"The fuck you're doing here blondie?!" His words seethed over Henry's face that was barely an inch from him. Henry could smell the fragrance that he wore stronger this time. A hint of musk with sandalwood and cinnamon hitting his nose just like that night. But at the moment, he was too preoccupied to find air to breathe to enjoy his scent.

"ALEX! LET HIM GO!" Nora was yelling behind him trying to pull his arm back from grasping a death grip on Henry's neck but the only thing he did more was clutching it tighter.

"P-Please." Henry begged struggling to breathe and his back is shooting pain deep into his chest. He was thankful that their heights aren't that much of a difference but Alex's strength managed to make Henry's feet dangled above the ground.

"Give me one good reason why I should let you breathe another air. Were you following me?" Alex asks slamming his neck back banging Henry's head against the metal door.

"I d-didn't kn-know." Henry croaked. His jaw fell apart trying to catch his breath with tears started to fall down his cheek. His hand gripped on Alex's wrist trying to push him off but Alex's strength was beyond his own. He could feel the beads of Alex's bracelet under his grip when he remembered some details on that night.

That night, the night they first met. The girl with the shoulder length hair had the same bracelet as he does. He remembers when the girl had that tight grip on him, he saw the bracelet in her wrist, just like Alex has. Now he finally realized that the girl was telling him to save Alex not the other guy.

"Don't lie!" Alex slammed his head again against the metal door sending ringing in his ears. "You saw me a month back and suddenly you're working with my best friend? Tell me who you're working for?" Alex asks angrily.

"I'm not!" Henry plead hoping he would loose the gripped but he didn't, instead his gripped was tighter and Henry's couldn't convinced him that he had no idea he and Nora is related to each other. But Henry started to losing his consciousness to defend himself.

"ALEX! You're gonna kill him! LET HIM GO!" Nora smacked him on his back with the spatula but Alex held Henry's neck stronger. "Are you saying that you believe him? What makes you think he didn't cause Trevor his job and conveniently replacing him? Don't be stupid Nora! I've taught you better!" Alex clenched his jaw tight at her before turning his face back at the blonde guy in his grip.

"Alex! Put him down. He's innocent. He's all checked out." Damien's voice boomed behind him but Alex still won't budge. He was not someone who's easily convinced especially if some guy just appeared in their lives without any background scares him the most. More so now since the guy starts hanging around with the one person he cares most in this world.

Alex was not gonna let him go easily but Nora knocked his temple with the spatula causing him to lose his grip. Henry fell on the floor into a coughing fit when Nora rushed to his side to help him. She pushed Alex out of her way and Henry barely could comprehend what was going on except for the yelling and the screaming. His visions blurred still forcing a cough out of his chest. Each breath he inhaled was like a knife pierced through his throat.

"Henry, opened your eyes. Oh God I'm so sorry. Please stay awake." Nora tapped on his cheek when he barely could keep his eyes opened. His lips are pale and his color had barely returned on his face. "Henry stay awake." Nora taps his cheek softly again and Alex noticed the tears that runs down her cheek.

"Nora." Alex called her feeling bad for making her upset but she slapped his hand away from touching her. As she turned around to face him, her face practically drenched with her tears making Alex soften his furious gaze at her.

"Leave! Stay the fuck away from me! Why do you have to hurt him?! He's innocent!" She yelled pushing Alex on his chest. She ran back to the front of the store grabbing a bottle of water from the counter before she rushed back to Henry. She uncapped the bottle and brought it close to Henry's lips. Henry took a sip but clearly couldn't swallowed well when he let out another coughing fit followed by a gurgling choke.

"You're okay. Just breathe." Nora tried to calm him down when he tries to catch his breath. His eyes still linger over Alex standing behind Nora when he saw the shoulder length girl standing besides him. Her eyes sunken but there were unexplained tears. Henry saw her gazed down at him but he realized through his blurry visions, she was gazing at Nora instead of him.

"You're back." He whispered the last words before he finally lost his consciousness.

.

"Henry."

"Wake up!"

"Henry."

"You need to wake up."

