Take it Slow (Bananun)

Chapter 1

"Get me the hell out of here !" Lana screamed.

Three days had elapsed since her admission at the Briarcliff madhouse, and she hadn't left her bed since. It wasn't like she could : her arms and legs were strapped to it. All she was able to do was shout and desperately struggle against the straps, needless to say, that none of her attempts had been effective.

"Mrs. Winters, you shall not pronounce this word so naturally !" She heard a sweet and shy voice as the door opened and a sister entered the room. Lana immediately recognized her : she was the one she had met in the woods, before breaking in the asylum : Mary-Eunice. She seemed pretty goofy, but nice as well, which made her the "most standable" person in the staff. It was obvious that she lacked self-confidence, and Lana guessed that her authority was often broken by rebellious patients.

"What word ? Hell ? It's where I'm supposed to go, after all, so what's the matter ?" The reporter ironically retorted.

The sister shook her head, and placed the plate she was carrying on the nightstand, before unstrapping Lana's arms. "Please, I know you have no reason to be kept here, but unfortunately, you are. Trust me, you don't want to fluster Sister Jude." She sounded unsure, Lana felt it. The reporter calmed herself a little, unwilling to take her anger out on the poor nun. Mary-Eunice handed the plate to Lana. "There. You must be starving." She smiled gently before walking out of the room. "I'll come to take the plate in half an hour, enjoy your meal." She informed Lana, still smiling through the little hatch of the door.

The reporter sighed, and stirred the food with her fork. It wasn't appetizing at all, but it was the first meal she was having since her arrival in this hellhole. She tasted the muck : it wasn't this bad. She ate it all, and enjoyed every single mouthful she took. She put the plate back on the nightstand, and then hesitated whether she was going to try and take a look around, or stay in her bed, in order not to lead Sister Mary-Eunice, who was the only one being nice to her, to problems.

"Screw this." She thought, choosing an option which would be beneficial for both of them : unstrapping herself from the bed, but only to take a little walk around her bedroom, and stretch her numb legs. She revitalized her limbs for a moment, and didn't stop when hearing the door being opened.

"Mrs. Winters, you-" Lana cut off the nun before she could finish her sentence.

"I'm sorry I left my bed, but I really needed to stretch, sister. It's not like I had left my room and wandered down the corridors, is it ?" She offered Mary-Eunice an innocent smile, and the nun laughed slightly.

"You're right. But if Sister Jude had entered this room, instead of me, you would already be in her office, bare buttocks, getting whipped." She was amused and pleased by the reporter's kindness. After all, if she had let another patient in their room, the door unlocked, they would probably have fled before she had come back. And then, she would have been the one getting her ass whipped in Jude's office. "Thank you for staying here, though. How was the meal ?" She sweetly asked.

"Well, it wasn't too bad, considering it's hospital food. You really should give the courses some shape, though, because muck has never been, and will never be appealing." She solemnly declared.

"Unfortunately, we're obliged to serve your food like this, it's a health measure." Mary-Eunice shrugged. "You'll have to do with it." She took the plate back.

"But I'm not a patient here ! Well, not a real patient, I mean, I'm not crazy ! Couldn't I have real food ?" The reporter queried.

"You may not be crazy, yet, you're sick, Mrs. Winters. Homosexuality is a mental disease, deviance from God's path, that we treat here, just as we treat insane people. Actually, your journey here may be an opportunity to cure your illness, to get rid of it. Don't you agree ?" She was so innocent, that these words, which would have normally driven Lana mad, almost convinced her.

"I'm sorry, sister, but you won't change me. I was born this way, too bad you're uncapable of understanding it." She was speaking politely, but Mary-Eunice felt that her words had hurt the reporter, and even pissed her off a little. She decided not to answer, and got out of the room, locking it, this time.

"Have a nice day, Mrs. Winters." the nun walked away quietly, picking up the other patients' platters, before going back to the business she had to attend to.

"This is going to be so long..." Lana sighed.

Was she ever going to get out of this place ?

-

Hi !

How do you think Lana and Mary's relationship is going to evolve ?

There're gonna be long and short chapters, and this is a short one.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed !

xoxo,

-A.