~~~~Lukas's P.O.V.~~~~

Cuts and bruises cover all of Jesse's visible skin, with the revolting scent of blood hanging in the air around him. His filthy clothes all ripped and stained with blood. Jesse's stance also definitely favors his left leg, which has a massive blood spot and the color is nearly black. Similar to a spot his right arm also has.

Jesse's face is in shock as he registers my presence. Peering even closer, Jesse looks sick. His eyes usually shines like the brightest of emeralds, but they look like dying grass now. While Jesse's skin is normally pale, it has a frosty appearance and now emphasizes the darker skin under his eyes.

Even during the Wither Adventure, Jesse never complained. He never gave the impression that he might be sleep deprived, starved, or in pain. Even though Jesse was under a lot more pressure than anyone else. Yet now, Jesse seems like he's been defeated, and he isn't even going to try to get back up.

"L-Lukas"

I narrow my eyes at him, as my worry and suspicion soars. What's happened to Jesse!? It never takes him this long to react and I have never seen him so- so... hopeless.

"W-What are you doing here? It's not that I don't love seeing my friends, it's just that usually we all plan to come together at the same time and know the others are coming so we can be prepared."

Jesse's words shake and wobble; he couldn't even stand to look me in the eyes. To me, it seems like someone just took all of Jesse's confidence and shattered it before him. The Jesse I know always stayed strong, for himself and others. Now a broken Jesse stands before me, too weak to talk like himself.

"Goodness Jesse! What happened to you?!" I take a step towards, extending my arms to help him, but Jesse shuffles back. "Whoa, what's wrong? You look worse than Petra when she had her wither sickness, and acting like her too."

"Lukas," Jesse's voice is strained, his eyes pleading with me.  "Just give me some time. I will work everything out, and, given time, I'll be fine. All I need-"

"Jesse look at yourself! It's one thing to be hurt and exhausted, but you aren't acting like you. You're Jesse, you are confident in your actions and words. But now you're acting hopeless even though you've done the impossible. Whatever you're dealing with, you shouldn't be doing it yourself."

Jesse's countenance drastically changes at my words. Taking a much more aggressive and defensive stance, all pain and exhaustion he has shown dissipates. His face distorts itselfs into one of pure rage. Words drain out of my mouth as I see my best friend get very angry, very fast, and it burning towards me.

"Lukas," Jesse's voice is colder than ice and shivers fly down my spine. "I do not want you here. Leave."

I gasp, my brain stuttering at how rude Jesse is being. The Jesse who helps strangers as a job and brings people together. My worry for Jesse now turns to panic at whatever's out there that can do this to the most selfless hero of all time.

"Woah, Jesse, I'm trying-"

"Not anymore! Now you are going to leave, so go."

"Okay, so you're upset. But don't-"

"Don't tell me what to do! What are you going to do Lukas?! Magically solve all my problems!"

"Jesse, please, I can help-"

"Lukas, I want you to leave. Help me with that."

"I won't leave if something is clearly bothering-"

"You're here when I asking you to leave. THAT is what's bothering me and is THAT too hard for you to understand?"

"No Jesse! If constantly helping others is wearing you down like this, you need to stop and let others handle-"

"STOP! JUST STOP IT LUKAS! You aren't helping at all! Just stop making things WORSE!" Jesse's arms become tense and his right hand twitches as if trying to grab something.

"Maybe it's because you're pushing me away. You can't do everything yourself, that's why you have people that care about you. You once told me that when facing an impossible problem you stick to your friends as hard as possible. I believed that then, and I still do. You were the one that told me that, and you were the one that made me believe that was true. Now just believe yourself."

Jesse's face remains in pure anger, and it still burns to get at me. Jesse's dull eyes narrow, and I can hear his heavy breaths from here.

If he still wants me out, I don't know what to do. I have never seen someone who has had to give Jesse an emotional speech on anything, it's always the other way around.

Jesse huffs and turns to the side and I can't see his face anymore. Cautiously, I tip toe to side to peer at him. My friend now appears as if someone has just handed all the problems in the worlds to him and told him to fix all of it without any help whatsoever. Despair etched onto my best friend's face.

Jesse looks at the ground with his eyes unfocused, and his shoulders sagging. Now that I was closer, I notice his clothes are stained with blood and... clay? My imagination conjuring up nightmarish worse case scenarios that could have happened to Jesse.

Whatever it was, it must have been bad enough to push Jesse over the edge, I've never seen him like this and I hope I never have to again. Jesse appears lost and exhausted, while being both frustrated and sad about it.

