FicWad

Week Two: Introductions.
I held my rucksack by my side and looked at the piece of paper in my hand, I was hoping that Ms. Dawson had given me the right address; so far it looked too normal to be possibly right. I knocked on the painted white door and slipping the paper into my jacket pocket. I had worn a casual jean and black jacket combo having been warned that Ms. Duke does not like the idea of people inspecting her.
The door opened quietly, “H… Hello?” A voice peeped from behind it.
“Miss Duke? Hello I’m Jared, a friend of Samantha’s…?” I said unsurely, I had been told that sometimes she didn’t know who anyone was; I held my breath in case she was going to panic.
“Oh hi,” She smiled, “Yeah Sammy told me someone would be visiting me.”
She pulled the door open. I was surprised by what I saw- a pleasant looking small girl, draping blonde muddy hair, and a warm sweater on. She was pale and had huge blue eyes; she looked like her mother in a lot of ways.
“So you’re visiting from Europe?” She smiled, ushering me in.
“Yes, I’m from a nice town in England.” I lied, smiling at her; she didn’t feel like a patient, more of a date actually.
“Oh really? How lovely, would it be typical to offer tea to you then? Coffee maybe?” She smiled, “I’m from Seattle myself.”
“A lovely place and I’ll have coffee please, black one sugar.” I smiled, “You have a beautiful apartment.”
“Thank you,” She said, hitting the switch on her shiny blue kettle. “I live here with my three friends.” She smiled; no one had ever mentioned any room mates to me.
“Oh how lovely! Who are they?” I asked, looking at her pour boiling water into a round red mug.
She looked up and smiled, opening her mouth, it looked like she was going speak but she gazed back at the cup, carrying with herself. “Here you go.” She smiled, handing me the cup. I waited for her to answer my question but she didn’t even consider it.
“Which room will I be staying in?” I asked, shifting awkwardly back into the plush cream sofa that sat by a large window. Her apartment looked like it was a show-room, everything in perfect order, flowers set carefully on the window and even the single newspaper on the counter-top looked like it was set there.
“You’ll be staying in that room there.” She smiled, pointing to one of three doors, I realised that four people wouldn’t fit in the apartment, it was only two bedrooms, and one was for a guest.
“Where do your friends sleep Leonie?” I asked casually.
She smiled again in another weird distant look, again looking like she had answered the question. “So how long are you staying for?” She continued.
“Well, as long as I’m welcome.” I sighed, watching her carefully, beginning to see what was going on.
“You’re welcome as long as you like.” She smiled at me, blinking long black eyelashes, she wasn’t wearing much make-up of course, she didn’t need to. She was pretty enough.
Rule #3: Never consider that patient a friend, they are your subject.
“Thank you.” I smiled, mentally noting her blank look when you asked her something to do with the illness, “Thank you so much.”
Patient seems to be facing denial and multiple personalities, she named that there is four in total, patient seems unable to recall any information from the “Room-mates.” To clarify- Leonie one is welcoming and friendly.

I woke up in a comfortable bed, reconsidering my “Face to Face Therapy” as a job option. I stretched up and rubbed my eyes, I felt awkward again suddenly. Blinking wildly I realised that Leonie was staring at me in the room. “Who- who are you?” She squeaked from the corner.
“I’m Jared, Samantha’s friend, we had tea yesterday remember?” I said calmly, pulling the duvet up around me, I wasn’t comfortable wearing anything to bed but with her demonic stare I knew I would have to start wearing pyjamas.
“I… I don’t recall…” She bleated suspiciously, “Who’s Samantha?”
I blinked at her, “Sammie? You do know her.”
“We didn’t… You know… Did we?” She asked awkwardly, squinting at me.
I shook my head quickly, “No! No, we didn’t!”
She nodded and gulped at me, “Em, right, get out of my apartment…” She glared.
“Your,” I coughed, “Roommate told me I could stay in here.” I argued, feeling sheepish over what I was saying.
“Oh… Tea?” She said; the look crossed her face, blankness.
Patient seems to only trust her roommate, Leonie two is suspicious and only can be reassured when unknown is mentioned.
I sat awkwardly beside Leonie again, she was stiff and quiet, hardly speaking, she only looked at me. A knock hammered on the door, she walked away staring back at me, “Hello, I’m Samantha.” A voice sang.
“You forgot your friend.” Leonie grunted at me, slamming the door open and shut.
“Oh hello, Jared,” Samantha smiled unsurely, “How are you feeling?”
I nodded and bit my lip, “Good.” I lied; Leonie’s eyes were stuck to me again.
