YOU KEEP A LOT TO YOURSELF,

Irritating Dexter was a simplistic task considering his low tolerance towards other people, strangers being the worse of that. Factoring in the notion of it being the earlier hours of day explained further why the introvert found other individuals nettlesome. Although, his irritable attitude soothed mildly when the white-haired man lacked a response towards his comment about the gates opening. A feeling of victory transcended over the redhead for a few moments, but his expression did not display the emotion. Dexter's yellow eyes trailed over to the black gate, staring at the ominousness Hell's Gate. When the stranger spoke again, the introvert's eyes flitted back towards the white-haired man and narrowed. The stubborn attitude overtook as the redhead's mind insisted against the concept of the gates suddenly opening.

"You're a hunter and you're scared of a black hunk of magical metal? That's ridiculous! Enki and Thanatos sealed the gates up tight, they won't open!" Dexter insisted with a choleric tone. "I can't believe a person who risks their life everyday is scared of a tightly locked gate!"

Shortly, the introvert's eyes returned to Hell's Gate in disbelief of the stranger's fear despite the fact his own heart rate remained elevated in the presence of the gate. Even the warm air embracing him was enough to cause Dexter to feel uncomfortable lingering around the gate's door. Remaining in the area reminded the introverted man of those numerous history books that informed him in vivid detail of the horrendous atrocities the War of Traitors brought. Various connections towards nowadays problems were matched with the events that occurred thousands of years ago which made the concept of the vengeful Volos escaping the fiery abyss of Hell a horrifying notion. When the return of the name reached Dexter's ears, he glanced back and displayed acknowledgement. The ridicule towards his demanding attitude was ignored as the introvert began analyzing the large gate with curious, but fearful eyes. Although, when Nicholas commented on his fears was when the redhead glared back towards the hunter with annoyance; being a horror maniac made the personality critique sting.

A deep breath and lengthy exhale was taken as a determination to prove this imposing gate did not spark an ounce of fear came across the redhead. When the topic of the introvert's fears was acknowledged, he always felt the immense requirement to display his courage; nobody should be allowed to call him a coward! Once his heart was mildly soothed, Dexter took another step towards Hell's Gate, inching himself closer. When he entered the distance to be able to reach out and touch the smooth, metal surface the introvert stopped and stood stalk still. The close proximity to Hell's Gate was already flaring frightened palpitations in the horror lover's heart. A few moments were spent muted, gazing at the menacing gate. An extensive period of time was spent slowing his breathing, calming the rapid heart rate before he turned back towards the white-haired stranger.

"Would somebody who is scared get this close to the gate? I will even touch it if you want more proof!" Dexter exclaimed towards the stranger.

Without waiting for the answer, Dexter inched towards the foreboding, black gate and reached his pale hand towards it. As the redhead reached, his heart rate skyrocketed as his the hidden fear screamed for retreat from the menacing gate. Alas, the bespectacled man was prepared to touch the smooth sooth. Delicately, his fingers brushed against the metallic surface that remained warm, similar to the air around the gate. When his heart rate began to gradually calm, the introvert laid his hand flat against the black metal and chuckled in triumph.

"See? Easy! Not scary at-" Dexter was interrupted by a loud booming noise.

Instantly, the redhead backpedaled from the Hell's Gate with palpitations claiming his heart rate and fright clouding his judgement. His right heel collided with uneven ground, causing Dexter to lose balance and tumble towards the ground with a thud. There was something array, or at least the startled redhead thought as he witnessed a blur bolting out of the alleyway. He turned his head towards it only to watch a dark brown tabby flee from the warmth of Hell's Gate. No motions were made to return to his feet as the redhead's embarrassment over being frightened by a mere cat consumed him. Instead, he shifted into a sitting position and reached back for his black hood, pulling it over his head to hide his face and humiliation; this was after all the part where his former friends would laugh and administer mockery.

