The first thing I noticed about the mental hospital is that everything is bleaked in
white not a single ounce of color is to be seen on the floors, walls, furniture, or clothes..well all except dr.heart, She is the only one who wears any color at all. We walked down the long empty hallway for a while and when we finally reached the end of it there were about twenty or more people walking around. They all stopped and stared when they saw me and suddenly I felt exposed and nervous as I felt a wave of anxiety roll over me.
Dr.heart turned to look at me too "this is the living area where you can communicate with others, watch tv,play games,or read, in your free time" she said with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes then she turned back around and began to walk again her heels clicking against the floor and itching through the living room. I stood there frozen under everyone's gaze. When she realized I was not following behind her she turned her head slightly to look at me "ava?" she said "are you coming?" I put my head down trying to pretend that I'm invisible and they can't see me. "yes" i say in a tone lower than a whisper. "Sorry" I say again and begin to follow her.
We walked out of the living area down another white wallway. The only thing different was that this hallway had white doors to match the walls. Now that I think of it, the hallway that leads to my room has no doors except for mine. I wonder why that is. and the only color on the walls were a series of paintings. The first one was of a girl sitting alone in a tower staring out into the night sky, the next was of the same girl only this time she was staring at something out of the painting looking terrified, in the third one there was a monster with wings that looked eerily similar to the one i had seen last night next to the girl staring at her…watching her while she stood there frozen. I turn my gaze to look at the next one but there is no next one. Like the story isn't finished but that wouldn't make sense because these paintings look decades old.
"What's up with these paintings?" I ask turning my head to look at dr.heart only to find she was already staring at me "these paintings were made by a beautiful artist" she said turning to look at the three painting on the wall "no, that's not what i mean" i say turning back to look at them to "where's the rest of the paintings that go with it?" "There are no more paintings, this is all of them" she said in a flat tone "but the story that these paintings tell is not finished" i say confused. She looks at me sideways for a long moment. "Sometimes stories do not get to be finished" she said "sometimes the storyteller doesn't get the chance and no one else has the skill, imagination or knowledge to finish it for them" at that i stayed silent. We both sat there for a moment with our thoughts. Dr.heart was the first to move and I followed.
When we reached the end of the hallway we were standing outside two big doors. When Dr.heart opened the doors we were greeted by four people sitting down at a lunch table in a circle "what are you all doing in here? The cafeteria is closed at this hour you know that" dr.heart said with a stern tone they all turn to look at us and i take in how they look one by one. One of them is a short girl with blond hair and big blue eyes who is wearing a blue skirt and a tank top that shows off her pale skin. Two of them are tall twin boys with brown hair and green eyes with chestnut skin, one of them wears jeans and an all black shirt and the other wears jogging pants with a white t-shirt. The last one is a tall boy with black eyes and…and jet black hair and almond colored skin. He wears light gray jeans and a light gray shirt.
Me and the boy lock eyes. I try to look away but he holds my gaze and won't let it go and something about him seems very familiar. He still doesn't let me look away and the world fades around me so much that I don't hear the voice of dr.heart or the other people. Finally as if the boy had found what he was looking for in my eyes he dropped my gaze and started to watch his friends protest against dr.hearts yelling at them.
After Dr.heart gives them the longest lecture I've seen she takes a deep breath, looks at me "everyone this is Ava" she said pointing at me. All four of them turn to look at me "hey" they all say in unison. I try to avoid looking at the boy in gray jeans "Ava this is Zoe, Leo, Neo, and elliot." she said pointing to each one of them "hi" i said feeling that wave of anxiety again.
"Since all of you decide to disobey my rules once again, how about you continue to show Ava around and make her feel welcome to the hospital" dr.heart said i whipped my head to the side to stare at her in shock and panic "that's a great idea!" said Zoe looking like she wanted to jump around in excitement. The twin boys looked at each other like they were talking to each other through their minds "we could use another member to our group" said the twin in black who i assume is leo. Elliot said nothing but nodded like he agreed with the others and smiled at me.
I could tell it was a fake smile like he knew this was a bad idea and if thats so then me and him are thinking the same thing. Something in my gut is saying This is a very bad idea and I need to run. My mind is in agreement with my gut but my heart is the loudest out of both of them. It's screaming and crying and digging its claws into my chest while telling me to stay. I don't know why it wants me to stay, it just does and so I go with my heart and ignore the signs that this could lead to nothing but trouble and danger.
I look at the group of people and sitting down at the lunch table and see myself sitting with them and laughing. They all look at me as if they are waiting for my answer. "Okay" I say in a whisper "okay I'll let you guys finish showing me around" i say a little louder and feeling more confident.
Dr.heart claps her hands loud enough to make the sound echo through the cafeteria "okay then, i will get back to my work while you show ava around and get her into some clothes" she said turning back towards the big doors her nad pauses on the door knob "oh and elliot?" She said "yes". His voice was similar to the creature I saw in my room. The same accent and deep yet soft voice "remember to behave." Elliot didn't say anything back but he watched as dr.heart left through the big doors.