Chapter 3: Why?
- 6 Weeks before Halloween - September 1969 -

The next few months were simple enough.

Ever since I'd woken from the coma I've been restless. Insomnia was my best friend. After about a month, the sleeping pills they'd given me stopped working, and after a couple weeks, I stopped complaining.

I was almost afraid to sleep after having that dream, seeing those marks, etched in blood and burned in to Michael's skin. Dr. Loomis didn't have any idea about the mark, he said it randomly appeared one day, and since Michael wouldn't talk about it, there was no answer for the burns.

There was nothing to do but listen to the other girls snore, and Samantha softly mumble to herself. I recalled a possible Amitriptyline-induced nightmare, where I'd been trapped in a room being engulfed in flames, with smoke so thick it left me gasping for air. I made a note to mention my, non-Michael-related dreams to Loomis later.

In early mornings, we had set tasks to complete: Making the bed, getting showers, getting dressed, before lining against the wall to be taken to the cafeteria.

Chelsea and I had gotten in trouble for ignoring the nurse, whenever Samantha and Nancy had been ready in time. I had a feeling Nancy had something to do with the two of us being left behind. Since neither of us recalled the others trying to wake us up.

The food here wasn't great, except for the last Friday in every month when Dr. Loomis and Dr. Hill would opt for bringing actual tasty food. One Friday Dr. Hill had gotten up early enough to bring in a homemade meal, though by the time we received it, it was a little cold. But, it was the thought that mattered.

Whenever we held group sessions Mary had started reminding everyone of the rules.

"1. Violence, threats and any other form of intimidation was not acceptable and staff, hospital security and police, if needed, will work together to get you under control and you may be criminally charged for violent or abusive behavior. We may also give you medicines in order to help you calm down, or use restraints."

Though, this rule was rarely enforced by police, you were just thrown into solitary for a few days to calm down.

"2. Staff may search your belongings at any time without reason, in order to keep other patients and yourself safe from potentially harmful items.
3. Drugs and alcohol were at no time allowed in the facility."

This was mainly for those of us who were allowed to leave, to spend the day with family. Everyone in the girls room had this privilege. But, only Nancy used it. I no longer had a family, Chelsea was disowned by her family, and Samantha's family believed it was enough for them to visit.

Other rules included leaving medicine at the nurses desk, bathroom items in the bathroom. She talked about the privileges that some of us had, and not to gloat to others, or the privileges would be taken away. Make sure your hospital band was worn at all times. Shower room was available from 7am to 6pm, you must be in your bedroom with the lights out at 10pm.

Keep the wards, bathrooms, and shower rooms cleaned at all times. Telephones were available until lights out, but could only be used for 10 minutes at a time. Respect everyone in the hospital at all times.

And, finally, no physical contact with other patients. Mary glared at me each time she mentioned this rule. She really didn't like Michael or myself, as the other patients were allowed to do whatever, Nancy spent a lot of her time flirting with James. The nurse wouldn't bat an eye at them, but, that one time I had held Michael's hand, she made it a big deal. Going so far as to complain to Dr. Carpenter.

After group, we each had our individual meeting. Mine was now with Dr. Hill, I'd asked Dr. Carpenter if I would be able to switch to her, since Dr. Wynn made me uncomfortable, ever since he gave Samantha and I that strange look. I hadn't told him why I felt uneasy, just that I felt as if I could progress with Dr. Hill and Dr. Loomis more than with Dr. Wynn.

The only question I was asked was if Dr. Wynn had tried hurting me or anything of the sort, which I replied no.

Dr. Hill had been great to work with, a lot of the time, I ended up tearful during our talks.

She always began with the standard routine of questions. Do I feel like hurting myself, how am I sleeping, how my mood was. She lowered the dose of amitriptyline and also put me on benzodiazepine.

Later a Code: Silver had been called. Anthony had somehow obtained a razor blade and was threatening staff before slitting his own wrist. A Code Team was called to sedate and restrain him in order to get him the care he needed.

Michael still hadn't been talking, but, I still sat next to him, as he stared out the window. I usually read a book. Currently I was reading "The Mouse And The Motorcycle" by, Beverly Cleary The nurse, Mary always gawked at us, scolding me if I got too close to him. She never spoke to Michael.

Whenever Anthony returned, he wasn't the same. He used to be easy to get along with, now he was mean. He teased and taunted everyone, even more than Nancy had, he'd even made her cry.

He started scaring all of us. Walking around in the middle of the night, sneaking into our room, causing Samantha to scream for the nurse, after waking to find him on top of her.

