The next week and a half moved at snail speed. Clark hadn't felt this way since he'd been forced to wait for graduation two years prior. He recalled all the ways he and Ruby had tried to pass the time. They spent nights decorating their imaginary dorms, talked about all the crazy college parties they'd go to, and even planned a trip down to Florida once they tossed their caps in the air. So far, all they'd accomplished was spending a weekend in Miami.

The wait for VlogCon sat heavy on Clark's mind. He found himself envisioning it while he helped his mother bake. While he showered, he conjured up a list of all the street foods he wanted to taste. It even got to the point of him spending 48 hours practicing his best New York accent, much to Nakota's dissatisfaction.

Finally Wednesday was upon them. Clark jumped out of bed at five in the morning and headed to the guest room to wake Nakota up. He found the man tangled up in his covers clad in only a pair of tight-fitting boxers. He kept his thoughts PG and shook Nakota by the shoulder. "Hey, wake up." Nakota opened his eyes like he hadn't even been asleep.

"What's wrong?" he asked. He sat up, ready for action. Clark smiled and held up a hand to calm him down.

"Nothing's wrong. It's five, though. We should probably start getting ready. The flight's at eight."

"Oh, okay. Sure." Nakota climbed out of bed and stretched. For a moment, Clark was captivated by the expanse of his back. As he stretched out his arms, Nakota's muscles moved and rolled under his skin. Naturally, Clark's eyes moved down his back, over the curve of his behind, and down his thick legs. PG, Clark reminded himself. He turned around and left the man to it. He'd already awoken from a less than appropriate dream and it took a minute to calm himself down from that. He didn't want to deal with that whole process again.

Clark grabbed plenty of outfits from his closet but stopped when he realized he wouldn't need so much. He was going to New York. There were plenty of stores out there to buy clothing from. If he took too many outfits now, he'd have no way of bringing the ones he bought over there back home.

He worked through process of elimination, planning only three definitive outfits that he'd take with him. He packed up his camera and the rest of his equipment as well. By six o'clock, he'd also packed himself a carry-on, chock full of things to keep him entertained on the plane over. While returning an extra suitcase to his closet, he remembered that Nakota might not have any luggage. He dragged the suitcase to his room and hefted it up onto the man's bed.

The bathroom door opened and Nakota stepped out of the steamy bathroom, a white towel secured around his hips. He looked surprised to see Clark.

"Did you need something?" he asked curiously.

Yes, Clark thought.

"No, I just wanted to bring you this in case you didn't have one."

Nakota glanced at the suitcase and smiled. "I appreciate it. All I need is twenty minutes to get ready and we can leave."

"Oh, no rush," Clark said. He glanced at the thin sheen of water spread across the man's chest. "Uh. I still need to shower too, so, y'know. Take as long as you need." Before he could stare too long, he forced himself back to his room and shook those thoughts from his head.

"I wish I was a towel," he muttered as he turned on his own shower.

-

Ruby was ready to go by the time Clark and Nakota arrived at her house. They helped carrying her bags out to the trunk.

"You look cute," Clark said. Ruby looked down at her sweats and t-shirt.

"No I don't," she laughed. She'd showered and cleaned up but didn't feel like dressing up for the airport. They'd be there for a while and she wanted to be comfortable. That was why when it came to clothes, she kept it simple, and hair, she decided on a bun.

Clark took the passenger's seat and Ruby laid down across the back seats of Nakota's car. Carpooling seemed like the better option than having everyone take their cars to the same place. The drive was kind of fun. Though Nakota tried keeping his face expressionless as he drove, Clark noticed him tapping along to the beat of many of the songs on the radio. He may not have been singing his heart out like the other two, but he wasn't as grumpy as he pretended.

Nakota had a few questions, and when they got there, he wasted no time talking to one of the women behind the glass. Ruby and Clark found seats and settled in. They took their obligatory selfie and posted it to Snapchat.

"New York bound! #VlogCon here we come!" he titled his picture. Ruby plugged her headphones in and handed him the other, and together they hummed along to the music, each messing around on their phones while they waited.

Nakota eventually returned with breakfast from one of the small cafes in the airport. He picked at his croissant, keeping to himself for a while. Something was bothering him, Clark could tell. He wasn't exactly subtle about it. Clark handed the headphone back to Ruby and turned in his chair to face the man.

"What's up? You look like you're upset about something."

"Nah, it's nothing."

"Aren't you the one who said our relationship would only work if we were both honest about things?" Clark asked. Nakota gave a weak smile.

"No, I said that you had to be the honest one. I can be a liar all I want."

"Seriously, Nakota, what's wrong? Are you afraid of flying?"

"No, I've flown plenty of times before."

"Then what is it?"

Nakota continued picking at his croissant before he folded it up in the napkin. "I'm just worrying. That's all."

"You spend too much time inside your own head, you know that? If you just talked to someone, you'd realize that one, you wouldn't feel so overwhelmed, and two, there's nothing to worry about. There's so much security at this thing, they'll probably even assume you're someone suspicious. I mean, you do follow me wherever I go."

"Not the same thing," he said. "I'm trying not to worry about it."

