Chapter Text
Two Time sat on their bed, gnawing at their nails. On the floor, multiple fantasy books laid sprawled open staring at them imploringly. All of them ready to be delved into once more. They’d read all of them over dozens of times by now, probably to the point of memorization. It was a way of exploring a world out of their reach. None of the books were as entertaining as they once were and Two Time felt sticky and gross from laying in their bed for far too long. Logically, the best explanation would be to go outside, or exercise, maybe even talk to their neighbors. Unfortunately, Two Time wasn’t exactly an individual driven by logic. They ran on pure anxiety and nerves, at least that was what Elliot had told them once. (To be honest Two Time still had no idea what the blonde had been insinuating.) Instead they laid there for a while. Debating whether to go out or not. In truth they still had to eat, shower and clean their messy apartment. Yet Two Time couldn’t muster the will to do any of these tasks.
Eventually, after a while of contemplating, in the end Two Time had decided to go outside. Groceries were running low, the store wasn’t far and they were in a rare productive mood today. They had no idea when the next strike of motivation would hit them so it was better to prepare. Still, they didn’t exactly enjoy going outside. People would question about their tail and it never failed to slightly irritate them. That’s all people would do, talk and talk. They’d talk about meaningless topics and ask insensitive questions disguised as empathy, then they had the audacity to call them hysterical when they finally blew over. It pissed Two Time off to no end. Still, regardless of whether they wanted or not, the world continued, it was something they came to somewhat accept.
Apparently, the universe must’ve had an agenda against Two Time, because unfortunately for them the grocery store was packed full of frantic shoppers. There was no way in hell they were going in there. Not unless they had a death wish. Franky, having a panic attack in the middle of a public space was not how they wanted to spend their one ‘good’ day. They shivered just at the thought of pushing through crowds of people. It would be far too loud and too much body contact. Instead, they opted to stop by the pharmacy. They were running low on medication and there were less people.
Two Time made it their mission to get out of the pharmacy as soon as possible. Enter, grab their items, check out and leave. Simple as that. There was no need to overcomplicate things. It was an easy endeavor. Then why was it that they were on the verge of bolting out the door as they stood in line for the checkout?
“Prescription?”
“Huh?” Two Time jolted, snapping out of their daze. In front of them a bored looking teenager stared with an eyebrow raised.
“Your prescription for your medicine?”
“O-oh right,” they nodded, embarrassed, though they still kept their uncanny grin plastered on their face. As the pharmacist dug into the cabinets, Two Time bit their lip. When was the last time they had even showered or eaten? They probably looked like shit. Did they smell? Two Time bit down harder until they faintly tasted iron. (The smell of blood always brought them back to those days.)
“Here.” Three small orange pill bottles were handed to them. Two Time hastily grabbed them, mumbling faint apologies. The cashier looked at them for a moment before placing a small plastic bag on the counter as well.
“What is this?” Two Time asked, nervous curiosity bubbling in their stomach.
“Special apples, I got them at a weird market. They said it was good for people like you. Might help with something.”
“L-like me?” Two Time stammered despite the smile still on their face. The pharmacist did not elaborate any further. With shaky hands they paid and turned to leave.
“Oh, also you don’t need to smile that much. It can’t be good for your facial muscles or whatever.” Two Time chose not to reply and quickly exited the building before racing home.
By the time they arrived at their front door they were wheezing and hacking for air. (Their stamina had never fully recovered after the incident.) Two Time opened the door and slipped inside, careful not to be spotted by their neighbours. (They were aware that they weren’t very comfortable to be around.) Though before they closed the door behind them Two Time gazed out at the street. Cars buzzed by and the streetlights stood out brightly against the dark sky. Unlike their favourite fantasy books filled with adventure and whimsy, their life was truly colourless and ordinary.
=============================================
The bag given by the pharmacist sat in their fridge for the next few days. Two Time hadn’t really given it much thought to be honest. Their life was already exhausting enough anyways. Sometimes, they just wished they could jump into their books. Away from all the boring and tiring responsibilities. (Why did self-recovery take so much effort?). Eventually, while digging through their fridge, (food was running low again but they refused to go outside again), they fished out the crumpled plastic bag.
For the first time since they received it, Two Time took a proper look at the contents. Inside was an apple, it was small and unassuming. Except for the fact that the apple was cyan. Two Time stared at the fruit(?) in confusion. According to the pharmacist it was supposed to help people like them? Other than the colour nothing seemed to be off. The weight, smell and shape seemed unchanged. Two Time inquisitive poked it, nothing happened.
Two Time stared at the apple for a while. What would happen if they ate it? In truth eating a random fruit a stranger had given was probably not the brightest of ideas. There was always the possibility of it being drugged or laced. The best choice would be to throw away the apple and continue on with their day. However, curiosity ran rampant in their stomach, begging for anything to satisfy the urge.
“No, no, no,” they muttered to themselves, pacing back and forth. They bit down on their nails harder (a bitter habit that never fully disappeared). Landing in the hospital because they consumed a suspicious fruit did not sound pleasant and the explanation to the doctor would be even worse. Two Time refused to put themselves through that torture.
Still, it couldn’t hurt….right? A small part of their mind interjected. (It’s not like Two Time had anyone or anything to really live for.) Best case scenario, their life changed for the better, worse case scenario they died. They fidgeted for a while. Two Time sighed, in truth the decision had been made before they even grabbed the fruit. Curiosity was a morbid thing and they had fallen victim to it once more.
Two Time inwardly groaned and prayed to whatever god was above (not the spawn, they refused to go back to that time). They stood there for a moment longer before raising the fruit to their lips. Closing their eyes they took a bite into the apple.
(The fruit was sickeningly sweet)