He couldn't take it any longer. He sighed and threw the blanket off his shoulders, and he tensed at the chilly air before he walked as fast as he could across the bed. His stride started off strong, but it gradually wavered as he approached the human. Jack hesitated at Mark's shadow, and swallowed. He squared his shoulders, and he stepped into the human's shadow. New, strange noises overcame his senses as he walked closer. He could hear Mark's breath whoosh in his lungs and past his lips; hear his body working; hear his heart booming in his chest... it was daunting.

Jack stopped and stood next to the human's shoulder. He craned his neck and looked up. Mark was still keeping his word. He wasn't even looking, his eyes were still closed, leaving the situation completely in the borrower's hands. Jesus... I can't believe I'm doing this. He walked up to Mark's head, took a moment to realize how much heat was rolling off his acquaintance, and then he bit his lip and reached out. His hands hesitated, quivering, and then he closed his eyes and leaned forward.

As soon as his small, cold hands touched the human's warm neck, Mark inhaled sharply. Jack shivered and moved closer, and then he slowly leaned into the warm curvature. He was ice cold against Mark's life artery, shocking Mark for a few seconds. Then, a warm, glowy sensation spread from his head down to his toes. He trusted me. He actually trusted me! Relief made his fingers and toes tingle, but he refused to budge an inch. Jack had come this far, he didn't want to destroy all the progress they had made.

Jack felt Mark's throat muscles work restlessly. He's nervous. They both were. Jack didn't even know why Mark was going so far just to reach out to him, why he was helping him or trying to earn his trust. He wet his lips and slowly breathed in.

"... I-I've never been this close to a human before," he suddenly said quietly. Mark opened his eyes. He wanted so badly to reply, to ask his questions and give the tiny the support he needed, but he didn't want to spook the borrower. So, he simply let out a small hum.

"Hm?"

"Y-yeah." Jack sat down and brought his knees up to his chest. "So, um, you can kinda tell why I'm so nervous then." He let out a dry laugh, but it didn't sound reassured at all. Mark frowned.

"Mm."

"Yeah, but." Jack sighed and shrugged his shoulders, putting his in his knees. "It's not yer fault," he mumbled. Mark's tongue was dying to move now.

"... How come?" He murmured. Jack shrugged again and let his head come back up, resting it on Mark's neck.

"We've never really been close to humans," he said, "Y-you can probably guess why." The words sank in for a few seconds.

"Who's we?" Mark asked quietly. It was an innocent question, but he felt Jack flinch. His heart gave a tiny squeeze of fear, and Jack was surprised to feel his pulse quicken. "S-sorry," Mark stammered, "I-I didn't mean to-"

"It's ok." Jack closed his eyes, thinking for a few seconds. "I'm a borrower," he continued. "We borrow things from big folk to survive." Mark felt another uneasy feeling. Big folk? Living off of humans? Man, I can't imagine how hard it must be, hiding from us and struggling with every step to survive. He felt another prickle of guilt. It must have taken him so much courage to risk getting into my pocket. He must have been so tired, too... He heard Jack stifle a yawn and felt the borrower shift. Jack was reaching down and pulling on the covers, tugging them up into a small wall around his body and making himself a little nest. Mark's eyes wandered to the blanket. Would Jack trust him enough to get up and retrieve it for him?

He decided to risk it. "Hey, back up real quick?" Jack looked up at him, puzzled, and got up. Mark turned his head as Jack backed up to the center of the bed, and once Mark was comfortable with his tiny guest's location, he slowly sat up. From the corner of his eye, he saw Jack shrink back in his shadow and winced. He carefully reached out, keeping his movements slow and steady as he grabbed the blanket and pulled it over. He lay back down and looked over at Jack. He looked a bit confused. Mark smiled at him.

"I thought maybe you'd want to use this instead of just the covers," he said. Jack's eyes sparked with understanding, and he hurried to the human. He had to climb his way back to his spot, but as soon as he was beside Mark and in the blanket sea, he started working again. Mark smiled as Jack tugged and pulled and straightened and smoothed, working diligently until he had formed a nest of comfort. It took a lot out of the little Irishman, but he looked proud of himself as he slumped in it and leaned against Mark's neck with a loud yawn. "Better?" Mark asked.

"Mm hmm," Jack mumbled sleepily and rubbed his eyes. He pulled up the blanket corner he had saved as a cover and snuggled up to Mark. Mark closed his eyes and smiled. I think he trusts me now. That made him feel good, though he wasn't concerned with his self. He exhaled. Jack hardly reacted. He's already asleep? Poor guy. Oh well, at least that meant he was relaxed enough- I hope.

