FicWad

Thanks to the only people who ever review me, you know who you are. I wouldn't be continuing if it weren't for you two.
The story is slowing getting worse. :)

**

The nurses left me in the room with a list of rules that I had to abide by. Looking up to the window I saw the bars set securely there so I couldn’t escape. I started to wonder where the hell Pete had sent me. I looked back down at the paper in my hand, again reading over the rules.

Shit, I had group sessions once a day and a one on one every second day. Somehow I wasn’t sure I would be able to do that much talking. I laughed slightly as I read rule four. ‘Must finish all meals’. Would we get time out if we didn’t? Shaking my head at some of the ridiculous rules, I laughed at how serious these people were.

A knock on my door broke me from my thoughts and I looked up as a male walked through the door. I smiled politely at the man; he returned my smile before coming over and sitting on the bed next to me.

“Marty,” he smiled and thrust his hand in my direction.

I reluctantly took his hand, “Bailee.”

“I’m going to be your watcher.”

I knew watcher meant psychologist, I guess they just didn’t want to scare the junkies off with big words. I nodded in response to my ‘watcher’, not really wanting to sit and chat. But of course these people could never seem to take a hint.

“I’m, obviously, going to watch you in here, make sure you’re doing okay and getting better,” Marty quickly explained.

I couldn’t help myself and asked, “will we get time out if we don’t finish out meals?’

Marty laughed loudly, clearly taking my question as a joke.

“Get some sleep, Bailee. We’ll speak more tomorrow,” Marty stood from the bed and disappeared from the room. I scratched my head in confusion, wondering why Marty hadn’t answered my question. I was, after all, curious to know what would happen if we didn’t eat our meals.

I made a mental note to ask him again tomorrow as I pulled the sheets back and slipped into the bed. Trying to get comfortable, I snuggled further into the sheets. It felt so wrong to sleep in a bed without Pete’s arms wrapped around my body. I promised myself I wouldn’t cry, and I shut my eyes tightly before falling into an uncomfortable sleep.

**

I awoke the next morning to a loud ringing bell, signalling all the patients that it was now six am; time to get our asses out of bed. I groggily stood from the bed and made my way to the door when I realised I had no idea where the dinning hall I was supposed to be at was. Turning around, I scanned the room for a map of the clinic.

“Ready?”

I jumped and spun around to see a laughing Marty. I glared slightly as Marty continued to laugh at my, obviously hilarious, reaction. His laughing began to die down and he wiped the tears from his eyes.

“So, do you think I could become a comedian?” I asked with mock hopefulness lacing my words.

“Sorry,” he said sincerely, “I just came to show you around quickly before breakfast.”

I nodded at Marty, not willing to talk to him at that moment. I followed a few paces behind him as he led me down a hallway, rooms lining either side. I continued following silently we walked through a recreation room, filled with tables housing board games, one television in the corner of the room and a patients phone. I felt relief as I saw the phone; at least I would be able to talk to Pete while I was in here. Marty and I then walked across a hall to the gym, the equipment in the room made me nervous. Shit, I definitely was not fit and they expected me to use that?

Still following silently behind Marty, he led me to the group sessions rooms and down another hall to his office.

“Come here whenever you feel like talking,” Marty offered, as he showed me around his cosy office.

I nodded in response, not bothering to voice anything. His smile faltered slight, but I just blew it off. I was already beginning to feel the effects of the withdrawal from my drugs. Marty sighed and led me to the dinning hall where I sat at a table and ate all of my meal.

After breakfast, my first group of the week was being held. I reluctantly made my way to the room, dragging my feet along the way to emphasise my lack of enthusiasm. Walking into the room, I saw a group of people sat in chairs, set up in the cliché circle.

“Ah, you must be Bailee,” an older woman spoke as she stood from her chair.

I nodded nervously, not moving from my spot in the doorway.

“Come, have a seat,” she said energetically as she motioned to an empty seat.

I complied with her request and sat in a chair next to a middle-aged man, his skin was covered in sores and was deathly pale, his eyes looked lifeless. I shuddered at his appearance and turned to look at the person sitting on my right. There sat a young girl, she couldn’t have been older than sixteen. She was very thin, her was a yellow colour and it looked as though most of her hair had fallen out. And not only that, the girl was pregnant. My heart went out to the girl.

“So, Bailee, would you like to tell us about yourself?” The counsellor asked.

“My name is Bailee, as you probably gathered, and I’m twenty-three,” I said awkwardly, not exactly sure of what to say.

“Would anyone like to ask Bailee a question?”

“Do you have a boyfriend,” the man beside me smirked, sleaziness oozing from every pour in his body.

I shifted in my seat uncomfortably, trying to move further away from the man. His eyes were looking up and down my body before landing on my chest, a wide smile spreading across his lips. It looked as though he was undressing me with his eyes. I quickly crossed my arms over my chest as if that would stop him. If Pete were here right now this guy would be flat on his back with at least one black eye.

“Brian!” The counsellor scolded. “Have some respect.”

“What?” He asked innocently, a sly grin playing at his lips.

“I do have a boyfriend,” I interjected, hoping it would get the man off my case.

The sly grin instantly fell from his face, his eyes moved from my body to stare out the window, seemingly over me. I sighed a deep breath of relief, silently thanking Pete for seeming to always be there for me, even when he wasn’t there.

The rest of the group session was more emotional that I though it would be. Some of the stories the people told terrified me. I’d learnt that the sleazy man had previously been in jail after killing his drug dealer when we was on a high. The young girl was only fifteen and she had been raped by an unknown man, she was too high to remember much of the rape, and now she had to live with the consequences for the rest of her life. Another lady in the group had lost her children because of her addiction. Someone else had lost all their loved ones because they chose the drugs over everything.

I was terrified that something like that could possibly happen to me on day. And not only were their stories scary, the way the drugs had made these people look was devastating. Most were covered in sores and had scars where the sores used to be. Most looked sickly thin, some like me, others even worse. A few had hair that had thinned so much they almost looked bald now. All natural complexions had been lost and relaced with gaunt looking skin.

All the cravings I had felt earlier had disappeared after the group session.

A voice boomed throughout the PA system in the clinic, letting me know that I had a phone call. I raced through the hallways to get to the recreation room where the patients phone was, almost getting lost on the way. I found the room and darted to the phone, ripping it off the hook.

“Hello?” I asked into the phone, completely out of breath from the run.

“Bailee? You sound out of breath,” Pete laughed into the phone.

Never had I been so happy to hear Pete’s voice as I was right now. The sound of his smooth voice calmed me straight away, the worry I had been feeling melted away instantly.

“I ran to the phone,” I admitted sheepishly.

“You ran?” Pete asked with mock surprise.

“I knew it would be you,” I said with a knowing voice.

“I miss you so much already,” he sighed dramatically into the phone.

“Come and get me,” I frantically said, “I’ve had enough now and I want to come home.”

“You know I can’t, Bailee.”

“But Pete,” I whined, “they have the most ridiculous rules. They make me exercise, and I have to tell complete strangers just how much I love the drugs. I don’t need it, I just need you.”

Pete seemed to go silent and I regretted my little outburst.

“It’ll get better,” Pete quietly spoke.

“I’m terrified, Pete,” I admitted, “I don’t want to ever turn out like some of the people here. I don’t want to lose you.”

“That’s why you’re going to get better,” Pete’s quiet tone had turned into a whisper and I had to strain my ears to hear him properly.

I sucked in a shaky breath, closing my eyes tight I made a sound of agreement.