#12 Jace Be Like

#20

"Jesus..."

"Actually, It's Daniel."

Zack craned his neck to look at the tiny figure sitting atop the - frankly massive - pile of bodies. He had stumbled upon the sight on accident and frozen in shock, mouth agape. If he looked more closely all the bodies seemed to belong to well-built muscly men who, judging by the various bats and DIY weapons strewn on the ground, had been armed. This was no accident, but a coordinated attack that had been thwarted by...by a toddler?

"Uhh..." Zack said, ever so eloquently.

The midget turned around a did a backflip (and almost gave the boxer a heart attack in the process), landing in front of him with a large toothy smile. Now that they were standing next to each other he seemed even smaller, no way older than 5, Zack noted after he stopped gaping. He wore what looked like an old yellow t-shirt with a smiling cat, splatters of blood clear on the thin fabric, and a pair of brown cargo shorts. In the middle of December, at night.

Zack resisted the urge to voice some choice words about the kid's parents as another freezing wind cut through his own thick winter coat. He kneeled to be on eye level with the smiling little menace and extended his hand, deliberately slowly not to spook him.

"I'm Zack."

"Oooh, nice to meet you!" Daniel shook his hand eagerly.

'Yep, his hands are freezing', Zack thought bitterly, looking around for his guardian or someone that could resemble a responsible adult. He found none. The alleyway they were in was pretty out of the way, not a place where a child should be, although... judging by the piled gangsters behind him he could handle himself. A bead of sweat rolled down the boxer's cheek, 'Not even I could beat so many at the same time' and wasn't that saying something? Even after being trained by that monk, Gongseob Ji, there were still people who were stronger than him without even trying.

"Achoo!"

That broke him out of his thoughts, and he wasted no more time in unzipping his coat and scooping the child in his arms, before rezipping the coat with the midget's head poking out. Uncaring of what he must've looked like [*cough* pregnant *cough*] Zack got back up and began walking out of the alleyway.

"We're going to get you something warm to eat and then we can try to figure this whole thing out, mkay?"

The midget nodded his head furiously and gave him another blinding smile before settling on his chest like a happy cat. Neither spoke until they finally found an open convenience store. By the time they got what they wanted to eat and sat down in the little eating area of the shop it had begun snowing heavily. Zack put the kid on one of the stools, with his coat still wrapped around him before opening the two cups of instant noodles and pulling out the little bags of condiments. He kept an eye on Daniel as he moved to pour warm water from the dispenser. To his credit, the little one waited patiently, swinging his legs in the air, his eyes glued on the taller male as he prepared their meal.

"So, where are your folks, midget?" Zack asked as they waited for the noodles, trying to keep his tone light.

In spite of his efforts, the boy curled in on himself, his eyes dimming. 'Sore spot, then' he thought, making a mental note to avoid bringing it up again. He couldn't imagine anyone willingly abandoning this ray of sunlight of a child, so he assumed they must've been dead. 'Yes, that's the only explanation' Zack nodded to himself, before addressing Daniel again.

"Do you have anywhere to go?"

The kid nodded eagerly, but the boxer still had his reservations.

"Let me rephrase that, do you have anywhere to spend the night that you know you can reach and where you won't freeze to death?"

"Uhh."

"Right, so that's a no. Great!" Zack rubbed his forehead tiredly.

He pulled the top packaging off the cups of noodles and broke apart a pair of chopsticks mixing them into the steaming meal before handing it to the midget and doing the same for his own cup.

"Ah, thank you!" Daniel chirped before digging in like a starved child.

'He probably was' he thought bitterly, swallowing a mouthful of noodles. For a few minutes, all you could hear was the sound of them eating, but soon enough the boy pushed away his empty cup. Once more, Zack didn't hesitate or even find it weird how his arms moved on their own to place a small packet of chocolate biscuits in front of the kid's nose.

