The Things You Don't Know
Chapter Six
I shot up from the bed in a cold sweat. I felt a warm hand on
mine and looked to my left to see and man and a boy. The boy held
my hand. He had jet black hair and blue eyes so bright they would
put the stars to shame.
I furrowed my eyebrows at him, trying to
remember why he's so familiar. The man next to him smiled and
used a black pen to write something on a clipboard.
I looked down in confusion and saw a
white bed with a gray sheet over my legs. I saw a bluish dress in
place of my clothes. Just then I realized the pounding in my
head, reached up, and touched a bandage instead of my hair. Then
it hit me. I looked over at the boy and whispered,
"Matt?"
He smiled and said, "Emily.
You're awake and functional today."
"What is that supposed to
mean?" I scowled at him.
The man answered me. "Emily,
you're at the hospital. Matt here and I have come every day
for almost a year now. Usually you stay asleep, but there are
days like today we get to speak to you.
Your mother abused you for years,
correct? Why?"
"W-well, my father left and my
brother died."
"No, Emily. Your father used to
beat all three of you. By the time we got to your house to take
you away, it had already started."
"What had?"
"Well, you pass out and have
dreams. Dreams that never happened. And in these dreams, you see
through many points of view, don't you?"
"Y-yeah? How do you know all of
this?"
"We've spoken other times when
you've woken up, and every time we talk you told a different
story with different people. But Emily, you have a very rare case
of multiple-personality disorder. Your mind creates these dreams
to cope with your life, rather than keep you awake and turn you
into many people."
"I d-don't
understand."
"You are you in these dreams.
Abused, insecure, and always scared, especially at your locker.
That is because the last thing you saw as the real you was your
school locker.
Your father was supposedly dropping off
your lunch one day about a year ago. He went off on you and beat
you unconscious. Nobody saw because your locker is so far from
the classrooms. And all those people you are and that you
see in your dreams are all parts of you. They developed
after that scene."
"S-so... Katy, Lucy, Julie,
they're all, me?..."
"Yes. Katy is your thirst for
revenge against your father. Lucy is the child you were before
you were beaten, but she's also the little bit of
innocence you still have. She's the nosy child who had to pay
for the consequences of snooping around outside of her own
business. Julie is your undying need for someone to listen. For
someone to understand and just be there for you. James is a
reminder of your father, because he hurt you in a way that can
never be reversed or forgotten. And finally, Matt here is your
escape. He allows you to forget it all for a while and still have
somebody left to love and who loves you back. Who loves you no
matter what."
"But, so, I-I'm just stuck here
in a mental ward? For the rest of my life? Doomed to have these
terrible nightmares forever?"
"Emily, you need to be here. The
nurses and assistants are what keep you alive. Without them
feeding and tending to you, you'd be dead."
This is too much. Nobody deserves to
worry over me.
Just do it! Tell 'em to pull the
plug!
But I can't. I want to live!
No I don't. This isn't worth
it!
I freaked out inside and started rolling
around on the bed screaming and crying. I really just wanted to
die.
Nurse after nurse came running in, and I
heard him say, "it's time."
I felt cold hands go around my wrists
and ankles, holding me down as best as they could while I
thrashed around, desperately trying to escape the grips for four
large men.
The needle shined bright in the lights
above, and I felt the sharp pinch. My head started to
reel. I relaxed, closed my eyes, and everything began to
slowly fade away.
And the last thing I remember is the
warm familiar touch of his lips on mine.
