Let it slide

Everyone crawled backwards. Trying to get as far away as possible from the source of that arctic coldness. They felt like prey looking a predator in the eyes and feeling a fear for their own lives.

Jason did not speak a word and signaled for the boys to follow him back inside with a stern look. Their backs got covered with cold sweat and they were shaking their heads in unwillingness. In response Jason smiled again and simply asked Jenny to join her friends, before sitting on the bed with his arms crossed. This time his smile felt more eerie than it did the first time. The boys gave in and started walking towards their doom. George tried to plead Jenny for help with his eyes, but all she could do for them she did. She stuck her head around the corner of the door and said to Jason "Jason promise me you won't be too harsh on them, you know they meant no harm. I don't want my friends to feel bad for this little prank right before they have to leave." Jason nodded and the guys entered the lions den before gulping away their fear. George sneaked a thankful glance before closing the door behind him. The moment the door closed Jason's smile disappeared and he started talking.

"What were you guys thinking, hmm? Have I been too kind lately, which made you think it was okay to do something like this? Or did you not think about the consequences at all?"

Harry was the first to speak up "Jason, don't be mad. It's not what you think."

"Oh no? It isn't what I think? Because the way I see it, you all gave me a chance to spend some time with Jenny and then you ruined it, the moment I was getting somewhere."

It was Nick's turn to plead, "Come on man, we were just having some fun. It's not like you haven't kissed her before or as if you aren't going to have the chance to do it after today. Let it go for this friend that you haven't seen in a long time. Hmm, what do you say?"

"Whether I have kissed her once or a hundred times, that does not mean you get to interrupt me when I am with her!"

"Come on Jason, we were all waiting and we were in the middle of a game. How long were we supposed to wait. We gave you twice the time that we were originally supposed to give you. How were we supposed to know that you first had a battle to win before you were able to start your seven minutes in heaven. Why don't you let this one slide?"

Jason let out a deep sigh before getting up. The guys stepped back instinctively to maintain a safe distance from this unpredictable man. "I guess you have a point today, but I will only let it go this once. Only because Jenny's friends were involved and I don't want to give Jenny a sad memory about their stay here." All three of them let out a sigh of relieve and dropped their guards. They came to regret this only when Jason was close enough to touch them. He pretended like he was putting an arm over their shoulders for them to return and join the others, only for him to land his hand with such force that it was better to call it a strike. They could feel the warmth spread from the spot his hand had landed and they fell forward from the pain. Nick was standing across from them and saw them fall.

He backed up a bit and started stammering "J-Jason, come on man. You said you would let it go this once. What are you doing? You are a man of your word aren't you?"

"What do you mean? This is already considered letting it go. I never said I wouldn't do anything at all, did I? Come shake my hand to put that water under the bridge, hmm my dear friend whom I haven't seen in such a long time."

"No, thanks. I don't feel like shaking hands. I became a bit of a germaphobe in America, he he he" Nick replied with a sheepish laugh.

Jason would not back down and continued his back and forth with his only remaining victim-to-be. "Oh no.. really? Well in that case I should give you the same treatment as I gave my other two friends. It seems they are enjoying what I did quite a lot, don't you agree?"

Nick felt backed into a wall and was forced to choose between two evils. Cold sweat started forming on his back and forehead as he made his choice, "I guess my condition isn't as bad as to prevent me from shaking a friend's hand.." As he swallowed a part of his fears away, he held out his hand for Jason. He started at it with such intensity as if he was watching it get chopped off. Jason replied as he reached out his hand as well and said "Good choice". Before Nick had a chance to change his mind, Jason grabbed his hand and put a good amount of force into his actions. Instantly a pained expression came over Nick's face as he fell to his knees. He tried to loosen Jason's hold with his other hand, but it was to no avail. He watched as he felt like his hand was getting crushed. Though the "hand shake" lasted no more than fifteen seconds, Nick felt like his hand had been tortured for hours. The hand had turned red and swollen, making Nick doubt his decision when picking between two evils.

While holding on to the places Jason had hurt, all the guys exited the room with slightly dejected expressions. When the girls saw their faces, they felt bad that the guys had to face the punishment alone. However Jason was know for not physically harming girls. The ones that had provoked him far enough had been few and he usually settled it with a harsh lesson on a mental or financial level as a form of punishment. The acts of today did not belong to a category deserving such repercussions and he couldn't exactly do anything to Jenny's friends, so the full blame fell onto his friends, who should have known better. The low spirits of the guys didn't last for long as they each had someone to cheer them up and compensate them for what they had faced.

The group split up for a moment as they all looked up a different corner of the house and sought comfort with a person of their choosing. Nick decided to let himself get pampered by Kelly, who was more than happy to indulge in spoiling this handsome man. George had Sophia and even Harry let Julia show him a bit of extra kindness, making them feel it was all worth it. Jason was the only one who didn't get this type of alone time as he was stuck in the living room with Jenny's other two friends. While staring out onto the patio with an indifferent and slightly cold expression, he was counting down the minutes till they were all to leave and he would finally get his alone time with Jenny. Time trickled by slowly, before he was finally released from the wait by the sound of footsteps approaching. In came the driver, who announced it was time for them to head to the airport. After a hug goodbye from Jenny and pulling Kelly away from Nick with reluctance, the girls thanked everyone for their time spent together and headed for their flight back home. The remaining friends also said their goodbyes and headed to their cars. This finally gave Jason what he had been waiting for, some time alone and a chance to continue what he had started in the guest bathroom...