VALERIE

Fifty Seven

"Valerie, you're going to piss off those bee's and when they fucking sting you I don't want to hear you complain."

Valerie smacked a flower and caused the bees to go rampant, buzzing around her to the point where they began to flock around her almost in a threatening way.

"I like to punish myself sometimes." She called out before turning her body to look at Nick, "You know that." She said with a complacent shrug then went back to smelling the roses in her garden.

Nick swallowed his next words and instead continued to examine Valerie deciding it would be best if he held off on what George wanted him to tell her.

"You know it isn't always going to be like this." Nick said to her,

"Yeah." She replied with a quivering voice,

"So I need you to chill okay?"

Valerie nodded in understanding, "You know what Nick?"

"What?"

Valerie shrugged, "Normal life isn't for everyone."

"Explain?" Nick asked approaching her, both hands in the front pockets of his dark torn jeans.

Valerie turned around, "Well, normal people choose life, it's like mind control."

Valerie grinned before squatting onto the ground, she began to rummage in the rose bushes for something, "From a young age they tell us to go to college, get married, have kids, choose a suburban house, choose to drive a soccer mom car, get a stupid desk job and me and you Nick, we aren't normal. We choose something other than life and thats freedom babe, everything we have is free." She stood up and rushed towards him to wrap him in a huge hug. He frowned, resting his chin on her head as she swayed about happily in his arms.

"Valerie?"

"Yeah?" 

"You need to choose a normal life." Nick gently moved her away from him until they were inches apart.

"Huh?" She questioned in confusion,

"You're sick Valerie and I need to help you."

"I'm confused." She mumbled tucking in a stray piece of hair behind her ear with her hand.

"I know," Nick replied in confusion, he looked past her to avoid looking her straight in the eyes. Taking a deep breath Valerie placed a hand on his forearm and pulled herself against him, he still refused to look at her and instead cleared his throat from the accumulating guilt, "There's a behavioral clinic in Manhattan, and me and your dad both think that um, we both think that it'd be best if you went there."

"Manhattan?" She repeated in bewilderment as she backed away from her boyfriend shyly, "New York Manhattan?"

Nick was now staring at the ground, "Yeah." He answered diligently.

"And you agreed with him?"

Nick nodded.

Valerie scoffed, she placed one hand on her hip and the other she used to rub her temple, "This is fucking with my head big time."

"Look he looked into it, it's a private institution you get your own room, you have one on one's with the doctors, visiting hours are long, there's a specific room for painting they have a large garden filled with roses and hydrangeas you'll love it babe."  Nick tried to reassure his girlfriend who was staring at him as if he had just commited a murder.

He attempted to hug her but she backed away slowly from him, he stopped walking once he noticed this.

"You just want me to leave don't you?" She asked calmly.