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There's a faint sound coming from the alley as he steps out onto the pavement. He doesn't really care for it; it's probably nothing, not in this part of the city. And with his mind preoccupied... It's been a shitty day.
There's another beep, and when he fishes his phone out, he has 3 more missed calls and a text from Douglas:
TJ, where the hell are you?! Call me!
Frustrated he shoves the phone back in his pocket. He doesn't need them to worry about him. Suddenly he stumbles on a stone in his path, one he's sure wasn't there before. As he falls to the ground he loses whatever energy he had left, can't even feel bothered to try and get up. His dealer hadn't been in the building, and now he feels even more shitty for having actually gone there.
2 years. 2 years since the overdose, 2 years in which he hasn't done drugs, where he's felt he can do it. And just like that, his resolve gone.
He has half a mind to actually get up when he's suddenly being pressed down onto the gravel. His arms are twisted around onto his back, and a knee is digging into the small of his back. He can only see glimpses of boots before a rugg is pressed against his nose and his view of the world turns blurry.
~~~~~
When he comes to he's in a dark room, sitting on a chair. His hands are tied behind it, the rope knotted in complicated patterns spanning over his chest. No way he's getting out of it.
He's still feeling dizzy, his head hanging against his chest, but he can faintly hear voices some distance away.
"Did you contact the King about the ransom?"
"Yeah, but he hasn't answered yet."
"He will, just wait and see."
There's a click, and suddenly the room is bathing in light. It blinds him for a moment, and when he can see, he wants to close his eyes and drift far far away.
He's in a cage. In a goddamned cage even though he's thoroughly bound. There's two men standing just outside it with - he can see from growing up with guards all around him - guns under their jackets.
He's dizzy and afraid, fucking terrified, and not the least surprised when the world's starts blurring again.
~~~~~
When he wakes up again the cage is opened and the two men are standing inside it, just in front of him.
"Listen up now, Jack Benjamin. You will do as we say, and you will do it without complaint.
"My name's TJ," he says, his voice low and crackling.
"Did I fucking tell you to speak!" One of the men bursts out, his hand going for his jacket, and suddenly there's the barrel of a gun and inch from TJ's eyes.
"Now," the other man says, "be a good prince and tell the King we really do have you."
He's confused at first, but then he sees the camera and get a little more clarity.
"Say after me," the man with the gun says,"'They really have me, father, and to get me back you have to pay the ransom.'"
No, this is just some weird hallucination. He's just high. His dealer was there and he got some drugs, and now he's high. It has to be the explanation, because he's not prince, and he's not named Jack Benjamin.
"Say it!" the man yells and presses the barrel of the gun against his forehead.
TJ turns to the camera, opening his mouth but not getting a word out. His throat is stocked, and the raw fear isn't helping.
"Say it!" one of the men growls, but his focus is too much that of a tunnel to really focus. What will saying that help? They think he's someone he's not. If that person is safe, why would anyone come to rescue him? Sure, his family will try, but how will the find him?
The guns presses hard, and he gulps down some of the fear to force out the words. "They have me, father, and to get me back you have to pay the ransom."
"Good prince."
The but of the gun connects with his temple.
~~~~~
The next time he wakes up it’s because of the sound of ruckus. At first it’s not too bad, but then he hears the sound of gunshots.
His eyes are open in the blink of an eye, but the rooms is as dark as the first time, and he can’t see anything. The chair has tipped over and he’s laying on his side, the cold steel of the chair pressing into both his arm and side.
After a moment the door bangs open, the light from the hallway outside shining in on the floor. He can’t see any features on the man, only the rifle he’s holding in his hands.
It doesn’t help his fear.
The man reaches his hand out, flicking on the light. TJ blinks against the brightness, trying to get his eyes to adjust. When they have, he has to blink again.
The man looks just like him, only he's wearing an army uniform and his face is grimy with dirt and sweat.
“You...” TJ says, forgetting his fright.
"... look just like me," the man says, even his voice sounding eerily familiar.
"Are you...?"
"Jack Benjamin, prince of Gilboa."
Can this get even weirder?
"And you are?" Jack asks as he steps deeper into the room.
"TJ Hammond, I'm the son of the president."
"Of what country?" He's a the cage now, looking for a way to open it.
"The US."
"Huh. Who is he now?"
"She is my mother, Elaine Barrish."
"Well, I didn't know that."
Without TJ having been able to see it, Jack has opened the lock and is now stretching out a knife to cut the ropes. When they're off he helps TJ getting up, who notice that they're the same height. It's unsettling.
His legs feels like jelly, so Jack has to help him move out of whatever building he was held in. Outside waits his family, along with some of their security guards and unfamiliar soldiers. Jack seems somewhat surprised to see TJ's family, like maybe he went in with his soldiers without knowing anything about TJ.
His mom hurries to embrace him as soon as Jack lets him go. Douglas is hovering close by in the background, looking like he's trying not to seem concerned. His dad is behind him, frowning where he stands beside Anne and Nana both looking worried.
It's nice to know they care and worry so much.