Tranquil Falls Mental Hospital sat upon a hill, just outside the town limits of Bleakwater, Wyoming. It was just above the beautiful Twin Lakes, which could easily be seen between the LodgePole pines and Douglas firs.
Tranquil Falls is not something anyone ever spoke highly of, or even frequently about. The townsfolk in all gave the impression they wished to forget it's existence. They had just ceased caring about the Hospital and the patients within. I am hoping to change that.
I'd chosen Bleakwater Wyoming over other towns due to its charming appeal. Bleakwater was a quaint little town. Picturesque for all the tourists that swarmed it every summer, Each one of them obvious to the mental hospital on the hill that eerily felt as if it was watching you. It was only barely visible from town. Although so far, the townsfolk were quite nice to my wife and teenage son. We've been joyful to move into such a welcoming town.
My son at first was displeased with our choice to move at first. But he seems to be coming around. He's made some new friends, of course only a few of which are actually in his age range, but I'm not that concerned about his ability to decide right from wrong. He is just going into his Sophomore year, after all. Moving during the summer I have to admit was not one of my brightest nor favorite ideas. The job forced it on us. Move now, get the job. Move later, you'll lose the chance. My family had been coming to the understanding that this was the chance at a fresh start. Lilah, my wife, had gotten a job as a teacher at the local Elementary school. Quincy on the other hand was to be focusing on his studies for now. And myself, well, I got hired by the infamous Tranquil Falls Mental Hospital.
At first, I was skeptical. Tranquil Falls is well, off the wall. But after my interview, I actually wanted to work there. To make a difference there. Just glancing through the small glass windows in the locking mental doors I managed to catch a glimpse of only a few patients. Some were happy, but some seemed to emit despair.
Even only seeing that, I could not stand it. That is one of the main reasons I resigned from my last job. Patients getting left out or locked in their rooms due to lack of progress. I hated it. Most of the time, there was no sign that the patient was not progressing. That they were giving up at all. At that point, it was just the doctor getting upset and giving up on the patient because the patient was not giving what the doctor wanted from them.
But standing, looking into the sparkling bathroom mirror, I debated how I would go about the day. Today is my very first day actually working at Tranquil Falls. What am I going to be doing?
"Honey, have you seen my watch?" My gaze drifted over to Lilah, who was sitting on the edge of our bed sifting through her jewelry box. Her short auburn hair tied back into a semi-neat ponytail. She wore her favorite sundress. The dress was adorned with pink and yellow flowers with a pastel blue background. The dress went to her ankles, but was made of a light but non-see through fabric, which see adored.
"I have not. Have you checked downstairs yet?" I gave a slight tug on my tie, loosening it ever so slightly. Orientation. The main event of the day. And if my luck was right, patient introduction. I am still pretty uneasy about both of them.
"No, I was about to go there though…" She trailed off, not once looking up from her search. I nodded, and headed for the bedroom door.
"I can look for it while I'm done there, I've got some time." I glanced at the clock. The glowing face read seven fifteen with the little AM light lit up. In forty-five minutes my shift would officially begin. My stomach clenched suddenly.
"That would be wonderful if you could do that." She spun to face me, her glimmering blue dreamcatcher earrings caught the light beautifully. "Quincy should actually be downstairs by now."
And with that, she beelined toward her vanity. I nodded slightly, and turned myself toward the staircase. Usually the watch in question would be found beside the sink, where Lilah usually removed it to do dishes.
"Morning Dad." A seemingly groggy voice greeted me upon my entrance of the one room that was fully unpacked. The origin of said voice, sat at the kitchen island hovering over a bowl of Fruit Loops.
"Well good morning Q." I smiled at him, "You haven't happened to have seen your mother's watch, have you?" I snatched up the loaf of bread off the counter, and slid two slices out of the package and into the toaster. Easing the lever down, I glanced over my shoulder at Quincy. He looked over at the sink.
"On it's hook." He pointed ever so slightly.
"Sweet. Thanks Bud." I strode over and plucked the shining silver watch off of its perch before bounding up the stairs. "Hey sweetie?"