"Eat up, midget." he encouraged, cringing at how sappy he sounded. "Those aren't going to eat themselves."

'Damn it, why am I acting like this?!' The older boy bemoaned mentally, thankful that none of the people who knew him were here to witness how fucking soft this little menace was making him. After finishing his noodles Zack got up to throw the two cups away when he felt a tug on his sweater. Looking down he found an impossibly large pair of doe-like black eyes gazing uncertainly up at him.

'Ah, my heart!' he mentally clutched his heart which had been pierced by an arrow marked "CUTENESS".

"I'm just going to throw these away!" He quickly reassured the little one, gesturing towards the two empty cups in his hand.

"Are you going to come back?" Daniel asked in a small voice which nearly made the boxer kneel over.

"Of course! Of course! I'll be right back!" Zack assured before nearly sprinting to the trashcan and back, to the bewilderment of the cashier.

"See, right back!"

Daniel hummed happily in agreement with a big smile that made him ponder the benefits of having a pair of sunglasses always on hand. he would probably need a pair if he didn't want to go blind from this unbearably bright ray of sunshine. 'How has no one kidnapped him yet?' Zack wondered, sparking a flame of protectiveness in his chest.

You know how you hear people say that they see something, usually a small child or an animal, and go 'yeah, that's mine now'? That was exactly what happened at that exact moment in Zack The Wimp Lee.

Did it raise questions the next day when he showed up to fight with a toddler on his shoulders? Maybe. Did he care? Absolutely not. He kicked names and took ass looking like an absolute badass and a brilliant model for his new little brother. The highlight of his day was when some random extra tried to hit Daniel as a way of getting back at Zack and got promptly locked through a brick wall by a giggly 5-year-old waving around a purple dinosaur plush in one hand and a blueberry popsicle in the other. The looks on everyone's faces had been enough to make his week.

#19

Danny: Alright, listen up, you little shits. Danny: Not you, Jay. You’re an angel and we’re thrilled to have you here.

#22

18-year-old Daniel sprung out of bed and ran out of his home, still in his pajamas. He ran until he reached the gates of J High, then up the stairs and burst into his classroom like hell was biting at his heels. The room was empty save for one boy that always got to school early.

Jay rose from his seat, concern painting his delicate face and Daniel froze in his tracks, eyes roaming for any injuries he knew logically weren't there. He had to make sure- He had to!

"You're okay!" He breathed a sigh of unbearable relief, the with of the world now gone from his shoulders.

Jay regarded him momentarily before nodding and stepping closer to the panting boy as if to pressure him that he was alright. He didn't expect that the moment he got within reach Daniel would grab his arm and pull him into a desperate hug that he melted into. The boy's hand lingered around his neck and Jay wondered if he could feel the skin beath his touch grow warmer, thankful for once that at least his face was buried in the other's chest so that he wouldn't see him blushing. The blond waited for Danny to finish checking for whatever it was that had him in such a state, noting that with each place he searched and found unblemished his shoulders would sag more, until bit by bit he relaxed entirely.

The baffled but relieved boy cupped Jay's cheek and brought his face up and close to his, taking in the sight of him like a starved man. Finally, he gave one last sigh and angled his head so that he could rest his forehead on his. He simply reveled in the moment for a bit, pretending like he didn't hear the blonde's sharp intake of breath, before pulling back.

"I'm sorry if I scared you...I think I just had a nightmare," Daniel rasped, unwilling to cause him even more worry. Gods, I must've lost my bloody mind or something! Jay just gave him a gentle smile and nodded understandingly before motioning for his desk.

The repetitive rhythm of tic-tac-toe allowed him to contemplate that morning's events. He had acted irrationally, there was no doubt about that, but the situation hadn't left much room for cold logic, not when time had once again dripped in reverse just as he and his crew had lost their lives.