YOU KEEP A LOT TO YOURSELF,

In a slow crawl the cold day passed by, gradually ticking closer to noon. As time drifted pass, the hour dawned nearer to when Dexter's uncle would arrive for the usual business conversation. Thus, without much thought towards the cold temperature outside, the introvert dawned his usual black coat and slipped out the door. A quick farewell was given to his grandparents, who had insisted against their grandson venturing outside of the house for the day, but the complaint came to deaf ears. Being familiarized with the common conversation actions, the redhead was already aware he would get fetched and driven to emotional distress should he not escape while given the chance. A stern hatred had grown over his uncle attempting to push him towards company business with knowledge that the young man had yet to complete his grieving.

Grief over the death of his parents still fogged his vision, making the world appear a touch darker. Upon leaving the house, frigid winter air embraced him which caused a bout of shivering. Immediately, his bare hands were shoved into the warm depths of his pockets. There was not a second thought as Dexter marched forward to temporarily vacate his home to avoid any outbursts. A decent amount of time was spent walking, his yellow eyes noticing the nasty looks that people who recognized him for his formerly felonious behavior. Those expressions never bothered the redhead anymore since years had been spent adjusting, but the occasion countenance of pity always remained a reminder to his loss. The introvert's gaze remained locked onto the bland, grey sidewalk to avoid witnessing those flashes of pity that crossed the faces of other individuals.

For a few moments, Dexter was clueless for the location as he walked along. Although, there was some mysterious force pulling him towards thoughts of the library; almost like an invisible thread was being tugged towards that destination. Gradually, he found himself unconsciously winding up in front of the library's stairway to the familiar glass doors. With a shrug, Dexter trudged up the steps and through the friendly wooden and glass doors. Upon entry, the warm library air provided an amiable embrace of welcoming. There was swiftness taken in unzipping the coat and shrugging it off his shoulders to hang it onto the coat rack. The introvert's pale hand reached into the jacket's pocket in order to fetch his phone and transfer it to the pocket of his red sweater. Forgetting his phone was a recipe for disaster since missing a single 'are you alright?' text message from his grandparents would cause an outright manhunt.

A glance was taken towards the librarian who offered a plastic smile, probably caused by forced employee to customer benevolence. Quickly, Dexter merely walked away and entered the endless maze of shelved books all standing dignified in their assigned section. There was always the automatic pass through the horror section to scope out possible reads for future literary endeavors, although, the introvert had a book title in mind. His grandparents had constantly harassed him with the recommendation with presumptions towards him liking it despite Dexter's own horror preference. A book titled Beneath the Thread which his grandparents had peculiarly come to adore. Thus, the redhead was forced to search through the shelves before crossing the dramas and finding the title written across the book's spine.

The book was fluently plucked from the shelf, allowing Dexter to analyze it after pushing up the yellow and black glasses that framed his eyes. Only a moment was taken towards debating to read this or his favorite genre, but ultimately the drama reigned victorious impart from mild interest and the requirement to banish the constant stress of his grandparents insistent recommending. A soft sigh escaped the redhead's lips as he retreated from the corridors of literature with the single book tucked safely beneath his arm. He weaved his way through the maze, reaching his new destination of the cafe kept inside the library walls. Although, a strange vibe seemed to transcend over him with each step taken closer to the often quiet sanction the cafe.

Several times his heart seemed to beat faster, almost as though aware of a fact unbeknownst to his mind. A pause was taken, Dexter gazing at himself before taking the back of his hand gently towards his forehead. There was concerned over possibly growing sick, but there appeared to be nothing wrong. A few moments were taken to ponder what possibly caused his heart to flutter in excitement. After soothing himself, Dexter continued forward where he noticed the blue-haired man in the corner instantly. Upon noticing him, his heart rate escalated immensely and his thoughts immediately muddled; it was enough to make the redhead wonder if he was having a heart attack or perhaps some extreme fainting spell. After a few deep breaths, the introvert narrowly managed to calm himself and focus on walking towards the front counter to purchase a hot chocolate which was something he adored.

