𝐙𝐄𝐑𝐎 - 𝟎𝟎𝟏 𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐅𝐈𝐂 ✔️

005

Papa calls you into his office the next day. You make your way slowly but surely down the uniform hallways, in a uniform of your own. The designated hospital gowns. 

"How are we today, 000?" he asks when he sees you peer through the door. He was polishing the small frame on his desk with a cloth.

"Alright," you say, heading to the small chair across from him. "Am I in trouble?" 

He places the frame on his desk, scooching it slightly until it's exactly the way it had been before. "Why no! No, not at all!" 

You release a sigh of relief. "Oh."

"Have you been getting into trouble lately?" he asked, suspicion rising in his tone.

"No, I was just asking," you mumble. 

Papa smiles. "That's good, then." 

Your sit down, letting your legs hang off the tall chair. Papa had long legs, so everything else around him was big. You thought your little growth spurt might have fixed that. It didn't. 

He rests his chin on folded hands. "So, 000..."

"Is this about 001?" you ask because if it was, you most certainly did not want to be here. 

He frowns and brushes the thought away. "My hair will fall out if I think about that boy 24/7," he says, "This is about you." 

Your eyebrows raise. This had come out of the blue. He notices the emotions flowing across your face and smiles. "Your mental health is important too," he says. "How have you been feeling lately?"

You shrug, still surprised at this unexpected meeting. "Fine." 

"Well, what does that mean?" 

"I'm still in one piece," you chuckle. 

He chuckles with you. "That's good to hear." 

He picks up a pencil and jots a few things down on a sheet of paper. He loved his data. Nothing he ever said went unrecorded. "Have you had any night terrors?" he asks. 

You shake your head. "No." 

"Violent thoughts?" he pushes. 

You shake your head again. "No." 

"Depressive episodes?" 

You bite your lip and hope he doesn't look up from the notebook. Your expression would be sure to give it away. Occasionally. You want to say.

"No," you say instead. 

"Alright," Papa murmurs, finishing up his last note before he looks up again. "How have your lessons been going? I apologize for my absence." 

He'd missed the past week. And the week before that. You think he could try a little harder than that, but you hide the thought. "They're good. I haven't had any blockages lately." 

"Perfect," he sings. "That's great to hear." 

"But is it normal for my nose to bleed?" 

Papa waves it off. "Oh yes, that's common."

"Okay," you breathe, "then I think I'm good." 

"Excellent," Papa says, "I think you're in top-notch shape." 

You smile, happy that he was content with your answers. Your beaming eyes wander to the shiny glass of lollipops on his desk. They were behind the photo frame. When you look back at him he's already grinning at you.

"Go ahead," he notions. "Take one."

You're smiling so hard you can feel the happiness radiating off of it. Papa rarely let you and the other children eat candy, so you took whatever you could get. You reach over for a pink one, your quick haste knocks over the photo frame in the process. Two parents and a young girl look up at you. 

"Oh!" You start, "I'm so sorry," you set the photo back up, not bothering to look at it much longer. 

"It's fine, don't worry," Papa ensures, "Go play now." 

You nod and turn for the door, closing it tightly as you leave. The crinkling of the candy wrapper only excites you for the treat. Your mind does cartwheels as the sugar touches your tongue. As expected, it was delicious. You couldn't wait for the sugar rush that was sure to come. 

You head back for the rainbow room, still a bit embarrassed at the frame you'd just knocked over. But there was something weird about the photo. You'd only looked at it for a second, but something was off. 

There were two parents in the photo, you had thought. One was clearly Papa, you'd recognize his looming stature anywhere. Next to him, was a woman you didn't quite recognize. But the woman was holding a young child, practically a baby.

And the baby, you thought, had looked a lot like you.