There was no reply. As I stepped through the bedroom door, I spotted her kneeling on the floor beside her vanity. She was facing away from me, a box was just slightly obscured from view.
"Oh Vincent...." Her voice trembled.
"Lilah, sweetheart…" I slowly moved until I was standing just above her and the box. The box was full of baby items. Some blue, and some pink.
"She… she'd have been seven this year…" Lilah sighed, and dropped the small white dress back into the box. "I can't get caught up now… Not now."
"Lilah, it is alright to hurt. It can assist in the healing process." I held out her watch as she rose to her feet.
"Yes. Yes." She nodded taking the watch gently from my hand. "We'll be late." With that, she walked quickly from the room.
I nodded, shoving the box back under her vanity with my foot. If Quincy's baby stuff hadn't been so entangled with his once little sister's, I would have tossed that box years ago.
"Dad! Your toast is ready! I gotta go, Lou's here!!" Quincy's suddenly lively voice echoed through the awkwardly hollow house.
"Alright! Have a wonderful day!" I shouted down the stairs as I heard the front door swing open, then slam closed. The sound of the garage door whining told me that Lilah was also leaving. That forsaken box was once again tearing a hole in the fabric of our lives. Of course this tear would probably be just as simple as the rest to mend.
I stood by the kitchen sink eating my toast, and watched as Lilah's car disappeared into the neighborhood, heading off to Maple Park Elementary School.
"Shit! I gotta go!" I raced over to where my car keys hung beside my jacket. Sliding it on, I snatched up my keys and hustled to my car. I locked the house up behind me and clambered into my car. This was going to be an oddly long fifteen minute drive.
------
The air at Tranquil Falls was chilly. Hot breath caught in the air, suspended as if being held by strings. Icy dew clinging to the wilting grass as if it's life depended on it.
I stood staring into the parking lot. Cars, trucks, two ambulances, and one police car sat quietly awaiting the new day. Many had frost on covering the majority of them. Only two of the vehicles were steaming. One of course was my car, the other was one of which that had just pulled into a parking spot. I did not quite recognise this car. It was a white Chrysler. A woman stepped out of it.
"Good morning Dr. Tudor." The woman, Dr. Merriweather, as I was coming to realise, smiled at me.
"Morning Dr. Merriweather." I shot a smile back. She was the director of Tranquil Falls. Her name: Octavia Merriweather. She is the woman who interviewed and hired me.
"Are you prepared for today?" Merriweather pulled the front door open. "This door, by the way, usually remains unlocked."
"Oh, okay. I thought maybe it'd be locked." I nodded and followed her into the building. "And to answer your question. I believe I am. I'd like to meet patients today as well."
Merriweather was quiet as she clocked us both in. Her silence made my stomach clench up again. Was that too bold? Did I--?
"We'll see. Julius can determine that." Merriweather looked around for a moment. I gave a small nod in acknowledgement.
I looked around the main entrance then. Everything in the room had been painted or made a brilliant white. The tile floors, the walls, the ceiling tiles, even the furniture seemed bleached. I guess it made it all easier to clean in the long run. At this moment, the room practically glittered.
"What exactly do the patients do when they aren't in a therapy session or at a doctor appointment?" Merriweather led me through the receptionist's office, which held two neatly arranged desks, and three tall visibly padlocked filing cabinets. "Also, is everything so… White?"
"No, actually. The main area for our patients, or the common room as you'll hear it be called on a regular basis, is a light blue themed. The hallways alternate between green, brown, off-white, and sometimes purple. Patients are allowed to pick their room colors, to an extent. Some patients, Mr. Rowe for example, utilize markers, paints, and other provider materials that can mark on the walls for decorating." Merriweather almost seemed irritated when she spoke of this Mr. Rowe. The hallway had begun to turn a hunter green, the floor was an odd tan tile. We halted at a tan wood door. The small window had a curtain on the inside, which had been previously drawn closed. The nameplate sat blank on the green wall.
