A Blue Reality

Goodbyes and Hellos

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"I've never been the favorite,
thought I'd seen it all
'Til I got my invitation to the lunatic ball
And my friends are comin' too
On a ship of fools
Don't worry, it's all just a symptom
Of being human." — Shinedown, A Symptom Of Being Human

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Alina Freeze erupted into tears.

The three adults in the room startled at Alina's outburst. Taken aback by her unexpected display of tears, they didn't know what to make of her sudden sobs, and at first, were silently confused as to why she was so upset about hearing such wonderful news. They had all hoped she'd take great delight in learning she'd been hand-chosen to be the lucky child in Blue Health's research.

Mrs. Lavender's smile slipped, her face becoming puzzled with concern. She quickly glanced down at the white paper on her desk, pursing her lips together. Had she said something wrong?

Miss Jeanette, at the sight of Alina's tears, felt her heart drop. She snatched a handful of tissues that were sat near the corner of the desk, standing up before the crying child. Her face was stretched with worry. Kindly, she tried calling her name.

Mr. Walker quickly came around behind the chair to crouch in front of Alina. He saw the flood of tears pour and stain her beautiful face, a terrible sight that made something squeeze within his chest.

He didn't need her to say why she was crying.

He already knew why, already had the two culprits to blame and put behind bars in his mind.

"Alina, honey," he said softly, hoping she'd hear him through her tears.

"I-I— I can't!"

A piece of his heart broke at her exclamation. He knew she couldn't deal with whatever was happening, but it wasn't the survey she was sobbing so violently over. No, that was probably the very last thing she was crying about. However, to prove his suspicions correct, he needed to hear a verbal confirmation.

"Alina, sweetie. What happened?"

Alina shook her head at his question, firmly pressing the palms of her hands against her closed eyelids. Her body trembled as she sobbed. Miss Jeanette tried handing her a tissue, but she ignored her, blind and lost to her tears.

Mrs. Lavender asked if she should gave them some space. She left the office when Mr. Walker nodded quickly.

For the next few minutes, the room was filled with broken sobs and hiccups. Alina, between tears and sniffles, tried explaining why she was falling apart, but Miss Jeanette, rubbing her back comfortingly, told her it was okay to just cry. Let it out, she soothed. It's okay to cry. Her crying worsened, and she began to hyperventilate, her breathing and speech becoming more difficult. Mr. Walker watched heavy-hearted, saying nothing as she shattered.

It wasn't easy for him to see, a sight he should've been familiar with seeing, but wasn't. He cared deeply for Alina, and he hated with a passion the living hell her world was slowly becoming. If he ever laid eyes on her parents, he'd have nothing pretty to say to them. You have an amazing child you're failing, he'd probably say. Or, had. Whatever happened last night had been Alina's final straw.

Hopefully, Blue Health could help her now and give her the care she deserved and so desperately needed.

Eventually, her crying began to settle. Miss Jeanette encouraged her to focus and take a few deep breaths.