The first time it had happened he had cried out joyfully, thinking that was his second chance. Only, it hadn't turned out as he had planned. He still ended up dead, but this time he hadn't been the only one. Daniel closed his eyes and envisioned the bloody bools in which the broken bodies of his allies, his friends had laid. His stomach churned at the memory of their cold dead eyes straight right through him and the pencil in his hand snapped.

"Ah, sorry!" He distractedly apologized to his friend, who shook his head to indicate that it wasn't a big deal. Danny let his head fall onto the table with a soft thump. "I think I'm a bit more out of sorts than I realized, sorry about your pencil Jay!"

The boy reached, at first hesitantly, and pat his head lightly as if to say it didn't matter. Daniel leaned into the touch, prompting him to begin gently playing with his hair until he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

Danny had, in fact, not fallen asleep just yet. He pondered more so than he had the first time how time travel worked and how it was possible that it happened twice [Oh, boy! You have no idea!]. Undoubtedly, he was thankful for this chance to right his wrongdoing. The first time he had awoken two years in the past he had been rash, eager to save people he had no business saving and in the process losing those he shouldn't have lost. The memories haunted him, but that was good! This way he wouldn't forget. This way he would never make the same mistakes twice. This way he would learn to be cautious, even if it had to be drilled into his bones!

Daniel Park made an oath to himself that autumn morning, that he wouldn't repeat his mistakes and that he wouldn't lose anyone this time. To his credit, he stuck to it. He lived a long happy life surrounded by those dear to him and put an end to any unsavory activities that could harm them. He was a hero...too bad heroes never get a happy ending~

18-year-old Daniel sprung from his bed...and froze.

It hadn't worked.

He was back.

Why was he back?!

[Daniel Park is 18 by Korean standards and 16 by U.S. standards but I used the former in this.]

#13

It wasn't uncommon for certain physical traits, mostly scars, and tattoos to travel loops with Daniel. It was, however, extremely inconvenient when fresh injuries would travel over with him.

That's how Daniel found himself kneeling over in an alleyway, bleeding profusely from one eye and covered in bruises. One of his arms had a few patches of missing skin that had been scraped off when he skidded down the pavement after a pick-up had rammed straight into him. Someone had ordered a hit on him in the last loop. The boy had been ambushed by over a thousand trained and armed men and when he'd finally made his escape leaving their limp bodies behind he had been hit head-on and thrown through a glass panel. Then he was hit again just as he was regaining his bearings and finally died from the trauma.

Tentatively he reached with shaky fingers and touched his swelling eye. It felt gummy and something liquid was leaking out, but thankfully it was already numbed by the effects of time travel. At least that was one good thing he could get out of his 'predicament', his body didn't hurt. In a few hours, it would start to, as the effects of the loop wore off, and by then he would probably be writhing in a hospital bed (if he even made it there), but for now, he could focus on figuring out when and where he was.

"Fuck!"

He spun around in a panic, coming face to face with a certain black-eyed male looking at him incredulously. Danny tried to square his shoulders and straighten his back, but his abdomen was bleeding profusely and he had to keep one hand in place to slow the flow of he blood. As he was, half-leaning onto the wall with one arm while looking like he would collapse at any minute he was pretty sure he didn't look intimidating enough to get the male to leave him alone.

"Fuck!"Gun repeated, as if not believing what he was seeing.

Danny steeled his nerves and tried to slightly shift his body into a fighting stance but failed, his right leg almost giving away beneath him. He was sent stumbling right into the wall, but kept his head up, glowering and showing his teeth in an almost animalistic threat not to get closer. It didn't matter that he was slowly dying, he wouldn't let a bastard like him have the satisfaction of seeing him vulnerable.

"You" He paused as if unsure of himself "You need medical attention"

"Yeah, no shit" The injured boy spat out alongside a few flakes of blood.

The fighting maniac shifted from one foot onto another and looked around hesitantly. Daniel stifled a disbelieving snort. Was he actually debating on being a decent human being for once and helping him out? He hoped that was just wishful thinking on his part because if it wasn't, surely something must've gone terribly wrong with this loop!

