Smile (Ashton Irwin || A.u) *discontinued*

Chapter 4

|| Everybody Hurts - R.E.M ||

A few weeks later...

Alicia laid on her small uncomfortable bed as she waited for the nurses to come and give her medication.

After Alicia had confessed to Shannon, Shannon rang up a doctor and booked Alicia an appointment. The doctor then transferred her to a rehab, and she had spent the last 3 weeks in her small bedroom.

Her "bedroom" was a cold white with bare walls and a hard cardboard bed. There was a door at the front of her room that she had access to whenever she needed to. Across from her room in the hallway was the public toilet, where most people smuggle drugs in.

She hasn't done that yet.

One of the nice nurses knocked on her ajar door, and after Alicia yelled acceptance, she entered holding a tray of pills and needles.

"Morning Alicia, how are you feeling today?" The nurse set the tray down on the chest of draws that housed Alicia's clothes.

"Fine. Ill be better when I get out of here." Alicia sat up as the nurse brung 2 needles and a cup of pills. The needles were injected into Alicia's neck and the pills were taken orally.

" I know sweetie. Did I tell you? There's a new arrival. Male. Australian. Kinda cute." The nurse smiled and raised her eyebrows as Alicia drank from a bottle of water.

" I don't care Linda. When have you seem me talk to anyone other than you?" Nurse Linda's face softened as she placed the empty needles and cups on the tray.

Linda stood up and shut the door. She looked at Alicia and took a seat on the corner of her bed.

"Look hunnie, your not supposed to know this, but the other nurses are getting more and more worried about you. Just make friends with this one person and maybe they will back of a smudge." Linda grabbed Alicia's hand as Alicia looked down at the floor.

"Linda I don't want to. I can't. The people here are insane. I'm not like them you know that. I can't smile and pretend like its all ok because it's not." Alicia drunk the last of her water and excused herself to go to the bathroom.

She left her bedroom and walked across the hallway to the toilet that all the girls had to share. The smell stung her eyes but her nose adjusted. She walked into a small cubicle, sat on the toilet and cried.

After around 10 minutes of crying, she heard the stall door open, meaning that someone had entered. She stood up and wiped her eyes, preparing herself for a speechless encounter.

She flushed the chain and walked out to wash her hands just as another patient walked in. Alicia didn't know her name, but she knew that the patient was a drug addict.

The patient smiled at Alicia as Alicia dried her hands. Alicia saw the smile, but she had no response. She didn't smile. She simply dried her hands and left.

Her room door was fully open and there was no sign of Linda, so Alicia walked to the cafeteria in hope of finding a snack.

She walked down the hallway and through the double doors that led into the small cafeteria.

Considering that this rehab house 80 patients, the cafeteria was fairly small. There was a food bar to the left of the double doors and tables and chairs to the right.

Alicia turned left and walked up to the door bar and grabbed two breakfast bars and a sandwich. She glanced around the cafeteria in hope for an empty table. Luckily there was one empty table next to a boy with sandy coloured curls.

Alicia didn't recognise the boy and by process of elimination she came to the conclusion that he was the new arrival.

She walked towards the table opening her sandwich and sat down. She saw Linda pointing at the guy mouthing the words "new boy".

New boy, Alicia thought. Maybe he deserves a chance?