By the second session, Dr. Cumming had already started leaving the office door unlocked for us. Even though we entered quietly, when I closed the door behind us, Dr. Cumming had already come out and leant against the reception desk. Clearly he had been listening out for our arrival.

"And how are we today?" Dr. Cumming forced a smile.

"It was tolerable," Jake walked briskly past the doctor and disappeared into the back room.

I sighed, "He's in a mood today."

"I see. How are you?" Dr. Cumming gestured to me.

"Oh, I'm fine, I guess," I shrugged. "I don't know. He's not talking to me."

"What I said to him yesterday must have really gotten under his skin," Dr. Cumming nodded.

"Can I ask what that was?" I pressured.

Dr. Cumming tilted his head back and forth, "I can't discuss any specifics at this time. However, I did express to Jake that his situation is deeply troubling."

"Is that why you pushed for another session today?" my shoulders dropped in realisation.

"We have much to still explore and discuss," he replied vaguely. "I still don't have the complete picture."

"Why? What is it that you need the full picture for?" I frowned.

"I'll let you know when we reach that point," the doctor assured me. "Make yourself comfortable. We'll talk again in an hour."

Dr. Cumming turned and vanished into his private office. As soon as the door was closed, I collapsed onto one of the bench seats on the far side of the reception room. I took out my phone and tried to distract myself with news feeds, but within five minutes, I lost the ability to concentrate. Swapping between word and number games to try to keep my mind busy, the wait was still excruciatingly long. After a while I checked the time. They had already gone over the time by 30 minutes. Did I need to interrupt them, or should I let them be? They definitely had a lot to discuss. Surely this meant they were making good progress. No news was good news, right?

Suddenly the door abruptly opened, and Jake stomped out in a fury. I saw him contemplate punching the wall, but he fought back the urge.

I turned back towards Dr. Cumming, "Here I thought the extended session was a good thing."

"MC, can I talk to you in private?" Dr. Cumming asked grimly.

Jake flashed him a death glare, then went over and punched water bottle at the top of the cooler.

"Jake, if you could please resist destroying my office for a few minutes," Dr. Cumming chastised.

Jake sat down in the seat beside the cooler in a huff. Anxiously I walked into the back office. Dr. Cumming followed me in and closed the door behind him.

"You can sit down," he gestured to the seat in front of his desk as he walked around.

"No, thank you. I'm sure it will be brief," I folded my arms defensively. "We both don't want to leave Jake alone for too long in your reception room."

"Suit yourself," he shrugged. "MC, it is my professional obligation to place Jake into a facility until we can ascertain that he is no longer a threat to society."

"No," I insisted.

"MC, this isn't a recommendation. To do anything less would be negligent of me as a licensed medical professional. He is a severe threat, to you especially," Dr. Cumming argued. "However, I am not deaf to your fears. We can check him in under a pseudonym to put you both at ease. No one will know his identity or his past."

"He's not a threat. I can handle him," I shook my head. "I've handled him so far."

"Have you?" Dr. Cumming frowned. "Today's session indicated otherwise."

"I don't know what you're referring to," I narrowed my eyes.

"MC, don't play dumb. I know he has attempted to kill you several times. As recently as yesterday even!" Dr. Cumming glared. "I know he's responsible for those bruises on your neck."

"During episodes," I clarified. "Each time I managed to snap him out of it. And I'm getting better at it, so that's something right?"

"Getting better at it!? MC, I'm going to be very direct and upfront with you in the interest of your safety," Dr. Cumming wasn't holding back anymore. "During those rare occasions when he sleeps, he dreams about taking your life. He says he finds those dreams upsetting, but it's not the dream that's upsetting him. It's the fact he finds those dreams satisfying. Let's not forget to mention with the awful state of his insomnia, he struggles to separate dream from reality. Try as he might to hold back those urges and deny they exist, his mental instability is nothing short of a ticking time bomb. Though he does his best to lie and manipulate, I can see right through him. He doesn't have the self-control he pretends he has. One day he's going to slip and give into that temptation, and it won't take much to push him over that edge."

"No, this is bullshit," I shook my head vigorously. "I don't believe you."

"MC, don't make me break protocol and replay today's session," Dr. Cumming rubbed his forehead. "You won't like what you'll hear."

"Why? Did he say he wanted to kill me?" I questioned.

"No, not explicitly," Dr. Cumming admitted.

"Then don't put words into his mouth!" I snapped. "Jake loves me. He would never kill me. Dreams... are just that."

Dr. Cumming waved his hands in the air, "MC, I have treated many combat PTSD patients in my time and his is no different. Do you really think they want to hurt their loved ones either? Yet it still happens! The only difference is that Jake's still on his battlefield. Every second of every day he's assessing possible threats and attacks. He needs rest and recuperation away from his battlefield."

