Remir glanced in the car mirror and saw his son, Nox, in the reflection. Nox, his beloved child, was sitting with headphones on, his forehead pressed against the car window, his fingers gripping his guitar bag. It was as if it were the only thing holding him together.

Remir sighed and focused his attention on the road.

“Another hour and we’ll be in our new home,” he replied calmly.

Behind him, he heard the rustle of a seat and Nox taking off his headphones.

“Okay…”

“Nox, you know we had to move.” Remir kept his voice calm, even though he knew his son was still taking his words like a knife.

“NO! YOU HAD TO! I DIDN’T ASK FOR THIS!”

Tears welled up in the boy’s eyes. Without waiting for his father’s response, he put his headphones back on and his right hand nervously began tapping against his metal leg. A bitter reminder that he was no longer an ordinary seventeen-year-old boy.

Remir sighed as he remembered that night. Even though half a year had passed, the memory of that phone call gripped his throat. The news of his son’s murder.

The pain prevented him from coming to terms, so he did something he shouldn’t have. He brought Nox back to life. His damaged organs were augmented with mechanisms. His heart was mechanically reinforced, and he replaced his missing limbs with metal prosthetics. Within a few hours of his constant work, his son’s body was whole again. And light returned to Nox’s eyes. A sign of life.

Despite this, Remir knew Nox wasn’t the same boy he knew.

He had become a hybrid of man and machine.

And that was what hurt the boy the most. Because he had always been different. A typical outsider. A lover of rock music. Someone who could talk about bands and playing guitar for hours. His clothing style didn’t help either. Loose, dark clothes, often inspired by bands. He wore a silver nose ring, and his black hair was styled in a sharp wolf-cut that contrasted with his pale complexion. His brown-amber eyes peeked out from under his hair.

Remir glanced again at Nox, who was quietly humming one of his favorite songs. There was something else that made Nox angry about the move. The boy had been like this for as long as Remir could remember. Even before his death, even before his body was transformed by metal. His autism had always made him perceive the world differently. Making new friends was difficult for him, and change was overwhelming. The boy loved repetitive rituals, music, and familiar places. And Remir knew that moving was taking all of that away from him.

It gripped his heart, though he knew there was no other way. In the old city, there would be too many questions about how Nox was living. But the worst part was that the killer was still on the loose, and there was still a chance that if they had stayed in the city, Nox would still be a target.

“So, Nox, are you curious about your new room?”

“Mhm.” The boy just shrugged, not even taking off his headphones.

That was the only sound Nox made. And Remir knew he wouldn’t get anything more out of him for now.

“Oh Clara…If only you were here with us. Maybe if you could see him for what our little boy is now. He would understand that he’s not a monster and that he’s still just an ordinary boy, despite all of this.”

The new apartment smelled of dust and fresh paint. Boxes of their belongings were jammed against the walls. And Nox stood right next to them. He still held his black guitar case in his hands. His gaze nervously scanned the room.

The apartment was small. The kitchen, which also doubled as a dining room, was connected to the living room. In the small front room was the bathroom. And at the end, a small room, which was his. The apartment was small, too small to accommodate them for the rest of the days they would be together. Nox grimaced and looked at Remir.

“Really? This is supposed to be a house?…It’s a cage!” His voice was sharp, full of resentment.

Remir put down his bag and went to the small kitchen. He immediately began unpacking the most necessary things on the counter. He pretended not to hear his son’s tone.

“Nox, it’s just for a while, until I find something bigger. You knew this was necessary.”

Nox felt something boiling inside him with anger. The boy clenched his fists so hard that his nails dug into his skin, and a metallic crack of replaced bones erupted from one wrist. That single word, “It was necessary,” made him feel like someone had punched him in the stomach.

“IT WAS NECESSARY FOR YOU! I WANTED TO STAY!”

Remir turned to Nox, but it was too late. The cramped apartment, the suffocating smell of paint, the new sounds outside, and the novelty of it all were too much for the boy.

