Knots

"The Calm."

14. "The Calm."

"Guilt is cancer. Guilt will confine you, torture you, destroy you as an artist. It's a black wall. It's a thief."
-Dave Grohl

September 6th

9:00 A.M

GRACE YOUNG

Grace clung to the tiny frame of her storage locker, trying her best to keep the composure she could only barely recall before she'd lost it. She was almost a thousand percent sure that she was taking the bombing a bit too hard, even Doctor Avery had brought it up, but that didn't stop her from feeling as if she'd done something wrong. Today didn't seem as though the odds were stacked up in her favor, but she was desperate to prove herself wrong.

"Having another episode Young? Might want to start stealing some of the good stuff around here to calm you down," she heard a familiar, and annoying voice comment from behind her.

Slowly, she unhinged her death grip of the metal, indents present along her palms, and was greeted by no other than Phil Novak when she finally turned around.

"You've got some fucking nerve Novak, I ought to turn you in just for suggesting it."

"But what kind of person would that make you Young? Would you really make an innocent man lose his only source of income? Something tells me the guilt would eat you alive."

Almost instantaneously, she lunged forward, only to jerk herself back into a resting position upon realizing that this was exactly what he wanted.

"You're pathetic Phil, you destroy everything you touch, and soon enough Avery's going to see just what type of person you really are." With that, she made her way past him, body settling in the archway before she turned back for one final retort.

"You know, of all the people who could've thrown themselves on that bomb I wish it had been you. Then at least I would know that you aren't entirely a monster."

"I'm not," Phil noted, "You should ask Thomas who the monster is. I believe you'd be surprised at how similar it may sound compared to another one of your friends."

"This conversation is over, have a great fucking day ass hat."

Grace finally made her way out of the locker room and down the hall towards the array of elevators. Scooping up her chart, and saying hello to a handful of nurses, she was certain nothing else could ruin her day. She stopped at the elevator doors, pressed the up arrow, and quickly went over her duties aloud.

"Check up on Jane Doe, run a few scans of Mister Rogers, follow up appointment on Char-"

The elevator door's annoying chime caused Grace to lose her place as she made a wild dash in to make sure she wasn't late. She paid little mind to the other occupants around her as he's pressed the number four and the elevator door closing button simultaneously.

As soon as the doors closed, she exhaled a sigh of relief and allowed herself to be lost in the cheesy elevator music and bystander conversation.

"Mommy," she made out a high tone murmuring from a few feet away, "I thought the nice doctor lady said I was all better?"

At this point, Grace felt uncomfortable, as if she were intruding on something; and went back to examining her chart.

Check up on Jane Doe.

"Oh, you'll be okay sweetheart, the doctor just has to perform a little more magic," the child's mother responded.

Perform a few scans on Mr. Rogers.