Romelle's room, or the one that Shiro had allowed her to occupy.

" What is it, buddy?" Lance knelt by the dog.

Keith peered inside the doorway, feeling an immediate drop in temperature. He glanced into the dark room, seeing that the bed was empty, but then a snowflake hit his face. Keith looked to the sliding door on the balcony, finding that it was left open.

His eyes bulged and he rushed toward the doors, seeing Romelle standing on the guard railing.

" Romelle, no!" Keith yelled, and she was startled. She lost her already unsteady balance atop it, and Keith thankfully got a grip of her wrist. Lance sprinted behind Keith, wondering if Romelle was about to drag Keith off with her.

" Let me go!" Romelle shouted at him, her tears frozen to her face from the cold. Keith cringed, his arm stuck between the posts that supported the top rail. He had narrowly gotten a grip on her wrist, and he felt like his shoulder was about to pop out of the socket from the pulling down.

Lance pulled Keith back by his ankles, that way he was no longer being pulled against the wood. It was a very long drop down because of the high ceilings the mansion had.

" No! We're going to get you back up here!" Keith struggled, trying to pull her back so she could get a foot up at least. She wasn't of any help, and was just waiting for Keith's strength to run out. She wanted to hit the pavement and hopefully see Allura again, and Keith was yet again threatening her. Threatening her with the grim and scary truth living was constantly reminding her of.

" What do you care?! I thought you wanted to kill me anyways?! Here, let me make it easier for you!" She sobbed. Keith felt tears rising to the corners of his eyes.

" I don't want to kill you! None of us do... please... just let us help you." He tried to take a deep breath, and Lance kept a grip on Keith so that he didn't risk breaking a rail and falling through with her.

" K-Keith... do you have her?" Lance struggled, and Keith was trembling from the weight he was supporting. He didn't know how much longer he could hold her up before losing his grip.

Snow was blowing in their faces as the wind picked up, and Lance could feel ice from the side of the mansion pelting his face in small particles.

Romelle sniffled and looked down at the ground, then up at him. Without her... what did she have?

" I d-don't have anything left..." She whimpered.

Keith felt his hand beginning to slip along her arm. He heaved and reached his other arm through to keep hanging on. Lance felt like Keith might snap the guardrail if he pushed it any further.

" You have us!" Keith insisted. He wasn't about to let her die, especially when she had so much to live for. " Please let us-" Keith felt the rail beginning to bow, and he knew it wouldn't take much more force to snap it. It was thin, and couldn't handle the pressure. " Let us help you!" Keith's voice was strained as he tried to pull her up more. His chest was pushing against the rail from both of his arms being down there, and Lance was having an issue pulling him back.

Romelle sniffled before reaching up and getting her other hand on the balcony, and the rail finally snapped. Lance kept a tight hold on Keith, though he could feel him slipping. It was like a high stakes game of tug of war.

Keith felt Lance pulling him back, and there was now a large open space where he could get dragged out of. Lance backed up, taking Keith with him. Keith's grip was just beginning to give out once he pulled Romelle through the opening and got her half up on the balcony.

Keith was panting while finally getting her safely back on the platform. He hugged her, wanting to make sure she wouldn't try and jump again. Lance was about to have a panic attack if they didn't get her inside soon.

" Holy shit... holy shit..." Lance repeated, helping stand them both up.

Keith ushered her inside, and Lance shut the sliding glass door.

" Shiro!" Lance called, looking down at Keith. " Watch her. I have to find Shiro!"

(( I'm already two chapters ahead on my writing schedule. Let me just say... chapter 51 has me sobbing. You've been warned.))