Vigil woke in her bedroom. The lights were off, curtains drawn. All was still, and she was alone. Nothing but a slight ache in her head remained, but she still felt terrible. A glass of water sat on the nightstand, as well as a pill.

She sat up, rubbing a hand over her face. Strained to remember what had just happened. It suddenly all came back to her. James, the audition. The voices screaming into her head like nothing before.

Tearing the sheets away, she swung her legs down and sprinted down the stairs. Ripped open the door, where she was met with a curtain of rain. Running out into the storm, she dashed across the vast, green yard.

A light was on in the gardening shed, a bent sillouette behind the windows. Vigil grabbed the handle and creaked it open. James was sitting at the desk, straightening the tools on the wall.

"James," She said, unsure of what else to say.

The gardener spun around and nodded. "Good to see you up."

Vigil bit her lip. "So, I missed most of the audition."

James smiled sadly. "You should go back inside. You'll catch a cold."

"Does the jazz club have a talented new singer?"

He said nothing at first, only returned to his work. Tools banged together. Finally, he spoke. "I... I didn't get it. The job. They called me."

Vigil's bubble of hope popped. "What?"

"It's fine," His tone made it clear he didn't mean it. "It's a stupid dream, anyway."

She blinked, grabbing the table for support. "It—it's all my fault."

James shot a look at her. "What are you talking about?"

She shook her head, guilt building a wall inside her. "No. You would have gotten the job if it weren't for me."

"Oh come on," James groaned. "You can't just blame yourself."

Vigil backed away, her hand on the doorknob. "I ruined your audition. Your dream was to sing and I ruined it."

"Whatever. I'll find another job."

"Come on, James," She said with a sigh. "You know how hard it is to get a singing job."

He stepped up to her, but a pain suddenly racked through her brain. The voices were back, and she could barely stand.

"Look at me, James," She moaned. "I can barely get through a conversation."

James laid a hand on her shoulder. "Stop talking like tha—"

"No!" She snapped, tearing her shoulder away from him. "Just look at me. My mind is sick, it's broken. You can't just throw away your dream just to take care of me."

"I'm not throwing it away." He said.

"How long has it been since we met?" She said, staring at him. "How much time have you taken to show me all these amazing things, to take me to all these places?"

James opened his mouth, but closed it again, his brow knit. He stared at the floor confusedly.

"You keep taking all this time to help me," She continued. "You were so passionate about your dream, you didn't even try to get a singing job until I begged you."

"What's your point?"

Vigil sighed. "My point is that," She hesitated. "I don't think we should see each other anymore."

James shook his head and laughed incredulously. "That's nonsense. Why shouldn't we see eah other?"

"Do you really think this is practical?" Vigil said flatly. "I mean, did we really think we could end up..." She faltered.

"What?" James pushed.

She looked up at him, tears suddenly blurring her vision. "I can't be with anyone. I'm too broken."

"What—"

"I'm sick. My mind is sick. I've been pushing you to see me, to take me to all these places. I didn't care if you wanted to, I just wanted to spend time with you. I've been selfish, and you've been so incredibly kind to me."

"I spent time with you because I loved you!" James suddenly blurted. His eyes swept down to his shoes. "Because I do love you."

Vigil closed her eyes. "I don't deserve you. You deserve somebody else, not a selfish, sick, broken... animal."

She spun around and ran out into the rain, James silently watching.