Eight years passed in a blur for Anti since every day was the same routine, even on holidays.

Wake up.

Eat.

Kill someone.

Make a new scar.

Eat.

Play video games with Dark.

Eat.

Sleep four hours.

Repeat for the rest of Anti's life.

The one thing he always looked forward to was when Dark would take Anti to the arcade room and play games, or sometimes just watch a movie and talk while eating junk food that Dark would sneak out and steal from the stores above them.

Yet there was always something Dark seemed to be hiding from Anti.

He never mentioned relationships or anything about family, although Anti wasn't sure why. Anti was an open book compared to Dark, who was more like a locked diary.

The only thing Anti knew about Dark's past was that his dad had been in the military, but died in action. But that was when he was dying by a bullet to the chest. Now there was a faint red scar that looked similar to the other scars that marred his torso.

"You okay?" Dark's voice brought Anti back to reality. They were sitting on the new black cloth couch Dark had gotten yesterday with the money from the last job they did yesterday watching a Marvel movie. It was midnight according to Anti's phone, even though it didn't really feel like it. He had begun to lose sense of time since he spent most of his life in the tunnels.

"Yeah, just...thinking." Anti shrugged, pushing the thoughts back into the corner of his mind.

"About?" Dark pressed, his black and red eyes glittering with curiosity and mischief. Even though the contacts disguised his real eye color, they could t cover his emotions as well as Dark thought.

"I don't know much about you, yet we're best friends." Anti mused.

"Well I don't know about best friends." Dark joked, flashing Anti the genuine smile Anti loved seeing. Dark would look like a kid again, even though he was twenty-six and Anti was twenty-five.

"How about this. I ask a question, then you can ask one. You also have to answer it, no matter what." Dark paused the movie, shifting on the couch so he could face Anti.

"Fine by me." Anti smirked, already knowing what he wanted to ask. He had plenty of questions.

"Alright. I know about your dad, but what about your mom?" Dark started.

"Dunno, she left as soon as I was born." Anti stated nonchalantly.

"What about your mom?" Anti countered.

"She lives in Korea, she used to call me her light when I was little." Dark smiled fondly at the memory.

"Why are you called Dark then?" Anti blurted.

"Not your turn yet." Dark reminded him with a light chuckle.

"Now, what's a dream you have?" Dark questioned.

"You're not going to make fun of me, right?" Anti hesitated.

"Of course not, this is a safe place here." Dark assured him.

"I want to be a doctor or a therapist and help people...that's why I joined in the first place. Infelix promised me he'd give me the degrees I would need." Anti explained.

"Mine's really stupid compared to yours." Dark sighed.

"Well now you gotta tell me what it is." Anti leaned closer in interest, now sitting shoulder to shoulder with Dark.

"I...I'm wanting to find someone who will accept me for who I am." Dark confessed as he blushed in embarrassment, his gaze fixating on the floor to avoid Anti's gaze.

"Why wouldn't people accept you?" Anti frowned in confusion.

"I'm a murderer, part German, part Korean, and...I'm p-"

Dark broke off when his phone vibrated in his pocket, alerting him that he had a text from Infelix.

"He says he has something he wants to show us." Dark scanned the message with a small, concerned frown.

Dark and Anti jogged to where Infelix was waiting for them, a large cage with a black tarp over it lying behind him.

"What's up?" Anti glanced behind Infelix at the cage. He doubts he had a dog in that cage, even though both he and Dark really wanted one.

"First of all, I want to thank Anti for making this." Infelix nodded in appreciation at Anti.

"What did I do?" Anti frowned.

"Remember for Halloween when I asked you to make a werewolf serum for a case?" Infelix asked giddily.

Anti remembered very well. Infelix wanted the death to be themed, but when Anti refused to make it, Infelix had locked him up in a closet with only a bunch of chemicals, as well as chemistry equipment. He wouldn't let him leave or do anything until he had finished.

It took him two weeks to make it in that dimly lit nightmare.