Henry jolted up from his dream when he heard Bea's voice calling him. He looked around the room hoping that he would finally see her but forgotten that she was dead for years.

But it turns out, standing next to him was Nora with her eyes frowned back at him. She had a small towel in her hand and a glass of water in the other. Her eyes looking down at Henry with that guilt look in hers. "I'm so sorry Hen." She whispered and Henry could see her eyes starts glistening with tears.

Henry raised himself but regretted when his whole body shot up in pain. He groaned after his back twist shooting more in pain and his throat felt like there a lump that stuck there. "Easy. Don't get up yet. Here. Take this. It would help." Nora handed him some ice cold water and Henry grabbed it in a hurry gulping the water almost half a glass.

"Where am I?" He asks looking around the room to see unfamiliar area. He eyed the decoration around the living room. The walls are colored bright in mustard yellow, the desk are covered by a floral printed runners. The couch he sat on is lime green and there's a bohemian rug displayed over for covers. There were also a couple of plushies pillow over his legs and under his head.

"My place. I can't bring you to hospital or they will asks about the assailant and I can't tell them that it was Alex. As much as I wanted to kill him right now, he is actually not a bad guy Henry. I promised. He's just caught up with his past." Nora explained grabbing the glass from Henry's grip and placed it down on the table next to them.

"Let me see." She pushed Henry's chin up causing Henry to wince at the pain of stretching his neck. His pale skin doesn't help hiding the finger marks on him. Nora hissed muttering apologies when the towel dabbed over Henry's side of the neck causing him to groan in pain.

"He tried to kill me." He whispered still had his head tilted. He noticed Nora couldn't even face him right now or look him in the eyes when he speaks. "He tried to kill me and you said he's not a bad guy." Henry swallowed his throat as his mind wanders to the event earlier that almost got him killed.

"He was trying to protect me." She whispered still had his gaze lowered before tossing the towel on the table. "Do you know about him? About what he did? Or the people he hurt?" Henry asks. Nora still had his eyes lowered in her hands. She nods weakly before she spoke again, "I did but I made my decision not to get involved in whatever his business." She defends and they both stayed quiet with Henry leaned against the arm rest.

"I need to ask." Nora says finally lifting her gaze towards Henry on her side.

"Do you- I mean. Did you have anything to do with Trevor attacking me?" She asks trying not to sound like she doubted Henry after what Alex said but she had to make sure. Henry didn't say anything except raising himself up and rested both of his legs down on the floor. He sighed staring forward without glancing on Nora staring besides him.

"I thought you believed in me." Henry whispered, his voice still breaking from the pain. But truth is, his heart is breaking even more at this point from hearing Nora doubts.

"I do Hen, it's just- never mind." Nora stood before disappearing into one of the room leaving Henry sat on the couch alone. She returned few seconds later and saw Henry stood from the chair with tears in his eyes. "Where are you going?" She asks.

"You know what's the hardest thing in life Nora?" Henry asks lifting his gaze at her. She didn't want to answer him knowing it's rhetorical but Henry was at verge of breaking in front of her.

"Having people to trust you. To believe in you when your mind's fooling you into seeing things that wasn't there." Henry closed their distance with his eyes redden in tears. "I am done convincing people to believe in me when they chose not to trust me. Definitely not after everything I did for them. Your life is complicated Nora, I get it, but forgiving him about this just makes it more fucked up."

Henry strides towards the door with Nora still standing behind him. "Hen, I'm really am sorry. You don't understand. He's family and I will choose him over anything, anyone." Nora defends. She wished Henry could understand how hard it is to explain to people about Alex but it's not important right now when she knew she broke the trust she had with him.

"I do Nora. I do understand. I just wished someone would chose me the way you chose him. Otherwise I won't have to live like this." Henry replies before grabbing the door knob twisting it opened. "Do I still have my job or he told you to fire me as well?" Henry asks twisting his head to ask her by the door.

"You do Hen. I won't fire you because of what he told me." Nora convinced him and Henry nods, with a weak smile but he didn't reply and instead, he left the apartment with his heart broken in pieces.

