Chapter 10
Since meeting Brooke, Hank's life has changed in a huge way. More than one huge way for that matter. Before meeting Brooke Hank was living in his parents basement and was constantly relying on his mother for everything, it was almost like he was in her pouch.
He hardly got out of the house at all and had very few interests in meeting any women. Since he was a kid he had always thought of himself as Asexual.
It had never bothered him, it was what was normal for him, it did however bother his mother. Laurie always tried to set him up on dates with girls and even some guys but none of them interested him in the slightest.
Laurie was always worried he would be alone forever and would be mooching off her and her husband Henry for the rest of his life.
Her other son Trent, who was three years younger then Hank had always been a ladies man and a sexual maniac and Laurie always wanted Hank to follow in his baby brother's footsteps and hopefully learn a few things from Trent, but that never seemed to happen.
But when he finally met Brooke he found that he was not asexual after all he just hadn't met the right person yet. A spark lit up inside him like never before.
He fell very hard for Brooke the second upon meeting her and at the same time she had fallen in love with him the second upon meeting him as well. Not only had she sparked his sexual life but she had also sparked a new chapter of his indipendence from then on he was able to break free from his mother's pouch. He certainly didn't think he'd ever have to call up his mother about relationship problems, but now he is in the waiting room doing just that and feeling like just as much of a mama's boy as ever. Laurie answers on the first ring.
"Hank sweetie, it's 2:00 in the morning" She says. "Mom please don't freak out" He says.
"But I'm at the hospital" "Oh my god Hank are you all right?" Laurie cries she most certainly hasn't kept her promise about not freaking out, "I will be down their right away" "No mom please don't I mean, It's not me, it's Brooke"
"Oh my god, is she all right?" She asks,
"No apparently not, she's actually not doing well at all. She overdosed on a bunch of my Viagra. She was trying to take my Halcion, if she hadn't woken me up to tell me what she'd done then she'd probably be dead" "Oh my god" Laurie cries, "Why would she do that?"
"Because she's really unhappy" He says,
"She was trying to kill herself" "Oh dear" Laurie says, there is a long silence for quite some time.
"Mom?" Hank asks, "You still there"
"Yeah honey" She says, "I am, this might be kind of hard for you to hear right now" "What?" Hank asks, "Well Hank I really hate to break it to you but I kind of" She clears her throat,
" I kind of always thought Brooke seemed a little nutty, but I never got the impression that she was unhappy and I certainly never got the impression that she was suicidal"
"Nutty, what do you mean nutty?" Hank asks, "I don't know" Laurie says, "It doesn't matter. I really like her. She's been really great for you" "I want to know what you mean" He says stubornly.
"Hey it doesn't matter" Laurie says again, "No it does" Hank protests. Laurie sighs. "Honey I just didn't want to say anything about it because she's always been my favorite one of your girlfriends and I know she's so special to you and like I just said I really like her and I think she's been really great for you in fact I think she's been the best thing that's ever happened to our family"
"Favorite of my girlfriends huh?" Hank asks, he hates it when she calls her that, she thinks it's amusing but he does not, she knows very well that he's never had any other girlfriends or anything even close to others. "She's my only girlfriend" "Well yes honey I know that" Laurie says. She is not making any of this easy.
"She's your first and only girlfriend you really love her and I really love her she's changed your life in a big way, but she's you know" "Nutty" Hank says.
"Yes a bit" Laurie says, "She's always seemed a little bit out there," "What about her?" Hank asks. "Do we really have to get into this?" Laurie asks, "Well since you brought it up yes why do you think she's out their?" "It doesn't matter" Laurie says, "She cares a great deal about you and that's all that matters" "She does not care a great deal about me god damnit,
she doesn't even care a little bit about me, if she cared about me at all she wouldn't have taken all those pills. She doesn't care about anything anymore" He feels a sickening pain in the pit of his stomach when he realizes something. He is still as in love with her as when he first met her, but she is not in love with him anymore. She does not even love him anymore, he is even starting to question whether she even likes him. He also realizes that while he still loves her he also feels that he has to be with her because he is obligated,
things would be so much easier if he didn't love her anymore so much less complicated, so now he is even more stuck then he thought he was. "Well she must care about you at least a little" Laurie says, "I mean she did tell you about what she did right away and to me it sounds like she must also care quite a bit about staying alive" "Yeah she does, because of some stupid movie" It suddenly occurs to him that he is crying, tears are flowing freely down his cheeks. it also occurs to him that Brooke is shallow and also something else,
Brooke is human, for two years he had been puting her on a pedastole and who could really blame him he had never been in love before she was perfect she could do no wrong, now suddenly she is a real person with flaws. Lots of flaws, but being human does not excuse what she did.