"I see." I nodded and slightly stared at the door. Was this my office? I noticed Merriweather smiling.
"The patients can and quite often wonder the open halls, participate in art and music classes, play board games, do 'school' work, and even go for walks outside. Truly it depends on the patient. Going back to Mr. Rowe for a moment, he'll mainly stay to himself in his room, and paint, or honestly do whatever it is he does in his room. Now Mr. Royale, he'll sit quietly in a corner and read most of the day. Occasionally him and Mr. Rowe will play a game of chess." Merriweather had been unlocking the door as she spoke, and swung the door open with the word chess. She stepped in and stood with her back pressed against the door. The door itself hugged the wall. I stepped in after her, and looked around. I was correct. An office. Not too big, nor too small. The walls were that horrid off-white.
"With the patients, how do we address them? I understand not all facilities are the same." I spoke softly, my mind still taking in the office. There was a deck straight back from the door, practically perching in the corner. It was an L shape, and sat in a way of only allowing one way behind it. An office chair, grey in color, and a file cabinet, also grey in color, were sitting cozily behind the desk. Along the opposing wall stood an empty bookshelf, it was at least my same height. White in color, as well. A large picturesque window was dead center of the back wall. This window was home to a bare window seat. The office in general was barren.
"As a general way, by last name. But, we have no policies against using a patient's first name. You just have to remember what your job is here." Merriweather gave me another friendly smile.
"Rehabilitation." The word rolled off my tongue almost bitterly. I then noticed Merriweather holding out a largish golden key on a clip. I gently took it from her hand.
"I recommend keeping the door locked when you aren't in here. Miss St. Clair has yet to grasp the concept of if it's not yours, or given to you, do not take." Merriweather sighed. "Also, feel free to decorate and add as you see fit to your office. As long as it's appropriate."
"Alright, thank you." I smiled then. Liberty to decorate this drab room I'd be working in. Thank the heavens for that. I began to rub the golden key in between my index finger and thumb.
"Also, Dr. Tudor, here. This one belongs to the file cabinet. Recommend that you also keep that one locked… But mainly all the time unless you're retrieving a file." Merriweather once again held out a key. This one was smaller, and silver. The round top also had a yellow dot painted on it. Like the gold key, it was on a single clip.
"Ah, yes, thank you again." I once again gently slipped the key from her fingers.
Then Merriweather slipped away down the hall, presumably to her office. The hallway fell silent, the only sound was the ticking of an analog clock that hung smuggly out of reach above my office door. Sighing, I clipped both keys to one of my belt loops, and turned towards the large window. It lit the room up quite nicely. The window seat cushions were gone, and in their place a thin layer of dust had come to rest. The view out the window was absolutely stunning. My office overlooked the lakes and the lush forests that surrounded them. The sky, which was much lighter now, had begun to take on a vibrant blue. Down by the closer of the two lakes, some deer were grazing along the treeline.
"Amazing, isn't it?" Startled, I spun back towards the door. A man, about six foot and roughly in his mid forties or fifties. He was wearing khakis and had a white button up shirt on. The shirt was neatly tucked in, with a colorful tie loosely hanging on his neck.
"It was not my intention to startle you. You must be Vincent Tudor?" He came across as calm, like an undisturbed pond.
"Yes." I strode across the room and held out my hand. "Vince is fine."
"Well, hello Vince. It's a pleasure. I'm Julius Bexley. One of the top therapists here at Tranquil Falls." He shot me a smile, and shook my hand. "I'm quite happy to share the top spot with qualified personal."
"Oh, I wouldn't just throw me in there right off the bat…" I laughed nervously. What did they truly expect from me? I mean, I worked extreme cases at my last job, but that does not mean I'm the best.
"Don't doubt yourself so fast. You can call me Julius. I'm only super formal towards my patients." He continued to smile and motioned toward the hallway. "Some should actually be in the commons now, if you'd like to take a stroll." Julius slid his hands into the front pockets of his khakis.