Jesse also still seems to be in a lot pain from whatever he went through this morning. This really has been a terrible morning for him and I don't even know the whole story.

A deflated voice cracks the silence.

"Lukas, when you were walking through town, did you hear any complaints?"

Oh no, this is bad, very bad. This is obviously even worse than what I thought if this is his way of introducing the problem.

"Uh yeah, everyone seemed really irritated about not having enough space for new builds and old ones being crammed together."

"Yep, Nell told me last night right after she got back. Nell, who hasn't been back for 24 hours yet! Not one person who is actually concerned about this has come up to tell me about the problem. Not one!"

Now looking me in the eye, Jesse continues, his fiery anger finding a target besides myself. "This has happened before, where a concern I know nothing about boils under the surface and then erupts. When that happens, it is the most stressful problem to work out and I generally get no time to rest."

Jesse stomps over to the stairs and sits down, wincing as a bit of weight transfers to his left leg. I sit down too and wait for him to continue.

"Don't freak out, but ever since the Admin thing, I have been getting nightmares." Jesse sighs and closes his eyes. "At first it was only once every week, and they weren't very vivid. Just a blur of bad past memories. It was more of a nuisance than an actual problem. But as people started to trust me again, and ask for help more often, the nightmares also came more often. Y'know how Champion City, although weak at the moment, is now a fully functional city?"

I nod, sorrow fogging up my mind for everything Jesse has been going through and mentally kicking myself for not noticing anything was wrong. I'm supposed to be his friend! And I've been completely obvious to everything!

"Stella was able to do that mostly through my help, and rebuilding a city is really tough. Even if some of the buildings are still standing. But by the time Champion City has gotten back on its feet, these nightmares were happening every night. And th-they are so vivid, as if I'm awake. And they're now warped memories, emphasizing the bad parts and covering up the good ones.

"Right now, I am beyond exhausted, but I am too scared to sleep. I used to try and force myself to sleep, but the- the n-nightmares are just so awful! I can't stand to sleep anymore! I never get ANY rest! Just a bunch of nightmares! Slayer of the Wither Storm... scared witless at the mere thought of sleeping!"

Jesse pushes himself up, all of these huge problems he shoved into a very small bottle exploding everywhere. I walk over and hug Jesse, trying really hard to not hurt him even more. Unexpectedly, Jesse seems to melt into the hug. I can feel tense and quivering muscles relax.

He hugs me back in a such desperate and depending way. Jesse buries his face into my hair, and my breath hitches as I feel cool droplets slide onto my neck.

Jesse is crying! And on me! Oh gosh, don't freak out. Just stay calm Lukas. Put his needs before your own and everything will turn out fine. Hopefully...

"You don't have to continue Jesse. I still need to treat your wounds and I can do whatever in order to manage the town while you relax. I don't want you to feel pressured into telling me this."

I started to rub Jesse's back while talking, really hoping I wasn't overdoing it. He pulls away and panic shoots through me. Ugh! Totally overdid it! Please Jesse just pretend that never happened.

"No, I'm continuing. You need to know more, which you'll find out why soon enough. Come on, lets go to Petra's room and grab a healing potion then head to mine. I am also locking the Order Hall, I don't want some citizen coming in here complaining. The town will be fine in the few hours I'm out."

"Not happening," I grab Jesse's good arm, stopping him.

"Jesse, stop acting as if you only fell down and scratched yourself. You're hurt and exhausted, if you're going to move, it will be straight to your room. And you will stay in there and rest for more than just a couple hours. In the meantime, I will get the potion and lock the door. Don't worry about anything, because right now you are under my care and I will take care of everything. Okay?"

Jesse's fish-face nods, and I put his arm around me. He doesn't object, so together we shuffle to his room. Although Jesse would grunt and whimper while limping. Once he sits, I turn and run out to the Order Door. I flip a lever, and the positions lock, making it unable to open anymore. I then dash to Petra's room to get the potion, feeling incredibly concerned for Jesse.

Does he really have to handle everything around here to a point where he is practically uncomfortable getting told what to do? Or is it that he has been independent for so long that relying on others is such a foreign concept? Even when we were all together, Jesse was always able to take care of himself. And is that why he didn't tell us about the nightmares when we all get together? We have all relied on Jesse on one point or another, he might be embarrassed or scared to show that he can't be relied on at sometimes. Gravel, why must you be so complex on the inside Jesse when you seem so straightforward on the outside?

I open Jesse's door, and stop- frozen at the sight of the drastic changes. Last time I was here, there were pictures and posters on the walls, books on his shelves, and there was an armor stand with the rest of the enderman costume and a pumpkin in the corner. The room was organized but it still had a homey, comfortable vibe to it.