As Henry came out of the elevator, he could see Alex's security guy Damien stood outside. He saw the clock by the lobby shown four in the evening which is the reason why he still there in case Nora wanted to go back to the bakery store.

"Are you alright?" He asks Henry as he stepped out. He nodded weakly at him walking passed Damien but Henry stopped midway before turning around to face him again.

"Take care of her will you?" Damien was taken back by his word when Henry told him. He frowned cocking his head to the side, "Aren't you coming back to work tomorrow?" He asks and Henry lowered his gaze down on the ground between them. "I don't think so." He replied briefly.

"Henry, don't do this. Look Alex means well. He's just- protective." Damien defends but Henry already made up his mind about this. "I know. But I think it's for the best. For her anyway. I can't be the middle person for her to choose between family and morality. She's better off without him but I knew for a fact that won't happened."

Damien eyed Henry standing before him before his gaze lowered to the marks on his neck. "Look, I can't speak for her nor Alex. I'm just the staff. Take a beat, go home and rest. Put some ice on that, it looks pretty bad. Then come back tomorrow." Damien told him but Henry could only nod at him with a fake smile before he left.

.

Nora was waiting the whole morning for Henry to show up but to her disappointment, he never did. Her eyes fixed each time the door opened jingling the bell on the top but the moment she sees it wasn't Henry, her heart broke again.

Emily noticed the sadness and the quietness in her since morning, unaware of what had happened yesterday. "Are you alright?" She asks bringing Nora's attention back to the store when her question was completely ignored by her. "Yeah." She replied briefly placing the tray down at the table. Today has been slow for them, barely a customer coming in probably due to the rain this morning.

"Is Henry taking a day off or something?" She asks and considering that Henry didn't show up early like he used too. Usually he would be the first to arrive at the store and Nora gave him the key after a week he's working there. He would started off by pre heating the oven for Nora, cleaning up the last night tray by putting it back on the shelves, turning the coffee machine on and start organizing or filling up the stock before they arrived. She can see how Nora loves having Henry around and although she didn't want to admit it, but Henry is a hardworking guy and she loves having him around, better than Trevor.

"Yeah, he called in sick. Mind the register will you?" She says bringing the tray to the back of the store before Emily could ask anything else.

Nora places the trays over the metal table when her eyes caught at the dent on the metal door. Her mind travels to Henry and Alex incident yesterday and the thought of Henry being slammed against the door. Her breaths hitched and she could feel the lump that settles right in her stomach.

"Hey." A voice startled behind her. She turned abruptly to see Alex standing behind her and his gaze softened at the sight of her in tears. "Look- Nora, I-" Alex had a bouquet of assorted flowers in his hand with a small blue box in the other when Nora cuts him off by pushing him on his chest.

"Get out Alex. I can't even look at you right now!" She yelled in tears and she could feel Alex's burning gaze towards her. "Not until you let me explained Nora. He is not who you think he is!" Alex starts to raise his voice at her but she shot him a death glared causing Alex to shut his mouth immediately.

"He has been nothing but kind to me, for the past month and you hurt him. Now he felt that it's better off staying away from me because you made him think so." Nora spat tossing the tray in the sink before wiping her hand dry on the clean towel.

"You are a heartless person Alex. All of this vengeance has made you cold and I don't recognized you anymore. So please, for the last time, leave!" Tears flooded her eyes as she yelled at him. Alex stood frozen in front of her in his luxury coat with his longing gaze. He didn't just hurt that guy, he hurt his best friend too, deeply.

"Tell me how to fix this?" Alex asks softly but Nora couldn't even look at him anymore. For once, she didn't want him to fix anything in his life but to leave as it is. "You can't." Nora whispered still refused to look at him. Alex sighed longly placing the flower and the box on the table next to her before he disappeared into the back door and Nora breaks into more tears.

.

Henry woke up that day the same way he did every other day, jolted from his dream. But this time it wasn't his usual dream, it was one of his horrifying one back at Broadmoor. He remembers when the metal door was opened, there were two staffs would cuffed him in chains and dragged him out of his room in violence, sometimes they would beat him up if he put up a fight that would ended up with broken ribs and worst unconscious for days.

