Trapped |Jake Sim|

24

Jake stared as the nurse grabbed his medication, placing it on his hand and giving him a cup of water. He didn't hesitate to take them before passing her both the cups.

"How are you feeling today, Jake?"

"I'm okay." He answered with a small smile as he reached for the overbed table to continue doing the puzzle he was given.

The nurse hummed with a smile of her own, before leaving the room, closing the door behind her.

Sonny stepped out from behind the curtains and looked at Jake, who looked at her for less than a second.

"You were there the entire time?" He said softly as he placed down a piece.

"Yep." Sonny spoke as she sat down next to him, staring at the puzzle. "How do you feel Jake?"

"Why does everyone ask me the same question?"

"Because how you feel is important." She whispered and Jake looked at her for a few seconds in thought.

"I don't know how I feel."

Sonny laid her head against his shoulder and let out a small sigh.

Jake looked at Sonny, who looked up at him in question.

"Why do I always feel like you know things I don't?" He whispered as he stared into her eyes.

Sonny's eyes started to change into more pity in her eyes than anything else.

Jake was deep in thought as he continued to go through the puzzle. "If you know everything already, and you always knew, why didn't you just tell me? Why make me figure it out?"

"Because you're the only one that can figure it all out and set me free."

"Setting you free means I won't see you anymore, right? What if... What if I don't want to set you free?" Jake whispered, feeling tears in his eyes as he placed down a piece that he finally found. "I know I said I wanted to forget you, but how could I ever? I'd rather just live with the pain of seeing my hallucination of you than to never see you again."

He could almost feel Sonny's eyes on the side of his face, but he continued working on his puzzle as if he wasn't on the verge of a breakdown.

"You have to Jake, not just for me, but for you too." She placed her hand gently against his, and he closed his eyes, letting his hand drop onto the table, against the puzzle.

"What do you mean for me?"

"Don't you feel heavy?"

"Not when I'm with you."

"You have to learn to lift that weight off your shoulders on your own Jake. Because I'm not here."

"Yes you are Sonny. To me, you are." He finally looked at her and when he did, his heart beating harshly against his chest.

Sonny was bloody again. The blood was oozing from her neck as she stared at him, with the same look of understanding.

"I'm not here, Jake. You have to understand that." She said gently and Jake couldn't take his horrified eyes off her.

Sonny placed her hands against his face, and he could feel the warmth of the blood against his cheeks, but for some reason, he was scared but he wasn't petrified.

Jake shook his head and refused to look at her, facing away from her. "You are here. If you weren't I wouldn't be able to feel you... You're here, Sonny. Right behind me. I can feel your warmth. I don't want it to go away."

He stood from the bed after pushing the overbed table away from him and walked towards the small mirror on the closet door.

He stared at the blood against his cheeks, looking at every detail of her handprints against them.