don't get me wrong () prodigal son SLOW UPDATES

Fifty Two

"God!" He explained, "This feeling— my neurones are on fire! People say dopamine triggers pleasure but really it's about desire!"

He leaped towards her, grabbing her hands. He placed one on his shoulder and gripped the other tightly, he raised a brow, "Wanna dance?"

"Malcolm."

He beamed, "Theodora."

"Malcolm."

He laughed, spinning her around the room. She let him, enjoying the feeling for only minutes before she broke free of him a stepped back. "You're ridiculously high."

"Higher than a kite!"

There was so much energy radiating off of him, and it seemed the man couldn't stop smiling. It was weird seeing him like this, she didn't think he had ever smiled so much before.

"You need food."

His eyes widened, "Crumble!"

"No— Mal," He slipped by her, walking towards the kitchen. "Come here."

He stopped, tipping an invisible hat. "What may I do for you?"

Theodora blinked slowly, trying not to laugh. "You need a shower. I can smell you from here."

He raced over to her, making her jump back at the speed. He grabbed ahold of her face and squished her cheeks together, "Aw, you're so cute."

She slapped his hand away, "And you're a dork. Go clean yourself. Dork."

He laughed, "You're so funny. My Theodora, so funny. You make me laugh."

She rolled her eyes, "How about, you go shower and I'll make you some food. Or I'll order food."

"You can't cook." He grinned, tapping her nose.

Theodora watched him as he bounced on his heels, his face insanely pale. His hair was all over the place, but for once he seemed happy. He wasn't thinking, he was just living. He wasn't in his head. Maybe high Malcolm was a good thing?

"Go."

"I need something first." He sang out, grabbing ahold of her and twirling her around. He danced her around the room again, "I need something, yes I do."

"What do you need."

He snorted, "Youuuu."

Theodora rolled her eyes, "Your breath smells."

"Well, you're not gonna like this then." He yanked her against him and closed the distance, hands finding her face with an attempt to pull her closer. Theodora kissed back until she felt her bra strap being attacked. She laughed pushing him away, "Nope."

"Why?"

"You are high. Unstable. Not in your normal state of mind." She nudged him towards the bathroom, "Illegal."

Malcolm spun on his heels, giving her a frown. "You're in my sweats."

"Mhm."

"What if I want them back?"

"No."

"Take them off."

Theodora huffed, "I swear, if you don't go to that bathroom right now—"

His hands went up, "Alright, okay. You win, honey."

"Go!"

Theodora watched as he finally made his way to the bathroom, where she heard the door click shut. She sighed walking into the kitchen, opening the designated junk drawer which was the smallest one, digging around as a bright red pamphlet popped into view. She grinned taking it out, tossing it onto the counter. For some reason they both loved Chinese food, it was something that they both started eating in University, every Friday night they'd go out to a local Chinese restaurant and eat until their stomaches felt like exploding. Malcolm was a lot more care free back then, surprisingly.

"Malcolm likes chicken balls." She muttered looking at the menu, "And spring rolls."

A door swung open, Theodora whirled around to see Malcolm stumble towards his bed. He sank to the ground, leaning up against it with wide eyes.

"Malcolm?" She questioned. He remained silent, other than looking behind and around him. She watched him, frozen in place.

The apartment feel into absolute silence, until Malcolm began muttering random things. He looked around him again, staring behind him much longer than before. He gaze went back forwards, up towards the attic. Then, to fast to acknowledge his head whipped back against his mattress and his arms flailed around hopelessly. She dropped the pamphlet and rushed towards him, but he had scrambled up quickly and slipped by her.

"Malcolm!" She yelled chasing after him. He ran back into the bathroom, slamming and locking the door behind him. He was whispering things, but she couldn't make out what they were. "Open the door!"

Theodora jiggled then doorknob, banging her hand on the door. "Malcolm, open the door!"

"It's not real." His voice floated under the door, "This isn't real. You're hallucinating—"

He muffled a shout and Theodora began to kick at the wood. "Mal, please." She whispered, eyes burning. "I'm sorry about your door."

She backed up, counting to three before throwing herself at the door. To her surprise, it worked. Theodora crashed onto the ground, surprise layered in her eyes.

Malcolm was huddled in the corner of the shower, whirling back and forth. It looked as if he kept trying to dig himself into the corner, his face wrangled in fear.

"Malcolm!" She yelled scrambling towards him. "Hey, hey! It's me, Malcolm! Take a deep breath—"

"No, no—"

He wasn't stopping, instead was getting worse. She grabbed ahold of him, holding his face in her hands. He was squirming still, but his head wasn't whipping around. "It's not real!" She screamed, holding onto him. Theodora couldn't remember the last time it was this bad, normally she'd be able to get him out of it within seconds. "Malcolm, you're here, with me. You're safe, it's okay. Please—"

He ripped free of her grasp, and Theodora pulled herself up. Resorting the last thing she wanted to do, but if she could put him to sleep he'd stop shaking and yelling. "I'm sorry." She swung an arm out and it connected with his jaw. He stopped for a split second and stared up at her before he began gazing around, she took a deep breath and landed the blow again, this time he slumped against the wall.

"Oh my god." She muttered, staring down at him.

You can't leave him here. You can't pick him up either.

"Shit." She sighed.

You can drag him. He'll crick his neck if he sleeps like this.

Theodora huffed, grabbing ahold of his leg. She yanked backwards and his head flopped onto the tile floor of the shower. She cursed under her breath, moving to his shoulders. Her hands gripped his underarms as she struggled to turn him around. Theodora hadn't planned on dragging a fully grown man to his bed, but here she was.

It took almost ten minutes for her to get him up onto his mattress. Theodora stared down at him, finding herself moving pieces of hair that covered his eyes. He was still in his dress shirt and pants, with a tie tight around his neck. She gently loosened the tie and carefully shimmied it off and around his head.

Theodora threw the covers over him, going over to the other side and sliding in. She brought the covers up to her chin, laying on her side, facing Malcolm.

"I want you to be okay." She whispered, "So badly. I just want you to be happy."

She grabbed his hand and held it tightly before closing her eyes. They both needed sleep, and for once they both got it.

•••

How are y'all doing????

It's currently 1:24am where I am in Canada, which means I should be asleep. Oh well.

Self-isolating sucks but it's what's best for everyone. I'm running out of things to do because anything is better than school work 🤷‍♀️

What have you been doing to keep yourself from going insane? I'd love some ideas 😂

I hope everyone's ok and doing good wherever you are.

Thanks for reading and stay safe 🙏❤️