Nick woke up to a bare arm around his waist. He tried to open his eyes but felt groggy from the restful night. He could hear the snoring and deep breaths as the other seven remained asleep. He focused back on the arm around him. He felt an urge to shrug it off. He hated physical contact. As nice as they were last night, he still didn't feel comfortable with such closeness.

Lightly, he grasped the hand that lay motionless on his body and lifted it. Surprisingly, he could feel the hair on it. As he held onto the hand, he slid out of his sleeping bag. Once done, he turned around to face the one bold soul that dared to touch him. To his surprise and dismay, the hand belonged to Rick. Did Rick have sexually insinuating dreams? Well, even if he did, he should find a different body to physically act out his affection-maybe a female, Nick thought. Nick looked strangely at Rick's sleeping form. Finally, he placed Rick's hand back on the sleeping bag and stood up.

His eyes adjusted to the dim room and rested on the digital clock-5:00 a.m.. Nick was relieved. Hopefully, nobody in the house was awake yet. He hadn't gotten used to the fact of sleeping in masses like this. And he wasn't to thrilled of the idea of washing and brushing in hordes either. As stealthily as he could, Nick headed for the door, hurdling over the bodies that lay strewn on the floor. He would find another bathroom to wash and clean up before the morning started.

Within seconds he got to the door and started to open it when he heard giggling from the bed. He turned around to where the noise came from, dreading that one of the girls was awake. Nick sighed in relief when he realized that Elisa was giggling in her sleep. For a moment, he wondered what blissful dreams she must be viewing in order to enjoy sleeping that much. Without a second thought, he turned the knob and left the room.

As he was cleaning, his mind returned to the previous evening's conversation with Daniel Brooks. Unfortunately, with all the commotion in his room last night with those seven, he didn't have the chance to think things through. And though it had been a while since the argument, his heart still felt the pain and worry-two feelings which he thought he had been immune to for a while now.

He wanted for the case to be over soon, dreading every minute that passed by in the company of these people. He had never felt so many restrictions in his life. Determined to bulldoze through the case, he cleaned up speedily and decided to go for a jog to think things through and sort out ideas. He changed into more suitable jogging attire and left the bathroom. As he passed the hallways on his way to the flight of stairs, he heard a door click behind him as well as some shuffling.

The footsteps seemed too soft to be one of the seven teenagers. He couldn't imagine any one of those children to be that considerate. He turned his head around only to gaze upon the face of Daniel Brooks. Nick's mind blanked out from this unexpected meeting. After a few seconds, he recovered and managed to examine the man closely. Daniel Brooks was also wearing sweats.

Daniel remained silent. He too was at a lost for words since he was not prepared to see Nick so early in the morning. After moments of awkward silence, Daniel spoke up first. "I thought I'd go for an early morning jog." He looked at Nick to see the boy's response.

Nick nodded. "Me too," he whispered as he stepped aside for Daniel to pass.

Daniel saw Nick's intentions and started to head down the hallway. Halfway to the stairs, he realized that Nick did not follow him. He turned around to see Nick standing there, pensive. He motioned for Nick to follow. He saw Nick biting his lip and then proceeding slowly towards him. Together, the two silent forms climbed down the stairs and exited the house.

The moment they left the house, Nick felt the breezes brushing against his face. It was a nice, refreshing feeling which he hadn't been able to experience for so long. Usually, he would wake up in the morning and begin work immediately. That meant heading straight for the deathly cold office and sitting within its confines for hours at a time. Rarely was he given the chance to breathe in some fresh air before the day started. No one gave him any slack. Work would build up so fast that he never had time for breaks.

But now, he had that chance. He knew that the possibility of freedom was slim. Why should the government let him go? He didn't have the power to fight for his freedom. He didn't have any voice in his life. He was their chess piece to control. The more he thought about it, the more he realized how wrong he had been. Perhaps they had never wanted to free him. He posed a threat to them. Setting him free was like letting a tiger out of its cage so that its owner would be easily accessible to its aggressions.

But there was a glimmer of a hope in his heart-the hope that the government was not as cruel as he thought and that they would honor the contract and give him the freedom that he had fought so hard for these past six years. No matter what, he would solve this case. And if his life was not meant to be lived by him, then so be it.

Nick continued jogging down the path with Daniel by his side. The willow trees reminded him of his adopted father's home. Though he wasn't allowed out of the house, he would usually sit inside and stare out through the window. He used to love watching as the willow trees swayed in the wind. He thought the sight was beautiful. But then again, he had been naïve.

Nick took in many deep breaths. The grass especially smelled of an intoxicating, but addictive fragrance. It made him feel rejuvenated. He memorized the scene that lay before him. Besides, he didn't know how many more times in his life he would be able to have such leisure.

The trail that Nick and Daniel followed was scenic and beautiful. Some people were meant for happiness, Nick thought as he glanced at Daniel. The man was in his late forties early fifties, but looked to be still young and vibrant.

Nick wondered whether the man was still angry from the night before. His face appeared well-controlled. Nick turned his head away and focused his eyes on the scenery. Even if Daniel were angry, Nick could not do anything about it.

Daniel felt the teenager's eyes on him and chose to ignore it for the moment. He let the boy observe in privacy. This gave him the chance to think a little more about the events of the past night. He had not slept well all night, thinking about this strange newcomer. Last night had been disturbing. He did not know why he felt so upset. He thought he had done the right thing in his opinion.

But a voice in the back of his mind told him that he had gone a little overboard, that his words were more harsh than they should be to Nick. The strangest thing was that he was overly concerned with Nick's principles and morals. It was as if he was trying to teach the boy more than threaten him.

Maybe the reason for his harshness was Nick's age. He was hit with Nick's youth. It did not seem right that such a young boy was dealing with murder and crime. And since Nick was so highly recommended by Urgof, Daniel guessed that Nick had been working for quite some time now. In a way, he felt pity for the boy.

He still couldn't imagine any of his children to be flung out into the real world while they haven't matured yet. But then, Nick was different. He may be young, but he had a calmness about him that signified a certain amount of maturity.

Daniel slightly turned his head to catch a glimpse of the youth. Nick seemed withdrawn and deep in thought. He held his breath once again at the sight. Every time he look that face, he felt a shudder. Perhaps it was his eyes or maybe the nose. Whatever it was about his features, Daniel felt as if he had known Nick before. The way Nick composed himself, the way he concentrated reminded Daniel of himself twenty years ago.

Daniel shrugged off the feeling. The thought gave him an eerie feeling. He began to concentrate on the trail once again as he and Nick neared a bridge with a stream of water flowing beneath it. He loved it. He had told the construction workers that he wanted a stream running near his house. For some reason, he loved the sight and sound of the waters as they sifted through the pebbles. It gave him a sense of relief and joy.

Instinctively, he slowed down. To his surprise, Nick had also slowed down his pace at the very same moment Daniel did. Not only that, but both had immediately headed to the same side of the bridge and peered over the stream. Nick had his hands grasping the rails of the bridge. Daniel thought the sight was rather touching.

Feeling that the silence was awkward, Daniel was the first to say something. "You like the waters?"

Nick didn't look up. "Yes. I rarely have the chance to see them. They make me feel happy."

"Why is that?" Daniel asked, intrigued.

"Because the water is so transparent. You can see all the life in it," Nick answered softly.

The answer was simplistic, yet beautiful. But that was not what Daniel asked for. "Actually, I was wondering why you rarely have the chance to see them."

Nick turned his head to stare at Daniel. He seemed even harder to read than yesterday, but Daniel at least saw no spite in those eyes. Finally, Nick answered. "Because I don't have the time to."

>>>>>