It was ten o'clock at night, and everyone in Briarcliff was quietly sleeping. The hallways and rooms were in immense silence, giving the impression that the place was abandoned. Although judging the appearance of the establishment, it was desert in some way. Sister Jude was very strict with the schedule. She always forced her residents to sleep at very early hours. Everyone was used to this, except someone who still couldn't fall asleep. Lana Winters.

She used to work late in her office, so sleeping eight hours was a luxury she couldn't afford. But now that she was in Briarcliff, she had all the time in the world to sleep. Of course, the first night, she couldn't sleep. She didn't know if it was because of the screams, the cold room, or the fact that she missed the warmth of Wendy's body. Wendy, Lana always dreamed of her. But it wasn't beautiful dreams that she had. It was quite the opposite. They were complete nightmares. They started on the first night of her stay in the asylum and stayed with her until now. And the worst part is that it was the same nightmare as always: Wendy locking her in Briarcliff, abandoning her to her fate and then leaving with another woman. The dream wasn't that far from Lana's reality, except for the part of Wendy abandoning her for another woman. That was Lana's constant fear. The fear that Wendy would completely forget about her. She tried to convince herself that something like that would never happen, but the light of hope in her heart was vanishing with every day that passed.

Those horrible thoughts invaded her a lot at night. She could barely sleep. But that didn't matter much to her. It's not like she had to do something productive during the day. After all, three weeks of her life were wasted kneading bread in Briarcliff's kitchens. Spending time in the kitchen made Lana realize that cooking wasn't one of her best skills and could never be. Lana was always lousy at cooking. Wendy was the kitchen specialist. Every night, Wendy would make dinner while Lana sat down to write for her little column in the newspaper. It was the perfect life for them. A breeze passed under the door making Lana shiver and turn herself in a fetal position. The thin, dirty blanket on her bed didn't protect her at all from the cold October weather. It was always doing cold in the asylum, especially during the night. Lana couldn't imagine the cold she'd make at the place when the harsh winter came and prayed she wouldn't stay locked up by that time. Lana closed her eyes tightly and tried to imagine herself with Wendy, safe in the warmth of her home. But the simple image of her lover caused a small tear to fall through her eye. Lana wasn't a woman who cried often. She was strong. But anyone sane would lose their mind in a place like this. And she felt that every day that passed she was losing her mind. She recited poems daily in her cell until she was speechless, hoping it would help her stay sane until she left. After crying for a while on silence, she decided to get up and walk for a bit around the room. Walking helped her a lot. It allowed her to clear her mind.

The silence in the asylum broke when a little giggle resounded in the hallway. Lana stopped walking, doubtful of what she had heard. Has her mind already begun to rave? as if someone heard her question, the giggle sounded louder again. No, she wasn't crazy. It was someone. She hurriedly approached the door grille, peeking out as best she could. At that moment, her eyes widened to the fullest. Pepper was there, smiling at her from across the door. Lana licked her lips and quickly formulated her words.

"Pepper!"

Pepper smiled at her in a creepy way and approached the door. "What are you doing here? How did you escape?" Lana thought it was totally illogical. How could a woman, completely out of her mind, escape from her cell and not she who "had all her wires" connected?

"Pepper wants to play with Lana Banana"

Lana tried to be as quiet as posibble and whispered "Can you get me out of here?"

It took Pepper a few seconds to understand Lana's words and she nodded. She took out of her cardigan pocket a small hair clip and and put it on the lock. Lana watched in astonishment as the woman moved the clip until she heard the glorious "click" Pepper grabbed the knob and opened the door, which creaked at the rudeness with which the woman opened it.

Maybe it was a dream, Lana thought. A very strange dream. But much better than her daily nightmares.

Lana watched both sides of the hall. There was no sign of any guard or nun out there. It was her opportunity.

She heard footsteps and turned around. Pepper left the hall, oblivious that Lana was still standing there. One side of Lana told her to follow her, but her other strong and more reasonable side suggested to go the other way. Without giving second thougths, Lana ran towards the end of the hall. She sketched a little smile. She was making it. She was escaping. Just before she turned the corner, a figure crossed her path. Both Lana and her heart stopped in a millisecond. Frank, the guard, was there. He was walking while holding a tiny cup of coffee that almost fell out of his hands when he saw Lana. He frowned, clearly annoyed.

"What are you doing out of your cell?" he asked as he grabbed what looked like a black nightstick. Usually, Lana would quickly invent a lie, but her brain seemed to have stopped.

"I... uhm"

"Miss Winters." They both turned around and saw a little-known figure for Lana coming down the hall. He was a tall man, much taller than Frank and Wool. He had dark hair and brown eyes hidden behind dark glasses. He dressed elegantly; white shirt, striped tie and dress trousers. He was a very handsome man. Of course Lana didn't recognize him well, she had seen him few times in the asylum, but still, any familiar face or not, was welcomed for her to save her from this situation.

"Dr. Thredson. What are you doing here?" Frank asked, somewhat bewildered.

"Sister Jude allowed me to spend the night here in the rain" Lana felt like a complete idiot. She had completely forgotten that a terrible rain got announced for this week. If Frank didn't catch her, the muddy roads probably would have. Frank grabbed Lana by the arm very tight, trying to prove his authority to the doctor.