Nox began to spin around the boxes and suddenly kicked one with such force that it shattered. His father’s tools spilled out with a clatter on the floor.

“Nox!” Remir reached out to him, trying to get the boy’s attention.

But the boy covered his ears with his hands, almost as if trying to shut himself out. Suddenly, Nox let out a terrifying scream. It wasn’t words, it was pure, raw sound. Remir knew it was a desperate attempt to expel everything that was choking the boy from within. In frustration, Nox kicked a locker and then slid to the floor. Leaning back against the same locker, he’d kicked it moments earlier. His breathing was heavy as he drew his knees up to bury his face.

Remir walked over to the boy and sat down across from him. Silently, he didn’t try to touch the boy because he knew it would only make things worse.

Instead, he began to speak to Nox slowly and calmly, almost in a whisper.

“Son, look at me, I’m here with you. Everything’s okay.”

His voice was monotonous, repetitive, just the way the boy liked it.

The screaming subsided after a moment, and Nox’s breathing began to calm. However, the boy remained curled up on the floor. Remir saw Nox’s finger twitch nervously on his guitar case. After a moment, Nox lifted his head from his lap. His chest was still heaving erratically. His gaze darted past his father to the emptiness before him.

“I know this is a lot for you, Nox.” Remir gently moved closer to the boy. “I know you hate this change, but everything will be alright, you’re here with me.”

Nox didn’t look at him, only snorted softly. Almost as if he wanted to laugh and curse at the same time. They sat there in silence for a moment longer. Remir knew it had been minutes, but to him, it felt like hours. Nox finally looked at him. His hands rubbed his prosthetic leg, feeling the cold metal beneath his fingers and every single cut in his leg.

“Dad… I’m scared.”

Remir froze. For a moment, it seemed to him that all the sounds outside had stopped.

“What are you afraid of, son?”

“That he’ll come back for me. That he knows I’m alive.” Nox’s voice broke. And Remir felt the boy move closer to him and snuggle up to him. His arms were shaking. The father gently embraced his son. Remir felt his throat tighten.

“It’s okay, I’m with you, Nox.”

“You won’t leave me?”

“Never, Son.”

——————

8:45 PM

Remir sat in the kitchen with a mug of coffee that had long since cooled. His gaze was fixed on Nox, who was sleeping restlessly on the couch, covered with a thin blanket. The boy tossed and turned, and Remir could hear his son’s quiet murmurs in his sleep.

Despite his own exhaustion, he didn’t want to leave his son. Remir lifted his mug to take another sip of his coffee when he heard a soft, yet unsettling clatter against the door. Remir glanced at Nox again. The boy continued to sleep, oblivious to the noise. He quietly got up and glanced at the clock on the nightstand in the living room.

The numbers read:

8:45 PM

Remir swallowed as he grabbed the wrench lying on the counter. He cautiously approached the door and opened it a crack. Ready to attack. But no one was there. Remir peered outside. He looked around. Empty. But when he looked down, his breath caught. A folded piece of paper lay on the doormat. With trembling hands, he picked it up and unfolded it. The first thing that caught his attention was the strong smell of cigarette smoke and some chemical. Remir glanced at the writing. It was uneven and crooked. Almost as if someone had written the message in a hurry.

-It’s not over yet, Virell…-

Remir swallowed and turned back to the living room, where Nox slept. The boy’s sleep was finally peaceful. Remir folded the letter and put it in his pocket.

He didn’t want to think about it, but he knew it wasn’t over yet.

Because whoever had his eye on his son wasn’t going to let up.

And he knew… He knew Nox was alive.

The Next Day

Daylight poured in through the narrow kitchen window. The room was split by light and shadows. The air smelled of coffee and fresh bread lying on a cutting board. Outside, the sounds of the street were audible. Cars were passing by, and somewhere in the distance, a tram could be heard.

Soft rock music played in the background in the apartment, and occasionally the clang of metal on porcelain emanated from the kitchen.

Nox sat at the table. A bowl of cereal sat in front of him, beginning to soften in the milk. He glanced at it as he took another bite. One of the few things that still gave him a moment of respite in all this. A familiar action. A familiar taste.