"Who?"

Danny just let out a scratchy hum in inquiry. He very much doubted he could keep this up much longer, already feeling like his insides were going to spill out at any moment. He was really pushing his luck right now, but the boy found he didn't care much. The loop would reset and his wounds would probably disappear. Death was just another part of the circle, something he had come to accept could happen at any time.

"Who did this? Who could have beaten you so bad? You, who just a few days ago fought me and broke my arm like it was second nature to you!? You're a fighting genius! This should be possible! How is this possible?" His voice began showing traces of hysteria and Danny rolled his eyes. The stock he put in his own skills would have seemed warranted to him before the loops, but now that he had far surpassed him, Gun only seemed like a lunatic with illusions of grandeur and a perverse way of seeing the world.

A rough, dry laugh fell past his bloodied lips, startling the raving man out of his hysteria. He turned just in time to see blood pooling beneath the boy, whose body had slid down the wall and onto the concrete, leaving behind a trail of crimson. He gurgled a mouthful of blood just as the Japanese man rushed towards him, and Daniel Park slumped over lifeless, his face twisted in a mocking grin and his eyes fixed forward, dull and unseeing.

A full-body shiver ran through Gun and he silently despaired at losing such a promising fighter with so much untapped potential. He could have been his masterpiece or even his rival. It wasn't fair!

With shaking hands (why were his hands shaking?) he pulled out a cigarette. It took him three tries before he managed to light it and finally took a mouthful of the addictive smoke(just don't think about it). Slowly, the substance calmed him down enough to get up and clumsily stumble off to god knows where(it happens, people die all the time). Without realizing it, Gun reached the port and sat down on the cold concrete, hypnotized by the sea. His hands were dripping red, staining his expensive clothes (when had he touched the blood?).

"Maybe...Maybe I should've..."

The sound of crashing waves covered his words. He stood there for a while longer, until his phone began blowing up and night had fallen. He threw his phone into the water carelessly and sat back down. The sun rose over the horizon like it always did, and a single man, waiting on the docks was there to greet it. (Death could not be undone)

In another timeline, Danny felt the sudden urge to yell SIKE!

Throughout Lookism you get these cut-aways where different characters comment upon things happening in the main storyline, and while at first they’re framed as convos between two or more characters, at one point they start to come across more as like a third party interview:

And I just want to know who is interviewing them???? And how do I get that job???

Danny is in a genderbend loop again, but born in Japan also in a yakuza family that is well known underground fighter (basically like Kure clan in Kengan Asura)

And Danny being well known fighter underground, and Gun basically sends gifts as a proposal.

[ i should probably be doing my homework, but fuck it, here's another one-shot about Gun being a simp and Danny being done with life until Rapunzel's long-lost twin saves the day. Enjoy!]

Being a woman never gets easier, Danny sighed wrapping bandages over her chest. She was headed into the ring any minute now and needed to be prepared.

Japan was different than Korea, and she found herself often blindsided, despite apparently knowing the language. Oh, and she was also part of some super important and huge crime family? Yey.

Her biggest problem currently, however, was another thing: Gun. As usual, he was the root of her perpetual annoyance, by being not only a menace but an utter simp.

"You beat a guy into the hospital once-" She bemoaned quietly before the sound of a gong announced her entrance.

She stepped into the arena with a blank face and her chin held things, not once faltering in her pace. Her opponent, a mountain of a man with several years of fighting under his belt and numerous prizes was waiting with an equally somber look. He knew who she was, and he knew that he had no way of winning, but for the sake of his pride and probably his life, he had to try. The cheers were deafening. Behind a pair of shades, black eyes pierced her skin like burning daggers.