"I found this patient out of her bed." Oliver layed his curious eyes on Lana, who looked at him begging for his help. The doctor quickly captured her message and turned back to Frank.

"Miss Winters didn't feel very well. I took her out of her cell to make sure she was alright. I hope she didn't cause you any trouble." Frank lowered his air of superiority and looked at Oliver, not knowing what to say.

"Oh. I didn't know, Doctor. I apologize for this misunderstanding."

The guard let go of Lana's arm, totally embarrassed. "It's all right, Frank. Don't worry. I'll take care of it from here." Oliver came closer and patted Frank's shoulder. "Go get some rest. I know you're working hard."

Frank laughed. "That's right, goodnight, Doc. " he said as he returned to where he came from.

"Goodnight, Frank." Oliver made sure they were alone and looked at Lana. His look didn't say much to Lana. It wasn't a look that said to her: "You're in trouble", but neither was one to assure him that everything was fine "Come with me to my office"

(...)

It was perhaps about five minutes of total silence in which Oliver led Lana to his office without saying a word to her. During their walk, Lana realized that the asylum was an enormous place, filled of hallways and rooms. Rain was the least of her problems. It probably would have gotten her before she could make it to the exit. Her heart was still beating fast. She was lucky. If it wasn't because of Oliver's meddling, she would have gotten into big trouble. And when she talked about big trouble, she meant Sister Jude and her punishment sticks. Once they arrived, Oliver politely opened the door for her and let her walk in first. It was an office similar to the one of Sister Jude but smaller. It had two large bookshelves on both sides of the worn walls and a desk in the middle. Compared to the other rooms, this one looked pretty decent. Lana quickly noticed the smell of cigarettes in the room. She knew it very well. Her house smelled like nicotine because she smoked like a chimney all day. The scent was so familiar that it transported her back home, calming her heart a little.

Oliver sat in his chair while igniting a cigarette. God, she really missed the bitter taste of a good cigarette that burned her lungs inside. She'd do anything for a single cigarette. Oliver ordered Lana to sit down and she abided by her order, sitting on one of the chairs in front of him.

"What were you doing outside your room, Lana?

"I uhm, I wanted to go to the bathroom." It was a terrible excuse, but she still hoped he'd believe it.

Oliver smiled and put out the cigarette. "You don't have to lie to me. I'm not going to say anything to Sister Jude."

Lana gathered her lips into a straight line and squeezed her resting hands on her lap.

Something about Thredson comforted her quite a bit. She didn't know if it was because of his kind appearance or the fact that he was the first person in that place to treat her like a human being. That motivated her enough to end up confessing her plan.

"I wanted to escape..." She confessed and bowed her head down a little bit.

Oliver was curious. Lana looked like a little girl, totally embarrassed for being caught while trying to steal some cookies from the kitchen.

"You're lucky," he reposed in the chair, "If it had been a nun who found you instead of me, Sister Jude would probably be punishing you now. And we both know she runs this place with an iron hand."

Lana nodded nervously. She had never been punished by Sister Jude before. But she knew that anyone who caused trouble would come back from her office unable to walk. She wasn't afraid of Jude, but Lana didn't want to test her waters either. Especially knowing she has a closet full of wooden sticks.

"I'm not going to say anything to Sister Jude." Lana looked up from the ground and looked at him confused

"You're not?"

Oliver refused while putting the cigarette back in his mouth. "I don't believe in that kind of discipline. It's barbaric and humiliating"

Lana looked at him, without saying a word.

"Besides, you had every right to try to escape. You don't belong here, you're not a harm to society."

She smiled ironically. "You doctors are hypocrites. According to your bible, the book of mental disorders, I'm sick. I have something."

"I think I can help you, and I'd like to try if you let me."

"But I'm not even your patient"

"I see myself reflected in you. You're a smart person, you have something to offer the world"

"And what is that help you want to provide me?"

Oliver put the cigarette in the ashtray. "Therapy."

"Therapy?" Lana's voice trembled as she uttered that word. She wasn't sick. She didn't need any therapy.

Oliver nodded, "If I can get to the root of your problem, maybe we can finish it or at least reduce it and prove you're totally healed. They won't be able to stop you here once you're cured."

Oliver's words were putting together a puzzle in Lana's head. It made sense, but the real problem was that Lana was terrified of the idea of having therapy. She was afraid of everything related to psychologists. When Lana's parents learned about her homosexuality, they sent her to different psychologists and specialists, hoping they would help their daughter. None of those methods worked. Lana was born and was going to die like this. Even though she disliked the idea, it was an opportunity to escape that wouldn't happen twice. She had to accept the offer.

"When can we start the therapy?"

"If you're fully willing, first time in the morning. I'll tell Sister Jude that from now on, you'll be my patient."

Lana nodded and got up from her seat at the same time as Oliver. She started to walk towards the exit. Almost when she reached the doorknob, his voice stopped her. "Lana."

She turned around to face him. "Yes?"

He had some clean blankets on his hands. He approached Lana and handed them to her.

"I know it's cold in the rooms, and I don't want my new patient to get sick, " he smiled.

"Thank you...' whispered Lana.

"I'll walk you to your room. Unless you want to meet Frank again, right?"

Lana shook her head quickly, and he laughed. His laugh was relaxing, and he sounded so happy that it rubbed off a bit of his good humor on Lana. "Alright, let's go."