Afterwards, his gaze trailed back towards the boy with curiosity lighting in his eyes. Unlike with a majority of people, the introvert found himself craving the concept of a conversation with the stranger. There was an essence about him that made the young man alluring. The redhead admittedly found him attractive, although, he would be hesitant to state it vocally. For a few moments, Dexter gathered up some courage before approaching the stranger.

"Uh... hey, can I sit with you?," Dexter asked.

There was prayer that the mysterious man would agree to the concept. After the peculiar heart flutter that occurred upon seeing him, the introvert desired to investigate more and discover perhaps why this man radiated these vibes. Especially since, it was a rare occasion for Dexter to crave a conversation with somebody who was a complete stranger.

YOU KEEP A LOT TO YOURSELF,

Upon noticing the somewhat amused look on the stranger's countenance, Dexter's eyes narrowed. The expression gave the impression of intentionally sneaking up on the introvert and the concept made the redhead feel irritable. He fancied the occasional horror flick, but naturally Dexter did not appreciate the cliche fright. The amount of annoyed the redhead felt towards the mysterious white-haired stranger was obvious by his face. When a retort was made about approaching Hell's Gate being in a similar category as sneaking up behind someone, the introvert's eyes narrowed further. Something about the comment screamed an accusation of mischief which drove him to mild paranoia over this mystery man being a law enforcement officer as well; or somebody aware of Dexter's crimes. The redhead huffed and crossed his arms, looking away from the white-haired man.

"You act like I was going to commit a crime. Approaching a door is not a crime! What? Did you expect me to magically open the bloody thing and release Volos? Cause if so, hell no! I'm not an idiot," Dexter rebuked snappishly.

When the hunter mentioned patrolling the area, the redhead tensed slightly over the concept of possibly terrors. His heart rate raised a tad due to his intense fear of the creatures. There was no desire to run into one of those in this dark alleyway. A paranoid survey of the area was taken as Dexter's concerns grew, but alas nothing appeared out of place. Witnessing the lack of alarming creatures in the alleyway soothed the redhead mildly, allowing his heart rate to calm. Shortly, he shifted position and shoved his hands into his coat pockets well he listened to the stranger's silence breaking comment.

"Oh? I suppose I was automatically a shady character because of that?" Dexter replied in a grumpy tone. "That's one dubious assumption! You're here too, so I guess you are pretty shady yourself."

In the stranger's defense, it was completely possible he was aware of the redhead's various crimes around Lorsette. Although, Dexter was not necessarily famous, there was the small portion of people who automatically knew his face because of it being plastered on newspapers and channels. Naturally, the buzz about himself had decreased over the last few months and the amount of gossip dwindled down to the occasional bout he heard in passing. While he awaited the stranger's response, Dexter's gaze shifted back towards the gate in curiosity of what would have occurred if he managed to touch it.

YOU KEEP A LOT TO YOURSELF,

Cold nipped at any exposed skin on this frosty winter morning. Breath escaped the mouths of passing individuals in a white, smoke-like puff. Thick snowflakes danced down from dreary, grey clouds that hid both the sky and sun. Each day was growing silent filled and uneventful as people avoided the snowy streets due to the frightening concept of lurking terrors. The weather alongside the constant threat to survival kept the streets a sinister type of quiet. Although, there were always the courageous adventurers who decided to enter the freezing embrace of winter and risk the chance of a terror's appearance. A majority would require to be roaming the quiet city, but Dexter left the warmth of his abode for personal reasons. Leaving out of presumption that his emotional state would be perturbed on this morning. Naturally, his relatives had witnessed his upsets before, but for once he wanted sanction from bawling his eyes out; from the sorrow-filled horror that was speaking about his deceased parents.

