Toby sat in his padded cell the events of the past few weeks repeating his head. Crash, Lyra flat line, black outs, biting the skin off his hands, hallucinations, doctors, pills…padded room.

Toby was so absorbed in his own life trying to figure out exactly when it turned down this path and what he didn't do to change it he didn't notice to door open. He didn't notice the pale white hair middle aged man in a suit and crimson tie standing watching the straight jacket bound boy. The man looked at the numb twitching teenage boy who had been locked in this room. He was so partly for his mental state mostly because he hated being around the other patients they made him feel more insane than he really was.

The man wasn't sweating unlike everyone in the building else. The air conditioning was broken, and the hot Colorado summer was relentless, but the man wasn't bother by it. "Toby Rogers?" Toby's brow furrowed, and his head limply turned towards the man. "I think I may need to get them to up my meds." The man chuckled. "I can assure you I'm real Toby." Toby shrugged. "That's not all that assuring." The man nodded a smirk on his face. "May I sit with you?"

"Free country, right?" Toby said sarcastically. The man sat next to Toby and gave him a serious but honest look. "I've done a lot of research on you Toby and I want to help you."

"So, I AM getting new meds."

"No, I want to help you in no way any doctor can. I want to not only get you out of this hell hole but get you out in under a month." Toby smirked. "I'm not going to break out of here to join your cult man."

"No get you out of here with you mother here to pick you up and the doctors waving goodbye."

"So, you want to kill me?"

"You really don't think it's possible, do you?"

"Cause it's not."

"I've done it before." The man hand gotten Toby's attention. "How?"

"It won't be easy. You'll have to work hard."

"But I'll be out hallucination free?"

"I can't guarantee full clarity, but I promise it will lessen. I just need your parent's permission." Toby laughed. "WELL! I'm never getting out of here."

"I am aware of your situation but all we need is one parent's permission." Toby smirked. "I'm in."

The next day

The orderly that usually keep Toby from beating the shit out of whoever fucked with him opened Toby's door his usual blank stare adorning his face. "You have some visitors."

"Send 'em in." Toby said unceremoniously. "Not today." The orderly walked in and began to undo Toby's straight jacket causing Toby's eyes to widen. "Seriously?" the orderly just nodded and the second Toby jumped up hopping from food to foot. "That's fuck'n beautiful." The orderly just grabbed Toby's arm pulling him to the visitor's center where they found the man from the day before looking exactly the same.

The man was standing with another younger man older than Toby, enough to be considered an adult but nothing near the age of the suited man he accompanied. "Ah Toby. This is Tim he'll be your teacher and you only take the medication you receive from him now. No matter what." Toby thought this was a bit weird but didn't question it as he looked Tim up and down. Tim was on the shorter side of average 5' 8" or so. Toby towered over Tim though Toby didn't have trouble doing that for most people as he was 6' 2".

Upon taking note of Tim's height, he noted he, though only slightly, had to look up at the suited man who again unlike everyone around them wasn't sweating. Toby didn't mention it as the man began to speak again. "Tim will test you to see what you need to learn to be on target for high school graduation and then from there we will decide if you will continue with home schooling or if high school would be more beneficial."

"High school?" the man chuckled. "It's only a maybe." The man looked at his watch and frowned. "I'm going to have to go but Tim please stay and start with Toby's studies…if that's alright with you Toby." Toby nodded sharply, and the man left as Tim led Toby into the hospital garden.

"Why is he doing this?" Toby asked enjoying seeing the outdoors again, but Tim just shrugged. "If I knew I'd tell ya kid. He likes the cases everyone else gave up on, me included."

"What?" Tim pulled a hospital wristband from his pocket handing it to Toby. "You used to…?"

"12 years I spent going in and out of that place. Severe schizophrenia, violent seizures, memory loss after violent physical out breaks. Nearly killed my last roommate. I say last cause after that you don't get another one." Toby gave a chuckle. "Guess not…how many others are there?"

"I've lost count."

"Wow. How old were you when he picked you up?"

"20."

"How old are you now?" he chuckled. "21"

"Oh! So, you haven't been doing this long."

"Maybe not but it feels like it's been years."

Over the next 3 weeks Tim was my teacher in everything from trigonometry to Shakespeare. Though most of it was review because I was home schooled for a long time and my home schooling was helping Lyra with her homework.

After my lessons he'd assign homework and I'd head over to the physical rehab center in a connected building where Tim's mute friend would teach me how to box and wrestle and defend myself. Tim said it was a good way to channel unwanted anger and energy. I'm not really an angry person in fact I could be more described as "floppy" but getting rid of extra energy is good.

I'd been keeping up on my meds, homework and training and I'd been moved over to a real room with things like a bed and a desk.

One day as I'm getting ready for the day my doctor came in scratching his head looking at his clip board. "Toby 3 weeks ago you barely talked, ate or slept. You had to be restrained to keep from attacking others but now? Now I can't see a reason to keep you here. You're a functioning human being and I really think you can make it out there."

By the next day I was released! The next fucking day! I stepped out the front door and found Tim and Brian waiting for me. I ran up to them hugging Tim tightly the moving to Brian who ruffled my hair. "Told you we could do it." I whipped around and found the man I'd come to know as Slender. He refuses to give me a real name, but I don't care anymore. I hugged him the tightest almost crying into his chest. "Thank you so much." He wrapped his arms around me resting his chin on my head. "Anytime. Come there's someone who wants to see you." He pulled me around Tim's massive truck revealing my mother's tiny sedan with her standing in front of it. "Mom!" I ran over to her hugging her tightly. "Oh Toby. Thank god. I missed you so much it's so lonely at home without you!"