Leonie sat beside me again, crossing her arms and glaring at Samantha and back to me, “What is this?” She demanded.
“Nothing!” Sam shouted defensively.
Leonie glared at me again, “Tell me!”
I gasped and switched my gaze back and forth between Leonie and Sam. “I’m a counsellor here to see if you’re crazy and if so to help you deal with your problems.”
Leonie’s mouth dropped. She looked angry. “Never mind what she said, I am not crazy! The girls must have lied to you! They lied!” She shouted.
I leapt up and stepped away from the fuming girl, her eyes were angry and unsure, she had that look again mixed in, but I was too confused to understand what she was talking about.
Leonie two seems to be getting hassle from the other “roommates.” She gets angry at their mention of her sanity.
“What now?” I asked Samantha, sitting on a smooth wooden chair in her apartment two doors down, she had moved there to keep her friend safe.
“Wait until tomorrow.” She said bluntly, lying leaning back over the chair, “When she’s like that she never remembers. Want to hear the poem I use to remember?”
I nodded and raised an eyebrow; she was the most dedicated best friend I’ve ever seen in my life!
“It starts like… Leo with the smile will know you in a while, Leo with the pout has been left out, Lee with the glare won’t know you unless you’re there and Leonie is like an elephant who never forgets.”
“Leo, Leo, Lee, and Leonie?” I asked, puzzled by it.
“There’s only ever four I think… Maybe once there was a fifth.”
“What was the fifth like?”
“She was the one who tried killing me.”
“Oh…”
“If you see that side of her I advice you to run.”
I pondered for a moment; I was going about this patient all wrong; I needed to come up with an idea for how to get them all to talk at once. “I have an idea.”
Leo with the smile will know you in a while, Leo with the pout has been left out, Lee with the glare won’t know you unless you’re there and Leonie is like an elephant who never forgets.
I knocked on the door again, it was day four into the week and I had to get passed the introduction phase. “Hello miss…?”
“Why Jared how are you?” She grinned.
“Leonie,” I continued, “I’m good. I have a gift for you and your roommates.”
“Wow, how nice of you.” She beamed, fluttering her eyelashes at me.
“It’s a called a day-diary. I understand that sometimes people have disputes in a home and I believe these help.” I handed her a blue book with a golden spine, smiling at her.
“How nice.” She repeated, hugging me tightly.
I relaxed for a moment and hugged her back tightly. I breathed calmly, for a half moment I wished I wasn’t her secret doctor, I remembered my rules, I needed my rules I only had a few to follow, if I didn’t follow them everything went wrong, everything. “You didn’t stay last night?” Leonie asked.
I nodded, “I had some trouble with your roommate.” I half-laughed.
She went blank for a moment and nodded, “Well I insist you stay tonight!” She smiled at me.
“I’d love to.” I lied, unsure and nervous of her, but I had to get the introduction week over. The interrogation week was next…
“Coffee, yes?” She asked; I felt lucky that I had gotten the nice one twice within two days.
“Please.”
Patient seems happy about the gift but in know way remembers the days previous, featuring her other splits.
“What do you work as Jared?” Leonie asked, it was getting late and I was getting tired.
“I’m a counsellor for the ill.”
“How brave of you to help them out!” She gasped, gripping my arm nervously, “It must be very dangerous if it goes wrong!”
Ironic… I chuffed, “Yes, but I must sometimes, it’s my duty!”
She didn’t let go of my arm, “That is so very brave of you.” She smiled, kissing me on the cheek.
Patients self seems attracted to me, making the job easier for myself. Do not break rules.
Going to the spare room, my cheek felt like it was on fire, I was happy and felt kind of hungry, I locked the door just in case the craziest of Leonie was to wake up in the morning. I fell flat on my face into the pillow, hearing a light knock on the hall door, “Hello?” Leonie answered, I could hear it but it was muffled, she sounded unsure.
“What are you doing here?!” She screamed from the outside, a slam of the door alarmed me.
I rushed to the door, in my boxers and shirt, cursing that I had locked the door. She was screaming for a moment, I heard loud movement outside. The person was hurting her, I could hear her choking and wailing, bangs and crashes. I found the key to the door.
“Nathan?!” I cried, rushing into the living room. Leonie was sobbing in the corner, mascara lines ran down her face and Nathan was awestruck, his trousers and boxers were around his ankles; “I’m ringing the police.” I hissed, running to Leonie’s side with her house line in hand, thanking God it wasn’t on that was stuck to a string. “This is fucking madness.”
Patient has been attacked by brother many times, possible cause of split persons, look deeper into case.