Duskwood - Choose or Lose

Chapter 11

Jake POV

After my neck wound healed, I was taken to the mental hospital. I was taken by an ambulance because the doctors wanted to make sure I got there. I was a danger to myself. When all the forms were filled out and all daily appointments were discussed, I was taken to my room. A nurse came into my room and explained to me that I was entitled to a leave of absence, but unfortunately, I was not allowed to leave the premises. I was only allowed to move around the premises with supervision.

I asked her if she was responsible for me, and she gave me a puzzled look. "Is there something bothering you about me?" she asked in a compassionate voice.

"You look so much like my fiancée, the red hair and the blue eyes. I'm here to heal, right?"

"Oh, my dear, I don't have red hair and I don't have blue eyes," she said and suddenly I saw that she had light brown hair and brown eyes. "You miss her terribly, don't you?"

I just nodded and realized I'm in the right place. My psyche is anything but healthy. I saw Ruby everywhere I looked, but how am I supposed to talk about her death without mentioning that she's a witch? The nurse pulled me out of my thoughts, "I'm sorry, but we have a heating failure at the moment. If you get too cold, don't hesitate to let me know."

I grinned and nodded to her in confirmation, "Thanks, I will."

She said goodbye and left my room. I smiled, luckily, I had Ruby's powers. I will never get cold. I looked around the room and was more than happy that the rooms didn't look like they do in horror movies. The walls were painted a light peach color with a window framed in white. A light wood bed with white hospital linens and a few extra pillows. A small bedside table in the same wood as the bed with a lamp on it and a drawer for my valuables. A wooden table with two chairs for visitors and a white wardrobe. Two pictures with forest photographs hung on the walls and a calendar hung on the headboard wall. Despite the bars on my window, I had a beautiful view of the forest.

I sat on the bed and looked out the window. My heart skipped a beat when I suddenly saw a red-haired woman running out of the woods. She was covered in blood and limping. I recognized her immediately, I wanted to open the window, but I couldn't. I banged on the window and yelled her name, "Ruby! I'm going to get help!"

When I turned around there was a doctor in my room, I pulled his hand towards the window and pointed to the woman. His eyes widened, he saw her too! He cleared his throat and looked at me worriedly, "There's no woman there. It's just a deer."

I looked at the window again, "No, she was standing there! I... Tell me, am I going crazy?"

"No, I just wanted to let you know why you're here. Tell you what's going on with you."

I nodded to tell him to continue. "You suffered trauma watching your fiancée die. You will speak to a psychologist starting tomorrow and he will help you to live normally again," he explained.

"But I want my normal life back with Ruby. I want her back here, I don't want to feel this emptiness inside me anymore," I started to cry.

"This is why you are here, we want to help you. We don't want you to forget Ruby, but you need to process the trauma."

"Okay," I whispered. I wiped the tears from my face, and he left my room.

I sat on the bed and didn't know what to do. No cell phone, no computer, no TV, no music. I couldn't even open my window to just listen to nature. I was completely cut off from the outside world and I wasn't allowed to have visitors for a week.