"Don't you get it? You'll only be exasperating the situation!" I argued. "He won't be able to rest in a facility where he feels caged!"

"It is for everyone's best interests that he goes in willingly, but I cannot in good conscience allow you to leave with this man in the state he is in. You cannot trust anything he says or anything he does. Please do not force me to engage the authorities," he warned.

"Well you'll have to! There is no way I can support putting him into a facility where he would be a sitting duck for his pursuers! That would be signing his death warrant!" I yelled. "Those people are unhindered by international borders! Your facility won't be able to protect him! He needs the freedom of movement to survive!"

"MC, I implore you to take a good hard look at his condition. You're a smart woman, you know Jake needs this," the doctor pressured. "If we act swiftly, there is still a chance we can rehabilitate him. If he crosses that unspeakable line though, he'll be gone forever. There won't be any chance of saving him."

"I can handle him," I reiterated. "Either you accept this current arrangement and work out how to treat him as a day patient or we will find someone else who will."

I spun around and opened the door before Dr. Cumming could utter another word. It was my turn to stomp across the reception area in a huff. I went straight for the office door, unlocked it and pushed through before looking over at Jake.

"We're going," I said firmly.

Jake's expression immediately changed from one of concern to one of pride. "It seems you underestimated her," he gloated.

"MC, please," Dr. Cumming pleaded. "My number, you have it. Don't hesitate to use it, no matter the reason or the hour. Jake, same time tomorrow night, and every night until further notice. Weekends included."

"Good night, Dr. Cumming," I smirked knowing I had won.

Jake joined me in the corridor and I let the door slam closed. Marching down the hall towards the stairs, I could feel Jake's eyes on the back of my head. Halfway down, I stopped and turned around. With one swift movement, I grabbed Jake by the neck of his hoodie, pulled him over to the wall and pinned his wrists on either side of his head. He looked at me with surprise, but as soon as I pressed my lips forcefully against his, he got the idea. He kissed back with as much heat as I gave him. Just as my grip on his arms weakened, he slipped his wrists out and grabbed my hips roughly. Within seconds, he spun us around and pinned me against the wall with him pressing into my pelvis. Pulling my hoodie away from my neck, his mouth went straight for the nape. I moaned uncontrollably in the empty hallway and ran my fingers through his black hair, tugging at the roots roughly.

"Not here," Jake whispered in my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

Jake pushed off the wall and took my hand in his. Together we quickly left the building via the stairs to the basement level. Exiting through the gap in the fence, Jake held the metal mesh back to give me more space as I stepped through. Taking my hand again, he led the way through the backstreets to the train station.

As soon as we got on the train, we took one look at each other, then immediately our lips met in another heated kiss. I wrapped my arms firmly around Jake's neck, while he carefully stepped backwards towards the bench seat without breaking the kiss. As he sat down, I straddled his legs and lowered myself down carefully. His hands ran down my back, then guided my hips down onto his lap. His growing arousal pressed against my groin, which only fuelled my own arousal. I moaned needily against his lips and his tongue slipped into my mouth. I could sense other passengers leaving the car in disgust, but I didn't care.

"Get a fucking room!" an obnoxious teenager sneered.

"Give us the fucking car," I snapped.

He rolled his eyes and spat at us as he walked past to change cars. Jake shot him a death glare.

"He's not worth it," I cooed and put my hand on Jake's cheek to turn his attention back to me as the train car was finally ours.

"Oh the things I want to do to you right now," Jake grinned.

"Tell me," I smiled. "I want to hear it. It might even help pass the time until we reach our stop."

Jake's expression suddenly turned, "You're not scared of me? I can only imagine what the doctor told you."

"He told me that you think about killing me," I said softly.

"That's putting it mildly," Jake sighed. "I kill you in my dreams, MC. Every night I watch the life fade from your eyes and I like it. It's like by taking your life you somehow finally we become one entity, and nothing can ever separate us again."

"Jake, that's your subconscious talking. You shouldn't interpret it so directly. Our dreams are written in metaphors," I gently caressed his cheek. "There are other ways to read it."

Jake winced and shook his head, "Except when I wake up and I find that my hands are actually around your throat. There's no other interpretation to be found in that, MC. I don't entirely disagree with the doctor's advice."

"What are you saying? You want to go into a facility?" I frowned.

"If I go into the facility though, then I can't protect you. To my pursuers, it'll be open season for you," he looked into my eyes intensely.

"Wait, you objected to it out of concern for me?" I questioned.

"You have to promise me you won't hesitate to make that call. I will trust your judgement in the matter. I know you won't make the choice lightly," Jake leaned his forehead against mine. "I beg of you, don't let me cross that line."

"Jake," I kissed his forehead. "We're in this together. We will get through it."