It was actually quite difficult to pinpoint the exact date Double D became Eddward, but he wasn't particularly picky and in all honesty he didn't care. Some days he wondered where Double D had gone, even missing the innocence in summer months before he tipped the scale. However, most days, he really enjoyed the person he had become, even if others did not. Quite a few people were not very fond of him and made absolute sure to avoid him at all costs. He remembered the days where this would bother him; the difference was, back then, people avoided him and his friends because they were seen as strange, but now, they were feared, though still strange. People went in the opposite direction when they saw him coming and were quick to step out of the way when there was no alternate route, making sure to avert their eyes from his gaze. Even the three Kanker sisters, who at one point terrorized Double D and his friends, steered clear of Eddward. Double D was a sweet, smart, and innocent boy. Eddward, on the other hand, was a whole new ball game. He was brutal, shrewd and condescending.

One could say it all started just before high school, though Eddward had to admit a storm was brewing inside him long before then. It seemed that his patience had just run thin, but in all honesty, he wasn't quite sure why he had punched the neighbor boy, Kevin. It could have been a many number of things; the pressure to be perfect, growing tired of being pushed around, an increasing desire for control. Double D had always been a kind person, advising his two best friends to behave themselves, watch their language and above all else, not resort to violence. Kevin hadn't even said anything too harmful or out of the ordinary. It was like any other day, and as usual, Kevin teased Double D and his friends, but it went downhill as soon as the redhead called him Double Dork. It was a normal thing for Kevin to call him, and if anything, Double D got along with Kevin better than Ed or Eddy did, but for whatever the reason, it sent him over the edge. His fist landed hard on Kevin's lip and upon impact, it seemed the entire neighborhood had grown still, with every pair of eyes wide and on him. For a moment, Double D contemplated apologizing, assuming it would most likely stop the staring from the crowd, but it was only for a brief moment. It felt as though they were all holding their breath for him, waiting for his next move and he realized he liked the feeling. He enjoyed that they were all waiting on him and he most certainly enjoyed the shock he had caused. With that, he silently refused to apologize and shot a vicious glare to Kevin, who held a hand to his busted lip.

"It's Eddward now," he said steadily before shoving his fists into his pockets.

No one dared to call him Double D again, or Double Dork for that matter, not even his two best friends. Why would they? The sudden outburst had startled both of them, even rambunctious Eddy, who from that moment on, tiptoed carefully around Eddward and refrained from calling him the pet name he had given him long ago; sockhead. How it had gone downhill from there, Eddward could care less. All that mattered to him now was that for once in his life, he wasn't seen as weak and he wasn't at all afraid of the others. They were afraid of him, and it was as it should be.

With a sigh, Eddward sat up on his bed. He despised thinking of the past, let bygones be bygones, as they say. For the most part, he succeeded in forgetting his former life, but occasionally, and without his consent, it snuck up on him, pulling him into an aura of nostalgia and he reveled in it. It was a weakness and he couldn't afford to have his own personal Achilles' heel. However, there were times where he allowed himself a moment of frailty, basking in his own memories. Sometimes he tasted blood, sometimes he could smell the fallen leaves in the autumn air, and every so often, but not too frequent, a sadness overtook him, welling his eyes with tears and a thick knot would form in his throat. As much as he enjoyed whom he had become, he rather missed when he was Double D.

Eddward reached for his Marlboro Reds, neatly placed on the nightstand and contemplated smoking in his room. The thought left just as quickly as it came upon remembering Mother noticed everything, and not wanting to hear her nag, he stood up from the bed and pulled his dark leather jacket over his red hoodie. He thought to himself, as he grabbed his boots from outside of his room, about his mother. She, along with Father, saw him as a disappointment and had given up on him long ago. They said he had so much potential, with a ridiculous IQ and he chose to throw it all away, which he found hilarious. Apparently, his behavior, the way he dressed and the cigarettes he smoked affected his intelligence. Albeit, it had been known that with some individuals this was the case, however only because they decided not to continue learning, or they were taking too many hallucinogens that fried their brain to the point where they were almost as incoherent as the rest of the world. He didn't blame them, though; sometimes having a brilliant mind could be a hefty burden, but there were ways to calm the mind, carefully and responsibly. Knowledge was power, the very key to existence and to throw it away was a shame. To ease his own mind, he ventured towards the path of recreational drug use. Nicotine, caffeine and certain pills that affected his performance positively. He could hardly care less what it did to his body, seeing as he would die soon anyway, and as long as it didn't affect his intelligence negatively, that was all that mattered.