During the early hours, prior to his grandparents' waking, he had slipped out of house. It was a strategy to escape those intense emotions of sorrow. The avoidance of extensive conversations about the company his parents formerly owned. Recently his uncle had taken over, awaiting the possible day for the redhead to claim his parent's business. Alas, being both unprepared and disliking the constant reminder of the parents he loss caused him to openly refuse. Thus, instead of remaining in safety he pulled on a pair of grey sweats, tugged on his warm, back jacket and pushed his yellow and black glasses onto his face. There was consequence for leaving without verbally informing his grandparents, but caution was thrown away. A merger note had been pinned to the fridge, something a majority of people would accept, but his grandparents in the instance they witnessed the stark white paper with black ink scrawled across it would already begin practicing a lecturing and conjuring thoughts of a suitable punishment. It was instinct after the fainting episode about a month back which caused sudden sparks of concern when Dexter left the premises. Alas, the introvert acted abrasively towards their worry on this winter day and selfishly only cared about his own emotional state of mind. Leaving was necessary, he was determined to not cry today.

The fringes of Dexter collar were tugged higher, causing it rest just below his chin. His yellow eyes scanned the area around him, finding the concrete sidewalks empty and the street without cars. A sigh escaped his lips, perhaps he should have locked himself away in his room, a usual salvation. Although, he was certain the moment leaving was required he would be fetched to join the conversation that would end in an emotional catastrophe for the redhead. For a few moments, Dexter walked wearing a frown until his gaze shifted to curiosity upon seeing a tiny alleyway. Darkness lingered in the alleyway, the introvert's night vision flaring a few moments later. There was some familiarity, distant memories piecing together when the darkness faded from Dexter's vision. A few cautious steps were taken as the redhead's eyes gazed upon the black, metal gate sitting peacefully in the alleyway. Doors closed and locked, black spires reaching upwards to make its appearance daunting.

Years had passed since Dexter had last visited Hell's Gate, those days being plagued with childish bored and necessary tests of courage or dares. His former friends always insistently shouting about how only the brave walked up and touched the gate that once led to the fiery abyss. A slow walk was taken towards the eerie gate, footsteps echoing off the alley walls which brought fourth a foreboding feeling. The air around the gate changed, the temperature rising and embracing Dexter's bare cheeks to a slightly warmer air; causing the once cold skin to sting. A slight paranoia set over the young man, he had never ventured this close to the daunting structure without the judgement eyes of friends observing his every movement.

The gate was not threatening, but there was the smallest pit of fear in the redhead's stomach while he stared at it. There was always the lurking thought of what was stationed behind those doors and what should occur if somebody managed to re-open them. A shaky breath and tremble overcame Dexter at the concept considering the extensive amount of time that Hell and Heaven had spent at war. Vindictiveness was also a thought considering he could already imagine that the two gods were infuriated with being locked away in their realms for thousands of years. The main concern centered around them desiring vengeance for being imprisoned and deciding that Enki's realm inhabitants were a suitable one to inherit the vindictive debt.

Silently, Dexter remained standing there for minutes as he stared at the gate, raveled in various thought. The remainder of his senses seemed to fade as attentiveness remained on his pondering and yellow eyes curiously gazed upon Hell's Gate. Automatically, his pale hands retreated into the depths of his black coat as he remained still, almost as though awaiting for somebody to disturb him.

YOU KEEP A LOT TO YOURSELF,

The plights the stranger spoke were all familiar to Dexter since they were situation that he had faced over the years. Although, his room was oftentimes clean and the main reasons for being kicked out consisted of the requirement (according to his family) of needing social interaction. They did always expect the redhead to act in an extroverted manner from time to time despite the obvious dislike of socializing he displayed. Small doses of conversations did the redhead plenty, especially when it was something interesting like what the shifter had stated with his controls. Although, the introvert was doubting access considering he was unaffiliated with the TRS and furthermore it seemed probably his grandparents would find him before he could see what the stranger was speaking about. At least for the time being he had found himself interesting company.

"It was really that bad, eh?" Dexter asked out of curiosity.