Henry woke up immediately with his hand shot up to his neck. The image of Alex choking him didn't just brought back nightmares in him, it brought back his tremors and panic attacks more often. For a month he was happy, living and working with Nora and he barely had any tremors anymore except for one after his panic attacks that rarely happened.

But now it felt like each seconds is impending attacks on him. Each seconds is like a bomb waiting for him to break or explode.

He didn't showed up to work like he thought he did. He didn't want Nora to feel like she had to choose between her best friend and her employee. Plus Henry certainly didn't want to see that bastard who tried to have him killed in cold blood.

He didn't know how but he managed to find him a job at one of the restaurant downtown, twenty minutes walk from his place. He knows it's a lot further from Nora's place but at least they wanted to hire him. His job is basically bussing tables and cleaned up. His shifts would started at noon and ended at midnight. He wasn't gaining as much as he got at Nora's but if he did some overtime or pick up an extra shifts, he might be able to gain equally what Nora paid him.

It has been a week since he quits from Nora's place and he could feel regrets started to build in him. His new workplace is not as fun and enjoyable as Nora's. He can't talk back during work, he was not allow to take breaks until his job is finished. The staffs isn't as welcoming nor friendly as Nora and Emily are which he missed most.

The first few days he worked there, everyone thought he is mute which to Henry, it's a privilege so no one would come at him and asks him about his personal stuffs. But when he almost fought with one of the waiter that threw plates at him, everybody knew then he's not mute or even an American which made them hates him more.

"Giving a job to more foreigner as in our people isn't suffering enough to find a job."

"What is he thinking hiring this guy? He's slow and weird. I felt chills when I'm around. He has this stalker vibe."

"Did you see the marks on his wrist? Must be escaping from somewhere. Prison maybe?"

"Did you check maybe he's wearing an ankle monitor?"

"Maybe he's like Dahmer, hiding away and invite his victim's back into his creepy apartment and eat them."

The whispers goes on and on behind him in soft chatter which annoys him most but he chose to ignore most of them since he tries to stay under the radar and not causing any trouble. It's bad enough that he had to work for six days a week, he didn't know that being quiet would trigger someone off.

Henry didn't mind the chatter or the back talk behind him but they also pulling pranks on him attempting to break him so he could quit. There was a time when they deliberately placed a broken plate inside the sink for him to wash and he cuts his finger when he tries to grab it. Not only he got a scolding for bleeding all over the counter but he also needs to pay to replace the broken plate with his own money.

There was also the time where they made him walk over the spilled oil and accidentally fall on his back with a bucket of soap water fell on him. He wanted to fight back, he wanted to scream and yell after he saw them laughing at him but the only thing he did was stares and lowered his gaze from their mocking eyes.

"Pick it up would you! Gosh you're so slow!"

"Hurry up! The table won't cleaned itself!"

"You can't have your break until you finished washing all of these!"

"Take out the trash before you leave or I'll tell the boss you let a rat inside the restaurant!"

The list goes on and on for almost two weeks he's working here and each day he woke up, he felt more exhausted than he was back then. He never felt so drained like he did working at Nora's. The hours are almost the same but working with Nora was actually fun and she even teaches Henry a few tricks of her own in making the pastries.

But each day he woke up now he felt like running back to her and begged her for his old job back. But considered the tall guy that tries to have him killed, made him rethinks his decision.

He never thought each day he returned home he would break into sobs and cried himself to sleep for how his life had turned. He wished he had a different life, the one where he doesn't have to hide about who he is or lives like any normal person would.

It was his usual day working that day when one of the waiter dumped a glass of wine over his shirt while he was mopping. "Oops, sorry man. Didn't see you there." The waiter claimed before he disappeared into the kitchen and Henry crouched down to wipe the residue of the wine when someone bumped him on his back and made him stumbled into the bucket spilling the dirty water all over him.

The whole restaurant laughs at his fall and he was about to charge at the same waiter that spilled the wine earlier whom also pushed him into the bucket. But Henry stopped when he saw the shadow hovers behind the guy causing him to kneel frozen on the ground.

