Marie sat in the carved
wooden chair. Her skirt tucked neatly around her legs and her hands
folded in her lap. Her expression showed longing to reach out and
touch Benjamin. It was obvious by her glassy eyes that she was making
an effort not to cry. Ben sat in a matching chair across the table
from her. He wasn't facing her however, but was sideways, staring
into the wall. The way he was hunched over, his arms limp over the
side of the chair...he would have looked asleep if his eyes weren't
open.
Marie pulled a package out from a tidy leather bag she had
been holding. It was wrapped in brown parchment that smelled like
fresh bread. She set it down onto the table, gently. The kind of
gentle you use on a newborn baby. Ben didn't respond. She pushed it
forward towards him, looking hopeful.
"I brought you your favorite..."
Realizing that he wouldn't open it on his own, she pulled at the wrapping and unfolded it until a small basket of chocolate covered strawberries was revealed. She smiled. Her voice was like melting sugar, smooth and warm.
"My god, you're so thin. Go ahead, take one. I made them myself...this morning."
Still, Benjamin didn't look at her.
"I figured you missed them..."
Ben tilted his head slightly downwards, his hair falling over his face.
She's playing pretend. Stop hiding yourself, Marie. They need to know you. The real you. They don't have to underestimate you; you could share your gift with them. Stop being stupid...I hate it when you sink to their level.
The guard, who had been watchman at the door, announced that they had five more minutes left. Marie nodded, but seemed a bit more frantic now.
"You're not hungry? That's okay, I'll save them for later. You can have them later if you want."
Nothing came from the other side of the table.
"They been treating you well?"
Once she said it, she immediately regretted it. By the state of Ben, the answer was obvious. He had bruises on his arms from where the sedatives had been injected multiple times over. His skin was raw and dirty from sleeping on the floor. He wasn't even the same person on the inside anymore either. He had been reduced to a puddle of blonde nothing.
Marie was getting frustrated with his lack of personality. Her voice was more serious now.
"What have they been doing to you?"
Don't you know? You're a genius too Marie.
"How often are you allowed out to walk around outside?"
Can I still walk?
"Why aren't you eating properly?"
The food is poisoned. They're killing me.
"Why won't you answer me?!"
"Tell them I'm not mad!"
He didn't look at her as he said it. His face was still hidden behind a wall of hair. Marie blinked a few times.
"What?"
Ben turned his head slowly, his eyes were angry and everything about him seemed dangerous.
"Tell them I'm...not...mad."
Tears were flowing down Marie's face now; she wiped them away quickly.
"Ben I, I-"
"You think I am don't you? I'm not insane!"
The guard came over to them then. He pulled Benjamin up from the chair.
"Time's up."
Marie stood in one fast graceful motion. When she looked in Ben's eyes as he was being pulled away, nothing familiar was there. They were wild and trapped and...insane. The guard struggled against Ben's meager weight to pull him out of the room, but Ben reached out to Marie, screaming hoarsely.
"Tell them! Tell them I'm not insane Marie! Marie!! You're the only one left who can help me! Tell them! I'm a genius, Marie! Remember?"
He pleaded, pushing his way back to his sister, but in moments he was out the door and being dragged down the hall. Another guard had come to assist in his recapture. His yelling cries slowly died down until silence hit Marie's ears like a sheet of hot air. Still crying, she picked up the basked of Chocolate Covered Strawberries and left. She spoke softly to herself.
"Oh God Ben. What happened to you? What drove you to do all those...horrible...things."
Her voice had died down to a whimper by the end. There was nothing she could do for him now, he was too far gone. Too far insane to be helped, to be loved perhaps.
