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What the hell was that all about?
I swear I didn’t sign up for this.
Actually, I guess I did. That’s what contracts are for, right? And yes, I signed the damn thing a couple of weeks ago, but come on universe, cut me some slack. Haven’t I been dealt enough blows lately, and don’t even get me started on…
“Mrs. Jones?” says Dr. Copeland, interrupting the little pity party I currently have going on inside my head. He taps his knuckles twice on the doorframe before he takes a couple of steps inside my fancy new office.
I correct him quickly. “MissJones.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“Jones is my maiden name. I went through a rather ugly divorce a couple of years back. But please, call me Sienna. I insist.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have made assumptions. Divorce can get messy. That’s tough.”
He nods to himself as if he’s caught up in the thought. Maybe he’s trying to figure me out, or maybe he’s trying his best to get inside my head. Don’t bother, Dr. Copeland. The less said on that subject, the better.
“I hope you’ll be happy here,” he continues. “You’ve come to us with an impeccable reputation, and I can’t wait to see what you do with some of our more challenging residents.”
“Mr. Jenkins being one of them?”
“You noticed?”
“Hard not to notice. I’m looking forward to it, though. I appreciate you giving me this job. I can’t tell you how grateful I am. Working closer to home also allows me to spend more time with my brother.”
“That’s nice.”
“He just turned fifteen, so he doesn’t exactly need looking after anymore, but he’s… anyway, being there to help get him ready for school in the mornings and eating dinner together at night will make a nice change.”
“Your parents aren’t around?”
“No, I’m Bailey’s legal guardian. Our father passed away not long after Bailey was born. He had prostate cancer. Our mom died a couple of years ago from a disease you’ll most likely forget the name of the moment I tell you.”
“That’s quite an age gap.”
“Yes, twelve years. I was an only child for a very long time and from what my mom told me, Bailey was a complete surprise. He’s a great kid, though. He loves astronomy, knows everything there is to know about it. You can ask him anything, and he’ll rattle off every fact known to man on the subject. His brain is quite phenomenal.”
Dr. Copeland gives me a knowing smile. “I see.”
“He’s shy, though, not really great with people.”
I get the feeling Dr. Copeland knows things with Bailey go a little deeper than just being shy and not great with people, but thankfully he drops the subject, taking his time looking around the small office.
“Feel free to do whatever you like in here,” he says, rubbing his fingertips over his short mustache. “If you want to change out any of the furniture, the fittings, or the decor, please just go ahead and do so. They had designers come in and redo the place when the last therapist left. She was big into florals.” He shudders dramatically. “Most hideous wallpaper I’ve ever seen, but anyway… I’m really looking forward to seeing what kind of work you can do here, Sienna.” He smiles at me, gives me a quick goodbye, and then turns and leaves the room.
I think I like Dr. Copeland. I could learn a lot from him. He seems so calm and collected, so passive in his approach to his job, and I get to thinking I should really take a page from his book.
But then I remember my first session of the afternoon, and all that benign, sensible, passive bullshit goes flying straight out the window.
Kael Jenkins.Good Lord.
What did I do to deserve this?
Kael
Irefuse to eat lunch today. I’m not hungry. And even if I was hungry, I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction.Thembeing Chad and his posse of beefy sidekicks who seem to find great pleasure in making my life miserable.
After this morning’s altercation, they locked me in my room and told me I was in isolation until further notice.
