This is a re-write of Betcha Just Might Swallow Your Tongue

I explained some of this in the last chapter of the old story which I am keeping up.

I've changed some stuff in this chapter. So read it!

Disclaimer: You know the drill

This is just fantastic!

Man, my life is amazing!

Who wouldn't want to be here?

You'd have to be crazy to pass up the chance at a stay in Radiant Gardens Mental Health Facility!

Well actually not crazy. Considering they only let the crazies in.

I guess I'm considered one of those crazies now.

I let the faintest shadow of a smile cross my lips. I do agree with what I did may seem a bit crazy. But it was a one time deal. A stupid thought I acted on. Kids do stupid things all the time! No need to send someone to the nuthouse over it.

I look around at the pristine white walls. I won't be locked up within them very long. All I need to do is talk to someone and they'll realize I'm not mentally or emotionally disturbed.

Everything just got blown out of proportion. It wasn't even that big of a deal.

I kneel in the grass of my backyard watching my brother's sneakers burn. I can see the reds and oranges and yellows consume the shoes. I can smell the burning rubber. I can hear the crackling and melting. If I breathe through my mouth I can taste the smoke. It doesn't make me choke or cough. I'm use to smoke.

The flames danced enticingly. Fire doesn't burn, fire dances.

I wonder what fire actually felt like, like how it really feels. I want to know what it's like to hold it in my hands. I just want to be…closer to it.

I know it's hot. But are the flames smooth feeling?

Or were they sharp?

I reach out and set my hand right on the flame. It dances and licks at my palm. Like a puppy in a pet shop. It hurt at first. But I don't let myself pull back. My hand blisters and the skin starts to melt away revealing the tender pink flesh underneath.

The fire catches the hairs on my arm on fire. The flames dance to the hairs on my arms, using the tiny fibers as fuel. I watch, the pain seeming like an annoying voice in the back of my head. A voice that grows fainter and fainter.

I hear the screen door being pushed open. I don't look back. I can ignore it and like the pain, it won't matter anymore.

"God damn it Axel! Those are my new sneakers! Burn your own shoes!" My brother, Reno screams at me. Reno runs up behind me prepared to yell some more, but he stops dead in his tracks when he sees the inferno working it's way up my arm.

"Axel…Axel stop it! What the fuck do you think you're doing! Stop it!" he yells in a high pitched panicky voice.

I just ignore him. I stare at my hand. It's just so beautiful.

Reno grabs my shoulder and jerks me back from the burning shoes. I use my non-burning hand to catch myself from falling. I don't dare take my eyes off the flames. I don't want to miss it. I don't want Reno to miss it!

Only then did I actually acknowledge his presence. I reached my hand up towards him with a small smile on my lips.

"Look at me…I'm burning," I say holding my arm out to Reno. I want him to see this; I want him to feel happy with me.

Reno leans away from me, his eyes wide with fear. He rips off his jacket and wrapped it around my arm smothering the flames. I try to fight him but the flames are gone before I can do anything.

The fire is gone. The bright burning beautiful fire is gone.

I stared at the blistered and charred flesh on my arm. It's so ugly. The fire was so pretty. But it made my arm so ugly.


I can dimly remember the ambulance ride with the EMTs picking off the dead flesh with tweezers. It hurt real bad. But I didn't make a sound. I didn't grimace in pain. I just stared straight ahead. It was like I was a zombie. I couldn't snap myself out of it.

Reno on the other hand was freaking out. He shook me trying to get me to say something. He called mom telling her what happened. He told the doctors what I did. I think he cried at one point. I wanted to tell him to cool the fuck down, but I couldn't even focus my eyes on him.

The doctors drugged me so I'd fall asleep and they could fix my arm.

When I woke up I was back to my normal self. I could talk. I felt fine. My hand felt raw and painful. I couldn't move my fingers, but I figured it would all go back to normal eventually. I was ready to go home. But the hospital did some psycho analyzing shit on me. They said I was unstable.

That I needed help.

That I was a pyromaniac.

They made Mom and Reno believe them. They ate up all the plans for rehabilitation and a better life for me. I tried to tell them I was completely sane, but they wouldn't listen to me. The doctors made Mom sign papers to send me to Radiant Gardens. And that was that.

So that's why I was currently sitting in the lounge area with a bunch of crazies. I'm supposed to sit in the lounge until the nurse lady has time to show me around and explain the rules. I don't understand why they are leaving me all alone on my first day…in a mental hospital.

"Hello! I'm the Great Ninja Yuffie! Are you new?" asks some girl with short black hair and a wide smile on her face. She sits down next to me on the couch and looks at me expectantly. Like a kid waiting for the answer to the universe.

"Um? You're a ninja?" I ask uncertain how crazy this girl could be. She looks normal. But earlier I had made the mistake of thinking this guy named Hatter was normal.

He was not normal in any sense of the word.

