Ain't No Mountain High Enough

"Paradise City"

It was a short trip to the building where everything went down. I was glad for that since I hate riding in the car, but I also wished it could have been longer to keep me away from this place for just a bit longer. But maybe I should've just wanted to get this over with as fast as possible?

It was a little white building with a big sign in the front which read Mental Wellness Counseling Center. Geez, what was I doing?! My hands were shaking as Arjun pushed my wheelchair through the parking lot, up a ramp, and towards the glass doors.

"I don't think I want to do this," I said in a quiet voice, though I was ready to start screaming if I needed to do that. Geez, I'm such a chicken.

"We're here, and your appointment is in five minutes," Arjun said in a deadpan voice. He left the handles of my wheelchair to hold the door open for me.

A tiny bit of stubbornness welled up in me, and I almost thought to not go inside. He could hold the door open for as long as he wanted, but I wouldn't go in. But reason overwhelmed the stubborn side of me, and with a sigh, I wheeled myself inside.

The air was cool inside and smelled like mint. Blue chairs were situated along the walls with matching blue rugs on the wooden floors. Plants were everywhere— and I mean everywhere. Tiny succulents were on tables, the front desk, and even hanging from the ceiling. Larger plants sat in corners and by the doors. I thought that perhaps they were there to be calming... Well, they weren't helping.

"Can I help you?" a lady at the desk asked, and snapped me out of my thoughts.

"Oh...yeah." My voice cracked and made me wince, but I wheeled up to the desk and tried to look confident. "My name's Randall Riggs...I...ah...have an appointment for today." Wow, that was smooth, me.

The lady just smiled and started typing stuff into her computer. When she looked back at me, she said, "All right Mr. Riggs, we'll call you when Charlotte is ready to see you."

I swallowed. "Um...okay." I thanked her, then Arjun pushed my wheelchair over to a row of blue chairs. He took a seat next to me.

"Sorry you have to waste a day on this," I said, sighing.

He just shrugged. His indifference was starting to get on my nerves, but how could I complain when he was nice enough to be my chauffeur even when he was clearly not having a good time? "Don't have anything better to do," he mumbled. His hand briefly touched the bruise on his cheek, then he looked away.

I fought back the urge to ask him what happened again. If he wouldn't tell me at home, he really wouldn't tell me out in public. But by now I was starting to get worried about him. He'd been in plenty of fights before, and his how-many-days-can-Arjun- stay-angry record hadn't been broken yet (the record is nineteen days, just so you know). But his list of people to be mad at apparently contained his mother, and I couldn't remember a time where that was a thing.

All too soon, my attention span was broken when a gray door opened up on the other side of the room and a lady stepped out to inform me that this Charlotte lady was ready to see me. My stomach did somersaults as Arjun wheeled me through the doorway, down a dimly lit hall, and into a tiny room with a bunch of mental health awareness posters all over the place. There was a couch against one wall, and an armchair in the middle of the room facing it. In the armchair, the woman I assumed to be Charlotte Henderson sat with a notepad in hand.

She smiled. "You must be Mr. Riggs," she said, standing. She extended her hand to me, and I almost froze right there on the spot. What was I, a little kid about to get a shot at the doctor's office?

"Um...yeah, that's me," I said as I forced myself to take her hand and shake it. I hoped she didn't catch the quiver in my voice. But heck, maybe she was used to freaked out people like me...maybe she was used to worse.

"Please, make yourself at home!" She brushed her long blonde hair over her shoulder, then said hello to Arjun. "Sir, will you be staying here?"

Arjun and I exchanged glances. I couldn't tell if he wanted to stay or not, but I knew he would if I asked him. But man...telling my woes to a stranger was bad enough. I didn't think I could do it with Arjun there the whole time. I mean, he might spill everything to Ms. Harlow, and she'd never leave me alone for the rest of my life! It was probably illegal to spill information shared in this room, though...I didn't know how it all worked.

I wet my lips and shook my head. "No...he doesn't have to stay," I said.

Arjun nodded once. "I'll be out here," he mumbled. He nodded an acknowledgement to Charlotte, then headed out the door. The lady that brought us here shut it behind her once she was gone, too.

And just like that, I was in the one situation I had been avoiding for months; alone in a room with a stranger, about to tell her everything that was a jumbled up mess in my mind.

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After a small break, I have returned! Thank you so much for reading and keeping up with this story! Please be sure to comment and vote!

Listen to "Paradise City" by Guns 'N Roses!

Peace✌️~ A.J.