"A stroll sounds wonderful." I pulled the door closed behind me, and as I went to lock it, Julius held up his hand, which he had pulled free from his pocket.
"That should still be locked, unless you used the key to unlock it while it was open. This door is fairly stubborn." Julius shifted on his feet.
"Well alright. I'll have to remember that." I nodded, and we began to walk.
We walked quietly down the hall, and I tried to note the color changes as we went. Usually, the colors changed at doorways, or hallway intersections. One of the doorways we passed, had a sign that read "Men's".
"Julius, is that bathrooms or… rooms?" I glanced over at him as we walked.
"Rooms. Women's is on the opposite side of the commons. Also, patients are allowed to walk the halls, well, the open halls. Certain doors require keycards to go through, the yard and patio are fenced in with security cameras and guard patrols." Julius' voice was smooth, and remained calm.
"Sounds good." I bit my lower lip a bit. Tranquil Falls is almost like a prison. The comment from the eldery couple at the diner echoed through my mind.
"I want you to know now, some patients are more… well friendly then others. Don't get discouraged if one doesn't say hello." Julius' words stung a little. I'd been in this field for six years now, not getting acknowledged was just a normal day on the job. I hopefully could take it by now. We came up to a large doorway. Both doors were propped open. "Both of these doors remain open pretty much at all times. They'll close during power outages, or if they are triggered in the office. Otherwise they will stay open."
As I nodded yet again, I noticed the idle commotion in the room we were standing before. Some patients were dressed, some only in pajamas. A few of them stood out to me. A young man with jet black hair sat crossed legged in front of a chess board, which in turn was set up on a wooden coffee table. He was hunched over the board a bit. Not far from him, sat another young man in a rocking chair. His hair was a dusty brown, it was untamed as well. His eyes were fixated on the chess board. He was too far from the board to be playing though. His right hand was stroking a stuffed animal. A cat, is what it looked to be. He was one of the ones in pajamas, as well.
Another, just across the room near the exit to the patio, a girl sat by what looked to be a baby grand piano. The piano itself was closed. It has a glossy black finish, of which the girl's eyes were fixated on. She seemed very intrigued by the piano. Her hair was semi-combed, and she had sweatpants and a sweatshirt on. The sweatshirt was missing the drawstrings.
"This is just a few of them." Julius sighed. "It doesn't look like Mr. Mercer or Mr. Rowe are present…" Julius was glancing around the room. The other patients were milling around, or sitting quietly.
"Are they allowed to stay in their rooms?" I kept trying to analyze the current crop of patients present.
"Mmm yes and no. Mr. Rowe prefers his room, Miss St. Clair wanders, and the rest, well, they have to have passed a room check, to be honest." Julius seemed upset. The water was no longer calm in the pond.
"Hey Doc." Julius and I turned to see a man, roughly five foot eleven in height, if not six foot, standing behind us. He had a rather scruffy appearance.
"Mr. Mercer it may be a 'free day' but you promised me yesterday that you would make up for the session you missed from last week. And you said you'd do it today." Julius' words became suddenly stern, and his gaze locked onto this Mr. Mercer.
"Oh, yeah, that's right." Mr. Mercer scratched the back of his head. "Who's this?" He pointed at me.
"This is Dr. Tudor. He is the new doctor. You will treat him with respect." Julius looked at me. "This is Dexter Mercer."
"Ah. Pleasure to meet you Mr. Mercer." I spoke in a calmer, more at ease tone than Julius.
"A new doc! Please, call me Dexter or just Mercer!I really don't like all the formalities, but Doc here is kinda stuck on it."
"I would have to discuss that with Dr. Bexley about that." I gave him a half-hearted smile.
"Oh please don't tell me there's now two doctor's stuck on formality." Mercer sighed and strode off heading towards the piano. "Would ya like me to play something for ya Poppy?"
"Oh yes, could you?" The girl, the one who was once awestruck by the glossy black finish of the Baby grand, sat up.