Boohoo~ Jay, my beloved, quickly come save me! she wailed in her mind while suppressing a shiver. Why did she have the worst luck in the world?! Danny shook such thoughts off and tried to concentrate on the fight, but she couldn't. Her mind drifted back to the quiet evening she had spent in her lover's arms before the loop had so cruelly ripped her from his embrace.

The sound of the gong snapped her from her thoughts. Before her laid the fallen body of her opponent, badly injured, but alive. Danny tuned out the voice of the commentator echoing through the arena with a bored look. In the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of blonde hair, but when she turned her head it was gone.

The girl was just packing her stuff to leave when she once again saw that flash of blonde going down the corridor. Quickly hoisting the duffle bag over her shoulder she hurried out of the locker room and sprinted down the hall. As she turned the corner she ran straight into someone and ended up sprawled all over the floor. Before she could regain he bearings, someone extended their hand to her to help her up. Oh, fuck me sideways!

Gun stared down at the girl with a polite smile, waiting for her to grab his hand so he could hoist her up. That didn't happen. Instead, the little spitfire got up herself and proceeded to book it past him without another word.

She had intrigued him from the moment he had first seen her fighting a few months ago. The girl was young but skilled beyond her years. She was quick on her feet and her hits spared no power, but she could still dish them out for hours without even breaking a sweat (he'd seen her do it in one match). There was just something so intoxicating about how she could turn her body into a weapon without even blinking and take out people three times her size like they were made out of straw.

Gun was determined to have such a masterpiece at any cost.

Danny was sulking. She had lost the mystery blond somewhere in the maze of corridors. A part of her yelled that that might've been her Jay and that she had just lost her chance, but the rational part reminded her that the blonde was in Korea, far away from her. She had done some digging and discovered that her brilliant beloved was an aspiring poet in this loop, which didn't surprise her that much. Her hubby had always been a sensible soul. It did however make her heart ache to know that their paths would probably never cross this time. I mean, I'm an underground fighter, and he writes poetry, she despaired mentally.

Another day, another fight. The routine was starting to grate on her nerves.

Another thing that bugged her endlessly was that the black-eyed maniac had apparently taken an interest in her, again. He kept sending her gifts and whatnot every day. Her parents (some random extras she had never met before) were ecstatic that such a highly regarded and respected man wanted to have their daughter, and kept trying to convince her to accept his proposal. She vehemently refused and threatened to burn down the whole house if they kept insisting. That got them to back off for a while.

Gun upped his game. Not only did he start bribing her extended family with gifts, but he also somehow go invited to the birthday celebration of the head of their family, Masashi Park.

If Danny was irked before now she was downright fuming. Every member of their clan had to attend this celebration unless they were pregnant and repairing to give birth or on their deathbed. There was no way for her to get out of attending.

"Gods willing I die before then." She cursed under her breath when her maid announced the news.

She shooed the confused maid and rolled into her covers, clutching a pillow to her chest. It was moments like these that she craved to be back in her lover's warm embrace, away from all the maniacs and bastards who sought to disturb their peace. Oh what she wouldn't give to-

"Would you stop throwing pebbles at my window, I'm trying to have a tearful inner monologue here!"

She stomped her way to the window and opened it. Before she could shout some more a small rock hit her right in the forehead. The fighting prodigy went down with an 'oof' bested by a flying pebble. She got up again, ready to give her attacker a piece of her mind before her eyes landed on that familiar mop of blond hair and all of her thoughts came to a screeching halt.

There in all his glory, like a prince come out of a fairytale to save his beloved, was her darling Jay. He waved at her, smiling shyly. Bewildered, Danny slipped through the window, landing on the grass silently (assassin skills for the win!).

"How?" The words came out before she could stop them.

Jay shrugged.

"You don't know?"

Nod.

"Then-?"

"Huh, you felt like you knew me? And you had a feeling I needed help?"