He laid there, alone with his thoughts, as the borrower continued to rest against his neck. By now, he was warming up, but Mark was still worried. How warm is he suppose to be? He still feels a little cold. Is he sick? Maybe I'm worrying too much. Mark sighed. Yesterday he wouldn't have believed in tiny people. And now here he was, fretting over the tiny borrower like he was his oldest friend. Can I even call him a-

"Mark?" Mark opened his eyes as Amy walked in. She stopped and smiled at him. "Are you tired?" She asked.

"Uh." He smiled sheepishly. "Y-yeah, sorry." Amy continued to smile kindly at him.

"Well, I was going to ask how much longer you think those chicken dumplings need to sit." Mark checked his watch. His eyes widened; he had already been with Jack for over an hour.

"Not much longer," he answered. "I'll check on it in just a second." He smiled at Amy again. "Maybe we could watch a movie?" He asked hopefully. Amy beamed.

"Sounds good to me." She closed the door quietly behind her and left. Mark sighed and rubbed his eyes.

"Who was that?" The question made Mark jump. He sat up and looked down to see Jack, awake and staring up at him with a sleepy and terrified expression.

"Sorry, sorry." Mark quickly apologized and turned over, crossing his legs. "That was my girlfriend, Amy," he explained. Jack's countenance relaxed, but he still looked nervous. "She's really nice," Mark continued, "She'd probably like you, if you wanted to meet her." Again, a bewildered look crossed over Jack.

"So I don't have to face her?" He asked. Mark slightly winced. He made it sound like a boss fight in Dark Souls.

"No, of course not," He still said, "If you wanna meet her, I can help you, but if you don't, that's ok." He frowned. "But I will have to tell her about you, if you do decide to stay." Once again, Jack gawked at the human. He'd let me stay? He'd let me go if I wanted to? He was flabbergasted. "However," Mark said, "If you do decide to leave, I insist you stay for supper. Chicken dumplings are simply amazing, and I bet you've never had one." He stuck his finger up and waved it. "You haven't lived until you've had my cooking!" He said with a goofy grin. Jack found himself grinning back.

"Well. I-I guess I could stay, just for a little bit." His mind hasn't been made up yet. Who knew what he would choose? He could say yes or no, and he wanted to take some time to enjoy that. No one had ever given him this much respect.

"Great!" Mark beamed and got off the bed. "Oh, how do you want to get to the kitchen? You want to walk? Or maybe I'll hold you? I could put you in my pocket, maybe. Or maybe-" As Mark kept rambling, Jack noticed his hair was very disheveled and laughed. Mark stopped and looked at him, confused. "What's so funny?"

"Yer hair!" Jack cackled, doubling over. Mark looked in the mirror, and then his eyes widened, and he too started laughing.

"Oh gee, thanks Mr. Wise-Guy!" Jack was suddenly struck with an idea.

"Get down here." He groped at the human. Mark smothered his giggles and kneeled, putting his arms on the bed and his chin on his forearms. Jack walked over to him and poked his arm. "Lower," he commanded. Mark gave him a puzzled look, but he went down on his hands and knees. Jack inhaled, backed up a few steps, and then ran and jumped off the bed.

Mark seized up when he felt the borrower land on his head. "Holy shit!" He gasped and reached up, frightened for Jack. But the tiny was ok. The little Irishman flailed until he managed to tear himself free from Mark's floofy hair, and he sat up. Mark let his hands drop and sighed. "Jesus Christ, you scared me Jack!"

"Sorry." Jack tried not to laugh as he touched the black, messy knoll under him. Mark's hair was soft and silky, and the majority of his body heat was escaping from his head, completely encasing the borrower in comforting warmth. He sighed pleasantly, and Mark relaxed under him.

"Well, are you up there to ride me?"

"Yep." Mark chuckled.

"All right then. Hold on to something." Jack grabbed a tuft of hair, and Mark slowly got up. He kept his head still as he turned toward the door, taking a slow step.

"Faster!" Jack urged with a giggle. "Faster!" Mark stopped at the door, and then he grinned.

"Tell ya what. I'll take you on a roller coaster ride if you let me introduce you to Amy."

"... Deal!" Jack decided. Mark chuckled.

"All right then." He opened the door. "Into battle!" He exclaimed dramatically. Jack laughed and held on as Mark headed off to the kitchen.