"That," Julius spoke quietly, "is Poppy St. Clair. She's Dr. Digby's patient. Mercer plays the piano for her in the mornings before she goes on her wanderings." I gave a small nod, and watched as Mercer set himself up behind the piano. "Also, I don't call him anything other than Mr. Mercer to him or around him due to some issues that him and I have been having. You may call him what seems best to you. But enough with him, playing chess is Dorian Royale. He is one of your patients. He's, well, quiet. Never actually heard him talk. In the rocking chair is Harper Saville. He will continue to be one of my patients. Octavia wants you to be able to adjust and get comfortable before she overloads you with patients. Your other patient is Soleil Rowe, who happens to not be present. He's a rather difficult case, but given your previous work I, myself, consider you capable. I'd still like to wish you luck. Rowe is partially…" Julius gave a small sigh, "partially the reason for Dr. Crawford's resignation."
My gut twisted a bit. Dr. Crawford. That name was a popular and quite powerful in Bleakwater's community. Miracle doctor. Absolute treasure for Tranquil Falls to have. His resignation was all over their papers when we came up to look at houses.
"That's…" I paused, and exhaled deeply. "Wonderful to hear. So I have two patients so far. Manageable."
"Yes Rowe isn't terrible...H's slightly given up. He's been here a while, and only his brother visits him." Julius sighs. "Which is terrible of his family."
"It would probably help him onto his feet and into recovery if they even tried to care." Julius and I both once again turned to face the hallway. " Cecile Digby. Therapist, doctor."
Standing semi-behind us, was a roughly five foot five woman with shoulder length greying brown hair.
"Hello. I'm Vincent Tudor. Also a doctor and therapist." I held out my hand, which she shook firmly.
"Pleasure. I'd thought as much, since Julius doesn't just talk about the patients with just anyone." She smiled. "Feel free to call me Cecile."
"It's great to meet you Cecile. Julius had mentioned you." I attempted my best friendly smile. Cecile gave me a curt nod before fixing her gaze onto Julius.
"Julius, did you by chance check to see if Rowe took his medication this morning?" Cecile crossed her arms across her chest. She was wearing a pink polo shirt with black slacks.
"I have not yet. Since he's transferring to Vincent, I thought I'd show him the process." Julius gave me a small smile.
"I see. Well you should get to it. You know Felix hates having to hunt him down." With that, Cecile walked into the Commons. "Miss St. Clair, I was curious if you wanted to join me on a walk?"
Mercer ceased playing the piano, and St. Clair slowly rose to her feet.
"Sure. Where are we going today?" She spoke in a nonchalant manner.
"Along the edge of the woods. It's quite beautiful this time of year." Cecile and St. Clair headed towards the doors that led to the patio. Cecile grabbed a jacket from a crowded wall hook before they stepped out the doors.
"That there is a good example of how to have contact without the setting of our offices." Julius began to walk down a different hallway. "Although some prefer indoor activities. This was to the pharmacy."
"Alright. Do they take the medicine themselves?" I did my best to keep up with him. He was walking at a much faster pace suddenly.
"Usually. Sometimes they may refuse, or forget, or even occasionally they just have bad days, fake that they took it, and hoard it." Julius spoke a bit bitterly then.
"Is that one from experience?" I couldn't read his facial expressions well enough to tell for sure without having to ask.
"Sadly, yes. Rowe has done it, and none of us would put it past him to try it again. He isn't allowed to leave the pharmacy waiting area until he has fully taken his medication. He has four medications." Julius and I entered what looked like a miniature version of a bank. It had to stiff looking arm chairs, a large glass window with a dropbox that could open and close. "This is the pharmacy."
"Wow...Definitely secure…" My mind was stuck on Rowe. Julius didn't seem like the type of man to bring up a resolved issue for no reason.
"Good morning Julius. Dexter, Harper, Dorian, and Poppy have all come by. Sunny, however, has not. Also Harper has a slight cough." A small man spoke into a microphone from the otherside of the glass.
"Oh wonderful. I'll have to arrange something for Harper. Vincent, I'll--"
"Excuse me." A voice from behind me caused me to step to the side of the door and turn around.