"It works! Kind of. It's more like a bear serum, but still cool. I found the perfect subject to test it on too." Infelix continued as he tore the tarp off.

Inside was a large, brown, furry creature that had huge arms and sharp fangs and claws. It looked like the creature had been almost human at one point, but now...it looked almost bear like. The creature's black coal like eyes glared at Anti and roared in anger, as if somehow knowing that it was his fault.

"Meet Sinnamon Toast Ken, or Sin for short. I captured Ken since I had a request to do so by multiple people, and voila! Perfect beast." Infelix grinned proudly.

Sin snarled at him, lunging towards Infelix's hand.

"Why did you do this?" Anti took a step back, unable to believe that he had inadvertently done this to an innocent man. He was told that it would be for a case, but clearly it wasn't.

"I figured we could use a sort of defense while we're gone or something. That and I was bored. I figured you could do it since you seem like a mad scientist." Infelix admitted.

"Back off Infelix." Dark warned threateningly.

"Where are you two going at night?" Infelix' eyes narrowed in suspicion, either not noticing or not hearing Dark's warning.

"Just walking around." Anti lied quickly.

"Oh yeah, then what's this room?" Infelix strode over to one of the monitors and pressed a button, the camera switching from the view of an empty tunnel to the arcade room.

"How long have you been spying on us?" Anti demanded furiously.

"Since Dark made that room. I have eyes everywhere." Infelix activated all of the monitors, each one showing something different. Anti even noticed the store Dark constantly stole from on one of the screens. There was a room Anti didn't recognize, but Dark did.

"Why the hell did you have a camera in my room?!?" Dark lunged towards Infelix, only to be held back by Anti.

"I've been meaning to take that one down since the only thing I see there now is your mom bawling her eyes out on your bed, wishing you would come home. She still thinks you ran away and blames herself for it everyday." Infelix flicked the monitor off before Anti could get a good look at the room.

"Leave my mom out of this!" Dark roared in anger. This time, Anti didn't bother holding him back.

Dark moved like a shadow and picked Infelix up by the throat with one hand, raising him up in the air and slamming him against the wall of monitors, causing shards of glass to pierce Infelix's back.

"You even touch my mom and I will end you. Got it?" Dark spoke through clenched teeth.

He extremely strong, the time he spent in the makeshift gym he had created paying off well. His eyes burned with a fury that made Anti afraid, even though Dark wasn't even mad at him. Anti had never seen this side of Dark before, and he prayed he never would again.

Instead of begging for his life like Anti expected, Infelix only laughed, the sound reminding Anti of a broken squeak toy since he couldn't breathe.

Dark tossed Infelix to the ground, the lack of air and hard concrete floor knocking him out instantly.

When Dark turned to look at Anti, the fire of hatred that was burning in his eyes was gone. Instead, he just looked...exhausted, like Infelix had taken all of the energy from him.

"So, what was the thing you were gonna tell me in the arcade room?" Anti grunted as he heaved Infelix up over his shoulder like a bag of rocks and flopped him down face first on his bed, picking pieces of glass out of his back before bandaging it up. Even though he didn't like Infelix, he didn't want to kill him either.

At least not yet, as tempting as it would be to let Dark snap his neck then and there while he slept.

There were plenty of days where he hated Infelix, but he needed him since couldn't, no, wouldn't go back to his home full of nightmares and broken bottles.

That, and Infelix had yet to deliver his promise of giving Anti his degrees he needed, as well as whatever he had promised Dark. Anti doubted Dark joined just for fun.

"I'll tell you about it tomorrow." Dark promised Anti with a tired smile.

"Need sleep?" Anti smirked, tossing Dark a pair of pjs.

Dark nodded in appreciation and got dressed, Anti politely turning around to give him privacy. As soon as Anti turned around, Dark crawled into bed and instantly fell asleep.

"Goodnight Dark." Anti whispered as he changed into pjs as well.

"You too Anti." Dark slurred back.

Anti fell into a peaceful sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow. His sleep didn't stay peaceful for long.