Now, all the bookshelves have been replaced with chests. The wall has earned itself shelves stuffed with files and a huge calendar with each day full of events. A huge desk, stacked with papers, is now what sits in the corner.

Heck, there is even a chest with a dispenser next to the desk. I can briefly see new paperwork getting filed into it. The room feels like a lifeless office. The only reason it isn't one is because of the double bed and messy dresser in front of it.

Jesse is sitting on his bed, his fist tight as looks away from me. Probably isn't too happy with his room like this and my shocked reaction. I shall ignore this though, I'll wait until Jesse is ready to talk about it.

His solemn face turns toward me, and brings a hand out for the potion. I give it, and within moments Jesse holds a empty flask. My jaw slackens, that was the strongest type of health potion and he downed it like water!

"Did Petra have anymore?" My eyes widen and I take a good look at him. While the minor cuts and bruises were healed, Jesse seems like he is still favoring one side over another. And he definitely didn't any energy kick from the potion.

Which is strange, such a strong potion should have done more than that. Usually you drink one of those and you feel great for days, not immediately ask for another one.

"Uhhh noooo, Petra probably took the others for her adventures. But do you feel any better?"

"Yeah, just wish I could feel even better. But if you just stand there and stare at me like that I'll never be comfortable enough to start up again."

"Sorry..." I quickly scurry to his side and sit next to him. Although his last comment didn't sit right with me. It felt like just looking in the keyhole of chest. Trying to see more, but getting nowhere until I get a key. I'm probably overthinking things again...

"Don't apologize Lukas, I'm grateful your here and I am sorry about getting mad at you earlier. I was just feeling... uh... overwhelmed."

"Hey, I got all mad and emotional at you plenty of times and you stuck with me. So you don't have to apologize either." For the first time today, I finally see Jesse smile. It was a weary smile, but it was a happy one nonetheless. One of my own lighting up at the sight of it.

"Right, so yesterday I was feeling worn out. It has been three days since I slept at that point and I was keeping myself busy nonstop so I wouldn't stop and fall asleep." I gaze over at Jesse, becoming depressed myself at the measures he went to in order to stop his nightmares.

"Nell told me last night about the the space thing, and I just needed rest. I felt so tired and it was making me miss you and the rest of the order. That only made me sad and more aware of how tired I was. So I went to sleep. And-and- it wa- You were..."

Jesse stops for a moment and I rest my hand on his shoulder. He looks at me, and I give a small smile. Letting Jesse know that while I appreciate the trust, he doesn't have to relive that painful memory.

"Y'know Lukas, I really like it when the real you is here. The nightmare versions of you are generally heartless." I freeze and Jesse continues before I regain my wits.

"I only was asleep for a few hours, and I felt even more drained than when I went to bed. So I think about the space problem and end up at the conclusion the walls need to get bigger. However, there was nowhere near enough clay in the storage, and I knew Champion City wouldn't have any."

"So you went off to get it yourself without making much of plan, right?"

"That's about right. After the nightmare, I felt like I needed to prove to myself that I could do something. So I grabbed my armor, sword, shovel, ender pearls, and some food and went off to River Valley."

"River Valley?! You went there by yourself? I guess that explains how you had such a rough time getting clay. And why you needed ender pearls. But you could have told someone you would be gone at the very least!"

Jesse glances over at me, calm in contrast to me, who was slightly freaking out. His expression is sad, but peaceful too, as if accepting one's death.

Whoa Lukas, lets not get all morbid. Jesse is not dying, he just dances with Death way too frequently. Annnnd that was still pretty morbid.

"No one's here Lukas. Nell just got back, and she isn't really helpful in this type of situation. Jack and Nurm are with Petra on some adventure. Stella is at Champion City. Axel and Olivia are governing their towns. Xara is at the Underneath rebuilding. Ivor is away still repairing his friendships with the old order. You're here now, but I had every belief you would be in your cabin."

Jesse shakes his head, and releases a humorless chuckle that only dampens my thoughts. "When Gabriel got his memory back, he said the most ridiculous thing. 'Enjoy this now Jesse, because more often than not, heroes stand alone'. At the time, such an idea was just wrong! I would never let my friends get separated from me!"

Jesse's head falls and he releases a sigh... "But... well, just look what happened."

"Jesse... I'm so sorry for not being here..."

"Don't be, we have different lives and different responsibilities. And I felt it was my responsibility to go get clay at the nearest area there was, and that was River Valley." Jesse looks back at me, his emerald eyes slowly regaining life again.

