John woke the next morning with a crink in his back and a splitting headache. He rubbed at his face and found traces of tears and sighed. He must have had one of his dreams again without realizing it. Sighing he got out of bed, used the bathroom and then figured he might as well wonder out of his room and see what he could see.

What he could see wasn't very much. The main parts of the ward were still dimly lit which told him it was much earlier than he expected. Groaning he went to the nurses' station to figure out the time since he couldn't find a clock anywhere. When he was about to knock on the glass to ask the time he noticed a clock on the wall and it read 6:45am. This wasn't as bad as he expected so he decided to knock after all and figure out what he was supposed to do. He planned on being the model patient and follow all the rules even if that meant staying in his small room for the next hour or so.

A young male nurse answered his knock with a smile. "Hello there, you must be John."

"I am." John replied with a nod. "Sorry to bother you but I wanted to make sure it was okay if I'm out here since it's early."

The nurse smiled even more, "You're fine John. We have books and magazines and coloring pages if you like that sort of thing."

John had to wonder if the nurse should be a patient with how fast he talked but he didn't say that of course. It was then John thought of something. "Do you have something for a headache?"

"Of course." The nurse said. "I will get right on that."

"Thank you," John moved away from the window and headed over to where the magazines and things were kept. He wasn't sure how he was supposed to read in the dim lighting but he didn't complain just sat in one of the reclining chairs and waited for his pain medicine.

At around 7:30am more action began on the ward. John deducted that the day orderlies and nurses had arrived and were receiving reports from the night staff. At about this same time John saw his first fellow patient a young woman who appeared to be in her early twenties. She walked right over to him which he found rather unnerving but didn't say anything.

"Hello I'm Jennifer, who are you?" The young woman questioned her blue eyes full of curiosity.

John wanted to chuckle but didn't instead he introduced himself and started up a conversation with the younger woman. "I'm John, how are you doing this morning Jennifer?"

Jennifer was rather shocked John was speaking with her but quickly recovered and began talking all about a dream she had earlier that morning. As they talked a nurse came walking in their direction with a little paper pill cup and gave John a smile.

"Good morning John, I'm Sandra and I have some medication for a headache if you would still like it." a middle aged nurse said still all smiles. John realized that everybody around this place was all smiles. Normally he wouldn't mind that but when feeling so low himself it was kind of annoying to see others so upbeat. But then again nobody would really want a cranky nurse or orderly member, especially in a mental hospital.

"John?"

"Hmm?" John shook out of his thoughts a bit disoriented. "Yes?"

"Would you like the medication for your headache?"

John simply nodded his head and took the pills before turning back to Jennifer who was looking at him curiously.

"Why you here?" The young woman questioned.

John sighed, "I have depression, my best mate died last year, guess I haven't gotten on too well since then." He hated bringing up what brought him there but he also didn't want to upset Jennifer. He got a feeling she could be interesting if upset.

"I see…I'm bulimic." She told him after a second of silence, something John was mostly enjoying. His head was still pounding, but he again was trying to be nice. "I'm sorry to hear that." He replied to her admission.

Jennifer shrugged, "Is what it is I suppose."

"Jennifer you have a phone call." An orderly said from the other side of the room.

She actually squealed and ran off in the other direction leaving John alone again for a second at least.

The time didn't last because a minute later (or less) an orderly came walking over and sat down next to him. "Good morning, I'm Hank." The aging man told John. "I will be one orderlies working with you until around 3pm."

"Okay." John said and tried to smile politely "Nice to meet you Hank." He glanced down the hallway that held to bedrooms curious what interesting person he would meet next. His curiosity must have shown on his face because Hank chuckled.

"Everybody else should be waking up in a few minutes. Breakfast should be here in 20."

The thought of food made John's stomach roll but he smiled and nodded anyway.

"Hey Hank!" A middle aged man said as he walked up to John and Hank, butting into their conversation which John was okay with quite frankly. The man looked at John and raised an eyebrow. "Are you a patient or a doctor?"

"Both." Both John and Hank said causing everybody to laugh despite themselves.

"I'm a doctor but a patient right now." John tried to explain. He didn't add that he hadn't been practicing medicine since HE died and the depression had started year ago.

"I see." The man said and held out his hand. "I'm Charlie."

John shook the outstretched hand, "Hi Charlie, I'm John." He really hoped he could remember names but was thankful there must only be 4 other people to remember if there was 5 rooms on the ward and he was included in that 5.

Before breakfast Charlie proceeded to tell John his whole life story, which sounded rather rough and extremely annoying to John but he figured that was because now that his head was feeling better his stomach was waking up and the prospect of breakfast actually sounded good to him for once. BUT the doctor in him listened intently to what the man had to say.

From the sounds of it Charlie had been in and out of hospital since he was a boy due to developmental delays and problem behaviors due to that. John cringed a bit when he mentioned disrobing and getting in fights. That was all John did NOT need was to get in a fight but knowing his temperament at times if Charlie started something than John would finish it and he knew that about himself.

"Come on Charlie let John relax a little this is his first morning with us." Hank said rolling his eyes and mouthing 'I'm sorry' to John for Charlie spilling his guts to John so early in the morning and so quickly after meeting him.

John shrugged his shoulders and again was about to say something when he had somebody shyly come up to him. This was another young woman who looked awful in John's mind. It wasn't that she wasn't beautiful because she was she just looked very, very sad. "Hello." He said to her since all she was doing was looking at him and actually from a slight distance which was different compared to the other two people he met that morning.

"That is Tasha she doesn't talk much." Hank explained when the woman didn't say anything to him. "Very sweet girl though if you can get her talking."

For some reason John could tell what Hank said to be true and nodded his head in understanding.

Breakfast came and went and was a pretty calm experience. Jennifer of course ate her food but disappeared quickly, orderlies having to deal with that. Charlies continued to talk John's ear off and Tasha quietly ate her food, but ate all of it so John ruled out an eating disorder for her. It was halfway through breakfast when there was a commotion down the hall.

"I'm not hungry I don't want to eat." Came a man's deep baritone voice.

John froze with his spoon of cooked oats halfway to his mouth, he knew that voice but now had to believe his depression had gotten so bad he was hallucinating.

"John?" Hank questioned when he saw the look of pure horror cross John's face and the cooked oats dripping onto his scrub top. "John what's wrong?"

Just then the source of the voice made himself known by storming into the eating area, his robe blowing behind him. "I'm not going to eat." He told Hank as he sat down at the table, arms crossed over his head.

"No."

Hank turned back to John and seriously thought the other man was going to be sick. "John…mate do you need to go lie down for a bit you look ill."

John shook his head in the negative as he stared across the table at the man he was sure had died. There was no way in God's green earth that he was sitting across from him. It all had to be in his mind. "You're not real."

This caught the man, Sherlock's, attention and it was his turn to look across the table with wide eyes and going even more pail than normal. "J…John?"

"Sherlock?"