Odes To Ella.

Chapter 35: Colton Norris.

Clair's P.O.V.

Lola came running in, trailing dirt all over the wooden floor. She was soaking wet and full of dirt.
Derek bent down to her.
"Well, guess who gets a bath now?" He scratched her ears. She wagged her tail and laid down to have her stomach scratched.
Derek looked at me.
"Will you go run some bath water?"
"Yes." I went upstairs and felt the water run on my hand so it wouldn't be too hot. I used to do this when Ella was a baby so she wouldn't burn her mouth when I fed her a bottle.
I smiled to myself and put the bath plug in place.
Derek came into the room with Lola wrapped in a towel. She was moving her feet and trying to lick Derek's face. He smiled and set her down, closing the door behind him.
"This is going to be a little messy, just so you know."
"It's fine." I said and waved a dismissive hand. Lola sniffed my leg and sat down. I patted her head and turned the water off. Derek picked her up and set her in the bathtub. She jumped on the ledge and sniffed Derek's face. He smiled.
"Come here, you hold her and I'll scrub the soap on her."
"Ok." I knelt down and held her by the shoulders while Derek crawled in the tub behind her and scrubbed her whole body with soap. She whined. I set both hands on her face and looked into her eyes.
"Why didn't you just come in when I asked you to?" She whined more and licked my nose. I smiled and kept holding her. Derek took the shower head and sprayed her down, getting water everywhere. Some got on my shirt, which I still wore from the funeral.
I gasped.
"You got water on my shirt!"
"Oh really?" He asked with a smirk. My eyes got wide and I stared at him.
"No, Derek-"
"Too late!" He sprayed me in the face with the water, spewing it everywhere. I jolted back.
He laughed and ran to the door. I got up and hit his arm.
"That wasn't funny!"
"Yes it was!" He laughed. Lola got out and shook herself, getting even more water on the floor. I sighed.
"I need to change before we clean up the mess downstairs and in here." I walked out the door to my suitcase.
"Me too." He said, gestureing to his soaked shirt. He went to the closet. I pointed a finger at him.
"You better stay facing that way."
"I will." He held his hands up. I went back to my suitcase and took out a large white t-shirt I had.
I took off my wet shirt and threw the new one over my head. Since it hung below my butt, I took my skirt off and my tights. I turned around to get some sweatpants when I glimpsed in the corner.
Derek's back was facing me, but his shirt was off. I couldn't help but stare. His skin was oddly tan, his shoulder blades seemed to be perfectly symmetrical.
He turned just enough to see me staring and smirked.
"I thought we weren't looking at each other?"
"I...sorry." I turned back to my corner with sweatpants in hand. My cheeks blushed and made my face hot.
I heard him take footsteps toward me. He set a hands on my shoulders and leaned his forehead against the back of my head.
"It's fine. I peeked too." My eyes widened and I turned to face him. Now he wore a loose red t-shirt. He smirked and left the room.
I smiled widely and put my sweatpants on then walked downstairs.
Derek was on his hands and knees, cleaning the floor. Lola ran to my side and wagged her tail rapidly. I smiled.
"There's the little mess maker. What do you have to say for yourself?" I knelt down. She sniffed my face and licked my nose.
"There's a rag on the counter for you." Derek said. I nodded and grabbed it. We started scrubbing the floors. Derek smirked at me.
"What?" I asked with a frown. He held up the rag, showing me the dirt that was on it. My eyes widened and I shook my head.
"Don't you dare..." But squeazed the water out and flung it at me. It sprayed all over me. I screamed.
"I just changed my clothes!" I threw my rag at him. He laughed.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it." He chuckled to himself.
My cell phone started ringing. I picked it up with a sigh.
"Hello?"
"Hello. Am I speaking with Clair Williams?"
"Yes." I replied.
"This is Colton Norris." He said. I stood up and looked to Derek. I mouthed, 'it's a patient.' He nodded and I walked around the corner.
"Colton? How did you get this number?"
"It was part of my agreement. I wanted my doctor's number so I could call."
"Well, technically speaking I'm not a doctor."
"I know. I just called to ask when our appointment was? I forgot to let my parole officer know."
"I believe it is 9:00 tomorrow morning." I said.
"Ok, I'll see you then." He told me. He hung up. Derek looked to me.
"Trouble?"
"No, I'm getting a new patient tomorrow. He hasn't seen a psychologist." I got my rag and sat back on the floor. He scooted a little.
"What did he do?"
"Patient doctor privilege." I said. He smiled.
"I thought you weren't a doctor?"
"Fine. I can't tell you." I smirked. He sighed.
"Ok, fine, don't tell me." He dipped the rag into the water.
We cleaned everything up and finished by 9:10. I stood up and yawned.
"I'm going to bed."
"Ok. I have some paperwork to do. I'll be up in a while."
"Ok." I walked up the stairs and brushed through my hair. I stared at myself in the mirror.
Maybe you should put on some make up...
For bed?
You would look a lot better...
I shook my head and laid down. I turned on my side. Then my other. I listened to my heartbeat in my ear, then switched sides again. I found myself feeling cold without Derek at my side. Then I found myself waiting for him.
What's taking him so long?
I closed my eyes and tried to focus on keeping them closed, but I couldn't.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, I heard footsteps approach the door. I rolled on my other side so my back faced the door and I pretended to be asleep.
The door opened and he walked inside. He went to the dresser and opened a drawer. I kept my eyes closed to respect his privacy and waited for him to climb into bed. He finally sat down on his end as the bed dipped and lifted the covers up to get under.
When he laid down and put his arm around me, I felt a weight lift from my stomach and I let a breath of relief go. He made me feel secure.
He made me feel safe.