Standing there, was a young man. He wore baggy grey sweatpants, and a baggy black hoodie with the hood up. Scruffy blonde hair stuck out just beneath the top of the hood. He had on what my son Quincy would have called skater shoes.
"Well good morning Sunny. Glad to see you." The small man fumbled with what looked to be a pencil box. Sunny, as I was guessing was the young man beside me's name, walked casually up to the dropbox.
"I apologize for being late." His voice was low, as if he'd prefer not to be talking at all.
"Hey, all good. Dr. Bexley is probably thrilled to not have to drag you in here." The man opened the dropbox to reveal a small paper cup.Two of them, actually. Sunny slipped a pill out of one of the cups, and used the other to take it.
"Mr. Rowe, I believe we discussed trying to be on time?" Julius crossed his arms, Sunny did not respond. The man sent the second pill.
"Yes. I also believe we discussed getting more paint last session." Sunny's voice remained low. He took the second pill the same as the first, and the third was in the dropbox. "And that was last week."
"That is correct. And I'm working on that." Julius shifted on his feet. "Mr. Rower, this is your--"
"New therapist." Sunny took the third pill. "Figured, Didn't recognise him."
"Mr. Rowe do not interrupt me." Julius' voice became quite stern.
"Apologies." Sunny then took the fourth and final pill, then nodded to the man behind the glass. "Thank you Felix."
"You're welcome Sunny." The man, Felix I believe, smiled and nodded back at him.
"Anyways, this is Dr. Tudor." Julius motioned towards me.
"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Rowe." I smiled and shifted on my feet. Sunny turned toward me. His gaze was toward the floor, so I could not see his eyes.
"Please don't be like Dr. Bexley. You may call me Sunny. Just as everyone else here does. I prefer it." His voice was low, now giving off an air of calmness.
"Oh, uh…" I glanced at Julius, who nodded. "Alright."
"Dr. Bexley?" Sunny barely moved.
"Yes?"
"Tomorrow?" Sunny began to head towards the exit.
"Well, that's between you and Dr. Tudor." Julius smiled. Sunny huffed.
"If that's what was decided before, then yes, tomorrow is great." I nodded.
"Eleven thirty in the morning. Please." Sunny's tone gave away that please was an afterthought.
"Sounds like a plan." I gave him another nod. Our first session. Tomorrow. And of all people to learn it from… A patient.
With that, Sunny nodded once and left the pharmacy, leaving Julius and I alone in the corridor with Felix in his glass case.
"Sunny is… a good guy." Felix closed his dropbox, and began putting cases and other objects away. "By the way, I'm Felix, head pharmacist here."
"Nice to meet you." I looked at Julius.
"I'll take you to your office, let you read the files." Julius began to leave.
"Alright." I sighed, and gave a small wave to Felix before striding after Julius.
The walk to my office was silent. Not a word was shared between us. I took this time to attempt to map out where I was in the building. I also thought about what I should add to my office.
"Here we are. Sorry to leave you, but I have to get to my office for Mercer's make-up session. Approximately an hour or so, sometimes longer, if you have a question." Julius waited for me to enter my office, he even showed me how to unlock the door so it would remain unlocked. "Now I must go."
"Thank you, Julius." I smiled as I walked over to my filing cabinet. Slowly I unlocked it.
"You're welcome!" He called back to me as he marched back to his own office.
I gave a sigh before placing my hand upon the first drawer's handle. What will I possibly find here…? Obviously portfolios of my patients. I eased the first drawer open.
Dorian Royale. Seventeen year old male. Subject of abuse. Head trauma, causes some memory issues. Self Harms. And a little red dot next to the word suicide.
"Well at least the file isn't super thick. He seems like a guy in need of…" I trailed off. What could I do that Julius Bexley and the great Howard Crawford couldn't? Probably not much more than a new view.
"Next patient. Should be Sunny." As I glided Dorian's closed, and I began to tug at what was Sunny's drawer in the filing cabinet. I froze when it grudgingly rolled open.
