The Green House

i. Asja

00

2017[age 18]

Ajsa

Pronunciation: Ajsa (eye-ZUH)

It's been four days since I noticed that my ring had gone missing. I numbly ran my finger over the small indentation on the base of my pointer finger where it once sat. My short hair tickled the base of my neck as I scratched the area with annoyance. I looked at the plain white walls that were slightly yellowing at the corners. I put my shoes together and stretched my legs from the bed I sat on.

My right hand rested on the metal wire frame holding the mattress as I glanced at the small glass window on the door separating me from the others.

"How are you today Ajsa?" The woman who resembled more of a bear than she did a person questioned me as her thick unplucked eyebrow was raised. Her hair was teased to frame her face unnaturally and simply unflattering for her. Her wide composition made it hard for her to sit on one chair as she was half dangling off of the edge so she usually kept our sessions short. Today was different though, my room didn't have a clock but I could tell she was here for more than needed. I didn't like different.

"I'm okay, I didn't really like today's lunch though" I picked at the white hem of my long shirt that was more of a dress on my now thin figure.

"What didn't you like about it?" Her head slightly shook as her heavy earrings jingled. They looked nice but highly uncomfortable as they looked like they weighed a lot. I unconsciously touched my naked earlobe and wished to have earrings.

"It was soggy. It's always soggy" I shrugged my shoulders and let my upper body fall behind me as half of my body was sprawled out on the bed and my legs dangled off. My body thumped hard against the thin mattress and a little air was knocked out of me but I refused to let my feelings of discomfort show.

She must have noticed my tensed shoulders as I dug my back into the mattress and asked if I was okay for the third time today.

"Yes." I sharply answered and she knew she had asked a little too much. I could tell her distaste for my simple answers as she sighed heavily as if I just told her someone died. I heard her papers shuffling "Can you at least tell my something about your past? I know as little as the police know"

"Then you know more than most." My voice was clipped as I responded whilst looking at my ceiling.

The chair she was sitting on scraped against the floor and put up against the wall, I had made her angry. The door closed. I sighed in relief.

"She's gone" I reassured myself, I slowly lunged my body forwards and looked around the small room. I was right. The only thing she left to show her presence in the room were scuff marks from the chair she dragged. I subconsciously ran my foot over the black like tar marks on the pristine white floor. Although she was quite annoying I wanted her to come back and ask me questions. I wanted someone to talk to because that was the first time in a long time I've heard my voice.

I shook my head in denial. She's annoying I wouldn't want her back. I paced the room as I made sure to avoid the scuff marks on the floor. I knew the janitor wouldn't clean these up until late tomorrow morning, my hands itched to clean them myself but I had nothing in this room but the same exact outfits in my dresser. I dove for the little makeshift desk and rummaged through the drawers, taking out a stack of white post-its I crouched and covered the black marks. Although you can tell there's something underneath the post-its; it put me at ease.

Putting the post-its back I glanced out the little window once again. The woman stood outside watching me with a grim expression she shook her head in disapproval and I could almost hear her "tsking" from here even though the room was soundproof. I hugged my sides and went to go sit back down on the bed.

Half of me prayed for her to walk in here and continue talking to me-because it was one of the first civilized conversations I've had since I got here-but the other half wanted her to walk her bear ass down the hallway and never come back.

She turned herself around slowly and walked down the hallway. I was slightly disappointed but I just continued to stare out the little window.

There was a room opposite of mine, a schizophrenic girl named Darce stayed there, the woman always had rumors and stories she told me about the others. She was a little older than me I supposed. I only saw her once because she refuses to come out of her room but when I pass by for lunch I hear her laughing wildly from her open door. She was tall, a little too tall as it made her proportions weirdly look unnatural. Her once long black hair was shaved off like everyone else's when she first arrived but instead of letting it grow out she kept asking for it to be shaved. She said she can hear the voices better that way. She was starkly skinny, everyone here was, but she refused to eat so she got tube-fed.

I went over to the little window and tried to open the door but the woman locked it tight. I watched Darce from my window as I looked into hers. She was just standing there a few feet away from the door spinning in circles. She suddenly stopped like she knew I was looking at her. Her eyes met mine and I noticed she had blue eyes. I smiled to be nice and shyly waved at her maybe she would become friends with me and Slate. Slate was on a different floor but he'd sneak out and alway sit with me at lunch.

Her mouth opened like a trash can and I saw her tongue flop frantically in her mouth. I thought she was showing me something but when her hands held her head I knew she was screaming. I shouldn't have done that. I quickly went to the corner of my room and sat down with my knees pressed up against my chest. I guess she didn't want to be friends. That's okay.