~VII~
The walk through the small, dimly lit tunnel makes Peanut feel uneasy. He plays with the end of his vest, biting to inside of his bottom lip as he stares straight ahead. He knows it's just his mind, but God, it seems like the more steps he takes, the longer the tunnel gets. He starts trying to imagine the patient. What she looked like and how she would act. Of course he was nervous to actually try and ask her about the shadows she saw. He didn't know how she would react, if she even spoke to him.
It takes him about 15 minutes, but Peanut finally makes it out to the other side, finding himself at the side of the asylum. He makes his way around, going to the front and looking at the man by the door.
"Uh… excuse me?" Peanut calls out, catching his attention. "I'm uh… here to see somebody?"
"Hump..." The man walks over, looking him up and down. His eyes lingers on his Bullworth vest, before scanning his face. Peanut inwardly cringes, but doesn't move a muscle. "Alright. Hand me your bag, first. Gotta check it."
Peanut removes his backpack as the old rusted door opens, handing it over to the man and stepping through. He watches him unzip and open it, digging through whatever was inside. His pen knife wasn't in there, was it? No. He left that back at the dorm. Good thing, he supposes. He didn't need the cops after him.
"Nothing in your pockets?" the man asks, and the student shakes his head. "Hmm… very well. Go inside. You can talk to the man to your right. Tell him who you're here to see and give him your name."
"Alright. Thank you," Peanut's given his backpack and he makes his way inside. It's a bit unsettling, to say the least. But, he looks to the man at his right, who seems surprised to see him.
"Can I help you?" His voice is far from friendly, but Peanut forces himself to give a smile.
"I'm here to visit someone," he tells him as confidently as he can, "Is there anything I need to fill out or something?"
"Who's it you're visiting?" he asks. He has to take a moment to think.
"Vyvyan..." Dammit. He forgot her last name, and no matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn't remember. "Vyvyan… something. She's 17? Came in here during the summer?"
"Amber?" That's it. How could he forget that? With a nod, the man rummages through some things behind the desk, before sliding a clipboard and pen through the window, a piece of paper clipped under it. A blank form. "Fill this out, then I'll have Dan escort you to her cell."
"Okay. Thanks," He takes the clipboard and pen, reading over it. Simple things, such as his name, age, and reason for being there. There were also a couple more personal questions, but it wasn't anything he minded filing out. And when he's done, he hands the man the things back. He looks around the little room he's in as the man reads over his form. And after some time, another man walks in, staring down at Peanut with a slightly surprised expression.
"Romano?" he asks, earning a nod. "Cool! I'm Dan. I'll take you to see Vyv."
"Alright," Peanut follows the hefty man throughout the building, and the screaming from the patients makes his skin crawl. The hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and Dan seems to take notice.
"First time here?" he questions. Another nod. "Well, don't let these noises get to you. They're all here for a reason, and not all of them want to accept it."
That doesn't comfort him, but he just nods more, letting the orderly know he's paying attention.
"Vyv's a little quiet when you first meet her," he continues, "but don't worry. She's more bark than bite, ya know? I mean, she's tried to go after people before, but she's calmed down now."
He appreciates how the man talks to him, as if trying to give him some confidence in all of this. He talks nicely about Vyvyan, and he figures it's just so he doesn't freak out. And when they get near cell 4, Dan gives him a smile.
"Vyv! You got a visitor!" He sounds so cheerful as he unlocks the door, slowly opening it. "Don't worry. He's not a doctor."
He looks at Peanut, mouthing a 'good luck' before stepping aside, allowing him in. Peanut looks at the small girl sitting on the old bed, knees up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. Just like how he was during lunch. He takes a step forward, jumping when Dan shuts the door.
"Um… hello?" He looks at the girl, being able to make out some features of her. Her hair is down past her shoulder blades and he notices how knotted and unkempt it is. She's skinny, too, and looks a bit underweight. He frowns, taking a small step forward. "Hey. Vyvyan, right?"