"I'm sure it's not because of some stupid movie" Laurie says, "Don't be ridiculous" "It is" Hank says, "Believe it or not she's that shallow" Laurie bites down hard on her lip. "I'll be right over" She says. "Okay" Hank says, "She'll be released at around 12:00 today" He says, "If her Psych evaluation goes over okay"
"Oh Hank" Laurie says, "I really hope she's okay. I really hope that evalutation goes okay and everything" "Well apparently you don't think she is going to be okay you think she's nutty" "Honey could you please drop that?" Laurie asks. "I really shouldn't have said that" "Tell me the truth mom" Hank says, "Do you really think she's good for me, do you really think she's the best thing that's happened to this family?
I don't think you have any idea how shitty this situation is for me" He doesn't even give her a chance to answer he just hangs up just like that. Maybe she has always seemed nutty, maybe he should have payed closer attention. There were two major things standing in his way however, one being that he had always had trouble reading people and the other that he had always put her on a pedestol obviously.
A Morning nurse let's herself into Brooke's tiny secluded room. "Could I get you anything to eat?" She asks. Brooke looks at the time the clock reads 8:00 AM.
Had really that much time gone by she was pretty sure last she had checked the time it was maybe something like 3:00 in the morning.
Maybe she had fallen asleep after all, she honestly can't remember. She is starting to realize just how hungry she really is, she litterally hasn't eaten in maybe sixteen hours.
"Sure" Brooke says. "Anything you want in particular" the nurse asks
"A sandwich" She says staring at the ground. "Hey don't judge me" She suddenly snaps out of nowhere,
"I can have a sandwich at 8:00 in the morning if I want" The nurse gives her a puzzled look. "I'm sorry" Brooke says becoming all tearfull again. "You weren't judging me were you" "No honey" She says, "Not at all, you can have whatever you want? What would you like in your sandwich?"
"Jelly" Brooke says, "Just jelly"
"You got it" The nurse says,
"Any particular flavor of Jelly?"
"Whatever" Brooke says.
She is now left to wait for what seems like hours, only this time, time seems to be going by even slower as she looks at the clock she sees that only 2 minutes have gone by it is only 8:02. In what seems like almost forever there is a knock at the door.
"Thank you for waiting so patiently" the nurse says letting herself in. She places the sandwich in front of her, "Just jelly as you suggested"
"Thank you" Brooke says as she hungrily bites into it and realizes she is even more hungry then she thought she was. When she bites into it she realizes that something just isn't right. It is not just jelly she feels something moving inside of her mouth she holds the sandwich back and is terrified to see magets, centipieds, spiders, caterpillers, earwigs, beatles and all kinds of other disgusting creepy crawlers making their way out of the two slices of bread. She shreiks loudly and throws the plate against the wall.
"Sweetie? What's wrong?" The nurse asks.
"Are you all right?" Brooke hyperventilates, then gags and vomits.
"Are you all right?" The nurse asks again. Brooke gives her a look of pure betrayal. "I asked for just jelly!" She shriks. She knows that she is sounding like a spoiled little brat but she can't help it, it is not what she asked for obviously. Obviously she did not ask for bugs in her sandwich that would be just absurd.
"Sweetie I don't know what you're talking about" The nurse says.
"This is a perfectly good sandwich I watched them prepare it and I swear they did not put anything else in it besides jelly I promise, no peanut butter,no cream cheese no butter no"
"Creepy crawleries?" Brooke asks in an eerily quiet voice her whole body is shaking uncontrollably. "I beg your pardon?" The nurse asks.
"Creepy Crawleries!" Brooke says again only it's not a question this time and she didn't say it so quietly this time. The nurse gives her another confused look. "I'm afraid I don't understand" She says. "What are you talking about?" Brooke doesn't understand why the nurse is so confused doesn't she see the bugs crawling out every which way of the semi eaten sandwich she has thrown against the wall? She can feel her blood freeze when she realizes that maybe once again she is having hallucsinations. It is the ant infestation all over again. But at the same time it just seems so real to her.
"Y'you don't see them? They're right over there?"
