He failed.

That was the first thing Jamie realized when he woke up again in the same place, in the same bed, and had to spend a moment wondering whether his escape had only been a dream or if it had been real. However, he could feel the fabric of Creed’s hoodie on his arms, so he knew it hadn’t just been a hallucination or a dream.

“You scared me,” was the first thing he heard after turning his head, apparently drawing the other man’s attention with the movement.

“My glasses,” Jamie said in return. If Creed hadn’t been lying and truly wasn’t the one holding him captive, he shouldn’t have any problem fulfilling his request.

The hero heard the shuffling of feet and saw a shadow above him, indicating the stranger had leaned over him, and then his vision finally sharpened.

Creed looked terrible, just like in the previous days, but that wasn’t what the hero focused on right now. He watched the man’s expression, trying to read his true feelings about the escape, but to his surprise his face showed only worry and a bit of fear.

When Creed spoke again, there was a hint of panic in his voice. “Anyone could’ve seen you. They could’ve seen you.”

“Who are they?” Short sentences were still what Jamie and his voice handled best.

The stranger didn’t answer right away, so the hero decided to show him he was serious about this interrogation. First he braced his palms against the bed and then slowly started to rise. Just like so many times before, his shoulder bumped into the wall before he braced himself against it with his left hand as well, gradually managing to hold himself upright in a sitting position.

“Why did you run?”

Jamie had the urge to roll his eyes, if he hadn’t been afraid it would make his head spin.

“Think,” was the only answer he gave him.

Right now the hero was the one who looked like he held the power between the two of them, even though he was sitting on the bed and the dark-haired man was standing above him. Creed’s hands were shaking as if he had some illness, and Jamie wondered how he had managed to carry him back to the room and put him in bed in his condition, when he himself looked like he could barely stay on his feet.

“It’s complicated.” Although it seemed Creed wanted to sound firm, his pain didn’t allow it, and so his tone came out quiet and strained.

Jamie closed his eyes for a few seconds, and when he opened them again, he held out his hand toward him. “Water.”

Creed followed the request with slow movements, soon handing him not only the water he asked for but also the medication he had been giving him for the past few days—or rather, weeks. Jamie took both and swallowed the pills without a second thought, realizing that his condition was improving and there had to be a reason for it.

“You can walk,” the stranger noted while moving to the armchair where he slept and sitting down in it.

Jamie didn’t answer, since he didn’t think it was necessary.

“How long—” He cleared his throat before continuing. “—have I been here?”

“A month,” Creed answered without hesitation.

A month.

A month he could’ve been home.

A month he could’ve told his team and his family that he was alright.

A lost month…

“I know what you’re thinking right now, but you needed to recover. I needed you to stay hidden so they wouldn’t find you. So they wouldn’t find us,” Creed suddenly started talking, even though earlier it seemed he didn’t want to give him any answers.

“Who?” Jamie’s question was short, but that didn’t make it any less important.

But the stranger gave him the same answer as before. “It’s complicated.”

“Creed.”

Jamie was still conserving his voice, so he hoped his tone made it clear how dissatisfied he was with that explanation.

The man in the hoodie looked at him for a moment, but then, surprisingly, gave the hero more answers. “They abduct people with abilities. They experiment on them, trying to figure out why some people have abilities and others don’t. They’re trying to find something they could sell to people who don’t have abilities but have money.”

Jamie had several questions after realizing the seriousness of his words and trying to at least consider that they might be real. He found it hard to believe something this big would escape the Legion’s attention.

“Who?”

“Even if I told you, you couldn’t do anything about it right now,” Creed answered after Jamie had expected another “It’s complicated.”

The hero frowned. Creed had just given him another reason why he needed to get back home. But his plan changed slightly, and it wasn’t only himself he needed to get back to the Legion.

“Why me?”

Judging by his expression, the stranger didn’t understand the exact meaning of Jamie’s question, but when no further clarification came even after a few seconds, he began to speak anyway.

“I don’t know why they abducted you. I think they somehow found out your identity, since I learned it from them too. I heard them talking about you. I wasn’t originally on a rescue mission, but when I heard them and saw you, I decided to take the risk.”

A part was still missing from his explanation—where he had been and what else he had been looking for there. If Jamie remembered correctly, he had mentioned something about a laboratory. Instead of asking more questions, though, he decided to earn Creed’s trust so he might tell him on his own later.

“Thank you.”

The young man looked surprised, but then he nodded.

“I know you have a lot of questions—” It seemed his plan worked sooner than he expected. “—but it’s dangerous to talk about it here. We’ve already stayed in one place too long, which means we’re risking being found. We need to move somewhere else as soon as possible.”

Jamie nodded and then gave him the exact destination where he wanted to go. “Home.”

The dark-haired man immediately began shaking his head in disagreement. “That’s not safe.”

“Home,” Jamie insisted again.

“That’ll be the first place they look for you,” Creed argued.

The hero was saving both his strength and his voice, so instead of repeating the word again he simply frowned at the stranger.

“We’ll wait until tomorrow to see how you feel. If you can walk again, we’ll move,” Creed told him his plan. “I need you to trust me.” His voice sounded almost like a plea.

Jamie nodded, though it didn’t mean he was promising anything. He was still cautious in his presence and still had one day to decide whether he’d leave with him or run again. He doubted Creed would go looking for him again, since he seemed eager to leave this place as soon as possible and get as far away as he could, not linger around.

“I managed to buy some instant porridge so you’ll have something different to eat.”

It seemed Creed considered the interrogation over, since he changed the subject.

Jamie only nodded.

“Hopefully it’ll give you enough strength to manage a shower tomorrow.”

The hero was well aware that he smelled, but he didn’t even want to imagine how bad it must’ve been for someone else who wasn’t used to it. After all, a month was a long time. If anyone had even washed him in that supposed laboratory.

Creed’s pleas were answered, because the next day when Jamie woke up, he felt much better. As soon as he opened his eyes, he sat up, and this time the stranger didn’t seem to be preparing to leave. He was right beside him, assisting him with every step. He helped him eat and then guided him to the shower, setting out clean clothes for him.

Fortunately, he at least gave him some privacy while showering, giving Jamie time to think. He quickly lathered up and washed away all the sweat that had almost permanently bonded to his skin after so long, then remained standing under the running water with his eyes closed.

Even though Creed didn’t want to go to Krasport, the hero was still convinced that contacting the Legion was the best choice. Maybe the stranger had a reason not to trust them, which made him even more suspicious than before, but there was no one Jamie trusted more than his teammates.

For a brief moment he allowed himself to wonder how they must’ve reacted to his disappearance and how they had managed the whole year without him.

A year…

He still couldn’t believe it.