When Nightmares Come Part 3:
An orderly slid the plastic tray containing Dick's breakfast of oatmeal and orange juice through the small opening at the bottom of his cell's door. Dick watched from his bunk. He sat on the far end of the bunk, his legs pulled up in front of him. Dick sat and watched quietly, never making an attempt to retrieve the food. The oatmeal was probably drugged, as well as the orange juice. They were keeping a lot of drugs in his system. Too many.
His tongue was thick and swollen. He knew this was a side effect to the medications they were pumping in him. His stomach rumbled. He would like to eat the food, no matter how bad it tasted. Would have loved to drink the orange juice too. But he didn't dare. Dick knew he had to lessen the amount of anti psychotic drugs in his system. He couldn't stop them from giving him the shots, at least not yet, but he could not eat. They were overmedicating him by putting it in his food. He knew it. He wasn't paranoid. Was he?
"No!" he mumbled as he took his hand and ran it over his face, feeling the week old stubble on his face. Dick stood and started pacing the cell like a caged tiger. His stomach roared with hunger. He hadn't eaten in almost a week. Angrily, he kicked the tray of food out of his cell. "I want OUT!" he yelled as he next kicked the bars of the cell door.
Guards and orderlies ran to the cell, surveying the scene.
"We going to have to restrain you again?" an orderly asked.
Dick turned to face the men, his icy blue eyes boring into the crowd. "No," he growled.
"Perhaps we should make Dick clean up his own mess," he heard Dr. Thaggan's voice say.
Dick felt a slight smile creep onto his face, "Yeah, why don't'cha."
Dr. Thaggan smiled broadly at Dick as he approached the door to Dick's cell. Placing his hand around one of the bars, "You'd like that wouldn't you? You think that you'd be able to escape if we let you out."
"I'm not thinking anything," Dick said gruffly, "it would just get me the hell out of this cell."
"If you want out of the cell, you could come back to your therapy appointments with me. Would you like that Dick?"
'I'd like to dislocate a few of your bones,' Dick thought before speaking, "Sure doc, whatever. Anything."
Dr. Thaggan turned to one of the orderlies standing around, "You clean up the mess. Guards, you bring Dick to my office. He's ready to start his therapy."
***********************************************************************
"Why don't we start with your childhood Dick?"
"Why don't we not?" Dick replied as he traced with his fingers the patterns on the arm of the floral chair he sat in.
"I thought you were ready to try and find the root of your problem?" Dr. Thaggan asked as he turned from his window and looked down at the young man sitting in the chair across from his desk.
Dick looked into the doctor's face. With a sly smile he responded, "Yeah, I want to get to the 'root' of my problem. But it's not in my childhood."
"Where then? Bruce Wayne?"
Dick looked up with anger in his eyes, "You don't know shit about Bruce!"
"Then why don't you tell me?" Dr. Thaggan asked, sitting across from Dick. "Tell me what Bruce Wayne has done to you?"
Dick looked up at the doctor, "Done to me? Bruce hasn't done anything to me. He was my father when I had no one. He gave me my life back when my parents died."
"Is that all he gave you?" Thaggan asked, a leering look on his face.
"What are you asking me?" Dick stood and started pacing around the room.
"Didn't he abuse you Dick?"
"What! No! I am so sick of people saying that about him. Accusing him of that behind his back. People have done that since he first took me in. They don't know who they're talking about. Bruce is the best, he's... he's..."
"Batman?"
Dick looked up incredulously. His eyes widened in terror. "How?"
"That was what you kept saying, that Bruce Wayne was Batman and that you were his partner Nightwing. Batman and Nightwing do not exist. You do know that don't you?"
'I know this is not right,' Dick thought to himself as he stared at the doctor. Dick turned toward the wall. Walking closer to the wall until his hand touched the wallpaper, his fingers tracing the pattern on the wall.
Doctor Thaggan watched the expression on Dick's face before he continued, "Well, we'll address that issue later. Tell me about how Bruce abused you?"
"He didn't! He never!" Dick said angrily as he turned back to face Thaggan.
"You said he did."
"What?! No I didn't!" Dick shouted at Thaggan, closing the gap between them.
"Just now, you were talking about how Bruce abused you. Don't you remember?" Thaggan asked in an irritatingly calm voice.
"You're crazy," Dick growled.