"Sweetie what are you talking about?" The nurse asks,
"The creepy crawlies" Brooke says again like it is the most obvious thing in the world and to her it is the most obvious thing in the world or at least it should be the most obvious thing in the world. "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about" Now Brooke is more agitated then ever. "Th' the creepy crawlies" She says,
"See!" "No I do not see, I don't see anything, could you tell me what you're reffering to" "You don't see the spiders and centepieds and milipeids and and earwigs and and and and magots?" "I'm afraid not" The nurse says, "Where did you say they were?" "Well in that sandwich snuh!" "Just jelly" She says, picking it up from the wall and placing it next her bedside. Brooke shrieks loudly. "Get it away from me, it scares me get it away from me it scares me I'm scared of it" "Sweetie there's nothing to be scared of it's just a sandwich" Brooke stares at her with eyes full of betrayal, "Don't mock me!" she says in a hurt voice. "I'm not mocking you" The nurse says. "It is not just a sandwich god damnit" Brooke cries. The two of them are silent for a while. "There aren't any creepy crawlies are there?" Brooke finally asks after a really long time.
"I'm afraid not" The nurse says.
"Oh Shit" Brooke says burrying her hands in her face. "God fucking damnit. I'm losing it" She then bursts into loud hysterical tears for about the billionth time that day and probably like the 50 billionth time since her depression started. "I'm losing it" she cries. "God damnit"
"Hey don't worry" The nurse says, "Dr. Layne will be into see you real soon"
"Who's Dr. Layne?" She asks even though she has a pretty good idea of who Dr. Layne might be, there is only one doctor who is guaranteed to see her and that is the Psychiatrist or therapist or Psychologist or whatever fancy word Dr. Stevenson called him. "Well he is the Psychiatric Resident. He's going to preform a Psychological evaluation" "Damn" Brooke cries. Punching down really hard on her pillow. "So is it because I'm crazy, that's it isn't it oh god" She burries her face in the pillow and sobs even harder and even louder she has become quite the expert at sobbing into pillows. The nurse gently strokes her back.
"Sweetie" She says. "You need not take it personally" Brooke stares up at the nurse, her eyes are bright red and her face is wet. "Why shouldn't I?" She asks,
"Why shouldn't I take it personally that you think I'm crazy?" "I don't think any of the sort, It's just a routine we have to go through. We have to do this with all of our suicidal patients here it's just important for them to you know get their heads checked before they can start leaving the hospital" She says, by the way she said 'get your head cecked' or rather 'get there heads checked' referring to all of the suicidal patients it sounded like she most certainly did think she was some sort of crazy. "Does that make sense?" She asks when Brooke doesn't say anything.
Brooke doesn't answer instead she just becomes very indignant and impatient "Why not?" she asks, "What?" The nurse asks. "Why don't you think so?" The nurse turns her head side ways. "Why don't I think so what?" She asks. "Well that I'm crazy snuh!" Brooke says, "Well I do think you'll have a lot to discuss with Dr. Layne" She says. "Oh so you do think I'm crazy" Brooke says accusingly. The nurse blinks her eyes a couple of times. "I, I didn't say that" She sighs heavily. "Look I'm afraid we're really not getting anywhere with this it seems like this conversation is getting rather circuler here" "Well you said I have a lot to talk about with Dr. Layne" Brooke says almost accusingly. "That's basically the same as saying I'm crazy isn't it. You're basically saying that I have a lot to talk about with the Psychiatric resident, so I guess that means I must be crazy obviously"
"I will let you talk more about this with Doctor Layne" The nurse says again, "Technically it isn't really even my place to be talking about such personal issues like this this with you."
"What is a Psychological exam?" Brooke asks. "It isn't a psycological exam it's actually a Psycological evaluation" The nurse tells her " And I'm really not sure what kinds of things it intails seeing that it is not my area of expertice, I'm just a night nurse that's all I do, I'm sure Dr. Layne can answer these questions and clear out any of these concerns a hell of a lot better than I can. If you'd like I could page him right now, if you want to get your evaluation over. do you want that?"
Brooke thinks about it for a while, the sooner the better she supposes. "Sure" She says. "All right" The nurse says, and begins paging a man named Robert Layne. "He will be in momentarily" She says. Brooke has come to found that in the edical profession momentarily does not just mean right away, it means when ever they are done with another patient or making a phone call or finishing up with lunch break whatever business they have to get done before hand, she knows that momentarily means she is going to have to wait for what is going to once again seem like hours but once again time is going to go by very very slowly.