"Oh yes! I'm a black belt. I've saved the world many times with my skills," says Yuffie quite perkily. Her smile fades a bit and her eyes dim, "But nobody ever believes me."

Suddenly she gets up and bolts from the room. I stare after her confused.

"Yuffie's really nice. But she's delusional. Don't mind her," says a kid with spiky brown hair sitting in one of the armchairs across from me. "I'm Sora. What's your name?"

I look him over warily before answering. He has a kind boyish face. He seem like he couldn't be older than fifteen or sixteen.

"I'm Axel. Before you say anything, are you as insane as the rest of these people?" I say warily. I know I'm being rude by asking this, but my prior experiences with my fellow patients have not given me a reason to trust him. Although, what crazy person would admit to being crazy?

"Hahaha. No. I'm just a little OCD. But I'm getting better now. So it's not as bad. I'll probably be leaving soon," replies Sora not looking the least bit insulted.

"Oh, well that's good. I'll probably be leaving soon too," I say.

"Really? Why?" asks Sora his eyes widening.

"I really shouldn't be here, it's all a misunderstanding," I say rolling my eyes.

"Oh…well I hope you get to go home," replies Sora timidly, the friendliness disappearing from his face being replaced with apprehension.

I don't know what I said wrong. I open my mouth to ask what his deal is when the nurse pokes her head in the door, "Ready for the tour?"

"Sure," I say getting up. I don't care what Sora thinks, he's crazy anyway.

The nurse motions me to walk over to a big board hanging on the wall, "First of all, I am Nurse Aerith, and I'm the head nurse. You come to me or any of the other nurses if you have any problems. A basic schedule would be breakfast at 8 o' clock. Then you have school for two hours followed by lunch. Then there's free time or Group Therapy. They can switch depending on current situations and scheduled activities. In the evening you will have an enrichment activity like music, art, library, etc. On certain days you will have your scheduled therapy session. Then you eat dinner and get ready to return to your room. Lights out is at 10 o' clock. We do lock the doors at night and do checks every 15 minutes. So don't try anything funny," she finishes off her explanation with a sweet smile. Nurse Aerith seems very motherly. Like a stereotypical nurse, "Do you have any question?"

"Yeah, what's this board for?" I ask pointing to the giant board with names and numbers written on it.

"Oh right! I almost forgot. It's the achievement board. We have 3 levels here. You start at level 1 and work your way up to level 3. The levels have different privileges. You level jump by improving in activities and your therapy. You need to get to level 1 before getting releases. Do you understand all that?" she asks writing my name on the board with a giant 3 next to it.

My heart sinks a little when I see the 3. I just want to leave. I don't want to earn levels and mess with therapy and being locked in my room at night, "Yeah I understand."

"Alright well let's walk around"

I follow after Aerith through the halls of Radiant Garden. It's actually smaller than I expected. There's a cafeteria, a lounge, a music room, a nurses station, an office station, a couple bathrooms, and an art room. Plus all the patients rooms which really only consist of 2 beds and 2 bedside tables. Which means I have a roommate.

"So do you know who my roommate is?" I ask warily.

A strange expression flashes across Aerith's face before she answers, "Oh yes, his name is Roxas. I saw him in the art room if you'd like to meet him."

"Um…alright."

The art room is very bright. There are many drawings proudly hung up on the wall. Most of the drawings look like they were made by a retarded five year old. There are only two other people in the room. One is a girl with shoulder length blonde hair and clear blue eyes sitting in the corner scribbling furiously in a sketchbook. The other is a boy sitting at one of the tables lazily swiping a pencil across a piece of paper. I surmise that the boy is my new roommate.

He has blonde hair spiked up to one side and very bright blue eyes. He looked really skinny, almost too skinny. His shoulders are hunched into himself in a weird protective position. I can almost see his should blade through the back of his shirt.

Aerith goes and gently sits next to my skeletal room mate. I follow her awkwardly, not sure what to expect.

"Hey Roxas this is Axel! He's your new roommate," says Aerith softly.

Roxas doesn't reply. He doesn't even acknowledge that he heard Aerith. He just keeps drawing on his paper. He is drawing a very detailed picture of a cake. I start to feel an awkward silence so I said the first thing that came to my mind because of all things in the world, I cannot stand awkward silences.

"That's a really good picture. It looks like you could actually eat the cake." I smile trying to be friendly. If I'm going to be stuck here it won't hurt to make some friends.

"Yes. Yes it does," replies Roxas very softly. I can barely hear what he says. He crumples up his drawing and stuffs it in his mouth with no warning. Then chews and swallows the wad of paper in one gulp.

"Roxas! How many times have I told you not to eat paper or any other art supplies?!" scolds Aerith like this kid is a three year old instead of…I'm not even sure how old he could be.

I stare at the little blonde kid. He looks really happy, like he actually had just taken a bite out of a real birthday cake instead of eating paper. Something about this gives me a sinking feeling in my stomach.

Loved it? Hated it?

Review and give me thoughts! What should I tweak?