The drawer was close to overflowing with papers. His paperwork for Tranquil Falls started in 2014. He'd been checked in since the sixth of January, 2014. Four year he'd been here. I began gently flipping through the papers. He had been in Holy Oak Mental Asylum, Blissful Heights Psychiatric Hospital, Charity Mental Institute, and even Oasis Medical Center. None of these were as long as Tranquil Falls… but it was quite shocking for me to learn.
Sunny, or Soleil as his portfolio stated, is definitely a troubled young man. Every time he was released from a facility, he relapsed. Only one of the multitudes of facilities he's had the great pleasure of being a patient in has actually successfully rehabilitated him back into the world.
Charity Mental Institute. They took as young as seven in their Institute. They were mainly a rehabilitation facility. According to his record, he had been checked in at ten years old. A small note was scribbled into the margins along this record. Did not do well without his twin brother. Anxiety was higher. Did not sleep well. His focus was gone as well. Maybe has separation anxiety?
"Sunny has a twin brother…" I whispered as I flipped to the backside of the paper. Charity had not made notes on their method. Obviously, it wasn't a permanent fix method, but it helped him.
Especially since he entered Blissful Heights at twelve years old. Two years after checking out of Charity. He was checked out, only to be checked into Holy Oak. Then he got transferred to Oasis Medical Center around thirteen years old for attempting to overdose. I closed my eyes, and felt my stomach curl into knots. He was only thirteen when he attempted. I opened my eyes and searched for the note section.
Overdose unintentional. In his words, he didn't want to feel anymore. The note written at the bottom of the page burned into my mind. He didn't want to feel anymore. He didn't stay at Oasis long. They released him after two months, and a psychiatrist recorded how he was doing. Sunny's attendance for the psychiatrist was horrid. He seemed to push away as much as possible. Although, it did get noted that when Sunny was present, he preferred to talk about his brother, and paintings. He had missed years when it came to his twin brother. They were probably once extremely close, and now, they probably only had the casual greeting as usual siblings do.
That was it for Sunny's life. The previous doctor's had not written about his hobbies, likes, dislikes, anything. Dorian's hadn't either, but Sunny's… he'd been here so long, how could they not?
A sigh escaped from my lips, and I adjusted the files in the drawer before I pushed it closed. I hadn't remembered sitting down, but as I leaned back, the back of the chair supported me. You were lost in the world of Soleil Rowe.
This office felt dead. A lifeless void. That's actually probably what this whole building felt like to Sunny. I wanted to change that. I tugged at one of the drawers on the desk. There was an abused looking notepad with some tattered pens and rubber bands inside of it. I snatched up the notepad, one of the pens, and began to make a list of all the items I wanted to add to my office.
What my office needed.
X-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------X
By the time I arrived home, dinner was already stored in the fridge. I had been busy shopping at the store, purchasing everything I believed I needed. Dinner was the last of my concerns.
When I came into the entryway from the garage, I found Lilah on the couch in the living room, a book in hand. When she heard the door close, she closed her book and looked up at me.
"Evening love." I smiled and walked toward the kitchen.
"Glad to see you know the way home." Her tone was almost condescending.
"I apologize for coming home late. I stopped by the store to buy some things for my office." I stepped into the kitchen, flipping the lights on.
"I see. How was today?" Lilah rose from the couch, and walked leisurely into the kitchen after me.
"Informative. I have two patients for now, different yet similar." I grabbed an apple. "How was your day?"
"It was wonderful. First graders are quite energetic, and I love it." Lilah smiled at me finally. "I am very beat, however, so good night Vince."
"Alright, good night love." I kissed her cheek. "I will not be long."
She laughed lightly, laying her book on the black granite counter before heading up the stairs.
As I bit into my apple, I glanced at the clock. It's digital screen beamed with light even in the lit kitchen. It's face read ten thirty. I felt a sudden wave of exhaustion washed over me. Bed time. I tossed the rest of my apple in the trash can, and headed up the stairs toward Lilah and I's room. I would need all the sleep I could get.