Metanoia

I woke up in the middle of the night, unnecessarily hot and sweaty, with a Rory tucked under my arm. He felt like he was burning up, burning me. It felt like he was melting our skin together and fusing us into one unholy monster with an affinity for itself.

He shivered though, pressing himself to me even tighter. His teeth chattered, probably biting the shit out of his cheeks.

I sat up and shook him awake. "Ro, hey Ro. You feeling alright?"

He woke up like a dead man coming back to life, his eyes and mouth opening into gaping circles. He made an inhuman noise like choking and closed his mouth, shaking his head.

"I don't feel good, Ja- Daddy, I really don't."

I frowned and stroked his damp cheek with the back of my hand. "Well what's wrong, Ro? What doesn't feel good?"

He shook his head and leaned forward onto me. "Everything. I feel like-" He paused for a moment, taking deep breaths.

"Is it something with your body, Ro? Or is it in your head?"
He shrugged and sniffled, wiping his eyes and nose with his hands. "I keep tasting poison in my food. And I keep smelling it, too. I know you love me though. You said you did and I believe you, but there was a lady in my room and she told me that you wanna kill me and you're trying to poison me. Then she climbed out the window."

I frowned. "What the hell, Ro? You know that no one can get in and out of your window. This is the top floor."

"I know that, Jace, but she climbed out the window and went down. I figured she had a ladder or something." He sighed in complete distress.

"A ladder, Rory? Really? We're almost two-hundred feet in the air, no one has a ladder or a cherry picker that high, even if they could get into your window."

He looked up at me, just about ready to start crying. "I don't know, Jace! That's what I saw, you have to believe me!"
I hugged him again and kissed the top of his head. We sat there just like that until he'd calmed down. "What are you thinking about, Rory?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I keep thinking about Owen. That was the lady who told me to kill Owen."

I narrowed my eyes. "The very same?"

He nodded and let out a shaky breath onto my chest.

"I'm gonna go check your window." He nodded again and I kissed his cheek and got out of bed. I flipped the light on in his bedroom and went to the window. I'd sealed it shut with wall putty years ago and it was still sealed completely, confirming my suspicions. I left Rory's room, remembering to turn off the light, and went back to my room. "Rory," I started slowly. I had to keep cool for this. "Did you forget to take your medicine?"

Rory shifted uncomfortably. "No, I didn't. I think.'

"Tell me the truth, Rory. Now."

He turned away from me. "I don't... No."

I sat on the bed next to him and put my hand on his arm. He shifted away from me. "Rory, you need to tell me right now. Did you take your medicine today?"

"I don't think I should tell you that." He turned his back toward me and it hit me that he probably wasn't completely lucid, given the events he'd told me about.

"Come on, Rory. I won't hurt you. I've never even thought about poisoning you. I love you. When's the last time you took your medicine?"

Rory looked back at me and the only thing I could see on his face was shame. "Three weeks, I think. I finished the whole bottle and I thought I was done. I thought the pills made me completely better."

I wanted to hug him and pat his head, but something told me not to. Instead, I crossed my arms. "Rory, you've gone three weeks without your medicine? That's not good. That's downright fucking stupid. Sicknesses in your head don't get killed by taking pills like you take antibiotics, you need to take the medicine every day for the rest of your life." I shook my head and sighed. "I can't get refills for you until Friday, so you'll have to hold tight until then. Where do you wanna sleep tonight?"

He shrugged. "In here. You're warm." I laid on the bed and Rory attached himself to me again. I stroked his sweat-soaked hair and tried not to mind the excessive heat. Just as I was starting to drift off, Rory brought me back again.

"Jace, will you sing to me?" He asked.

"Sure thing Ro. Anything you wanna hear?"

He thought about it for a second. "The Smiths, Jace. Sing the Smiths."

I smiled and kissed his forehead.

"Anything you want, Rory."