After that event, I started sitting closer to Michael. I felt safe around him. Even if he had brutally murdered me in my dream, I felt he wouldn't let anything happen to me. Anthony was two years older than him, but, Michael was stronger.

- 7 Weeks Before Halloween -

The date was September 13th, 1968, exactly six months after I was admitted to Smith's Grove. Six months, three weeks and two days after I'd lost my parents.
Today just didn't feel right.

It was storming outside, the thunder clashing every other minute. The wind picked up, causing the staff to keep a close eye on the weather, in case they needed to transfer everyone to the shelter.

I was slow getting up and around, the other three girls, were already in the shower room, finishing their morning routines by the time I showed up. I didn't talk to any of them. Just silently washed my hair. Chelsea had stopped to ask if I was alright, and I gave her a weak smile and a nodd. We didn't pry into each other's mood's much. People would get upset if you asked.
She'd probably mention my change of behavior to Dr. Hill, knowing that the nurses were useless.

Someone else came in, after I finished getting dressed. Assuming it was Mary, getting impatient, I sighed, standing and getting ready to turn the corner, heading out.

Two hands pushed against my shoulder's, knocking me to the ground.
It was Anthony, brandishing a creepy grin and, another razor.

"Tony….. What are you doing?" I questioned, slowly standing, using the bench as support. What had Mary, Dan or any of the staff been doing that they hadn't noticed Anthony walking into the girls shower room…

"Well, your boyfriend isn't here to protect you." He switched the blade between his knuckles. "Perfect weather to spill some blood, don't you think?"

I backed up against the wall, wishing that I had chosen the more open bench so that I would've had a way out, by going around the privacy wall. But, I had chosen the corner bench, which had trapped me.

"You're going to get in trouble."

Anthony wagged his finger 'no' . "First you, then me."

My eyes went wide. His plan was to kill the both of us? For what purpose?

"Sam got away, you won't."

There was no way around him unless I wanted to get cut, I could scream for help, but, there was no guarantee that anyone would hear me or pay any regard to some lunatic screaming. People yelled all the time here.

I only saw one way out, and that was trying to run around him. If I got caught, I would scream. Maybe I'd get lucky and a doctor would be walking by.

A step forward and he was already waiting to catch me. I pushed back on my leg, charging forward, making it passed him, by ducking under his arm. Anthony grabbed me by my hair, pulling me back and shoving me to the ground. At which, my mind went haywire and I envisioned him slitting my throat.

When he lunged towards me, I kicked him in the jaw, the razor slid across my leg, causing me to whine. I tried pushing myself to my feet again, so I could run, I just needed to make it down the hall.

I didn't get that chance. Anthony recovered faster than I had and grabbed my leg. At that moment, the only logical thing I could think of was screaming. I sucked in a deep breath, prepared to holler for help, my call was interrupted by another slash, my call for help became a pained shriek.

"Elaine?" A voice called, I recognized it as Samantha's.

She'd been his first target, he'd try to harm her again if she came in here. "Sam go get help!" I shouted urgently.

Samantha didn't listen, and rounded the corner, her eyes catching his own.

"Anthony….." She muttered, stepping back.

"If you scream or leave, she dies." The smirk on his face returned. "I'll sever her artery."

This time Samantha took a step forward. "You're going to regret this."

"Because you think you can see the future?"

Another step. "You don't understand what you're doing. He's going to be angry."

Anthony scoffed. "He's just a kid. He won't do shit."

Samantha charged him, he dropped my leg when her body hit his own, knocking him back. His arm swung, catching her neck with the razor. I was shocked, blood dripped down, staining her blue shirt.

As he fell back, his head smacked against one of the benches.

"I'm telling you, something is wrong with Elaine! He keeps staring at this door and won't move, go in and check on her, dammit!" It was Dr. Loomis' voice.

Her hand covered the wound, as she staggered backwards.

Mary came in, gasping at the sight. Hearing her fright Dr. Loomis followed her. There was blood on the wall from Sam, blood on the floor from me and blood on the bench from Anthony's head.

"Don't just stand there, call a Code: Silver and get the response team!" He yelled back at the nurse as he rushed over to us.

He moved Samantha's hand, replacing it with a cloth from his pocket. I could hear the nurse talking on the radio, calling the codes in. I struggled to my feet, before resting on the bench near me.

"Can you tell how deep your wounds are?" His voice surprisingly calm.

"I'm alright, I think, it just stings and hurts to use. He didn't cut me that deeply."

