"And then God said, love thy enemy. And I obeyed him and loved myself."
***
"SO, ARE you excited?" I spun my head slightly to gaze at Ana, her eyes twinkled in question and I smiled at her in return. "I wouldn't say I'm necessarily happy about it." Jonah continued blabbing on in the background but I tuned him out, giving my full attention to my friend next to me. "I just want to get it over with."
She shrugged in agreement, choosing not to verbally reply to me.
I took in the detail of the room we were all standing in. The area was nothing lavish, chipped paint littered the walls in odd patterns that most-likely dated back to the 90s which seemed to be when they last painted any part of this institute. The transparent ceiling allowed the bright sunlight to shine into the room, creating streaks of light to scatter throughout the space.
My wandering eyes zoned in on one of the surrounding security guards. Liam, I think his name was. I haven't had the time to mingle with everyone or get to know them on a more personal level, which was completely unnecessary anyway but I'd feel more comfortable having other friends around here.
Before I could look away, he raised his head and I looked away as fast as my reflexes would allow and felt my cheeks tint in embarrassment. When I was certain he had cast his vision somewhere else I looked back up and his eyes were still on mine. The man sent me a small smile and I smiled back in return, relieved that there didn't seem to be any awkward tension in the room.
Liam was a tall man. He was your average buff looking guy, which you would expect for the job he currently had. His blonde hair was messily strewn on the top of his head, as if he carelessly ran his hand through it every few minutes. He had bright blue eyes, perhaps hazel if I could see that far. They seemed kind, his stoic persona was most likely a front, he had to look hard and professional to maintain his image around here.
I was pulled out of my thought bubble by a light tap on my shoulder. A woman who I had never spoken to before handed me a fairly large clump of papers, held together by a few cluttered staples at the top.
"As I speak, you're all being handed your assigned inmates information. Everything you will need to know is now in your capable hands. The statistics range from criminal records to their biggest pet peeves, any surface information will be listed down to help you through the task. Does anyone have any questions? Now would be the time to ask."
Jonah finished off his rant and looked at all the surrounding nurses in question. There were only fifty or more people, excluding the security. There had to have been hundreds, maybe even thousands of prisoner's altogether. Why were so few nurses participating? As if my mind was read, Ana raised her hand and every head turned to her.
"Yes Miss McArtan?" a look of annoyance flashed through his eyes but he kept his composure and forged a smile. I scoffed, he wanted us to ask questions and got mad when we did. Classic Jonah.
"At the risking of sounding dumb, why are there so few nurses running the program? I assumed there would be a lot more of us based on the amount of prisoners." Fellow colleagues nodded their heads in agreement at her question.
"Good question Anastasia. This year things are a little different. As you may know, last year we performed this task with almost every inmate held here at Rikers. It ended up being more difficult than we anticipated which forced us to only have a few people participating this year. These are the most mentally and or physically challenged of everyone here. You've definitely got your hands full. But I trust I've chosen the best nurses to handle it. You all have your degrees in nursing and psychology which should be good enough to hold you through."
Before anyone else could get another question in, he continued speaking, simultaneously looking at his watch. "That'll be all for today, come to my office for any further inquiries. I expect to find you all here bright and early on Monday morning. We start at seven. That gives you three days to get your shit together and focus. Your schedule will be waiting on your desk that morning."
He got off the table he had been standing on and strutted out of the hall without another word, two guards following suit.
"The most mentally and physically challenged huh? We really got the mad bunch this year." I giggled lightly at my friend beside me as chatter echoed through the walls. "Who were you assigned to anyway?" I asked her, we hadn't discussed who she'd be working with yet.
"I got James Pillar. Never heard of him though." Her eyes scanned through the front page of his file and I did the same to mine. I already knew what was important about Alejandro. Well at least I think I do.
I skimmed through the pages which held information on the man. I took note of how his file was less stacked than everyone else's but I shrugged it off. The less I know the better. His birthdate, weight and other miscellaneous files were printed onto the paper and I rolled my eyes shutting the folder completely.
"This James guy sounds pretty hot based off his file." I snorted in disgust towards Ana's remark. "What? Listen, six five, twenty six, two hundred and sixty pounds, brown hair, brown eyes." She listed off his physical characteristics and I rolled my eyes at her antics. Anastasia would definitely be having fun the following week. "I get to sit and watch a hot mysterious man train for a week? Count me in."
"It's going to be a lot more than just sweat and gym equipment you know? This whole thing seems pretty important to Jonah." I observed, remembering how seriously he seems to be taking this.