Instead of sitting, the redhead leaned on the back of a chair, arms crossed and his chin resting atop them. An intrigued look being captured in his eyes; this man had the introvert's attention. It was rare for Dexter to get engrossed in the concept of conversation, but this was one of those special moments were somebody manged to pique the redhead's interest. He wanted to know more and furthermore this man was a gamer which meant there was a chance at something interesting instead of idle small talk.

"So what kind of weapons do you make anyways? Anything really interesting?" The redhead inquired in an attentive manner. "Also, what kind of games do you play?"

As it currently stood, Dexter was craving knowledge about the kinds of items this stranger forged, although, he mostly wanted to learn more about the games he played. Perhaps this was a chance at finding himself a new teammate so if one of his other online friends were busy, someone could possibly fill in. There was a small smile on the redhead's face as he began feeling excited about what he could learn from this mysterious stranger who he found. Being possibly grounded later by his grandparents no longer mattered since at least he had discovered something more interesting than sitting in on hours of boring conversation.

YOU KEEP A LOT TO YOURSELF,

As the sorrowful time progressed, Dexter found himself hugging his knees tighter as the memories swarmed him. The upset emotions the redhead felt were increasing with every passing memory. All those times spent in the company of his wonderful parents was taken for granted and all those opportunities missed because he decided that being around his parents would be lame or exhausting. The days where they wore those disappointed expressions acted as haunting faces in the depths of his mind. As he got buried deeper into those painful thoughts, the cold was ignored, the sorrowful thoughts taking his complete attention. The emotions were simply drowning him, making him unaware of his surroundings and his own wellness; it was evident the day he had fainted. Losing those dearly close had left the introvert lost and alone.

When the stranger approached, the crouch of snow acting as a warning, the redhead did not notice. Trapped in those sorrowful thoughts while hot tears rolled down his hidden cheeks. When the man first spoke, Dexter stiffened and remained silent for a few moments. Nobody was suppose to see him upset like this, to witness the tears fall from his face. The introvert did not want to speak, out of fear it would escape his mouth in hiccups or pathetic sobs. He wanted to ignore the stranger in hopes he would leave and not bother him, but that seemed like it would be difficult. That was when the mystery man ask if he was cold and the little bit of warmth that radiated from the fire and licked at him in a welcoming manner. The introvert had not realized how cold he was until now. For a moment, Dexter brought his head out from its hiding place to see the man who held fire in his hands.

As it currently stood, the introvert's cheeks were puffy, red and coated with tears from those attempts to desperately rub them away. His breathing remained shaky and every so often Dexter would sniffle. With blurry vision from the still gathering tears, the redhead looked at the stranger. Deciphering the features were difficult considering the introvert could only see a blur of dirty blond hair and fair skin. Distinguishing him from other people seemed impossible at the current moment given his state of emotions. Dexter curled up more, shaking a bit at the realization that somebody was looking at him during an emotional moment. He desired invisibility or teleportation (that did not drain him of course) to get away from this current situation and avoid this person who noticed him. Once again, his knees were hugged tighter while the redhead looked away from the person who was merely concerned about him.

"I-i'm fine! J-just l-leave me a-alone," he choked out.

There was a hollowness to the sentence, the essence of a lie. The redhead was by no means alright and it would be difficult to create the illusion with his cheeks slicked with tears. It was obvious by the countenance of Dexter's face how upset he was since he wore a deep frown, his yellow eyes were glazed in sorrow and the tears that still ran down the trails on his face. The realization of his horrible illusion caused the redhead to bury his head in his arms as he attempted to pull himself together, yet, that seemed beyond reach. It seemed each second he tried to compose himself those sorrow filled thoughts crept back in and wreaked havoc on any attempts for composure. The misery the redhead felt was blatantly obvious as he gradually began breaking down more. He was frustrated that there was no escape from the scenario and upset over his parents being taken from him. It caused his sobbing to gain noise as he buried his head deeper and tried to force himself to stop. Alas, the emotions were over-powering and easily won the mental war.

[ awwww, thank-you! I figured it would be a good way to emphasize the sorrow that he feels. not to mention, it acted as a good method to assure his sudden upset. ]