Loomis' eyes were locked on Anthony, hoping he wouldn't regain consciousness before the medical team and security arrived.

Anthony started to fidget, moving ever so slightly.

"Mary!" The doctor yelled, she rushed over. "Keep this cloth pressed to her, I need to get that razor from him!"

Mary did as he asked, yet, as always, she had a complaint.

"You're not security, he has a weapon Samuel."

"You want me to just let him hurt himself or any of you?"

She was silent, shaking, watching as Loomis reached for the razor, just for Anthony to regain awareness and dig the blade into the doctor's arm. The doctor's hand, squeezed the pressure points in Anthony's wrist, forcing him to drop the razor.

Soon after the medical team and security arrive, detaining Anthony, and helping Samantha, my wounds had been quickly bandaged since they weren't in as bad condition. I was walked out to the main hall by Mary.

As Loomis said, Michael was standing about halfway down the hall, staring at the door. A smile stretched across my face, with his creepy, stalkerish ways, he saved me.

Mary had gotten distracted by a gasp that Samantha had let out, turning to assist the medical team. So, I managed to wiggle free from her grasp, heading towards Michael. When I reached him, we both locked eyes. Something we hadn't done in quite a while.

Reaching out I took his hand, he squeezed mine tight, not hard enough to hurt.

My heart raced, for a different reason this time. I was nervous, a good nervous. A warmth spread through my body. Slowly, I inched closer to him, before letting go of his hand, and wrapping my arms around his waist, resting my head against his shoulder. He let out a small gasp. Michael hadn't been expecting my advancements. One of his hands rested on the small of my back. I don't think he was sure on how he should react to the scenario.

He was pretty stiff, still as emotionless as ever. However, he didn't seem uncomfortable.

The doctors allowed us to be, and have our moment. Loomis was probably excited, due to the fact this was the most Michael had interacted in quite some time.

Breathing in deeply, I loosened my grip from around Michael, I wasn't in much shock anymore. The incident was over. He applied more weight on my back, when I shifted position. Did he not want me to leave?

"Thank you, Michael." I whispered, barely audible.

Down the hall I could hear the doctors speaking. Wynn had arrived. He asked Loomis what had happened, and Loomis replied that I should be the one to tell that story. He kept Wynn from approaching us, telling him that I would speak when I was ready.

I'd have to thank him later.

Anthony had successfully been detained and reportedly calmed down. Samantha's condition wasn't life threatening, however, she'd be in the infirmary for a few days and would lose the ability to speak for a month or so.

Surprisingly, Mary hadn't chewed me out for breaking the covenant 'No touching' rule.

I'd been taken to the infirmary myself, so the doctors could make sure that my wounds hadn't been worse than originally thought. The cut's hadn't been deep, just enough to draw a decent amount of blood. After re-wrapping the wounds, I was sent to an office where the doctors were waiting to interview me.

I wasn't very excited about Wynn being one of the doctors.

Dr. Hill was the closest to me, sitting in the chair directly next to me. Loomis had been standing on the other side of her, and Wynn was sitting at his desk.

"Have you done anything to provoke, Anthony?" Dr. Loomis asked, a standard first question that was always asked in these situations.

"I don't think so, I haven't really talked to him. Or even really looked at him."

Dr. Hill's voice was always soft when she spoke to me. "What happened when he entered the room? Were you alone?"

"Yeah, I was." I didn't want to mention the fact that he seemed to have some kind of grudge against Michael. "He came in and told me he was going to kill me, before killing himself."

"When did Samantha come into the picture?" Another question from Loomis.

"I guess she was coming back into the room to check on me… Anthony told her to stay quiet, or he'd kill me. She got close to him and rushed him. After that, you showed up."

Wynn folded his hands on his desk, clearing his throat. "Do you think that your relationship with Michael could have been his motive? Maybe, he was jealous?"

I didn't like that question. Why would Michael even be a subject in something like this? He'd just seen Anthony enter the room and alerted the doctor. That was all. Unless, Wynn somehow knew what Anthony's motive was.

"I don't know, I've never seen the two interact. And as I said, I've never talked to him."

"This isn't the first time Anthony has attacked someone, Terrance. He's attacked Samantha twice now, and she isn't connected to Michael." Loomis chimed in.

But, Loomis didn't know.

There had been some connection between Samantha and Michael. She knew things about him that no one else did. I still wasn't sure what she meant, but, I recalled her telling me that Michael was the obsession. Not that he was obsessed with someone. She also told me, he wasn't the danger. Maybe she was referring to what happened earlier?

