Chapter 13 : the other side of the fence.

Dr. Jordan’s black fiat punto hummed down the road, the radio barely audible over the road noise, and his talking. He always talked, though now I never talked back. I had retreated into my self after the first time I had seen Dr. Jordan and he had sentenced me to spend at least the next six weeks in Apple Gate House. Every word got stuck in my mouth. Every tear eroded my soul and even though I was screaming like I was stuck in a nightmare on the inside, on the outside, I was deathly silent.

“Here we go then” Dr Jordan said as he leaned out the window of his car and keyed the numbers into the gate while shielding it with his hands so I couldn’t see. A loud beep signalled that the code was correct and the electronic gates began to open slowly. I stared straight ahead either not seeing or unwilling to look at the building that towered next to us; the three stories’ casting a shadow over the grounds. I shivered.

“Come on out you get then.” Dr Jordan said after he swung his door open and come over to open mine. I got out and for the first time permitted myself to steal a glance up at the building that had now become my home; I missed Annie’s and Paul’s modest terraced house.

It was so much bigger here then what it looked like from the road. Dr Jordan placed a guiding hand on my back and we began the walk to the front door. Through the windows I saw two girls and a boy bent over a giant table and another girl sitting in the corner in a ball trying to be as small as possible while a nurse dressed in jeans and a top with butterflies on knelt down in front of her. None of the others seemed to care that someone else sitting in the same room with them was so distressed and I wondered if tomorrow that would be me just in another corner, to weak to move, to scared to talk, to numb to cry.

Dr Jordan reached out an arm and rang the door bell, a shrill ring alerting any one inside that I had arrived. A few moments later a tall plump lady of around 210lb who was wearing a bright yellow t-shirt with printed blue flowers on it answered the door, she glanced over my pale features making her judgment of me in a few seconds, then turned her attention toward Dr Jordan. .

“Hi Nick!” She shouted brightly, “How are you doing?”
“Yeah not to bad Jean, not to bad,” Doctor Jordan smiled before he placed a heavy almost restraining hand on my shoulder.
“This is Mi,” He announced. I swallowed hard.

“Hello Mi, I’m Jean, come in and lets get you sorted out and settled in. then I will show you your room, I believe your In Dream room for the moment.”

I stole one last glance back over my shoulder and stepped into the hallway with Dr Jordan and Jean. I was on the other side of the fence now.