Amber and I stand atop the snowy slope, staring at the caution tape around the re-frozen lake.

"What'd they find today?" she asks.

"An arm and a leg. Don't worry, I'll let you know when they recover the abs."

She playfully punches me and I wince in pain.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot about..."

"It's okay. You didn't mean any harm."

"How is it?"

"Healing. Same with the leg."

"At least you can walk now."

"Yeah. Let's get out of here."

Amber drives me home. I exit the car. "I need to get my ticket. I'll meet you at your place, then we'll leave, okay?"

"The concert's not until 8, there's no rush."

"I know. I'll see you in 2 hours."

"Wait!"

"Yeah, what's up?"

"No."

I narrow my brows in confusion.

"I don't think you're a psychopath."

"Even if I killed someone?"

"For the greater good. You even have a gunshot wound and stab mark to prove it."

I smile. "See you in a couple of hours."

She drives away.

I enter the house to be met with my mom's tight embrace.

"Hi, mom."

"Where were you?"

"It's fine, I was with Amber."

"How's your arm?"

"It's coming along."

My dad is standing at the kitchen entrance. "I always knew you had thick skin."

I laugh. "I'm just here to get my ticket, it's still in my room, right?"

My mom nods. "I'm gonna start on dinner, so it'll be ready when you get back."

She goes into the kitchen. My dad makes a motion with his hand to follow him into the living room. I do.

"Are you okay?" he signs, not wanting my mom to hear.

"I'm fine." I sign back.

"How's therapy?"

"It's alright."

"Does your arm still hurt when you move it?"

"No. The contusion's clearing up nicely though."

"Can I see?"

I nod and roll up my sleeve, exposing the blackened spot where I was shot. My dad sighs in desperation, overtly abhorred. I roll my sleeve back down.

"Dad. I'm okay."

He's about to cry. "I know."

I hug him as I hear light sniffles come from him. I've never heard my dad cry before. "It's the thought of almost losing you that scares me." he whispers.

I let him go and give him a small smile. "I'm gonna get my ticket."

I go up to my room and see it lying on my desk. I pick it up, smiling.

Palaye Royale

8:00pm

The Black Room

I put it in my backpack, then swing it over my shoulder and run downstairs. I kiss my mom and dad before heading out the door.

I run to the train station and swipe my MetroCard, hopping on the train as soon as it arrives. This is why I told Amber 2 hours.

The train stops and I exit, entering the psychiatric hospital. Jenna smiles at me. "Rebecca, so good to see you!"

"Where's Gerard?"

"In his room, I'll lead you."

I follow her down the long corridor until we're in a hallway full of doors. She walks me to the door numbered 1243.

"I'll leave you guys alone." she says before departing.

I knock on the door.

"It's open!" I hear him yell.

I open the door to see boxes all over the room and Gerard. He smiles at me.

"Hey." I smile back. He's not in his scrubs. His clothes are casual from the hoodie to the jeans. "What's going on?"

"I'm discharging myself."

"Really?"

"Yeah. After I heard about Brendon, I sent one of my comics to a corporate building in Manhattan. They want to publish my work and send me there today."

"Shit! That's awesome."

"It's all thanks to you."

"To be honest... I didn't intend on killing him to begin with."

"It doesn't matter. You did the right thing. You have no idea, as soon as all the dirt on Brendon came into fruition, I was elated."

"I can imagine."

"I made the doctors look like the crazy ones. But... more importantly... you brought justice to my family and everyone he killed. Thank you."

I smile. "You're welcome."

"I uh... heard you got shot."

"Yep. Wanna see?"

"Sure."

I roll up my sleeve.

"Oh, my God, that's gnarly."

"It was worth it." I say, putting it back down.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that."

"It's fine. Who'd've guessed that a 17 - year old girl would catch a serial killer?"

"I didn't think anyone would catch him. Thought I was gonna die in this place. But, what's done is done. And now I'm happy."

"Okay, I'll leave you alone to pack." I start closing the door.

"Wait," he stops me. "I want you to have this." He's handing me a comic book. "It's the first one published so far."

"I don't know what to say."

"Consider it a gift, from all of us." He pulls the photo of his family out of his pocket.

"Thanks, Gerard. I'll keep in touch."

I walk away and put the comic in my bag. As soon as I exit the hospital, the sound of a horn grabs my attention. It's Amber.

"How'd you know where I was?"

She shrugs as I get in. "Call it a hunch.  Also, your Snapchat picked up your location so, I thought I'd give you a ride to my place. We can grab some cocoa."

"I'd like that a lot."

"How're you holding up?"

"Doing okay."

"Want some Palyae? Consider it a warmup."

I smile and turn on the radio. Dying In a Hot Tub comes on. She drives off.

To this day, I don't know what Brendon's deal was. Jealousy, Schizophrenia, or something. Maybe it was all just out of sheer enjoyment. I guess I'll never know, but I'm fine with that. I often think about how it felt when I kicked him in the throat, that sense of relief. Obviously, I would never do it out of spite. He was trying to kill me. After me, who knows about his next potential victim? My parents? Amber? It doesn't matter now, he's gone. I released the world of a vile... repulsive -

"Are you okay?"

I look over at Amber. "I feel... invincible."

"You have a bullet hole in your arm to prove it."

We laugh.