"Long story short, get there and get the clay with relatively no problems at all, except getting feeling like an overworked donkey. And then I teleport out of the valley..." Jesse groans, his face scrunching up in misery.

"Annnnd right into a monster horde. On a normal day, I could've taken them. But I was so tired and foggy and just out of it. They pin me down, and my armor certainly did its job. The reason why I'm not wearing it anymore is pretty clear."

Jesse stands up stiff and winces again. He lays armor down and I freeze at the sight. It was miracle it was still together. The entire backside was either dented, crumpled, or torn open. There was scratches everywhere, as well the metal bent inward. Which probably gave Jesse half of the cuts he got. Some of the bigger pieces even got disconnected in some places, resulting in the armor piece hanging loose.

No wonder Jesse didn't have his armor on, after the fight it would do more harm than good. A thought pops in my head and I examine the left leg, only to see a sizable hole going inward. Looking at the right arm, I find a similar hole.

Not wanting to seem over worried, I continue looking at the armor but speak up. "Hey Jesse," I make my voice sound curious, but not sneaky. "What caused these big holes?"

"Like I said, I was in the middle of a monster horde. I got shot at a couple of times."

"You ripped the arrows out yourself?"

"Well, that's the real kicker Lukas. I should be dead. Those monster should have ripped me apart. But all of a sudden, when I was pinned down and literally almost dead, I got so angry. I was in a rage, I have never felt such a- such a... consuming hatred before."

"Wow, really? I mean, you have dealt with a lot of frustrating and anger inducing problems and people."

"I know, but it's the truth. I manage to stand back up and fight again, and when I do... promise me you won't freak out?"

"We've already gotten this far, I can handle whatever it is."

"Green flames came out of me."

My head whips around to face Jesse. I narrow my eyes, trying to see if this is some joke to keep me on my toes. All I see though is a serious, stone cold face. Jesse isn't joking.

"Wow, that was unexpected. It just came out? Any idea what it is?"

"There was one baked potato I didn't eat, this is what happened to it."

Jesse pulls out a charred ball of ash from his pocket. It emits a strong odor that even stings my eyes.

Holy nether, Jesse can summon green flames to come off him that absolutely incinerates anything near him if he gets angry. No wonder he was kinda in a daze when he got back. Exhausted, in pain, and suddenly a whole knew problem to deal that's internal, not external. If every time he gets mad... Wait a moment, he got really mad at me earlier...

"Were those green flames about to come back out when you were asking me to leave?"

Fear creeps up on a spider's fuzzy legs. Jesse stopped the impulse from doing that this time. But if Jesse, as a normal person, got mad and couldn't control it then, then this will be a very disastrous thing indeed.

"Yes! But please don't be scared or afraid Lukas! I didn't want that, I swear! One moment I was panicked and not really sure what to say. Then something you said made me feel defensive but that just blows up into anger. It was just one angry thought after another. In about 5 seconds I went from seeing you as a friend to a threat. Trust me I didn't want to say those things but it was really hard to hold it in and I didn't want to hurt you. I swear Lukas I was doing everything to try and protect you then! I had no intention of trying to burn you just because I was getting a little defensive!"

Jesse takes a deep breath, a wee bit out of breath from his panicked rant. I walk to Jesse and wrap him in another hug. Again, he melts into it, relaxing and letting out a peaceful sigh. I can't tell if the sigh was out of relief that I'm mad or out of content, but I know I am just happy to here.

"Jesse, you may not realize it, but you have done things for me that I will be endlessly grateful for. And then you turn around and see me as an equal. You are truly the greatest friend I have ever had and will have, and I will not turn away from you just because some new impossible situation decided to walk into your life. Okay? So I don't care whether your spewing fire or creating command blocks in your sleep, I am your friend and always will be. I will never give up on you Jesse, so don't worry about asking me to leave. I'll just come right back to help you."

****
Okay, this is a very heavily dialogue scene. I understand that.

But this is also pretty crucial considering the relationship dynamics that will be blowing up later on. Which means this is the groundwork, so to speak.

And to be entirely honest, I'll start a dialogue section thinking: "Okay this isn't going to last very long." Then an hour passes and there's an extra 1000 words, and I realize that it was a bit more drawn out than originally intended.

But then I love it too much to get rid of it. However, it does support what I want it to. So there's no point in deleting my hard work. And all the other important stuff is still in the chapter and you guys get longer chapters. Nothin' wrong with that.

(Unless you hate long chapters or something. To which I feel sorry for you.)

Okay, bye-bye!