When Different Worlds Collide ✔️

Nowhere- Erik's POV

Erik's POV-

I sighed as I glanced over at Kat. She was staying completely silent while playing with her food. It was what she had been doing all week. All week long, even after our discussion a couple days before when she confided in me, she had been acting subdued and distant.

Nothing that I said helped. No matter what reassurances I tried to give her, it didn't matter. She still constantly looked like she wanted to cry, she was drained, and she was upset. I hated that I couldn't pull her out of the depression and regression that she was stuck in.

"Thank God that this is the last day before break. I can't stand this place," Chris exclaimed. "Bruh, I can't wait for Thanksgiving! Your momma's cooking is worth the year long wait," he continued. "Just you wait, Kat, you're gonna be blown away by all the food."

"Great," Kat said through gritted teeth as she stabbed at the food in front of her.

She had been weird about Thanksgiving ever since I had asked her to join my family. She had been weird about all of it. She was stuck. She was completely stuck in the cycle of self-deprecation that she had been trained to feed into.

The bell rang, making her jump violently. Everyone at our lunch table stared at her, but she ignored them completely. She simply gathered up her uneaten food, grabbed her backpack, and walked to the trashcan to dispose of the food that she refused to even consider eating.

I watched her as she walked away. She hadn't even looked back to see if I was following her. She simply walked away. She was stuck in her mind that was leading her down a path that I was worried would lead her too far away from me and everyone else.

"What's wrong with her? Is she okay?" Nia asked me quietly as Kat disappeared from my sight to her next class.

I sighed. "I don't know," I answered her truthfully. "I really don't know if she's okay."

Nia didn't reply. She just touched my shoulder softly and walked away to her next class. She didn't know what to say. I mean, what was there to actually say?

I stayed in the same place until the next bell startled me out of my reverie. I was worried. No, I was fucking terrified. Kat's behavior was scaring me. I didn't know what to do. Out of all the pamphlets that I had read, none of them had prepared me. They had touched on reversion, depression, anxiety, and breakdowns, but they didn't prepare me for it actually happening. I did the only thing that I could think of doing, I called Kat's therapist.

"Dr. Perry's office," the receptionist answered.

"Um..." I had no idea what to say. "I... Is there any way that I can speak to Dr. Perry? It's kind of important."

"She's at lunch right now. Can I take a message?"

"Um... Well, my name is Erik Jones. I'm calling about Katherine Reynolds. She's... I don't know how to describe it. I'm worried about her," I tried to explain.

"Are you afraid she'll hurt herself? Is she in immediate danger? Is she a threat to herself or others?"

"Not immediately, no. I..." I sighed I had no idea what I was even saying.

"Let me see if she's available to talk to you real quick. She can best decide on what to direct you to do," the receptionist said before she put me on hold.

As I waited for someone to get back on the phone with me, I exited the school. I didn't want to be overheard by anyone. Plus, I was already super late for class, so I didn't really see the point in trying to go. My main concern was Katherine at that moment; I didn't really give a shit about missing English or whatever other class.