The conversation, although one-sided, brought tears of gratitude to her eyes. At first, Jay panicked seeing her cry but quickly calmed down when she explained the situation and held her as she let all of her piled frustrations out. He didn't let go when his shirt got so wet it stuck to his skin, just sat and listened to her ranting while drawing small circles on her back. He didn't ask her anything, as if he already knew everything he needed to. Her darling always had a knack for knowing things he shouldn't and she couldn't be more thankful for it now.

"Aren't you supposed to be in Korea?" Danny asked after she had finally calmed down a bit.

The two had moved to an area further away from her home, on a little hill overseeing the city. She was laying on his chest, their legs entangled over one another, his arms planted firmly around her smaller body like an anchor while she played with his fingers.

"Oh? You're here with your father who's on a business trip? That's-" she yawned "-really great."

Danny snuggled deeper into the warmth, trying to turn away from the blasted light that wouldn't let her sleep. Wait, light? She groggily opened her eyes to see the sun climbing over the horizon. The girl gasped, waking Jay up as well. The two shared a quick hug and she gave him a light peck on the cheek before they parted ways with promises to meet again as soon as possible.

When the servants saw their young miss practically skipping into the house they pinched themselves to check if they were still asleep. The young beauty who had been so morose and silent these past few days had a lovely smile painted on her face and her cheeks were the color of roses. She looked like a blooming flower and was gently humming a tune to herself. (Near, far, wherever you are~) [I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself! ]

Danny just ignored all of them and headed to her room, content to have her dearest once again by her side.

---------------

The day of the celebration came and with it the family drama and gossip. Who married who? Who killed who? The usual. And, of course, the news of the young raven-haired master of a good family courting the cold and skilled young miss of the 5th branch.

The girl in question listened to them spread the most ludicrous of ideas around, such as her being pregnant by Gun (the fuck?), and wanted to gag. Old people with little to do had the wildest imaginations!

And as if that wasn't already enough, right then the star of the show decided to make his appearance. Danny took a deep breath, mentally repeating a mantra about calm and patience. It wouldn't do to sully her new dress with his blood. Besides, they weren't allowed to kill or mutilate someone during the patriarch's birthday, lest they wish to face his wrath. And no one wanted to go toe to toe with that crazy old geezer!

To her momentary relief, Gun didn't approach her for the entire celebration, until the banquet.

Danny tried not to bite into her chopsticks as she cursed whatever bastard had been in charge of the seating arrangement for at least twenty generations to come. Why did it seem like their seats were purposefully placed closer to each other?! Patience, patience, patience, the girl repeated, trying to restrain herself from elbowing the shameless bastard whose sleeve kept brushing her side 'accidentally'. He would soon 'accidentally' end up with one less arm!

When the time came to toast, Old Masashi got up with his cup raised, prepared to give his speech.

"I wish to first and foremost apologize to all of you."

Murmurs ran through the dining hall as people became uneasy. The old man wasn't known as a loose canon for nothing. The room was once again reduced to silence through a single look from the patriarch.

"I have invited a guest to my celebration at the last minute. Due to my lack of foresight, I am afraid he's running a bit late. Nevertheless, I wish to introduce you to him."

The double doors engraved with tigers were opened by two servants. The guest walked in with elegant, deliberate steps, like a man merely taking a stroll through a shop, not entering the headquarters of one of the most feared clans in Japan. The hall waited with bated breath as he made his way to the old master, who hugged him like a friend and once again turned to address the crowd.

"This is Jay Hong, the son of a dear friend of mine and-" he threw a sharp look across the hall, his eyes settling on Danny "my future grandson-in-law!"

Everyone turned to look at the frozen girl, then back at the old master. Then again, at her and at Masashi, and finally at the blonde on his right.

Tick. Tock. Tick-

The hall burst into chaos.

Danny: What does a winner do when life gives them lemons? Vasco: Um, make lemonade? Danny: No, they squeeze them right back into life’s eyes!

