AN: Hello kittens! I'm sorry for not updating this on (I've been updating on Wattpad but never transferred them over). Before you read this overdue update, I think you should all know that I have made a huge change to the storyline, the pairing. Um, this is now Superboy x Jay? xD If you don't like that sort of thing, I really don't care! Go read something else if it bugs you ^^

Anyways, enjoy!

xXx

"JAY!" Superboy suddenly bolted from out of his bed, heart hammering in his chest and sweat pouring down his face. The images of his latest nightmare kept replaying in his head, haunting him with scenes of his best friend laying in a pool of his own blood, dead. He kept dying. Every time Superboy closed his eyes, he kept seeing his only friend's demise. This time, he saw Batman standing above him, claiming that he was doing the right thing by taking his life.

Superboy felt ill. When he would ask to return to the Justice League, would they ask him to help them hunt down and capture Jay? Would they ask him to hurt him? Without Superboy protecting him, how much longer would Jay last before he was sentenced to his doom in Arkham?

He suddenly had the urge to check up on him and make sure he was okay.

After climbing out of his bed and exiting his room, it took a few short seconds to cross the hallway and open Jay's door. He hesitantly stepped inside and stood in the doorway, listening carefully.

The sound of his heartbeat calmed him instantly. "You're okay..." he muttered, more to himself than anything. He was relieved beyond words, but he didn't know what he was expecting. It wasn't like Batman was going to appear out of no where and kidnap him, right? He was being ridiculously over protective.

Superboy shook his head at himself and was about to leave, but he still hesitated. What if Batman did sneak in and try to kidnap Jay? If he was quiet enough about it, Superboy wouldn't know about it until it was too late. He wouldn't be able to save him if he was in another room.

"...Superboy, what do you want?" Jay mumbled tiredly, hearing his approach. "If you want another video game rematch, can't it wait until morning? I need my beauty sleep."

"You look fine without it," Superboy said, confused. "And I'm staying in here so you don't die. So scoot over."

"You're weird," Jay laughed quietly but complied, rolling over to the other side of the bed. He didn't once question what Superboy meant, and he was grateful for it. "And did you just say I don't need beauty sleep? Are you calling me pretty?" He teased.

Superboy paused. That was another term he didn't fully understand. What made something pretty? "I don't know, I guess so." He shrugged. "You're prettier than Saltwat- er, Aqualad."

"You're such a charmer, Supes," Jay snickered and turned over. "But seriously, let me get some sleep. I have some stuff to do tomorrow and I would hate to have bags under my eyes. Next time you have a nightmare about me, please be quieter when you freak out and check on me."

Superboy blinked. "How did you know that I had a nightmare about you?"

"You kind of screamed my name earlier. Either you were terrified, or you were having a totally different dream that I don't want to know about." Jay pulled the covers over his head. "Night."

"...Er, goodnight." Superboy was utterly confused by what he meant, but he decided that it was best that he didn't ask. He had a feeling that he wouldn't want to know. So instead, he climbed under the covers and rested his head against the pillow Jay previously occupied, breathing in deeply. He then closed his eyes and listened for his friend's heartbeat, letting the sound lull him to sleep.

xXx

When Superboy woke up, Jay was no where to be found. All that was left of him was a note that said,

"I went to the store to grab a couple of things. Don't freak out and follow me. This pretty boy can take care of himself you know. -Jay."

Great. Jay was going to constantly make fun out of him for calling him pretty, wasn't he? What was the big deal, anyways?! It was a compliment, but why did Jay treat it like something worth teasing him over? Humans were so strange to him. He still had a lot to learn about society before he would be able to join the Justice League...

Which brought him back to his earlier predicament: what would he do about Jay after he became a hero? Villains and heroes weren't allowed to be more than enemies, but where did that leave him and Jay?

Superboy wanted to believe that he would be able to sway his friend to the other side. He thought that deep down, Jay knew that what he was doing was wrong. And maybe, with his friend's assistance, he could see the error of his ways. Superboy was attached to Jay, and would hate to have to cut ties with him. He enjoyed spending time with his green eyed companion, and it made him uneasy to think about leaving Jay.

He saw the scars his father gave him: the J shaped mark on his chest, the 'hahaha's' on his back. He saw the red stained towel in the bathroom that Jay once had to use to mop up his own blood. He saw the way his friend cringed any time he so much as raised his voice around him. The Joker hurt Jay on more than one occasion, and Superboy was sure that he would do it again with no remorse. He couldn't let that happen, that would be just wrong.

But... Superboy couldn't protect Jay and join the League at the same time. He would be betraying everyone. But instead of deciding whether or not his morals were more important than his friendship, Superboy was determined to have both. If Jay put his mind to it, he could become a great hero. All he needed was a push in the right direction.

That was what he thought, but after four hours of waiting around and doing nothing, Jay suddenly barged into the house with several plastic bags dangling from his arms. "Guess who went shopping with rings under his eyes? This pretty boy!" Jay dropped the bags onto the carpet, and a couple of clothing items fell out.

Superboy first studied his face, frowning at the lie. "You have no rings under your eyes."

Jay grinned at him. "Of course I don't. I'm pretty, remember? Beautiful people are flawless, Superboy. Always." He reached down and plucked a black shirt off of the ground, and chucked it at the clone, who instinctively caught it. "There, so you don't have to dress in my pajamas all the time."

Superboy unfolded the shirt and turned it over, inspecting the crimson 'S' shaped symbol on the front. "Why did you buy me this?"

"Pfft, I didn't buy anything." Jay began to go through the bags, and eventually came up with a Joker shirt in his hand. "I think it's hilarious that my dad has fandom merchandise. I mean, everyone hates criminals, but they love villains? Weird."

