Chains: Part 46 (Eyeless Jack x Reader)

EDIT: Somehow the last part of the chapter did not transfer when I copied and pasted!! It continues after Jack first says "Microsleep". Sorry for the inconvenience!


{Reader’s POV}
        I finished off my sandwich in silence, sighing as I washed it down with a glass of [drink]. Today, Jack was just acting... off. Usually when I ate he’d try to sneak up behind me and sniff my hair, but today he just sat across from me and kept spacing out. I even “meowed” at him three times without any reaction. Meowing ALWAYS got his attention, regardless of what he was doing; I’d managed to chase him out of the cabin once or twice so he could finish a book. Given that not even that worked, this just felt REALLY serious.

        What was on his mind? He seemed so bothered. Did he—

        THUMP!

        My thoughts were cut off as I heard a loud ‘thump’, making me give a start and my head snap towards the front door. Jack. Before I knew it I was on my feet, racing for the door. A million concerns ran through my mind as I flung it open, my heart pounding. Sure enough, there was Jack on the ground, his body limp.

        “Jack!?” I rushed over to his side, rolling him onto his back. His body remained limp, his head rolling to the side. Without thinking I quickly reached for his mask, wanting to check his face. However, before I could touch it his hand shot out, catching my wrist. I yelped in surprise and jerked it away from his grip, while he just slowly sat up, grunting softly as he clutched his head.

        “Don’t touch my mask,” he muttered. I blinked and stared at him in disbelief.

        “...You pass out randomly on the porch, fall to the floor, and you’re concerned about me touching your mask?” He didn’t respond right away, instead giving another soft grunt.

        “...I don’t like you touching it...” Groaning in frustration, I just shook my head as I grabbed his arm, carefully pulling him to his feet.

        “Come on, we’re going inside.” Jack didn’t offer any protests as I dragged him back into the cabin, just following. Leading him to the couch, he sat down and slumped against the back, still holding his head. “How are you feeling?”

        “...Still got a headache,” he mumbled, giving a tiny shrug. Not exactly an emotion, but it still answered my question. Frowning, I walked around to dim the lights in the cabin, remembering how Buddy once said that doing that could help headaches. I was also tempted to grab an aspirin for it, but given how he just passed out I couldn’t be sure that was a good idea.

        “What happened, anyway?” I asked as I rejoined him.

        “I’m not sure... I just closed my eyes and then next thing I knew I was on the floor.” He gave a small, feeble shrug. This did not help my current anxieties. Frowning, I tried to think of everything I knew about medicine and health, trying to think of a cause. Unfortunately, though, Jack was the doctor, not me. Ultimately I just headed to the bathroom and returned with a thermometer.

        “Try checking your temperature,” I suggested, and he nodded as he took it. Then he caught me by surprise as he started to get up. Alarmed, I rushed forward and quickly grabbed his shoulders, push him back down.

        “Hey!” he snapped, clearly a bit irritated, but I ignored it.

        “What are you doing!?” I snapped back.

        “Uh, going to check my temperature?” His tone dripped with sarcasm, reminding me of a sassy teenager. This did not help my current mood.

        “Why the hell do you have to get up to do THAT!? You just passed out on the porch and we don’t know why! Is it REALLY a good idea to be walking around right now? Just do it on the couch!” He didn’t respond right away, instead glancing to the side.

        “...Can you at least leave, then?” he muttered. Stunned, I stared at him confusion for a moment before realization suddenly hit me. He didn’t want me to see his face. I’ve known for a while now that Jack is self-conscious about his appearance. He always wore his mask, and even when it was super-hot he chose to wear long pants and a t-shirt, even though I knew for a fact he had at least one tank top he could’ve worn. However, the fact he put his self-consciousness above his health never occurred to me. As I thought about this I spoke slowly.

        “Jack.” I spoke his name blunt and plainly, my tone catching his attention and making him look at me in surprise. “I have seen your face multiple times now. I’ve seen you dead drunk, and I’ve seen you crying in your sleep. I know you have no eyes, and I know your skin is gray and your teeth are pointy. But I already told you, I don’t care. I said I prefer your face over your mask, and I meant it.” Placing my hands on his shoulders, I looked him straight in the eye as I finished, “So just take off your freaking mask and take your damn temperature.”

        Jack just stared at me in shock, not saying anything right away. Seeming to mull over it, he then slowly reached for his mask, carefully lifting it. However, he didn’t remove it entirely, just raised it enough to reveal his mouth. Good enough, I thought with a sigh, backing off to give him space as he slid the thermometer into his mouth. Silence hung heavy as we waited for it, and when it eventually it beeped he quickly pulled it out, checking the screen.

        “...Normal,” he declared. “No fever.” I frowned as he handed it to me.

        “Seriously?” I muttered as I took it back to the bathroom. Washing it off and putting it back in the drawer, I quickly returned and sank into the seat next to him, sighing. “Well, that’s all I got. You’re the doctor, any ideas?” Jack didn’t respond, falling deep in thought.

        “...Can you grab a book from my room real quick?”

{Jack’s POV}
        “Did you find anything yet?”

        “No, not yet...”

        “Can you read alright with that headache?”

        “Yes, I can...”

        “What if I—

        “[Name], I’d probably be able to focus better if you were quiet and gave me a bit of space.” At this point [Name] clamped her mouth shut and scooted away on the couch, and Jack breathed a silent sigh of relief as he resumed flipping through the textbook. After retrieving the requested textbook from his bedroom, the [h/c]-haired female had been sitting right next to him, peering at the pages over his shoulder as he tried to find the symptoms. Worry was still clearly written on her face, but at least she was giving him a little more room now.

        Honestly, Jack was pretty worried too. He’d never blacked out like that before, even though it only lasted a few seconds it still freaked him out a bit. Right now, he just wanted to figure out what was wrong with himself. Fortunately, though, he already had an idea of what to look into. Leafing through the pages, he paused as he found the section he wanted, quickly reading it.

        “...Microsleep,” he finally said, making [Name] perk up.

        “Huh?”

        “Microsleep. It’s when you pass out for a few seconds. I’m pretty sure that’s what happened.”

        “What causes it?” Jack felt a bit reluctant about responding, glancing away.

        “...Sleep deprivation,” he finally muttered sheepishly. Honestly, he was surprised he hadn’t figured it out sooner. He HAD been getting less sleep lately, and it would also explain the headache. [Name] just stared at him, her expression surprised for a moment before shifting to become more thoughtful.

        “...You’re still having nightmares, aren’t you?” He winced, bowing his head with a slight sense of shame. So she noticed... Honestly, he’d hoped she hadn’t noticed. Sure, he’d fallen asleep in front of her, and she HAD woken him up from nightmares—twice—but still. Lately they’d just been getting worse and worse... As he sat there deep in thought, [Name] continued to shoot him a worried look. “This is getting out of control...”

        “I know,” he sighed, still not looking at her. Mulling over this, his thoughts soon wandered to two of his “friends”, Masky and Hoody. He spoke slowly, his voice thoughtful. “...I have some friends... Their ‘master’ tends to affect their dreams, so they take these weird pills to stop dreaming. I might go see them later, see if they’ll give me some...” He didn’t know if the pills were chemically produced, supernatural or what, but they seemed to work. Last he checked the pair were still sane, at least. It was a long-shot, but it was the only thing he could think of. [Name] just nodded, her expression still concerned.

        “Alright, but do it tomorrow or something, okay? Just rest for today.”

        “I will.” He nodded, knowing that it would be for the best. He sighed as he leaned back, closing his eyes.

        Right now, his health took precedence over everything else. Everything else could wait—even finding out whatever was on Buddy’s account.