"That is not a term we use here, Dick. Why don't you sit down?" Thaggan said as he walked toward his desk. Opening the drawer, he removed a syringe.
"Oh hell no," Dick growled. "I've had enough of that."
"I'm only going to give you something to calm your nerves."
"I. Don't. Need. It." Dick said deliberately.
Two guards walked into the room. Dick had not seen Thaggan press a button summoning them. Closing his eyes, he let his head rest against the chair back.
"No. Please."
"It's for your own good, Dick," Thaggan replied as he prepared the injection. The guards held Dick down as the doctor approached with the needle.
Dick eyed the approaching needle. He tried to struggle, although he knew it was useless. He watched as the needle entered his already scarred arm. He flinched as the needle pierced his skin. He felt the stinging heat of the medications as they entered his system.
"Not again," he moaned. His vision starting to blur as the medications took hold of him. He had to get out of here. He had to now. The two guards grabbed him by his arms, lifting him to his feet.
"Tomorrow, I think we should start hypnotherapy. I think that will be beneficial to you," Thaggan said with a leering smile.
Hypnosis, Dick knew that this was not a good thing. He had to leave, he had to get out of here, wherever here was. He let the guards lead him from the room. He was conserving his strength until just the right moment. Nearing the turn to his cell block, Dick pulled forward with all his weight, pulling out of the guards grip. They hadn't expected this.
"Hey, you can't..." a guard started to say. Dick kicked up with his left leg catching the man squarely in the abdomen. The man fell to the floor. Dick almost fell as well, steadying himself with his hand against the wall.
"You little ..." the second guard started as he grabbed Dick from behind.
Taking a deep breath, Dick let the man grab him. Then, he used the man's momentum against him, flipping him over his head. On unsteady feet, Dick started heading away from the guards, straight rather than turning down the familiar hall leading to his cell. He had to get out of here. He had to find Bruce. Bruce would help him.
Wouldn't he?
But he didn't help him. When he was here. Bruce didn't help him. That had never happened before. When was Bruce here? Had Bruce been here? Dick wasn't sure. There was so much he wasn't sure of anymore. But one fact was clear, Dick had to get out of this place.
to be continued
An orderly slid the plastic tray containing Dick's breakfast of oatmeal and orange juice through the small opening at the bottom of his cell's door. Dick watched from his bunk. He sat on the far end of the bunk, his legs pulled up in front of him. Dick sat and watched quietly, never making an attempt to retrieve the food. The oatmeal was probably drugged, as well as the orange juice. They were keeping a lot of drugs in his system. Too many.
His tongue was thick and swollen. He knew this was a side effect to the medications they were pumping in him. His stomach rumbled. He would like to eat the food, no matter how bad it tasted. Would have loved to drink the orange juice too. But he didn't dare. Dick knew he had to lessen the amount of anti psychotic drugs in his system. He couldn't stop them from giving him the shots, at least not yet, but he could not eat. They were overmedicating him by putting it in his food. He knew it. He wasn't paranoid. Was he?
"No!" he mumbled as he took his hand and ran it over his face, feeling the week old stubble on his face. Dick stood and started pacing the cell like a caged tiger. His stomach roared with hunger. He hadn't eaten in almost a week. Angrily, he kicked the tray of food out of his cell. "I want OUT!" he yelled as he next kicked the bars of the cell door.
Guards and orderlies ran to the cell, surveying the scene.
"We going to have to restrain you again?" an orderly asked.
Dick turned to face the men, his icy blue eyes boring into the crowd. "No," he growled.
"Perhaps we should make Dick clean up his own mess," he heard Dr. Thaggan's voice say.
Dick felt a slight smile creep onto his face, "Yeah, why don't'cha."
Dr. Thaggan smiled broadly at Dick as he approached the door to Dick's cell. Placing his hand around one of the bars, "You'd like that wouldn't you? You think that you'd be able to escape if we let you out."
"I'm not thinking anything," Dick said gruffly, "it would just get me the hell out of this cell."
"If you want out of the cell, you could come back to your therapy appointments with me. Would you like that Dick?"
'I'd like to dislocate a few of your bones,' Dick thought before speaking, "Sure doc, whatever. Anything."
Dr. Thaggan turned to one of the orderlies standing around, "You clean up the mess. Guards, you bring Dick to my office. He's ready to start his therapy."