"What? Stop staring like that you freak!" The guy says but Henry could only stares at the shadow that starts wrapping itself around the guy. "Be careful. You gonna get hurt." Henry whispered and he could see the guy's face changed from smirking at Henry to an actual fear.

"You threatened me?" He says gripping into Henry's shirt lifting him off the floor but Henry didn't react except letting him. "Just saying." Henry replies which angered him more but he pushed Henry back from his tight gripped over his shirt when the manager saw them almost starting a fight. "Get back to work!" He yelled and Henry saw the waiter left with that fear look in his eyes.

Henry goes on until the end of his shift when he took out the garbage like usual and tossed into the large trash can behind the restaurant before he went home. He was about to turn and leave the alley when someone grabbed him by his arms and pinned him against the wall but before he could react, a strong punched hits him in his face and stomach causing him to kneel right on the wet covered ground.

"That's for threatening me. Do yourself a favor. Don't bother coming back tomorrow or you'll get something worst than just a punch in a stomach." The same waiter that he fought earlier warned him with the other two waiters that had him pinned laughs. Henry coughed feeling the pain that builds deep in his stomach when another hits him on his side causing him to stumble and fell again.

More kicks came on his both side which he tried to dodge but failed when all three of them starts kicking and punching. He was lucky they stopped before Henry could begged them pathetically  but he was left with agony at the moment. He looked up to see the same waiter and the shadow still lurked behind him but it had grew bigger, stronger as Henry felt its presence without even looking at it.

"You're gonna regret this!" Henry says but before he could raise himself up from the ground, another kick hits on the side of his face sending him back on his back.

"I think you will." The waiter says before three of them ran out of the alley before anyone caught them. Henry groaned wanting to scream at them but felt too much in pain especially when he tries to straighten his own body.

The familiar taste of metallic rust settles behind his throat when he tries to get up from the ground. He leaned against the wall taking few deep breaths before he could finally gathered up his strength to walk home.

He wanted to catch a bus when he finished his work but due to the incident, he missed it and now he has to walk home in pain. He didn't want to waste his money by riding a cab or even had a phone to hired an Uber so he had no choice to walk in freezing cold December with pain shooting from right and left side of his body.

He had to stop few times taking few deep breaths before he could continue his journey when a familiar shadow lurked behind the trees in his path. Henry tried to ignore the shadow when a voice startled him.

"You, blondie!" The voice is so familiar to him and especially not everyone called him that except the tall guy he wished he hasn't met in this life. Henry didn't stop but instead tries to ran away from him when pain shoots him on his stomach that made him slowed his legs down.

"Stop! Don't make me chase you or else." He warned pulling Henry by his elbow but he flinched and pulled it off from his grip.

"Listen- I just wanna talk!" The guy said and Henry refused to look at him although he had to admit the guy is super attractive to look at. "There is nothing to talk about. Please let me be." Henry replies trying to walk past him but he held out his arm preventing Henry from moving forward.

"It's about Nora." He says and Henry stopped but still keeping his gaze down with his arm wrapped around his stomach. "Please." The guy begged and Henry finally stopped from trying to run away from him.

"Look, I need you to talk to her and convinced her to talk to me. It's been almost two weeks and she refused to see me or talk to me." He says and Henry scoffed.

"You called that an apology?" He says which he wished he could take it back when he saw the guy clenched his jaw at him.

"I don't apologized to people for what I did. Yours included." He states but Henry could only shook his head at him. "Then good luck getting her to talk to you again. Have a good night." Henry wished as he walked past him but he barely could get any further before the guy stopped him again.

"Who do you think you are?! Do you even know who I am blondie?!" The tall guys stood before him but Henry chose to keep his head down from looking at him. His eyes and his gaze are too intimidating for Henry to look at and certainly he doesn't want him to see the bruised that starts to form on his cheek or the cut on his lower lips that barely stops bleeding.

"I don't give a fuck who you think you are! You don't go around and hurt people just because you don't know him!" Henry spat tries to escape from Alex's but he was yet taller, and his arms wider to actually preventing him from walking the sidewalk.