"It isn't. He's a stuck up ass about everything that goes on here. Nothing more nothing less, you'll get used to it." I nodded and she stood up, motioning for me to follow her. I picked up my belongings and realized we were all alone and everyone had left, except for Sean and Grayson who stood patiently at the door.
He nodded curtly at the two of us, whereas Ana's escort smiled at the two of us but I brushed it off. Sean was never much of a talker.
With a hug goodbye and a promise to see each other later, Ana and I parted ways. I had about two or three corridors to walk down before I got to my office so I decided to make conversation with the quiet giant next to me.
He had to have been at least seven feet tall.
"How has your day been today Sean?" I asked, quickening my pace to keep up with him.
"Good."
I shrugged with a small smile. I hadn't expected a reply at all. We were making progress.
We rounded the last corner before he came to a stop at my door. He gave me a look that said "Call me if you need anything." I nodded and thanked him before entering my office and locking the door behind me.
I let out a tired sigh and sat at my desk, grabbing my water bottle and taking a large sip. The coolness instantly relaxed and I smiled in content, sipping the rest of it as time went by.
An hour later I found myself wiggling in my seat, I desperately needed to pee.
I probably should call Sean but I decided against it, I'd be quick and it was just down the hall.
I dashed across the floor as quick as I could and took the first corner which lead to the bathroom a few meters away. I opened the door and hurried into one of the stalls.
After finishing my business, I washed my hands and leisurely walked back to my office. The walk took me a few minutes before I was safely in my space once again. The door locked with a light clicking sound and I walked back to my desk, sitting back on the leather chair.
I gathered papers that were carelessly scattered on the area and prepared to shove them into the trash. But one folded small piece of notebook paper caught my eye and I eyed it suspiciously.
That wasn't there before.
I cautiously took the flimsy paper between my fingers and opened it up, observing its contents. In messy handwriting was a quote I was all too familiar with.
"For nothing, not the sun, not the rain, not even the brightest star in the darkest sky, could begin to compare to the wonder of you. And that was what destroyed you in the end: the longing for something you could never have."
I didn't notice how hard I was gripping the small note in my hand until my fingers started to hurt. My mind instantly flashed to a place where I had hoped I could hide in the back of my mind forever.
Saturdays were always like this at our house. We never had any plans, never left the house. But it wasn't ever boring, no. far from it.
"Which one will you choose for us today mal?" he asked, reclining in the seat he was in.
I stared up at the giant bookshelf with my doe eyes, I couldn't choose. There were too many options and I felt more conflicted. He noticed the confusion in my eyes and laughed. It was a deep noise, but more comforting than scary.
It sounded like cuddling on a rainy day or going to the beach on the first day of summer.
"I don't know." I admitted shyly, I was only ten. I read my fair share of novels but always had a difficult time choosing which one I wanted to indulge in. he always chose for me.
"How about this one, yeah?" his tall frame reached over me and grabbed onto the spine of the book. It had a beautiful grey and red cover, huge raven wing spread across the book, making it all the more eye catching.
I always judged the books I read off their cover. He hated that and I knew it. 'One simply cannot judge the content of something based off what you see on the outside.' He would say. Who knew those words would end up applying to him.
"Come on sunshine." He patted the armrest next to him and I perched myself on top of it. This was always our reading position.
The book took us two weeks to read. Which was surprisingly long, usually it would only take days but he wasn't home as often anymore.
But the end of the book was my favourite part anyway. Solely based off the one question he always asked.
"Which sentence spoke to you the most mal?"
I grinned instantly and sat on my knees, tucking my little feet behind my bum. "Page three hundred and ninety seven." I chimed, hoping he'd recognize the page.
He did.
"For nothing, not the sun, not the rain, not even the brightest star in the darkest sky, could begin to compare to the wonder of you. And that was what destroyed you in the end: the longing for something you could never have."
His face lit up as I recited the passage word for word.
"What does that mean to you?"
There he goes again with the big girl questions.
I shrugged unknowingly and he smiled at me either way.
But as the years went on I'd realize why those words had spoken to me.
I'd be longing for something I could never have for the rest of my life.
I snapped out of the memory, noticing the wet feeling of tears running down my cheeks one after the other.
My heart sank as I crushed the paper and threw it into the trash behind me.
Who put that there? And why did I have the feeling that it wasn't a coincidence?
I'm so glad to be back !! I missed this book so much and I forgot how much I enjoy writing it . This is possibly the best book on my profile .
Please point out any mistakes , this is not edited .
This chapter was a look into the reason behind our two mc's meeting and a look into Amelies past . I hope it wasn't too boring !
Don't forget to vote <3