Anthony had mentioned that he was attacking because Michael was not around. Michael wasn't the danger, he was the obsession. Maybe, Anthony was obsessed with him? That's why she'd come to check on me. She knew he was there.

She also mentioned the symbol, telling me I had it too.

I didn't.

The rest of the day had pretty much been spent talking with the doctors, they were trying to figure out what had happened. I'd pretty had to describe what the week had been like, than what the month had been like. How Samantha was behaving, if I saw her taunting Anthony, or if I saw Anthony taunting her. If there was any kind of harsh behavior between anyone in the juvenile section.

I didn't get breakfast until everyone else was getting lunch. Dr. Hill had made sure I got extra.

There hadn't really been much free time that day. Nancy was out in the main room with James, and Mason. Dr. Loomis thought it would be best to keep Michael away from the others for a little, since Wynn had been so suspicious. Roger had stayed in the boys' ward, as Chelsea and I stayed in the girls ward.

Since I didn't offer much information, everyone had to be interrogated. Anthony's belongings were searched through, hoping to piece the events together.

The day was a mess.

Chelsea seemed rather irritated when she returned. Surprisingly, she sat next to me on the bed. Letting out a deep sigh.

"Nancy is lying through her teeth about you and Michael." Her expression showed concern, worry even. "I don't think the doctors believe her, but, still, she's being such a bitch!"

I put down the book I was reading, planning to focus on the problem. Mainly since whatever she was saying could cause Michael and I to be separated. After all the progress I'd made trying to be his friend, I didn't want to lose it.

"What did she say?" I tried to keep my tone rather calm.

Chelsea hesitated. "Well, I only caught the end of it… Basically, she said that you were taunting him with your relationship. Apparently he tried to be friends with Michael once, and like the rest of us, was only met with a blank stare devoid of all emotion. She said that he was jealous because with you, Michael showing emotion around only you, and that when he came to talk to you about it, you told him he wasn't worth Michael's or your attention."

She laid back on the mattress now, closing her eyes. "I know you didn't do anything like that. Personally, it sounds like something she'd say to him. And I know Michael wouldn't taunt him. Other than the fact that he doesn't speak, and the fact he has that creepy stare, he seems like a sweet kid."

"Why would she even do that? There's nothing to gain from it."

"Nancy's an idiot. She heard the rumor of Michael killing those other kids and ever since, she teases him here and there, hoping to invoke a response. She wants him to tell her off. Not realizing that if Michael did kill those kids, he'd probably just kill her too."

Changing positions, I moved to the middle of the bed, sitting cross legged. "Do you think Michael killed them?"

Chelsea opened an eye to look at me. "Honestly… Yeah. I do. But, I also think that they probably deserved it. If he killed at random, all of us would be dead, wouldn't we? He has to have some kind of motive that's only triggered by certain responses."

Sitting up once again, she looked at the door, making sure no one was coming.

"Adrian apparently ate an entire birthday cake that was meant for him. Day or two later, he gets burned in the shower. There's definitely more than a coincidence there. I think the doctors see that too. Blair, he acted so similar to Michael… He even had killed his older sister. Maybe Michael felt as if he were competition?"

Around an hour later, Chelsea and I had been playing a card game on my bed when Nancy returned to the room. We both glared at her. She smiled smugly.

"That's what you get for telling me that I was going to die." She scoffed, headed towards her own bed. "I can feed them even more stories if you like."

"Oh? Could you? Well, I'd like to hear some more." The new voice belonged to Dr. Hill.

She originally planned to come speak to me before bed, after the lies that Nancy had told her. However, hearing Nancy's confession result in her grabbed the girl by the wrist and dragging her out of the room.

We lined up at the nurses station to take our night medicine a little later. Neither Dr. Hill nor Nancy returned.

Nancy earned herself another night in solitary.

Michael invaded my dreams, again that night.

I'd been lying on a bed, the spread was different shades of blue, identifying it as the bed that was in the room where he previously killed me. I rolled over to my left side, examining the sting resonating from my arm.

There was blood on my wrist, illuminated by the flickering light. Examining the wound closer, I now had that rune scratched into my skin. This was the hand I always held Michael's scarred hand with.

Sitting up, gasping at the reveal, I noticed there was some changes in decor. The door connecting the two room's had vanished and Jack-O-Lanterns sat on the shelves and the desk. Each face was the same, the mouth carved into a frown and the eyes looked angry. They reminded me of Michael's glare.

Speaking of the devil, Michael was standing in the only exit, staring at me as the lanterns were.

