Work Text:
Wake up, pills, breakfast, work.
Wake up, pills, breakfast, work.
Wake up, breakfast, pills, work
Wake up, breakfast, forget.
Forget, forget, forget. What did he forget?
The feeling gnawed at his brain all day. He forgot something. Thinking about it made his head hurt. He messed up his routine and now he couldn’t fix it. Eat, work, sit in the garden. Where did the garden come from? He came out here to… see someone? Why wouldn’t his mind stop racing.
“Toby, are you alright?” A whisper called him to reality.
“Yeah. I th-think so.”
“Did you have lunch?” Toby tilt his head. That had to be it. He was just hungry. That had to be it. The smell of rot made his stomach turn. He turned to face it. White hair, pale face. Oliver.
Toby remembered Oliver, they were friends. They met… where? School? That sounded right. This was Oliver’s garden, he came out here to find Oliver. That made sense. Oliver smiled offering to go make him something to eat and sending him to wash his hands.
In the bathroom, Toby became aware of the shadows in the corners of the room. Notes tapes to the mirror left little reminders but he could focus on the words. He washed his hands and felt something drip down his face. He caught the tears in the mirror and frowned.
Why was he crying? Everything was fine wasn’t it? Static seemed to fill his vision and he shook his head trying to clear it. He didn’t understand. His head felt weird. The tears didn’t stop. The static grew louder. Then, voices. Outside the door. They were muffled.
Oliver was speaking to someone but their voice was distorted. The static pitched and then cleared and Toby blinked. The door cracked open a bit.
“Toby?”
“Oliver… am I for-forgetting something?” He twitched, anxious. Oliver tilt his head, fingers tapping together like he was counting. “Why is everything wrong?”
“Oh Toby… you forgot to take your meds again didn’t you?” Oliver moved past him, taking the bottle on counter. “It’s ok. I forget sometimes too. Mr. S said we have to take them so we don’t go crazy.” He took two out of the bottle, holding one out to Toby.
“What are they?”
“He won’t say. But they make us feel better. Remember? It makes the voices less stimulating.” Toby didn’t remember. But he knew he trusted Oliver.
He swallowed the pill. Oliver took one too, cupping his hands under the sink to wash it down. Oliver took his hand and led him back to the kitchen. The lights seemed brighter and the fog began to clear.
Oliver was his friend. They met in the garden where he was burying his mother. Toby helped him, promising to keep it secret. He was a killer, sent to kill others by a faceless entity that lived in the woods. The entity kept them fed and cared for, they just had to remember their medication. It dampened its effects on them.
Toby ate lunch, helped wash dishes, and followed Oliver out to do their next job. Things were back on track. Everything was back to normal.