"It makes sense that you are worried, though. I think a little paranoia is good. Keeps you on your toes," Clark said. "But for now, you need to relax. We're leaving the state. We're literally flying across the country. Just relax." Clark reached out and placed his hand on top of Nakota's, the same way he did when he talked to Ruby. He could feel Nakota freeze up under his touch and he pulled his own hand away. "Sorry."

"It's fine," Nakota said, looking away. Clark chewed his lip for a moment before clearing his throat and standing.

"Bathroom break," he said before scurrying off to the restrooms. He didn't do well with awkwardness like that. Clark pushed into the men's room and looked at himself in the mirror. Dark marks were just under his eyes, but no matter what he did, he just couldn't shake those. Other than that, he looked quite awake and ready for the day. His phone rang and he glanced at the caller ID.

"Mom," he said, laughing as he answered. "We haven't even left the airport yet. I told you I'd call you when we were getting on board."

His mother didn't answer back. Clark checked his phone to see if he'd accidentally muted her with his cheek. Then he heard the breathing. It was subtle and steady, but if he was silent, he could hear it.

"Mom?" he asked again. The line went dead and he made a face. Clark wondered what that was about when she called back. "Hey, was that my phone or –"

"Clark," a man said. Clark froze.

"Who is this?"

"You know exactly who this is," the man said. "We've gotten so close after the past few weeks."

"Why are you doing this?" Clark demanded. "What's your fucking problem, huh?"

"I don't have a problem. I just really want to meet you. I've been watching you since you were little. Started when you were sixteen or seventeen, right? God, you were so beautiful." Clark's stomach churned. "I remember when you used to make all those videos of you without a shirt. Those were always my favorite. Smooth chest, tight little belly."

"You're fucking sick, you hear me? You're a fucking pervert."

"But I just watched the videos you put up online. Is it wrong for me to pay you a compliment?"

"I hope you die," Clark said.

"That's hurtful. As your biggest fan, I hate hearing that. And what about Mommy, here. I bet she feels bad that her son would wish something so horrible upon someone."

"I swear to god, if you put a single finger on her, I'll—"

The man hung up the phone. Clark's hands shook with rage, and he struggled to navigate through his contact list. He scrolled until he found 'Mom,' only to realize that there were two separate numbers with the same name. He tapped the first and found all of his texts with his mother. The second number had no messages, and the only time they'd talked had been today. Relief swelled inside his chest. Stacy was safe.

"Tricked you," a new text read.

"Are you scared?"

"You shouldn't be. We'll meet soon, and I'll show you how much I love you, Clark."

"In the meantime, look what I made for you."

The messages ceased and instead, he was flooded with various pornographic images. His head had been pasted onto each of them, and the same sentence was typed across each. 'I LOVE YOU, CLARK.' His chest heaved and he placed his phone down. The buzzing only got louder and louder, each one more violent than the last. Over and over and over and over. Soon the phone was screaming endlessly, demanding Clark's attention. He snatched it from the counter and slammed it down onto the tile. It exploded, pieces shooting off in every direction.

He stared at the mess and backed away. Someone pressed up behind him and he jumped, spinning around. The old man looked at him in surprise.

"So sorry, young man," he said. Clark pushed past him and left the bathroom. He was sick to his stomach. He felt like bending over and throwing up, finally releasing the tension in his abdomen. Instead, he returned to Ruby and Nakota. The man looked at him suspiciously.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"N-nothing, just... Just had a weird conversation in the bathroom," he said. Nakota looked towards the restrooms and then back at Clark.

"Do you need me to take care of something?"

"No," he said suddenly. "I'm fine. I'll be okay."

"Okay..." Nakota dropped the subject. Clark stared at the ground, his mind racing. His father was out of town, so he didn't have to worry about her. Stacy was at home with Leon, Jennifer, two body guards, and a loaded gun. He didn't have to worry about them. He considered telling Nakota, but the man was already paranoid enough. He couldn't add more on the man's plate. All they needed to do was get out of the state and they'd be okay.

Clark repeated this again and again. Just get out of town and he'd be in the clear. He sat still until it was time to board the plane. The three of them found their seats easily enough, and Clark quickly put his items away and sat against the window. By the time Ruby and Nakota were situated in their seats, Clark already had a blanket and his eyes were closed.

"I think he's asleep," Ruby said in a hushed tone. Nakota nodded and glanced at the boy. He knew he wasn't asleep, but he didn't press the issue.

-

By the time the plane had landed, Clark managed to sort through his fear. He'd taken a long nap during the flight, accidentally falling asleep when he was only pretending. When he woke, they were just beginning their descent. He'd been on a million and one different flights, so the turbulence didn't bother him all that much.

Come to think of it, nothing bothered him that much. There was a relief that came with running away from danger. Being three thousand miles away from a killer really took the edge off. And if stepping off the plane and into another state wasn't enough, dragging his luggage from the conveyer belt and seeing the busy life did the job just fine. He couldn't help but smile as he watched Ruby and Nakota struggle to keep up with him.

The moment was almost too surreal. He was finally getting to meet the people who'd put up with him for so many years. They'd made him feel okay to be who he really was. This moment was long overdue. Nakota stood beside him and looked around at the other passengers hugging and being reunited with their family members. It put a smile on Nakota's face.

"Are you excited to finally be here?" he asked Clark.

Clark looked out at the falling snow just outside the window and nodded. "I've waited for this for so long. I'm so damn excited," he laughed.

+