Chapter 2

"Name?"

"Claudia Glenn Donovan."

"Age, Miss Claudia?"

"Twenty." I was starting to get annoyed.

"It says here that you're depressed and you self harm. Is this true?"

"Yes." I say through gritted teeth.

"Alright. Please follow Claire and Nicole and we'll get you settled in." she pointed to two young girls by the door. I stood up and followed them. They took me down a hall to a room. I knew the routine.

Strip down. Don't feel unconcious. Give all sharp objects. Let them touch your scars. Don't resist. Put your clothes back on. Put your bracelet on. Wait for your room.

That's where I am now. Waiting for someone to send me to my room. My safe haven for the next... Week, according to my bracelet. A week away from the warehouse and artifacts and the grief and Pete and Myka and Artie and Leena and Mrs. Fredrick and...

"Claudia!" a voice yells. My head snaps up and my alert-ness snaps into gear. My eyes fall on Alicia bouncing her way to me.

"Alicia. Hey," I say.

"I know where your room is! Do you have your stuff?" she says in a sing-song voice.

"Uh, yeah. Let's go." I grab my duffel from under my seat and stand. She chuckles and waves her real hand, signifying me to follow her. I blush and jump into a step.

"Don't be so jumpy, Claudia. Just relax and enjoy your stay. Besides, we're going to be ROOM MATES!" She clapped her hands. I stopped in my tracks.

"How did you..." I wiggled my fingers in the direction of her prostetic arm and raised an eyebrow.

"Technology, nowadays. It's marvelous. The wires and cords on the prostetic can connect to my nerves and stuff in my arm. I can move the arm only by thinking. I'm Cyborg One!" she says with a laugh.

"And your stilts?"

"Velocity springs! I love them. I can jump an eight foot high hurdle. New record! And I can do front flips and land in the extact place I was standing. Are you coming or what?" she says. She was so happy, it almost made me sick.

"Uh, yeah! Sorry. I'm still trying to catch my bearings." I say with a small chuckle.

"Nah. Don't worry about it. That's why we're all here, isn't it? To catch our bearings and not fall? Trust me. Everyone that's here has been there before. Even me." she grins.

"So deep." I say as she pulls back on the door handle. She opens it and laughs.

"Come on in. Your bed is the one with the red sheets. I'm the orange. Welcome home. Well, home for the time being." I walk in and I'm instantly hit by a rush of warmth and a calming feeling.

"What the..."

"I know. I did some research. Warm colors calm the mind and the nerves. Considering that fact I don't have many nerves left, what I do have left get pretty torn up some times."

"Your room. Its-"

"Ours. Its our room, Claudia. Get used to calling it that, hon, 'cause thats what it is." I drop my bag on my bed and turn to look at Alicia. Her smile is warmer than the room. I dont know what compells me to do it, but I walk over and throw my arms around Alicia's neck.

"Thank you, Alicia. Gah, this past month has been so rough and I thought all of the sun and happiness left and now I'm here and I met you and the suns back. Thank you so much." I started sobbing into her shoulder. She lifts up her arms and rubs my back in circles like how Steve did. Oh Steve... Just thinking of him made me sob harder.

"Oh, Claudia. What's broken you so much?" she pulled me away and led me to her bed. We sat down and hugged each other again.

I started crying and sobbing and that led to bawling and that almost led to screaming. I stopped at mid-meltdown. It stopped because Alicia laid down and laid my head on her chest. She stroked my hair and rubbed my back. It was so soothing. When my crying began to go into meltdown-mode, she'd hold me tight to her chest. We did this for what felt like forever until my eyes dried and I was just shaking and it was 10 o'clock.

"I'm tired." I say quietly.

"Of course. You wanna stay here or go to your bed?"

"Can I stay here? I have a feeling my dreams with be rough."

"Of course. Get into what you want to wear to bed. I have to take my prostetics off." we both got out of bed. I unzipped my duffel and pulled out a T-shirt and some sport shorts. When I turned around, Alicia was sitting on the edge of the bed, tearing some velcro from the tops of her stilts. She looked like she was struggling.

"Need some help with those?"

"Yes, please. They normally aren't that hard to get off but my arms been kinda glitchy recently." I walk over and kneel down in front of her stilts. I try to delicately undo the velcro.

"I remember the last time I was in this postition." Alicia says.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I was being discharged from the hospital almost three years ago. I was given these stilts. The moment I stood up, I fell down and almost went unconcious. The look my mother had was ridiculous. So full of hate. And my siblings... Goodness. Asher and Calix couldnt stop laughing. Devon was probably too high to pay attention. And Eliza was just plain scared."

"What about your father?"

"He... wasn't there." she looked down.

"Where was he?"

"Being cremated."

"Oh. I'm really sorry."

"It's alright." I was done taking the stilts off. I slid them under her bed.

"Ready for bed?" I ask.

"Yep." She undid the arm by herself pretty easily and she slid under her covers.

"I can take a look at your arm tomorrow. I'm pretty good with technology and stuff." I say as I get in next to her.

"Okay. Good night, Claudia."

"Good night, Alicia."

X.X.X.(-Alicia-)

I wake up to the feeling of someone poking me in the side of the head. My eyes twitch open and I look at the clock. It's 3 a.m.

"Who the hell just woke me up so freaking early? I swear..." I rub my eyes and squirm to get up. Claudia was curled up next to me.

"Miss Graceman." I jump and see a lady with a beehive and a pink dress suit.

"Where'd you come from?" I ask.

"Through a door." she says with a sassy attitude.

"What door? Our door? You can't say a door. It just implies-"

"Nobody has ever caught that before. Congratulations."

"Thanks?" I say in a more questioning tone.

"My name is Mrs. Fredrick. Claudia works for me."

"What do she work as?"

"That's for her to tell you if she would like. Not me. I have a message for you though: Stay away from Miss Donovan. Being involved with her is dangerous."

"Stay away from her? Ma'am, I dont think I could if I tried. She's so broken and I want to help her and even though I just met her, I practically love her!" I slap my hand over my mouth.

"I understand. But, please, Miss Graceman, take precaution. And, before I leave, one more thing."

"Yes, ma'am?"

"When do you get released?"

"I don't know. I'm more of a resident than in-patient. I've been here for almost two years. My mom couldn't fund for a handicapped child, stoner kid, model, twins who practically don't go to school, and a high-lined fashion freak. That's a tough payment, and I'm pretty sure you don't really care." I say with a chuckle.

"Actually, Miss Graceman, I do care. Thank you for your time." and almost immediatly, I curled back up into my sleep ball and let Claudia become the big spoon. She did it perfectly.