CHAPTER SEVEN

Rochester, New York; Home
9:25 a.m.
-Sunday; morning-

The next morning, I woke to the sound of my phone buzzing; the noise seemed to get even louder the longer it banged against my nightstand. I got out from underneath the covers and stretched. I checked my phone, noticing I had several missed calls; all from Doctor Evans. I assumed he was calling to remind me of his final evaluation.

I laid my phone back down and leaned back onto the bed. I bumped my head against something hard; I turned to the sight of Violet lying asleep next to me with a smile on her face. Did she--did we?

My phone suddenly started to go off again and I could see Doctor Evans name pop up. I quickly answered it before it sent him to voicemail.

"Hello?"

"Jack..."

"Hey, Doc. No need to come. I think everything is going to be fine now. I won't be needing that "monitored home" after all." I joked.

"Jack...about that. We have already decided to take you into custody."

My heart suddenly sank deep into my chest.

"What-what did you say?"

"It's over, Jack. We now know that you are at risk and must be monitored until you have been completely cured from your illness. We will be their shortly to pick you up. Say your final goodbyes; we'll see you soon."

"Wait, Doc. I'm better I swear!"

"I'm sorry it had to end this way, but at this point we are left with no other choice."

Before he could hear what I had to say I heard a click in my ear. He had hung-up. Seconds later I got a message with a strange link. I followed it and it led me to a video on YouTube. I pressed play and started to watch. I instantly recognized the scenery; it was at the Veterans Memorial Bridge. I fast forwarded a little until...I spotted myself leaning over the bridge.

Afraid of the sight, I quickly turn it off; and in just a matter of seconds I felt the anxiety building back up. I was beginning to panic.

"No!" I throw my phone into the wall, smashing it instantly.

I rushed into my bathroom and stared hard in the mirror. You're nothing, you hear me, nothing!" I put my fist through the glass, shattering the mirror; unintentionally waking Violet from her peaceful slumber.

"Jack? Is that you; what's going on?"

She noticed the blood pouring down from my hand and quickly rushed to my side.

"Oh my God! What happened?!"

"It's over. They're coming for me. All this "progress" was just a waste of time. Just when I thought I had a chance to be normal again, I ruin it. I'm such an idiot!"

Simon suddenly busted through the door.

"Jack, this is urgent! You have to-" He approached the bathroom and witnessed the blood splattered against the tiled floor. "Sir!"

Simon quickly grabbed the First Aid Kit from underneath the bathroom sink; he wrapped my hand up until the blood stopped dripping.

"Looks like you showed that mirror whose boss." Simon joked.

"I'm not in the mood for jokes. This isn't fun anymore; it never was."

"My apologies, sir...I shall return with your breakfast."

I banged my head against the door.

"It's over; I didn't make any progress and Doctor Evans is coming to take me away. If only Ronald would have given me more time, maybe I could have avoided this entire situation.

"Ronald? Ronaldstiltskin? Violet said, looking at me with worried eyes. "Why are you messing around with such a shady character?"

I let out a sigh.

"After my freak-out at the masquerade, I figured it was time to find a new solution for my illness. So, we took a trip to the Fairy Godmothers house, just before her untimely death and that's when I stumbled onto Ronald's ad."

"Jack, do you know who Ronaldstiltskin is?"

"Rumpelstiltskin's son, right?"

"Yes, but do you know what he's known for?

I was confused. I couldn't understand what she was trying to say to me.

"Ronald is known for his terrible pranks. He's a prankster."

"What-that can't be true; that doesn't make any sense. He made me handsome for a day; we had a deal."

"It was fake." Violet said.

There was a knock at the door and Simon entered the room with a long breakfast tray, filled with enough food to get a bear full.

"You lied to me?'

"What are you talking about, sir?"

"That night-you said Ronald used magic on me to make me handsome, but now it turns out that he was a fake. You knew about it didn't you? Don't lie."

"Yes...I knew. I thought it would help you gain some confidence. I worry when you're left alone at home. I hate that you keep yourself locked away."

"You knew-You knew it was all fake but you let me walk out of here like a fool!"

I stood to my feet and charged towards Simon; he dropped the tray and food was spilled all over the floor. I grabbed him by his neck and slammed his back against the wall.

"Wait, Jack!"

"Stay out of this!"

"Jack, please...hear me out. You said you went out-alone, right?"

"Yeah, but that was because I thought I was finally handsome. I thought all my flaws had vanished."

"Oh my-Jack, don't you see? You left home by your own free will, because you wanted to and for the most part you had a normal day without any problems."

"What are you trying to say?"

"If even for just a few hours, you actually acknowledged your inner beauty. You had faith in your own appearance. And even though the whole thing was a trick, that's what gave you the confidence to leave and live a normal life. You didn't even notice your journal was missing."

I noticed that her voice was starting to crack. I turned and saw that her eyes were starting to water. "Jack...you overcame your mental illness."

"But I-"

I was speechless. If what she was saying was true, then I actually did overcome my mental illness; if even for a few hours that still counted for something...right?

I took a glance at Simon; his eyes were locked on me.

"I'm sorry, Jack. Before your parents passed away, I promised them that I would keep a look out for you at all times; I stood by that promise and I was willing to do anything to keep it. So, when I saw you in so much pain that night, I did what I had to do to make sure you got better, even if that meant tricking you."

I could suddenly feel my eyes start to water.

"The trick went too far. The bridge...I could have--I almost!"

I was trying my best to push back the tears but they pushed through anyways. I released Simon and fell down onto my knees.

"I'm sorry...I shouldn't have acted that way."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Simon. I completely understand."

Violet came over and gave me a hug.

"Everything is going to be fine."

"How? That video has ruined everything."

"We're just going to have to change his mind; you have to show him that you have made progress and that you're not going to let this illness dictate your life."

"But what can we do? Doctor Evans will be coming by soon and he's made himself very clear that he's not leaving without me."

"There's only one thing you can do." Violet pulled out my journal. "Your words are beautiful, Jack. You have a big heart; your love is pure and your words are deep; but you can never truly love something or someone else until you learn to love yourself.

I reached towards her and grabbed my journal from out of her hands. I thought about everything they had told me; they had opened up a whole new level of understanding for me. How could I have been this lucky to find two people who really care about me the way they do?

I wiped the tears from my face and stood to my feet.

"I'm ready."

"You always were, sir. So what's the plan?"

"I want to make this a moment people never forget. I'm going to come out about my illness."

"Are you sure you're ready for that?" Violet asked.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be."

"That's the spirit, sir. I'll make the arrangements right away. Which news teams should I contact?"

"All of them..."