Thankfully, the mask and knife were both missing.

"Hey, Michael…" I responded, nonchalantly, letting him know that I wasn't ignoring his presence. After how many times he'd stabbed me in the last dream, I didn't want to go through that again.

Standing, I made my way over to him. Curious as to what he had planned for me this time.

There was a new symbol burned into the carpet, where I'd been killed. Upon crossing the symbol, I re-lived the pain. The plunge of the knife, the dull throbbing, all of it. The emergence of the sudden affliction knocked my breath from me and dropped me to my knees.

Thankfully the pain only lasted a few minutes. I made a mental note to avoid touching those marks.

Michael was gone. There was no reason for me to stay in the room so I headed towards the hall. Downstairs still didn't exist. An arrow pointed up to the attic, there were more flickering lights, I could only assume he was there.

Passing the door, I originally entered, the name "Judith" was now etched into it, written within the symbol. I paused for a moment, reaching for the doorknob, it was locked. He didn't want me inside.

Continuing down the hall, I started up the stairs, leading to the attic. A hand clamped over my mouth, pulling me backwards. It was impossible to pull the grip away. Gasping and squirming was the only tactic I could manage.

The house faded, leaving me in darkness, I could still feel his hand tightly gripped over my mouth, though now I was able to catch my breath and with a jerk, I forced myself awake.

Michael loomed over my bedside, his hand, keeping my shocked screech from alerting the nurses or waking the Chelsea. As soon as he was sure I wasn't going to scream, he let me go.

"What's wrong?" I kept my voice, low, knowing we'd both be in trouble if someone caught him in here. Especially, after everything that had happened and all the lies Nancy spread.

He offered his hand, I was bewildered. Did he want me to follow him?

"Michael, we're going to get in trouble." I warned.

This time he reached for my hand, grabbing it and pulling me out of bed. His hand was sticky, and it looked like his clothes were stained. "Hey, are you alright?" Michael didn't answer, he just pulled me towards the door. His grip was tight, there was no wiggling free.

When we reached the doorway, he stopped, not looking left or right, just waiting. Amanda, one of the night nurses passed by the room. When she was out of sight, he tugged on my hand, pulling me down the corridors, easily avoiding detection from any of the staff. Even one of the men had looked directly at him, but, hadn't stopped us.

I struggled to keep up with him. His pace was quick, and he stopped just as quickly, causing me to bump into him a couple times, mumbling 'sorry', each time I had. A little further through the building and I realized we were headed towards the infirmary, where both Samantha and Anthony were being kept.

Instead of heading inside, we passed the rooms, walking towards the stairs, leading down into the basement. The basement doors were always locked, I wondered if Michael had a key? Had he stolen it from the doctors, maybe one of the maintenance men, or sanitation?

We rounded the corner reaching the top of the stairs, Michael squeezed my hand, turning my focus to him, in the dim light from the window, I could finally see that his clothes had been stained. The stain was dark, and I soon knew why.

He pulled his hand free from my own, brushing his fingers against my cheek, forcing my head to turn towards the door.

Anthony had been hung over the top railing. His clothes also stained darkly.

I wasn't sure how to react. If I reacted wrong, Michael might decide I was next. But, the dread inside was overwhelming me. Michael had killed someone, and it seemed as if he'd done it for me.

"Michael…."

Maybe pursuing a friendship with him wasn't in my best interest. I thought maybe the dreams were just dreams, but after actually seeing his handiwork. I wanted to get away from him.

"Michael…" I repeated his name, seemingly not able to think of any other words.

He took my hand again, squeezing it tight.

My heart was racing, I tried to take deep breaths to calm myself down, but, nothing was working. "You…. you did this, didn't you?"

"Yes."

I jumped, not expecting an actual response.

"Because he hurt me?" I asked, looking at him again, hoping to see something besides the emotionless expression on his face. There was no change. He didn't respond again, pulling on my arm as he began to lead me away, back towards the girls ward.

I was quiet the walk back. There was no way I'd be able to tell the doctors that I knew Michael killed him, that he confessed it to me. No one would believe that he actually spoke. And, there would be no one to stop him from reaching me.

As soon as we reached the door, he turned to head the other way. Presumably going back to the boys' ward. I grabbed his arm, he stopped, but, didn't look back at me.

"I suppose, I should thank you…"

He yanked his arm free, starting to walk again, I wasn't sure what came over me, but, I had the sudden urge to call out to him once more.

"Michael, don't get caught."

To be continued… .