"...Fandom?" Superboy questioned, but then shook his head. That was not important. "Jay, where did you get all of this?"

"Wal-Mart. You know, the place that sounds like it would sell walls, but has everything but those?" Jay shrugged. "Frys sells fries, but Wal-Mart doesn't sell walls? What's up with that? And don't even get me started on K Ma-"

"Did you steal all of this?!" Superboy exclaimed, ignoring his rambling. He regretted shouting immediately; the way Jay's hands started shaking at his sides nervously.

"...You needed clothes, and we both need food." Jay turned away from him. "How much money do you think I have? But if you don't want me stealing, why don't I just go sell myself on the streets for a couple of quick bucks?" He chuckled, but it sounded a lot darker than usual.

Superboy's eyes widened, but he wasn't entirely sure what that meant. Something about that statement twisted his stomach, and he felt bile rise in his throat. "No," he said hoarsely, shaking his head. "I just... Stealing is wrong."

"The way I see it, stealing means survival." Jay turned to him, his usual grin in place. "Look Supes, don't be pulling the hero crap on me today; as you can tell, I'm not in the best of moods. I have enough on my plate as it is."

Superboy frowned, displeased that his attempts to make Jay good were brushed off so easily. He would have to try harder next time. "...What's wrong?" He asked, curious about what was bothering his friend enough to make his smile strained.

Jay's smile faded altogether, and he pulled a newspaper out of one of the many bags littering the floor. Superboy's eyes immediately fell on the headline: "The Joker: Father of the Year?"

"Batman blabbed about me," Jay muttered, eyes sparking with anger as he threw the paper on the ground. "My parents are going to kill me; no one is supposed to know I exist!" To Superboy's alarm, Jay began to pull at his own hair. "I just know that they're coming home now, and I have to explain to them what happened at Cadmus, and why you're here... I'm so dead. Dad will be so mad at me..."

Superboy quickly stepped closer to him and grabbed him by the wrists, pulling his hands away from his hair. "Don't hurt yourself," he said quietly, shaking his head. "It's freaking me out. What should we do about your parents? If they're going to hurt you, I don't think you should stay."

"Are you suggesting that we run away together, Supey?" Jay cackled, grinning at him once again. "Sorry but no, they're my parents. I can't run away from them, it would be wrong. I have to accept that I'll be punished for not listening to them." He averted his eyes. "...Maybe it's best that you leave."

That was definitely unexpected. "Why do you want me to leave? I can protect you from your dad. Don't you want to be safe?"

"You can't protect me from my dad, okay? He's my parent, he's just looking out for me." Jay looked at the floor. "You should leave, because he'll be angrier if he finds out that I'm friends with a hero. Look, I bought you a lot of clothes, and plenty of food. You can live off of that until you can find the other heroes."

"I'm not a hero, remember?" Superboy argued. No, this was not what he had planned. He never thought Jay would be the one to end their friendship because of the roles they had to play. He thought Jay was clueless about Superboy's allegiance!

"You are, though. I tried to show you how fun it is if you stayed with me, but I can tell you won't ever let go of being a hero. I guess I wasn't fun enough, huh?" Jay smiled at him, but it held no happiness. "It was fun while it lasted though. Maybe if we meet in battle in the future, I'll spare you for old time's sake."

"Jay..." Superboy was not happy about the way he was talking. Jay sounded like... like he was going to break down. What was actually going on through his head? "You're not telling me something. What's going on?"

Jay laughed eerily. "Nothing you need to worry your little head about. Just do me a favor and get out of my house. This friendship thing is over, Supes. Sorry." He brushed past the confused and saddened clone, only pausing when he reached the staircase. "...You know, you talk a lot in your sleep. Maybe if you didn't, I wouldn't have to do this." He then darted up the stairs, the sound of a door slamming echoing throughout the house not too long afterwards.

Talk in his sleep? What did that even mean? Was Jay implying that Superboy said something that offended him when he spent the night in his room? Superboy didn't remember dreaming about anything!

But... Jay stressed that he wanted him to leave. And while Superboy was hesitant about leaving him to face his father's wrath alone, he had to respect his wishes. So, Superboy slowly went through the multiple plastic bags and grabbed the clothing items he thought were for him, and took a few food items as well. He made sure to leave Jay something to eat, because he was right when he said he was on the verge of starvation. If Superboy was going to leave him, he wouldn't take all of his food too.

After he had everything safely stored away in a couple of plastic bags, Superboy hesitantly began to leave the house. He crossed through the living room, and paused in front of the couch, where Bat-Cat poked his head out from under. "...Watch over him while I'm away, Bat," Superboy said sternly. The feline purred at him and then retreated back to his dark sanctuary. Superboy stared after him, sighing. He just spoke with a cat, that was enough proof that Jay's insanity was rubbing off of him.

"...Bye, Jay," he muttered to himself, walking out the front door. He looked down at the grassy lawn and saw the nerf guns laying not too far away, which made him smile. It was fun while it lasted. He definitely didn't regret staying with Jay.

But, sometimes it was best for friendships to end...

xXx

AN: I know, it's a short chapter. Sorry guys, but I have a lot of stories that need updating but I didn't want to leave everyone in the dark again. Seriously, I have nineteen stories on Wattpad that need my constant attention, so I apologize if I occasionally go on hiatus.

But anyways, thanks for sticking around this long! I'm actually quite surprised that there were people still waiting for an update. I honestly thought that this particular story didn't have many fans. But to those of you who have stayed here up until now, thank you so much!

See you next time!