There's a soft grunt in response, but that's all he gets. Her gown is too big and he wonders how she stays warm in this chilly room.
"I wanna talk to you," he continues softly, "Could we talk for a bit?"
"Who are you?" Her voice is barely above a whisper, but it sounds hoarse.
"My name is Larry," He keeps his voice soft and comforting, a small smiling forming. "I'm from Bullworth Academy. I… wanna talk about something kind of important to me."
"The academy?" She seems to perk up at this and finally looks at him, hazel eyes bloodshot and tired looking. She admires his outfit before scooting over, making room on the bed. "I was gonna go to the academy this year, before..."
She goes back to hiding her face, falling silent. So she was going to be attending school with them. That would've been quite the adventure. Both of them going through their troubles together in school, maybe being able to have the same classes.
"It would've been nice to have you there," Peanut tries his best to be nice, still unsure of how she'll act. But, she looks at him again, gesturing her head to the bed.
"You can sit, if you want," she tells him softly, "What did you wanna talk about? If it's that important, I can try to help..."
Once again, he finds himself wondering how to start. He slowly sits on the edge of the bed, shrugging his shoulders. He knew Vyvyan went through the same thing, but he still feels uneasy talking about seeing shadows. It sounded crazy. It made him feel crazy.
"Must be something bad," she speaks, "You don't have to talk about it right away. Take your time."
"It's just hard," he replies, "I'm… seeing things. Like shadows."
"Shadows?" She looks at him, eyes wide in what seemed to be disbelief. "You're seeing shadows, too?"
"Yeah. It's a little hard for me to talk about," He gives her a smile, pulling his legs up onto the bed and crossing them. "It started a few days ago, and it's been freaking me out."
"How bad?" she asks. He shrugs a bit.
"It's not that bad, but I keep having nightmares, too," he tells her, "I've been missing out on sleep and… well, I just wanted to talk to someone who went through the same thing."
Vyvyan nods, and Peanut notices a small smile.
"They all think I'm crazy," she tells him softly, "because I see the same things, too. I know it's hard. I usually see them at night."
"Does it scare you anymore?" She shrugs, looking around the cell.
"Dan's usually around late to talk to me," He's surprised to hear that the orderly is around to help, seeing as most adults were more harsh towards the kids. "He keeps the light on near my room so I don't freak out as much."
"Heh. I'm going to a friend, too," he tells her, "I kinda hate dragging him into it, but he seems to like trying to help."
"Friends should be there no matter what you're going through," She sounds a bit bitter at that statement, slowly uncurling her legs, letting them hang off the edge of the bed. They sit in silence for a bit. Peanut tries to remember the document he read about her. No social skills, but she seemed to be making an attempt.
"Do you have any friends in here?" he asks, and there's just a scoff from the girl.
"The people here are completely out of it," she replies, rolling her eyes. "I'm not crazy, Larry. It's not all in my head like they think it is."
He wants to believe her, honestly. She could just be going through the same thing he was for all he knew. So, he just gives her a smile and a small nod.
"I know, Vyv," He tries to sound as convincing as possible. And by the way she flashes him a quick smile of her own, he figures she gets it. "How about this: we help each other find out how to stop seeing these things, and I'll help you get into Bullworth."
"Really? You'd do that?" She seems so hopeful and he just gives her a happy nod. He figured it would be a good way to repay her if they ever found a way to get rid of the shadows they saw.
They spend their time chatting, and though Peanut's usually the one starting a new conversation, or has to try and keep one going, he finds himself enjoying the girl's company. She had opened up a bit to him and in a way, she reminded him of Johnny. A joker with a bit of a defense to her. Of course, she still had some walls up, but he was happy to at least have her talk in a louder voice, rather than the whisper he had been greeted with. He had even told her about the clique he was with and offered to have her meet them when he got her out of the asylum. She was hesitant at first, but she finally agreed to at least meet Johnny. And in the middle of a conversation about shop that Peanut had brought up, Vyvyan's door opened, Dan standing there with a smile.
