My Artistic Mafia Man

Chapter 19: Faith and Mutiny

Chapter 19: Faith and Mutiny

Eltan Storm

I was flabbergasted as Dr. Parkins explained to me what dissociative personality disorder was.

Hearing one or more than one voice inside the head? Having more than one distinct personality? It was like two or three people living inside a single body. The behavior was controlled by the personality in charge.

Faith had this mental health condition.

She didn't just have headaches. Her entire head was fucked up.

"But I have never faced any of her other personalities—" I paused as a few images from last night and earlier this afternoon came to my mind.

It didn't take me long to come to a jarring conclusion.

Shit.

"Mutiny is Faith's other personality," I murmured, then told Dr. Parkins about it.

"So you have met her other personality? And she is called Mutiny?" he asked, noting it down.

I nodded my head, still in a trance. "I just met her last night. She... she is the complete opposite of Faith. She's like a psychopath."

He hummed and asked, "But are you sure Faith is the original one?"

His question almost made my heart stop. Because I wasn't sure about the answer.

I didn't know Faith long enough to confirm that. Nor did I know Mutiny enough. What if the person whom I fell for wasn't even real?

I ran a desperate hand through my hair, feeling my entire foundation shaking.

"Don't panic, Eltan," Dr. Parkins brought me out of my spiraling thoughts. "That was just a rhetorical question. Since you said Mutiny is the opposite of Faith, she must be the developed personality."

I felt a little relieved at that and asked, "Why does Faith have this? I mean, what causes dissociative personality disorder to develop usually?"

"In most cases, sexual or physical abuse during childhood. Sometimes, it develops in response to a natural disaster or other traumatic events," he replied. "The trauma usually causes aggressive, self-destructive behaviors to come out, which eventually turns into a whole another personality of its own."

My heart clenched hearing that. How much pain Faith had to have gone through...

"By the way, you don't have to look that hopeless, Eltan. Trust me, medical science has developed splendidly over the years. So she will be okay, although the treatment for DID is a long-term process. First of all, you need to know if Faith is aware of this other personality of hers and whether she feels safe yet or not."

"Safe or not?" I furrowed my brows in confusion.

"Yes. The trauma that she went through, does the fear still loom within her?"

"I don't know," I murmured, looking down at my lap in frustration.

It was shameful and infuriating that I knew next to nothing about Faith yet. I really should have done my research on her as soon as I started to like her.

But I was still adamant to hear her story from her own mouth, and for that, I had to pay my girlfriend a visit very soon.

###

I rang the doorbell at the same apartment for the second time that day and waited outside till the person I wanted to confront came out.

Her face blossomed into a big grin as soon as she saw me, and it made me feel bad that I was here to upset her. "Eltan!" Faith squealed. "Did you really miss me that much?"