Catastrophe

Chapter Four

Raven

This was ridiculous. I had a tour to plan, band mates to talk to, songs to practice, a boyfriend to face fuck and friends to catch up with, yet here I lay in a pure white room being monitored by drug specialists and doctors. I was forced to keep a constant IV drip and forced to eat three times a day. I wasn't allowed to go anywhere or do anything except group counseling and 'safe' art projects. Sharp objects were a no, drugs another no, cigarettes weren't allowed either, and alcohol was a major nope. I was in rehab, marked as a 'severe' case. These idiots wanted to cure not only my dependence on cocaine, but my need for any drug or drink that could alter my mind and the personal body issues I apparently had. Why couldn't they see I was fine? All I needed was my friends and Kyley.

A knock at the door had me raising my eyebrow. I had been here about three weeks and no one here ever knocked on the door before entering. "Uh... It's open I guess?"

"Stanley Marsh?" A man in his late twenties walked in, his eyes on a clipboard. He was short, about 5'2, with thin red hair pulled back in a creeper styled neck level ponytail. His beady green eyes were hidden behind thick round glasses. He was skeletally thin and had large buck teeth. His pale skin was thickly saturated with freckles and scars from intense acne. Adult braces flashed in the light as he spoke. He was dressed in a white button up and a pair of khaki slacks with flip flops throwing off the flow of his professional outfit. His right earlobe was pierced, most likely an attempt to connect with the kids under his care. A hemp rope belt was tied around his waist and a dirt colored messenger bag lay against his hip. A Rolex and a gold necklace with a large cross were the icing on this horribly dressed cake. I felt myself sigh.

"I go by Raven, please don't use my dead name. It makes my depression worse." I spoke quietly. I was trying to cooperate with these assholes. I wanted to go home, and the quickest route there was to play nice and do as they say. "What can I do for you?"

"My name is Harold Rileish, you can call me Harry, I am your new one on one counselor. I was hired specifically to work with you." The man sighed as if he were annoyed by that.

"No offense, Mr. Rileish, but why does that seem to chafe your balls?" I asked, sitting up to face the man before me. "I don't know you, how can I have already pissed you off?"

"Oh!" The man dropped the clipboard in surprise as I blinked lazily at him. He looked like a nerdy, loser-ish man, but there were things about him that reminded me of Sheila. His accent and his eyes were the main things that brought this thought to life. "No, wait, that's not... Oh shit... I so do not want to do this."

"Dude, take a breath, calm down and tell me what's going on. You're more distressed than I am right now. So, what's up?" I watched the internal struggle within the man's green eyes. He was really not okay right this moment. "Harold? Harry? Whatever you want to be called?"

"Look, kid, it's not you. I just hadn't realized when I agreed to take this job for my cousin that he wouldn't be the cousin I knew growing up. I'm not trying to put that stress on you, but since he won't go back to the moral compass I knew him to be before this until you return to your old self, I guess I was letting my frustrations out on you without noticing. Sorry."

"Moral compass, old self," I looked at the man once again. "If it weren't for the cross on your chain, I'd have thought you were talking about Kyley-B."

"He never did have much creativity with names. I mean, the Human-Kite? What nonsense."

"Oh so you are Kyley's cousin. How is he?"

"Working two jobs and doing school on top of that. He's determined to fill his bank account and pay off that stupid car he impulse bought before graduation. The house he got is decked out in Raven's Reapers gear and a crap ton of Gothic items he seems positive you will love. He's been up his ma's ass trying to get info on you and plan a wedding. He seems really distressed that you're still in here and that no one's giving him any information. You haven't been an easy case for this place."