Eddward hardly had to wonder why his parents were bothered by his actions. All they wanted was a poster child, a perfect little machine to show off to their friends at the country club. That is, whenever they were home, which was very rare. Father specialized in theoretical physics and was constantly away with his colleagues, while mother worked all hours at the hospital, and when they weren't at their jobs, they were across the country doing God knows what. Even when he was younger, his parents were absent from the house and he could only assume that they produced an offspring in hopes that it would be capable to care for itself from the get go. How ignorant. It was all about appearances to them; have a perfect child with an excellent GPA, no history with the law, and on the path to a great university. And how foolish.

Once he had his boots on, he decided to go for a walk while smoking. Eddward left the house with his baseball bat in hand, not bothering to lock the door. If anyone were brave enough to break in, they wouldn't find anything of value to him. They could take everything from the house if they really wanted and he wouldn't care. He had no time to feel sentimental for inanimate objects, much less the ones belonging to his parents. If the two came home to an empty house, they would blame it on him, and it was almost worth inconveniencing them to leave the door open, but he decided against it and lit a cigarette before trudging on down the street. A group of teens eyed him cautiously as he passed them. He didn't blame them when he recognized their faces; the Kanker sisters. Eddward and his two goons had screwed the three over, as they did with many people. They knew better than to bother him like they did when they were younger; it would only caused them trouble.

He continued on the ruined road, full of cracks and potholes, breathing in the smoke as he put the cigarette to his lips and pulling it away to flick the ashes. Not sure exactly where he was heading, he wandered aimlessly until he reached the park. It had been a long time since he last visited the park, other than to vandalize, of slide was covered in graffiti and the teeter-totter had long since been removed. Trash littered the park and he could have sworn he passed a used condom, cringing at the thought of accidentally stepping on it. One swing was still functional and currently used, while the other hanged by a single chain. Eddward smiled upon realizing who was occupying the swing.

"Pumpkin!" he said loudly through a smirk.

The ginger teen looked up upon hearing the petname with wide eyes and Eddward could clearly see the freckles that sprinkled across the boy's cheekbones and nose. He wore his usual red cap that faced in the appropriate direction, and a large green hoodie that was much too big for his skinny frame. The boy had changed almost as drastically as Eddward had in such a short amount of time, and if Eddward didn't know any better, he would have never have guessed who the boy was before. However, he did know better; of course he did. He was Eddward, smarter than anyone else in this godforsaken neighborhood and he made sure his intelligence was known to everyone who inhabited it.

"Hey, Eddward…" the boy said, completely submissive and bringing his gaze to the dirt at his feet. Eddward leaned against the swingset, ignoring the nagging feeling at the back of his head, telling him the pole was riddled with germs. He couldn't break down in front of people and he couldn't show any weaknesses. Over the years, Eddward had gotten really good at pushing back the obsessive thoughts of bacteria and disease, though it always came back to haunt him as soon as he got home.

He took another long drag from his cigarette before throwing it to the ground and grinding it into the dirt with his foot. "So, Pumpkin, what are you up to out here all alone?"

Kevin gently pushed at the ground with his feet, sending the swing to rock him back and forth with a creek. He continued to stare at the earth below, a courtesy to his superior, and it was a few moments before he finally spoke. The winter wind brushed over the two, sending a chill down both of their spines, and the sun was setting in the distance, painting the sky with colours that would make any artist jealous. They would never be able to paint something so beautiful.

"My dad's drunk again…" the boy spoke quietly. Eddward could tell that Kevin didn't wish to talk about it, but the boy knew better than to lie when asked a question by Eddward.

The dark haired teen didn't know much about Kevin, or his life at home for that matter. He hadn't really bothered to ask until now, not that he really cared, but he was feeling quite content from the nostalgia washing over him earlier. He remembered the days where he cared about others and their wellbeing, and found no hurt in allowing himself a brief moment of the past slipping into his conscience. Besides, he reveled in shocking people.

"Is he a mean drunk?" Eddward asked bluntly.

The other boy hesitated and brought the swing to a halt. "Yeah… Kinda, I guess."

"Does he hit you?" Kevin flinched at his words.

"Sometimes."

