"Isn't that when kids normally move out?"
Gabe let out a tiny snort of laughter at this, leaning slightly against the chair his mother now sat in, talking to her new psychologist. This guy seemed so confident, so determined. But, hey, Gabe wasn't worried. It had been nearly 16 years and he was still here. No one was going to get rid of him. No matter how many drugs they filled her system with, no matter how many times they told her he was gone, she refused to let go. She left the back door to her mind open, let him back in every time.
He was safe. He was safe with every other doctor , he'd be safe with this new one as well. As long as his mother was alive he would be too.
He crossed the room as Dr. Madden moved to sit in a chair beside his mother, lounging on top of his desk. It seemed this man had already begun to lose his mother, get her caught up on useless analogies instead of just getting to the point. Gabe smirked, relaxing even further. This would be too easy. He surely wasn't going anywhere as long as his mother sought treatment from this guy. Sure, he'd heard what his dad said. Three women at work recommended him. Three women at work seemed to think he was some perfect miracle doctor.
But Dr. Madden was already failing with his mother. Gabe just knew it. It took more than talking to stabilize his mother. It took drugs. And even then, he was there, in the back of her mind, talking to her. He never left her life. And her never would. She wanted him alive more than anything in the world. Who knew what she'd trade for it? Her marriage? Her daughter? Who knew? Gabe was sure of one thing though.
He was the priority in the Goodman household. Dan and Natalie, they were both trying to push him out. Make him leave, change the locks on his mother's mind and make him disappear for good. No more hallucinations. No more memory. No more Gabe. But Diana? She was stronger. Despite everything she was stronger. That's why he was still here. Because every time they pushed she pulled. She pulled with all of her might, even if she was destroying herself in the process. She pulled even harder than them. And that's why he was still there. That's why he was never leaving. Because Diana was a fighter and she wanted him around.