#9 The Petty Revenge Arc

Danny: Someone hurt my beloved Jay. Zack: And what did you do about it? Danny: I ruined their business, then went back in time and terrorized them with spiders and baby crocodiles with lightsabers. Zack: Baby what with what? Danny: Then I set an army of angry middle-aged housewives on him. Zack: ... Zack: You know what, never mind, I don't even want to know.

small snippet from my WIP

Shards and Splinters | Weeping Embers

Dried leaves fluttered in the breeze, crunching amongst each other as if whispering secrets into the wind to be carried away. The streets lay abandoned, everyone still asleep tightly in their warm beds awaiting the dawn of yet another day like any other before. But today wasn’t going to be a usual day.

From the moment his eyelids opened, and he jolted out of bed breathing as if he had been chased around the whole world by an army of demons Archer Uberto could tell there was something different about today. The sun rose to the skies just like every other morning, drowning the world in light and warmth as it had done perhaps trillions of times before, yet still, the boy could not shake the feeling something was out of place. It wasn’t anything obvious, else he would have noticed by now, like how you’d know if someone had moved your socks from their rightful place, but not if a splinter was missing from your desk. The feeling, although persistent did nothing to deter him from entering back into his routine almost robotically, forgetting about the dream that had startled him awake, or of the pungent smell of creos in his home...

Archer paused repeating the thought that had just passed through his mind. Creos? What even were creos and why did he think of that? A puzzled expression flashed on his face before the shrill ringing of his phone broke his line of thought, pulling him back into reality harshly. His body moved on its own, traversing the neat and clean room all the way to the small bookshelf adorning the whole left wall of his room before turning off that blasted noise, so he could once more rejoice in the softer morning sounds.

A crow stood atop one of the branches that neared his window, silently observing the teen as he exited the building dressed in an old baseball shirt and dark green jeans. It cawed out twice before taking off into the mushy clouds in search of its morning meal.

The sudden flapping of feathers alerted a nearby mouse and sent it scurrying back beneath the dumpster it had crawled from, the dark feathered bird now taking its place, atop the lid that rested on the wall behind it. From there it had a clear view of the lanky teen as he scurried into the backroom, before coming out with a green apron and getting behind the counter, just as the doors of the cafe opened to let in a stream of groggy and grumpy customers who couldn’t be bothered with pleasantries at such an early hour.

Archer sighed in relief upon hearing the bell hung above the door ring one final time that day, the last customer exiting the small Starbucks, coffee in hand. With a sudden sense of accomplishment, the boy grinned to himself, returning to the backroom. He greeted the rest of his colleagues politely and made a bit of small chat before changing from his uniform back into his soft dark jacket and exiting the building while humming a soft tune and swinging his arms in

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the air as if he were conducting a band of invisible musicians. There were barely any people on the streets at the time to judge him, and even those who saw him as mad he could not be bothered to pay attention to.

Upon crossing the street, he stopped in the middle, waiting for someone to come out of nowhere and run him over, but after a few minutes and not even the sight of a bike, he let out an exasperated sigh and continued on his journey back to his warm bed and fluffy pillow. Perhaps next time he would have more luck, Archer pouted jokingly while swatting a few stray strands of mahogany hair out of his eyes, only for the evening breeze to blow them right back into his face, blinding him momentarily. And it was all it took, just that one moment, he smelled that same scent his room had that morning, and that feeling came back over a thousand times stronger.

He whirled around clutching his sides, as a stinging pain bloomed right where his ribs caged his lungs and the wind picked up, raising clouds of fallen and dried leaves into the air and surrounding him. Archer clenched his eyes tightly, burying his head into his chest, now fully aware that that feeling of something being awfully wrong had not been only in his tired mind.

“There’s no way I’m going to die to a cloud of leaves today” he screeched, before choking on something and falling into a coughing fit, his eyes watering and his ears ringing.

Robin: Are you having another depressive episode? Danny: A depressive episode? Danny: I'm having a depressive series and we're just on season one.