Eddward shrugged and reached into his pocket for his pack of cigarettes. He brought one of the sticks to his lips and lit it. "You just have to hit back harder."

Kevin laughed dryly. "He'd kill me."

"Kill him first," Eddward suggested nonchalantly. He looked to the sky just as the sun finished setting, bathing the sky in darkness. The red head remained silent and still. Minutes passed by slowly before Eddward broke the silence. "How terribly rude of me. Fag?"

Kevin's head snapped up and he stared at Eddward with his eyes wide. Eddward found the reaction quite ridiculous, but only rolled his eyes and held out his open pack of cigarettes. "I meant a cigarette, simpleton." Immediately, Kevin relaxed.

"I don't smoke."

Eddward took in the smoke and let it out before speaking. "So does your drunkard father know?"

"Know what?"

"That you're a fag," the delinquent said matter of factly.

Kevin glared at him through his hazel eyes. "I'm not a fag."

"It's acceptable if you are. I'm not one to tell another's secrets. Unless, of course, you give me reason to, but you aren't like that, are you, Pumpkin?"

"Don't call me that," the other teen snapped.

Eddward smirked. He wished the ginger would add a dweeb or dork to his demand, but Kevin knew better. Instead, Eddward imagined the words rolling out of Kevin's mouth, as though it were old times and their roles were reversed. He enjoyed whom he had become and the cloud of terror that surrounded him, choking anyone who got too close, but every so often he appreciated the past.

"Pumpkin? Why not? It suits you."

"Just don't," Kevin said more softly, realizing he had spoken poorly to Eddward.

"What would you like more? Dweeb? Dork?" Eddward asked with a smug grin spread across his pink lips. Kevin remained quiet and kicked the dirt awkwardly. The superior was rather enjoying this feeling of power over the teen, holding Kevin's past actions over his head. Until now, he hadn't thought to do so, barely even holding a conversation with the boy, not that he could while he was beating him senseless. Now seeing Kevin look so guilty gave him a terribly pleasant feeling. Eddward swung the baseball bat from his shoulder and to the ground with a hard thud, causing Kevin to jump and stare worriedly at the bat in the other's hand. "Oh, calm yourself, neanderthal. I'm not going to beat you, though you do look like you could use it. Maybe it'd get your mind off other things."

The redhead retreated his eyes from the bat and to the ground, with the occasional glance towards Eddward, and he didn't blame Kevin for his lack of trust. Eddward had been known to break his word, but Kevin didn't know that he was feeling generous today. The tension was still evident, even after a few minutes passed, neither one willing to leave; Kevin, fearful that Eddward would find his leaving rude, and Eddward, the type to have the last word as well as the last step, at least until he was satisfied. Taking a leap of faith, though Eddward would never admit to using such a word, he let the baseball bat fall from his hand and onto the ground. He took a long drag from the cigarette and didn't even bother to look for Kevin's reaction, but he could imagine the ginger had relaxed somewhat.

"What are you doing?" Kevin asked boldly, proving Eddward to be right. The other teen allowed his gaze to fall on the one in the swing.

"Smoking."

"I see that. Why are you here?"

The dark haired boy shrugged again. "Because I can be."

Kevin rolled his eyes and Eddward's heart leaped, pounding violently in his chest. The attitude Kevin was giving him was only feeding more fuel to the nostalgic fire and it excited him. He wondered what the boy was holding back after years of beatings and torment. Wondered how far he could push Kevin before the redhead broke and went back to his old ways. It would be another experiment, he thought to himself when he decided exactly what he was going to do. It would have an interesting outcome nonetheless.

"So, Pumpkin. It's alright if I call you that, yes? Or would you prefer Dork? Milksop? Ignoramus? Perhaps you'd go for Ninnyhammer. That seems right up your alley." A smirk slipped across Eddward's face as Kevin ground his teeth.

"Stop," the boy growled.

Eddward blew the smoke in Kevin's direction, receiving a scowl from the teen. "Stop what?"

"Kevin doesn't work for you?"

"No, it doesn not."

"Well, that's my name."

"No, it's not. What's your name?"

The freckled boy lost what little fire he had in him and looked to the ground. Eddward grinned when he realized Kevin wouldn't break today, though he couldn't deny that it did disappoint him. Maybe another day.

"Pumpkin…" Kevin said quietly.

"That's right. Well, it was a nice chat. Au revoir, citrouille," and with that, Eddward left the park.