Author's note - I appreciate the feedback. I dunno how I'm gonna fare well now that I'm done with the last chapter. I agree, it probably was my best. I like getting down to the point and addressing people's feeling's. I'm hoping to get the group together - in separate groups - if that makes sense, to discuss their own problems. And thank you - melreincarn, for mentioning my Lex insight. I hadn't thought it out entirely, but it seemed like out of everyone he would considered it a rescue - and in truth, due to his age, he probably is the only one that has nothing to lose by returning home.
This is part one of two. This is only about half of the people - the other half is next time. Sorry it took so long, I've been exhausted lately - and I was even freaking on spring back. But I'm back in school now so...it should be back in order. Sorry if these analysing chapters are boring you, tell me if they are.
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DAY 2 with the psychiatrist.
"Teenagers scare the shit out of me," Beaver admitted, kicking his legs up onto the coffee table as he leaned back in the psychiatrist's chair.
"Excuse me?" Dr. Brennan asked.
"They're heartless lil' buggers," Beaver explained. "Always thirsty for violence. They don't care as long as someone bleeds."
"You didn't answer my question," Dr. Brennan told him gently.
"Yes I did," Beaver told her. "Read between the lines."
"Melissa said you ran away from home due to physical and emotional trauma," Dr. Brennan told him.
Beaver cocked an eyebrow. "Funny, Melissa never talks with those big words around me."
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"I don't feel comfortable talking about Beaver," Jackson told Dr. Brennan.
"By revealing his history to me, you're not betraying his trust," Dr. Brennan reminded Jackson gently.
"Yeah, but if you're asking me about him that means that he hasn't told you himself," Jackson said with a shrug. "I don't want to tell what doesn't need to be told before he does."
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"I don't know his history," Taylor admitted. "He grew up in the same conditions as Jackson, I guess. They just act different."
"Different how?" Dr. Brennan asked.
Taylor shrugged uncomfortably. "You've talked to them both. Jackson's quiet, calculative. Even if he doesn't talk, he always seems to be thinking. Beaver is spontaneous, impulsive. He's not very secretive."
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"Beaver gets uncomfortable if you ask him certain questions," Melissa said. "I don't know him very well but I don't need to know every detail about his history. He grew up in foster care because his mom was poor. That's about as much as I know."
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"He's alright, nothing special," Eric revealed.
"Could you elaborate?" Dr. Brennan asked.
"Well, when Jackson came to our school, he was suddenly this big mystery. It took us forever to figure anything out about him. He was so fucking secretive, like he has something to hide." Eric paused until Dr. Brennan stopped writing. "But this Beaver, he's different. He's nonchalant. Like he's seen everything before; like he doesn't really care what people say when he turns around."
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"What about Jackson?" Lex asked, trying to get a clear understanding of the question before he attempted to answer it.
"I am trying to compose an analysis of each individual based on everyone's separate view of each other. What is your view of Jackson?"
Lex thought about it for a minute, letting his mind wrap around the question. "He was the first person to ever listen to me," he told her. "The very first day, before he even knew me or any one else, he listened to me - when even Daley wouldn't. No one's ever ignored my age like he did before. People don't like being showed up by a ten year old, they find it embarrassing but Jackson didn't mind me telling him things - telling him how to do things. He didn't care."
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"He was creepy," Taylor said, thinking back to the first few days on the island. "It was like he lived in this different plane of existence. Nothing any body did seemed to touch him. Until we all started to ignore Lex. Jackson sorta became his spokes person. Which was creepy too."
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"Yeah, I voted for him as leader."
"Why?" Dr. Brennan asked.
Eric shrugged. "Nathan and Daley were getting old. Before this trip they'd been in this campaign for class president. It was like the exact same thing - trivial. Jackson was excluded, from everything. I figured that was the kind of leader you should want."
"An uncaring one?" Dr. Brennan asked.
Eric shook his head. "No. You don't want a Hitler. Jackson stood away from the group but I think out of everyone he was the one that saw every single thing that was happening. He was a freaking plague, refusing to leave you alone for a moment. He was dependable."
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"I think he really felt like he had to prove himself, in the beginning," Nathan said. "When we were running out of food. I admit it, I had to prove myself too. While I went looking for fruits and tropical food, Jackson tried to fish. He delved into it, refusing to quit until he'd caught a fish."
"Did he succeed in fishing?" Dr. Brennan asked.
Nathan nodded. "Yeah. We ate well that night."
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"We've been friends since before I was a foster kid," Beaver said. "We used to go to the same school. We had a friendship that never wavers no matter how much time passes. Before I was taken hostage by Rodney, I hadn't seen Jackson for over a year. But somethings just don't change."
"Jackson hasn't changed?" Dr. Brennan asked.
Beaver shook his head. "Everybody changes, Doc, given enough time and substantial experiences, both of which were afforded to Jackson in insurpassible numbers. Our relationship - it doesn't change."
"How do you build a relationship like the one you two own?" Dr. brennan asked.
Beaver shrugged. "We shared time in juvi hall once. It was my fault but Jackson didn't belly up on me. That experience forced a tone over our friendship for the rest of our lives. What we experienced there, it can never be forgotten. But it was shared together. We bonded through tragedy. We fused ourselves together, hoping that as a whole, we'd somehow survive."
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"Me and Eric were friends when we were younger," Melissa said. "He was an awkward teenager, but he grew out of it. I guess I never did. He grew out of our friendship, and into less pleasant friendships. He wanted a certain image, I guess."
"Who is he now?" Dr. Brennan asked. "To you?"
Melissa thought about it. Who was Eric, deep down? "I think he's a rat, at times," she admitted. "He's sneaky, and selfish. But sometimes, I guess he listens to some voice deep inside of him, because sometimes, he's different. Sometimes he's the Eric I used to know, back when looks and apparances didn't matter so much."
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"When I think of Eric, I think of rat," Nathan said. "Because that's what he is. Self-centered, sneaky, spoiled. There is not enough negative connotations in the english language for Eric."
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"Rat," Daley agreed. "He seemed like such a burden in the beginning. He was always trying to shirk his work. He seemed to want the maximum outcome with the minimum effort."
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Taylor shrugged. "He didn't care a lot, in the beginning. He was always bailing on work, but Daley always singled me out, like I was the only one. I wasn't! Nobody bothered Eric - until they got desperate. It's like people took different routes when we irritated them. They'd ignore Eric, like he was the worst person on Earth and they'd bother me until I did someting."
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"i'm not that bad of a person," Eric told the psychiatrist. "I just don't like doing stupid things for nothing. I hate wasting energy."
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