***********************************************************************
"Why don't we start with your childhood Dick?"
"Why don't we not?" Dick replied as he traced with his fingers the patterns on the arm of the floral chair he sat in.
"I thought you were ready to try and find the root of your problem?" Dr. Thaggan asked as he turned from his window and looked down at the young man sitting in the chair across from his desk.
Dick looked into the doctor's face. With a sly smile he responded, "Yeah, I want to get to the 'root' of my problem. But it's not in my childhood."
"Where then? Bruce Wayne?"
Dick looked up with anger in his eyes, "You don't know shit about Bruce!"
"Then why don't you tell me?" Dr. Thaggan asked, sitting across from Dick. "Tell me what Bruce Wayne has done to you?"
Dick looked up at the doctor, "Done to me? Bruce hasn't done anything to me. He was my father when I had no one. He gave me my life back when my parents died."
"Is that all he gave you?" Thaggan asked, a leering look on his face.
"What are you asking me?" Dick stood and started pacing around the room.
"Didn't he abuse you Dick?"
"What! No! I am so sick of people saying that about him. Accusing him of that behind his back. People have done that since he first took me in. They don't know who they're talking about. Bruce is the best, he's... he's..."
"Batman?"
Dick looked up incredulously. His eyes widened in terror. "How?"
"That was what you kept saying, that Bruce Wayne was Batman and that you were his partner Nightwing. Batman and Nightwing do not exist. You do know that don't you?"
'I know this is not right,' Dick thought to himself as he stared at the doctor. Dick turned toward the wall. Walking closer to the wall until his hand touched the wallpaper, his fingers tracing the pattern on the wall.
Doctor Thaggan watched the expression on Dick's face before he continued, "Well, we'll address that issue later. Tell me about how Bruce abused you?"
"He didn't! He never!" Dick said angrily as he turned back to face Thaggan.
"You said he did."
"What?! No I didn't!" Dick shouted at Thaggan, closing the gap between them.
"Just now, you were talking about how Bruce abused you. Don't you remember?" Thaggan asked in an irritatingly calm voice.
"You're crazy," Dick growled.
"That is not a term we use here, Dick. Why don't you sit down?" Thaggan said as he walked toward his desk. Opening the drawer, he removed a syringe.
"Oh hell no," Dick growled. "I've had enough of that."
"I'm only going to give you something to calm your nerves."
"I. Don't. Need. It." Dick said deliberately.
Two guards walked into the room. Dick had not seen Thaggan press a button summoning them. Closing his eyes, he let his head rest against the chair back.
"No. Please."
"It's for your own good, Dick," Thaggan replied as he prepared the injection. The guards held Dick down as the doctor approached with the needle.
Dick eyed the approaching needle. He tried to struggle, although he knew it was useless. He watched as the needle entered his already scarred arm. He flinched as the needle pierced his skin. He felt the stinging heat of the medications as they entered his system.
"Not again," he moaned. His vision starting to blur as the medications took hold of him. He had to get out of here. He had to now. The two guards grabbed him by his arms, lifting him to his feet.
"Tomorrow, I think we should start hypnotherapy. I think that will be beneficial to you," Thaggan said with a leering smile.
Hypnosis, Dick knew that this was not a good thing. He had to leave, he had to get out of here, wherever here was. He let the guards lead him from the room. He was conserving his strength until just the right moment. Nearing the turn to his cell block, Dick pulled forward with all his weight, pulling out of the guards grip. They hadn't expected this.
"Hey, you can't..." a guard started to say. Dick kicked up with his left leg catching the man squarely in the abdomen. The man fell to the floor. Dick almost fell as well, steadying himself with his hand against the wall.
"You little ..." the second guard started as he grabbed Dick from behind.
Taking a deep breath, Dick let the man grab him. Then, he used the man's momentum against him, flipping him over his head. On unsteady feet, Dick started heading away from the guards, straight rather than turning down the familiar hall leading to his cell. He had to get out of here. He had to find Bruce. Bruce would help him.
Wouldn't he?
But he didn't help him. When he was here. Bruce didn't help him. That had never happened before. When was Bruce here? Had Bruce been here? Dick wasn't sure. There was so much he wasn't sure of anymore. But one fact was clear, Dick had to get out of this place.
to be continued