"You might if you wanna live!" Alex spat back but Henry scoffed at him.

"Then kill me! I don't think I can live like this anymore. Just fucking kill me already." Henry yelled at his face and they are barely any distance between them when Alex stopped Henry from running away.

Underneath the streetlight, he finally sees the bruised on Henry's cheek and the cut on his lower lips. Henry was still clutching on his stomach when he says those words and Alex can see the threatening tears began to fall from Henry's hazel eyes.

"Who did this to you?" He asks lowly and Henry swallowed the lump in his throat.

"None of your business." He says before he pushed past Alex again.

"So you're not afraid of dying?" Alex asks stopping Henry from walking further. He never thought of fear in dying, he made peace with it years ago when his sister had died. But when Henry turned to face the tall guy again, his eyes shifted to the shoulder length girl standing next to him with her eyes pleading at Henry.

"I wish I was. But it seems that- death is a lot easier than living." He says staring straight at her. A tear escape her eyes as she heard him before her gaze went to Alex next to her. Henry noticed how Alex didn't even noticed him staring at the ghostly presence next to him so he turned around and walked away from him.

.

Henry went home that night shuddering in coldness as he was soaked in dirty puddled of water and pain grew under his skin. After his shower, he eyed his own reflection in the mirror and saw the bruised starts to form on his skin with his cheek had swollen up. He sighed before leaving his bathroom to head to his kitchen and grabbed a bag of frozen peas to press on his swollen cheek when the girl suddenly appears in the middle of his kitchen.

Henry accidentally dropped the peas on the ground after he was startled by her presence. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you." She says and Henry forgot how soft her voice is.

"What do you want?" Henry asks picking up the bag from the floor and pressed it against his cheek. The girl smiled at him before she stepped closer but Henry took a step back.

"I'm June. I'm not gonna hurt you. I promised." She says but Henry shook his head at her. "It's not you. It's your- presence that hurts me. I don't want to feel your death." Henry says and she nods pressing her lips together.

"I wanna thank you for saving him." She starts and Henry frowned at her words. "You're his sister, that died isn't it?" Henry asks and she lowered her gaze down. Henry saw that she played with the bracelet in her wrist that resemblance her brother. "I think so. I forgot what happened to me. It was a long time ago." She says and Henry let out a breath before leaning against the counter staring at her.

"What do you want from me? Do you want me to tell him something?" Henry offers which he rarely did for not wanting the afterlife came chasing him. His mother used to tell him that no matter what he sees, never to entertain this spirits or they'll used it against him.

"No! If you tell him that you saw me, he will never let you out of his sight. He has been looking for someone like you for years to try and communicate with me but each one of them lied to him and I can't watch him destroy his life anymore." June continues.

"But you can just tell him that you died and he can move on." Henry suggest and she stepped closer only to have Henry taking another step back.

"I did. Once with a woman in Guadalajara. He believes in her but he pushes on trying to find my body and I don't even know where I was before I died. All I remember was cold and dark and I don't remember anything else. Please Henry, you need to find a way to let him stop finding me. He's gonna get himself kill." June pleads edging closer and Henry didn't retort back.

"Would it be so bad if he does? He did tried to kill me." Henry adds and June shakes her head at him. "He's paranoid. Nora is everything to him. The last piece of me is with her. She was my girl. My best friend, my soulmate." June adds and Henry's gaze softened when he finally understood why they bonded so perfectly.

"I'm tired." Henry whispered feeling himself drained from talking with her. This wasn't the first time cause he remembers each time he tried to communicate with the dead, it took a lot of his energy. He could feel that the dead is communicating through him sucking all of his strength so each time he had a conversation, it would drained him out.

"I know. I'm sorry." She says but Henry couldn't replied anything further when the whole kitchen began to spin and the last thing he knew was that June tries to catch him from falling. He remembered her touching his arm and he felt nothing but cold, not pain, not even a sharp tugged in his heart like he used to feel around death. Except for her soft cold touched that felt like a velvet scarf brushing through his skin as he fell unconscious.

.