Remir sat down at the table across from his son. The silence between them seemed heavy. After a moment, however, Remir coughed and looked at Nox, who looked up.

“Did you sleep well?” he asked, breaking the silence. The boy shrugged. “I’ve been better.”

“Are you ready for your first day at a new school?”

With those words, Nox’s spoon froze halfway to his mouth. Milk dripped back into his bowl.

“I think you meant first day in a new hell,” he muttered, looking down.

———————

Later on the way to school

Nox walked along the sidewalk with his backpack slung over his shoulder and his guitar case in his other hand. He had headphones on, playing music. Just soft enough so he could hear what was happening around him. Every step seemed to echo, almost as if he were walking through a tunnel. Nox swallowed hard, feeling like everyone was watching him, judging him. Nox pulled the sleeve of his sweatshirt tighter, covering his mechanical prosthetic limb. The boy lowered his head, staring at the stone tiles of the sidewalk.

“Hey!” A sudden voice beside him snapped him out of his thoughts. “You newbie?”

Nox looked up and a boy was walking right next to him. He was his age, maybe a year older. The boy had dark skin and short, curly, dark brown hair, and surprisingly intense blue eyes. A wide smile played across his lips.

“You know, I ask because you look lost. Almost as if someone had forced you here.”

Nox shrugged. He was already mentally planning to quicken his pace, though the chances were good the boy would catch up. He could change his route, but he would likely get lost anyway.

“Because I might be here against my will,” he finally growled. Perhaps that would drive the boy away. The boy, however, didn’t seem to mind his tone.

“Hmm. I’m Kieran, and you are?”

“Nox.” He replied briefly, hesitantly, looking at Kieran suspiciously.

“Why doesn’t he leave?”

“Nox. Cool name, you know, sounds like some band.” Kieran laughed shortly. “You know, I think we’ll get along.”

“Why?”

The boy smiled wider and pointed at Nox’s guitar case.

“Because you carry a guitar.” He replied, “And I bet you don’t play classical. I bet you play rock. Maybe even metal.”

Nox quickened his pace, just as he expected. Kieran easily adjusted to his tempo. He walked beside Nox as if they’d known each other for years.

“I guessed right? You know, you have that vibe. Rock at six feet.”

“Maybe… Who cares anyway?” Nox muttered, and Kieran laughed.

“You’re not the talkative type, are you? You know, since we’re going to go to the same school anyway, you can skip playing the mysterious shadow, because I’ll figure you out anyway.”

Nox looked at him sideways. He wanted to push Kieran away and run, but he didn’t. He didn’t know what was stopping him. But Kieran gave him a strange feeling of trust.

They both walked in silence, broken by the clatter of their shoes on the cobblestones.

“You know? I had to change schools once too,” Kieran said.

Nox looked at him silently. He merely adjusted his case.

“I know you probably think they’ll whisper and stare at you, but when they see you’re not bothered, they’ll quickly let go.”

“Easy for you to say.”

Kieran glared at Nox, then lifted his face to the sky.

“You know, the very thought that everyone has their own life will quickly make you realize that others don’t care about you anyway… Unless you’re too hard on yourself.”

Nox closed his eyes, feeling his breathing begin to quicken.

“Easy, Nox…Don’t worry about him…He’s just…Well, he doesn’t know who…What you really are…Don’t think like that, idiot…Come on…You’re just an ordinary teenager…An ordinary boy…”

Kieran saw Nox clench his fists. Then he noticed it, his prosthetic. He looked at him like that for a moment, but he didn’t say anything. Only when Nox opened his eyes did the boy quickly look away.

“Tell me, Kieran, you’re not going to go away, are you?” The boy’s voice sounded tired.

Kieran smiled and shook his head.

“No, Nox, and I advise you to get used to it, because I’ll be on your side for the entire school year and beyond. My new buddy.”

Nox rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t hide his smile any longer.

“So newbie, are you ready for a day in hell together?”