"Hey." I greet, sitting in one of the uncomfortable visitor chairs. It felt more like a prison than a mental health ward. I had been here for about two months and a half now, it wasn't that bad but I still wanted to die. Amelia, a new girl had moved into my room she was silent but I liked her, and I could tell Jace did too. Instead of his normal, slamming the doors open he would knock, a blush creeping on his face.
I had formed myself a little misfit group, Ciera, Nick, Oli, and even Dominic had become my friends. I learnt little things about them, gossip that made the place seem more normal.
"Hey." Alex greeted, flopping himself into the seat across from him. When Doctor Harper said I had a visitor, I had suspected Ben not Alex. "Your hair is blonde again." he blurted out.
"Yeah, the shitty soap pretty much has an 'anti dye' label."
"So how is things?" He asked, running a hand through his hair. Who knew a couple months could change a person, Alex looked different, more grown up.
"Okay, you?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. The band got signed, so we've been busy." He said, the first smile appearing on his face since coming here.
"So why did you decide to visit." I asked, cutting the tension between us.
"Jack."
"I don't want to hear it." I say, bawling my fists and standing up from the chair. I didn't want to be here any longer.
"Please, Nora, please. He isn't the same, why can't you two just visit each other?" Alex begged
"I don't know, maybe I'm in a fucking mental hospital because I want to die. I've tried killing myself twice while being here, who does that?" I yelled at him, clawing my hands at the chair I was holding, trying to fight back rage.
"I'm sorry, I just don't know what to do. He drinks a lot, sleeps around a lot, and I know we're young but Jack can't even keep a girlfriend." Alex continued, his face dropping.
"And that's my problem?"
"Why are you both so stubborn? I try to think this is just another one of you twos break ups, but it isn't." He half yelled at me, his breathing growing heavier.
"Just go."
Waiting for Alex to leave, I try calming myself more. I wanted to get out of here and causing a fuss wouldn't help. "Nora, I'm sorry." Alex apologizes, pulling his jacket from the chair. Heading towards the door, Alex spoke to the nurse for a moment before turning to me. "He still loves you."
Ben came in straight after Alex, giving me no chance to leave and just go back to the recreation room. Across from us, Ciera was talking to her Nana in their own language. "Hey." Ben greeted, sitting down in the place were Alex just was.
"Hey."
"How was your conversation with Alex?" He questioned, resting his head on his hands and staring at me.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"Yeah, I understand but from all the commotion I'm sure Doctor Harper will." Ben continued, blonde hair falling over his face, he needed a hair cut badly.
"So what's up." I smile, stretching my hands in the air.
"Nothing much but you look happier than usual. That's a surprise since Alex stormed out before."
"What can I say? I'm bipolar and depressed, just living the high life. Also a recovering drug addict, the weird shit they give me to get off the addiction makes my tongue turn black." I continued, opening my mouth and showing Ben my black tongue. Of course, I was putting a happier light on unhappy situations. I haven't been sleeping well, at all, it's something to do with the drugs.
"Doctor Harper said you had another episode the other day." Ben replied, choosing his words carefully.
"Yeah." I replied, tapping my nails against the table.
"Who painted your nails?" He questioned, understanding that I didn't want to talk about my 'episode'. He knew everything already, doctor Harper would have told him. She had given up on contacting my parents, who did pay for the bills but had no part in my life.
"Ciara, she got nail posh for her birthday. The only sucky part is we have no nail polish remover because it's hazardous. Well we thought it was sucky until Oli fell asleep in the rec room and we painted his toe nails orange." I explain, smiling to myself.
"Uh, Nora there is one thing that I do have to tell you." Ben sighed, I knew he had been avoiding all serious topics.
"Gareth broke up with you."
"Wait how did you know?"
"Well you have the expression of, Gareth just broke up with me, or Ruby is in prison. Seeing that Doctor Harper let me use the phone and I called Ruby the other day, Gareth broke up with you." I skillfully reply using my detective skills. In reality I probably had just been watching too much Sherlock. Someone from one of the other groups left their DVD in the group session room, it was like Christmas.
"Am I that readable?"
"I was just guessing. So why did Gareth leave you?" I ask, before pulling my jacket back on. This room was as cool as balls, as Nick told me once. I had to hand it to Ben, he was a lot better than my parents at giving me clothes.
"He doesn't have the guts to stand up to his family. They want me gone because apparently he still has room for god."
"That's fucked up, I would have just left. "
"They're trying to revert him." Ben added, pressing his head in his hands and staring at the table.