(7:00 the next morning...:)

I opened my eyes and shut the alarm clock off. I made a move to sit up, but Derek had a death grip on my waist. I tried pulling away, but his arm tightened around me. I sighed and rubbed his arm gently.
"Derek."
"Hmm?" He asked in a sleepy voice. I smiled.
"I need to get to work. I think you do too."
"Mmm, just a few more minutes." He said while nuzzling into my hair. I giggled as I got up.
"I'll come get you when I'm done in the bathroom." I grabbed my work clothes and went to the bathroom. After I was dressed, I combed my hair into a ponytail and walked back out. Derek was still asleep.
I sat on his side and set a hand on his shoulder.
"Derek?"
"Hmm?" He asked with his eyes closed. I smiled.
"You have to get up."
"Says who?" He asked while sitting up and rubbing his eyes. I sat back a little and smiled.
"I do."
"Well, then, I suppose I should go." He smiled at me. I nodded and smiled.
"I have to go."
"Ok. Have a good day at work." He told me. I nodded and stood up.
"You too." I walked downstairs to my car.
When I reached the steps of my work building, I saw several of my patients in the waiting room. A manic-depressed woman who had tried to kill herself, a young schizophrenic man who had robbed several stores, and an old man with Alzheimer's who had several speeding tickets.
But I didn't see Colton.
I looked to Addison.
"Has Colton Norris come in?"
"Yes, I sent him to your office." She informed me. I nodded and walked in as briskly as I could. When I opened the door, I saw him sitting in the chair, arms folded and legs crossed. He had jet black hair with a goatee and tan skin. His arms sported two tattoo sleeves.
I went around my desk without breaking stride.
"Hello, you must be Colton. I'm your psychologist, Miss. Williams." I stuck out my hand. He stood up, shook it, and sat down without a word. I took out his file papers from my filing cabnit and patted them on my desk.
"Well, before we begin, do you have any questions?"
"Yeah. How long is this gonna be? I got a job interview." He asked. I smiled.
"Not long at all, I just need to ask you some questions so I can start making your profile. It should only be an hour or so."
"Cool." He nodded. I sighed and flipped to my pamphlet.
"Ok, I'm going to ask you some questions, just answer as honestly as possible."
"Ok." He nodded without a smile.
"How old are you?"
"26."
"Would you say that you feel rehabilitated?"
"Rehabilitated?" He laughed and shook his head. I frowned.
"So that's a no?"
"I'd say I've learned how to be decent." He said. I nodded and scribbled it down. We finished his psychological evaluation and he left shortly after. We had no problems, but I found that odd.
I called detective Reeves. When he answered, I cleared my throat.
"Hey, it's Clair Williams. Colton Norris just finished his appointment with me."
"How was it?"
"Normal. Nothing seemed out of place." I explained. I could almost hear his frown.
"That sounds fishy."
"I know." I said while hugging myself. He sighed.
"Well, call me after his next appointment and clue me in, ok?"
"Ok, I will."
"Ok, bye."
"Bye." I hung up and sighed.
The rest of my day went with little trouble. I talked to my patients about their problems, I wrote profiles, and at 5:00, I left.
I couldn't stop thinking about Colton.
Was he supposed to be that calm?
My phone began to ring.
"Hello?"
"Hi, I'm at the store with Ella, is there anything special you want for dinner?" Derek asked. I smiled to myself.
"Whatever Ella wants, I guess."
"Ok. Ella wants chicken noodle soup."
"Perfect." I said.
"Alright. See you at the house."
"Bye." I hung up and walked to the car. When I reached the car, I went to get my keys, but they fell out of my hand and onto the ground. I sighed and started bending down, but a hand reached out and picked them up for me. I looked up and saw an old man in a black jacket with greying black hair.
He smiled to me as I stood up.
"Thank you. I'm just clumsey today."
"No problem." He laughed and handed me the keys. I looked at him again.
"You look familiar. Have we met?"
"I don't recall." He shrugged. I stared for a few more minutes, then remembered the photos from Colton's file.
"You're Colton Norris's father." I said. The light from his eyes faded and his smile disappeared.
"How do you know my son?"
"I'm his psychologist."
"He ain't never agreed to see any psychologist." His father said. I shrugged.
"It was part of his plea deal to get out early."
"He's gonna be set free?" His father asked. I could see the pain in his eyes.
"If he can pass all the evaluations and appointments without showing any dangerous behavior, then yes." I explained.
He nodded, then took a slight step closer.
"Please, for my wife's sake, don't let that kid out. He ain't ready." And he walked away.

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Hope you liked it, enjoy the next one, bye! C:.