Curled Hair, Blue Eyes

Chapter Thirty Five // Group Therapy

- Wyatt's POV - 

I watched Alex leave my house to retrieve Parker so that we could free Maggie from the stoners. Before going to join them I entered the living room to inform my mum on where I was going, she was sitting on the sofa glaring at the wall across the room.

"Mum? I'm going out" I interrupted her intense daydream, she looked up at me and shook her head.

"Not like that, you look a mess! Go change your clothes" She told me while pointing at the holes in my t-shirt, I groaned loudly and stormed out of the living room. 

"I'm going to my group therapy session in ten minutes!" Mum shouted as I stomped my feet while going up the stairs, I entered my bedroom and pulled off my coat and messy tee. My mum hadn't done any washing in over a week and I was running out of things to wear, I began to rummage through the dirty washing to find the cleanest tee. I was instantly worked up because my friends needed me but my mum wouldn't let me leave the house with a few holes in my t-shirt and I couldn't find anything else to wear. I threw dirty laundry across my room in anger and then my bedroom door burst open.

"I'm going out now!" Mum shouted happily, I turned to her and glared angrily.

"I'M FUCKING LOOKING FOR SOME CLOTHES! LEAVE ME BE!" I screamed across the room while waving my arms in the air, mum stared at me in horror and at first I thought it was because of my anger outburst but then I realised it was something much more. I was standing shirtless with my messy arms on full show, she was staring directly at the many cuts covering both of my inner arms.

"Wyatt.. What is that on your arms?" She asked me quietly, her eyes were widened and she was slowly backing out of my bedroom as if she had seen a ghost. 

"N-Nothing" I muttered while crossing my arms and turning away from her, I shut my eyes tightly and silently prayed that this was all a dream. Her footsteps entered the room and she approached me before grabbing my hands and revealing the cuts once again. She gasped and began to cry loudly at the state they were in, I lowered my head and sighed. My mum is already sick enough without me meddling and making it much worse. She let go of me and grabbed a random t-shirt from the dirty pile, she threw it at me and I glanced up at her.

"Put it on, you're coming with me today" She said while continuing to stare at my arms, I put on the tee and held tightly on to the ends of the sleeves. 

"Where?" I asked quietly.

"Group therapy? I've told you I'm going there three times today. Were you ignoring every time?" Mum snapped at me angrily, was she angry because I hurt myself? She exited my bedroom and waited for me to follow her, I didn't want to argue or refuse to go because I knew it would make the situation worse. Of course I didn't want to go but now it seemed I had to. 

I followed her down the stairs as a car horn honked outside the house, mum looked back at me before grabbing my hand and dragging me to the front door.

"Aren't you going to ask me why I did this to myself? Or how I did it or how long for?" I asked her as she locked the front door behind us, she waved to the person in the car who was giving us a lift to the hospital.

"I don't need to ask that because I know all of the answers Wyatt. I was eighteen years old the first time I physically hurt myself and I don't want you to be like me.." Mum said with sadness in her eyes, she took my hand again and we walked to the car waiting for us. I felt sick after her telling me that, am I going to be bipolar when I'm older? Am I bipolar now?! 

We got in the car and the lady greeted my mum, they hugged and she said hello to me before driving off. I had no time to pick up my phone and tell Alex what had happened which meant he and Parker would be expecting me to help them with the Maggie situation. I wasn't nervous about attending the group therapy with my mum, I was mainly in shock because it all happened so fast. 

"Uh, mum? Can I borrow your phone for a second?" I butted into her conversation with her friend, she glanced back at me in the car and nodded before handing the phone over. I typed in Alex's number and left him a message.

"Hey, I can't help you guys anymore and I'm really sorry. My mum needs help getting to her group therapy session so I won't be home for a few hours. Good luck! - Wyatt"

I stared at the phone screen for a while waiting for a reply, which I didn't receive. While waiting I looked through my mums contacts and came across Sadie's number, I raised my eyebrows before typing a message.

"Sadie it's me Wyatt. My mum saw the cuts on my arms and she is forcing me to join her at group therapy, I don't know when I will get home but I need to see you after. I'm terrified.."

The car halted and my head shot up in confusion before I realised we were sitting in the parking spaces of the hospital. Mum glanced back at me and smiled sympathetically, I could feel the nerves kicking in as we got out of the car and approached the entrance. We headed through the busy waiting areas filled with people who were waiting to see a doctor, I stared at them in horror noticing the people covered in blood. We finally arrived at a door which said 'Mental Health' on it, I sighed deeply as my mum opened the door and we walked in. 

There was another waiting room which was also packed, mum sat down on the closest seat to the door and I hurried to get the seat next to her. A nurse entered the waiting room while practically dragging an old woman along the floor, she was crying and screaming as if she didn't want to be here. She was in a hospital gown and her wrinkly skin was covered in bruises. I glanced at my mum in fear and she smiled at me before leaning in closer.

"That's Denise, she lives in the hospital because she is a danger to herself" Mum whispered to me, I looked back at the nurse who was struggling to make Denise take a seat in the waiting room. Her cries for help were drowning out the chit chat of the other people. After the nurse had successfully got Denise into the waiting room a random lady entered with a clipboard in her hand. She began to call out names of random people who would then get up from their seat and enter the room behind her. She called out Denise's name and the nurse had to drag her across the floor once again, I looked away from the scene because it was too upsetting to watch.

"Carrie Miller!" The girl shouted, my mum stood up and so did I. She looked at me and shook her head before telling me to sit down again.

"There is another group therapy in that room over there. It's for anybody to go to who wants to speak about things they are dealing with, you can go to that one. Okay Wyatt?" Mum explained while pointing to another door across the waiting room, I nodded and slowly sat down again. I watched my mum walk away with her friend, that's when I began to freak out. My breathing fell deep and I wanted to run out of the hospital and never return. After the lady had finished calling out the names she entered the room also and shut the door, the waiting room was now silent. I composed myself and got control of my intense breathing before turning around and looking at all of the other people waiting for the group therapy I would be attending. 

There was an old man who had his head buried in a book, a lady with her eyes shut tightly and a sleeping baby in her arms, a guy around my age listening to heavy metal music while aggressively tapping his feet and then.. A girl hiding in the corner of the waiting area. She was intensively focusing on a spot while squinting her eyes, I watched her in confusion for a while. Suddenly she lifted her head and glanced across the room, looking straight at me. I widened my eyes in shock that she actually moved before turning around and avoiding eye contact with her. How awkward..

"Group therapy time guys!" A cheerful old woman shouted as she entered the waiting room, the man sitting behind me groaned as he got up from his seat. I watched everybody entering the room where group therapy would be taking place, the lady stared at me weirdly because I hadn't got up from my seat yet. The mysterious girl from the corner of the room walked passed me and headed inside, I watched her before getting up and going in too.