The Secrets of Hellingly (boyxboy)

Chapter 6 - Hopeless Cases

A/N: Thank you for all your support on this book. It really does keep me writing it. Here's a nice long chapter for you guys. 

As Felix’s depression lessened over the next few weeks, Vinnie’s increased. Felix was spending more and more time with Adam, which was cheering him up significantly. One Saturday morning there was a tap on Vinnie and Felix’s door. The nurses don’t force the boys to attend activities on Saturdays so Felix was curious as to who it was. He put down the book he was reading, and called “come in!” to the person on the other side of the door.

A woman with bleach blonde hair, a tight pencil skirt and a polka dot blouse entered the room. “I’m Vincent’s mom. I have the correct room, right?”

Felix nodded. “I’m his roommate Felix. He’s still sleeping.”

The woman smiled and Felix noticed how much she looked like her son. She walked over to Felix and shook his hand. “I’m Veronica,” she said.

“Veronica and Vincent. Cute.” Felix smiled.

Veronica shrugged. “Sons are named after their fathers all the time. I thought it was similar to mine.”

Felix nodded. “I’ll wake him up for you.” He grabbed a pillow and threw it at Vinnie. “Wake up, your mom is visiting!”

The sleeping Vinnie groaned and rolled onto his back. “I just want to sleep forever.”

“Vincent, up! Get up. I’ve come to visit and I can’t stay for very long.” Veronica’s heels click clacked around the room as she retrieved a chair and dragged it to Vinnie’s bedside.

Vinnie sat up and rubbed his eyes. “I always tell people you named me after Vincent Van Gogh, because of my colourful nature,” he said groggily.

Veronica sat down on the chair. “Well, your hair didn’t come out looking like that when you were born. In fact you were the baldest baby there ever was,” she said.

“Shhh, mom, that was a secret,” Vinnie joked, looking over at Felix who had resumed reading his book.

“I brought you some more hair dye, but just don’t tell the nurses. I know they don’t like toxic chemicals around.” Veronica opened her purse and took out four small boxes of different colours of hair dye and put them on Vinnie’s night table.

“I won’t tell,” Vinnie said. Then his voice lowered to a whisper and he leaned towards his mother. “Mom, can you get me out of this place? Can I go home?” he pleaded. His eyes were wide and glassy.

Veronica didn’t know what to say. Her mouth became a straight line. “You know I can’t do that, honey. The doctors say you aren’t better. Your councillor says you’re still having bad thoughts.”

Vinnie lay back against his pillows and pulled his sheet up. He refused to look his mother in the eyes. “Of course you’d say that. Those doctors don’t know shit. I haven’t told them anything.”

“They know more than you think, Vincent.” Veronica crossed her legs and sat up a little straighter. “They told me you were in one of your bad spells,” she said. Vinnie didn’t reply. She gripped the arms of the chair harder. Her manicured nails dug into the white paint covering the chair. “Vincent, look at me,” she said calmly. Vinnie looked up at his mother for a moment and then looked back down at the sheet covering his legs. “It hurts me to see you like this, but I couldn’t deal with it on my own. You needed help. That’s all there is to it.”

Vinnie raised his eyebrows. “It hurts you? That’s rich. I always thought you loved having a messed up kid. That way those sexy doctors pay more attention to you.”