"Can't you call social services? Is it even possible to 'revert' someone from being gay?" I replied, feeling anger spike in me. I liked Gareth and nobody deserves that.
"I told him that but he loves his parents and that information would kill the family."
"So, what now? Are you just going to move on?"
"No I'm not like you." Ben mumbled, and I only just caught onto the words.
"Harsh."
"Sorry. When do you get out? Our family is turning to shit and I can't prop it up on my own." Ben sighed, before looking up at me.
"I don't know, when I get better? If I ever will get better." I reply, sinking back into my seat just as somebody announced visiting time was over.
I had to go see Doctor Harper now, it was going to be the highlight of my day. The only reason I even liked her office was the arrange of pot plants, and the family photos on her desk. It took me awhile to recognize the little boy in the photos to be Jace. The two just bicker whenever they're around each other, it made sense they're related.
"Nora, welcome." She greets, holding her office door open.
"Hey." I mumble, stepping into the room and sitting down rigidly on one of the chairs.
"So I wanted to discuss a topic today." She started.
"When do you not."
"Jack." She finally cuts in, her voice stronger.
"Who's that?" I lie, failing at hiding the panic from my face.
"Nora, tell me about Jack. He was the person who saved your life."
"I didn't ask for him to." I admitted, picking up one of the stress balls she had along her desk.
"Then why would he save you?" She questions, cringing slightly at me throwing the red ball into the air.
"It's Jack, he would save anyone."
Jack's POV
Lying on the cheap hotel couch, I warmed myself up to a empty bottle of Jack Daniels. I was alone at the hotel today, it was our day off from preforming around the place. Alex, had gone back home for the day and should be back anytime soon. Zack went out exploring, and who knows where Rian disappeared to.
I guess this is our life since we got signed, going to shitty hotels and driving around. I did love the crowds, the music, and the singing people, but it only satisfied the empty feeling I had for awhile.
"Honey I'm home." Alex joked, as he opened the hotel door and I just groaned as it let in light from outside. This was one of the first times, we were playing somewhere without our parents driving us to the venue. I missed having someone to clean up the hotel rooms, but I guess this is growing up.
"Hey." I mumbled, curling up into the couch more while using the glass bottle to cool my body down from the heat.
"So I, uh, went to see someone today." Alex nervously started sitting himself down on the chair beside the couch.
"Good for you."
"I saw Nora." He blurted out before retracting further back into his seat.
"How is she?" I found myself asking, as I sat up. It surprised Alex as much as it surprised me. Normally I found myself getting angry at the mention of her name but today i couldn't bother.
"Not the same."
"Did she mention me?" I asked, and I saw Alex think about what to say. "Just tell me the truth."
"I mentioned your name and she got angry." He continued, stumbling out the words. "She told me that you're not her problem."
"Alex, why can't I just forget her. I think it's time for me to move on anyway."
"I don't know." He admitted, brown hair covering his eyes as they darted past me and stared blankly at the hotel lamp.
"Well, aren't we a happy bunch." I grinned, rolling off and onto the wooden floor, leaving my empty bottle behind.
"You look ridiculous." Alex announced still staring at the lamp, but a smile twisting on his lips.
"Excuse me? Haven't you looked in the mirror." I pouted, placing a hand over my chest.
"Not since you broke it."
"I'm sorry that I'm just so beautiful that mirrors break in my presence."
Throwing the hotel pillow at me, Alex started laughing, he looked crazy. Laughing so much that his eyes were watering and he seemed to have trouble breathing. I didn't even think what we were doing was that funny. "Don't change."He finally said, and I don't understand it. I think he's gone mad.
"Well if you would stop dying, my mom gave me some money, and I want Chinese food."
"When do you not want Chinese food? Can't we just get room service, you're not even wearing pants." Alex continued, stretching his arms into the air.
"Come on, room service is expensive."
"Hey, dude." Alex questioned, as I was pulling on my skinny jeans that I had left on the floor. "What actually happened when you went to see Sally?"
"Nothing." I quickly lie, turning around to pull on a hoodie so my best friend couldn't see my face.
"Did you find out why she sold Nora those drugs?"
"To make a living." I cut in, grabbing my wallet from under the couch.
"Jack, what are you hiding?" Alex questioned, pulling on his jacket.
"Nothing, just Sally was in a bad shape and I didn't want you to know." I lie, well sort of lie, she was in a bad shape.
"Fuck, I thought it was weird why she moved. I guess a kid can't hide black eyes as well."
"Yeah." I mumbled, holding the hotel door open for him.