"Glad you two are getting along," he speaks, "but visiting time is over now, and it's time for Vyv's meds."
"Oh, okay," Peanut's actually a bit sad to hear it, and by the frown on the girl's face, he knows she is too. But, he smiles. "Ah, when's the next time I can come back and visit?"
"Everyday during the same hours," he replies with a chuckle. This makes him perk up and he turns back to look at Vyvyan.
"I'll be back tomorrow around the same time," he tells her, "See ya later, Vyv."
"Bye, Larry!" Peanut says a small goodbye to Dan, who just gives him a smile and a nod. He leaves the building after signing out, actually feeling pretty good. They had chatted a bit about the shadows they saw, Vyvyan saying that sometimes they would actually get near her and Dan would have to rush in because she would start screaming and panicking. He wondered how they would actually overcome this. Although, on another note, Peanut actually liked hearing her call him by his real name. Of course, adults called him Larry, but hearing another teen use it so casually rather than in a threatening way was a pleasant change.
He makes his way out of the gate, pulling out his phone to check the time. It's almost seven and he's surprised he spent so long in there. At least he killed some time and made a new friend. Sending a text to Johnny telling him he was leaving, Peanut picks up his pace as he walks through the tunnel, still feeling a bit uneasy walking through. He's just thankful he doesn't have another one of his sightings.
Reaching school grounds, Peanut makes his way past the football field, head tilted to the sky as he admired the sunset. He wondered if Norton was on top of the auto shop again looking at this. He had to admit, it was rather pretty, but not exactly something he would waste his time on. He makes his way for the dorm to grab his wallet, and feels his phone vibrate when he reaches the stairs.
Johnny: dates over. Wanna grab some food before movie?
Peanut: sure. I'm kinda hungry
Johnny: cool. Meet you by the gates in 5
He smiles, entering the dorm and going to his room. Lefty's laying on his bed, thumbing through something on his phone. He lifts his head when he hears his friend enter, giving him a smile.
"Hey, Peanut!" he greets happily, "Where have you been?"
"Out," he replies, the sophomore rolling his eyes as he watches him grab his wallet from inside his nightstand's drawer.
"Out where?" he urges, and he just shrugs, putting his weight on one leg as he stares at him.
"Was out meeting someone," he tells him, Lefty looking more interested. "Now, I'm goin' back out to meet Johnny."
"Wait, wait, wait! Who's the someone?" he asks, and he practically looks like one of those girls excited to hear the latest gossip.
"Just someone. That's all you're getting," Peanut starts for the door, smiling as he sees the upset look on his friend's face. "And tell Vance to sleep in your bed if he stays the night in here again. I don't like sharing."
"Ah, whatever, Peanut," The junior chuckles, dodging a crumpled up paper Lefty throws at him. With a wave of his hand, he leaves the room, shutting the door behind him and walking out of the dorm. For once in the past few days, Peanut feels great. Like he was back to his old self. And with a smile on his face, he walks towards the gate, feeling a bit guilty when he sees Johnny already leaning against the wall. But, the senior just gives him a look of relief.
"Glad you're still in one piece," he jokes. Peanut just lets out a soft chuckle. "So I'm guessing it went well?"
"Yeah. She's pretty cool," he tells him as they start to walk towards Old Bullworth Vale. "Not really that talkative, but she was okay, you know?"
"Well, I'm glad you had a good time," Peanut tells him about his conversation with Vyvyan and even meeting Dan. He even tells him about how she was supposed to go to the academy before they locked her up. Peanut did, however, leave out the part of trying to get her into school if she was ever okay enough to be released from the asylum. He figured his boss didn't need to hear that part. Or the part where he planned on going back tomorrow to talk to her a bit more.