Going Home was intended as a one shot, an experiment to see if I could portray depression. But after seeing the pain that some good friends of mine went through when they discovered that their teenaged daughter had been cutting herself, I found that more of this story demanded to be told.
NORMAN
I was quite pleased to find Master Roger and Miss Dorothy working side by side in the kitchen until I noticed that the smile Master Roger greeted me with didn't quite reach his eyes. Dorothy was unusually focused on her task; she wished me a brief good morning and then returned her attention to adding measures of coffee to the coffee pot. The speed with which she ran to the sink made it seem as if she was using the need to fill the pot with water as an excuse to flee from our presence. Master Roger quickly ran after her as if it terrified him to let her out of his sight. I didn't wish to interfere but it was obvious that something was very wrong. I asked if I could be of any assistance. They looked at me hesitantly then, to my surprise, Master Roger put his arms around Dorothy and told her that I had a right to know what had happened.
She nodded and looked at me for the first time that morning. "Norman," she said. "Last night… if Roger hadn't stopped me, I would have done a very bad thing."
DOROTHY
Roger was correct, Norman did have a right to know what I had done, but that did not make telling him any less difficult. I knew that what I had to say would upset him or even cause him to be angry with me. After I told him, he stared at me and then hugged me tightly. "Oh my dear child," he said when he finally let me go. "Thank the Lord that Roger found you in time." I looked at his face and saw tears running down his cheeks. I wish he had been angry. It would have been easier to bear.