One and Only (LAMS)

The pool

John's POV

I woke with Alex in my arms, both of us shirtless in bed. I could get used to waking up like this, but my pleasurable thoughts were interrupted with something more sinister.

Today, I was going to end Thomas Jefferson.

I pressed my lips against Alex's bare shoulder in a feathery kiss, before breaking away and preparing to get out of bed. As I pulled away, Alex whimpered without my presence. That broke my heart. I frowned and wrapped the duvet around Alex tightly, preserving as much heat as possible. It was better if he didn't know what I was about to do, he was already stressed enough.

Outside the colder weather was creeping in, we were approaching winter fast. I slipped on a sweatshirt and jeans, wrapping my hair up in a low bun. Moving into the bathroom, I opened the bottom cupboard and pulled out some tape, wrapping my knuckles. I checked in the mirror briefly before I left, my eyes were dark and sunken with the preparation of how exactly I was going to beat the shit out of Jefferson.

As I unlocked the door I saw Alex flinch. I waited a moment, making sure he wasn't going to wake up, before I left the room.

On my way down the hall I sent two texts, one to Jefferson telling him where to meet me, and one to Lafayette and Hercules, briefly stating that Thomas Jefferson was about to die.

Alex's POV

I woke up with a gasp, throwing my hand backwards where it landed on the mattress. John was gone. I had no time to make my next move because a solid knock echoed through John and I's room. I hesitated for a moment, slipping on John's shirt from last night.
"Alex! It's us! Hercules and Lafayette! Please man this is serious!" Hercules said hurriedly from the other side. I threw open the door to a very disheveled Herc and Laf.

"Where's John," Laf asked with panic rising in his voice.
"He was gone when I woke up," I stated nervously, looking back at the empty bed we had slept in.
"Shit!" Hercules cursed, throwing his fists down. "That stupid idiot! He's already gone!"

"Gone where...?" I mumbled nervously, a rough idea imprinted in my mind already. Lafayette reluctantly retrieved his phone and showed me his last text from John.
I gasped as my eyes quickly scanned over the text. This was not going to end well.
"Where would they go?" Lafayette asked nobody in particular.
"The pool."

Without a second thought Hercules, Lafayette and I sprinted to the pool. I wasn't very fast and fell behind a little, but John could be in serious danger so I needed to push on. We skidded into the pool area and I almost screamed.

John kneeled over Thomas, holding Thomas's head in the water while he slammed his fists on the tiles trying to push his face out of the water. John saw us come in and quickly released Thomas, letting him burst up and gasp frantically for air.
"JOHN!" I yelled, horrified, stepping backwards. "WHAT are you doing!"
He scurried away from Jefferson with his hands up in defence, his lip busted and tear stains streaked down his cheeks.
"I wasn't gonna drown him! I was just scaring him!" John cried.
"BULLSHIT!" Thomas roared, still breathing heavily.
"Shut up! You ditched Alex in this very pool with his hands tied up and knowing full well he couldn't swim! He's been through enough without your petty bullshit! You can survive having your face pushed into the water for a short period of time!" John retaliated, meeting my gaze with his second-last line. I did deserve it though, I'm such a screw-up. I looked down at my feet, thinking of all the reasons I did deserve to almost be drowned and Lafayette reached a comforting arm over my shoulders.
"It was punishment. I thought you'd be able to tell after years of it, John." Thomas smirked maliciously. John's eyes grew dark and he stood up.
"J-John," I called out as John stormed over to where Thomas sat on the tiles. He picked Thomas up by the collar of his shirt and raised his fist. "JOHN!" I cried. John's fist softened and he looked over at me with an expression of pure and utter pain. He opened his mouth to say something but Jefferson acted before he could, shoving John into the pool. John dragged Thomas in with him by his shirt and they splashed deep into the water.